Landscape metrics, a means of quantifying landscape attributes, are frequently used in landscape ecology to describe the spatial characteristics of a landscape, but they have been less often used in anthropology. Using geographic information system (GIS) software, this study tests a method that investigates statistical correlations between groundcover landscape metrics and socio-demographic variables in Hillsborough County, Florida. Statistically significant correlations were found, illustrating the potential utility of this exploratory method. Wealthier areas with fewer ethnic minorities tend to be more fragmented and diverse in terms of groundcover; these areas also tend to have a lower percentage of impervious surfaces. The method of analysis is critiqued and applications for the results are discussed with the hope that they might help guide municipal planners in designing better urban communities.

Educational attainment is a key component of occupational attainment and social mobility in America. Special education is a policy intervention geared toward ensuring equal educational opportunities for students distinctive from the majority. Students labeled with learning disabilities (LDs) comprise about half of the special education population, and are typically assigned the LD label for achievement levels that are lower than would be expected given their IQ. Although they have average or high IQs, students labeled with an LD continue to experience disparities in educational outcomes. In this dissertation, I use sociological perspectives and a large nationally representative dataset, The Education Longitudinal Study of 2002, to investigate the social and structural roots of the LD label, and to explore ways in which the LD label produces stigma or stratification during high school. In general, I find that (1) the disproportionate labeling of various status groups is indicative of the social and structural roots of the LD label, and that the process of assigning the LD label may not be uniform across schools; (2) labeled students have poorer educational outcomes than even unlabeled students who achieved at similar levels in early high school; (3) stigma related to the LD label is suggested by parents’ and particularly teachers’ much lower educational expectations for labeled students than for similar students not labeled with disability; (4) stratification related to the LD label is suggested by the placement of labeled students into lower levels of coursework than unlabeled students who performed similarly in a comparable level of coursework during the prior year; and (5) stigma and stratification related to the LD label are magnified among labeled students who are more socially advantaged, or who are higher achieving. Overall, the results suggest that the experiences of students labeled with an LD can be improved by addressing these social and structural factors that differentiate the likelihood of carrying the LD label, and have negative implications for labeled students’ social and academic experiences during high school. / text

Rågsved är en förort i södra Stockholm som byggdes under 1950-talet. Rågsved har länge karaktäriserats för att vara ett segregerat område med en befolkning av lägre socioekonomisk status. Rågsved har som många andra segregerade områden problem med att bostadsområden och allmänna platser är i behov av upprustning och renovering. Syftet med studien är att undersöka hur det går att höja socioekonomisk status i utsatta områden. Målet med studien innebar att undersöka om områdesförnyelse genom fysiska åtgärder i miljön skulle kunna vara en lämplig strategi för att höja socioekonomisk status i segregerade områden. Studien har fokuserats till förorten Rågsved i Stockholm. Strategin som utarbetades är tillämpbar i andra områden som är karaktäriserande av segregering och utanförskap.Studien har utförts genom tre metoder, varav två av dem har inneburit att involvera medborgarna i processen. Den första metoden innebar att undersöka hur elever på Rågsvedsskolan uppfattade området samt om de ville se några förbättringar i den fysiska miljön. Därefter följde en medborgardialog genom en fokusgrupp med vuxna boende i Rågsved angående hur den fysiska miljön skulle kunna förbättras. Slutligen undersöktes den socioekonomiska statusen i Rågsved genom en statistisk analys. Resultatet av studien påvisar att elever vid Rågsvedsskolan tror att området skulle kunna förbättras om åtgärder i den fysiska miljön ägde rum. Medborgardialogen påvisar att genom upprustning av allmänna platser som centrum skulle åtgärden bidra till att förbättra identiteten för Rågsved och leda till attitydförändring gentemot området. Den statistiska analysen kring den socioekonomiska statusen i Rågsved visar på att området har den lägsta socioekonomiska statusen bland de södra förorterna i Stockholm.Studien påvisar slutligen att det behövs ändrat fokus inom områdesförnyelse genom att satsa på identitetshöjande åtgärder såsom att rusta upp allmänna platser som centrum för att öka attraktiviteten av området. Det är även viktigt att satsa på att ge medborgare i segregerade stadsdelar en möjlighet att flytta till ett annat boende inom området vilket innebär en möjlighet till boendekarriär genom att möta de boendes efterfrågan på bostäder. / Rågsved is a suburb of Stockholm. It is located on the city’s south side and it was built in the 1950s. Rågsved’s population has lower socioeconomic status and it’s neighborhood has long been characterized as a segregated area. Rågsved’s residential areas and public spaces like those in many other segregated communities have problems and are in need of modernization and renovation. The purpose of the study is to examine how it is possible to increase the socioeconomic status of vulnerable areas. The goal of the study is to examine if area renewal through physical measures in the environment could be an appropriate strategy for increasing the socioeconomic status in segregated areas. The study focusses on the suburb Rågsved in Stockholm. The strategy formulated is applicable for other areas that are characterized by segregation and exclusion.The study was carried out using three methods, two of which involved meeting with citizens. The first method explores how students of Rågsved’s school perceive the area as well as the improvements in the physical environment they want to see. A public dialogue using a focus group with adults living in Rågsved also explored how the physical environment could be improved. Finally, the socio-economic status in Rågsved was examined by a statistical analysis. The results of the study indicate that students at the Rågsved School believe that the area could be improved if changes to the physical environment are undertaken. The public dialogue demonstrate that renovations to public spaces would help improve the identity of Rågsved and change attitudes towards the area. The statistical analysis regarding the socio-economic status in Rågsved shows that the area has the lowest socioeconomic status among the southern suburbs of Stockholm.The study finally demonstrated that renewal strategies should change focus and invest in identity-enhancing measures such as renovating public places in Rågsved’s centrum to increase the attractiveness of the area. It is also important to provide a variety of housing in segregated neighborhoods so that changes in demand can be met throughout residents’ life cycles.

Bakgrund. Den ojämlika hälsan är ett globalt problem och behöver arbetas med på många olika nivåer. Skolan är en viktig arena där mycket förebyggande hälsoarbete kan utföras. En misslyckad skolgång kan leda till sämre livsvillkor och med det risk för sämre hälsa. Det socioekonomiska perspektivet framkommer som en viktig faktor i arbetet kring ojämlikheter i hälsa. Syfte. Att undersöka skolsköterskors hälsoutmaningar utifrån ett socioekonomiskt perspektiv. Design. Studien har en deskriptiv, kvalitativ design med deduktiv ansats. Metod. Studien grundar sig på strukturerade intervjuer med åtta skolsköterskor i Uppsala kommun. Alla skolsköterskor deltog frivilligt. Intervjuerna grundar sig på en intervjuguide med 27 semistrukturerade frågor. Intervjudata har analyserats med kvalitativ innehållsanalys. Bronfenbrenners utvecklingsekologiska teori har använts som teoretisk referensram. Resultat. Studien visar att hälsoutmaningar utifrån ett socioekonomiskt perspektiv är ett mycket komplext område. Skolsköterskornas arbete ser olika ut och hon samarbetar med många olika professioner. Psykisk ohälsa och fysisk inaktivitet framkommer som det tydligaste hälsoutmaningarna och är närvarande oavsett socioekonomisk tillhörighet. Dock visar studien att sammansättningen av elever där många har låg socioekonomisk tillhörighet ger en högre belastning för skolsköterskorna. Resultatet visar också att skolsköterskors som arbetar med ungdomar från områden med hög socioekonomisk tillhörighet har mer tid att arbeta förebyggande och hälsofrämjande. Slutsats. Studien visar att mer forskning behöver göras för att få mer kunskap kring de ojämlikheter som existerar i hälsa. Genom att öka kunskap kan resurser fördelas rättvisare och ojämlikheter utjämnas framför allt hos ungdomar. / Background. The inequalities in health is a global problem and needs to be addressed from many levels. School is an important arena where a lot of health promotion can be implemented. Failing school can lead to week living conditions which in turn can lead to poor health. The socioeconomic perspective is an important factor that emerges in the work around inequalities in health. Aim. To investigate school health nurses health challenges from a socioeconomic perspective. Design. A descriptive, qualitative study with deductive frame. Method. The study is based on eight structured interviews in Uppsala municipality. All school health nurses participated voluntary. The interview guide was based on 27 semi-structured questions. The data from the interviews has been analysed by a qualitative content analysis. Bronfenbrenners ecological systems theory has been used as a theoretical framework. Results. The results show that health challenges from a socioeconomic perspective is a very complex area. The work of school health nurses varies but they all cooperate with many different professions. Mental health problems and physical inactivity emerges as the clearest health challenges and is present regardless of socioeconomic status or structure. The study shows that the composition of the students which have lower socioeconomic structure gives higher work load for the school health nurse. Conclusions. The study shows that more research needs to be done in order to increase the knowledges about inequalities in health. By increasing the knowledges resources can be distributed in an equal way and inequalities in health can be levelled up, especially for adolescents.

American Indians suffer disproportionately from mental disorders such as depression and substance abuse. American Indians have lower socioeconomic status than white Americans making them more vulnerable to mental health stressors and disorders, such as depression. Unfortunately, the causal processes and mechanisms producing negative psychological outcomes remain unclear. Despite the disadvantages faced by many American Indians, the Native American community offers cultural norms and values that facilitate treatment of and recovery from mental stressors. The Native American community offers its members an extended social support network as well as healing ceremonies, which could mitigate the effects of depression. In my dissertation, I compare the level of psychological distress between two tribal populations from a study from the Centers for American Indian and Alaska Native Health (CAIANH) at the University of Colorado at Denver. I use logistic regression to examine the relationship between the psychological distress score and tribal identity. The logistic regression analysis also explores the relationship between self-rated health and socioeconomic attainment. Finally, I compare the outcomes between the Northern Plains tribe and the Southwest tribe. The results suggest that individuals with a strong sense of cultural spirituality have lower psychological distress than individuals who do not have strong cultural spirituality. Also, individuals of the Southwest tribe who spent part of their lives off the reservation or near the reservation experience lower psychological distress compared to those who spent their entire lives on the reservation; in contrast, individuals of the Northern Plains tribe are disadvantaged in terms of mental health if they spent part of their lives off or near the reservations than those who stay on the reservation their whole lives. Members of either the Northern Plains tribe or Southwest tribe who feel socially isolated are very likely to experience severe psychological distress or rate their health poorly. The findings of the study indicate that resiliency factors among the tribes such as cultural-spirituality, reservation community and social support are protective, but the findings also encourage further understanding of mechanisms and utilization of the resources available. / text

A high degree of physical functioning is necessary for independently performing the numerous routine and valued tasks of daily life. Poor functioning not only hinders independent living, it can lower the quality of life, impede full social participation, and elevate the risk of death. However, not all adults are at equal risk of poor functioning: women experience worse functioning and live a greater number of years functionally impaired compared with men. Studies of this gap have focused on inequities in adult circumstances, such as socioeconomic status, but have generally fallen short of fully accounting for it. Recasting this research within a life-course, epidemiological framework points to the potential role of early-life circumstances. Early-life circumstances may impart a biological imprint, and they may also launch long-term trajectories of social circumstances, that could differentially shape functioning for men and women. Thus, this dissertation examines the life course origins of the gender gap in functioning and active life expectancy among older U.S. adults using two nationally-representative datasets: the National Survey of Midlife Development in the United States and the Health and Retirement Study. In sum, the findings reveal that: (a) a host of early-life circumstances, such as parents’ education levels, leave an indelible stamp on functional ability and active life expectancy for women and men, irrespective of adult circumstances, (b) while some early-life adversities, such as extreme poverty, were marginally more consequential for women’s than men’s functioning, they appear to be primarily more consequential for precipitating metabolic conditions such as diabetes and obesity rather than directly impacting functioning, (c) explanations of the gap must incorporate endogenous biological differences between men and women; explanations that focus exclusively on socially-structured inequities are insufficient, and (d) exposures to socioeconomic resources accumulate across the life course to shape functioning differently for men than women; particularly between white men, who enjoy better functioning with higher educational attainment irrespective of early-life socioeconomic exposures, and white women whose functioning gains plateau if they experienced early-life socioeconomic adversities. Overall, the results underscore the importance of a life course perspective in explicating gender disparities in functioning, longevity, and active life expectancy. / text

Η εξελικτική πορεία του μαθητικού πληθυσμού της χώρας όσον αφορά στην επαγγελματική του ανάπτυξη βρίσκεται σε ένα κομβικό σημείο στην ηλικία των 14 περίπου χρόνων καθώς το αμέσως επόμενο χρονικό διάστημα ο μαθητής καλείται να λάβει αποφάσεις για την εκπαιδευτική και επαγγελματική του πορεία. Η «επαγγελματική ωριμότητα» περιγράφει και προσδιορίζει το βαθμό της επαγγελματικής ανάπτυξης του ατόμου και έχουν διερευνηθεί, σε διεθνές κυρίως επίπεδο, παράγοντες οι οποίοι τη διαμορφώνουν. Η παρούσα ερευνητική εργασία έχει ως στόχο τη διερεύνηση της σχέσης της επαγγελματικής ωριμότητας με τη σχολική επίδοση μαθητών της Γ’ Γυμνασίου καθώς και με την κοινωνικοοικονομική κατάσταση των γονέων τους, δυο παράγοντες οι οποίοι αφενός δεν έχουν διερευνηθεί επαρκώς και αφετέρου τα ευρήματα προηγούμενων ερευνών είναι αντικρουόμενα. Το δείγμα αποτελείται από 189 μαθητές και μαθήτριες της Γ’ Γυμνασίου και τα δεδομένα της έρευνας συλλέχθηκαν με χρήση της Κλίμακας Επαγγελματικής Εξέλιξης (ΚΕΕ) σε συνδυασμό με κάποιες, δημογραφικού τύπου, ερωτήσεις. Με τη βοήθεια του συντελεστή συσχέτισης ρ-Spearman έγιναν οι αναλύσεις. Τα αποτελέσματα έδειξαν συνάφεια ορισμένων διαστάσεων της επαγγελματικής ωριμότητας κυρίως με τη σχολική επίδοση των μαθητών. Η εργασιακή κατάσταση των γονέων αφήνει ανεπηρέαστη την επαγγελματική ωριμότητα, ενώ το μορφωτικό επίπεδό τους φαίνεται να συσχετίζεται ελάχιστα, αλλά στατιστικώς σημαντικά, τόσο με την κλίμακα «πληροφόρηση» όσο και την κλίμακα «αναζήτηση πληροφοριών» της ΚΕΕ. / Vocational development of Greek pupil population is in a nodal point at the age of 14, after which the students have to make crucial decisions regarding their educational and vocational future. The term “Vocational maturity” is used to describe and determine the degree of vocational development of an individual, and its formative factors have been investigated, mostly in international level. This study investigates the relation between the vocational maturity of students at the 3rd class of secondary school in Greece (Gymnasio) and their school performance, as well as the socioeconomic level of their parents. This study focuses on those two formative factors of vocational maturity for two reasons: firstly because they have not been investigated adequately so far, and secondly because the existing findings from previous studies are conflicting. The sample used in this study consists of 189 students of the 3 rd class of “Gymnasio” and the data were collected using the Scale of Vocational Development in combination with some demographic questions. For the analysis, the Spearman's rank correlation coefficient (Spearman’s ρ) was used. The results indicated that there is a moderate correlation between some dimensions of vocational maturity and the school performance of the questioned students. On the contrary, their vocational maturity appears unaffected by their parents’ professional status, while their parents’ educational level correlates slightly with the dimensions “pliroforisi” (the equivalent of dimension World of Work Information-WW of Supers’ CDI-s form) and “anazitisi plirophorion” (the equivalent of dimension Career Exploration-CE of Supers’ CDI-s form) of the Scale of Vocational Development.

The understanding that Attention Deficit/ Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) commonly persists into adulthood has not been widely accepted until recently. Accordingly, less is known about diagnostic and treatment prevalence or health and social outcomes of ADHD in adulthood. The objectives of this study were to: determine lifetime prevalence of ADHD diagnosis and treatment for Manitoba young adults, investigate whether a socioeconomic gradient exists within Manitoba young adults with a lifetime diagnosis of ADHD, and investigate the relationship between ADHD in Manitoba young adults and health service utilization. Using the Manitoba Population Health Research Data Repository, this cross-sectional analysis used 24 years of data (1984/85-2008/09) and included all Manitoba adults aged 18-29 during 2007/08-2008/09 with a lifetime diagnosis of ADHD. Crude prevalence was calculated for ADHD diagnosis and psychostimulant prescriptions, in addition to several demographic variables. The presence of a socioeconomic gradient in lifetime ADHD diagnosis was investigated using Poisson and negative binomial regression. Relationships between young adults with lifetime ADHD diagnosis and health service utilization for several health and social outcome variables were explored using a matched cohort design with two comparison groups and GEE regression models. In relation to previous Manitoba research on childhood ADHD, the socioeconomic gradient for ADHD diagnosis was found to dissipate into young adulthood. However, when region of residence was accounted for, a small inverse gradient in the urban population and a direct gradient in the rural population were evident. Individuals from the highest income quintile were significantly less likely to be diagnosed before age 18 than all other income quintiles. Depression, anxiety, personality disorders, conduct disorder, substance abuse, multiple types of injuries, receipt of income assistance, and reduced high school graduation were significantly correlated with lifetime ADHD diagnosis. Given the high lifetime prevalence of ADHD in Manitoba young adults, significant socioeconomic correlates for diagnosis, and multitude of adverse health and social outcomes in this population, further investigation into the trajectory of this relatively unexplored population is recommended. Furthermore, continued measurement of the provision and success of additional resources will ultimately be necessary for enhancing the health status of all Canadian adults living with ADHD.

How do gender and socioeconomic backgrounds affect students’ academic performance, educational choices and attitudes towards education? Moreover, does class play the same role for girls and boys? In order to find this out, I surveyed students in a small province located in the northern inlands of Sweden. The survey was answered by nearly every student in the ninth grade of that year, a total of 160 people. The results revealed that girls in this area have less faith in their capabilities than boys, despite getting much better grades. Many more girls than boys want to go onto college or university studies. In the end, I also found that girls like school much more than boys do. Socioeconomic background played a large role in all areas, except for attitudes towards education. Class was also found to have a much greater impact on boys than on girls, sometimes -as in regards to future studies - up to four times

For the last few decades, youth behavioral problems have been constantly increasing. As an outcome of the complex interactions of multiple factors, these problems seriously challenge families, the educational system and society. The author presents a multiple case study, with three levels of analysis. Through a qualitative method, subjective data are collected through semi-structured interviews. An individual vertical analysis and a collective horizontal analysis give access to the subjective perspectives of participants (the parent, child and teacher) and the sociocultural context. The results show pattern of life marked by ruptures and conflicts, the need for relation, recognition and guidance. Furthermore, there is a marked absence of communication between the implicated people and spiritual beliefs surrounding this problematic are considered. Intervention avenues are suggested.