Monitoring the Status of Alaska Fishing Communities, 1980-2010

Commercial fishing provides social and economic benefits for hundreds of communities across Alaska, with dozens of species being harvested commercially. The state's fisheries are complex, with the species mix, vessels and gear, environmental conditions, and socioeconomic circumstances varying widely from one part of the state to another. And while the majority of Alaska's fisheries continue to be successfully managed for sustainable harvests, fishing communities face a number of challenges, including changing market conditions, volatile catches and stock dynamics, changes in fishery regulations, redistribution of access rights, and climate change.North Pacific Research Board

En attendant Sarko? France’s mainstream Right and Centre, 2012-2014

In winning the municipal elections of March 2014, France’s mainstream opposition – the Centrists and the Union pour un Mouvement Populaire (UMP) – benefited not only from the unpopularity of the Left in power, but also from its own (partial) reconstruction. The Centrists had reorganised; the UMP had reaffirmed its right-wing programme and drawn strength from the opposition social movements launched in 2013. The European elections of 2014, however, demonstrated the limitations of this reconstruction. Their weak institutionalisation – the original sin of France’s Right and centre-Right – left internal ideological differences and (above all) personal rivalries unchecked within both forces. These tensions were compounded, in the UMP, by a series of financial scandals. At their heart was former president Nicolas Sarkozy, still the activists’ darling, ever more clearly a candidate for 2017, but also more hobbled by judicial investigations

The President above parties: a founding illusion of the Fifth Republic

De Gaulle, founder of the Fifth French Republic, cherished the notion that the president of the Republic could somehow stand above party politics. In many ways this belief shaped the early institutional configuration of the new Republic. Party politics, however, rapidly reached the presidency, especially with the move, under the constitutional reform of 1962, to direct election of the president. This article charts the development of France's 'political constitution' and the relationship between president and parties over the first decade of the Fifth Republic. It finds that although the presidency became the prime goal of party political competition, the (often dysfunctional) illusion of a head of state above politics continues to shape the behaviour and perceptions of French presidents

Factors in the Regulation of Cycles of Binge Eating Behavior

The reasons why people may periodically resort to binge eating behavior have long been a focus of study, and the reasons are elusive and varied. For people troubled by poor sleep and living with chronic stress, binge eating may be an attempt by the brain\u27s glucose-depleted executive processing center to both regulate (i.e., increase) glucose levels and induce restorative sleep. Recovery resulting from restorative sleep may lead to a reduction in perceived stress, improved mood, and increased willpower, reducing the likelihood of another binge episode in close temporal proximity to the sleep-induced recovery. A repetitive cycle may ensue when stress inevitably again disturbs sleep, lowering mood, reducing willpower, and heightening sensitivity to stigma and stress. The purpose of the research described here is to synthesize recent findings from three diverse fields of scientific inquiry to predict factors that influence episodes of binge eating. Combining studies of sleep and sleep disorders, stress and stigma research, and recent work on self-regulatory capacity, I attempt to show how poor sleep ultimately leads to binge eating. A seven-day study consisted of three parts: an initial set of baseline questionnaire and physiological measures; collection of objective sleep quality data using an electronic motion logger; and an online daily diary in which participants completed measures of self-regulatory capacity and reported details about their sleep, stress levels, experiences with stigma, mood, and eating events. The data partially supported a path model where sleep quality, stress, mood, and self-regulation affected binge eating behavior

Schema Avoidance and Social Norm Application in Changing Attitudes Toward Affirmative Action Programs

The interpretation and implementation of affirmative action policies (AAPs) has had the effect of creating beliefs and attitudes concerning these policies that vary with personal experience, race, gender, and other factors. Since attitudes toward AAPs have been found to be especially difficult to change, it is important to understand attitudes and how to change them. Following Ajzen\u27s (1991, 2005) Theory of Planned Behavior, two hypotheses were tested: first, the avoidance of schema activation (i.e., by assessing attitudes toward AAPs without calling them affirmative action ) results in more positive attitudes toward the goals and ideals of those policies, and second, for those without any firmly held beliefs concerning AAPs, the presence or absence of a social norm example will influence attitudes in the direction provided by the example. This study of 298 undergraduate students showed a significant relationship between attitudes toward AAPs (measured with two separate dependent variables: a semantic differential and a measure of justice) and presence or absence of the words affirmative action. Results were mixed in the presence or absence of a social norm model, with significant results only seen in the groups where the term affirmative action was not used. These results suggest that attitudes toward affirmative action can be influenced by avoiding schema activation and that providing a positive norm model is ineffective in changing attitudes when the term affirmative action is used. Correlations were also found between attitudes towards AAPs and measures of knowledge of AAPs, as well as participants\u27 intention to take some kind of action regarding AAPs

The feasibility and acceptability of using the Mother-Generated Index (MGI) as a Patient Reported Outcome Measure in a randomised controlled trial of maternity care

Background: Using patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) to assess Quality of Life (QoL) is well established, but commonly-used PROM item-sets do not necessarily capture what all respondents consider important. Measuring complex constructs is particularly difficult in randomised controlled trials (RCTs). The Mother-Generated Index (MGI) is a validated antenatal and postnatal QoL instrument in which the variables and scores are completely respondent-driven. This paper reports on the feasibility and acceptability of the MGI in an RCT, and compares the resulting variables and QoL scores with more commonly used instruments. Methods: The single-page MGI was included at the end of a ten page questionnaire pack and posted to the RCT participants at baseline (28-32 weeks' gestation) and follow-up (six weeks postnatal). Feasibility and acceptability were assessed by ease of administration, data entry and completion rates. Variables cited by women were analysed thematically. MGI QoL scores were compared with outcomes from the EQ-5D-3 L; Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale; Satisfaction With Life Scale; and State Trait Anxiety Inventory. Results: Six hundred and seventy eight pregnant women returned the pack at baseline; 668 completed the MGI (98.5 %); 383/400 returns at follow up included a completed MGI (95.7 %). Quantitative data were scanned into SPSS using a standard data scanning system, and were largely error-free; qualitative data were entered manually. The variables recorded by participants on the MGI forms incorporated many of those in the comparison instruments, and other outcomes commonly used in intrapartum trials, but they also revealed a wider range of issues affecting their quality of life. These included financial and work-related worries; moving house; and concerns over family illness and pets. The MGI scores demonstrated low-to-moderate correlation with other tools (all r values p &lt;.01). Conclusions: Without face-to-face explanation and at the end of a long questionnaire, the MGI was feasible to use, and acceptable to RCT participants. It allowed individual participants to include issues that were important to them, but which are not well captured by existing tools. The MGI unites the explanatory power of qualitative research with the comparative power of quantitative designs, is inexpensive to administer, and requires minimal linguistic and conceptual translation. Trial registration: ISRCTN27575146 (date assigned 23 March 2011)</p