Subjective society and socially constituted selves

Westen, Drew. Self and Society: Narcissism, Collectivism, and the Development of Morals. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1985. xvii + 438 pp. including references and index. $57.50 cloth, $19.95 paper.

White, Geoffrey M., and John Kirkpatrick, eds. Person, Self and Experience: Exploring Pacific Ethnopsychologies. Berkeley: University of California Press. 1985, vii + 433 pp. including chapter references, chapter glossaries, and index. $38.50 cloth.     

On becoming human

Marshall H. Klaus and John H. Kennell. Maternal‐Infant Bonding: The Impact of Early Separation or Loss on Family Development. Saint Louis, Missouri: The C. V. Mosby Company, 1976. ix + 257 pp. Figures, tables, references, and index. $8.95.     

‘There's only so much money hot dog sales can bring in’: The intersection of green school grounds and socio-economic status

In the interest of enhancing children's environments, many school grounds around the world are being ‘greened’ as asphalt and manicured grass are replaced with a diversity of elements and spaces, such as trees, shrubs, gardens, art, and gathering areas. Despite a growing body of research from a number of disciplines that is exploring the potential of these spaces, very little is known about how issues of socio-economic status (SES) influence school ground greening initiatives. In this paper, I explore what (if any) relationship exists between school ground greening and SES in a Canadian school board where approximately 20% of more than 500 schools have begun the greening process. A mixed methods approach was used: (1) 149 questionnaires were completed by administrators, teachers, and parents associated with 45 school ground greening initiatives; and (2) 21 follow-up interviews were conducted with administrators, teachers and parents at five greening projects across a range of SESs. Three significant, and arguably troubling, patterns emerged as a function of socio-economic status of the school community. Participants associated with schools across a range of SESs had different: (1) perceptions as to the importance/adequacy of green school grounds; (2) access to adult support; and (3) access to funding. The implications of these findings are discussed.     

THE EFFECT OF URBANIZATION ON LABOR TURNOVER*

ABSTRACT The paper empirically examines labor market matching as a source of urban agglomeration economies. We work from the hypothesis that job turnover leads to tighter labor matches and estimate the relationship between urbanization and the job mobility of young men. Using a panel from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, we find evidence that young men change jobs more frequently in their early career if they live in larger or in more educated urban areas. The sensitivity of the results to whether the young men were “movers” or “stayers” suggests the possible endogeneity of location.     

Active by Design: Promoting Physical Activity through School Ground Greening

Green school grounds exhibit a greater diversity of landscaping and design features than conventional school grounds, thus enhancing the quantity and quality of physical activity among elementary school children. Through greening, school grounds diversify the play repertoire, creating opportunities for boys and girls of all ages, interests and abilities to be more physically active. This paper builds on a 2006 study (Bell and Dyment, 2006 Bell, A. C. and Dyment, J. E. 2006. Grounds for Action: Promoting Physical Activity through School Ground Greening in Canada, Toronto, Ontario: Evergreen. Available at http://www.evergreen.ca/en/lg/lg-resources.html [Google Scholar], Grounds for Action: Promoting Physical Activity through School Ground Greening in Canada, Toronto, Ontario: Evergreen) and explores factors related to school ground design and culture that both limit and enable opportunities for physical activity. Questionnaires (N = 105) were completed by teachers, parents, and administrators associated with 59 schools across Canada. Results indicate that in order to stimulate active play, school grounds should be designed to provide adequate space, diverse play opportunities and interaction with natural elements. Safety, comfort and maintenance issues also need to be taken into consideration at the design stage. With respect to school ground culture, children are more active when rules, policies and supervision allow for non-competitive, open-ended play, as well as opportunities to care for the garden or green space. The implications of these findings are discussed and recommendations are offered for policy makers.