Studies in agricultural economics by the Texas Applied Economics Club /

Preface.--Joekel, S.L. The crop mortgage system in Texas.--Haney, L.H. The need and possibility of coöperative rural credity in Texas.--Trenckmann, W. Cop̈erative agricultural credit.--Lamaster, C.E. Coöperative production by farmers.--Wythe, George. Coöperative marketing of fruit, truck and cotton, chiefly in Texas.--Voorhies, H.L. Farmers' educational and coöperative union in Texas.--Leonard, W.E. Seasonal industries and their labor supplies in Texas.--Leftwich, S.M. The farm labor problem.--Griffin, M.H. A study in highway administration with special reference to Texas needs.--Vaughan, F.L. Railway rates and services as affecting the Texas farmer.--Randolph, Ralph. The theory and practice of speculation on produce exchanges.--Donaldson, W.T. Farm tenure in Texas.--Dailey, B.E. Our system of taxation and its effect on the farmer.--Index.

Un mundo rural en transición : La campaña bonaerense según el Primer Censo Nacional de Población de la República Argentina (1869)

La campaña de Buenos Aires había recibido desde fines del siglo XVIII importantes corrientes migratorias interprovinciales que fueron progresivamente desplazadas por las provenientes de Europa. Si bien existen trabajos ;basados en los resultados generales, se ha abordado muy poco el ;estudio de la población a partir de las cédulas censales en sí mismas. Nos proponemos aquí observar la estructura de la población de la campaña bonaerense durante estos primeros tiempos de la inmigración masiva, aplicando una perspectiva comparada entre tres pueblos: San Antonio de Areco en la zona norte, Mercedes en el centro y San Vicente en el sur. Se prestará particular atención a la composición de la población, su origen, las actividades productivas y el proceso de urbanización. Se analizan igualmente las pautas de destino y localización geográfica de los extranjeros en los pueblos rurales, las ocupaciones preferidas y la eventual diversificación de actividades en función de las nacionalidades

Análisis comparativo sobre trabajo rural en la forestoindustria, las semilleras y la fruticultura (Argentina 2008-2011)

Este artículo analiza transversalmente estudios de caso sobre el trabajo rural en la Argentina entre 2008 y 2011 en unidades de producción de capital concentrado: fruticultura en el Alto Valle de Río Negro, forestación en el NO de Misiones y producción de semillas de maíz transgénico en la Zona Núcleo Cerealera. La metodología aplicada fue la etnografía multisitio. Para el análisis que se presenta en este artículo se aplicó el método comparativo, que permitió establecer continuidad entre los casos sobre la base de tres estrategias empresariales: la reducción de puestos de trabajo clásico distinguiendo producción y servicios; la ambientalización de las relaciones laborales y territorios diferenciados para la producción, y el trabajo y la residencia de los trabajadores

Wiring the country: Local telecommunications and Australian rural communities

In rural Australia in the early twenty-first century, telecommunications reform has seen the rise of local telecommunications as a new way to wire the country, delivering new technologies and meeting community needs and aspirations. 1his paper discusses the prospects for local telecommunications in light of a research project on online rural communities commissioned by the Telstra Consumer Consultative Council. Based on interviews conducted in three small towns in rural eastern Australia, the paper examines the role of community networking as a new force in telecommunications service delivery, posing questions for local and regional communications policy development.

The place and meaning of physical activity, physical education, and physical culture in the lives of young people living in rural Queensland

Young people living in rural and regional areas are often reported as being less physically active than are young people living elsewhere. An understanding of this phenomenon will inform policies and strategies to address this finding. One source of valuable information is a qualitative understanding of how social relations and cultural meanings influence young people's opportunities and choices in relation to physical activity as told by young people themselves. The study reported here forms a component of a national project to gain insights into young people's engagement with physical activity and physical culture. Data has been collected for over two years with 15 young people residing in rural areas throughout Queensland, using semi- structured interviews. This paper reports the findings of the research. [Author abstract, ed]

Educating Practitioners for Integrative Rural Practice

Arguably, living and working in rural communities can pose significant challenges for human service practitioners - challenges that are different from those encountered by their urban counterparts. Human services employers, like many other employers in rural areas, have difficulty in recruiting and retaining staff. There is now considerable evidence to support the notion that rural and remote practice constitutes a different and distinct form of practice and has undergone significant changes over the past decade. Living and working in rural communities means that practitioners are not only influenced by the rural and remote context of practice, they are also part of that context. Given the difficulty encountered in attracting and retaining rural practitioners and the changes in this area, an important question which emerges is: How can practitioners best be prepared for this work through largely urban based social work and human service education? The multifaceted and multilayered complexities in rural practice requires creativity, improvisation and a capacity for 'integrative thinking' (Martinez-Brawley 2002). This paper discusses six elements of newer forms of rural and remote practice and how they might be most effectively addressed through social work and human service curricula. An education model which integrates these elements and other principles for rural practice is proposed.

Multilingualism and local-global identities: Japanese language education in rural Australia

The purpose of this article is to examine the value accruing to a regional area in Australia from the location of an undergraduate Japanese language education program in a university in that area. The focus is on the manner in which the inclusion of such a program enhances the sustainability of the area. Sustainability is here defined as the resilience demonstrated by social subjects in the absence of the full range of services available in more densely populated and resource advantaged areas. Such resilience implies an ongoing capacity on the part of subjects to contribute productively to social and economic networks in the area. The discussion includes two cases of graduates of the program under review. On the basis of these cases, the argument is advanced that local regional and rural area access to a tertiary sector second language program offers a unique and valuable strategic dimension to the personal and professional development of social agents in regional areas and to the sustainability of these areas generally.

Do rural consumers expect a prescription from their GP visit? Investigation of patients' expectations for a prescription and doctors' prescribing decisions in rural Australia

Objective: To assess patients’ expectation for receiving a prescription and GPs’ perceptions of patient expectation for a prescription. Design: Matched questionnaire study completed by patients and GPs. Setting: Seven general practices in rural Queensland, Australia. Subjects: The subjects were 481 patients consulting 17 GPs. Main outcome measures: Patients’ expectation for receiving a prescription and GPs’ perceptions of patients’ expectation. Results: Ideal expectation (hope) for a prescription was expressed by 57% (274/481) of patients. Sixty-six per cent (313/481) thought it was likely that the doctor would actually give them a prescription. Doctors accurately predicted hope or lack of hope for a prescription in 65% (314/481) of consultations, but were inaccurate in 19% (93/481). A prescription was written in 55% of consultations. No increase in patients’ expectation, doctors’ perceptions of expectation, or decision to prescribe were detected for patients living a greater distance from the doctors. Conclusions: Rural patients demonstrated similar rates of hope for a prescription to those found in previous urban studies. Rural doctors seem to be similarly ‘accurate’ and ‘inaccurate’ in determining patients’ expectations. Rates of prescribing were comparable to urban rates. Distance was not found to increase the level of patient expectation, affect the doctors’ perception or to influence the decision to prescribe.

Predictors of men's acceptance of modern contraceptive practice: Study in rural Vietnam

Studies have shown family planning adoption is likely to be more effective for women when men are actively involved. The transtheoretical model of behavior change was used to examine men's involvement in general contraception and intrauterine device (IUD) use by their wives. The study was carried out in rural Vietnam with 651 eligible participants. Cons of IUD use for men in precontemplation and contemplation/preparation were significantly higher than those in the action/maintenance stages, whereas the reverse was true for pros of IUD. The self-efficacy for convincing wife to have IUD in precontemplation was significantly lower than for those in higher stages. Women's education and ages, spontaneous recall of modem contraceptive method, cons for IUD, and self-efficacy for contraception and for convincing wives to get IUD inserted (or continue use) were significant predictors of men's readiness to accept IUD. Interventions are targeted to reduce cons and increase self-efficacy for IUD use.

Comparative academic performance of medical students in rural and urban clinical settings

OBJECTIVE To determine whether the academic performance of medical students learning in rural settings differs from those learning in urban settings. DESIGN Comparison of results of assessment for 2 full cohorts and 1 part cohort of medical students learning in rural and urban settings in 2002 (209 students), 2003 (226 students) and 2004 (220 students), including results for each specialist rotation in the 3rd year and end-of-year examinations in the 2nd and 4th years. SETTING University of Queensland School of Medicine, Brisbane. Students spent the whole 3rd year (of a 4-year graduate entry programme) conducting 5 specialist 8-week rotations in either the rural clinical division (rural students) or in Brisbane (urban students), all following the same curriculum and taking the same examinations. RESULTS For the 2002 cohort there were no statistically significant differences in academic performance between rural and urban students. For the 2003 cohort the only significant difference was a higher score for rural students in the end of the 4th-year clinical skills examination (65.7 versus 62.3%, P = 0.025). For the 2004 cohort, rural students scored higher in the 3rd-year mental health rotation (79.3 versus 76.2%, P = 0.038) and lower in the medicine rotation (65.5 versus 68.6%, P = 0.037). CONCLUSION Academic performance among students studying in rural and urban settings is comparable.