Occupational Background Research Articles

HIV-related knowledge and precautions among Michigan nurses.

The present study examined human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-related knowledge and precautionary behaviors in a large random sample of registered nurses in all regions of the state of Michigan, allowing for comparisons among nurses in a wide range of occupational experiences, exposures, and backgrounds related to HIV. A random sample of all registered nurses living in Michigan completed surveys in the fall of 1989. Although nearly all respondents indicated a high level of knowledge of known viable routes of HIV transmission, many respondents also reported misconceptions about several unverified nonviable routes of HIV transmission. Of the respondents who were involved in situations with potential risk of exposure to HIV, many failed to consistently use the universal precautions recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The respondents also reported significant barriers in applying infection control procedures. The findings of the present study support the need for continued and intensified efforts to ensure that nurses have the knowledge necessary to provide quality care, are aware of the risk of potential exposures to HIV, and are engaging in appropriate precautionary behaviors.

"Your Old Father Abe Lincoln is Dead and Damned": Black Soldiers and the Memphis Race Riot of 1866

Between May 1 and May 3, 1866, racial conflict erupted violently in Memphis, Tennessee. Irish policemen and firemen, together with white laborers and small businessmen, rioted in southern part of city. For three days they attacked black residents living in shanty settlement surrounding Fort Pickering, a Union military installation on outskirts of city. The rioters initially focused their attacks on former soldiers of Third United-States Colored Heavy Artillery regiment, which had disbanded April 30-the last of three black regiments to be mustered out of United States service at Memphis. On May 2 and 3, however, rioters increasingly targeted civic institutions and property of black community of south Memphis, including schools, churches, and black-owned houses. By May 4, when federal military authorities declared martial law and detachments of white troops enforced order in city, two whites and at-least forty-six blacks had been killed, between seventy and eighty others had been wounded, at least five black women raped, more than one hundred people (mostly black) robbed, and four churches, twelve schools and ninety-one houses burned.2 Contemporary observers attributed violence to unruly conduct of black soldiers in Memphis and to longstanding animosity between blacks and Irish, who competed for work as manual laborers. The Memphis Daily Avalarlche, for example, argued, is only with negro soldiers that trouble has ever existed.... With their departure, will come order, confidence, and good will of old days. Had we had [white troops] instead of negro troops, neither this riot, nor many lawless acts preceding it during past six months, would have occurred. The superintendent of Memphis Freedmen's Bureau, Major General Benjamin P. Runkle, stressed that was also a conflict of labor between Irish hackSdrivers, dray-drivers, porters, laborers, c there was a good deal of bitterness felt upon part of Irish, from fact that these southern gentlemen preferred to hire negro servants. Another observer, Ewing O. Tade, a representative of American Missionary Association, stated succinctly that the late Memphis Riot was beyond a reasonable doubt instigated by Irish Police of this city.3 The rioters, however, were a diverse lot, and their ethnic and occupational background does not support such a narrow, socio-economic interpretation of

Rural Diversity: An American Asset

Rural America is an exceedingly diverse place, and this diversity constitutes a national asset. Diversity can be documented by an examination of any social or economic attribute one wishes to choose—educational attainment, per capita income, occupation, and ethnic background provide examples. This diversity shapes both the public policies applicable to the countryside and the opportunities of rural communities and rural people. Highly centralized public programs and policies, unless they provide for local adaptation, are unlikely to be successful. Many existing federal programs have outlived their usefulness. Federal entitlement programs continue to be enormously important to rural people and can be made even far more effective by recognizing rural differences. Not all rural areas will flourish in the future; the supply of rural places that would like to attract economic activity far exceeds the demand for such places. Exogenous forces that will improve the prospects for some rural areas include an increase in the number of people of retirement age and with a retirement income as well as growth of outdoor recreation and tourism activities. Entrepreneurship will continue to be of great importance as diverse rural places discover ways they can serve an increasingly urban and global society. The cost of distance and the benefits of space are key parameters in establishing the economic framework within which economic development will occur.

Work environment and schizophrenia: an extension of the arousal hypothesis to occupational self-selection.

The present study investigated a possible mechanism underlying the occupational self-selection of future schizophrenic patients prior to their first admission. More precisely, we explored whether schizophrenic patients are more likely than other psychotic patients to work in environments with a low potential for arousal (low complexity environments) in the last full-time job that preceded their hospitalization. All first admissions with psychotic symptoms to 15 hospitals providing inpatient psychiatric services in the Baltimore-Washington area were surveyed during a 6-year period. Patients diagnosed with schizophrenia were compared to patients diagnosed with bipolar disorder and other psychotic disorders to evaluate the suspected association. Study participants were assessed with a modified version of the Diagnostic Interview Schedule. Standard survey questions were used to assess occupational background. A measure based on the dictionary of occupational titles (DOT) was used to estimate the degree of complexity to which patients had been exposed in their last full-time occupation. Data were analyzed using multinomial logistic regression. After adjustment for age, gender, marital status, unemployment, socioeconomic status, hospital type, and physical demands and hazards on the job, patients with schizophrenia were more likely to have been working in low complexity environments in their last full-time jobs (e.g., janitors, gardeners, guards) than patients with bipolar disorder or with other psychotic disorders. Alternative explanations and potential implications regarding which work environments might be best suited to the social behavior of patients with schizophrenia are examined.

Unemployment and mental health: A neglected relationship

This paper reviews aspects of the existing theoretical and data base relating to unemployment and mental health. The literature indicates that job loss has predictable effects on individual sense of well-being and, further, that the effects differ in particular populations related to variables such as age, gender, and occupational background. The literature also suggests that early intervention after unemployment is likely to be important in ameliorating the undesirable effects on psychological well-being. Finally, the paper chastises mental health policymakers, especially in the United States, for their failure to devote resources to encourage investigations into mental health implications for workers and the unemployed.

Occupational Mobility in the Year 2000: Projections for American Men and Women

Occupational Mobility in the Year 2000: Projections for American Men and Women

Neuropsychological Assessment

Neuropsychological assessment refers to procedures in which standardized instruments are used to measure cognition and behavior, including intellect, orientation and memory, speech and language, perception, and judgment and decision-making. Normative standards, which take into account variables such as gender, age, level of education, and occupational background, are available for the tests. These standards allow for relatively precise quantification of cognition and behavior in individual patients. Neuropsychological assessment furnishes detailed information that can aid in diagnosis, patient management, rehabilitation planning, and the determination of the true extent of cognitive impairment in patients involved in litigation. Over the past couple of decades, the field of neuropsychological assessment has burgeoned at a remarkable pace, becoming firmly established as a crucial component of neurodiagnostic and neuroscientific enterprise. Its role is especially important at the interface of neurology and psychiatry, where many disorders have significant implications for cognitive functioning.

The role of nationality-specific characteristics on the settlement patterns of late nineteenth century immigrants

An extensive empirical literature has considered the settlement patterns in the United States of late 19th century European migrants. Migrants of different nationalities have been found to have displayed similar reactions to destination characteristics. Nevertheless, quantitative differences across the various nationalities' reactions have been found. This paper contends that these differences can be partially traced to the differences in the characteristics of the migrants themselves. These differences are categorized as (a) those dealing with the ability of the migrants to obtain reliable information, (b) those resulting from the occupational background of the migrant, and (c) those reflecting the motivation underlying the migration to America. A model of migrant settlement incorporating these factors is presented and estimated. The empirical results support the belief that the characteristics of the migrants partially account for the observed differences in observed behavior across the migrant nationalities.

Mortality among Petrochemical Science and Engineering Employees

This is a study of a dynamic cohort of 13 250 commercial research and development personnel for whom information on occupational and educational background and smoking was available. Their age-, sex-, race-, and period-adjusted death rates were compared with New Jersey rates and with an internal comparison population. The overall results were favorable. The study groups had significantly fewer deaths from most major disease categories compared with other New Jersey residents. Among white male scientists and engineers, age-adjusted overall mortality and ischemic heart disease mortality were comparable to white male managers and support staff studied, whereas mortality from leukemia and lymphatic cancer was significantly elevated. Mechanics, however, had a significantly lower leukemia and lymphatic cancer mortality rate than did the comparison group. In a Poisson regression model in which white males and females from the study population were used, and for which the effects of age, smoking, college education category, period of hire, and years employed were controlled, scientists, engineers, and research technicians had elevated (nonsignificantly) mortality rates for leukemia and lymphatic cancer compared with managers and support staff. Smoking was an independent risk factor for leukemia and lymphatic cancer. Further work is needed to assess if specific environmental factors, such as benzene, other aromatics, radiation, medical treatment, and smoking habits, might have contributed to the above findings.

A decrease in Leu-11a negative lymphocytes in relation to natural killer cell activity in chromate workers.

Early detection of lung cancer in chromate workers has traditionally utilised chest x ray film and sputum cytology and, more recently, bronchofibroscopy.1 These methods are effective, however, only after cancer has fully developed. A need exists to develop new approaches to screening lung cancer in its early phases in high risk populations. Peripheral lymphocytes consist of T cells, B cells, and non-T non-B cells. A major subgroup of non-T non-B cells consists of natural killer (NK) cells, which are measured using anti Leu-11a antibody; Leu-1 la positive cells have been shown to represent lymphocytes with NK activity.2 Natural killer cells are a subpopulation of lymphocytes capable of lysing a variety of aberrant cells independent of the major histocompatibility complex. In recent years, evidence has accumulated that NK cells have an important role in inhibition of tumourigenesis.34 In patients with lung cancer, the function of NK cells has been reported to be impaired but it is not known whether this eifect precedes or follows the appearance of clinical disease: nor has the occupational background of these patients been described.5 6 No systemic evaluation of the number or function capacity of NK cells in workers at a high risk for lung cancer has been reported to date. In the present study, we measured the Leu-1 la positive and negative lymphocytes as well as the activity of NK cells in chromate workers.

Basal metabolic rate and physique of Gurkha and British soldiers stationed in Britain

Measurements of basal metabolic rate (BMR) and physique were made on Gurkha soldiers stationed in Britain, and on British controls matched by body weight and occupational background. Gurkhas were significantly shorter, with greater body mass index, calf circumference and subscapular skinfold thickness than the European controls, although there was no difference in BMR between the two groups. For the Gurkhas, linear regression analysis incorporating factors which may influence BMR showed a positive relationship between the length of time since leaving Nepal and BMR, supporting the view that Asians living in temperate regions have higher BMR than those living in the tropics.

Reasons for Changing Jobs within a Career Structure

Organisations are very much aware of the importance in retaining their professional, key personnel. An appreciation of the motives that activate and sustain employees′ behaviour is paramount in career management. The findings of a survey which analysed the career development of construction managers are reported. The evidence suggests that the reasons for changing jobs vary dependent upon the individual′s occupational background and level in the management hierarchy.

Elite and Social Change: A Study of Elite Formation in India.

The Inquiry and Its Context Traditional Social Structure and the Rise of the Educated, Professional Strata The Design of the Survey Religion, Language and Caste Rural-Urban Distinctions Income and Occupational Backgrounds Educational Backgrounds Education in the Making of the Elite Elite Career and Family Background Elite Formation and Structural Change Summary and Conclusions

What should community mental health workers do? Experience in an inner city support team

In 1979 a survey of Hackney's psychiatric in-patients revealed that many were resident simply because there was nowhere else for them to go. (Lomas, 1979). As a response to this, the Community Psychiatry Research Unit (CPRU) was set up, and a team of support workers appointed (from nursing, social work and occupational therapy backgrounds) to assist in re-housing and to provide continuing care. Developing projects have meant that the role and job description of this support team have constantly changed. To review their present role, we decided to assess the day-to-day activities of three workers so as to improve our understanding of their function, training needs and work load. Details of the assessment criteria for taking on patients have been outlined by Rich et al (1989).

Social Class in a Classless Society:

Understanding of the Chinese culture is very important to successful marketing in China. This paper evaluates the Chinese social class system as an element of the cultural environment. The contributions of income, occupation, education, residence, and family background as components of class standing are described. Each of these elements contributes in a distinct way to class position and subsequent purchase behavior. An initial guideline for product positioning based on social class market segmentation is proposed. Additional descriptive survey research is required in order to evaluate this initial framework.

Dating Agency Members: Are they `Different'?

Despite the fact that it is becoming increasingly commonplace to find a partner through a dating agency, and there is an increasing awareness among personal relations researchers that dating agencies are a rich source of data, research into such agencies has typically been very limited and sporadic. In the present study, two types of analyses were conducted to examine the representativeness of dating agency members in relation to other indices of a more general population. In the first analysis, demographic comparisons were made between data from a large survey of members of Britain's largest dating agency and recent census information using the criteria of occupation, education and racial background as the comparative data. In the second analysis, the social competence scores of seventy-six young dating agency members on Levenson & Gottman's (1978) Dating and Assertion skills Questionnaire (DAQ) were contrasted with scores on these scales obtained by previous researchers. Results indicated that, as anticipated, dating agency members differed from the more general British population in having attained a higher educational level and in occupying higher status jobs. Paradoxically, however, such otherwise successful individuals had fewer presentation skills than previous DAQ respondents. The implications of such findings and the need for further research are discussed.

A-Bomb Radiation and Evidence of Late Effects Other Than Cancer

Cancer risk coefficients for ionizing radiation are currently based on the assumption that, after the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, there were no late effects of early selection (survival of the fittest) or acute marrow damage. These negative findings were the result of applying a linear model of relative risk to the deaths of 5-y survivors. By applying a linear-quadratic model to these deaths (i.e., a model with more than one degree of freedom), we have obtained evidence of longstanding competition between selection effects of the early deaths and other radiation effects, and also evidence that late effects of radiation include marrow damage as well as cancer. Consequently, the present method of risk estimation--by linear extrapolation of high dose effects--should no longer be used for estimating the cancer effects of occupational exposures or background radiation.

Women and Class – A Problematic Relationship?

The relationship between gender and class is important and controversial within sociology and has significant theoretical and political dimensions. But how do women experience class? Is it a meaningful dimension of everyday life The experiential aspects of class were explored with two hundred women, A third of them perceived social class m terms perceived of income. Others perceived it in terms of occupation their parents. their partner's or their own type of housing or the need to work to earn a living These different perceptions relate to women's own occupational class and educational background more closely than they relate to the occupational class of their partners. Women occupied full-time as housewives did not appear to differ from those m full or part-time paid employment m terms of their perceptions of class, nor did they experience their situation as marginal to the class structure of society. Although women's class does count there arc problems with assigning individual women to classes solely on the basis of their current position in the occupational hierarchy.

The King's Finest: A Social and Bureaucratic Profile of Prussia's General Officers, 1871-1914.

Tables Preface Introduction The Persistence of the Aristocracy Geography and Religion Occupational Background Joining the Army: Finances, Education, and the Career Choice Getting Ahead: The Road to the Generalcy Officers at the Summit The Demigods: General Staff Generals, 1871-1914 Conclusions Notes Bibliography Index

Energetic cost of standard activities in Gurkha and British soldiers

Measurements of basal metabolic rate and energy expenditure at lying, sitting, standing, and performing a step test at four levels of exercise, were made on Gurkha soldiers stationed in Britain and on British controls matched by body weight and occupational background. There was no significant difference in basal metabolic rate (BMR), nor in the energy cost of lying, sitting and standing between the two groups. Gurhas showed significantly lower gross and net energy expenditure, and so significantly greater net mechanical efficiency, at the lower levels of step exercise. The ratio of gross energy expenditure to BMR was lower in Gurkhas at the lowest rates of stepping compared with the British controls. These results suggest that the energy cost of some physical activities expressed as multiples of BMR may not be constant across populations.