Eye Contact May Make People More Resistant to Persuasion

From the press release:

...new research shows that eye contact may actually make people more resistant to persuasion, especially when they already disagree.

Abstract:

Popular belief holds that eye contact increases the success of persuasive communication, and prior research suggests that speakers who direct their gaze more toward their listeners are perceived as more persuasive. In contrast, we demonstrate that more eye contact between the listener and speaker during persuasive communication predicts less attitude change in the direction advocated. In Study 1, participants freely watched videos of speakers expressing various views on controversial sociopolitical issues. Greater direct gaze at the speaker’s eyes was associated with less attitude change in the direction advocated by the speaker. In Study 2, we instructed participants to look at either the eyes or the mouths of speakers presenting arguments counter to participants’ own attitudes. Intentionally maintaining direct eye contact led to less persuasion than did gazing at the mouth. These findings suggest that efforts at increasing eye contact may be counterproductive across a variety of persuasion contexts.

Source:  Association for Psychological Science

Link to online press release
Download pdf article from Psychological Science (academic institution or subscription required)

Determining who responds better to a computer- vs. human-delivered physical activity intervention

From the Abstract:

Little research has explored who responds better to an automated vs. human advisor for health behaviors in general, and for physical activity (PA) promotion in particular. The purpose of this study was to explore baseline factors (i.e., demographics, motivation, interpersonal style, and external resources) that moderate intervention efficacy delivered by either a human or automated advisor.

Source:

International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, 10(1), 109. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/1479-5868-10-109. Retrieved from: eScholarship Repository: http://escholarship.org/uc/item/5584f2sq

Download pdf publication: Determining who responds better to a computer- vs. human-delivered physical activity intervention

Affordable Care Act (ACA) and the Appropriations Process: FAQs Regarding Potential Legislative Changes and Effects of a Government Shutdown

From the introduction:

The current legislative debate over using the FY2014 appropriations process to defund implementation of the ACA has prompted a number of questions about the law’s core health reform provisions and how their implementation affects federal spending. Questions have also been raised about the legislative actions already taken by lawmakers to defund or otherwise amend the ACA, and about the various legal and procedural considerations arising from the current efforts to use the appropriations process to defund the law. Finally, there is the question of what impact a government shutdown would have on ACA implementation in the event that Congress is unable to reach agreement on FY2014 appropriations legislation. This report, which will be revised and updated to reflect key legislative developments, provides brief answers to these questions.

Source: Congressional Research Service, Library of Congress

Download pdf publication:  Affordable Care Act (ACA) and the Appropriations Process: FAQs Regarding Potential Legislative Changes and Effects of a Government Shutdown

Women in the labour market - United Kingdom

Women in the labour market - Key Points

• Rising employment for women and falling employment for men over 40 years
  
• Men have consistently higher employment rates than women above the age of 22
  
• Employment rates for women lowest in Northern Ireland and London
  
• Birmingham has the lowest employment rate among the smaller areas
  
• Men with children more likely to work than those without – opposite picture for women
  
• The employment rate gap between mothers in a couple and lone mothers smaller for those with older children
  
• Men tend to work in the professional occupations associated with higher levels of pay than women
  
• Women dominate employment within caring and leisure occupations
  
• The number of women working within managerial roles slightly higher than the EU average
  
• Female graduates more likely to work in a slightly lower skilled occupation group than men
  
• Men make up the majority of workers in the top 10% of earners for all employees but the gap is lower for those under 30
  

Source: National Office of Statistics (UK)
Download PDF: Women in the labour market - United Kingdom

The State of Food Insecurity in the World 2013 : The multiple dimensions of food security

Description:

The State of Food Insecurity in the World 2013 presents updated estimates of undernourishment and progress towards the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) and World Food Summit (WFS) hunger targets. The latest assessment shows that further progress has been made towards the 2015 MDG target, which remains within reach for the developing regions as a whole, although marked differences across regions persist and considerable and immediate additional efforts will be needed.

The 2013 report goes beyond measuring food deprivation. It presents a broader suite of indicators that aim to capture the multidimensional nature of food insecurity, its determinants and outcomes. This suite, compiled for every country, allows a more nuanced picture of their food security status, guiding policy-makers in the design and implementation of targeted and effective policy measures that can contribute to the eradication of hunger, food insecurity and malnutrition.

Drawing on the suite of indicators, the report also examines the diverse experiences of six countries in more detail, finding a mixed picture of progress and setbacks. Together, these country experiences show the importance of social protection and nutrition-enhancing interventions, policies to increase agricultural productivity and rural development, diverse sources of income and long-term commitment to mainstreaming food security and nutrition in public policies and programmes.

Source: United Nations: Food and Agriculture Division

Download The State of Food Insecurity in the World 2013
Food security indicators – download the data

Predicting who will publish or perish as career academics

Abstract:

Can one foresee whether young scientists will publish successfully during their careers? For academic biologists on four continents, we evaluated the effects of gender, native language, prestige of the institution at which they received their PhD, the date of their first publication (relative to the year of PhD completion), and their pre-PhD publication record as potential indicators of long-term publication success (10 years post-PhD). Pre-PhD publication success was the strongest correlate of long-term success. Gender, language, and the date of first publication had ancillary roles, with native English speakers, males, and those who published earlier in their career having minor advantages. Once these aspects were accounted for, university prestige had almost no discernable effect. We suggest that early publication success is vital for aspiring young scientists and that one of the easiest ways to identify rising stars is simply to find those who have published early and often.

Source: BioScience via http://phys.org

Download pdf of journal article: Predicting Publication Success for Biologists

How Copyright Makes Books and Music Disappear (and How Secondary Liability Rules Help Resurrect Old Songs)

Abstract

A random sample of new books for sale on Amazon.com shows more books for sale from the 1880’s than the 1980’s. Why? This paper presents new data on how copyright seems to make works disappear. First, a random sample of 2300 new books for sale on Amazon.com is analyzed along with a random sample of 2000 songs available on new DVD’s. Copyright status correlates highly with absence from the Amazon shelf. Together with publishing business models, copyright law seems to stifle distribution and access. Second, the availability on YouTube of songs that reached number one on the U.S., French, and Brazilian pop charts from 1930-60 is analyzed in terms of the identity of the uploader, type of upload, number of views, date of upload, and monetization status. An analysis of the data demonstrates that the DMCA safe harbor system as applied to YouTube helps maintain some level of access to old songs by allowing those possessing copies (primarily infringers) to communicate relatively costlessly with copyright owners to satisfy the market of potential listeners.

Source: Social Science Resource Network

Download  pdf: How Copyright Makes Books and Music Disappear (and How Secondary Liability Rules Help Resurrect Old Songs)

The Future of the Sociology of Aging: An Agenda for Action

Discription:

The Future of the Sociology of Aging: An Agenda for Action evaluates the recent contributions of social demography, social epidemiology and sociology to the study of aging and identifies promising new research directions in these sub-fields. Included in this study are nine papers prepared by experts in sociology, demography, social genomics, public health, and other fields, that highlight the broad array of tools and perspectives that can provide the basis for further advancing the understanding of aging processes in ways that can inform policy. This report discusses the role of sociology in what is a wide-ranging and diverse field of study; a proposed three-dimensional conceptual model for studying social processes in aging over the life cycle; a review of existing databases, data needs and opportunities, primarily in the area of measurement of interhousehold and intergenerational transmission of resources, biomarkers and biosocial interactions; and a summary of roadblocks and bridges to transdisciplinary research that will affect the future directions of the field of sociology of aging.

 Source: The National Academies Press

 Download pdf of The Future of the Sociology of Aging: An Agenda for Action

Mentally Ill Offenders Involved With the U.S. Criminal Justice System

Abstract: 

This paper sought to synthesize what is currently known about mentally ill offenders in American jails and prisons based upon the most recent government and congressional reports and relevant literature review. The primary goal is to provide a detailed picture of the status of mentally ill offenders—including prevalence, basic demographic information, bio-psycho-social status, mental health, and family histories—and also to identify the problems, conditions, and obstacles faced while under the jurisdiction of the criminal justice system. Mentally ill offenders are constitutionally guaranteed basic mental health treatment. A review of the literature indicates that this constitutional guarantee is not being adequately fulfilled. Implications and suggestions for change are discussed.

 Source: Sage Open

Download full pdf publication: Mentally Ill Offenders Involved With the U.S. Criminal Justice System

Examining the Impact of Selected New Media on Spousal Relationships in the Military

Abstracts:

The United States Armed Forces were once comprised primarily of single young men. The military began to diversify as servicemen married and started families. As women joined the service a growth in military partnerships and dual-parent military households became increasingly prevalent. With these changes, coupled with the recent wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, challenges were realized about maintaining marital and family norms in balance with professional duties. The contemporary era of wars is hallmarked by longer tours and reoccurring deployments, further complicating the work-life balance for military personnel. This decade of wars parallels with innovation of new media and staggering societal adoption of online platforms for social networking and information-sharing. The trials and tribulations of deployment for military members and their loved ones require distinct efforts to communicate during extensive periods of time apart. With these modern outlets available to facilitate relational communication remotely, this study set forth to examine the impact of new media on spousal relationships in the military. Interviews with ten military spouses who experienced deployment indicated five themes regarding their use of new media: (1) mobility, (2) monitoring and surveillance, (3) community, (4) utility, and (5) uncertainty and urgency.

Source: Indiana University of Pennsylvania (Stewart)

Download full pdf:  Examining the Impact of Selected New Media on Spousal Relationships in the Military

States of Denial: States with the Most Federal Disaster Aid Sent Climate-Science Deniers to Congress

From the introduction:

There is recent evidence that climate change played a role in the extreme weather events of 2012. The recently released analysis from the American Meteorological Society determined that:

Approximately half the analyses found some evidence that anthropogenically caused climate change was a contributing factor to the extreme event examined, though the effects of natural fluctuations of weather and climate on the evolution of many of the extreme events played key roles as well.

Interestingly, many of the states that received the most federal recovery aid to cope with climate-linked extreme weather have federal legislators who are climate-science deniers. The 10 states that received the most federal recovery aid in FY 2011 and 2012 elected 47 climate-science deniers to the Senate and the House. Nearly two-thirds of the senators from these top 10 recipient states voted against granting federal emergency aid to New Jersey and New York after Superstorm Sandy.

 Download full pdf of: States of Denial: States with the Most Federal Disaster Aid Sent Climate-Science Deniers to Congress

The State of Women in America: A 50-State Analysis of How Women Are Faring Across the Nation

From the overview:

In this report, we examine both the progress made and the challenges remaining for women across the country. We do so by reviewing three categories that are critical to women’s overall well-being: economics, leadership, and health. Within each of those three categories, we analyze multiple factors—36 factors overall. In selecting the factors, we were unable to include every metric available but strove to include a broad array of factors that would help illustrate the multitude of issues facing women. We also included data on women of color in order to show the challenges that different communities face.

Source: Center for American Progress

Download full pdf:  The State of Women in America: A 50-State Analysis of How Women Are Faring Across the Nation

Preverbal infants expect members of social groups to act alike

Abstract:

The short ontogenetic time courses of conformity and stereotyping, both evident in the preschool years, point to the possibility that a central component of human social cognition is an early developing expectation that social group members will engage in common behaviors. Across a series of experiments, we show that by 7 months of age preverbal infants differentiate between actions by individuals that are and are not consistent with the actions of their social group members. Infants responded to group-inconsistent actions only in a social context: they failed to distinguish the same behavioral differences when presented with collections of nonsocial agents or inanimate objects. These results suggest that infants expect social group membership and behavior to covary, before extensive intergroup experience or linguistic input. This expectation is consistent with the socially motivated imitation and stereotyping evident in toddlers and preschoolers, and may play a role in the early emergence of one or both of these aspects of social behavior and cognition.

Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

Download full pdf publication:  Preverbal infants expect members of social groups to act alike
Link to online abstract

Neural mechanisms of communicative innovation

Abstract:

Human referential communication is often thought as coding–decoding a set of symbols, neglecting that establishing shared meanings requires a computational mechanism powerful enough to mutually negotiate them. Sharing the meaning of a novel symbol might rely on similar conceptual inferences across communicators or on statistical similarities in their sensorimotor behaviors. Using magnetoencephalography, we assess spectral, temporal, and spatial characteristics of neural activity evoked when people generate and understand novel shared symbols during live communicative interactions. Solving those communicative problems induced comparable changes in the spectral profile of neural activity of both communicators and addressees. This shared neuronal up-regulation was spatially localized to the right temporal lobe and the ventromedial prefrontal cortex and emerged already before the occurrence of a specific communicative problem. Communicative innovation relies on neuronal computations that are shared across generating and understanding novel shared symbols, operating over temporal scales independent from transient sensorimotor behavior.

Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

Download full pdf publication: Neural mechanisms of communicative innovation | Link to online abstract

Environmental Concerns on the Rise in China

From the survey report:

The Chinese public is increasingly concerned about the quality of the country’s air and water after a year in which China experienced numerous high-profile environmental problems.

Meanwhile, even though most Chinese have rated their national economic situation positively in recent years, there are also widespread concerns about the side effects of economic growth, such as rising prices and the gap between rich and poor.

Source: Pew Global Attitudes Project

Download full pdf report | Link to online overview | Download pdf questionnaire

Digital Divide: Who’s Not Online and Why

From the Overview:

As of May 2013, 15% of American adults ages 18 and older do not use the internet or email.
Asked why they do not use the internet:

• 34% of non-internet users think the internet is just not relevant to them, saying they are not interested, do not want to use it, or have no need for it.
• 32% of non-internet users cite reasons tied to their sense that the internet is not very easy to use. These non-users say it is difficult or frustrating to go online, they are physically unable, or they are worried about other issues such as spam, spyware, and hackers. This figure is considerably higher than in earlier surveys.
• 19% of non-internet users cite the expense of owning a computer or paying for an internet connection.
• 7% of non-users cited a physical lack of availability or access to the internet.

Even among the 85% of adults who do go online, experiences connecting to the internet may vary widely. For instance, even though 76% of adults use the internet at home, 9% of adults use the internet but lack home access. These internet users cite many reasons for not having internet connections at home, most often relating to issues of affordability—some 44% mention financial issues such as not having a computer, or having a cheaper option outside the home.

Source: Pew Internet and American Life Project

Download full pdf publication | Link to online overview |  Download survey questions

Population Decline of Unauthorized Immigrants Stalls, May Have Reversed

From the overview:

The sharp decline in the U.S. population of unauthorized immigrants that accompanied the 2007-2009 recession has bottomed out, and the number may be rising again. As of March 2012, 11.7 million unauthorized immigrants were living in the United States, according to a new preliminary Pew Research Center estimate based on U.S. government data.

Source: Pew Research Hispanic Trends Project

Download complete pdf report | Link to online overview

Using Behavioral Indicators to Detect Potential Violent Acts

RAND Description:

Provides an overview of research on how observable behavioral indicators might be used to detect potential violent attacks, such as by suicide terrorists or those laying improvised explosive devices.

Source: RAND Corporation

Download pdf:  Using Behavioral Indicators to Detect Potential Violent Acts
Or read online

The other frontline workers: Exploring the symptoms of compassion fatigue among school staff members

Abstract:

This study was conducted to determine whether or not school employees are experiencing compassion fatigue. The research question for this study is: Are school employees experiencing compassion fatigue? This study included examining ways in which they identified levels of burnout, secondary trauma and compassion satisfaction. A quantitative study was conducted using snowball-sampling techniques to administer an online survey that asked participants to report demographic information and complete the Professional Quality of Life Scale (ProQOL). 121 participants identified as fulltime employees of a school and as English speaking and over the age of eighteen. Findings point to low levels of compassion fatigue among the sample. Participants reported low to average levels of burnout and secondary trauma and high or average levels of compassion satisfaction. Trends in responses and correlations between demographic data and responses are discussed and explored further to determine the accurate portrayal of compassion fatigue in the realm of school employees. Implications for future studies and social workers are discussed.

Source: Smith College School for Social Work (Library)

Download pdf: The other frontline workers: Exploring the symptoms of compassion fatigue among school staff members

Census Report: Income, Poverty and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States

From the Press Release:

The U.S. Census Bureau announced today that in 2012, real median household income and the poverty rate were not statistically different from the previous year, while the percentage of people without health insurance coverage decreased.

Median household income in the United States in 2012 was $51,017, not statistically different in real terms from the 2011 median of $51,100. This followed two consecutive annual declines.
The nation's official poverty rate in 2012 was 15.0 percent, which represents 46.5 million people living at or below the poverty line. This marked the second consecutive year that neither the official poverty rate nor the number of people in poverty were statistically different from the previous year's estimates. The 2012 poverty rate was 2.5 percentage points higher than in 2007, the year before the economic downturn.

The percentage of people without health insurance coverage declined to 15.4 percent in 2012 ─ from 15.7 percent in 2011. However, the 48.0 million people without coverage in 2012 was not statistically different from the 48.6 million in 2011.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau
Download: Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2012