Raising household saving: does financial education work?

This article highlights the prevalence and economic outcomes of financial illiteracy among American households, and reviews previous research that examines how improving financial literacy affects household saving. Analysis of the research literature suggests that previous financial literacy efforts have yielded mixed results. Evidence suggests that interventions provided for employees in the workplace have helped increase household saving, but estimates of the magnitude of the impact vary widely. For financial education initiatives targeted to other groups, the evidence is much more ambiguous, suggesting a need for more econometrically rigorous evaluations.     

Comparing the role of personal and organisational support on the innovative behaviour of frontline healthcare workers in Australia and the United States

This paper empirically uses a street-level bureaucrat (SLB) lens to compare the impact of personal and organisational support on the innovative behaviour of frontline healthcare workers in Australia and the United States. Survey data came from the 260 U.S. and 220 Australian respondents. The structural equation model shows that organisational (i.e. manager–subordinate relationships) and personal supports (i.e. psychological capital [PsyCap]) significantly influence the innovative behaviour of frontline SLBs in health care. Further, the mediation results show that reciprocal social exchanges provide the foundations for facilitating the growth of healthcare workers’ PsyCap, which then gives them the resilience to be innovative in the workplace. The U.S. respondents perceived stronger organisational support and consequently had a better platform for building PsyCap – providing better work conditions for facilitating innovative behaviour to bourgeon. The paper adds to SLB theory concerning the influence of two variables on SLBs' innovative behaviour, in addition to a meaningful comparison of the U.S. and Australian healthcare workers. If governments and organisations want innovative workers, then the policies must be based on empirical evidence that shows the impact on all stakeholders, including SLBs, because otherwise, irrespective of policy directives, the outcome is low levels of employee wellbeing (which likely results in limited innovative activity).     

Two kinds of rule regulating human subjects research

Alan Wertheimer argues that before we promulgate some rule regarding the conduct of research on human subjects we ethically ought to consider the consequences of the rule being followed. This ethical requirement has an exception, though, Wertheimer maintains: it doesn''t apply to rules that are not motivated by considerations of outcome. I agree that there is an exception to be made to Wertheimer''s proposed ethical requirement, but not Wertheimer''s exception. The important distinction is not that between rules motivated by considerations of outcome and rules motivated otherwise, but between rules designed to enforce ethics and rules not so designed. Before we promulgate the latter kind of rule, we are ethically required to consider the consequences of doing so. This is not so for the former kind of rule. My exception, unlike Wertheimer''s, yields the conclusion that we should promulgate, regardless of the consequences of doing so, a rule requiring that the potential benefit to the subject of participation in a study outweigh the risks. This rule is motivated by considerations of outcome, so it would land on the wrong side of Wertheimer''s divide. But it''s also designed to enforce ethics, so it lands on the correct side of my divide.     

Trendsetters,Trend Followers,and Individual Players: Obtaining Global Counterterror Actor Types from Proscribed Terror Lists

This article seeks to conceptualize global counterterror actor types by examining the designated terrorist organizations lists of six countries; the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, Russia, and China. It is argued that these countries should be placed into one of three distinct categories: Trendsetters, Trend Followers, and Individual Players. Being able to classify countries according to these categories is important for global policymakers. It raises awareness of the differences between countries, and emphasizes that “one-fits-all” policies are inappropriate and have little chance of achieving global endorsement.     

About Face—the relational dimension in Chinese IR discourse

The preservation of face is an important concept in Chinese behavioral patterns, both at individual and national levels. Beyond national interest considerations, modern-day diplomacy between China and the world also involves substantially the exchange of face. This article will argue that face represents a relational understanding of how China views and interacts with the world. By linking face to three themes that international relations scholars frequently use in describing how China sees the world, namely, the tribute system, the Chinese memory of historical humiliation and China’s distrust of the American-led international system, the article hopes to show how the understanding of face—as a crucial element of Chinese identity—can inform scholars and practitioners in their attempts to engage China.     

Sudden Death by Occult Metastatic Carcinoma

A 33-year-old female collapsed and died suddenly after presenting with acute dyspnea and increasing cough over the preceding several months. Autopsy revealed poorly differentiated linitis plastica adenocarcinoma of the stomach. Microscopic examination of the lungs showed features consistent with pulmonary tumor thrombotic microangiopathy (PTTM). PTTM is a well-described complication in patients with adenocarcinoma. The typical presentation involves acute pulmonary hypertension, right-sided heart failure, and sudden death, often before the adenocarcinoma is discovered. The pathophysiology of PTTM remains elusive; it has been suggested that carcinoma cells may produce substances that influence pulmonary vasculature. Our patient had classic clinical and histologic features of PTTM in addition to prominent extravascular compression by intralymphatic tumor cells. These features undoubtedly caused her precipitous decline and lethal pulmonary hypertension, induced by underlying adenocarcinoma. This case demonstrates that sudden death can occur from pulmonary hypertension induced by metastatic carcinoma with remarkably little prior symptomatology.