OBJECTIVE: To characterize the use of strategic planning for diversity and inclusion in AAMC-member U.S. medical schools and its relation to underrepresented minority (URM) faculty. METHODS: We examined websites of 118 institutions for strategic plans to improve faculty diversity. Race/ethnicity data from the AAMC Faculty Roster were used to stratify schools into higher or lower/no increase in URM faculty (1998 to 2015). We searched for an association between these plans and change in URM faculty. We conducted qualitative sub-analyses of the most recent plans of institutions that expressed goals for faculty diversity. Analyses involved a modified-grounded theory approach, using a priori codes informed by an AAMC guide and a data-driven, constant comparison method. Plans were stratified into two groups by higher or lower URM faculty in 2015. Larger themes based on both a priori and emergent codes were identified. Sub-analyses for associations between AAMC Guide Adherence and URM faculty were conducted. RESULTS: Most institutions (72%) had plans for faculty diversity. There was no association between URM faculty change and a goal for faculty diversity (p=0.43) or plan duration (p=0.64). Qualitatively, four themes were accordant with effective strategic planning principles. Four emergent themes in both high and low URM groups reflected novel issues, two occurred in the low URM group, and one in the high URM group. Quantitative sub-analyses found no association between Guide Adherence and URM status (p= 0.86). CONCLUSION: Despite general adherence to best practices, strategic plans for diversity and inclusion are not associated with URM faculty presence or change. / 2019-06-09T00:00:00Z

Conflicting literature exists for the relationship between first disclosure, outness, sexual minority identity, and mental health among lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals. That is, while the relationship between LGB identity and mental health has been relatively consistently positive in the literature, the relationship between outness and mental health is more mixed. In addition, the way these constructs differ among race, sex, and sexual orientation are rarely examined. The present study examined the complex relationship between first disclosure, outness, identity, and mental health among 192 lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals collected from an online sample. The study explored differences on these variables by biological sex, race, age, and sexual orientation. The major findings revealed that bisexual males have less developed sexual minority identities and view their identities less positively than do lesbian, gay, and bisexual female individuals. In addition, bisexual individuals overall are less out and come out later for the first time in comparison to lesbian and gay individuals. In terms of race, Caucasians have a stronger and more positive view of their sexual identity in comparison to individuals of color. It was also found that individuals in later stages of sexual identity development experienced a more positive view of their sexual identity. In terms of mental health, it was revealed that a stronger sexual identity was related to better mental health. Greater degree of outness was found to overall have a moderately positive impact on mental health, though age of first disclosure of sexual minority status was, overall, not associated to measures of identity or mental health. When examined more closely, outness had a more complex, dual impact on mental health. Specifically, outness was found to have both positive and negative consequences for mental health, with identity development accounting for the positive aspects of outness. Directions for future research and implications for clinicians are also discussed.

Social psychologists have long been interested in judgments of stereotyping, prejudice, and discrimination towards people with marginalized identities. However, the majority of past social psychological studies have focused on understanding how perceivers view one dimension of marginalized identity in isolation from other marginalized identities. Specifically, past studies typically focus on the group members who are believed to be the most prototypical of marginalized groups in order to examine processes associated with discrimination (e.g., using Black men as targets when studying prejudice towards Black people). Because previous work largely examines the perceptions and experiences of prototypical marginalized group members, our understanding of stereotyping, prejudice, and discrimination is incomplete. I report five studies that use the intersectional invisibility framework as a scaffold to explore how perceivers’ judgments of prototypical versus non-prototypical group members differ. In Study 1, I explore how non-prototypical marginalized group members are represented in the media relative to their prototypical counterparts. Study 2 measures how explicit perceived stereotypes of prototypical and non-prototypical marginalized group members differ. Study 3 investigates how perceivers make attributions about prototypical and non-prototypical marginalized groups. Studies 4 and 5 examine how perceivers detect discrimination towards prototypical and non-prototypical marginalized group members. These studies empirically demonstrate that non-prototypical marginalized group members are perceived differently than their prototypical counterparts. These differences are associated with downstream consequences including reduced representation in popular culture and enhanced perceiver attention towards non-prototypical group members when compared to their prototypical counterparts.

This dissertation consists of three essays in applied microeconomics. Each chapter covers a large category of public spending in the US: (1) health care; (2) social insurance; and (3) education. This dissertation aims to understand the determinants of efficient delivery of public programs, focusing on disadvantaged subpopulations. The first chapter looks at the effectiveness of health care systems. Medicaid, the largest public health insurance program in the US, has transitioned from a fee-for-service system (FFS) primarily administered by the government to a managed care system (MMC) administered by private insurers over the last few decades. I examine how hospitals' responses to financial incentives under these two systems affect hospital costs and newborn health outcomes. I analyze the universe of inpatient discharge records across New York State from 1995-2013, totaling 4.5 million births. First, I exploit an arbitrary determinant of MMC enrollment: infants weighing less than 1,200 grams were excluded from MMC and were instead served through FFS. Using a regression discontinuity design, I find that newborns enrolled in MMC stayed fewer days in hospitals and thus had less expensive visits relative to newborns enrolled in FFS. The cost difference is driven by birth hospitals retaining more newborns enrolled in FFS while transferring away those enrolled in MMC. I find that MMC had limited impacts on newborn health, measured by in-hospital mortality and hospital readmission. Hospitals tended to transfer out MMC newborns only when a high-quality hospital was nearby, which resulted in these infants receiving uncompromised care. Second, I exploit county-level rollout of the MMC mandate to examine impacts on the full population of infants using a difference-in-difference design. I find that hospitals achieved a similar rate of cost savings as for infants over the 1,200-gram threshold, while length of stay, the probability of transfer, and mortality did not change following the mandate. This finding suggests that there are alternative, successful methods by which hospitals reduce costs under MMC, including for high-risk deliveries. The second chapter argues that wealth uncertainty influences when couples choose to retire. Using data from the Health and Retirement Study, I show that wives delay retirement when their husbands retire following a job loss. This effect is stronger when husbands are the primary earners, and couples are relatively poorer. This provides evidence of intra-household insurance that mitigates the impact of an unexpected earnings shock. I find that wives tend to delay retirement only until they become eligible for Social Security. This suggests that Social Security benefits can relax households' budget constraints and allow wives to join their husbands in retirement. The third chapter focuses on heterogeneity in grade retention decisions in New York City public schools. Performance on proficiency exams can be a key determinant of whether students are retained or "held back" in their grade. We find female students in New York City are 25% more likely to be retained in their grade due to exam failure than boys. Hispanic students are 60% more likely and Black students 120% more likely to be retained due to exam failure (relative to White students). Poverty and previous poor performance also increase the likelihood of retention, while being young for grade or short does not. We conclude that "patterned discretion" exists in how standardized test results are utilized.

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Motivation can foster engagement in the Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) program leading to benefits that can potentially result in sustainable employment. The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of Motivational Interviewing using the Motivation Curriculum for Vocation Rehabilitation Consumers (MCRC) on stages of change, self-determination, functional disability limitations awareness and life satisfaction on minority and non-minority VR clients with disabilities that had open cases with The Florida Division of Vocational Rehabilitation. / Includes bibliography. / Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2019. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

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Despite significant progress in the acceptance and celebration of LGBTQ+ individuals, there is overwhelming evidence that sexual minorities still face disproportionate levels of health inequity compared to their heterosexual peers. Relative to their heterosexual peers, LGBTQ+ emerging adults may encounter unique challenges with discrimination, stigma, and limited social support as they navigate changes in their educational and occupational environments. Additionally, within the broader public health and LGBTQ+ mental health literature, little is known about the mental health service utilization of sexual minority emerging adults. To address these empirical gaps, a sample of 98 LGBTQ+ emerging adults completed self-report measures of heterosexist discrimination experiences, mental health symptoms, LGBTQ+ positive identity, LGBTQ+ community connectedness, and mental health service utilization. The present study found that LGBTQ+ positive identity and LGBTQ+ community connectedness did not attenuate the significant positive relationship between discrimination and negative mental health outcomes. The present study also found that LGBTQ+ positive identity predicted greater likelihood of mental health service utilization, whereas LGBTQ+ community connectedness did not. Finally, exploratory qualitative analyses yielded deeper understanding of relationships between LGBTQ+ positive identity, LGBTQ+ community connectedness, mental health service utilization, and resilience among sexual minority emerging adults. Implications and future directions for empirical research and clinical practice with LGBTQ+ emerging adults are discussed.

A comparative study of the development of places of worship in Sydney was conducted primarily through the collection of data from development applications to construct or to use premises as a place of worship over a five year period from 2000-2005. The data indicated that a greater and disproportionately higher number of applications by religious minorities were rejected. The significance of the findings does not lie exclusively in identifying the likelihood of development applications gaining approval. The process of determining development applications and the impacts of the outcome of the process were also important. This is why the content of the objections raised to development applications was analysed. The underlying themes in the opposition to development applications related strongly to citizenship, particularly how the boundaries of local forms of citizenship are negotiated. In establishing places of worship religious groups seek to have their citizenship claims recognised. These citizenship claims include: the right to access, mark and use space (Dunn 2005), equality of citizenship with local residents and with other religious groups, and importantly, the right to freedom of worship. One of the main assertions made in this thesis is that by restricting access to sites that people can worship and by restricting the practice of religion, the right to freedom of worship is compromised. Churches dominate the religious landscape of Sydney. This dominance can be partially attributed to the significant levels of historical assistance from the state with the building of Churches. This included access to land, free labour, support for clergy and income support which assisted in the development of early Churches. The appropriateness of giving this type of assistance is not debated in this thesis. However, the assistance itself is significant for two main reasons. Firstly it is emblematic of the privileged relationship between the Church and the state in Australia, and secondly, it raises questions over the lack of privileges afforded to religious minorities. In responding to the question of whether secularism is likely to assist religious minorities, the establishment of places of worship demonstrates how pluralising the Church state link may be of greater utility to religious minorities than strict forms of secularism. The examination of this issue introduces the importance of an equal relationship between the state and religious groups to equality of citizenship for religious minorities. The extent to which multicultural citizenship can assist religious minorities in realising their right to freedom of worship was critically examined in this thesis. The adequacy of the institutional responses to religious diversity was assessed. This included an examination of local government, courts, the media, heritage programs and the planning profession. The planning process demonstrates how a supposedly neutral or colour-blind approach can generate uneven outcomes, which discriminate against religious minorities. The broader policy and legislative responses to religious diversity were examined in order to identify how deficiencies in the multicultural framework contributed to difficulties for religious minorities establishing places of worship.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--School of Education and Dept. of Sociology. University of Missouri--Kansas City, 2007. / "A dissertation in education and sociology." Advisor: Malcolm Linville. Typescript. Vita. Title from "catalog record" of the print edition Description based on contents viewed Dec. 20, 2007. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 267-283). Online version of the print edition.