The Inaccuracy of National Character Stereotypes

Consensual stereotypes of some groups are relatively accurate, whereas others are not. Previous work suggesting that national character stereotypes are inaccurate has been criticized on several grounds. In this article we (a) provide arguments for the validity of assessed national mean trait levels as criteria for evaluating stereotype accuracy and (b) report new data on national character in 26 cultures from descriptions (N = 3323) of the typical male or female adolescent, adult, or old person in each. The average ratings were internally consistent and converged with independent stereotypes of the typical culture member, but were weakly related to objective assessments of personality. We argue that this conclusion is consistent with the broader literature on the inaccuracy of national character stereotypes.

Public health expenditure and spatial interactions in a decentralized national health system

One of the limitations of cross-country health expenditure analysis refers to the fact that the financing, the internal organization and political restraints of health care decision-making are country-specific and heterogeneous. Yet, a potential solution is to examine the influence of such effects in those countries that have undertaken decentralization processes. In such a setting, it is possible to examine potential expenditure spillovers across the geography of a country as well as the influence of the political ideology of regional incumbents on public health expenditure. This paper examines the determinants of public health expenditure within Spanish region-states (Autonomous Communities, ACs), most of them subject to similar financing structures although exhibiting significant heterogeneity as a result of the increasing decentralization, region-specific political factors along with different use of health care inputs, economic dimension and spatial interactions

National Identity and the Preference for State Opting-Out in the Basque Country

We argue that preferences for secession are the expression of a common unobserved mechanisms determining national identity. This paper examines the hypothesis of independence of both preferences for secession (independent Euskadi) and Basque national identity in the light of Akerloff and Kranton (2000). We deal with psychological determinants of individuals' national identity formation as well as those that influence the propensity of individuals to support the secession of their perceived ¿imagined community¿ or nation.. We undertake econometric survey analysis for the Basque Country using a bivariate probit model and publicly available data from the Spanish Centre for Sociological Research. Our results provide robust evidence of a common determination of national identity and political preferences for the secession of the Basque Country consistently with Akerloff and Kranton model.

Audit report on America’s Agricultural Industrial Heritage Landscape, Inc., d/b/a Silos and Smokestacks National Heritage Area and Silos and Smokestacks Natural Heritage Area Foundation in Waterloo, Iowa for the years ended December 31, 2012 and 2011

Audit report on America’s Agricultural Industrial Heritage Landscape, Inc., d/b/a Silos and Smokestacks National Heritage Area and Silos and Smokestacks Natural Heritage Area Foundation in Waterloo, Iowa for the years ended December 31, 2012 and 2011

First consumption ever of multiple substances: applying an expert-based taxonomy to a Swiss national sample of adolescents.

The use of multiple legal and illegal substances by adolescents is a growing concern in all countries, but since no consensus about a taxonomy did emerge yet, it is difficult to understand the different patterns of consumption and to implement tailored prevention and treatment programs directed towards specific subgroups of the adolescent population. Using data from a Swiss survey on adolescent health, we analyzed the age at which ten legal and illegal substances were consumed for the first time ever by applying a method combining the strength of both automatic clustering and use of substance experts. Results were then compared to 30 socio-economic factors to establish the usefulness of and to validate our taxonomy. We also analyzed the succession of substance first use for each group. The final taxonomy consists of eight groups ranging from non-consumers to heavy drug addicts. All but four socio-economic factors were significantly associated with the taxonomy, the strongest associations being observed with health, behavior, and sexuality factors. Numerous factors influence adolescents in their decision to first try substances or to use them on a regular basis, and no factor alone can be considered as an absolute marker of problematic behavior regarding substance use. Different processes of experimentation with substances are associated with different behaviors, therefore focusing on only one substance or only one factor is not efficient. Prevention and treatment programs can then be tailored to address specific issues related to different youth subgroups.

Les stratégies politiques et foncières des grands propriétaires fonciers au niveau national : étude comparée

Ce cahier résume les résultats d'analyses des stratégies politiques et foncières des grands propriétaires fonciers suisses et les compare au niveau national. Les grands propriétaires fonciers sont les cantons et les communes, les bourgeoisies, les Chemins de fer fédéraux, Armasuisse, Pro Natura, les caisses de pension, les sociétés immobilières, fonds et fondations de placement, les entreprises de commerce de détail ainsi que les banques et assurances. Les principaux enseignements tirés de la comparaison des stratégies politiques et foncières de ces propriétaires concernent la transformation des rapports à la propriété, se manifestant, entre autres, dans une financiarisation du secteur foncier et immobilier, une « titrisation », une fragmentation de la propriété, une montée en puissance des acteurs intermédiaires, un allongement de la chaîne décisionnelle, une anonymisation de la propriété, une dilution des responsabilités ainsi qu'une montée en puissance des ratings. Die vorliegende Publikation enthält die Zusammenfassung von Analysen der Strategien ausgewähltter grosser Grundeigentümer unter den Gesichtswinkel ihrer Verhaltensweisen als eigentümer und ihrer politischen Strategien auf der Ebene der Raumplanung. Diese Strategien werden auf gesamtschweizerischer Ebene miteinander verglichen. Die einbezogenen Grundeigentümer sind die Kantone und Gemeinden, die Burgergemeinden, die Schweizerischen Bundesbahnen, Armasuisse, ProNatura, die Pensionskassen, die Immobiliengesellschaften, Immobilienfonds und Immobilienstiftungen, Detailhandelsunternehmungen sowie Banken und Versicherungen. Die hauptsächlichsten Ergebnisse der vergleichenden Analyse betreffen die veränderten Organisationsstrukturen und die Transformation der Strategien der Akteure bezüglich der Ausübung ihrer Eigentumsrechte und ihrer Interventionen auf der Ebene der staatlichen Raum planung. Diese finden ihren Ausdruck insbesondere in Gestalt einer zunehmenden Finanzialisierung des Immobiliensektors, einer ,,Titrisierung", einer Fragmentierung, einer zunehmenden Bedeutungintermediärer Akteure oder einer Verlängerung der Entscheidungsketten. Feststellen lässtsich ebenfalls eine Anonymisierung des Grundeigentums, eine zunehmende Verwischung der Verantwortlichkeiten und ein beachtlicher Bedeutungsgewinn des ratings.

Debris flow modeling for susceptibility mapping at regional to national scale in Norway

Debris flows and related landslide processes occur in many regions all over Norway and pose a significant hazard to inhabited areas. Within the framework of the development of a national debris flows susceptibility map, we are working on a modeling approach suitable for Norway with a nationwide coverage. The discrimination of source areas is based on an index approach, which includes topographic parameters and hydrological settings. For the runout modeling, we use the Flow-R model (IGAR, University of Lausanne), which is based on combined probabilistic and energetic algorithms for the assessment of the spreading of the flow and maximum runout distances. First results for different test areas have shown that runout distances can be modeled reliably. For the selection of source areas, however, additional factors have to be considered, such as the lithological and quaternary geological setting, in order to accommodate the strong variation in debris flow activity in the different geological, geomorphological and climate regions of Norway.

Alcohol may not cause partner violence but it seems to make it worse: a cross national comparison of the relationship between alcohol and severity of partner violence.

This study assesses whether severity of physical partner aggression is associated with alcohol consumption at the time of the incident, and whether the relationship between drinking and aggression severity is the same for men and women and across different countries. National or large regional general population surveys were conducted in 13 countries as part of the GENACIS collaboration. Respondents described the most physically aggressive act done to them by a partner in the past 2 years, rated the severity of aggression on a scale of 1 to 10, and reported whether either partner had been drinking when the incident occurred. Severity ratings were significantly higher for incidents in which one or both partners had been drinking compared to incidents in which neither partner had been drinking. The relationship did not differ significantly for men and women or by country. We conclude that alcohol consumption may serve to potentiate violence when it occurs, and this pattern holds across a diverse set of cultures. Further research is needed that focuses explicitly on the nature of alcohol's contribution to intimate partner aggression. Prevention needs to address the possibility of enhanced dangers of intimate partner violence when the partners have been drinking and eliminate any systemic factors that permit alcohol to be used as an excuse. Clinical services for perpetrators and victims of partner violence need to address the role of drinking practices, including the dynamics and process of aggressive incidents that occur when one or both partners have been drinking.

Establiment d'una xarxa d'estacions de seguiment mitjançant indicadors liquènics. Bases per a valorar l'impacte humà i la qualitat de l'aire al Parc Nacional d'Aigüestortes i Estany de Sant Maurici

Com a primera part de la monitorització, mitjançant el líquens com a indicadors, del Parc Nacional d'Aigüestortes i Estany de Sant Maurici, hem seleccionat, marcat i caracteritzat 20 estacions de seguiment. Les estacions han quedat establertes en els següents ambients: rouredes amb boix, bosc caducifoli mixt, fagedes, fagedes amb avet, pinedes de pi roig, avetosa, avetosa amb neret, pinedes de pi negre amb nereto amb ginebró, i roquissars, tant en roques carbonatades com àcides. Donem, com a exemple de l'estudi d¿aquestes estacions, el cas d¿una d'avetosa amb neret. El seguiment de l'evolució, en el temps, de les diferents comunitats, ens haurà de permetre correlacionar les modificacions observades en les estacions amb els canvis produïts en la qualitat de l'aire o a causa de l'impacte humà.

Addicions a la flora vascular del Parc Natural del Cadí-Moixeró i de les serres veïnes (Prepirineus Orientals Ibèrics)

Additions to the vascular flora of the Cadí-Moixeró Natural Park and neighbouring Pre-Pyrenean areas (eastern Iberian Pyrenees) We present about fifty contributions to the catalogue of the vascular flora of the mentioned area, published in 2003. Among the taxa reported, 21 correspond to novelties found in our own field observations or in the literature. We highlight the first records for the Eastern Iberian Pre-Pyrenees of Meconopsis cambrica (L.) Vig. and Omalotheca hoppeana (Koch) Schulz Bip. and F.W. Schulz. Other data refer to rare taxa already included in the catalogue, such as Gagea lutea (L.) Ker Gawl., G. reverchonii Degen, Lappula deflexa (Wahlenb.) Garcke and Minuartia villarii (Balb.) Wilczek and Chenevard.

The role of presidential advisory systems in US foreign policy-making : the case of the National Security Council and Vietnam, 1953-1961

Doctoral dissertation, University of Joensuu