Digital Commons Network^™

Recession Depression: Mental Health Effects Of The 2008 Stock Market Crash, Melissa Mcinerney, Jennifer M. Mellor, Lauren H. Nicholas

Arts & Sciences Articles

Do sudden, large wealth losses affect mental health? We use exogenous variation in the interview dates of the 2008 Health and Retirement Study to assess the impact of large wealth losses on mental health among older U.S. adults. We compare cross-wave changes in wealth and mental health for respondents interviewed before and after the October 2008 stock market crash. We find that the crash reduced wealth and increased feelings of depression and use of antidepressant drugs, and that these effects were largest among respondents with high levels of stock holdings prior to the crash. These results suggest that sudden wealth …

The Dynamics Of Job Creation And Job Destruction In An African Economy: Evidence From Ethiopia, Admasu Shiferaw, Arjun S. Bedi

Arts & Sciences Articles

A growing share of manufacturing in GDP and in employment is a common feature observed in successful developing countries. Manufacturing, however, has not been a major source of employment in Ethiopia and in other Sub-Saharan African countries. This paper relies on a unique census-based panel data covering the period 1996–2007 to analyse the micro-dynamics of aggregate employment changes. The analysis shows that the weak employment performance of Ethiopian manufacturing is not due to limited job creation but a consequence of simultaneous offsetting processes of job creation and destruction. We find strong evidence of intra-industry job mobility and attribute a substantial …

Do Changes In Hospital Outpatient Payments Affect The Setting Of Care?, Daifeng He, Jennifer M. Mellor

Arts & Sciences Articles

Objective

To examine whether decreases in Medicare outpatient payment rates under the Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) caused outpatient care to shift toward the inpatient setting.

Data Sources/Study Setting

Hospital inpatient and outpatient discharge files from the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration from 1997 through 2008.

Study Design

This study focuses on inguinal hernia repair surgery, one of the most commonly performed surgical procedures in the United States. We estimate multivariate regressions of inguinal hernia surgery counts in the outpatient setting and in the inpatient setting. The key explanatory variable is the time-varying Medicare payment rate specific to the …

Understanding The Mechanisms Through Which An Influential Early Childhood Program Boosted Adult Outcomes, James Heckman, Rodrigo Pinto, Peter A. Savelyev

Arts & Sciences Articles

A growing literature establishes that high quality early childhood interventions targeted toward disadvantaged children have substantial impacts on later life outcomes. Little is known about the mechanisms producing these impacts. This paper uses longitudinal data on cognitive and personality skills from an experimental evaluation of the influential Perry Preschool program to analyze the channels through which the program boosted both male and female participant outcomes. Experimentally induced changes in personality skills explain a sizable portion of adult treatment effects.

Induced Disgust Affects Implicit And Explicit Responses Toward Gay Men And Lesbians, Emily Cunningham, Catherine A. Forestell, Cheryl L. Dickter

Arts & Sciences Articles

In the current study, disgust was induced using a carefully controlled odor manipulation to observe its effect on participants' implicit and explicit responses to homosexuals. Participants were presented with a vial containing an odor that was described as “body odor” (n = 47) that induced a high level of disgust, or “parmesan cheese” (n = 43) that induced a moderate level of disgust, or an odor-free vial (n = 53). Subsequently, participants viewed images of homosexual and heterosexual couples, and their viewing times and ratings of the images' pleasantness were recorded. Additionally, they completed a “feelings thermometer” task, the Attitudes …

Mu Suppression As An Indicator Of Activation Of The Perceptual-Motor System By Smoking-Related Cues In Smokers, Cheryl L. Dickter, Paul D. Kieffaber, Julie A. Kittel, Catherine A. Forestell

Arts & Sciences Articles

The goal of the current study was to determine whether activation of the mirror neuron system, as measured by mu rhythm desynchronization, varied as a function of image content in smokers compared with nonsmokers. EEG activity was recorded while participants passively viewed images depicting smoking-related and nonsmoking-related stimuli. In half of the images, cues were depicted alone (inactive), while for the remaining images, cues were depicted with humans interacting with them (active). For the nonsmoking stimuli, smokers and nonsmokers showed greater mu suppression to the active cues compared to the inactive cues. However, for the smoking-related stimuli, smokers showed greater …

The Effect Of Brand Names On Flavor Perception And Consumption In Restrained And Unrestrained Eaters, Kevin V. Cavanagh, Catherine A. Forestell

Arts & Sciences Articles

In an increasingly obesogenic food environment, making healthful food decisions can be difficult. Because consumers are often bombarded with excessive information about foods they often rely on simple heuristics to decide whether to purchase or consume a food. In the present study we tested females who were either restrained (n = 33) or unrestrained (n = 33) to determine whether their sensory perception and intake of a food would be affected by brand information. Participants were provided with in an ad libitum snack of cookies which was labeled with a brand typically associated with healthful snacks or a …

Island Shores, Distant Pasts: Archaeological And Biological Approaches To The Pre-Columbian Settlement Of The Caribbean. Scott M. Fitzpatrick & Ann H. Ross (Eds.). Gainesville: University Press Of Florida, 2010. Xvi + 246 Pp. (Cloth Us$ 75.00), Derek R. Miller

Arts & Sciences Articles

Excerpt from publication: "When did pre-Columbian settlement occur in the Caribbean? How many waves of migration were there and where did these settlers come from? Although previous research has provided some answers, this edited volume shows how innovative methodologies can provide new insights to these classic questions..."

The Migration Of Peoples From The Caribbean To The Bahamas. Keith L. Tinker. Gainesville: University Press Of Florida, 2011. X + 199 Pp. (Cloth Us$ 69.95), Grace Turner

Arts & Sciences Articles

Excerpt from publication: "Keith Tinker should be commended for tackling the complex topic of Caribbean migration to the Bahamas. He used a wide array of evidence, including colonial government documents, newspapers, books, and interviews with both immigrants and a few Bahamians."

Beyond The Blockade: New Currents In Cuban Archaeology. Susan Kepecs, L. Antonio Curet & Gabino La Rosa Corzo (Eds.). Tuscaloosa: University Of Alabama Press, 2010. Ix + 206 Pp. (Paper Us$ 22.95), Frederick H. Smith

Arts & Sciences Articles

Excerpt from publication: "This important volume is a testament to the tenacity of Cuban and U.S. scholars determined to dismantle the political and economic barriers that have impeded collaborative archaeological scholarship in Cuba."

Attitudes Towards Volunteerism And Individuals With Disabilities In High School Students As A Function Of Educational System In South Korea, Hee K. Baek, Cheryl L. Dickter

Arts & Sciences Articles

Volunteerism has positive effects for both society and the individuals who engage in volunteering. Numerous studies have focused on the positive relationship between adolescents’ volunteering experiences and their psychological and social development, while other studies have assessed the positive attitudinal changes of adolescent volunteers in frequent contact with individuals with disabilities. However, few studies have focused on the role of education on students’ perceptions of individuals with disabilities. The present study investigated the volunteering experiences of students enrolled in American and Korean educational system schools in South Korea. Results revealed that the American-system students volunteered more often and had more …

Assessing The Effect Of Food Exposure On Children's Identification And Acceptance Of Fruit And Vegetables, Jennifer Schindler, Denise Corbett, Catherine A. Forestell

Arts & Sciences Articles

Currently, fewer than 15% of children between the ages of 4–8 years consume the recommended levels of fruit and vegetables. In order to address this serious public health issue, a variety of nutrition programs have been implemented across the United States which have varied in their success. The present research analyzed the effectiveness of providing fruit and vegetable exposure as part of a school nutrition program. Kindergarten students at two schools (N = 59) were exposed to interactive activities about healthy eating and physical activity. In addition, those at one school (n = 29) were exposed to a variety …