Utilizing Data (utilizing + data)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


Are Hispanic Immigrants in English-Only States at a Homeownership Disadvantage?

GROWTH AND CHANGE, Issue 1 2003
1990 U.S. Censuses, Evidence from the 1980
Utilizing data from the 1980 and 1990 U.S. census, this study investigates whether the passage of official-English legislation at the state level during the 1980s affected the housing acquisition of foreign-born Hispanics. The results suggest that both limited-English-proficient (LEP) and English-fluent Hispanic immigrants who resided in states that passed English-only legislation were less likely to acquire a home during the 1980s compared to their counterparts in other areas. Consistent with economic theory, however, the group that seemed to be most affected included older LEP residents. One explanation for these findings is that the official-English legislation mirrored growing xenophobia against foreign-born Hispanics, resulting in additional social stratification on the basis of ethnicity in housing markets. [source]


Individual versus Household Migration Decision Rules: Gender and Marital Status Differences in Intentions to Migrate in South Africa

INTERNATIONAL MIGRATION, Issue 1 2009
Bina Gubhaju
This research tests the thesis that the neoclassical microeconomic and the new household economic theoretical assumptions on migration decision-making rules are segmented by gender, marital status, and time frame of intention to migrate. Comparative tests of both theories within the same study design are relatively rare. Utilizing data from the Causes of Migration in South Africa national migration survey, we analyse how individually held "own-future" versus alternative "household well-being" migration decision rules effect the intentions to migrate of male and female adults in South Africa. Results from the gender and marital status specific logistic regressions models show consistent support for the different gender-marital status decision rule thesis. Specifically, the "maximizing one's own future" neoclassical microeconomic theory proposition is more applicable for never married men and women, the "maximizing household income" proposition for married men with short-term migration intentions, and the "reduce household risk" proposition for longer time horizon migration intentions of married men and women. Results provide new evidence on the way household strategies and individual goals jointly affect intentions to move or stay. [source]


Corporate Reputation and Social Performance: The Importance of Fit

JOURNAL OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES, Issue 3 2006
Stephen J. Brammer
abstract Utilizing data on a sample of large firms, we estimate a model of corporate reputation. We find reputation, derived from the assessments of managers and market analysts, to be determined by a firm's social performance, financial performance, market risk, the extent of long-term institutional ownership, and the nature of its business activities. Furthermore, the reputational effect of social performance is found to vary both across sectors, and within sectors across the various types of social performance. Specifically, our results demonstrate the need to achieve a ,fit' among the types of corporate social performance undertaken and the firm's stakeholder environment. For example, a strong record of environmental performance may enhance or damage reputation depending on whether the firm's activities ,fit' with environmental concerns in the eyes of stakeholders. [source]


Which Microfinance Institutions Are Becoming More Cost Effective with Time?

JOURNAL OF MONEY, CREDIT AND BANKING, Issue 4 2009
Evidence from a Mixture Model
microfinance; mixture model; Eastern Europe; Central Asia Microfinance institutions (MFIs) play a key role in many developing countries. Utilizing data from Eastern Europe and Central Asia, MFIs are found to generally operate with lower costs the longer they are in operation. Given the differences in operating environments, subsidies, and organizational form, this finding of increasing cost effectiveness may not aptly characterize all MFIs. Estimation of a mixture model reveals that roughly half of the MFIs are able to operate with reduced costs over time, while half do not. Among other things, we find that larger MFIs offering deposits and those receiving lower subsidies operate more cost effectively over time. [source]


A longitudinal study of the educational and career trajectories of female participants of an urban informal science education program

JOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN SCIENCE TEACHING, Issue 8 2004
Kathleen A. Fadigan
The purpose of this longitudinal case study is to describe the educational trajectories of a sample of 152 young women from urban, low-income, single-parent families who participated in the Women in Natural Sciences (WINS) program during high school. Utilizing data drawn from program records, surveys, and interviews, this study also attempts to determine how the program affected the participants' educational and career choices to provide insight into the role informal science education programs play in increasing the participation of women and minorities in science, math, engineering, and technology (SMET)-related fields. Findings revealed 109 participants (93.16%) enrolled in a college program following high school completion. Careers in medical or health-related fields followed by careers in SMET emerged as the highest ranking career paths with 24 students (23.76%) and 21 students (20.79%), respectively, employed in or pursuing careers in these areas. The majority of participants perceived having staff to talk to, the job skills learned, and having the museum as a safe place to go as having influenced their educational and career decisions. These findings reflect the need for continued support of informal science education programs for urban girls and at-risk youth. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 41: 835,860, 2004 [source]


Multiple Social Identities and Adjustment in Young Adults From Ethnically Diverse Backgrounds

JOURNAL OF RESEARCH ON ADOLESCENCE, Issue 4 2008
Lisa Kiang
A person-centered approach was used to determine how identification across multiple social domains (ethnic, American, family, religious) was associated with distinct identity clusters. Utilizing data from 222 young adults from European, Filipino, Latin, and Asian American backgrounds, four clusters were found (Many Social Identities, Blended/Low Religious, Blended/Low Ethnic and American, Few Social Identities). Clusters were differentially associated with adjustment, both directly and via moderation of perceived ethnic discrimination. Those with low levels of identity across all four domains reported lower positive affect, higher negative affect, lower self-esteem, and perceived fewer American opportunities compared with individuals in other clusters. However, the Blended/Low Ethnic and American cluster exhibited more liabilities associated with discrimination. Discussion emphasizes the importance of multiple identities in development. [source]


Shape-shifting discourses of anorexia nervosa: reconstituting psychopathology

NURSING INQUIRY, Issue 4 2003
Pamela K. Hardin
HARDIN PK. Nursing Inquiry 2003; 10: 209,217 Shape-shifting discourses of anorexia nervosa: reconstituting psychopathology This article explores how the circuitous relationship between individuals, the media, and discursive systems replicate and reinforce the act of self-starvation in young women. Using a feminist poststructuralist methodology, the focus of this article is on how discourses and institutional practices operate to position young women who take up the subject position of wanting to be diagnosed as anorexic. Utilizing data from online accounts and individual interviews, I attend to the ways in which young women are institutionally positioned as ,anorexics' and the effects that those positions have on their behaviors, in addition to reinforcing institutional practices that construct anorexia nervosa. Questions addressed through this inquiry are: How do institutional practices create and continue to constitute ,anorexia nervosa'? How do discourses operate to position young women such that they are either included and/or excluded into the category of ,anorexia nervosa'? What are the effects and consequences that emanate from these positionings? [source]


EMPLOYEE ATTRIBUTIONS OF THE "WHY" OF HR PRACTICES: THEIR EFFECTS ON EMPLOYEE ATTITUDES AND BEHAVIORS, AND CUSTOMER SATISFACTION

PERSONNEL PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 3 2008
LISA H. NISHII
The construct of human resource (HR) attributions is introduced. We argue that the attributions that employees make about the reasons why management adopts the HR practices that it does have consequences for their attitudes and behaviors, and ultimately, unit performance. Drawing on the strategic HR literature, we propose a typology of 5 HR-attribution dimensions. Utilizing data collected from a service firm, we show that employees make varying attributions for the same HR practices, and that these attributions are differentially associated with commitment and satisfaction. In turn, we show that these attitudes become shared within units and that they are related to unit-level organizational citizenship behaviors and customer satisfaction. Findings and implications are discussed. [source]


Integrating multidimensional geophysical data

ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROSPECTION, Issue 1 2006
Kenneth L. Kvamme
Abstract Surveys that utilize multiple geophysical methods offer greater insights about the subsurface because each one generally yields different information. Common approaches to integrating or ,fusing' multidimensional geophysical data are investigated utilizing computer graphics, geographical information system (GIS), mathematical and statistical solutions. These approaches are synthesized into graphical, discrete and continuous domains. It is shown that graphical approaches allow complex visualizations of the subsurface, but only images are generated and their dimensionality tends to be low. Discrete methods incorporate any number of geophysical dimensions, allow application of powerful Boolean operations, and produce unambiguous maps of anomaly presence or absence, but many of these methods rely on arbitrary thresholds that define only robust anomalies. Continuous data integrations offer capabilities beyond other methods because robust and subtle anomalies are simultaneously expressed, new quantitative information is generated, and interpretive data are derived in the form of regression weights, factor loadings, and the like, that reveal interrelationships and underlying dimensionality. All approaches are applied to a common data set obtained at Army City, Kansas, a World War I era commercial complex that serviced troops in nearby Camp Funston (now Fort Riley). Utilizing data from six geophysical surveys (magnetic gradiometry, electrical resistivity, ground-penetrating radar, magnetic susceptibility, soil conductivity, aerial thermography), various data integrations reveal the structure of this nearly forgotten town. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


Tana River Mangabey Use of Nonforest Areas: Functional Connectivity in a Fragmented Landscape in Kenya

BIOTROPICA, Issue 5 2010
Julie Wieczkowski
ABSTRACT Habitat loss and fragmentation is a serious threat to biodiversity. Fragment isolation can be reduced if fragments are connected, either structurally through habitat corridors or functionally if the species can move through the surrounding matrix. One-way to evaluate landscape connectivity is to observe natural movements of animals within fragmented landscapes. The Tana River mangabey (Cercocebus galeritus) is an endangered monkey endemic to fragmented forests along the lower Tana River in Kenya, and who has been observed to move through matrix between fragments. One mangabey group moved through 1 km of matrix, while another group moved through two areas of matrix. I collected behavioral and ranging data on the latter group to describe its behavior and time spent in the matrix. Utilizing data from belt transects in the matrix and forest fragments, I characterized the vegetation structure of the matrix and compared it to the forests included in each group's home range. The group spent the majority of their time eating while in the matrix, and spent an average 36.4 min in one matrix area and 100 min in the other. The matrix is generally characterized by the highest measures for a nonforest attribute and the lowest measures for forest attributes. These results suggest that forest fragments are functionally, but not structurally, connected for the mangabey; a landscape approach to conservation, therefore, should be taken for the lower Tana River. Research investigating the limitations of the mangabey's ability to use the matrix is needed. [source]


Sibling Differentiation in Adolescence: Implications for Behavioral Genetic Theory

CHILD DEVELOPMENT, Issue 6 2000
Mark E. Feinberg
The presence of sibling "differentiating rocesses", defined as processes in which increased sibling similarity in environmental or genetic factors leads to differences in sibling outcomes , poses a challenge for standard behavioral genetic theory and research. The presence of differentiation processes may affect estimates of genetic and environmental parameters in ways that have not been fully recognized. Utilizing data from the Nonshared Environment and Adolescent Development project, this study examined whether differentiating processes existed for seven composite indices of positive and negative adolescent adjustment. The 720 sibling pairs in the study were broken down into groups by age difference (0 , 4 years) between siblings. The hypothesis that siblings close in age would demonstrate lower correlations on adjustment measures was generally supported at two time points, three years apart. However, siblings one year apart at Time 1 were more similar to each other than were siblings two years apart, suggesting that shared environmental influences counteract sibling differentiation processes for these siblings. The overall trend supporting sibling differentiation was found to be unrelated to measures of sibling positivity and negativity. [source]


Audience Involvement and Entertainment,Education

COMMUNICATION THEORY, Issue 2 2002
Suruchi Sood
The present article explores the role that audience involvement plays in the effectiveness of entertainment,education programs. Utilizing data from a popular 104,episode entertainment,education radio soap opera from India, Tinka Tinka Sukh, it argues that the concept of audience involvement is multidimensional, and serves as a mediator for promoting behavior change. Audience involvement is characterized as being composed of two dimensions: (a) affective,referential involvement, and (b) cognitive,critical involvement. Involvement appears to be a precursor for increasing self,efficacy and collective efficacy, and in promoting interpersonal communication among individuals in the audience. [source]


A comparative study of the magnitude, frequency and distribution of intense rainfall in the United Kingdom

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CLIMATOLOGY, Issue 12 2010
John C. Rodda
Abstract During the 1960s, a study was made of the magnitude, frequency and distribution of intense rainfall over the United Kingdom, employing data from more than 120 daily read rain gauges covering the period 1911 to 1960. Using the same methodology, that study was recently updated utilizing data for the period 1961 to 2006 for the same gauges, or from those nearby. This paper describes the techniques applied to ensure consistency of data and statistical modelling. It presents a comparison of patterns of extreme rainfalls for the two periods and discusses the changes that have taken place. Most noticeably, increases up to 20% have occurred in the north-west of the country and in parts of East Anglia. There have also been changes in other areas, including decreases of the same magnitude over central England. The implications of these changes are considered. Copyright © 2009 Royal Meteorological Society [source]


Effect of parental genotypes and paternal heterosis on litter traits in crossbred goats

JOURNAL OF ANIMAL BREEDING AND GENETICS, Issue 2 2008
Y. Tsukahara
Summary The effect of parental genotype and paternal heterosis on litter size (LS), total litter birth weight (TLW) and average litter birth weight (ALW) was analysed utilizing data from a crossbreeding programme involving the exotic German Fawn goats and local Katjang goats in Malaysia. In this study, these traits were regarded as traits of the litter to consider the effect of service sire genotype. The results revealed that LS was significantly influenced by the genotype of sire. The genotypes of sire and dam had significant effects on TLW and ALW. Estimates of crossbreeding parameter showed significant and negative influence of paternal heterosis on TLW and ALW while there was no significant effect of paternal heterosis on LS. The results of this study stress the need to reconsider the use of local males in the tropics. [source]


The resources of parents with a child in psychiatric inpatient care

JOURNAL OF PSYCHIATRIC & MENTAL HEALTH NURSING, Issue 1 2002
T. A. PUOTINIEMI MSc RN
The purpose of this study was to analyse and describe the resources of parents with a child in psychiatric inpatient care. The factors associated with parental coping were also assessed. The data were collected from 19 hospitals with a child psychiatry unit. At the time of data collection, all the parents of the children in psychiatric inpatient care in these hospitals were invited to participate in the study (N = 268). The method of data collection was a questionnaire including open-ended questions. The response percentage was 30% (N = 79). The data were analysed using SPSS software. The replies to the open-ended questions were analysed utilizing data-based content analysis. The findings indicated that the parents received more emotional than instrumental support. Few got financial support. The parents got support from their spouses, families, friends and fellow-workers and the health care personnel. Nearly half of the parents wanted more support from health care personnel. Of the different kinds of social support reported, emotional support, support in the care and rearing of the child in inpatient care, love and acceptance correlated most strongly with parental coping. [source]