Juggling Multiple Roles and the Act of Resistance

This article addresses some ways mothers cope with the multiple stresses associated with their dual roles as workers and primary family caregivers. During the often stressful family life-cycle when adolescent children are individuating, a mother's active resistance can call attention to her need for support and validation of her efforts. While both parents are in the process of negotiating the intricate balance between letting go and forming new collaborative relationships with their soon to be adult children, heavy responsibilities associated with the maternal role can be especially challenging. In addition to gender-sensitive family interventions, mutual support groups for women who parent can help explore ways to effectively respond to cross-generational conflicts and problem solving.     

Ethics,AIDS, and community responsibility

In the discussion of the responsibilities of society to the HIV infected and uninfected, a serious question seems to have been left out of the picture: To what extent are people who are not infected, have no special relationship to the infected and have no professional responsibilities for the care of AIDS patients under an obligation to come to the aid of people with the HIV? In this paper, I shall examine our responsibilities, as members of society, for the welfare of others to whom we may or may not have a special relationship. I shall argue that those responsibilities flow from the conditions that structure our transactions with others; conditions that make such transactions possible.     

The Role of Laughter When Discussing Workplace Barriers: Women in Information Technology Jobs

Focus group discussions with 39 women in Information Technology positions in a large company were used to identify the barriers they faced, when group laughter occurred, and which theoretical perspective best explained the group laughter. The barriers mentioned included family responsibilities, politics, stress, discrimination, and the problematic attitudes of upper management, supervisors, and coworkers. Laughter occurred when respondents discussed external clients, internal politics, discrimination, respect, promotions, family responsibilities, gender differences, and when derogatory comments were made or reported. Superiority and incongruity theories were supported.     

The effects of traumatic experiences on the infant–mother relationship in the former war zones of central Mozambique: The case of madzawde in Gorongosa

This article addresses the ways in which years of war and periods of serious drought have affected the cultural representations of the populations in Gorongosa District, Mozambique. In the wake of these events different cultural and historical representations have been disrupted, leaving the members of these communities with fragmented protective and resilience factors to cope effectively. Emphasis is placed on the disruption of madzawde, a mechanism that regulates the relationship between the child (one to two years of life) and the mother, and the family in general. The war, aggravated by famine, prevented the populations from performing this child‐rearing practice. Nearly a decade after the war ended, the posttraumatic effects of this disruption are still being observed both by traditional healers and health‐care workers at the district hospital. The results suggest that this disruption is affecting and compromising the development of the child and the physical and psychological health of the mother. An in‐depth understanding of this level of trauma and posttraumatic effects is instrumental in making a culturally sensitive diagnosis and in developing effective intervention strategies based on local knowledge that has not been entirely lost but is nonetheless being questioned. ©2003 Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health.     

Ups and Downs in Auditory Development: Preschoolers’ Sensitivity to Pitch Contour and Timbre

Much research has explored developing sound representations in language, but less work addresses developing representations of other sound patterns. This study examined preschool children's musical representations using two different tasks: discrimination and sound–picture association. Melodic contour—a musically relevant property—and instrumental timbre, which is (arguably) less musically relevant, were tested. In Experiment 1, children failed to associate cartoon characters to melodies with maximally different pitch contours, with no advantage for melody preexposure. Experiment 2 also used different‐contour melodies and found good discrimination, whereas association was at chance. Experiment 3 replicated Experiment 2, but with a large timbre change instead of a contour change. Here, discrimination and association were both excellent. Preschool‐aged children may have stronger or more durable representations of timbre than contour, particularly in more difficult tasks. Reasons for weaker association of contour than timbre information are discussed, along with implications for auditory development.     

歧视知觉的影响效应及其机制

近年来,歧视研究领域中的"强势心理学"现象开始减弱,研究者们逐渐重视弱势群体自身对于歧视现象的知觉与反应.本文在整合歧视知觉相关领域研究成果的基础上,首先就歧视知觉的概念内涵、测量进行阐述;继而从"风险"与"弹性"两个方面,分别探讨歧视知觉的消极影响效应与间接性的积极影响效应;最后从整合的视角,对歧视知觉影响效应的内在机制——拒绝认同理论进行讨论.未来歧视知觉领域的研究将会进一步细化群体成员资格;重视考察个体和群体歧视知觉的作用差异;加强探讨个体水平的中介变量的作用;更多关注儿童群体的歧视知觉问题.     

“Sandwiched generation” couples: A cross-cultural,cross-gender comparison

Maintaining a job while managing family responsibilities has become a major issue for much of today's workforce. Working couples who care both for dependent children and aging parents constitute a fast growing and understudied group called “the sandwiched generation.” Because of their multiple roles, these workers tend to be highly stressed and likely to have burnouts. The article presents the results of an exploratory study that compared 40 Israeli “sandwiched generation” couples living on a kibbutz, 80 Israeli couples living in small towns and 75 American men and women. The methodology involved a self-report questionnaire that included measures of social support, work–family conflict (WFC) and burnout. The findings revealed both cross-cultural and cross-gender differences: Americans reported higher WFC than Israelis whereas Israelis reported higher family–work conflict (FWC) than Americans. In addition, men received more support from their spouse than women with both work and family problems, Israelis received more help from their spouse with both home and work problems than Americans, and Israeli kibbutz members received more help from their spouse with both home and work problems than Israeli city dwellers. Support from the spouse for both work and home problems was found to be negatively correlated with burnout. These findings, as tentative as they are, demonstrate the theoretical and practical importance of studying “sandwiched generation” couples.     

新生代知识员工队伍的工作家庭冲突——基于人口特征差异交互效应的视角

本研究以来自高科技企业的500名新生代知识员工为样本,采用单因变量多因素方差分析法揭示了工作家庭冲突的人口特征差异,以及不同人口特征变量之间的交互效应。检验结果表明：（1）新生代知识员工的工作家庭冲突存在显著的性别差异与工龄差异,而职位层次差异并不显著;（2）工作家庭冲突的性别差异分别与工龄差异、职位层次差异之间存在显著的二维交互效应;（3）性别差异与工龄差异、职位层次差异之间存在显著的三维交互效应。     

Doing and Undoing Gender in Commuter Marriages

Much recent literature has focused on how women and men “do” (and potentially “undo”) gender when juggling home and work responsibilities. Commuter marriages—in which dual-income professionals live apart due to the demands of their jobs—present a strategic context in which to investigate these gendered processes. Drawing upon theoretical work on doing and undoing gender, prior literature about gender dynamics at the nexus of home and work, and data from in-depth interviews with 97 other-sex commuter spouses, this analysis finds that in some ways these nontraditional arrangements are unique sites for undoing gender; yet, in other respects, standard gender roles are crystallized within these relationships. Specifically, for some women, these arrangements provide a respite from domestic demands, enabling them to function as hyper-productive, “masculinized” workers. However, commuter spouses also perform gender in ways that replicate the conventional gender structure. For example, living apart crystallizes many women’s roles as caregivers. These findings have implications for broader literature on gender, family, and work. They also have implications for counselors, institutional practices, and social policy; for instance, they caution against equating female autonomy with gender parity in making family policy.     

ETHICAL STANDARDS of the American Association for Counseling and Development (3rd Revision,AACD Governing Council,March 1988)

The Association is an educational, scientific, and professional organization whose members are dedicated to the enhancement of the worth, dignity, potential, and uniqueness of each individual and thus to the service of society. The Association recognizes that the role definitions and work settings of its members include a wide variety of academic disciplines, levels of academic preparation, and agency services. This diversity reflects the breadth of the Association's interest and influence. It also poses challenging complexities in efforts to set standards for the performance of members, desired requisite preparation or practice, and supporting social, legal, and ethical controls. The specification of ethical standards enables the Association to clarify to present and future members and to those served by members the nature of ethical responsibilities held in common by its members. The existence of such standards serves to stimulate greater concern by members for their own professional functioning and for the conduct of fellow professionals such as counselors, guidance and student personnel workers, and others in the helping professions. As the ethical code of the Association, this document establishes principles that define the ethical behavior of Association members. Additional ethical guidelines developed by the Association's Divisions for their specialty areas may further define a member's ethical behavior.     

Quality of relationships and structural properties of social support networks of female survivors of abuse

The purposes of this study were to examine the structural properties of the social support networks of female survivors of violence and abuse and to investigate the quality of the relationship, and specific level of satisfaction, survivors have with their social support networks. Participants averaged 5.8 persons in their social support networks. Their levels of satisfaction with the emotional, practical, financial, guidance, and socializing support they received from members of their social support networks were higher with respect to close friends and coworkers than with respect to family members and professionals (e.g., attorneys and social workers). The most common type of support provided by close friends who were themselves victims of abuse was emotional, guidance, and socializing support, and the most satisfying support was the financial and practical help that came from parents or family. An interesting finding was the significant presence of men in the survivors' social support networks. Overall satisfaction with the quality of support from the social support networks was high, and satisfaction with support from men was comparable, if not higher, than support from women. Multiple regression models revealed that satisfaction with support networks was a potent predictor of self-esteem, emotional health, and loneliness. Intimacy, especially in terms of exclusiveness and trust or loyalty, with at least a few members of the support network contributed significantly to the variance in self-esteem, emotional health, and loneliness among the abused women. The size of the support network also emerged as a limited contributor to well-being. Implications and applications are discussed for professionals working with female survivors of abuse.     

An analysis of referrals to chaplains in a community hospital in New York over a seven year period

The study analyzed the pattern of referrals to chaplains in a suburban hospital over a 7-year period. Nurses made more than half of all the referrals to chaplains, with nursing accounting for 81.74% of referrals from staff members other than pastoral care workers and volunteers. Social workers and physicians made 11.74% and 4.08% of referrals, respectively. The number of referrals from social workers (r=.86, p<.05), nurses (r=.68, p<.10) and other staff (r=.69, p<.10) increased across years, with the exception of physicians. Three quarters of referrals were requests for chaplains to visit patients and one quarter were requests to visit with family or friends. A significant difference was found in the percentage of referrals made for patients and family/friends by staff members (p<.05), with social workers making a higher percentage of referrals for relatives and friends (34.1%), compared to nurses (26.74%) and physicians (27.27%). The most common presenting problems for which patients were referred to chaplains were anxiety, depression, and pregnancy loss. The rate of referrals for patients over the entire study period was 39.04 per 1000 patient stays.     

TOWARD AN UNDERSTANDING OF EMPLOYMENT DISCRIMINATION CLAIMING: AN INTEGRATION OF ORGANIZATIONAL JUSTICE AND SOCIAL INFORMATION PROCESSING THEORIES

This research examines predictors of actual discrimination claiming among terminated workers by investigating a number of variables suggested by organizational justice and social information processing theories. This study investigated initial decisions to claim in a sample of 439 terminated workers who were surveyed at several unemployment offices. Logistic regression was used to examine how the decision to claim for discrimination was affected by procedural and distributive justice, social guidance, minority status, gender, age, tenure, and education. All of the variables except education and gender were found to be significant. Thus, the results support variables from each of the theories. Social guidance was found to have a major influence on discrimination-claiming. A counter-intuitive finding for minority status was found such that Whites were more likely to claim than minorities. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.     

The social responsibilities of biological scientists

Biological scientists, like scientists in other disciplines, are uncertain about whether or how to use their knowledge and time to provide society with insight and guidance in handling the effects of inventions and discoveries. This article addresses this issue. It presents a typography of structures in which scientists may contribute to social understanding and decisions. It describes the different ways in which these contributions can be made. Finally it develops the ethical arguments that justify the view that biological scientists have social responsibilities. The opinions expressed here are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of the Department of Defense.     

The nexus between family and work roles of academic women in Israel: Reality and representation

This study examines the relationships between family responsibilities and scientific and scholarly productivity of women in academia. It is commonly believed that faculty women are less productive than their male colleagues because of childbearing and other domestic duties. Though this assumption seems logical, it is not supported by evidence from a growing number of studies including the present. The family-career nexus of faculty women in Israel is examined on two levels: the actual—namely the association between number of children and rates of publications, and the perceptual—the ways in which faculty women perceive and describe the problem. The data show that the presence of children does not reduce research productivity, and that respondents accept their family obligations as matter of fact. The paper attempts to account for the main finding that women with more children do not publish less, but somewhat more than women without children or with one child, and also discusses several explanations that have been forwarded in other studies.     

Is it beneficial to involve a family member? A meta-analysis of psychosocial interventions for chronic illness.

Links between chronic illness and family relationships have led to psychosocial interventions targeted at the patient's closest family member or both patient and family member. The authors conducted a meta-analytic review of randomized studies comparing these interventions with usual medical care (k=70), focusing on patient outcomes (depression, anxiety, relationship satisfaction, disability, and mortality) and family member outcomes (depression, anxiety, relationship satisfaction, and caregiving burden). Among patients, interventions had positive effects on depression when the spouse was included and, in some cases, on mortality. Among family members, positive effects were found for caregiving burden, depression, and anxiety; these effects were strongest for nondementing illnesses and for interventions that targeted only the family member and that addressed relationship issues. Although statistically significant aggregate effects were found, they were generally small in magnitude. These findings provide guidance in developing future interventions in this area.     

After the Fall of the Wall: The Impact of the Transition on East German Women

This article addresses the impact of unification on East German families and on the situation of women in the East. The main hypothesis is that women are the losers of German unification, not only in terms of their decreasing participation in the labor force, but also in terms of their weakened position in partnerships and their increasing responsibilities in the domestic sphere. The findings are based primarily on personal interviews of different types of families. The first part of the article describes respondents' recollections of their everyday lives during the days of the former DDR (East Germany) and analyzes the specific family structures and relations between family members that prevailed. It focuses on the domestic division of labor and discusses the impact of high female employment on gender roles in the family and in the socialist society. The second part deals with the effects of German unification on families in East Germany.     

Liberal arts graduates: They would do it again

Despite the trend toward increasing specialization in our society, men who graduated 15, 10, and 5 years before this study with college majors in liberal arts report a high degree of satisfaction with their careers and their lives. If they had it to do all over again, 80 percent would major in a liberal arts subject. Three-fourths felt that liberal education had prepared them well for vocational life. Most graduates selected their career goal after graduation from college. The greatest help in career planning came from faculty members and family—not from guidance or placement counselors.