Is Labor Green?

In this article, we assess whether unionization of national workforces influences growth in national carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions per capita. Political-economic theories in environmental sociology propose that labor unions have the potential to affect environmental conditions. Yet, few studies have quantitatively assessed the influence of unionization on environmental outcomes using cross-national data. We estimate multilevel regression models using data on OECD member nations from 1970 to 2014. Results from our analysis indicate that unionization, measured as the percentage of workers who are union members, is negatively associated with CO2 emissions per capita, even when controlling for labor conditions. This finding suggests that unionization may promote environmental protection at the national level

Factors in faculty evaluation procedures in community colleges

Two hundred forty-seven community colleges in ten states were studied through survey analysis to determine the nature of faculty evaluation procedures employed in those schools. Further, data on external factors affecting evaluations, such as the existence of collective bargaining agreements, missions of the institutions, and school enrollment were collected and analyzed; The survey found that teaching was the major focus of evaluation procedures, and that student evaluations were by far the most popular means of assessing faculty performance. Faculty\u27s service to the college was next in importance to administrators, with other areas, such as community service or participation in professional organizations, lagging far behind. No trends could be found to indicate that school enrollment or the presence of a collective bargaining agreement had a significant impact on the manner in which faculty was assessed. Institutional goals were not always reflected in the focus of faculty evaluations, particularly when the college viewed partnerships with local business or industry as being important

Regret about the Timing of First Sexual Intercourse: The Role of Age and Context. ESRI WP217. November 2007

To examine how age at first vaginal intercourse is related to the circumstances of sex and specifically to the nature of the relationship between the partners, levels of autonomy, planning and regret. To quantify the contribution of age at first sex relative to the context and circumstances of sex

Optimal characteristic portfolios

Characteristic-sorted portfolios are the workhorses of modern empirical finance, deployed widely to evaluate anomalies and construct asset pricing models. We propose a new method for their estimation that is simple to compute, makes no ex-ante assumption on the nature of the relationship between the characteristic and returns, and does not require ad hoc selections of percentile breakpoints or portfolio weighting schemes. Characteristic portfolio weights are implied directly from data, through maximizing a Mean–Variance objective function with mean and variance estimated non-parametrically from the cross-section of assets. To illustrate the method, we evaluate the size, value and momentum anomalies and find overwhelming empirical evidence of the outperformance of our methodology compared to standard methods for constructing characteristic-sorted portfolios

The Irish Study of Sexual Health and Relationships Sub-Report 1: Learning About Sex and First Sexual Experiences

The ISSHR was commissioned by the Department of Health and Children and the Crisis Pregnancy Agency in response to a recommendation by the National AIDS Strategy Committee. It is the largest nationally representative studyof sexual knowledge, attitudes and behaviour ever undertaken in Ireland. International evidence indicates that aspects of sexual health, such as contraception, crisis pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections, should be examined jointly. To this end, the Crisis Pregnancy Agency and the Department of Health and Children instigated the ISSHR project. The ISSHR findings have been outlined in a suite of reports – the Main Report, a Summary Report and three sub-reports; the latter provide detailed information in defined areas of interest. This, the first sub-report, focuses on the area of sexual learning and first sexual experiences. The Crisis Pregnancy Agency (CPA) and the sexual-health sector in general need robust evidence in order to develop sexual-health policies, to plan strategies and to inform the effective promotion of sexual-health messages. The ISSHR findings will be invaluable not only to the work of the CPA in preventing crisis pregnancy, but also to that of other organisations concerned with promoting sexual health, providing sexual-health services, preventing sexually transmitted infections, and providing sex education for young people

Do Consultation Charges Deter General Practitioner Use Among Older People? A Natural Experiment. ESRI WP194. May 2007

Background: A change in the pricing of general practitioner care in the Republic of Ireland in 2001 provides a natural experiment of the influence of economic incentives on GP visiting. Methods: Social surveys (N=937 in 2000 & N=1053 in 2004) were carried out before and after the change in pricing arrangements. OLS and logistic regression were used to examine change in both the overall probability of attending the GP and the frequency of visiting in the previous year. Results: 93% in 2000 and 95% in 2004 visited their GP at least once. Where the proportion of those aged 65 to 69 visiting at least once fell by 1% between 2000 and 2004, the proportion aged 70 to 74 increased by 4.6%; those 75 to 79 increased by 6.3%; those aged 80 to 84 increased by 3.2%. Frequency of visiting remained stable at 5.3 visits per year but increased with age and worse health. Logistic regression models confirmed the increase in the probability of visiting for over 70s between 2000 and 2004

The Regional Dimension of Taxes and Public Expenditure in Ireland. ESRI WP195. May 2007

In Ireland as in many other countries there has been an ongoing debate on the nature, degree and trends of regional imbalance. However, relatively little is known about the effects of policies at the regional level in Ireland. This paper considers two aspects of public policy namely the fiscal system and public expenditure. In particular regional government accounts are constructed, which identify the level of taxation, subsidisation and public expenditure at the regional level. The analysis of this data confirms that the fiscal system does reduce relative income differences in Ireland. Furthermore there are substantial resource transfers across regions

Prosecuting and Defending Campus Assaults: Practitioners\u27 Perspectives

Transcript of a presentation given during the 2018 Symposium by Victor S. (Torry) Johnson former District Attorney General for Davidson County and current Visiting Professor of Law at Belmont University College of Law and Richard McGee a criminal defense lawyer in Nashville, Tennessee in the Public Defender’s Office giving a practitioner\u27s perspective on prosecuting and defending campus assaults

Irish contraception and Crisis Pregnancy [ICCP] Study. A Survey of the General Population. Summary

Crisis pregnancy is a complex challenge for individuals and societies alike. Its prevention and management need to be informed by up-to-date and locally applicable information on knowledge, attitudes and behaviours concerning sexual practices and contraception. Studies of aspects of sexual health in Ireland offer the prospect of vastly increasing our understanding of the pattern of health behaviours in the area of sexuality and their relationship to both the attitudes/beliefs and socio-demographic characteristics of individuals. Such surveys can also provide guidelines on where and how to intervene to improve sexual health outcomes. They offer a benchmark against which to gauge success and to plan for future work in the area of sexual health promotion in Ireland. A number of recent Government initiatives have highlighted the need for national data on sexual health issues. In October 2001, the Government established the Crisis Pregnancy Agency (CPA). Its primary focus is the development of a strategy to deal with crisis pregnancy, and more specifically to provide for: • a reduction in the number of crisis pregnancies by the provision of education, advice and contraceptive services • a reduction in the number of women with crisis pregnancies who opt for abortion by offering services and supports which make other options more attractive • the provision of counselling and medical services after crisis pregnancy. (Statutory Instrument No. 446, 2001) Information on contraceptive and crisis pregnancy service availability and utilisation, and on antecedents of crisis pregnancy, is needed for the optimal planning and evaluation of services. Research findings can provide evidence-based recommendations for planning and development of appropriate initiatives

Irish Contraception and Crisis Pregnancy [ICCP] Study. A Survey of the General Population.

Crisis pregnancy is a complex challenge for individuals and societies alike. Its prevention and management need to be informed by up-to-date and locally applicable information on knowledge, attitudes and behaviours concerning sexual practices and contraception. Studies of aspects of sexual health in Ireland offer the prospect of vastly increasing our understanding of the pattern of health behaviours in the area of sexuality and their relationship to both the attitudes/beliefs and socio-demographic characteristics of individuals. Such surveys can also provide guidelines on where and how to intervene to improve sexual health outcomes. They offer a benchmark against which to gauge success and to plan for future work in the area of sexual health promotion in Ireland. A number of recent Government initiatives have highlighted the need for national data on sexual health issues. In October 2001, the Government established the Crisis Pregnancy Agency (CPA). Its primary focus is the development of a strategy to deal with crisis pregnancy, and more specifically to provide for: • a reduction in the number of crisis pregnancies by the provision of education, advice and contraceptive services • a reduction in the number of women with crisis pregnancies who opt for abortion by offering services and supports which make other options more attractive • the provision of counselling and medical services after crisis pregnancy. (Statutory Instrument No. 446, 2001) Information on contraceptive and crisis pregnancy service availability and utilisation, and on antecedents of crisis pregnancy, is needed for the optimal planning and evaluation of services. Research findings can provide evidence-based recommendations for planning and development of appropriate initiatives. Aim of the present study The aim of the present study was to establish nationally representative data on current attitudes, knowledge and experience of contraception, crisis pregnancy and related services in Ireland. More specifically, the research aimed to provide nationally representative data on: - current attitudes, knowledge and experience of crisis pregnancy and crisis pregnancy supports and services - current attitudes, knowledge and experience of contraception and contraceptive services - current attitudes and experiences of sex, crisis pregnancy, options facing those in crisis pregnancy and lifestyle choices - current awareness, recognition and understanding of the Crisis Pregnancy Agency\u27s Positive Options public information campaign