Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Does Idiosyncratic Volatility Follow A Random-Walk? Evidence From U.S. Stocks, Zihan Cao, Ossama Elhadary

Publications and Research

In asset pricing literature, idiosyncratic volatility (IVOL) measures the firm-specific risk that is not explained by broader market movements. In this study, I investigate whether the idiosyncratic volatility (IVOL) of individual stocks follows a random-walk. Using monthly residuals from the Fama-French three-factor model (Fama & French, 1993), I estimate IVOL for more than 11,000 U.S. stocks, and apply the Augmented Dickey-Fuller test (Said & Dickey, 1984) to determine whether IVOL behaves like a random-walk. While most stocks display random-walk behavior, the proportion varies across industries, with some sectors showing deviations from random-walk behavior. Stocks with different levels of average return …

The Case For Automatic Enrollment In Trump Accounts: Lessons From Maine’S Cda, Margaret Clancy, Jin Huang, Michael Sherraden

Center for Social Development Research

In 2014, Maine's statewide Child Development Policy, the My Alfond Grant, transitioned from an opt-in enrollment structure to an automatic one. Written as federal policymakers weigh enrollment options for the new Trump Accounts, this brief highlights lessons from Maine's transition and findings from the the SEED for Oklahoma Kids experiment, offering recommendations for implementing the new federal policy.

The Transtheoretical Model Of Behavior Change To Promote Anti-Racist Behaviors In Medical Settings, Amanda Almond

Publications and Research

Abstract: This paper proposes the application of the transtheoretical model, a stage-matched process for effecting change, to better encourage anti-racist behaviors and methods among health care professionals in medical settings. Despite widespread organizational implementation of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, which are aimed at reducing racial health and healthcare inequities across the United States, the absence of a theoretical framework for change has made it all but impossible to standardize meaningful anti-racist practices – a point of particular concern as President Donald Trump’s administration rolls back DEI efforts and requirements alike. Translational and clinical sciences aim for a gold …

Liberatory And Public Health Harm Reduction: Retracing Genealogies, Forming Queer Imaginaries, Ana Sofia Harrison

Sociology Between the Gaps: Forgotten and Neglected Topics

No abstract provided.

W&L Law Fall Scholarship Celebration 2025, Andrew Christensen, Michelle Cosby, Brandon Hasbrouck, Jennifer Mitchell, Melanie D. Wilson

Library Events

On October 9, 2025, the Washington and Lee Law Library hosted the fifth W&L Law Fall Scholarship Celebration. The event was co-sponsored by the Frances Lewis Law Center and took place in the Law Library's main reading room from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m.

On display were dozens of scholarly articles, books, chapters, and court briefs authored by the W&L Law faculty and student body between October 2022 and October 2025. Additional works were accessible online via QR codes to W&L Law Scholarly Commons institutional repository. A selection of vintage scholarship by former W&L Law professors was also on display, courtesy …

Simulasi Kenaikan Tarif Cukai Rokok Terhadap Kinerja Ekonomi Rokok Di Indonesia, Diska Agustinningtyas, Neli Agustina

Jurnal Ekonomi dan Pembangunan Indonesia

Production and consumption of cigarettes in Indonesia tend to increase. Increasing production has a positive impact on state revenue. However, the increasing consumption of cigarettes harms public health. The government implemented a policy of cigarette excise tax to control cigarette consumption. This study aims to analyze the impact of increasing the cigarette tax on the economic performance of the cigarette industry. Using Two-Stage Least Squares (2SLS) estimation methods shows that cigarette production is influenced by its consumption. Cigarette consumption is influenced by its price, per capita income in the previous year, and its consumption in the previous year. Cigarette’s price …

Latino Or Hispanic-Owned Businesses In The Mountain West, 2017-2022, Anthony Arroyo, Cason Noll, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Economic Development & Workforce

This fact sheet examines the growth of Latino or Hispanic-owned businesses in the largest metropolitan areas in the Mountain West between 2017 and 2022. The data are derived from the Brookings Institution’s “Charting the surge in Latino or Hispanic-owned businesses in the US” report, which highlights data on Latino or Hispanic-owned businesses in metropolitan and micropolitan areas across all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. This fact sheet focuses on data for the following metropolitan areas in the Mountain West: Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ; Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO; Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas, NV; Albuquerque, NM; and Salt Lake City-Murray, UT.

Lindenwood Digest, October 8, 2025, Lindenwood University

Lindenwood Digest

The Lindenwood Digest has been a digital employee newsletter since 2009.

Reference At A Remote Field Station: A Case Study Of Ecology, Environmental Science And Geology Fieldwork At An Embedded Library, Thomas Gerrish

Libraries Faculty and Staff Scholarship and Research

Purpose Field station libraries, particularly those serving biological and marine research stations, represent a unique but understudied class of special libraries. This case study investigates reference services at the remote University of Michigan Biological Station (UMBS) to provide a baseline assessment of how such services support the information needs related to research in ecology, geology and environmental science.

Design/methodology/approach The study recorded, coded and analyzed 209 reference transactions from the 2022 and 2023 summer sessions, revealing trends in patron inquiries and the role of the reference desk. Further, the case study examined the organizational structure, community interaction and mission of …

The Cowl - V. 89 N. 4 - October 9, 2025

The Cowl

The Cowl - student newspaper of Providence College. Vol. 89 No. 4 - October 9, 2025. 16 pages.

Strategies To Prevent Employee Turnover And Revenue Losses Resulting From Workplace Bullying, Sylvester Doby Jr

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Workplace bullying is a serious issue that can lead to high employee turnover and significant revenue loss. To maintain a healthy work environment and support their employees, business leaders need to develop and implement effective strategies to prevent bullying. Grounded in the transformational leadership theory, the purpose of this qualitative pragmatic inquiry study was to identify and explore the successful strategies that U.S. business leaders used to prevent workplace bullying. Six business leaders who have successfully implemented strategies to combat workplace bullying were purposively recruited and interviewed using semistructured interviews. The reflexive six-step thematic analysis of the interview transcripts and …

Special Education Teachers’ Perceptions Of Teaching Effectiveness When Working With Students With Emotional And Behavioral Disorders, Ernest J. Fruge

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This qualitative study examined how special education teachers perceived their teaching effectiveness in supporting students identified with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD). The study addressed a gap in the literature by examining the factors that influence special educators’ sense of self-efficacy when working with this population. Bandura’s theory of self-efficacy served as the conceptual framework. A generic qualitative research design was employed, and data were collected through semi-structured interviews with eight participants from two central Texas school districts. Braun and Clarke’s thematic analysis guided the coding and interpretation process, supported by MAXQDA software. Analysis of the data revealed seven key …

Government Communication Strategies And Citizen Participation: A Thematic Review, Ojonugwa Emmanuel, Andrew I. E. Ewoh

Journal of Public Management & Social Policy

none

Co-Creation As A Trust-Building Tool: An Application To Ghanaian Local Governments, Richard K. Nkrumah

Journal of Public Management & Social Policy

none

Devolution And Administrative Burden In Tanf: An Assessment Of Welfare Rules, Rhucha P. Samudra

Journal of Public Management & Social Policy

none

Gun Violence In Charlottesville, Virginia: Creating A Community-Centered Public Safety Ecosystem, Seth G. Coven

Journal of Public Management & Social Policy

none

Substance Use And Rural Homelessness In Texas Communities: The Need For Supportive Services, Abraham David Benavides, Federickia Washington, Chandra Donnell Carey, Justin Watts, Jyoti Aggarwal

Journal of Public Management & Social Policy

none

An Oral History Of African American Seniors Seeking Housing, Health, And Climate Justice In The Gulf Coast After Hurricane Harvey, Jessica April Ward, Glenn S. Johnson

Journal of Public Management & Social Policy

none

Parents’ Dispositions On Social Emotional Learning And Their Policy Imperatives: The Relevance Of Context/Locality, Nicholas O. Alozie, Megan Armstrong, Kathy Thomas

Journal of Public Management & Social Policy

none

Topical Issues On Social Emotional Learning, Climate Justice, Substance Use, Gun Violence, Devolution, Co-Creation And Government Communication, Andrew I. E. Ewoh

Journal of Public Management & Social Policy

none

Contributors

Jewish Folklore and Ethnology

Contributors to Volume 4.

From A Shtetl House To An Urban Apartment: The Soviet Jewish Home Negotiated, Transformed, And Reimagined, Anna Kushkova

Jewish Folklore and Ethnology

This essay argues that despite the powerful forces of assimilation, official campaigns against Jewish religion/languages, and grassroots/state antisemitism, the “Jewish home” did not disappear, as is sometimes assumed, but continued to present a site of Jewish ethnic production and transmission, creativity, and resistance during the Soviet regime. In the Soviet Union, especially in the postwar period, Jewish ethnic culture was forced to leave the public sphere, where it became unwelcome and even dangerous, and withdrew into the less visible space of domestic interiors. The degree of Jewish public presence varied geographically: the situation was generally better in the Baltic Republics, …

Hiding From Kohanim: Covering Hands, Faces, And Children With A Tallit During The Priestly Blessing, Zvi Ron

Jewish Folklore and Ethnology

When the priestly blessing is performed as part of prayer services in both Ashkenazic and Sephardic communities, many of the members of the congregation can be seen covering themselves with their tallit, and also covering their children. The practice evolved from the Talmudic reference of not looking at Kohanim while they recite this blessing in the Temple, because of the Divine Presence resting on their hands and the belief that looking at it would damage a person’s vision. Later authorities expanded this to blessings outside the Temple as well, leading to the practice of Kohanim covering themselves and their outstretched …

The Uncanny, The October 7 Massacre, And The Folktale “The Wolf And The Kids” (Atu 123), Ravit Raufman

Jewish Folklore and Ethnology

Following Freud’s claim that folktales do not necessarily evoke uncanny experiences, this essay presents a case in which a folktale brought to life in the form of real-world events evokes uncanny experiences. The essay examines testimonies from the October 7 events in light of the folktale identified as “The Wolf and the Kids” (ATU 123) and proposes that beyond the horrors that occurred in the massacre, the comparative discussion reveals an additional level of terror, related to the way fairy tale experiences take on flesh and bone.

“Holy Trash” And The Tears Of The Deceased: The Emotional Role Of Genizot For The Jewish Communities Of Central Europe, Nathanael Riemer

Jewish Folklore and Ethnology

Since the 1980s, more than seventy genizot (Heb., repositories) have been rediscovered in former synagogues of Central Europe. A genizah is a room in or near a synagogue where damaged, discarded, or heretical texts and sacred relics are stored. This essay examines where, when, and why genizot developed in Central Europe. It also analyzes the emotional significance of the genizot for their respective communities. Historical and literary sources show that genizot were placed in the synagogue attics of Jewish metropolises from the seventeenth century at the latest and were usually not ritually buried. Smaller communities in rural regions adopted this …

Contributors

Jewish Folklore and Ethnology

Contributors to Volume 3.

“Have I Asked The Name Of That Fish?”: Synagogue Humor In Contemporary Hungary, Richard Papp

Jewish Folklore and Ethnology

Jews who remained in Hungary after the Shoah almost completely abandoned their religious life because of the communist regime’s politics of assimilation. After the regime change in 1989, synagogue attendance rose and a renewed interest in ethnic-religious traditions was evident among Hungarian Jews. However, not knowing the ethnic traditions, they were unable to follow the religious commandments. Ethnographic observation in a synagogue in Budapest shows that ensuing communal tensions were eased by humor. Humor also became a marker of identity in the synagogue, by which even those who did not fully follow religious norms identified themselves as “imperfect but religious …

Theorizing Rabbinic Folklore: The Miraculous Sleep Of The Holy Man, Gal Sela

Jewish Folklore and Ethnology

The miraculous sleep (ATU 766) is a well-known, recurring tale-type observed in Abrahamic folktales since the Second Temple period. This study compares variants of ATU 766 on three levels of analysis: as a popular tale in Jewish, Christian, and Muslim writings from late antiquity and early medieval times; as a Jewish rendition; and as a multiple tale-type in rabbinic literature. The analysis engages with Dan Ben-Amos’s critical work concerning the use of syntactic methods in folklore studies to analyze Midrash and Aggadah. The essay offers a new theoretical perspective on rabbinic folklore using the notions of tale-type, ecotype, …

Editorial: Jewish Cultural Scholarship And Scholars—And Their Institutions—Under Duress, Simon J. Bronner, Amy K. Milligan, Tsafi Sebba-Elran

Jewish Folklore and Ethnology

The editors of Jewish Folklore and Ethnology (JFE) express concern about intimidation and estrangement of Israeli and Jewish professors in the international academic community after the surprise attack by Hamas in southern Israel on October 7, 2023. The editors point out that these types of hurtful antisemitic incidents against Israeli and Jewish academics preceded the attack, and they call on their colleagues and administrators to voice their outrage at the harassment, boycotts, and violence against Israeli and Jewish academics in addition to the suppression of Jewish studies, and their adverse effects on scholarship as well as Jewish students and their …

Pharmacist Quality Of Work-Life During Covid-19 Pandemic In Cagayan De Oro, Junnin Gay Labrigas Garay, Rugine Riel D. Barsobia, Zoe Kyra Evasco, Bonnie Louise Elorde

Pacific Journal of Health

During the COVID-19 pandemic, pharmacists have been one of the most accessible healthcare workers working in the frontline providing the medication and drug needs of patients. Their roles and responsibilities in work expanded and to some redefined as the pandemic hit. Adjustments in their work, and workplaces were also implemented in adherence to the pandemic situation. The quality of work life of frontline pharmacists were affected because of the changes brought by the pandemic. A descriptive qualitative study design was used to determine the pharmacist’s quality of work-life during the COVID-19 pandemic in Cagayan de Oro City. The place was …