Colonial governance in the development of urban primacy

Urbanization increased substantially in developing nations during the middle of the twentieth century. Generalized least squares panel regressions are employed to examine urban primacy in approximately 100 nations from 1930–1980. While the level of urban primacy was not found to be related to colonial status, colonial nations became more primate throughout the 1950–1970 period. Nations that became independent in the 1950s were especially likely to become more primate. When the colonizer utilized “indirect rule” (British) former colonial nations were less likely to become primate, while those employing “direct rule” and assimilationist policies (French, Spanish, Portuguese, Belgian) tended to produce more primate urban hierarchies.     

Stalking on the College Campus: The Influence of Suitable Target and Guardianship Variables on Victimization Comparing Male and Female Students

Current estimates predict that more than 5% of men and 8% women will be stalked at some point in their lifetime, and up to 6% of both men and women will be stalked during their time at college. While variables related to sexual assault have been extensively examined, factors that contribute to stalking and influences specific to university students remain a point of concern for administration and those attending the institution. Using a proportioned stratified sampling technique, this study obtained cross-sectional survey data collected from 873 students at a university in the upper Midwest. Utilizing a routine activity theory theoretical perspective, hierarchical and binary logistic regression are employed to investigate the prevalence of stalking, as well as the influence of individual and campus guardianship variables on the stalking victimization of college students, and an experiential comparison of female and male students. Findings reveal that among the total female student sample, 43% had been stalked at some point in their lifetime, with 13% stalked during their time at the university. Of the male students, 34% had been stalked, with 18% stalked while at the university. Sexual history, year in school, and perceived vulnerability were positive predictors of stalking.     

Reviews and resources

Throes. Conceived and performed by Doorika. The Vineyard Theater, New York City, October 14, 1994.

Visiting Hours. An installation by Bob Flanagan in collaboration with Sherrie Rose. The New Museum of Contemporary Art, New York City, September 23‐December 31, 1994.

‘Aberrant Motion1–4.’ Videos by Cathy Sisler. Available through Groupe Intervention Video, Montreal, Quebec, H2T 1S6. Phone (514) 271–5506; Fax (514) 271–6980.

Converging Realities: Feminism in Australian Theatre by Peta Tait. Currency Press, Sydney, in conjunction with Artmoves, Melbourne, Australia, 1994. Released in the United States by Cambridge University Press, 1994.     

Assessing the “will of the people”: an investigation into town service delivery satisfaction

Abstract: The “will of the people^‘’ is considered to be the highest authority in a democracy and said to be the driving force behind public policies. Yet not many past studies have assessed the level of citizen satisfaction with government services and identified ways of improving service delivery. At a municipal level, there is even less emphasis on measuring consumer satisfaction. This study measures citizens' satisfaction with municipal services in a town in Atlantic Canada. A taxonomy of government services based on user experience with the service and heterogeneity of consumer needs was developed and tested. Results indicate that while consumer satisfaction with municipal services is high, it does vary based on the nature of the service. Some action guidelines are suggested at the end of the paper to improve town service delivery. Sommaire: La «volonté du peuple» est considérée comme étant la plus haute autorité dans une démocratice, et l'on dit même que c'est elle qui est à l'origine des politiques publiques. Pourtant, peu d'études ont examiné le niveau de satisfaction du citoyen en ce qui concerne les services gouvernementaux et ont tenté de cerner les moyens permettant d'améliorer ces services. Au niveau municipal, on fait encore moins d'efforts pour mesurer la satisfaction des consommateurs. La présente étude mesure la satisfaction des citoyens à l'égard des services municipaux dans une ville située dans la région Atlantique du Canada. Une taxonomie des services gouvernementaux basée sur l'expérience des utilisateurs et sur l'hétérogénéité des besoins des consommateurs a été mise au point et testée. Les résultats indiquent que, bien que la satisfaction des consommateurs face aux services municipaux soit élevée, elle varie selon la nature de services. À la fin de l'article, on suggère quelques lignes directrices pour améliorer la prestation de services des villes.     

The Supply of University Enrollments: University Administrators as Utility Maximizing Bureaucrats

The supply of enrollments in higher education has receivedrelatively little attention in both theoretical and empiricaleconomic research. To address this, we formulate and test amodel of the supply of enrollments in higher education inwhich administrators are modeled as utility maximizingbureaucrats. We find evidence that individual presidents andprovosts have a significant effect on enrollment supply andfaculty demand in a panel of eleven public colleges anduniversities in Maryland from 1988 to 1996, implying thatinstitutions have enough market power to permit thepreferences of administrators to influence enrollment supplyand faculty demand.     

Optimal Government Budgeting Contingency Reserve Funds

During recent years, more state and local governments have made provisions in their budgets for establishing and maintaining contingency reserve funds. A recent study by the National Conference of State Legislatures(NCSL) found that over half of all states now have such funds. The basic purpose of these contingency reserve funds, also referred to as "rainy day" funds, is to insulate governmental budgets from unexpected fiscal disruptions brought about by such factors as unanticipated revenue shortfalls and expenditure overruns. What have received less attention, however, are the criteria which governments need to use in deciding whether to establish such contingency reserves in the first place, and if so, how large these reserves should optimally be. This article explores these two issues, using the State of California as an illustrative case study     

Screening for intimate partner violence in orthopedic patients: a comparison of three screening tools

Accurately identifying victims of intimate partner violence (IPV) can be a challenge for clinicians and clinical researchers. Multiple instruments have been developed and validated to identify IPV in patients presenting to health care practitioners, including the Woman Abuse Screening Tool (WAST) and the Partner Violence Screen (PVS). The purpose of the current study is to determine if female patients attending an outpatient orthopaedic fracture clinic who screen positive for IPV using three direct questions (direct questioning) also screen positive on the WAST and PVS. We conducted a prevalence study at two Level I trauma centres to determine the prevalence of IPV in female patients presenting to orthopaedic fracture clinics for treatment of injuries. We used three methods to determine the prevalence of IPV; 1) direct questioning, 2) WAST, and 3) PVS. We compared the prevalence rates across the three screening tools. Ninety-four women screened positive for IPV using any method. The prevalence of IPV was 30.5% when a direct questioning approach was utilized, 12.4% using the WAST, and 9.2% using the PVS. The WAST identified 37.2% (35/94) of the IPV victims detected and the PVS identified 27.7% (53/94) of the IPV victims detected, whereas direct questioning identified 89.4% of the IPV victims. Identification of IPV may be under-estimated by the WAST and PVS screening tools. Our findings suggest direct questioning may increase the frequency of disclosure of IPV among women attending outpatient orthopaedic clinics.     

Psychological Empowerment and the Pursuit of Social Change: Outcomes of Foster Youth Engagement

Youth aging out of foster care are assumed to embody a disempowered group, for whom civic engagement opportunities are rare. Utilizing a targeted initiative, this study explores individual- and community-level outcomes derived from foster youth civic engagement. Data were collected via: (a) interview and survey research with foster youth advisory board leaders; (b) interview and survey research with civic youth workers; and, (c) non-participant observation of five foster youth advisory board meetings. Directed content analysis revealed three emergent themes, which transcended the data inductively (Opportunity through Access; Positive Conceptions of New Jersey's Department of Children and Families; and, Participatory Competence). These themes support and extend our current understanding of empowering outcomes for this population. Implications for research, policy, and practice are discussed.