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Under what circumstances do men sponsor issues that are traditionally regarded as salient primarily to women? By examining the sponsorship of legislation in the upper and lower chambers of 15 state legislatures in 2001, we explored the conditions under which men are likely to focus attention on policy areas involving women's issues and children's issues. We found little effect of institutional context (such as party control of the legislature or diversity within the legislature) on the sponsorship behavior of either men or women. Personal characteristics such as race, education, age, and family circumstances are associated with sponsorship by men, but not by women. Committee service is also strongly associated with sponsorship behavior, particularly for men. Differences in sponsorship are relatively marked in the sponsorship of legislation that focuses on reproduction or other health issues particularly relevant to women. We conclude that the boundaries of the set of issues traditionally defined as "women's issues" may be changing over time and that it is important to recognize that the influences on the sponsorship of women's issues can be different for men than they are for women.

A multifaceted strategy for measuring the efficacy of states that would also assist the international community in determining when it should intervene in national crises is introduced. An overview of the seminal functions of a modern state is provided, eg, possessing administrative control over the national territory & establishing the rule of law. Although many nations do not currently possess properly functioning sovereign states, it is stressed that the international community's contradictory policies have exacerbated efforts to augment state sovereignty in developing countries. Therefore, four recommendations for enhancing the vitality of states are offered: forming an index of state effectiveness, providing financial assistance to struggling countries, temporarily establishing a system of government that contains local & international officials, & promoting the creation of partnerships amongst national institutions & between various national & international institutions. J. W. Parker