Security Risk and Social Presence in E-commerce

The object is to investigate the relationship between consumers\u27 sense of security of a store and their purchasing intention from the store. This was investigated by evaluating how perceptions of security vary among pure play websites with no social presence on the one hand and with social presence on the other; and click and mortar websites with no social presence on the one hand, and social presence on the other. It was also investigated by evaluating how social presence might mitigate the risk of security perceived by consumers. The research method included a scenario given to each participant which requires them to walk through a shopping purchase on a given website. Then the participant was given a survey where the participant will evaluate their perceptions of the shopping experience in regards to security, social presence, and intention to purchase. While there have been studies conducted about perceptions of security, none of these studies have looked at how the type of store, either click and mortar or pure play, impact perceptions of security and how social presence might mitigate negative perceptions. Our study concluded that perceptions of security risk and intention to make a purchase are inversely related, that is that the more risk one feels, the less likely they will have an intention to make a purchase. Our study also found that the type of store does not influence perceptions of security or intention to make a purchase. Social presence was also not found to influence perceptions of security or intention to make a purchase. Online shopping experience was found to influence perceptions of risk

Investing in Adoption: Exploring Child Development Accounts for Children Adopted from Foster Care

Adoption is arguably the most powerful intervention available for children in foster care who are unable to be restored to their birth families. Adoption promises stability and a family for life, in contrast to foster care or guardianship, which are expected to end when the child reaches adulthood. In comparison to foster care, adoption is associated with better educational, financial, and social outcomes. However, because children adopted out of foster care have had adverse experiences, they may have additional support needs in later years. These unknown costs can be off-putting to potential adoptive parents, who may not be in the financial position to pay for costly services which may be needed to address trauma and support psychosocial functioning. To address this issue, countries such as the U.S., U.K., and the state of New South Wales in Australia have introduced adoption subsidies and allowances for adoptive families. This article suggests that financial supports for adoption could be extended by introducing Child Development Accounts for children adopted from foster care. Child Development Accounts have been used to encourage savings among youth in foster care and other target populations. These programs function by providing matched funds for purposes enabling positive development. The paper argues that Child Development Accounts for children adopted from care could potentially benefit a highly-vulnerable group of children and support them to access services and achieve more positive life outcomes

Relationship between childhood sexual abuse, weight, and attitudes toward obesity in lesbians

In many professional practice settings, it is very likely that social workers will work with female clients who identify as lesbian or bisexual. These sexual minority females are more likely to be overweight or obese, have a history of childhood sexual abuse, and have more positive attitudes toward overweight and obesity than heterosexual women. In this study, the author sought to identify the relationship between childhood sexual abuse, obesity, (specifically, body mass index [BMI]), and attitudes toward obesity among lesbian and bisexual women. Eighty-five sexual minority females completed a survey. Childhood sexual abuse was found to be positively correlated with BMI. However, lesbians’ attitudes toward obesity were not associated with childhood sexual abuse nor were they found to be associated with BMI. Additionally, lesbians did not report significantly different attitudes toward BMI based on their own BMI and history of childhood sexual abuse. These findings are further discussed in the context of previous research, limitations, and implications for direct practice