People In Higher Education Research Articles

Part of the British mainstream? British Muslim students and Islamic Student Associations

In recent years, fear of ‘the other’ has focused particularly on ‘home grown’ second-generation Muslims. In the aftermath of the 7 July 2005 bombings in London, there was particular horror and incredulity expressed about the fact that many of the bombers had been born and raised in Britain, and universities have been increasingly regarded by various analysts and politicians as potential ‘hotbeds of extremism.’ Yet apart from sensationalistic images of British Muslims as threatening radicals, we still have relatively little in-depth information about the vast majority of ordinary British Muslim young people in higher education. This article explores young British Muslim students' views and experiences of Islamic Student Associations (ISOCs) at three universities in the southeast. What motivates Muslim students to join ISOCs and can we determine clear differences between those who join ISOCs and those who do not? While there is growing evidence that younger British Muslims are more politicized than their parents, and are more likely to mobilize around their identity as Muslims, most British Muslim students' involvement in ISOCs does not pose a threat to British society or to their ability to negotiate their British and Muslim sense of selves.

Should psychosocial factors be taken into account when developing and implementing population-level preventive programmes?

Aim. To assess social status and selected psychological characteristics in organised urban populations from 5 Russian regions; to compare the results with the prevalence of traditional risk factors (RFs) and chronic disease. Material and methods. In 2009-2010, representative samples of organised populations from 5 Russian cities were examined (total n=2227, 1336 women and 891 men). The questionnaires assessed socioeconomic status (SES), as well as somatic and psychological health. The assessed psychological parameters included Lifestyle Index (LI), psychological resilience mechanisms (PRM), social adaptation, sanogenic reflection, Eysenck phychoticism scale, personal moral potential, emotional burnout syndrome, Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), and Perceived Stress Scale (PSS). The examination included the measurement of blood pressure, heart rate, waist circumference, and hips circumference. Results. The proportion of higher-educated people ranged from 82% in Nalchik to 29,3% in Omsk. Low self-rated wealth levels were highly prevalent (from 10,4-13% to 40,4%). Arterial hypertension was registered in 1,29% and 1,64% of men and women aged 25-34 years. In people aged 65-74 years, the respective figures were 60% and 75,8%. Obesity (body mass index ≥30 kg/m2) was registered in over 50% of the participants from all social groups. Negative (pathological) levels of LI significantly correlated with the majority of somatic diseases (р<0,001) and psychological disorders (р<0,007). In women, negative PRM were significantly more prevalent than in men (р<0,007). In those aged under 50 years, the prevalence of negative PRM was lower (up to 28%) than in those aged 50-60 years (37,8%), or 60-75 years (57,7%) (р<0,001). Conclusion. The development and implementation of population-level preventive programmes should take into account not only morbidity levels and traditional RFs, but also psychosocial features of the respective population groups.

Interaction Effects in Probit Models, Reinterpreting the Impact of Education on Attitudes Towards Immigrants and Free-Trade

Abstract: Economic literature has examined the impact of education and factors endowment on individual preferences towards free-trade and immigration by focusing on the sign of an interaction term between the educational level and the Gross Domestic Product per capita. The aim of this paper is to re-examine this issue by employing the new method proposed Ai and Norton (2003). Findings showed that attitudes are not fully in line with the Heckscher-Ohlin model. That is, high educated people in richer countries could be against immigration and free-trade if their overall disposition to these issues is bad.

Люди заёмного труда: социальный состав и характеристики работы

The article is devoted to new forms of employment being formed under conditions of agency work (or leasing labour). The human capital theory postulates that marginal social groups are mainly involved into temporary agency work which doesn’t provide workers with social guarantees. It can be found on the lowest step of the social ladder. So, social costs of increase in labour market flexibility may be very high and show up discrimination of agency workers, pushing them away from the labour market core and transforming them into working poors. The author considers the issues related to agency work in terms of social guarantees and proposes critical views on different topics including social characteristics of groups involved into agency work, motivation for getting jobs, assessment of work conditions, work satisfaction, etc.Empirical data is generated from the survey of 1012 temporary agency workers employed for Kelly Services, Adecco and Ancor in seven Russian regions.Research findings show that the structure of shared views on work agency is fragmented. It is resulted from co-existence of different demands in labour markets including demand for flexible employment. Comparing to labour markets in different countries the Russian one has some peculiarities. One of them implies that high educated young people are dominant among agency workers. They consider leasing labour as a direct way to stable employment. From the long term perspective temporary workers are oriented to getting stable positions and standard employment. It is concluded that temporary work practices are not discriminative and comparable with the overall labour markets in Russia.

Mental illness, supported education, employment and recovery: Ben's story

Supported education programs aim to facilitate the successful return to higher education for people living with mental illness who may have experienced educational interruptions due to their illness. This article shares the story of Ben who lives with mental illness and his experience of participating in an Australian supported education course. The two authors draw on a qualitative life history approach as they reflected on Ben's experiences of mental illness, educational disruption and returning to education and employment. The losses associated with educational disruption and the positive and empowering experience of becoming a student again are described as positively impacting recovery. Ben's story is shared in anticipation that other people living with mental illness, their family and carers, or workers supporting those people, may draw from his determination and success, in their own journeys of recovery.

Cancer incidence among priests: 45 years of follow-up in four Nordic countries

Previously published studies on the risk of cancer among male priests have been based on cancer mortality with the exception of one case-control study. The aim of this study was to present estimates of cancer incidence among Nordic male priests. The study cohort for our analyses consisted of 6.5 million men aged 30-64 years old who had participated in any computerised population census in four Nordic countries in 1990 or earlier. Follow-up was done by drawing linkages with the national population and cancer registries. 13,491 priests were identified by their job title codes. We estimated the standardised incidence ratio (SIR) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) for the priests using the male population as a reference. Priests had a lower cancer incidence than the general population (overall SIR 0.85, 95% CI: 0.82-0.88). The majority of smoking- and alcohol-related cancers were associated with decreased SIR estimates. Increased risks were observed for skin melanoma (SIR 1.34, 95% CI: 1.11-1.62), acute myeloid leukemia (SIR 1.75, 95% CI: 1.20-2.47) and thyroid cancer (SIR 1.86, 95% CI: 1.22-2.73). This is the first cohort study regarding the incidence of cancer among priests. The lower incidence of smoking and alcohol-related cancers among Nordic male priests can be explained by their lower exposure to cigarettes and alcohol when compared to the general population. A greater risk of melanoma is typical of highly-educated people, but it is unclear why priests should have an increased risk of acute myeloid leukemia or thyroid cancer.

Unemployment in early career in the UK

In this article, I analyse the consequences of unemployment on the re-entry occupational status and subsequent occupational status growth of different educational groups in the first years of employment in the UK. I argue that phases of unemployment mean different things for different educational groups. The sequential nature of job offers causes job searchers either to accept a job offer immediately or to wait for the next offer. Higher aspirations and higher levels of savings mean that high-educated people are more likely to wait until they are offered a job that improves their occupational position. In the case of low-educated workers, however, waiting for a better job offer might not be the best strategy, because they might never get one; in addition, the low level of unemployment benefits from previous salaries, the regime of sanctions linked to the right to receive unemployment benefits and low household incomes push them into employment. I use growth curve models and parameterize in one model both the pre-unemployment and the post-unemployment phases. Based on British Household Panel Survey (BHPS) data, the results confirm my argumentation: high-educated people gain status while low-educated entrants lose status upon re-entering the labour market after unemployment.

EDUCATION, SOCIAL ORIGINS AND CAREER (IM)MOBILITY IN CONTEMPORARY ITALY

ABSTRACT Italy has always been characterized by low rates of career mobility. However, whilst the essential features of intragenerational (im)mobility in Italy are relatively well known, much less is known about the pattern of the specific paths linking the class of the first job with later class positions. To date, no studies of career mobility have been conducted in holistic terms; that is, based on examination of the entire sequence of the class positions occupied by an individual during his/her work history. This paper develops a typology of sequences of transition from one social class to another which preserves the qualitative differences among individual sequences. We introduce a new method to measure resemblance among sequences in order to identify the main career paths observable in Italy. We then examine how these profiles have changed over time because of transformations in the economic system and of the changing size of different social classes. Furthermore, we will try to determine whether and how social origins and education affect the probabilities of following those paths. The results show that social origins: 1) still influence the career patterns of younger cohorts); and 2) play a very important role in modifying the chances of highly-educated people to enter the upward career patterns leading to the service class or to white-collar positions.

Regulated competition in health care: Switching and barriers to switching in the Dutch health insurance system

BackgroundIn 2006, a number of changes in the Dutch health insurance system came into effect. In this new system mobility of insured is important. The idea is that insured switch insurers because they are not satisfied with quality of care and the premium of their insurance. As a result, insurers will in theory strive for a better balance between price and quality. The Dutch changes have caught the attention, internationally, of both policy makers and researchers. In our study we examined switching behaviour over three years (2007-2009). We tested if there are differences in the numbers of switchers between groups defined by socio-demographic and health characteristics and between the general population and people with chronic illness or disability. We also looked at reasons for (not-)switching and at perceived barriers to switching.MethodsSwitching behaviour and reasons for (not-)switching were measured over three years (2007-2009) by sending postal questionnaires to members of the Dutch Health Care Consumer Panel and of the National Panel of people with Chronic illness or Disability. Data were available for each year and for each panel for at least 1896 respondents - a response of between 71% and 88%.ResultsThe percentages of switchers are low; 6% in 2007, 4% in 2008 and 3% in 2009. Younger and higher educated people switch more often than older and lower educated people and women switch more often than men. There is no difference in the percentage of switchers between the general population and people with chronic illness or disability. People with a bad self-perceived health, and chronically ill and disabled, perceive more barriers to switching than others.ConclusionThe percentages of switchers are comparable to the old system. Switching is not based on quality of care and thus it can be questioned whether it will lead to a better balance between price and quality. Although there is no difference in the frequency of switching among the chronically ill and disabled and people with a bad self-perceived health compared to others, they do perceive more barriers to switching. This suggests there are inequalities in the new system.

How to Ease the Transition for Returning Veterans

How to Ease the Transition for Returning Veterans

Who are the lucky ones? Heterogeneity in active labour market policy outcomes

Nordlund M. Who are the lucky ones? Heterogeneity in active labour market policy outcomes Int J Soc Welfare 2011: 20: 144–155 © 2010 The Author(s), International Journal of Social Welfare © 2010 Blackwell Publishing Ltd and International Journal of Social Welfare. This study focuses on how the effects from investments in Active Labour Market Policy programmes (ALMPs) may be differently distributed due to the age and educational level of participants. Outcomes were measured as the chance of labour market inclusion, labour market stability and post-unemployment incomes. This longitudinal study captures long-term effects among 50,000 Swedes who entered unemployment in 1993. While the youngest gained most from ALMP-training, the oldest were best helped by ALMP- employment in reducing the risk of labour market exit. The lowest educated gained much from ALMP participation, although the effects were weaker than expected: those with a higher education gained more in terms of labour market stability from ALMP-training compared with the less educated persons. This result was interpreted in terms of a springboard effect, meaning that ALMP-training pushes higher educated people into further education in the regular educational arena.

Market segmentation of health information use on the Internet in Korea

Background Internet is the common way to access all kind of information, thus it becomes to have highly influential place on the range of health care as well. More and more people have been using Internet to get the latest information on the health-related matters. However, it is very important but not easy to find the correct data and select it efficiently among the enormous amount of information. To identify the information seekers and understand their needs or purposes, they would be very effective for the providers to give high-quality health information for the Internet users. Objectives The purpose of this study is to reveal the patterns of utilization of health information on the Internet. The subjects of the survey were randomly selected among the local residents by their age and gender. It was conducted in Gangwon, the province and Incheon, the metropolitan city at the same time. To investigate the similar amount of population, 0.5% of Gangwon and 0.3% of Incheon dwellers were chosen. Methods 10,325 people were responded to the telephone poll and the investigation had been conducted from July to October 2006. 8656 from 10,325 completed the survey and 1665 (19.2%) of them had used Internet to get health information in last 1-year. The use of health information on the Internet was classified into four categories as follows: general health tips, disease specific information, shopping for health commodities, and selection of hospitals. The questionnaire included articles regarding socio-demographic characteristics such as age, gender, income, education, dwelling area, health status and behaviors such as cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption. Results Of all 1665 respondents, 726 (17.2%) men (total 4210) and 939 (21.1%) women (total 4446) had used Internet for health information in last 1-year. The health information that people wanted from Internet was as follows: general health tips (64.2%), disease specific information (32.0%), shopping for health commodities (23.7%), and selection of hospitals (19.3%). The people of higher education and higher income level tended to use Internet more often for health information. Metropolitan city dwellers used health information on the Internet more than people from province did. Personal health status appeared to be the most important factor to search the information about general health tips from the Internet. Healthy people (68.3%) used the Internet more than people with diseases (44.4%) who used Internet most frequently for disease specific information (62.6%). Residence area was the most important factor of online shopping for health commodities. While 31.8% of city dwellers used the Internet, only 19.0% of metropolitan or county dwellers used it for the same purpose. Determinant factors for the utilization of the Internet for hospital selection were residence area, age, and health examination. Conclusions We found that each section of health information has its own clients concerning their personal interests and status of health and life style. That is why customized market segmentation is strongly recommended for their loyal customers. Depends on the information seekers’ health status, it should be decided which information would be more useful for them between general health tips and specific disease. On the other hand, the area where the information seekers live can be more influential on terms of shopping for health commodities. These results will be a great help to start to understand the closer atmosphere of the ideal health information market to provide more valuable services in more various use.

Building Common College-Ready Standards

Many people in higher education were caught by surprise when the nation's governors and chief state school officers announced their intention to adopt common standards for American high schools tha...

The importance of message framing for providing information about sustainability and environmental aspects of energy

With a looming energy crisis, energy conservation and attention to environmental problems are warranted. The transport sector experiences great challenges to introduce more environmental friendly renewable energy like biofuels. The majority of the Belgian people are asking for more information about this issue. Because individuals are sensitive to how information is presented, the choice of the message frame can significantly influence attitudes and behavioural intention. Because of the strengthening effect on both concern and PCE, our findings suggest that for the prevention of energy and environmental problems and the promotion of a more sustainable and environmental friendly energy consumption not the gravity of these problems and the possible disadvantages but the possibilities to overcome these problems (e.g. reduction of energy use, environmental friendly energy sources) have to be stressed. Men, higher educated people, people between 35 and 54 years old and people with the most pro-environmental attitude are less affected by the message frame, while the choice of the frame is more important when addressing women, people younger than 35 and older than 55 years, lower educated and less pro-environmental people.

GENDER ASPECTS OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LEVEL OF EDUCATION, BLOOD PRESSURE AND BODY WEIGHT IN THE AZERBAIJAN NATIONAL SAMPLE: PP.7.298

Aim: In the Azerbaijan national sample, to investigate gender-specific associations between educational level and body mass parameters: body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), abdominal obesity (AO), as well as the links between education and cardio-metabolic risk (CMR) components - arterial hypertension (AH) and diabetes mellitus (DM). Material and methods: The study included people 760aged 24–84 years: 290 men and 470 women. Response rate was 82,3%. Results: Higher-educated people demonstrated lower levels of BMI and WC, lower prevalence of AO and clinical states associated with increased BM - AH and AH + AO (ð<0,001). Higher-educated individuals also had minimal age-related gradient in BM and WC increase (ð<0,001). Educational differences in BM were observed in subjects aged over 25 years (educational status is defined by this age), and were maximal in working-age individuals under 60 years. In older individuals, the association between education and BM was less clear. In men, education was not significantly associated with BM parameters, while in women, this association was statistically significant (ð<0,001). In lower-educated women, odds ratios (ORs) for AO, AH, and their combination were, respectively, 2,4 (95% CI 2,0–2.9), 1,6 (95% CI 1,4–1,95), and 1,95 (95% CI 1,6–2,4). In women with secondary education, respective ORs were 1,95 (95% CI 1,7–2,3), 1,2 (95% CI 1,0–1,4), and 1,5 (95% CI 1,2–1,8), comparing to their peers with higher education. Among men, OR for AH was 1,6 (95% CI 1,3–1,9) in the lower-educated and 1,3 (95% CI 1,1–1,6) in those with secondary education. Conclusion: Among women, educational level was significantly linked to BM parameters and BM-related characteristics of AH and AO. In men, this association was observed for AH only.

Does education buffer the impact of disability on psychological distress?

This paper investigates whether education buffers the impact of physical disability on psychological distress. It further investigates what makes education helpful, by examining whether cognitive ability and occupational class can explain the buffering effect of education. Two waves of the 1958 British National Child Development Study are used to test the hypothesis that the onset of a physical disability in early adulthood (age 23 to 33) has a smaller effect on psychological distress among higher educated people. In total 423 respondents (4.6%) experienced the onset of a physical disability between the ages of 23 and 33. We find that a higher educational level cushions the psychology impact of disability. Cognitive ability and occupational class protect against the effect of a disability too. The education buffer arises in part because individuals with a higher level of education have more cognitive abilities, but the better social position of those with higher levels of education appears to be of greater importance. Implications of these findings for the social gradient in health are discussed.

Mental Health, Access, and Equity in Higher Education

This paper tackles the difficult and often not openly discussed This paper tackles the difficult and often not openly discussed topic of access and equity in higher education for people with mental health difficulties. Recent legislative and policy developments in mental health, disability, anti-discrimination and education mean that all students who disclose a mental health condition can expect fair and equitable treatment. However the findings of an exploratory study at an Australian university reveal that just under two thirds of the 54 students who reported mental health difficulties did not disclose this to staff due to fears of discrimination at university and in future employment. Students who did disclose felt supported when staff displayed a respectful attitude and provided appropriate advice and useful strategies for them to remain engaged in university studies when experiencing mental health difficulties.

The effects of education on crime

In this article, we use a unique data set on criminal behaviour to analyse the effects of education on offences and crimes committed. The findings suggest that substantial savings on the social costs of crime can be obtained by investing in education. We find that the probability of committing crimes like shop lifting, vandalism and threat, assault and injury decrease with years of education. The probability of committing tax fraud, however, increases with years of education. We further find that higher educated people have more permissive attitudes and social norms towards criminal behaviour.

Fatores de risco à senilidade na transição à aposentadoria

INTRODUÇÃO: A aposentadoria, um dos principais desencadeantes de comprometimentos funcionais em quem envelhece, passa muitas vezes despercebida quanto a sua importância patogênica e, portanto, não recebe a devida prevenção e tratamento. Neste estudo levantou-se a hipótese de que a aposentadoria é um processo gradativo de perdas que se relaciona com o envelhecimento patológico. OBJETIVO: Detectar fatores psicológicos e sociais da aposentadoria determinantes no envelhecimento patológico. CASUÍSTICA E MÉTODOS: Durante o ano de 2008, 79 funcionários do Hospital das Clínicas de São Paulo, em transição à aposentadoria, foram convidados a preencher um questionário geral de opinião, de múltiplas opções de respostas, sobre fatores psicossociais da aposentadoria que melhor expressam os sentimentos e emoções perante a proximidade desse evento. RESULTADOS: Da população de estudo, a aposentadoria afeta mais a estrutura psicológica dos homens, dos mais jovens, dos que têm menor nível de autoridade no cargo e menor nível de escolaridade. As dificuldades decorrentes do afastamento do trabalho são maiores para sujeitos mais velhos, para as pessoas com menor nível de autoridade e para pessoas com menor nível de escolaridade. A mudança de ritmo de vida decorrente da aposentadoria afeta mais sujeitos com menor nível de autoridade, e a possibilidade de surgirem conflitos após a aposentadoria é maior em sujeitos com maior nível de escolaridade. CONCLUSÃO: A aposentadoria é um processo gradativo de perdas que produz instabilidade emocional, com consequências nocivas ao futuro. Quanto menor for a idade do sujeito que se aposenta, maior o impacto desse evento. Sujeitos com maior escolaridade e nível de autoridade têm melhor adaptação à mudança e capacidade de lidar com as dificuldades na transição à aposentadoria.

Enhancing the Schooling Level of the Special Higher Education and Perfecting the Disabled People Higher Education System

It is the urgent problem to quickly develop the graduate education of disabled college students for Chinese special higher education. Through the comparison of the foreign and domestic disabled graduate education actualities, we should constitute the postgraduate cultivation scheme and the education layout which could not only possess Chinese characteristics, but also accord with the development tendency of the world disabled postgraduate education through deep investigation researches, increase the outlay investment, develop the experimental unit engineering in special education colleges, recruit disabled students and sharing education resources in the postgraduate education of common colleges, make Chinese disabled people higher education develop to the elite education and the popular education at the same time, and form the system in the world to adapt for the demands of Chinese economic construction and social development to the super disabled professional talents.