Financial returns,price determinants,and genre effects in American art investment

Past studies on art investment generally have found that returns are low and risk is high. In this study we find that the return to art investment is more in line with traditional investments and thus the cost for consumption associated with art seems fairly small. Employing a large sample of paintings by 66 American artists sold at auction between 1971–1992, average returns are found to be over 9 per cent and 3 per cent in nominal and real terms, respectively. The model employs a log linear price regression estimated by pooled cross section and time series data, and allows rates of return as well as hedonic values for various painting and auction attributes to be estimated. These include size, media, age of execution, authenticity of the work, and auction month and house. In addition, rates of return are differentiated by artist, time period of investment, price range and genre of the painting. The findings indicate significant sensitivity of rates of return to these data stratifications.This paper was presented at the 9th international conference of the Association for Cultural Economics, held in Boston, May 8–11, 1996.     

ATTITUDINAL ROOTS OF POPULAR PROTEST: THE FRENCH UPHEAVAL OF MAY 1968

On the basis of logistic regression and employing individual-leveldata from a national panel sample survey, participation in demonstrationsand strikes during the French upheaval of May 1968 is analysed,in terms of attitudes measured during the spring of 1967, morethan a year before the May events occurred. Among the potentialexplanatory factors considered, conventional political orientationswere found to be of pervasive importance, forms of satisfactionand opinions on major issues were operative in a highly selectivefashion, particular to the protesting group, and more genericpsychopolitical values such as trust in government or politicalefficacy, were virtually without independent effects.     

Young Adult Use of Ebooks: An Analysis of Public Library Services and Resources

An online survey distributed to librarians at public libraries across North America established some interesting trends in public librarians’ perceptions of ebooks and teens. Some of the findings of this study are that teen library users strongly prefer to read print books for their recreational reading and show very little interest in ebooks or ebook programs offered by public libraries. Survey respondents indicate that teen library users remain largely unaware of or disinterested in the advantages of ebooks in providing them a convenient, private, and customizable recreational reading experience. Even when public librarians offer ebook programs for teens through school outreach, these programs tend to focus on the titles in the collection and the download process, rather than the specific benefits of ebook reading. More active promotion of these advantages could potentially appeal to teens, especially to non-library users and reluctant readers.     

A Community-Driven Metadata Framework for Describing Cultural Resources: The Digital Library North Project

This article describes the Digital Library North (DLN) project, a collaboration among researchers at the University of Alberta, staff at the Inuvialuit Cultural Resource Centre, and communities within the Inuvialuit Settlement Region (ISR) to develop a culturally appropriate metadata framework for a digital library of cultural resources. It will discuss gathering of data to inform the first iteration of the metadata framework and digital library prototype, as well as revisions made to both the framework and the digital library based on feedback obtained through community interaction with the prototype.     

Biochemical markers of brain injury: could they be used as diagnostic adjuncts in cases of inflicted traumatic brain injury?

Child abuse is the leading cause of serious traumatic brain injury (TBI) in infants and young children (Billmire & Myers, 1985; Bruce & Zimmerman, 1989). The incidence of serious or fatal inflicted traumatic brain injury (iTBI) in children < 1 year of age is approximately 1 in 3,300 ( Keenan et al., 2003); since many cases of iTBI are of mild or moderate severity, the incidence is probably significantly higher. Even at an incidence of 1 in 3,300, iTBI is as common as the incidence of cystic fibrosis (CF), the most common genetic recessive disease in the Caucasian population. Proper diagnosis of iTBI is difficult even for experienced and astute physicians because its presentation can be subtle and important historical data are often lacking. As a result, misdiagnosis is common and can have catastrophic medical consequences for patients and significant financial consequences for society ( Ewing-Cobbs et al., 1998; Jenny, Hymel, Pitzen, Reinert, & Hay, 1999). Unlike CF for which there are several well established screening tests, there are currently no diagnostic adjuncts to help physicians screen for possible iTBI.     

Young workers and their dispositions towards mathematics: tensions of a mathematical habitus in the retail industry

This paper presents a case study of contemporary retail industry and the ways in which young workers participate in that field. Public perceptions of low numeracy among young people provided the catalyst for the study. Drawing on a mixed-method approach involving survey, case studies, stimulated recall, observations, and interviews, it was found that young workers approach their numeracy in ways that have been shaped by their experiences, in particular, digital experiences. In contrast, older generations hold different views of young people’s numeracy levels and skills, often perceiving them as poor and deficit. The study challenges the orthodoxy of older generations and argues that young workers have developed new ways of working, which align strongly with the post-industrial workplace. As a result, there are considerable tensions between the generations which need to be considered. The paper uses the work of Bourdieu and draws on his notions of habitus, field, and capital to theorize the outcomes.     

Higher degree research supervision: from practice toward theory

This paper presents our theorizing about the complex nature of higher degree research supervision. The intent is to make a contribution to the current debates about higher education generally, and supervision of higher degree research students in particular. We add to the pedagogy of supervision by extending its scope to and beyond the supervisory relationship via our tripartite view of supervision. We see supervision as a creative, synergistic relationship interweaving activities concerning (1) the student, (2) knowledge and (3) the research project. From our perspective, the discourse of supervision has been relatively silent on this third element until now.     

Research supervision: the research management matrix

We briefly make a case for re-conceptualising research project supervision/advising as the consideration of three inter-related areas: the learning and teaching process; developing the student; and producing the research project/outcome as a social practice. We use this as our theoretical base for an heuristic tool, ‘the research management matrix’ and this is the major focus of this paper. The matrix facilitates the work of supervision. In the matrix we privilege the research questions. The research management matrix can be easily used to focus on key research features and the relationships amongst them. The timing of different parts of research is introduced so that practical goals are identified. This facilitates project and research student learning management and timely completions. For these reasons the research management matrix is a useful tool for supervisors/advisors     

Female Wheelchair Athletes and Changes to Body Image

This paper examined the effect of a psychological intervention program on attitudes to body image of female wheelchair athletes. A single case, multiple-baseline study was employed to examine the presentation of a brief, six session, cognitive behavioural intervention program on six National female wheelchair basketball players over a period of six weeks. Initially the six wheelchair athletes' satisfaction levels were compared to 20 able-bodied basketball players on four measures: the Physical Self-Perception Profile, Multi-Dimensional Body Image Scale, Social Physique Anxiety Questionnaire, and the Body Parts Questionnaire. Results indicated that as a result of the cognitive behavioural intervention program, physical self-perception increased for the wheelchair athletes and for 50% of the wheelchair athletes on the multi-dimensional components of body image, using the non-parametric split-middle technique. Further analysis revealed a significant effect of self-perceived competence across time indicating post-hoc significant differences between baseline data and Week 6 of the intervention program. With reference to caution due to the nature of case study research, it is asserted that this study shows promise for improving various aspects of body image satisfaction by means of a cognitive-behavioural approach and has potential for wheelchair athletes and other special populations.