We weren\u27t created to do it by ourselves : good mothering and maternal support across race, class, and family structure.

Maternal support contributes to maternal and child well-being, yet not all mothers incorporate support into their maternal practices. Most research on mothering standards and practices in the U.S. focuses on white, middle-class, married mothers. This study expands upon this research by incorporating an intersectional lens to explore how mothers interpret standards of “good mothering” across race, class, and family structure. I conducted a mixed-method evaluation of a nonprofit program offering peer-based maternal support to mothers of color, lower-income mothers, and single mothers; 41 in-depth interviews with mothers to learn why maternal support resonated with some, but not all, mothers; and an in-depth focus group interview with the founders of the peer-based support program. Employing systems-centered intersectionality (Choo and Ferree 2010) and multi-institutional politics (Armstrong and Bernstein 2008), I found that some lower-income, single mothers practiced the parenting style “nurtured growth,” allowing them to supplement their limited income and physical and emotional presence with free and low-cost resources from public institutions (e.g., schools, churches, parks). Some other lower-income, single, mothers of color resisted normative parenting practices rooted in self-sacrifice by practicing “empowered mothering.” This practice incorporated self-care and mother-centric support systems to challenge race-based interpretations of good mothering. Finally, the theme “cultural mismatch” explains the difficulty faced by the nonprofit organization in attracting mothers of color and single mothers. I argue that racial, economic, and marital variations in maternal standards, practices, and support rendered the program’s curriculum incompatible with its intended participants. I conclude by offering recommendations for this and other maternal support programs

Managing for change: May 3, 1989

Bi-weekly newsletter of University Hospital's Change Project, provided to managers at the hospital

Managing for change: February 14, 1989

Bi-weekly newsletter of University Hospital's Change Project, provided to managers at the hospital

Managing for change: October 11, 1989

Bi-weekly newsletter of University Hospital's Change Project, provided to managers at the hospital

Can We Agree What Skilled Mindfulness-Based Teaching Looks Like? Lessons From Studying the MBI:TAC

BackgroundThe Mindfulness-Based Interventions: Teaching Assessment Criteria (MBI:TAC) is a widely used tool for assessing fidelity in mindfulness-based program (MBP) research and training. It also supports MBP teacher reflective and skill development. MBI:TAC assessors review MBP teaching and rate the teaching on 6 domains. The MBI:TAC yields individual domain and overall scores, using 6 levels of competence. Although the MBI:TAC is widely used in MBP research and training, research is at an early stage.ObjectiveWe developed and tested a method of training MBI:TAC assessors to use the tool reliably and examined interrater reliability of the tool.MethodsA total of 31 international senior MBP teachers were recruited to join an online training to build their skills in using the MBI:TAC. The training systematically and iteratively built familiarity and skills in assessing the 6 MBI:TAC domains. Qualitative and quantitative data on trainee's experience of the training were gathered. Interrater reliability in using the tool was tested each week of the training. At the end of the training, interrater reliability was tested by asking trainees to individually assess videos that they had not previously seen. Their ratings were compared to benchmark assessments, which had been established via consensus agreement between 4 expert users of the MBI:TAC.ResultsThe training was well received and appreciated, with some challenges experienced in applying the assessment methodology. Participants' ratings became progressively more in line with one another and the benchmark ratings during the training. At the end, interrater reliability was high (ranging from 0.67 to 1.0).ConclusionIt is possible for senior MBP trainers, coming from different regions in the world, to align toward common understandings of the elements of MBP teaching competence and program integrity. An assessor training methodology was tested, and the learning from this project has led to refinements for future delivery

The NASA Exoplanet Archive: Data and Tools for Exoplanet Research

We describe the contents and functionality of the NASA Exoplanet Archive, a database and tool set funded by NASA to support astronomers in the exoplanet community. The current content of the database includes interactive tables containing properties of all published exoplanets, Kepler planet candidates, threshold-crossing events, data validation reports and target stellar parameters, light curves from the Kepler and CoRoT missions and from several ground-based surveys, and spectra and radial velocity measurements from the literature. Tools provided to work with these data include a transit ephemeris predictor, both for single planets and for observing locations, light curve viewing and normalization utilities, and a periodogram and phased light curve service. The archive can be accessed at http://exoplanetarchive.ipac.caltech.edu.Comment: Accepted for publication in the Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific, 4 figure