Positive Self-Beliefs as a Mediator of the Relationship Between Adolescents’ Sports Participation and Health in Young Adulthood

The present study examined the relationship between participation in sports during adolescence and physical activity and subjective health in young adulthood. A sample of 8,152 (males = 50.8%, females = 49.2%) adolescents from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health were used. Results of the study showed that participating in an organized sport during adolescence was associated with higher levels of physical activity and better subjective health during young adulthood after controlling for participation in general physical activities (e.g., jogging, biking, skateboarding) during adolescence. Participation in sports during adolescence was associated with more positive self-beliefs 1 year later that, in turn, were associated with higher levels of moderate to vigorous physical activity and better subjective health 6 years later. Results suggest that positive self-beliefs partially mediate the relationship between adolescents’ participation in sports and two health outcomes in young adulthood: moderate to vigorous physical activity and subjective health. Findings highlight the utility of youths’ participation in organized sports for promoting healthy outcomes. Implications for policy and practice are discussed.

The choice of part-time employment in the United States and Canada, 1955–2000

Abstract

Part-time employment growth in the United States and Canada followed similar trends between 1955 and 1975, which then diverged when part-time employment (as a percent of total employment) stopped growing in the United States but continued to expand in Canada. This divergence in trend in the latter part of the twentieth century is not adequately explained by labor supply demographics, labor demand factors, or union effects. To the contrary, differences in public policy played a pivotal role in allowing Canadian workers to continue to view the choice of shorter hours as attractive, while US workers faced higher costs when choosing part-time employment.     

起点公平的统计测度与监测预警研究

文章界定了起点公平的内涵,设计了起点公平的评价指标,提出了起点公平的测度方法,构建了起点公平的预警机制。基于1985-2017年31个省份的面板数据,对我国起点公平进行统计测度和监测预警分析。研究结果表明：(1)我国(以及东部、中部与西部三大地区)起点公平度总体上处于比较公平状态,呈现上升趋势,其中就业公平度、公共自然资源公平度与公共基础设施公平度依次处于比较不公平、相对公平和比较公平状态,教育公平度与公共医疗卫生公平度处于非常公平状态;(2)现阶段与未来几年我国及三大地区起点公平度(教育公平度、就业公平度、公共医疗卫生公平度、公共基础设施公平度与公共自然资源公平度)总体上均处于无警状态。这一研究结论提供了重要的政策启示。     

国际法视域下的新冠肺炎疫情应对

受疫情影响的国家和地区根据《国际卫生条例》,应向世界卫生组织通报和共享疾病的信息,并遵守世界卫生组织的临时建议以及世界卫生组织发布的传染病暴发时的应对指南。国际社会在认真考虑世界卫生组织的建议的同时,可根据本国实际情况,采取相应的防疫措施,包括加强对国际旅行的卫生检疫。在境外疫情传播尚未得到有效控制的情况下,我国必须加强边境检疫,防止疫情从境外输入。同时,在没有任何证据表明国际贸易可能导致该病毒的国际传播的情况下,各国不应限制国际贸易。一些国家采取的限制国际运输和贸易的措施没有明确的科学依据。即使在疾病流行期间,任何限制贸易的措施,也必须符合《关税贸易总协定》和《卫生和检疫措施协定》的规定。此次突发公共卫生事件显示有必要加强世界卫生组织在协调和防止新发传染性疾病国际间传播的职能和国家间合作的必要性。     

Technocracy,the market and the governance of England's National Health Service

England's National Health Service, the fifth largest employer in the world, has become heavily influenced by expert authority and the market economy, which has had implications for accountability and the receptiveness of health decisions to stakeholder needs. One response has been the introduction of a range of regulatory provisions designed to facilitate effective governance and stakeholder engagement. These provisions are scrutinized using three conceptual devices: core accountability, social reporting and social learning. These devices have significant implications, as they enable technical experts to form closed communities, communicate among themselves mainly about economic and financial matters, and make decisions that aid the market without meaningful recourse to citizens. While technical experts are necessary to help manage complex areas, current arrangements reinforce an existing gap between economic and democratic values through hardened technocratic approaches to health care governance.     

Crisis,what crisis? A feminist analysis of discourse on masculinities and suicide

High male suicide rates are often constructed as evidence for an apparent ‘crisis of masculinity’. Conversely, ‘crisis of masculinity’ has been used to explain differential rates of male and female suicide in the UK (and elsewhere). We analyse three public cases where male suicide and ‘masculinity-crisis’ discourse are employed together. Our feminist analysis demonstrates that ‘crisis talk’ and male suicide are addressed in divergent ways. We therefore distinguish between ‘progressive’ and ‘conservative’ crisis narratives. Conservative narratives position high male suicide rates as a pernicious outcome of ‘threats’ to traditional gender roles and norms, suggesting the solution is to return to them. Contrastingly, progressive crisis accounts use male suicide to demonstrate that existing gender norms harm men as well as women and argue they should be altered to address male suicide. Conservative narratives often map on to anti-feminist politics, whereas progressive accounts reflect aspects of feminism. There is no neat feminist/anti-feminist distinction, however, as postfeminist ideas are also evident. We argue that, overall, each of the articulations of a ‘crisis of masculinity’ as evidenced by high rates of male suicide reinforces problematic gender politics. Further, in reifying simplistic, dualistic models of gender, they may ultimately constrain efforts to reduce suicide.     

Indian health diplomacy in East Africa: Exploring the potential in pharmaceutical manufacturing

Indian engagement in East Africa’s health sector is multifaceted, comprehensive and involves national and subnational actors. It includes exports of low cost generics, building health infrastructure, aid, technical assistance and hosting medical tourists among others. This paper, based on extensive fieldwork conducted with multiple stakeholders in Kenya and Ethiopia, provides an overview of the various components of India’s co-operation in the East African health sector and identifies pharmaceutical manufacturing as a space for Indian actors to leverage their strengths. It focuses on two case studies of manufacturers: a third-generation company in Kenya owned by members of the Indian diaspora, and a newly formed subsidiary of an Indian corporation in Ethiopia. These case studies inform the larger debate on India’s health diplomacy on the continent and the myriad ways in which the Indian state as well as corporates can enhance existing co-operation.     

On the Rights Protection of Vulnerable Groups Under the Prevention and Control of a Public health Crisis: A Literature Review and Perspective for Future Directions

The legal system for prevention and control of a public health crisis rests on two pillars: human rights protection and good governance. This duality is well illustrated by substantively equal treatment of vulnerable groups in a pandemic from the perspectives of public service, social inclusion, accessible environment, gender equality, and right to health. A review of literature on this topic shows that current research needs to address the gap between “life supremacy” and “equal protection” in the area of human rights protection, and the gap between “putting people first” and “strict control at the grassroots level” in the area of good governance. The research should employ intersectional methodology to highlight the rights logic of the socialist legal system and the key role of the Communist Party of China’s leadership in balancing individual versus community rights, enhancing the governance capability for participation by multiple social agents, ensuring equal protection for disadvantaged groups, promoting inclusive and sustainable development, and realizing the common prosperity of all the people.