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"The NBER Bulletin on Aging and Health provides summaries of publications like this. You can sign up to receive the NBER Bulletin on Aging and Health by email. While it has long been known that genetic-environmental covariance is likely to be non-trivial and confound estimates of narrow-sense (additive) heritability for social and behavioral outcomes, there has not been an effective way to address this concern. Indeed, in a classic paper, Goldberger (1979) shows that by varying assumptions of the GE-covariance, a researcher can drive the estimated heritability of an outcome, such as IQ, down to zero or up close to one. Survey questions that attempt to measure directly the extent to which more genetically similar kin (such as monozygotic twins) also share more similar environmental conditions than, say, dizygotic twins, represent poor attempts to gauge a very complex underlying phenomenon of GE-covariance. Methods that rely on concordance between interviewer classification and self-report offer similar concerns about validity. In the present study, we take advantage of a natural experiment to address this issue from another angle: Misclassification of twin zygosity in a nationally-representative study (Add Health). Since such twins were reared under one "environmental regime of similarity" while genetically belonging to another group, this reverses the typical GE-covariance and allows us bounded estimates of heritability for a range of outcomes of interest to medical and behavioral scientists"--National Bureau of Economic Research web site

Since its publication in 1985, Peter Bellwood's Prehistory of the Indo-Malaysian Archipelago has been hailed as the sole authoritative work on the subject by the leading expert in the field. Now that work has been fully revised and includes a complete up-to-date summary of the archaeology of the region (and relevant neighboring areas of China and Oceania), as well as a comprehensive discussion of new and important issues (such as the "Eve-Garden of Eden" hypothesis and its relevance to the Indo-Malaysian region) and recent advances in macrofamily linguistic classification. Moving north to south from northern Peninsular Malaysia to Timor and west to east from Sumatra to the Moluccas, Bellwood describes human prehistory from initial hominid settlement more than one million years ago to the eve of historical Hindu-Buddhist and Islamic cultures of the region. The archaeological record provides the central focus, but chapters also incorporate essential information from the paleoenvironmental sciences, biological anthropology, linguistics, and social anthropology. Bellwood approaches questions about past cultural and biological developments in the region from a multidisciplinary perspective. Historical issues given extended treatment include the significance of the Homo erectus populations of Java, the dispersal of the present Austronesian-speaking peoples of the region within the past 4,000 years, and the spread of metallurgy since 500 B.C. Bellwood also discusses relationships between the prehistoric populations of the archipelago and those of neighboring regions such as Australia, New Guinea, and mainland Asia.

Preface / Carl Watner -- pt. I. A history of government ID and citizen-tracking. Men ahead of their times / Jeremy Bentham, Luis Reyna Almandos ; Government surnames and legal identities / James C. Scott, John Tehranian, Jeremy Mathias ; Genocide and group classification on national ID cards / Jim Fussell ; The compulsory birth and death certificate in the United States / Carl Watner ; A national fingerprint system for the United States / Pamela Sankar ; Drivers licenses and vehicle registration in historical perspective / Carl Watner ; The Russian card: the propiska / Nicolas Werth ; Population registers in the Netherlands during World War II / Bob Moore ; The English identity cards / C.H. Rolph ; A history of the census / Carl Watner -- pt. II. Contemporary issues. Systematic federal surveillance of ordinary Americans / Charlotte Twight ; National ID: our line in the sand / Claire Wolfe ; The Australia card: campaign of opposition / Simon Davies ; The Social Security Number in America: 1935-2000 / Robert Ellis Smith ; My national I.D. card is a threat to your civil liberties / Gregory Dicum ; How computers are a menace to liberty / Hans Sherrer ; Why I oppose government enumeration / Carl Watner -- pt. III. The future and resistance. Gandhi's story in South Africa / Calvin Kytle ; Give me liberty / Rose Wilder Lane ; Resist enumeration / Scott McDonald ; National I.D. for all public servants / Patricia Neill ; An American refusenik / Claire Wolfe ; Red tape ; Why I refuse to be numbered ; Slavery and national ID / Carl Watner ; ID without big brother / Sunni Maravillosa ; Epilogue: national ID and the police state / Claire Wolfe, Aaron Zelman

In a major reinterpretation of American diplomatic history, Michael H. Hunt argues that there is an ideology that has shaped American foreign policy—an ideology based on a conception of national mission, on the racial classification of other peoples, and on hostility toward social revolutions—and he traces its rise and impact from the eighteenth century down to the present day. "Michael Hunt effectively analyzes the mental prisms through which perceptions of the American national interest are refracted. Policymakers will find his book provocative. All Americans who care about their country's place in the world will find it worth reading."—Rep. Stephen Solarz "Three 'core ideas' of American political culture, according to Mr. Hunt, have powerfully molded American diplomacy, and they form the heart of his analysis. These ideas concern the questions of revolution, race and, most interestingly, liberty…. On the subject of liberty… Mr. Hunt is supple and suggestive. … Mr. Hunt's examination of the conflation of liberty and greatness helps us understand the ideological genesis of the Reagan Doctrine, with is open-ended support for anti-Communist movements everywhere."—David M. Kennedy, New York Times Book Review "A lean, plain-spoken treatment of a grand subject…. A bold piece of criticism and advocacy…. The tight focus of the argument may insure its survival as one of the basic postwar critiques of U.S. policy."—John W. Dower, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists Michael H. Hunt is professor of history at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

Introduction:Language planning as an element in modernization /Joan Rubin and Björn H. Jernudd --[1.]The motivation and rationalization for language policy:The impact of nationalism on language planning: some comparisons between early twentieth-century Europe and more recent years in South and Southeast Asia /Joshua A. Fishman --Language as an aid and barrier to involvement in the national system /Herbert C. Kelman --Religion, language, and political mobilization /Jyotirindra Das Gupta --[2.]Case studies of language planning:Successes and failures in the movement for the restoration of Irish /John Macnamara --Spelling reform -Israel 1968 /Chaim Rabin --Language-planning processes and the language-policy survey in the Philippines /Bonifacio P. Sibayan --Some factors influencing language policies in Eastern Africa /Wilfred H. Whiteley --Language reform and social modernization in Turkey /Charles F. Gallagher --Some planning processes in the development of the Indonesian-Malay language /S. Takdir Alisjahbana --The development of Bengali since the establishment of Pakistan /Muhammad Abdul Hai --[3.]A general approach to language planning:Towards a theory of language planning /Björn H. Jernudd and Jyotirindra Das Gupta --Evaluation and language planning /Joan Rubin --Cost-benefit analysis in language planning /Thomas Thorburn --Notes on economic analysis for solving language problems /Björn H. Jernudd --A tentative classification of language-planning aims /Chaim Rabin --Instrumentalism in language planning /Einar Haugen --[4.]Research strategies and a view towards the future:Research outline for comparative studies of language planning /Joshua A. Fishman, Jyotirindra Das Gupta, Björn H. Jernudd, and Joan Rubin --A view towards the future /Joan Rubin --Some introductory references pertaining to language planning /Björn H. Jernudd and Joan Rubin.

The article delves into a consistent analysis of the opposing paradigms of the essence of war – the metaphysical and dialectical paradigms. The former is represented by two directions – "depoliticization" and "absolute politicization of war". Specific conceptions of the essence of this phenomenon realized within its framework are described – economic, naturalistic, militaristic and axiological. It reveals their scientific inconsistency and reactionary political content – attempts to justify openly unjust, invasive, illegal wars with references to natural, native and eternal "laws" of social existence. The second direction reflects the views of those who reduce the essence of politics itself to armed violence, to a strategy in international relations "from a position of strength", which they try to "justify" even clearly aggressive wars. The dialectical paradigm of war is based on the analysis of the essence of war as a unity of politics and armed violence, with the leading role of the former and the latter being driven by the latter, which, in turn, actively influences the former. The study implements the historical method of analysis in empirical and conceptual aspects. Structural-functional and world-system analysis methodology made it possible to incorporate the essential problems of modern international politics and military strategy into the content of the article, including Russia's Special Military Operation (SMO) in Ukraine. Scientific novelty is contained in the unique methodology presented in the paradigms of the essence of war and the classification of their specific concepts. There are also elements of critical analysis of some modern concepts of our scientists on the analyzed problem.

Background:Local authorities (LA) are key in improving population health, and LA public health decision makers need support from appropriately organised research capacity; however, few models of LA research systems are known to exist.
Aims and objectives:To explore potential and existing models of LA-based research systems.
Methods:This mapping review and time-constrained systematic review synthesises conceptual and empirical literature from 12 health and social science databases, grey literature and reference/citation tracking. Three reviewers screened titles, abstracts and full texts of retrieved records, and extracted key data from included papers. Evidence was synthesised based on characteristics of research systems and quality-assessed for relevance, rigour and richness.
Findings:Nine models were examined in depth. From these, we developed a typology of research systems. Few models were specifically designed for LA research activity; as a Whole System approach, the Local Authority Champions of Research model offers a potential blueprint. Useful lessons may be learned from UK Collaborations for Leadership in Applied Health Research, Academic Collaborative Centres in the Netherlands, local Research and Development units in Sweden, and generic University-Community partnerships.
Discussion and conclusions:An optimal research system requires the coexistence of multiple systems including Centre, Partnership, Collaboration, Network and Community types. The review is UK-focused, but the models appear to have wider relevance. Our classification offers those planning an LA research system the opportunity to choose an approach that meets their requirements and resources. A Whole System approach is optimal, with egalitarian input from the LA and academia.

En France, les départs à la retraite sont fortement marqués par une « norme sociale » puisqu'une très large majorité des personnes liquident leurs droits au taux plein, que ce soit par la durée de cotisation ou par l'âge légal. Pour autant, le niveau de vie, les conditions de travail, la santé et les incitations financières sont susceptibles d'influencer ces départs. Nous étudions ici les liens entre âge de départ à la retraite et montant du patrimoine. Plus précisément, nous testons l'existence d'un éventuel effet richesse en évaluant les effets du patrimoine du ménage sur l'âge envisagé de départ à la retraite par les individus . Pour cela, nous mobilisons l'enquête de suivi « Histoire de vie et patrimoine » 2014-2015 de l'Insee. Deux conclusions principales sont tirées de l'analyse économétrique. La première concerne les ménages endettés (sur leur logement principal ou pour leur entreprise), qui envisagent de se retirer plus tard du marché du travail. La seconde montre que, quelle que soit la définition de la richesse (brute, nette, financière), on anticipe une retraite plus tardive si l'on est relativement pauvre ou si l'on est relativement riche : l'effet richesse sur l'âge envisagé de départ à la retraite n'est donc pas linéaire. Ces effets « retard » aux extrêmes sont évidemment de nature différente : sans doute pour des raisons de niveau de vie pour les plus pauvres ; vraisemblablement pour d'autres motifs pour les plus riches (intérêt au travail, altruisme intergénérationnel, etc.). Classification JEL : D12, E21, J26, R31

AbstractMultistakeholder platforms (MSPs) are increasingly applied in environmental governance as institutions to collectively negotiate challenges, opportunities, and policy options in contested landscapes. However, their contributions and effectiveness depend on how stakeholders perceive and frame the role of MSPs in addressing social and environmental challenges. Despite this dependence, stakeholder perceptions of MSPs are currently under-researched. Hence this empirical study carried out in Zambia's Kalomo District asks: how do stakeholder groups perceive the role of MSPs in addressing landscape challenges, given the context of the dual land tenure system, and what does this imply for the implementation of integrated landscape approaches? This study uses Q-methodology to analyze the perceptions of purposefully selected stakeholders from state institutions, civil society organizations, land users, and others familiar with existing MSPs at the district and village levels. The findings reveal three narratives. The first one presents MSPs as institutions that foster dialogue. The second narrative foregrounds the role of the government and private sector, despite acknowledging the diversity of stakeholders in MSPs. In this narrative, MSPs should focus on supporting market-driven solutions to resolve landscape challenges. The third narrative recognizes power imbalances and considers MSPs as institutions to identify policy gaps and needs. The first two narratives are positioned in Dryzek's discourse classification as environmental problem-solving, while the third inclines toward green radicalism. Despite this divergence, there was consensus that MSPs have the potential to harmonize policies in a dual governance system and encourage dialogue between stakeholders to reconcile landscape challenges.

AbstractIndependents remain hard to categorize because they are, by their choice of self‐identification, resisting the standard categories of political classification. Despite the growth in independent voter identity, many political strategists still view independents as partisans. In this article, we contribute to the academic literature on independent voting behavior by exploring whether those who identify as politically independent function as true independents by accounting for their voting patterns over time. We do this by analyzing data produced by the American National Election Studies (ANES) on political identification and voting choices from 1972 to 2020 on each of the three ANES measures of party affiliation. Our findings show when tracking independent voting behavior over more than one election, there is a significant volatility in voting loyalty and independents as a group are distinct from partisans. This volatility was observed in all three measures of party affiliation used by the ANES survey data. The research also finds evidence that a sizeable number of independents move in and out of independent status from one election to another.Related ArticlesGrossmann, Matt. 2014. "The Varied Effects of Policy Cues on Partisan Opinions." Politics & Policy 42(6): 881–904. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12102.Reilly, Thom, and E. C. Hedberg. 2022. "Social Networks of Independents and Partisans: Are Independents a Moderating Forcer?" Politics & Policy 50(2): 225–43. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12460.Saeki, Manabu. 2019. "Anatomy of Party Sorting: Partisan Polarization of Voters and Party Switching." Politics & Policy 47(4): 699–747. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12318.

The article provides a comprehensive analysis of the economic situation in two small countries of South Asia – Bhutan and Nepal. The author has studied the agricultural sector, industrial, tourist, hydroelectric industries of their national economies, the range of goods produced by Bhutan and Nepal, as well as the circle of their main trade and economic partners. The role of income from labor migration for improving the well-being of the population of both states is considered separately. The author analyzes Bhutan's and Nepal's indicators of socio-economic development according to the UN classification. Based on the work carried out, the author comes to the conclusion that for both countries their economic and social interests play the key role in determining their foreign policy strategy. As landlocked countries with a complex and ambiguous history, their relations with two neighbors, India and China, are their priority. Taking into account the Indo-Chinese competitive interaction, it becomes obvious that the Governments of both Bhutan and Nepal are trying to find a balance between the two rival countries and their own national interests. However, they choose different balancing scenarios. Nepal is characterized by a clearly represented course towards the sovereignization of the country and its foreign policy with the creation of positive neutrality in relations with both neighbor states. The leadership of Bhutan, from the other side, traditionally chooses a pro-Indian course with cautious steps towards resolving contradictions in relations with China.

The analysis of the impact of innovation on employment growth is an important topic for policy-makers. Unemployment is an important social topic, and the effects of innovation on employment are often poorly understood. Despite the significance of this relationship, very few studies on this topic are yet available for developing countries compared with the developed ones. This paper contributes to this scant literature by investigating the employment effects of innovation for two South Asian developing countries: Bangladesh and Pakistan. We further analyse whether this relationship shows country-specific and industry-specific differences. Our analysis shows that both product and process innovation spur employment in this region as a whole, in both low-tech and high-tech industries, even after controlling for a number of firm-specific characteristics. Moreover, although both innovation types also have significant, positive impacts on employment growth of all Bangladeshi and of all Pakistani firms separately, they are important factors for employment growth of only high-tech Bangladeshi firms and of only low-tech Pakistani firms. Contrary to most previous studies, we witness an insignificant effect of growth of labour cost on employment growth, perhaps due to the availability of cheaper labour force compared with the developed countries. We notice that some of the innovation determinants exert different influences across industries and across both countries. The same holds true for the determinants of employment growth. JEL Classification: J23, O31, O33 Keywords: Bangladesh, Employment Growth, Pakistan, Product Innovation, Process Innovation

Background: Our understanding of child disability has undergone major changes over the last three decades transforming our approach to assessment and management. Globally there are significant gaps in the application of these 21st century models of care. There is recognition that economic, cultural, and social factors influence transitions in care and there is need to consider contextual factors.Objectives: A two-day workshop brought together key stakeholders to discuss current models of care and their application in the East African context. This article summarises workshop proceedings and identifies a broadly supported set of recommendations that serve to set a direction for health professionals, families, family-based disability organisations, communities and government.Method: Presentations followed by facilitated round-table sessions explored specific themes with participants reporting their responses communally. Future actions were agreed upon by relevant stakeholders.Results: Many barriers exist to care for children with disabilities in East Africa, including stigma and a lack of human and infrastructural resources. In addition, significant disparities exist with regard to access to medication and specialist care. The International Classification of Functioning framework needs to be translated to clinical practice within East Africa, with due recognition of the importance of family-centred care and emphasis on the life course theory for disability care. Family-centred care, educational initiatives, advocacy on the part of stakeholders and involvement of government policymakers are important avenues to improve outcomes.Conclusion: Further education and data are needed to inform family-centred care and multidisciplinary team implementation across East African care contexts for children with disabilities.

Considering the economic, social and environmental potential of the forestry sector of Ukraine, and the rather low level of its efficiency, an important task is to create conditions for the competitive development of the forestry industry. A precondition for such development is an objective assessment of the regional competitiveness of forestry complexes, which requires the elaboration of appropriate methodological and methodological approaches. The regional approach to competitiveness assessment ensures that the specific features of all natural zones on the territory of Ukraine, characterised by different soil and climatic conditions and unequal forest cover, are taken into account. The purpose of this study is to substantiate and test methodological and methodological approaches to assessing the competitiveness of forestry in Ukraine. The methodological basis of the research was the methods of analysis and synthesis, system generalisation and dialectical method. Methodological and methodical approaches to the assessment of the competitiveness of forestry in Ukraine are substantiated. The main challenges of forestry enterprises that form the potential of the industry are identified. The factors that form the level of competitiveness of forestry are highlighted. Positive and negative trends in the competitive development of regional forestry complexes are identified. Based on the assessment of the competitiveness of forestry complexes, their classification in the major natural zones of Ukraine was completed. The conducted research will serve as a basis for assessing the efficiency of individual forestry enterprises in the context of strengthening their competitiveness. The main advantages (disadvantages) of competitive development of business entities can become an objective prerequisite for making appropriate management decisions.

Based on more than ten years of author's experience in international technical assistance programs, the paper considers the problem of ensuring the sustainability of their outcomes. The author substantiates the position that international technical assistance in Ukraine significantly helps the development and modernisation of certain social spheres. However, effectiveness may vary depending on specific projects/programs and specific project teams. In addition, the author argues that international technical assistance in Ukraine requires greater coordination from the government and the direct participation of representatives of relevant ministries to be able to scale, monitor and evaluate effectiveness. The article provides an example of a specific local development tool proposed and tested over the six years of the USAID/DOBRE Program that can be scaled up at the national level. Experts' attention may be drawn to the classification of factors that hinder the sustainability of international technical assistance programs/projects in Ukraine regarding aid recipients, donor organisations and the state. The author analysed the positions of Ukrainian scientists and the international donor organisations' approaches on the content of the concept: outcomes sustainability of international technical assistance programs and investigated the criteria for determining their effectiveness. The concept of "The phenomenon of the financial absolutism illusion" was discovered and introduced into scientific circulation for the first time. The author also outlined the socio-psychological barriers that prevent Ukrainian communities from reaping the full benefits of local development instruments provided by donor countries. In addition, the author proposed some practical measures that will optimise the process of providing international technical assistance in Ukraine.