Living/Eating Arrangement, Loneliness, and Mental Distress among Older Korean Immigrants: Gender Difference

Structural isolation such as living alone poses a mental health risk in diverse groups of older adults, including older immigrants. Given that those living with others might also be disengaged, the present investigation included eating alone as another source of isolation and examined the impact of the combination of living and eating alone. The proposes of the study were to examine (1) how living and/or eating alone would impact mental distress, (2) whether the impact would be mediated by feelings of loneliness, and (3) if there would be gender differences in the mediation effect. The data were drawn from the Study of Older Korean Americans (SOKA), which surveyed older Korean immigrants in five states during 2017−2018. The living/eating arrangement was classified into four-groups: living/eating with others (57%), living with others/eating alone (12.4%), living alone/eating with others (7.3%), and living/eating alone (23.1%). Using the PROCESS macro, we tested the mediation effect of loneliness and the moderation effect of gender in the relationship between the typology and mental distress controlling for background/health characteristics and social capital related variables. Two groups (living with others/eating alone and living/eating alone) had sociodemographic, health, and social capital disadvantages. Analyses demonstrated that mental distress was linked with living with others/eating alone and living/eating alone, of which relationships were mediated by loneliness only among women. Findings suggest that not only structural isolation (e.g., living alone) but also disengagement with others (e.g., eating alone) need to be considered to understand emotional well-being in older immigrant population and gender difference.

Structural and Financial Aspects of Local Government Reform in Russia. 30 Years of Experience

International practices show that for an effective development of society, it is necessary to find a consensus of the interests of the local community and the country. This is the reason why the low level of autonomy of local self-government in modern Russia is a significant problem, as it does not allow local governments and citizens to become active partici­pants and initiators of transformations carried out at the municipal level. The study, carried out using the historical method of scientific know­ledge, made it possible to analyze the thirty years of Russian experience in the making and reform of local self-government (LSG), to structure the prerequisites and identify five main stages of reform, which differ in the pace and content of reform transformations. In the course of the study, it was revealed that constitutional changes, while remaining formally neutral to local self-government, will require amendments of fe­deral legislation for their implementation, which can give rise to a number of latent threats and undermine the principle of structural isolation and independence of local self-government bodies. In general, over the years of reforms, the legislative strengthening of the powers and rights of local self-government did not find adequate financial support, the real results of the reform are very different from the declared goals. The author substantiated proposals for improving the socio-economic component of the reform in the framework of the evolutionary approach.

Structural isolation of NIR absorbing ferrocenyl bridged N-confused fused expanded phlorin, N-confused porphodimethene and the π-extended corrorin isomer: synthesis and characterization

NIR absorbing homoconjugated ferroceno N-confused fused expanded phlorin vs. visible absorbing nonconjugated porphodimethene and helically conjugated π-extended corrorin.

Interpersonal and Structural Social Isolation among African American and Black Caribbean Men

Social relationships are important for promoting health and well-being in men and confer many benefits that help prevent the onset and mitigate adverse impacts of disease and disability. Social isolation, or the absence of social relationships, is associated with a wide range of negative health outcomes; however, most studies of social isolation have been conducted among predominantly White samples. As a consequence, we know very little about social isolation among Black men. Using an intersectionality framework, this study examines the prevalence and correlates of social isolation among men who identify as African Americanor Black Caribbean.Data come from the National Survey of American Life (NSAL), a nationally representative sample ofAfrican Americans, Black Caribbeans, and Whites living in the United States. The current study focuses on men who identified as African American or Black Caribbean. Further, within this sample, we distinguish by ethnicity and nativity in examining Black men who are African American (native to the U.S.), U.S.-born Black Caribbean men, and foreign-born Black Caribbean men. Social isolation was operationalized using two constructs: interpersonal isolation and structural isolation. The analyses adjusted for age, education, income, marital status, and region. We conducted a series of Poisson regressions to determine: (1) ethnic differences in interpersonal and structural social isolation and (2) ethnic-specific correlates of interpersonal and structural social isolation among Black men. All analyses accounted for the complex study design of the NSAL.There were no significant ethnic differences among Black men for interpersonal isolation. However, U.S. born Black Caribbean men had higher rates of structural social isolation compared to African American men and foreign-born Black Caribbean men. There were very few differences in the correlates of interpersonal isolation among Black men regardless of ethnicity. However, in terms of structural isolation, African American men had more significant correlates in comparison to U.S. born Black Caribbean men and foreign-born Black Caribbean men.

Single mothers' contact frequency with family and non-family members

Existing studies on single mothers’ social contacts often examine small selective samples and are mostly cross-sectional. The lack of high-quality longitudinal survey data on this subject constrains the possibility to draw more generalizable conclusions. This paper exploits panel data to investigate whether transitions to single motherhood affect contact frequency. Fixed-effects models are used on the six waves of the German ‘Socio-economic Panel’ survey that contain social contact data (1990, 1995, 1998, 2003, 2008, 2013) for analyzing whether single motherhood is associated with changes in contact frequency with family and non-family members. Findings show that women transitioning to single motherhood maintain contact with family and non-family members. Single motherhood is unlikely to cause mothers’ structural isolation. However, the absence of a second parent in the household neither seems to be connected with an increase in contact frequency with others. Providing a more generalised account of single mothers’ social contacts over time than previous research, the present study does not find evidence for a disintegrative effect of single motherhood.

Functional Isolation: Understanding Isolation in Trafficking Survivors

The study of sexual exploitation of trafficked victims cannot be done without understanding their enforced isolation. To better understand the dynamics of isolation, this study examined how traffickers used different elements of isolation and how such tactics may have contributed to the traffickers’ success in maintaining control over the victim(s). We examined in-depth narratives from 14 women between the ages of 20 to 53, primarily immigrants, who were recruited from an agency serving victims of sex trafficking in a large metropolitan city. The tactics used by traffickers varied and included not only the commonly defined structural isolation in which victims are restricted physically and socially, but also included a shrinking of safe social space and an elimination of privacy and social support. The latter, which we label as functional isolation, refers to instances when survivors are surrounded by peers who are either unreliable or aligned with the trafficker and thus are unable to give true social support. Survivors reported a combination of isolation tactics (i.e., both structural isolation and functional isolation). The different interwoven types and patterns of isolation reported by former victims of trafficking help address a dearth in the coercive control and abuse literature, providing a richer understanding of isolation in trafficking survivors.

The nature of scientific knowledge on the conditions of the shot and their place in the forensic ballistics system

At this time, a scientific approach has developed in ballistics, in which the topic of the conditions of the shot is addressed only within solving its individual issues. This causes fragmentation and incompleteness of information about the conditions of a shot in judicial ballistics, hinders its development, reduces the possibility of a forensic ballistic examination in providing disclosure and investigation of crimes. In order to solve the problem, the authors examined the nature of scientific knowledge about the conditions of a shot in judicial ballistics, assessed their place in the system of judicial ballistics, identified areas of scientific knowledge that determine their content. It is established that scientific knowledge about the conditions of the shot is derived from judicial ballistics and is of a theoretical and applied nature, reflecting the principle of building knowledge, their focus on taking into account the influence of these conditions in displaying the properties and attributes of weapons, cartridges and traces of their action in solving expert problems. The process of generating information about the conditions of the shot, in addition to the scientific and methodological apparatus of forensic ballistics, determines the integration of the scientific knowledge of forensics, forensics, military equipment and forensic medicine. An element of the development of judicial ballistics is the structural isolation in it of a section containing a system of scientific knowledge about the conditions of the shot. This will allow focusing on the theoretical, methodological and organizational side of the problem, create conditions for increasing the scientific and methodological support of forensic ballistic expert studies.