Exploring The Challenges Of School Counseling: Voices From Rural Alaska

Thesis (Ph.D.) University of Alaska Fairbanks, 2011School counselors in rural locations deal with many of the same issues and concerns of those in most urban areas, but have several additional challenges due to the geographic and demographic characteristics of their populations. The research in this dissertation investigated the specific challenges experienced by school counselors in the state of Alaska. All school counselors working in a rural public school were surveyed to determine what challenges they experienced, what resources they utilize, what additional resources they would like, and to discuss any information they believed would be helpful for a counselor about to enter the rural school setting. From the original 93 survey responses, 24 counselors were interviewed to provide further depth to the investigation. Analysis revealed similar challenges as discussed previously in the literature regarding rural counselor practice, but highlighted crisis situations, isolation variables, limited community resources, multiple roles, rural culture issues, and cultural issues. Alaska school counselors currently utilize a variety of resources to help them address the concerns in their communities. They did not request anything different than the resources they currently access, but rather wanted more of those resources. Recommendations are made for school counselors, school districts, state organizations, and counselor education training institutes

Between a Troll and a Hard Place: The Demand Framework's Answer to One of Gaming's Biggest Problems

The demand framework is commonly used by game scholars to develop new and innovative ways to improve the gaming experience. However, the present article aims to expand this framework and apply it to problematic gaming, also known as trolling. Although still a relatively new field, research into trolling has exploded within the past ten years. However, the vast majority of these studies are descriptive in nature. The present article marries theory and trolling research by closely examining interdisciplinary empirical evidence from a single platform - video games - and applying the various forms of demands to propose a testable, dual-route model of trolling behaviour. Within the video game context, I argue the presence of two primary causal mechanisms that can lead to trolling: 1) Demand imbalance between players and the game; and 2) demand imbalance between players. The article discusses how these two types of imbalance can lead to trolling, which kinds of demands can be imbalanced, and how future researchers can use the demand framework to expand our understanding of trolling

Gender equality in child support policy : Fathers’ rhetoric of ‘fairness’ in a parliamentary inquiry

Child support payments extend separated fathers’ male breadwinning role across households, likely fuelling fathers’ perceptions of ‘unfairness’. By examining fathers’ written submissions to an Australian inquiry, we examine fathers’ claims of unfairness, which were expressed in terms of gender inequality. Here, we show how fathers adopted a gender equality discourse that left intact the existing gender order. Through expectations for equal treatment, men claimed the child support system would produce equality of outcomes, namely eliminating the redistributive need for child support payments. In doing so, fathers’ qualified support for gender equality advantaged men as payers while further entrenching gender inequity

Some Guidelines For Using Nonparametric Methods For Modeling Data From Response Surface Designs

Traditional response surface methodology focuses on modeling responses using parametric models with designs chosen to balance cost with adequate estimation of parameters and prediction in the design space. Using nonparametric smoothing to approximate the response surface offers both opportunities as well as problems. This article explores some conditions under which these methods can be appropriately used to increase the flexibility of surfaces modeled. The Box and Draper (1987) printing ink study is considered to illustrate the methods

On the Path to Home Ownership: Low-Income Owners and Renters in Rural Communities

The purpose of the current article was to examine the tenure status of rural, lowincome mothers to understand particularly what family, housing, and health characteristics are associated with tenure status in rural areas of the United States. 7he benefits as well as the risks of becoming a homeowner for low-income families are discussed. 7he study used data from the multi-state research project Rural Families Speak, an investigation conducted by 17 states to assess the circumstances of rural low-income families--403 mothers with at least one child 12 years of age or younger. Two logistical binomial regression analyses were conducted to identify significant predictors of housing tenure among rural, low-income families. In total, 13 variables were included in the regression analysis for the whole sample and 14 variables were used for a subsample of those mothers who reported having a partner. 7he results of the study indicated that determinants of tenure status for this sample were age, education level, partner status, ethnicity, total monthly income, housing costs, housing wage, and food security status. 7he research contributes to an understanding of variables that contribute to attaining homeownership and provides additional information to shape future research, policy, and social programs that benefit rural, low-income families who aspire to become or sustain homeownership