Editorial Board:
Editor:
George H. Conklin,
 North Carolina
 Central University

Board:
Bob Davis,
 North Carolina
 Agricultural and
 Technical State
 University

Richard Dixon,
 UNC-Wilmington

Ken Land,
 Duke University

Miles Simpson,
 North Carolina
 Central University

Ron Wimberley,
 N.C. State University

Robert Wortham,
 North Carolina
 Central University

Editorial Assistants

John W.M. Russell,
 Technical
 Consultant

Austin W. Ashe,
 North Carolina
 Central University

® 
Volume 7, Number 2

Fall/Winter 2009

Outline of Articles

1. Generic Processes in the Production of Relations among Incarcerated Juvenile African American Males and Female Correctional Officers  
   by O. Alexander Miller, Mamadi Corra and Danielle Taana Smith
   Using data obtained through direct observation of three correctional facilities in South Carolina, the authors build on the concept of thugging and piping to explore ways in which incarceration contributes to African American male youths' misogynist views and violence against black women.  The observations suggest the need for a reexamination of rehabilitation and incapacitation approaches to incarceration.  The terms African American and blacks are used interchangeably throughout the paper.
2. Helping Exchange Networks:  An Exploration of Subjective Attributions for "Completing" a Social Exchange  
   by Eric K. Shaw
   How is it that people connect what might otherwise by unrelated events and how do these subjective connections affect one's decision-making process to help another?  Using the ethnographic approach to study helping behavior, this paper seeks to expand understandings of helping behavior and social exchange theory by explicitly focusing on the subjective causal attributions that actors make to "complete" an exchange.
3. Generational Difference in Feminist Identities? Exploring Gender Conscious Identities Among African American Men and Women  
   by Catherine E. Harnois
   Studies of the general population have found strong generational differences in how women and men relate to feminism.  But how well do these findings reflect feminism among African American men and women?  The results of this study show that generational differences are very important for understanding feminism within the Black community.  Also important are gender and involvement in the paid labor force.  For African Americans of the baby bust generation, working in the paid labor force seems an especially important even in the development of gender-conscious identities. 
4. Predicting Civic and Political Engagement: Family Socialization and Age-Group Differences  
   by Terrolyn P. Carter 
   Scholars suggest that there has been a significant decline in civic and political engagement among recent generations.  Using data from the 2006 Civic and Political Health of the Nation survey, it is found that education, socioeconomic status and family socialization predict civic and political engagement during adulthood.  In addition, a higher percentage of adults volunteer and vote more than young adults.
5. An Involuntary Ethnography of a Stay in the Hospital: Being Sick in a Sick Place 
   by Robert K. Miller, Jr. and Angela L. Wadsworth
   The author describes the events which happened in a hospital after suffering a massive cerebellar stroke on a minor highway while alone in his car.  It is concluded that the hospital was a "sick place" and that the hyper-bureaucratization of medical care has victimized all participants, patients and staff alike.  Several concerns of the post-Parsonian model of sociological literature are discussed, including full disclosure of information to patients, are found to be of somewhat marginal importance.
6. Attitudes Toward Immigrants and Multiculturalism in Contemporary America: The Role of Foreign Language Fluency  
   by Emanuel Alvarado
   Drawing from sociological research seeking to explain variation in attitudes toward immigrants and immigration policy, it is found that knowledge and proficiency in a language other than English is associated with more favorable views towards immigrants and towards multiculturalism in contemporary America.  Alvarado  reviews the literature on sociological research on immigrant attitudes, explores the nexus between foreign language learning and appreciation for foreign culture(s), and presents the methodology and analysis used to test the strength of the association between knowledge in a foreign language and favorable views towards immigrants and multiculturalism in the United States. 
7. Facing Change in Southeastern North Carolina:  How Do We Respond? 
   by Leslie Hossfeld
   Once referred to as the "vale of humility between two mountains of conceit," North Carolina has transformed itself from its humble origins to a progressive state embracing the new millennium.  From the boom of the Research Triangle to the financial banking hub of Charlotte, the state stands out on many indicators of progress, prosperity and leadership.  Yet the very problems that have plagued the state for centuries endure, and the residue of these is the very issue Southeastern North Carolinians must address.  Persistent poverty, affordable housing, low incomes and enduring racial inequalities are the age-old problems plaguing our region.  Coupled with remarkable population growth and a growing immigrant population, the face of Down East is changing – and how we respond is critical to our future.  A number of suggestions on economic development for areas of poverty are suggested. 
8. Racial Health Disparities in a Military County: A Research Report 
   by Akbar Aghajanian and Sharmila Udyavar
   Since 1972 CDC has sponsored the annual National Health Interview Survey (NHIS). The survey collects data from a large sample of US households, a sample of adults in each household, and a sample of children in each household.  But unfortunately county level data on health status are not available as readily and consistently as compared to the national level.  This paper describes a telephone-based survey of health on one county to overcome the gaps in the national samples.  It is concluded that phone surveys are a cost-effective way to provide for local information on the health status the population.  Sample questions are included in the article.
   
    
    

     ©2009 by the North Carolina Sociological Association