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Conceptual
Terms modified by Conceptual Selected AbstractsCompeting Rationales for Corporate Governance in France: Institutional Complementarities between Financial Markets and Innovation SystemsCORPORATE GOVERNANCE, Issue 2 2008Soo H. Lee ABSTRACT Manuscript Type: Conceptual Research Question/Issue: This paper identifies the causes and consequences of corporate governance reform with reference to the French case. By disaggregating institutional complementarities into global and domestic dimensions, we analyze the path of institutional change compelled by financial efficiency and cooperative innovation. Research Findings/Results: Our analysis of the French case shows that both converging and diverging forces of institutional change coexist, shaping selective responses to globalization. While the adoption of the shareholder model is necessary for resource acquirement from the global capital markets, resource allocation in the cooperative innovation systems reinforces the stakeholder model. The French case confirms the sustainability of distinctive institutional complementarities, albeit with selective adaptation based on a sense-making social compromise. Theoretical Implications: The French case reminds us of the importance of distinctive institutional traditions and dominant social rationalities to understand the underlying logic of governance reform. The comparative research on corporate governance needs to address not just the cross-country variations in institutional arrangements and practices, but also the clash of competing rationales for reform explicitly in comparative terms within a single country context. Practical Implications: For foreign investors, it is vital to understand the unique institutional environment of state-centred stakeholder economies if they are to negotiate the best terms of return and to avoid unnecessary conflicts. French managers are expected to devise strategic choices responding to the competing rationales of governance. Managerial sense-making is essential for achieving sound long-term performance, upon which the legitimacy and sustainability of the constellation of selective governance rests. [source] Cognitive specificity of anxiety disorders: a review of selected key constructsDEPRESSION AND ANXIETY, Issue 2 2006F.R.A.N.Z.C.P., Ph.D., Vladan Starcevic M.D. Abstract Cognitive models of anxiety disorders propose that certain cognitive constructs, that is, underlying beliefs and cognitive processes, may be specific for particular disorders. In this article, we review the specificity of four representative cognitive constructs,anxiety sensitivity, pathological worry, intolerance of uncertainty, and thought,action fusion,for particular disorders. Conceptual overlap, inconsistent definitions, and insufficient consideration of the components of these constructs are limitations of the existing literature. We suggest that the constructs are unlikely to be pathognomonic for any given disorder or to occur in isolation. Rather, the association of each cognitive construct is evident, to varying degrees, with different disorders. Relative to other disorders, anxiety sensitivity is to a certain extent specific for panic disorder, as are pathological worry for generalized anxiety disorder, intolerance of uncertainty for generalized anxiety disorder and obsessive,compulsive disorder, and thought,action fusion for obsessive,compulsive disorder. We discuss the implications of these findings for diagnostic systems and treatment, and suggest areas for further research. Depression and Anxiety 23:51,61, 2006. © 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] The Amiel-Tison neurological assessment at term: Conceptual and methodological continuity in the course of follow-upDEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES RESEARCH REVIEW, Issue 1 2005Julie Gosselin Abstract The Amiel-Tison Neurological Assessment at Term (ATNAT) is part of a set of three different instruments based on a neuro-maturative framework. By sharing a same methodology and a similar scoring system, the use of these three assessments prevents any rupture in the course of high risk children follow-up from 32 weeks post-conception to 6 years of age. The ATNAT which takes 5 minutes to administer may be used in clinical setting as well as in research. Clustering of severe to mild neuro-cranial signs in the neonatal period permits identification of children who could benefit from early intervention. © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc. MRDD Research Reviews 2005;11:34,51. [source] Conceptual and methodological issues for research on tobacco-related health disparitiesADDICTION, Issue 2007Richard R. Clayton First page of article [source] Social Networks and the Elderly: Conceptual and Clinical Issues, and a Family ConsultationFAMILY PROCESS, Issue 3 2000Carlos E. Sluzki M.D. After a general introduction to the construct "social networks," this article discusses the progressive transformation of the personal social network,family, friends and acquaintances, work and leisure relationships, et cetera,as individuals reach an advanced age. This is followed by a summary and discussion of a clinical consultation, with an emphasis on the reciprocal influence between individual and social network. [source] Trust in the Medical Profession: Conceptual and Measurement IssuesHEALTH SERVICES RESEARCH, Issue 5 2002Mark A Hall Objective. To develop and test a multi-item measure for general trust in physicians, in contrast with trust in a specific physician. Data Sources. Random national telephone survey of 502 adult subjects with a regular physician and source of payment. Study Design. Based on a multidimensional conceptual model, a large pool of candidate items was generated, tested, and revised using focus groups, expert reviewers, and pilot testing. The scale was analyzed for its factor structure, internal consistency, construct validity, and other psychometric properties. Principal Findings. The resulting 11-item scale measuring trust in physicians generally is consistent with most aspects of the conceptual model except that it does not include the dimension of confidentiality. This scale has a single-factor structure, good internal consistency (alpha=.89), and good response variability (range=11,54; mean=33.5; SD=6.9). This scale is related to satisfaction with care, trust in one's physician, following doctors' recommendations, having no prior disputes with physicians, not having sought second opinions, and not having changed doctors. No association was found with race/ethnicity. While general trust and interpersonal trust are qualitatively similar, they are only moderately correlated with each other and general trust is substantially lower. Conclusions. Emerging research on patients' trust has focused on interpersonal trust in a specific, known physician. Trust in physicians in general is also important and differs significantly from interpersonal physician trust. General physician trust potentially has a strong influence on important behaviors and attitudes, and on the formation of interpersonal physician trust. [source] The Importance of Conceptual and Concrete Modelling in Architectural Design EducationINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ART & DESIGN EDUCATION, Issue 1 2009Aysu Akalin The design studio is the heart of architectural education. It is where future architects are moulded and the main forum for creative exploration, interaction and assimilation. This article argues for a ,studio-based learning' approach in terms of the impact of design tools, especially sketching and concrete modelling, on the creativity or problem-solving capabilities of a student. The implementation of a ,vertical design studio' model at Gazi University Department of Architecture is reported with examples of students' works. [source] A Cross-Atlantic Dialogue: The Progress of Research and Theory in the Study of International MigrationINTERNATIONAL MIGRATION REVIEW, Issue 3 2004Alejandro Portes The articles included in this issue were originally presented at a conference on Conceptual and Methodological Developments in the Study of International Migration held at Princeton University in May 2003. The conference was jointly sponsored by the Committee on International Migration of the Social Science Research Council (SSRC), the Center for Migration and Development (CMD) at Princeton, and this journal. Its purpose was to review recent innovations in this field, both in theory and empirical research, across both sides of the Atlantic. The conference was deliberately organized as a sequel to a similar event convened by the SSRC on Sanibel Island in January 1996 in order to assess the state of international migration studies within the United States from an inter-disciplinary perspective. A selection of articles from that conference was published as a special issue of International Migration Review (Vol. 31, No. 4, Winter), and the full set of articles was published as the Handbook of International Migration: The American Experience (Hirschman, Kasinitz and DeWind, 1999). [source] Conceptual, Qualitative, and Quantitative Theories of 1,3-Dipolar and Diels,Alder Cycloadditions Used in SynthesisADVANCED SYNTHESIS & CATALYSIS (PREVIOUSLY: JOURNAL FUER PRAKTISCHE CHEMIE), Issue 16-17 2006Daniel Abstract The application and performance of conceptual and qualitative theories and quantitative quantum mechanical methods to the study of mechanism, reactivity, and selectivity of 1,3-dipolar and Diels,Alder cycloadditions are reviewed. This review emphasizes the application of conceptual density functional theory (DFT) for predicting reactivity and regioselectivity, and highly accurate quantum mechanical methods for predicting barrier heights and reaction energetics. Applications of computations to solvation effects, metal and organocatalysis, are also described. [source] Nursing Theories: Conceptual and Philosophical Foundations.JOURNAL OF ADVANCED NURSING, Issue 6 2007Diana Newman EdD RN No abstract is available for this article. [source] The Philippine Land Reform in Comparative Perspective: Some Conceptual and Methodological ImplicationsJOURNAL OF AGRARIAN CHANGE, Issue 1 2006SATURNINO M. BORRAS JR Using empirical evidence from the Philippine land reform (1972,2005), this paper examines land reform theory and practice, and argues that convention has a priori excluded a significant portion of actually existing land-based production and distribution relationships, while it has inadvertently included in its definition and analysis land transfers that do not constitute real redistributive reform. This problematic framing of ,exclusion,inclusion' has led to incorrect accounting and analysis of the nature, scope, pace and direction of change/reform that have occurred (or not) in the agrarian structure of a particular setting. This problem has prevented the emergence of nuanced comparative land reform studies, with possible further implications for studies that attempt to trace causal relationships between land redistribution and agrarian transformation. [source] A regional impact assessment of climate and land-use change on alpine vegetationJOURNAL OF BIOGEOGRAPHY, Issue 3 2003Thomas Dirnböck Abstract Aim, Assessing potential response of alpine plant species distribution to different future climatic and land-use scenarios. Location, Four mountain ranges totalling 150 km2 in the north-eastern Calcareous Alps of Austria. Methods, Ordinal regression models of eighty-five alpine plant species based on environmental constraints and land use determining their abundance. Site conditions are simulated spatially using a GIS, a Digital Terrain Model, meteorological station data and existing maps. Additionally, historical records were investigated to derive data on time spans since pastures were abandoned. This was then used to assess land-use impacts on vegetation patterns in combination with climatic changes. Results, A regionalized GCM scenario for 2050 (+ 0.65 °C, ,30 mm August precipitation) will only lead to local loss of potential habitat for alpine plant species. More profound changes (+ 2 °C, ,30 mm August precipitation; + 2 °C, ,60 mm August precipitation) however, will bring about a severe contraction of the alpine, non-forest zone, because of range expansion of the treeline conifer Pinus mugo Turra and many alpine species will loose major parts of their habitat. Precipitation change significantly influences predicted future habitat patterns, mostly by enhancing the general trend. Maintenance of summer pastures facilitates the persistence of alpine plant species by providing refuges, but existing pastures are too small in the area to effectively prevent the regional extinction risk of alpine plant species. Main conclusions, The results support earlier hypotheses that alpine plant species on mountain ranges with restricted habitat availability above the treeline will experience severe fragmentation and habitat loss, but only if the mean annual temperature increases by 2 °C or more. Even in temperate alpine regions it is important to consider precipitation in addition to temperature when climate impacts are to be assessed. The maintenance of large summer farms may contribute to preventing the expected loss of non-forest habitats for alpine plant species. Conceptual and technical shortcomings of static equilibrium modelling limit the mechanistic understanding of the processes involved. [source] "Revenue Accounting" in the Age of E-Commerce: A Framework for Conceptual, Analytical, and Exchange Rate ConsiderationsJOURNAL OF INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT & ACCOUNTING, Issue 1 2002Jonathan C. Glover This paper explores "revenue accounting" in contrast to traditional "cost accounting". Revenue accounting serves the information needs of managers and investors in planning and controlling a firm's sales activities and their financial consequences, especially in the age of e-commerce. Weaknesses of traditional accounting have become particularly evident recently, for example, the lack of 1) revenue mileposts, 2) revenue sustainability measurements, and 3) intangibles capitalization. The paper emphasizes the need to develop a conceptual framework of revenue accounting and, as a tentative measure, proposes five basic postulates and five operational postulates of revenue accounting. On the side of analytical frameworks, the paper explores some tentative remedies for the weaknesses. Several revenue mileposts are explored to gauge progress in earning revenues and a Markov process is applied to an example involving mileposts. Revenue momentum, measured by the exponential smoothing method, is examined as a way of getting feedback on revenue sustainability; and the use of the sustainability concept in the analysis of "fixed and variable revenues" is illustrated. A project-oriented approach in a manner similar to capital budgeting and to Reserve Recognition Accounting is proposed by treating each customer as a project. Standardization of forecasts are also considered as an important way of bypassing the capitalization issue. Finally, while e-commerce is inherently global, issues specific to global operations are highlighted, namely, exchange rate issues when venture capitalists and the start-up company use different currencies producing different rates of return on the same project. [source] Multilevel Models in Family Research: Some Conceptual and Methodological IssuesJOURNAL OF MARRIAGE AND FAMILY, Issue 2 2002Jay Teachman Examining the impact of context on individual-level outcomes has become an increasingly common undertaking in the social sciences. The growth in concern for identifying the effects of macrolevel characteristics has generated both theoretical and methodological advancements. In this issue of Journal of Marriage and Family, Butler (2002) researches whether the effect of welfare benefit levels on premarital childbearing varies by context, Hoffmann (2002) researches the effect of context on adolescent drug use, and Simons et al. (2002) examine how the relationship between parenting and child conduct varies by context. These articles are used as a background to discuss important theoretical and methodological issues surrounding the analysis of multilevel data. The authors present a simple analysis of data pertaining to age at first marriage taken from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics and merged with census data to measure contextual effects as a pedagogical device for introducing readers to the benefits of multilevel modeling. [source] Letter to the Editor: Conceptual and Analytic Issues Surrounding a Report on Domestic Salt Fluoridation in MexicoJOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH DENTISTRY, Issue 2 2009Armando E. Soto-Rojas DDS No abstract is available for this article. [source] Conceptual and Design Essentials for Evaluating Mechanisms of ChangeALCOHOLISM, Issue 2007Matthew K. Nock Background:, Considerable progress has been made toward the development of evidence-based treatments for a wide range of psychological disorders; however, little is known about the mechanisms through which these treatments actually lead to clinical change. Although the use of traditional randomized controlled treatment designs and tests of statistical mediation have significantly advanced understanding of psychological treatments, they are insufficient to test mechanisms of change. Method:, This article outlines the conceptual and methodological requirements for evaluating mechanisms of change, highlights the importance of such a focus, and offers specific recommendations for research aimed at elucidating change mechanisms. Results and Conclusions:, Conceptualizing and conducting studies that test mechanisms of change requires substantial modifications to traditional research designs, but doing so will significantly enhance scientific understanding as well as the efficiency and effectiveness of clinical interventions. [source] Sexual Orientation and Sex in Women's Lives: Conceptual and Methodological IssuesJOURNAL OF SOCIAL ISSUES, Issue 2 2000Esther D. Rothblum Use of such categorical terms as heterosexual, bisexual, and lesbian is widespread, yet research indicates that sexuality is a multidimensional phenomenon. Sexual behavior, identity, and desire are not highly intercorrelated for women, and this has implications for new ways of conceptualizing sexual orientation. Furthermore, the multifaceted nature of sexual orientation has implications for conceptualizing sexual activity and sexual desire for women. Some methodological issues are presented for future research on female sexual orientation, including a better understanding of gender and a more multifaceted approach to sexual orientation. [source] Crime Reduction and the Length of Prison SentencesLAW & POLICY, Issue 1 2002Richard L. Lippke The issue discussed is whether policies of imposing increasingly lengthy prison sentences on serious criminal offenders reduce crime. The empirical evidence for the deterrence and incapacitation effects of incarceration is first examined and found to be of limited help in answering the question whether lengthy prison sentences reduce crime. Conceptual and normative analysis of deterrence and incapacitation suggest that we have little reason to believe that the general use of lengthy prison terms produces more good than harm for society, especially if the burdens of and alternatives to such prison terms are taken into account. [source] Conceptual and Linguistic Analysis: A Two-Step ProgramNOUS, Issue 2 2008Andrew Melnyk First page of article [source] Historicising Criminalisation: Conceptual and Empirical IssuesTHE MODERN LAW REVIEW, Issue 6 2009Nicola Lacey This paper charts a renaissance in scholarly analysis of criminalisation, and suggests that we do not have the conceptual tools or empirical knowledge to make the claims about ,overcriminalisation' which motivate much of this scholarship. My argument gives further shape to projects under the umbrella of criminalisation, setting out some of the conceptual issues to be resolved before we can work towards an adequate interpretive, and normative, vision of how criminal law has been and might be used. The paper elaborates a number of projects in ,criminalisation scholarship', and suggests there is a failure adequately to distinguish the different senses of ,criminalisation' in the literature, or the varying methods which might be applied within historical, interpretive, analytic and normative studies of criminalisation. In conclusion, the paper argues for a certain genre of criminalisation scholarship, and for a multi-disciplinary criminalisation research agenda informed by history, sociology and political science as much as by law, criminology and philosophy. [source] Medium-Scale Anatolian Cities: Conceptual and Physical Routes of Urban TransformationARCHITECTURAL DESIGN, Issue 1 2010Banu Tomruk Abstract Banu Tomruk investigates the post-1980s transformation of the built environment of medium-scale Anatolian cities. She examines the subject through a conceptual and physical framework that places as much emphasis on populist rhetoric , ,identity crisis', ,historicisation', ,the making of a tourist city' , as on the built structures themselves and their realisation as standardised apartment blocks and gated communities. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Teaching sustainability in a global MBA: insights from the OneMBABUSINESS STRATEGY AND THE ENVIRONMENT, Issue 3 2005Nigel Roome Abstract This paper reports on a module designed to deliver education for sustainability within the framework of the new generation of global executive MBAs. The module described was taught as part of OneMBA, an executive MBA involving five business schools located in Hong Kong, Brazil, Mexico, the USA and Europe. The paper describes the key skills, insights and pedagogy used in this module. Conceptual and theoretical material, cases, role-plays and site visits were developed to provide an understanding of sustainability and its relationship with supply-chain management. Emphasis was placed on sustainability as a context-specific approach, the deployment of systems thinking skills, and stakeholder engagement. The module addressed the paradoxes that arise among stakeholders who populate global supply chains. Sustainability was considered from global, European and local perspectives in Rotterdam and Gdansk through a project that considered extending Unilever's sustainable agriculture initiative to Poland. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment. [source] Heart-Focused Anxiety and Chest Pain: A Conceptual and Clinical ReviewCLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY: SCIENCE AND PRACTICE, Issue 4 2000Georg H. Eifert This article reviews the concept of heart-focused anxiety that may occur in response to cardiac-related stimuli and sensations. Our aim was to examine the relation between chest pain, panic, and heart-focused anxiety in persons with and without heart disease. We identify a preoccupation with the heart and its functioning based on the belief that it will lead to negative consequences (e.g., death, pain) as an important psychological variable in the production of anxious and fearful responding. We then discuss heart-focused anxiety in relation to other clinically relevant variables in anxiety-related problems such as hypochondriacal concerns, including physical symptoms, disease fear, disease conviction, and safety-seeking behavior. Finally, we briefly discuss the clinical importance of heart-focused anxiety in the assessment and treatment of certain anxiety and cardiac-related problems. [source] Choosing Rhetorical Structures To Plan Instructional TextsCOMPUTATIONAL INTELLIGENCE, Issue 3 2000Leila Kosseim This paper discusses a fundamental problem in natural language generation: how to organize the content of a text in a coherent and natural way. In this research, we set out to determine the semantic content and the rhetorical structure of texts and to develop heuristics to perform this process automatically within a text generation framework. The study was performed on a specific language and textual genre: French instructional texts. From a corpus analysis of these texts, we determined nine senses typically communicated in instructional texts and seven rhetorical relations used to present these senses. From this analysis, we then developed a set of presentation heuristics that determine how the senses to be communicated should be organized rhetorically in order to create a coherent and natural text. The heuristics are based on five types of constraints: conceptual, semantic, rhetorical, pragmatic, and intentional constraints. To verify the heuristics, we developed the spin natural language generation system, which performs all steps of text generation but focuses on the determination of the content and the rhetorical structure of the text. [source] Two Kinds of Creativity , But Which Ones?CREATIVITY AND INNOVATION MANAGEMENT, Issue 3 2004Geir Kaufmann It is argued that Kirton's theory of styles of creativity is conceptually and methodologically unsound. A solution to the conceptual and methodological dilemmas is offered by way of making a clear-cut distinction between novelty on the stimulus and novelty on the response side. This distinction is used as a platform for the development of a new taxonomy of different kinds of creativity and intelligent behaviour. A major feature of this new model is the distinction made between proactive and reactive creativity. The implications of this distinction for opening new avenues for a more differentiated assessment of creativity, as well as for the development of a conceptually firmer and more differentiated platform for developing new practical training programmes in creativity are suggested. [source] THE INTERACTION OF ANTISOCIAL PROPENSITY AND LIFE-COURSE VARYING PREDICTORS OF DELINQUENT BEHAVIOR: DIFFERENCES BY METHOD OF ESTIMATION AND IMPLICATIONS FOR THEORY,CRIMINOLOGY, Issue 2 2007GRAHAM C. OUSEY Recent criminological research has explored the extent to which stable propensity and life-course perspectives may be integrated to provide a more comprehensive explanation of variation in individual criminal offending. One line of these integrative efforts focuses on the ways that stable individual characteristics may interact with, or modify, the effects of life-course varying social factors. Given their consistency with the long-standing view that person,environment interactions contribute to variation in human social behavior, these theoretical integration attempts have great intuitive appeal. However, a review of past criminological research suggests that conceptual and empirical complexities have, so far, somewhat dampened the development of a coherent theoretical understanding of the nature of interaction effects between stable individual antisocial propensity and time-varying social variables. In this study, we outline and empirically assess several of the sometimes conflicting hypotheses regarding the ways that antisocial propensity moderates the influence of time-varying social factors on delinquent offending. Unlike some prior studies, however, we explicitly measure the interactive effects of stable antisocial propensity and time-varying measures of selected social variables on changes in delinquent offending. In addition, drawing on recent research that suggests that the relative ubiquity of interaction effects in past studies may be partly from the poorly suited application of linear statistical models to delinquency data, we alternatively test our interaction hypotheses using least-squares and tobit estimation frameworks. Our findings suggest that method of estimation matters, with interaction effects appearing readily in the former but not in the latter. The implications of these findings for future conceptual and empirical work on stable propensity/time-varying social variable interaction effects are discussed. [source] The Art and Science of Surge: Experience from Israel and the U.S. MilitaryACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE, Issue 11 2006Boaz Tadmor MD In a disaster or mass casualty incident, health care resources may be exceeded and systems may be challenged by unusual requirements. These resources may include pharmaceuticals, supplies, and equipment as well as certain types of academic and administrative expertise. New agencies and decision makers may need to work together in an unfamiliar environment. Furthermore, large numbers of casualties needing treatment, newer therapies required to care for these casualties, and increased workforce and space available for these casualties all contribute to what is often referred to as "surge." Surge capacity in emergency care can be described in technical, scientific terms that are measured by numbers and benchmarks (e.g., beds, patients, and medications) or can take on a more conceptual and abstract form (e.g., decisions, authority, and responsibility). The former may be referred to as the "science" of surge, whereas the latter, an equal if not more important component of surge systems that is more conceptual and abstract, can be considered the "art" of surge. The experiences from Israel and the U.S. military may serve to educate colleagues who may be required to respond or react to an event that taxes the current health care system. This report presents concrete examples of surge capacity strategies used by both Israel and the U.S. military and provides solutions that may be applied to other health care systems when faced with similar situations. [source] Learning from Difference: Considerations for Schools as CommunitiesCURRICULUM INQUIRY, Issue 3 2000Carolyn M. Shields In today's highly complex and heterogeneous public schools, the current notion of schools as homogeneous communities with shared beliefs, norms, and alues is inadequate. Drawing on Barth's (1990) question of how to use ifference as a resource, I take up ideas from feminism, multiculturalism, and inclusive education to consider the development of community in schools. I argue that despite the valuable contributions of these theoretical perspectives, each lso includes the potential for increased fragmentation and polarization. As we consider how to use differences as a foundation for community, it is important ot to reify any particular perspective, thus marginalizing others and erecting new barriers. Explicitly embracing the need to identify and respect difference, being open to new ideas without taking an exclusionary position, and committing to ongoing participation in dialogical processes may help schools to develop as more authentic communities of difference. Among the dominant issues identified in today's climate of turbulent educational reform are concerns about how to restructure schools to ensure equality of student opportunity and excellence of instruction (Elmore, 1990; Lieberman, 1992; Murphy, 1991). Many proposals include modifying present leadership and governance structures, overcoming the hegemony of existing power bases, developing mechanisms for accountability, enhancing professionalism, and co-ordinating community resources. One of the suggestions frequently made to address these issues is to change from a focus on schools as organizations to a recognition of schools as communities (Barth, 1990; Fullan, 1993; Lupart & Webber, 1996; Senge, 1990). However, despite the widespread use of the metaphor of community as an alternative to the generally accepted concept of schools as rational or functional organizations, there seems to be little clarity about the concept of community, what it might look like, how it might be implemented, or what policies might sustain it. Indeed, theories about schools as communities have often drawn from Tönnies (1887/1971) concept of gemeinschaft,a concept which perhaps evokes a more homogeneous and romanticized view of the past than one which could be helpful for improving education in today's dynamic, complex, and heterogeneous context (Beck & Kratzer, 1994; Sergiovanni, 1994a). More recently, several writers (Fine et al., 1997; Furman, 1998; Shields & Seltzer, 1997) have advanced the notion of communities of otherness or difference. These authors have suggested that rather than thinking of schools as communities that exist because of a common affiliation to an established school ethos or tradition, it might be more helpful to explore an alternative concept. A school community founded on difference would be one in which the common centre would not be taken as a given but would be co-constructed from the negotiation of disparate beliefs and values as participants learn to respect, and to listen to, each other. In this concept, bonds among members are not assumed, but forged, and boundaries are not imposed but negotiated. Over the past eight years, as I have visited and worked with a large number of schools trying earnestly to address the needs of their diverse student bodies, I have become increasingly aware of the limitations of the concept of community used in the gemeinschaft sense with its emphasis on shared values, norms, and beliefs, and have begun to reflect on the question framed by Barth (1990): ,How can we make conscious, deliberate use of differences in social class, gender, age, ability, race, and interest as resources for learning?' (p. 514). In this article, I consider how learning from three of these areas of difference: gender, race, and ability, may help us to a better understanding of educational community. This article begins with some illustrations and examples from practice, moves to consider how some theoretical perspectives may illuminate them, and concludes with reflections on how the implications of the combined reflections on practice and theory might actually help to reconceptualize and to improve practice. While it draws heavily on questions and impressions which have arisen out of much of my fieldwork, it is not intended to be an empirical paper, but a conceptual one,one which promotes reflection and discussion on the concept of schools as communities of difference. The examples of life in schools taken from longitudinal research studies in which I have been involved demonstrate several common ways in which difference is dealt with in today's schools and some of the problems inherent in these approaches. Some ideas drawn from alternative perspectives then begin to address Barth's question of how to make deliberate use of diversity as a way of thinking about community. Taken together, I hope that these ideas will be helpful in creating what I have elsewhere called ,schools as communities of difference' (Shields & Seltzer, 1997). [source] Treatment-resistant bipolar depression: towards a new definitionACTA PSYCHIATRICA SCANDINAVICA, Issue 6 2009I. Pacchiarotti Objective:, To summarize the conceptual and operational definitions of treatment-resistant bipolar depression and to review the evidence-based therapeutic options. Method:, Structured searches of PubMed, Index Medicus, Excerpta Medica and Psyclit conducted in December 2008. Results:, Criteria for treatment resistance in bipolar depression are commonly based on concepts stemming from treatment resistance as defined for unipolar depression, an approach that proved to be inadequate. In fact, the addition of an ad hoc criterion based on lithium and other mood stabilizer unresponsiveness after reaching adequate plasma levels appears to be a patch that attempts to take into account the uniqueness of bipolar depression but fails to become operational. Recent data from randomized clinical trials of new anticonvulsants and second-generation antipsychotics should lead to the development of a modern definition of treatment-resistant bipolar depression, and specific therapeutic algorithms. Conclusion:, We suggest a redefinition of resistant bipolar I and II depression. We propose different degrees of severity within bipolar depression in a stepwise manner. [source] Perennialism and Poverty ReductionDEVELOPMENT POLICY REVIEW, Issue 1 2004Nigel D. Poole This article, which is both conceptual and a synthesis of the literature, considers the research component of poverty alleviation strategies for people whose livelihoods depend significantly on tree and forest resources. Two policy approaches are contrasted: enhancing the utilisation of indigenous tree species within the household and the local economy, and integrating tree and forest-dependent peoples into the wider economy by promoting the commercialisation of conventional tree crop production. It is argued that the discussion is relevant for other poor peoples who depend on perennial production systems, and that the conclusions contribute to the wider debate about remoteness, market access, decentralisation and targeting in policy formulation, and globalisation. [source] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||