Welfare Reform and the Devolution of Decision Making Authority: Changes in Administrative Infrastructure for TANF Implementation

The growing demand for welfare reform represented a devolution of authority from federal administration and enabled state governments to seek ways to improve efficiency and enhance coordination in managing Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) programs. This shift in authority from the federal government to the state and from the state to county administration empowered interagency collaboration and partnership by expanding organizational linkages between state agencies and local governments, nonprofit, and for-profit agencies for the shared goal of welfare reform.Based on a theoretical framework from New Public Management and governance theories, this research is a small-n comparative case study that explores how the shift in authority emerged at state and local administrative levels, and how states have changed TANF implementation structure in two states: New York and Pennsylvania. It also examines whether the evolution in TANF administrative infrastructure changed the decision making capacity of organizations at state and local welfare jurisdictions and contributed to economic self-sufficiency of TANF clients. The practices of Albany County, New York and Allegheny County, Pennsylvania are examined to explore how county government has implemented TANF programs in partnership with other organizations. This research conducts qualitative, quantitative, and network analysis using data from interviews, surveys, and archival records. It finds that state and county governments in New York and Pennsylvania have not substantially reinvented internal structures, but have expanded the collaboration and partnership with state or county sister agencies and nongovernmental organizations for improving efficiency. The experimentation of New York and Pennsylvania reveals that the involvement of other organizations made a substantial contribution to the decision making capacity of the organizations involved in TANF implementation. It did not yet contribute significantly to an increase in family income for TANF clients. The data also show that a larger proportion of TANF clients left welfare not for employment, but for other reasons. States sought to reduce welfare rolls without a thorough assessment of the impact of participation on the real lives of TANF clients and the reasons why clients left the program until the reauthorization in 2002. TANF clients still face difficult circumstances in becoming economically self-sufficient

Ulmus davidiana var japonica Attenuates Neuroinflammatory Responses in Activated BV2 Murine Microglial Cells via Nuclear Factor-KappaB Signaling Pathway

Purpose: To investigate the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects of Ulmus davidiana extract (UDE) in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated BV-2 cells.Methods: Antioxidant activity was measured using 1, 1-diphenyl-2-picryl-hydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging assay. Cell viability was evaluated using 3 (4, 5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2, 5- diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. BV-2 cells were stimulated with LPS to study protein expression and production of inflammatory mediators, and determined by Western blot analysis.Results: UDE significantly inhibited DPPH-generated free radicals showing maximum inhibition at 40 μg/mL (p < 0.001). UDE alone did not exhibit any signs of cytotoxicity towards BV-2 cells up to 100 μg/mL concentration. The LPS induced increase in the production of nitric oxide was concentration dependently suppressed with half-maximal concentration (IC50) of 67.4 μg/ mL of UDE (p < 0.05 at 10 μg/mL, p < 0.01 at 20 μg/mL and p < 0.001 at 40 μg/mL, respectively). UDE also inhibited dosedependently the LPS-induced increase in inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) expressions with IC50 of 52.3 ug/ mL. Furthermore, the production of pro inflammatory cytokines, via tumor necrosis factor-α by LPS-stimulation in BV2 murine cells was inhibited dosedependently with IC50 of 85.1 ug/ mL by UDE pretreatment. Mechanistic studies revealed that UDE acts by regulation of nuclear factor kappa-B signaling pathway in LPS-stimulated BV-2 cells.Conclusion: This study shows, for the first time, that UDE possesses antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects and can be developed as a potential therapeutic agent for ameliorating macrophage-mediated inflammation.Keywords: Ulmus davidiana, Anti-oxidant, Anti-inflammatory, iNOS, NF-κB, MCP-1, ER

Absorptive Capacity: Empirical Exploration on Trait of Organizational Structure and Absorptive Capacity Practices

Technology Management/ Information System/ EntrepreneurshipOpen innovation literature argues that firms need to identify new knowledge and collaborate it through the innovation process. In line with the issue, absorptive capacity has been highlighted in the various fields such as technology management, strategic management, international business and organizational economics. But the component, outcomes, antecedents and definition of absorptive capacity is diverse and somewhat ambiguous. Relevant to this issue, many studies attempted to conceptualize absorptive capacity with different definitions and dimensions. However, few undertake dealing with other antecedents such as characteristics of organizational structure. In this paper, we aim to empirically explore the antecedents of absorptive capacity, namely formalization, decentralization, and coordination capability, those which possibly affect the potential absorptive capacity and realized absorptive capacity. Further, we try to find effect of absorptive capacity practices on absorptive capacity. By doing so, findings are expected to allow firms to better understand how absorptive capacities can be developed.ope

Radiation release characterization of PWR spent fuel assemblies generated from Korean nuclear power plants

Spent nuclear fuel should be kept under safe management until it is disposed of permanently. Because of this, it is important to understand its radiation release characteristics. In this paper, the Monte Carlo method is applied to evaluate the radiation release characteristics of two types of PWR spent fuel assembly generated from the operating plants in Korea: Westinghouse and Korea Standard Nuclear Power Plant. The source terms were calculated using ORIGEN-ARP. The neutron and photon (or gamma) dose distributions along the vertical and horizontal directions of each spent fuel assembly were evaluated using MCNPX code. Compared with the two dose distributions, the photon dose was found to be about 105 times higher than the neutron dose

Providing Validity Evidence for a Speaking Test Using FACETS

Speaking has been considered one of the most important skills in second language teaching and assessment. However, to date there has not been a clear definition of speaking ability. The present study attempts to examine what it means to be able to speak a second language using a newly designed computer-delivered speaking test. The test was created based on a theoretical definition of speaking ability, and then administered to 95 ESL students. A variety of statistical analyses were employed to examine the validity of the test, including reliability analyses, correlation analyses, and a many-facet Rasch measurement (Linacre, 1989) analysis. Results seem to provide some evidence for the validation of the test