The Influence of Individual Factors on the Effectiveness of Message Content in Antismoking Advertisements Aimed at Adolescents

Approximately five million children under the age of 18 will eventually die from smoking‐related disease. However, antismoking advertisements directed to adolescents appear to be reducing the prevalence of smoking among youth. The reported study extends prior research using an experiment over time (N= 565) to test the influence of individual factors (grade level, gender, and ethnicity) on the effectiveness of two types of message content in antismoking advertisements. Predictor variables from prior research, such as beliefs about smoking and family and peer smoking, were included as covariates in the analysis. As expected, effectiveness was influenced by individual factors. Long‐term health content was more effective among nonwhites, males, and high school students, while short‐term content appeared to work better among junior high males.     

Appliance service and repair

The appliance industry trade journal Appliance reported that during 1989 manufacturers shipped over 55 million major household appliances. Previous studies have explored length of appliance service life for a given household and the economic cost of energy consumption for major appliances. However, limited information is available on availability and cost of maintenance and repairs which affect the total useful life of equipment. Survey results from a study of Nebraska appliance service and repair firms are presented here. This research provides information regarding the distribution and cost of appliance service and repair. The findings serve as current estimates of service and repair information for consumers as well as manufacturers.     

Family Communication Patterns and Marketplace Motivations,Attitudes, and Behaviors of Children and Mothers

This study examined the relation between family communication patterns (FCP) and mothers' marketplace motivations, attitudes, and behaviors (MAB). Adolescents' prediction accuracy of mothers' consumption motivations was also investigated. Results indicate mothers' materialistic and shopping tendencies, advertising attitudes, information use, and consumption motivations are linked to FCP. Adolescents' predictions of mothers' consumption motivations coincided with mothers' self-reported motivations. The findings suggest that FCP may play a role in the acquisition of marketplace MAB.     

RACIAL DISPARITIES IN FEDERAL DISABILITY BENEFITS

We estimate racial differences in the Social Security Administration’s (SSA) decision to award federal disability benefits using newly available data, multivariate econometric models, and Oaxaca decomposition methods. We focus on the appellate level of SSA’s disability decision‐making process. We find that for claimants represented by attorneys there is no statistically significant difference in benefit award rates between whites and African‐Americans. However, for claimants without attorney representation, we find sizable and significant differences between whites and African‐Americans. (JEL J15, H53)     

A survey of commercial laundry detergents – how effective are they? Part I: powders

The effectiveness of 11 non-phosphate containing powdered detergents and 12 phosphate containing powdered detergents, of varying formulations, in cleaning a standard soiled fabric in soft water (5 ppm) were evaluated. It was found that in soft water there were no differences between washing with either phosphate or non-phosphate detergent. In general, washing with detergents which contained phosphates did give somewhat better results in warm water. Detergents that contained bleach as an additive did not result in a whiter fabric.     

The micro‐foundations of the early London capital market: Bank of England shareholders during and after the South Sea Bubble, 1720–251

Using two sources, Bank of England Transfer Books and Stock Ledgers, this article explores the nature of the ‘customer base’ for Bank shares during and after the South Sea Bubble. This examination uncovers the nature of individual participation in this early capital market. The Transfer Ledgers record roughly 7,000 transfers during 1720, while the Ledger Books from 1720–25 record over 8,000 individuals holding stock. The analysis finds the customer base had breadth and depth, comprising individuals from across the social spectrum, from all over England and Europe. The market was diverse and liquid. Activity during the Bubble came from those living in and around London, with most traders participating in the market only twice at most. While the majority of participants were men, there was a sizeable female presence. Men as a group lost money from their market activity, but women made money. In the five years after the Bubble, the customer base was sustained. The analysis argues that the secondary market in financial assets cannot be dismissed as mere gambling devices, and that the basis for a mutually productive interaction between the financial sector and the real sector of the economy was already in existence and was sustained through the shock of the South Sea Bubble and its collapse.     

Trends in Child Poverty in Australia, 1982 to 1995–96

This study suggests that child poverty in Australia fell by about one-third between 1982 and 1995–96, largely as a result of the very substantial increases in government cash payments to lower income families with children. However, while there were sharp falls in poverty among dependent children, poverty rates among 15 to 18 year-olds who had left the parental home or who were still living at home but not in full-time study increased very sharply. In addition, the after-housing poverty picture did not look so optimistic, apparently due to a compositional shift in the types of families in after-housing poverty.