Measuring Performance: The State Management Report Card for 2008

Grades each state's management performance, based on five criteria in each of the categories of money, people, infrastructure, and information. Includes an overview of each category with average grades and grade distribution maps

Perceived abortion stigma and psychological well-being over five years after receiving or being denied an abortion.

OBJECTIVE:To prospectively assess perceptions of abortion stigma after receiving or being denied an abortion over 5 years, the factors associated with perceived abortion stigma, and the effects of perceived abortion stigma on psychological well-being. METHODS:We recruited people seeking abortion from 30 facilities across the US, and interviewed them by phone one week post-abortion seeking, then semiannually for 5 years. We used adjusted mixed effects regression analyses to examine the abortion stigma trajectories of those who obtained an abortion near a facility's gestational age limit (Near-limits) compared to those denied an abortion because they were just over the limit and carried their pregnancies to term (Turnaway-births). RESULTS:Of the 956 people recruited, we removed 28 due to ineligibility or missing data, leaving a final sample of 928. In unadjusted analyses, at one-week post-abortion seeking, over half of those seeking abortion perceived that if others knew they had sought an abortion, they would be looked down upon at least "a little bit" by people close to them (60%) or by people in their community (56%). In longitudinal adjusted analyses, people denied an abortion and who carried their pregnancies to term (Turnaway-birth group) reported significantly lower baseline perceived abortion stigma from people close to them (-0.38; 95% CI, -0.59, -0.16) and from people in their community (0.30; 95% CI, -0.52, -0.08), than Near-limits, differences that remained statistically significant for 1.5 years. Overall perceived abortion stigma declined significantly (p < .001) for both study groups. High perceived abortion stigma at baseline was associated with higher odds of experiencing psychological distress years later (adjusted Odds Ratio, 3.98; 95% CI, 1.39, 11.37). CONCLUSIONS:Most people considering abortion perceive some abortion stigma, which is associated with psychological distress years later

Cracking the Code: An Empirical Analysis of Consumer Bankruptcy Outcomes

Chapter 13 is a cornerstone of the bankruptcy system. Its legal requirements strike a balance between the rehabilitation of debtors through keeping assets and reducing debt, and the repayment of creditors over a period of years. Despite the accolades from policymakers, the hard truth is that the majority of the half-million families each year that seek refuge in chapter 13 bankruptcy will not achieve the debt relief of a discharge. Prior research found that those who drop out of bankruptcy quickly endure the serious financial struggles that they had before bankruptcy—now even worse off for having spent thousands of dollars to seek help. Despite the profound inefficiency of chapter 13 bankruptcy, we previously did not know what differentiates those who succeed in chapter 13 from those who fail. This article is the first study to use a national random sample to predict which debtors obtain a discharge of debt. Using sophisticated statistical techniques that allow us to control for unobservable or unmeasurable effects at the local level, we identify the factors that make completing chapter 13 bankruptcy more likely. We find, among other robust effects, that blacks are more than twice as unlikely to receive debt relief than non-blacks, that those without an attorney have extremely low odds compared to those who hire an attorney, and that families with children fare worse. We also find that the local variations in bankruptcy practice that have been deemed “best practices” do not correlate with higher rates of bankruptcy completion. We discuss the implications of our findings for the millions of families who struggle to repay their debts in bankruptcy, and suggest concrete fixes to increase the efficacy of the consumer bankruptcy system. This article upsets the debate about bankruptcy reform and will help shape policy and practice in upcoming decades

Holding Parents Responsible: Is Vicarious Responsibility the Public’s Answer to Juvenile Crime?

Parental responsibility laws hold parents accountable for the delinquent behaviors of their children even when parents’ actions are not the direct cause of an offense. Despite the prevalence of these laws, we know little about their perceived fairness. Is it reasonable to make parents vicariously responsible for outcomes they could not have foreseen and, if so, under what circumstances? Our series of three studies addressed those questions by systematically examining the impact of various situational and dispositional factors on public opinions regarding parental responsibility. Respondents attributed most of the responsibility for a crime to the child, and attributions of responsibility to the parents varied as a function of the child’s age. Case characteristics including the type of crime committed and the described parents’ actions versus inactions did not consistently influence responsibility attributions. We conclude that people feel rather lukewarm about the notion of vicarious parental responsibility and this indifference may be related to issues surrounding the laws’ enforcement

Catch Them If You Can: An Evaluation of Archival Security Practices in New England

This study explores how archivists working at New England repositories perceive the Association of College and Research Libraries/Rare Books and Manuscripts Section Guidelines Regarding Security and Theft in Special Collections. Ten archivists representing nine repositories were interviewed and asked about if and how they use the Guidelines to inform their security policies, and were asked their opinion on the efficacy and practicality of each recommendation. Leading museum and library security consultant Steve Keller, of Steve Keller and Associates, was also interviewed to share his opinion of the Guidelines as a security professional. The findings indicated that while New England archivists view the recommendations individually as adequate security measures, their adoptability falls short. Additionally, there was a tendency among archivists at small repositories to feel that the Guidelines do not apply to them because they do not have the necessary resources to implement best practices comprehensively.Master of Science in Library Scienc

Massive quenched galaxies at z~0.7 retain large molecular gas reservoirs

The physical mechanisms that quench star formation, turning blue star-forming galaxies into red quiescent galaxies, remain unclear. In this Letter, we investigate the role of gas supply in suppressing star formation by studying the molecular gas content of post-starburst galaxies. Leveraging the wide area of the SDSS, we identify a sample of massive intermediate-redshift galaxies that have just ended their primary epoch of star formation. We present ALMA CO(2-1) observations of two of these post-starburst galaxies at z~0.7 with M* ~ 2x10^11 Msun. Their molecular gas reservoirs of (6.4 +/- 0.8) x 10^9 Msun and (34.0 +/- 1.6) x 10^9 Msun are an order of magnitude larger than comparable-mass galaxies in the local universe. Our observations suggest that quenching does not require the total removal or depletion of molecular gas, as many quenching models suggest. However, further observations are required both to determine if these apparently quiescent objects host highly obscured star formation and to investigate the intrinsic variation in the molecular gas properties of post-starburst galaxies.Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJ Letters (6 pages, 5 figures

Do marine protected areas affect emerging fisheries population density?

Kellet’s whelk, Kelletia kelletii, were observed at sample sites throughout their range from Baja California, Mexico, to Monterey, CA to determine patterns of population density. Sample sites in each region were either located within California marine protected areas where take of the Kellet’s whelk in prohibited, or in non-protected areas where the whelks can be fished both commercially and recreationally. Kellet’s whelk population density was compared between all MPA and non-MPA sample sites. These mean densities were also found for sites in Santa Barbara and San Diego near active fishing ports and compared to data from the same sites collected in 2004. Whelk density was significantly greater in MPAs than in non-MPA sample sites. Moreover, the comparison of MPA and non-MPA sites near fishing ports between 2004 and 2015 data showed non-significant changes in density over the 11 years, but there were noticeable trends in decreasing density in the fished areas while the density in the MPAs remained fairly constant. Our results suggest that fishing pressure has caused a decreased density of Kellet’s whelk in fished areas, while these effects have been mitigated in protected areas. Significant decreases in density of the Kellet’s whelk could alter kelp forest population dynamics, and although the overall population is currently stable, consumers must be aware of overfishing

Bird's-eye view of GnRH analog use in a pediatric endocrinology referral center

OBJECTIVE: Gonadotropin-releasing hormone analogs (GnRHa) are standard of care for the treatment of central precocious puberty (CPP). GnRHa have also been prescribed in other clinical settings with the hope of increasing adult stature, although evidence to support this practice is lacking. The degree to which GnRHa are being prescribed for indications other than CPP in routine clinical care has not been described. We sought to systematically examine GnRHa prescribing practices among the pediatric endocrinologists at our academic medical center. METHODS: We reviewed medical records of children treated with GnRHa during a 6-year interval. Variables analyzed included gender, age at start of treatment, indication for therapy, and use of growth hormone as adjunctive treatment. Nonparametric analyses were utilized to compare treatment characteristics of those with CPP versus those without. RESULTS: A total of 260 patients (82% female) aged 8.06 ± 2.68 years were identified. Of these, 191 (73.5%) were treated for CPP, whereas 69 (26.5%) were treated for normally timed puberty in the context of idiopathic short stature/poor predicted height (n = 37), growth hormone deficiency (n = 17), congenital adrenal hyperplasia (n = 10), primary hypothyroidism (n = 4), and developmental delay (n = 1). Of the 161 girls with CPP, GnRHa therapy was initiated at ≥8 years of age in 62 (39%). CONCLUSION: Whereas most patients were treated for CPP, ~27% were treated for other indications. Of girls with CPP, 39% were treated at an age when benefit in terms of height is unlikely. This highlights the need for rigorous studies of GnRHa use for indications beyond CPP

X-ray properties of K-selected galaxies at 0.5<z<2.0: Investigating trends with stellar mass, redshift and spectral type

We examine how the total X-ray luminosity correlates with stellar mass, stellar population, and redshift for a K-band limited sample of ~3500 galaxies at 0.5<z<2.0 from the NEWFIRM Medium Band Survey in the COSMOS field. The galaxy sample is divided into 32 different galaxy types, based on similarities between the spectral energy distributions. For each galaxy type, we further divide the sample into bins of redshift and stellar mass, and perform an X-ray stacking analysis using the Chandra COSMOS (C-COSMOS) data. We find that full band X-ray luminosity is primarily increasing with stellar mass, and at similar mass and spectral type is higher at larger redshifts. When comparing at the same stellar mass, we find that the X-ray luminosity is slightly higher for younger galaxies (i.e., weaker 4000\AA breaks), but the scatter in this relation is large. We compare the observed X-ray luminosities to those expected from low and high mass X-ray binaries (XRBs). For blue galaxies, XRBs can almost fully account for the observed emission, while for older galaxies with larger 4000\AA breaks, active galactic nuclei (AGN) or hot gas dominate the measured X-ray flux. After correcting for XRBs, the X-ray luminosity is still slightly higher in younger galaxies, although this correlation is not significant. AGN appear to be a larger component of galaxy X-ray luminosity at earlier times, as the hardness ratio increases with redshift. Together with the slight increase in X-ray luminosity this may indicate more obscured AGNs or higher accretion rates at earlier times.Comment: 9 pages, 9 figures, ApJ accepte

An Evaluation of the Educational Impact of College Campus Visits:A Randomized Experiment

We hypothesize that a lack of experience with college poses a non-trivial barrier to college access for historically underrepresented students. We study whether visits to a college campus during the eighth grade can reduce these psychological barriers to college access. Using an experimental design, we study whether college visits affect students’ knowledge about college, postsecondary intentions, college-going behaviors, academic engagement, and ninth grade course enrollment decisions. We recruited 885 students across 15 schools who participated in our project during the academic year 2017-2018. We randomized students within schools to either a treatment or control condition. Students in the control condition receive an information packet about college. Students in the treatment condition receive the same information and visit a flagship university three times during their 8th-grade academic year. Students assigned to participate in these campus visits demonstrate higher levels of knowledge about college, higher levels of effort while completing the survey, a higher likelihood of having conversations with school personnel about college, and a decreased desire to attend technical school. Additionally, treated students are more likely to enroll in advanced math and science/social science courses in 9th grade