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Copyright of Soziale Welt is the property of Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft mbH & Co. KG and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The increasing growth of Christianity in Shanghai, China, provides an instructive model for understanding the marketing and economics of religion. The paper employs theoretical analysis as well as an analysis of the results of field study. The theoretical study employed rational choice theory and the field study included visiting religious places and conducting interviews. The major field work took place at Christian churches and other places of worship in Shanghai city during Christmas and New Year time, 2019. This research concludes that Christianity and its competitiveness in comparison to the other faiths in Shanghai, will gain popularity in Shanghai follower will grow in numbers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Edith Wharton's short story, "The Last Asset," delves into the complexities of decision-making in uncertain situations. The story introduces the idea of planning in advance for future choices, aligning with the concept of a strategy in modern decision theory. It also explores the concept of satisficing behavior, where decision-makers opt for satisfactory strategies rather than optimal ones. Wharton's portrayal of decision-making anticipates how decision theorists now model contingent planning. Additionally, the story touches on the limitations of rational choice theory and the role of economics in American literary realism. Overall, "The Last Asset" by Edith Wharton tells the tale of Mrs. Newell's efforts to have her estranged husband attend their daughter's wedding, highlighting the significance of forward-looking decision-making and the value of planning for future contingencies. [Extracted from the article]

The rise in violent economic nationalism against foreign national interests in South Africa, particularly Nigerians and their investments poses some critical challenges to the liberal international economic system. This study investigates the impact of South Africa's economic nationalism on Nigerians' investments in South Africa. The study adopted the rational choice theory as the theoretical framework and mixed method of data gathering which relies on a documentary review, an unstructured interview and a focus group analysis involving Nigerians that were evacuated from South Africa. The findings revealed that violent economic nationalism among South Africans and the reprisal attacks in Nigeria have undermined Nigerians' investment potentials and created a host of issues in their economic relations including low productivity, temporary unemployment of workers in the investment industries, reduction of foreign exchange earnings and stagnated trade activities between the two countries among others. The study concludes that notwithstanding the perennial eruptions of violent episodes of economic nationalism in South Africa, the two countries have demonstrated commitment to boosting and sustaining their trade relations. It notes the absence of synergy between South Africa's demand for inclusive labour employment and Nigerians' investment activities. The study recommends close coordination between governments and the enforcement of rule of law in both countries especially, laws to protect foreign investors and investments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What are the factors that drive how legislative actors respond and manage protests during social movements? Protests are taken as a feature of democratic expression. However, when they escalate into extreme violence, threatening lives and property, they also impact on how legislators as key governance actors channel the direction of their choices. Among many theoretical explanations, we single out the rational choice theory (RCT) as an analytical framework to assess Nigeria’s 2020 #EndSARS protests. This is because of the RCT’s explanatory focus on how macro-societal, meso-institutional and microindividual level factors shape actors’ preferences, limiting decision making options. During #EndSARS, legislators and legislative symbols were targeted by peaceful and violent protesters alike, and we draw on this to analyse the extent to which the RCT provides explanations for legislative behaviour and the rationality of legislative choices on the one hand, and how the actions demonstrate legislative preferences in responses to protesters, on the other hand. Drawing on secondary data sources complemented with interviews with legislators, we argue instead that the explanations to variations and similarities in the behaviour of legislators during violent protests are largely domiciled at an adjusted meso-level of action where new stakeholders, interests and complex decision-making problems. This, in turn, limits alternatives, patronage and the wider engagement that should inform legislative interventions. To navigate this, legislators adopt a collective than individualised approach to engaging with protest stakeholders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the first Local Government Elections (LGEs) in post-apartheid South Africa, the voter turnout has been on the rise, from 47.33% in 2000 to 57.94% in 2016. However, in the 2021 LGEs, South Africa experienced the lowest voter turnout ever, with only 45.87%. Consequently, such a low turnout is a worrying norm, as most people do not exercise their democratic right to vote and participate in the political landscape. Therefore, the purpose of this paper was to explore factors that contributed to the voter's low turnout in the 2021 LGEs among young people in South Africa. The paper adopted a quantitative research design, and a simple random sample was employed to recruit the 101 participants. The article employed rational choice theory as a lens through which the findings were interpreted. Furthermore, the paper used questionnaires to collect data from the respondents. Additionally, the data were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics, and the Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) was chosen. The result of the study shows that during the 2021 elections that were held in South Africa, the youth were not willing to register and vote. Voting was found to be the lowest as compared to previous years since the country gained independence. Among the reasons why youth were reluctant to vote, the following were highlighted, personal commitments on the day of elections; not in the voting ward in which the participants have registered for voting; not realising the value of voting; not having the right candidate to vote for; feeling disappointed by the party; being concerned by the corruption in the municipalities; and feeling that even if they vote for their party, it will not win. The conclusion indicated that there is low motivation to vote among the youth in South Africa. The study recommends comprehensive political and civic education, especially among young people, who do not see any significance in participating in the elections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given its importance and value in ensuring quality education, the Continuing Professional Development (CPD) of teachers draws significant attention from researchers. Research has thus focused on teachers' CPD practices and the factors influencing those practices. However, a broad theoretical framework that relates teacher CPD participation factors to teacher characteristics and explains their interaction and the resultant CPD practices is yet to be developed. To address this gap, this article reviews literature on teacher CPD and synthesizes an empirically testable theoretical framework. The article begins by adopting a wide definition of teacher CPD as all learning that teachers undertake to improve their professional competencies, and proceeds to identify the essential aspects of teacher CPD and the factors that influence teachers' participation in CPD. An analysis of the literature leads to the conclusion that teacher CPD is a context bound and goal-oriented learning activity, characterized by multiple aims, content, learning methods. By viewing teachers as adult learners and rational choice takers, principles of Adult Education Theory and propositions of the Rational Choice Theory are then used to explain the interaction of the factors and observed CPD practices. The article concludes by presenting several hypotheses and methodological implications arising from the framework. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The agent-based model is the principal scientific instrument of generative social science. Typically, we design completed agents—fully endowed with rules and parameters—to grow macroscopic target patterns from the bottom up. Inverse generative science (iGSS) stands this approach on its head: Rather than handcrafting completed agents to grow a target—the forward problem—we start with the macro-target and evolve micro agents that generate it, stipulating only primitive agent-rule constituents and permissible combinators. Rather than specific agents as designed inputs, we are interested in agents—indeed, families of agents—as evolved outputs. This is the backward problem and tools from Evolutionary Computing can help us solve it. In this overarching essay of the current JASSS Special Section, Part 1 discusses the motivation for iGSS. Part 2 discusses its goals, as distinct from other approaches. Part 3 discusses how to do it concretely, previewing the five iGSS applications that follow. Part 4 discusses several foundational issues for agent-based modeling and economics. Part 5 proposes a central future application of iGSS: to evolve explicit formal alternatives to the Rational Actor, with Agent_Zero as one possible point of evolutionary departure. Conclusions and future research directions are offered in Part 6. Looking ‘backward to the future,’ I also include, as Appendices, a pair of 1992 memoranda to the then President of the Santa Fe Institute on the forward (growing artificial societies from the bottom up) and backward (iGSS) problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As e-government websites grow in functionalities and capabilities, there is a need to better understand the nuanced role of service quality to enable governments to better address citizens' online service needs. Such an understanding should help improve overall e-government use by citizens. Thus motivated, our paper investigates how users respond to the service quality perception-expectation gap in e-government websites. We draw on rational choice theory (RCT) to develop a theoretical model linking expected and perceived information systems (IS) service quality to continued e-government website use intentions. The proposed model is empirically tested using polynomial modeling and response surface analysis. The results indicate that, in contrast to the organizational context, for e-government websites, both agreement and disagreement between expected and perceived IS service quality are positively associated with continued use intention. In our sample, as high as 77 percent of respondents appear to be in the zone of tolerance, suggesting that users can tolerate wide variations in service quality before they consider seeking alternatives to e-government websites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rational choice and offender decision-making are premised upon each individual's weighing of their subjectively perceived behavioral options. However, most applications have failed to account for the heterogeneity in the options individuals perceive to have available to them within their choice set. We leveraged interdisciplinary scholarship from the fields of neuroscience and psychology to develop a strategy to capture the choice set of perceived options. Using a community sample of adults randomly assigned to one of two vignettes, we asked respondents to list the options they perceived to have available to resolve the given vignette. We then classified those options into one of four categories: pure conformist, abstain, pure criminal, or hybrid wherein an option was simultaneously criminal and prosocial. We found extensive heterogeneity in both the options and choice sets arising from each vignette. Most individuals did not note any criminal options while hybrid options appeared to a non-trivial degree in only one of the two vignettes. Our findings highlight the pitfalls associated with providing respondents with options as compared to having them subjectively construct their own options, while also pointing to how choice sets can provide a more descriptively accurate assessment of decision-making processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cost model development can be affected by factors other than a straight rational effort to define the cost of a part. This paper will describe human and organizational behavior factors in cost development and provide examples of how they can affect the costing of custom powder metallurgy components, specifically metal injection molded (MIM) components. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Družboslovne Razprave is the property of Druzboslovne Razprave and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Soziologische Revue is the property of De Gruyter and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Revista Uruguaya de Ciencia Política is the property of Instituto de Ciencia Politica (Universidad de la Republica de Uruguay) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Discount rate plays a very important role in cost–benefit analysis of environmental, health and occupational safety policies. Since resources are limited, valuing the future benefits at present value using a discount rate becomes necessary for a government to decide on worthiness of any project. In this context, the choice of discount rate is a debated issue, especially for developing countries where such studies are scarce. The present study attempts to address this issue by estimating the discount rate for long-term job-related health risks of a sample of workers from an Indian city, Ahmedabad. These job risks pertain to environmental health risks and unhealthy work conditions. In this study, an extension of the standard hedonic wage method is used which captures the inter-temporal aspect of worker's decision on choice of job risk and thereby reveals their implicit rate of time preference. The estimated discount rate for this study ranges between 2.6 and 18.6%. These estimates are consistent with the estimates of developed and developing countries. The corresponding value of statistical life ranges between INR 46.3 million ($0.69 million) and INR 81.28 million ($1.21 million). The discount rates calculated in this work will benefit policymakers in India and other developing countries in evaluating and designing various policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

According to the axiomatic foundations of social choice theory, not all decisions benefit everyone. Often, decisions that do not have any implied benefit for the decision maker are made in the (best) interests of others. When a decision is made concerning welfare of others, some individuals - including the decision maker, may be on the receiving end. For, it is impossible to make social decisions by taking into account individual preferences that satisfy all and everyone. This is because of a great variety in individual choices and preferences ubiquitous among different individuals. Tastes vary among different people--so does individual preferences, and that is natural. Conflict of interests arises due to subtle variances in individual preferences. In this paper, we discuss about the decision choice that seldom works for every conceivable set of individual preferences. Following Arrovian precepts, it is impossible to satisfy all, for there remains a great diversity in individual preferences that result in the problem of choice. Hence, in this research, we develop a taste-based theory of social choice that attempts to address the problem of choice by helping individuals choose the best and the most effective and optimal option among a given set of alternatives that's assumed to be rational. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ice jams pose a major flood hazard in communities along northern rivers, resulting in high backwater levels and overbank flooding during ice-cover breakup. Mitigation measures, including large-scale projects by government agencies and individual actions by asset owners, can help reduce flood risk and protect human life and assets. This study examines ice-jam flood risk and explores the effectiveness of adaptive strategies in mitigating such risks in Fort McMurry, Canada. It evaluates the effectiveness of top-down (government-led artificial breakup) and bottom-up (resident-led flood-proofing) strategies, comparing the Rational Choice Theory (RCT) and the Protection Motivation Theory (PMT) models. The objective is to explore the potential enhancements to the ice-jam flood risk model through the integration of the PMT as a decision-making framework under uncertainty. This study seeks to assess whether and to what extent such integration can improve the modeling of ice-jam flood risk. The findings highlight the benefits of incorporating socio-economic factors in the PMT model. Economic factors, such as income tax and the cost of flood-proofing, shape overall flood risk, especially when artificial breakup measures are not implemented. The study emphasizes the importance of considering heterogeneity in decision-making processes and diverse characteristics of individuals when designing flood risk management strategies. Response efficacy and self-efficacy coefficients are significant factors influencing flood risk and the adoption of flood-proofing measures. Enhancing individuals' belief in their actions' effectiveness and their confidence in self-protection contributes to more effective flood risk management. These findings inform the development of more effective flood risk management strategies. • Incorporating socio-economic factors in the ice-jam flood risk model improves understanding of residents' decision-making. • Economic factors, such as income tax and flood-proofing costs, significantly shape overall flood risk. • Heterogeneity in decision-making processes should be considered when designing flood risk management strategies. • Response efficacy and self-efficacy play a vital role in ice-jam flood risk and the adoption of flood-proofing measures. • Comparing the Rational Choice and Protection Motivation Theory provides valuable insights into ice-jam flood risk model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Politica y Sociedad is the property of Universidad Complutense de Madrid and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Soziale Welt is the property of Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft mbH & Co. KG and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Socijalna Ekologija is the property of Croatian Sociological Association and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

I shall argue that although ontology is important, we also have to pay attention to other features of the intellectual landscape, including epistemology and issues to do with judgemental rationality - issues that have been of secondary importance for critical realists until recently. Judgemental rationality has a central place in critical realism, being one part of what has been termed the Holy Trinity of Critical Realism (Bhaskar [2]). - In what ways is judgemental rationality developed within the three phases of critical realism (scientific critical realism/dialectical critical realism/metaReality)?. [Extracted from the article]

Theories of norm emergence are a central building block for comprehending the emergence of society. The article investigates a central terminus in theories of norms, in particular rational choice theory: The notion of sanctions. Sanctions are an unexplained theoretical term for securing norm conformity. Agent-based models inspired by evolutionary game theory show that the evolution of cooperation can be enforced by sanctions. However, in behavioral terms, sanctions are a form of aggression. An empirical investigation of the violent collapse of a criminal group reveals that interpretation is necessary for recognizing aggression as sanction. Whereas theories of norms attempt to explain the emergence of social structure, successful sanction recognition imposes the existence of social structure in the form of normative authorities. In the absence of social structure for securing social order such as the state monopoly of violence this interpretation remains ambiguous and error prone. Simulation experiments with an agent-based model investigate the conditions for the emergence of a normative authority. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Religião e Sociedade is the property of Instituto de Estudos da Religiao and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Contract cheating is a significant problem, both within and outside the academy. Responses have largely focused on punitive consequences for tertiary students, and in 2019 the Australian Federal Government proposed legislation that would formally criminalise contract cheating both for the buyer and the seller. Although contract cheating has the hallmarks of white-collar crime, criminological examination of this form (and arguably all forms) of academic misconduct has been minimal. Utilising the findings of Bretag, T., Harper, R., Burton, M., Ellis, C., Newton, P., Saddiqui, S., & van Haeringen, K. (2019. Contract cheating: A survey of Australian university students. Studies in Higher Education, 44(11), 1837–1856), where over 14,000 Australian tertiary students were surveyed, we examine contract cheating through a criminological lens and discuss whether rational choice theory (RCT) or general strain theory (GST) can contribute to understanding of its incidence and whether these theories offer a way to respond to or prevent this behaviour in the future. Our findings suggest that neither theory offers a complete solution and it is, in fact, a blend of RCT and GST that can help explain student contract cheating—what we term 'strained rationality'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Environmental law enforcement and policies in Brazil are compromising deterrence. • High profitability of illegal activities is boosting environmental degradation. • Nash solution is compatible with full depletion of the Brazilian Amazônia's resources. • New economic alternatives seem to be a promising way to Amazônia's conservation. This paper aims to assess causes and the interactions between decision making, stakeholders and individuals, law and public policies to build a more precise overview of the relations, the possible results, and the factors which can interfere with environmental conditions and dynamics in Brazilian Amazônia. To better elucidate the issue, rational choice and deterrence theories were used, and a model based on game theory was built. It shows that the noncooperative Nash solution is compatible with the full depletion of the Brazilian Amazônia's resources and the tragedy of the commons could be certain. The lack of incentive for greener practices and deficiencies in the Brazilian law system can be pointed out as two of the main causes for the current noncollaborative interactions between the agents that lead to environmental degradation in the region. However, other aspects and circumstances are being disregarded in Brazilian environmental law and policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the evils of globalization is the increased use of communication and information technology and social media to spread radical ideologies. In Indonesia, such cyber-jihad groups have emerged that replicate the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), and openly spread radicalism through the media. The objective of this qualitative study was to examine the phenomena that lead to becoming cyber-jihadists. Data were collected using in-depth interviews from five sources including AVR, WA, AH, MS, and RW. The participants of the study comprised prisoners of terrorism arrested for propaganda, funds collection for online terror activities, and disseminating information related to ISIS and radicalism in Indonesia. A rational framework based on rational choice theory (RCT) was adopted to understand the cyber-jihadist phenomenon, premising that cyber terrorism could become rational despite being considered as irrational. It analyzed the perpetrators' rationality to decide in becoming a cyber-jihadist using rational choice theory. The results arc in line with the study of Cornish and Clarke (1986) that 7 rational choice structures were considered by the participants including: availability, method awareness, expertise needed, resources required, time required to commit, risk of apprehension, and moral evaluation. The study will he a useful contribution to the domain of literature as it will provide useful insights to administrators, police officials and the policy makers to combat jihad and prevent the use of social media in spreading terrorism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the reliability and validity of proactive (cold-blooded, instrumental), reactive (hot-blooded, affective), and acquisitive (securing goods of others) crime-related attributional domains associated with specific offence-based categories. Using samples from minimum security (n = 116), medium security (n = 102) and parole (n = 116), construct validity of the Proactive, Reactive, and Acquisitive scales was assessed with response latencies, criterion validity with past offending, and predictive validity with future offending. Response latencies for endorsed items discriminated better between the Proactive and Reactive scales than between the Reactive and Acquisitive scales. The Proactive, Reactive, and Acquisitive scales had stronger relationships with their corresponding offense category that with non-corresponding scale and offence-based category. The Acquisitive scale uniquely predicted acquisitive offences. The results support a basic distinction between the Proactive, Reactive, and Acquisitive scales. Implications of the results include using skill-based intervention methods for elevated Proactive scores, affective-based interventions for elevated Reactive scores, and rational choice techniques for elevated Acquisitive scores. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents an interview with director of the Fairbank Center, Dr. Michael Szonyi, on Western misperceptions about China, Dr. Szonyi's vision for the center. Topics include the views of My co-editor, Jennifer Rudolph, on the same; and what have some of the ignorant misperceptions that the United States and the West have about China.

Copyright of Revija za Sociologiju is the property of Revija za Sociologiju and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Oikos: Lithuanian Migration & Diaspora Studies is the property of Lithuanian Emigration Institute and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Cybercrimes have an adverse impact on the reputation and economy of a nation. This paper investigates the factors that affect the frequency of cybercrime originating within a country. These factors were grouped into three categories, namely, economic capital, technological capital, and cybersecurity preparedness. On analyzing the data from 124 countries, it emerges that the economic capital and technological capital of a country are the primary factors that influence the frequency of cybercrime originating within it. Technological capital also partially mediates the relationship between economic capital and the frequency of cybercrime originating within the nation. Furthermore, the cybersecurity preparedness of a nation negatively moderates the relationship between technological capital and frequency of cybercrime originating within it. The findings have significant implications for policymakers at the national level and managers at the organizational level concerning cybersecurity preparedness. They should focus on both hard (legal, technical, organizational) and soft (training and co-operational) aspects of cybersecurity preparation to minimize the incidence of cybercrime within a nation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Preference reversals--a decision maker prefers A over B in one situation but B over A in another-- demonstrate that human behavior violates invariance assumptions of (utility-based) rational choice theories. In the field of multi-alternative multi-attribute decision-making research, 3 preference reversals received special attention: similarity, attraction, and compromise effects. The 3 so-called context effects are changes in (relative) choice probabilities for 2 choice alternatives after a third "decoy" option is added to the set. Despite their simplicity, the effects demonstrate that choice probabilities in multi-alternative decision making are contingent on the local context, that is, on the choice set under consideration. Because of their simplicity, on the other hand, similarity, attraction, and compromise effects have been successfully examined in numerous studies to date, and they have become of increasing interest for differentiating between computational cognitive process models of multi-alternative multi-attribute decision making. However, the stimulus arrangement for producing the effects seems to vary between studies, which becomes challenging when model accounts are compared. The purpose of this review is to present various paradigms in a coherent way and describe various model accounts based on a common structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to analyze the association between adolescents' future orientation and their engagement in gambling and in risk gambling, respectively. The data used come from the Stockholm School Survey, collected in 2016 among students in the ninth grade in elementary school (15–16 years) and in the second grade of upper secondary school (17–18 years) in Stockholm municipality (n = 11,661). The results showed that adolescents who expected their future to be 'much worse' than that of others were more inclined to engage in gambling and in risk gambling compared with adolescents who expected their future to be similar to that of others. Furthermore, adolescents who expected their future to be 'much better' than that of others had an increased likelihood of engaging in gambling but not in risk gambling. The results are discussed in the light of elements from rational choice theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper incorporates criminological ideas into library science for effective crime prevention and control. Rational choice theory was adopted as a theoretical framework. Perpetrators of library crime usually plan and take precautionary measures as they carry out their operations to avoid detection. Apart from the traditional (primary, secondary and tertiary) crime prevention and control approaches, other strategies were identified, critically discussed and conclusions reached to provide new insights into the ways to combat this problem. This paper recommends hardening common library 'targets' by installing scientific and technologically advanced crime detection devices, application of 're-integrative social shame' (disciplinary measure, correction or treatment), and making the structural design of libraries highly crime-discouraging. Although crime is inevitable, availability of these security measures tend to facilitate swift and accurate prediction, detection, prevention and control of crime. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This is an exploratory investigation into the relevancy of five micro-criminological theories to American college students' self-reported shoplifting (willful concealment) experience. A 146-item Likert-style questionnaire was voluntarily completed by non-randomly selected male and female undergraduates (N=259) at four American universities. From this sample, 166 reported having shoplifted. The survey items were inspired by Akers and Sellers' social learning theory, Sykes and Matza's techniques of neutralization, Gottfredson and Hirschi's selfcontrol theory, Cornish and Clarke's rational choice theory, and Cohen and Felson's routine activity theory. Through factor analysis, 12 factors were developed, two or three for each theory. The results support these theories, but only certain elements of them seemed relevant to our data. We also found that self-control theory and rational choice theory were more relevant to low frequency shoplifters (one or two times), and social learning theory and routine activities theory were more associated with higher frequency shoplifters (three and more-thanthree times). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using Communication Accommodation Theory as framework, this research paper sets out to investigate the verbal interactions of major characters such as Akbar, Salim and Anarkali in the movie Mughal-e-Azam (1960) in order to understand the extent to which accommodation not only gave rise to attraction or repulsion in relationships but also generated tension. A qualitative methodology was adopted which involved viewing the movie several times and selecting key moments which related to divergence, convergence and interpersonal control. The findings of this study revealed that in terms of divergence, Anarkali, a dancer in the Mughal durbar defies Emperor Akbar's patriarchal authority as she is in love with Crown Prince, Salim. She does so specifically in the song Jab Pyaar Kiya Toh Darna Kya which is considered as an anthem of rebellion (Walia, 2013). In terms of convergence, Salim uses words of reassurance, care and warmth to win Anarkali's love and to decrease the social distance between them. By using such a strategy, Salim shows his appreciation of Anarakali. In the case of interpersonal control, it was found that Akbar is torn between his roles as a father and as a King. Consequently, this affects his relationship with Salim. The findings were discussed in light of Rational Choice Theory to show that language is a social practice (Kramsch, 1994) for social benefits to be earned. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most Americans believe that climate change, if unchecked, will be a serious problem, but a majority are not willing to even consider purchasing all-electric vehicles (EVs). This paper is the first to report an in-depth test of hypotheses to explain this resistance, derived from a conceptual framework built upon rational choice theory, theories of morality, the Theory of Reasoned Action, the Theory of Planned Behavior, the Technology Acceptance Model, and Mere Exposure Theory. Data from a 2020 survey of a nationally representative sample of the American adult population (N = 502) showed: as expected, financial and non-financial instrumental considerations and normative considerations were strong predictors of resistance, whereas first-hand or second-hand experience driving an EV did not predict resistance. Experience with EVs and educational attainment moderated the impact of some predictors of resistance. These findings testify to the value of the conceptual framework, validate some predictions while refuting others, and identify pathways to encouraging more EV adoption. • Financial and non-financial instrumental factors predict resistance. • Normative considerations predict resistance, but experience did not. • Experience with EVs and education moderate the impact of some predictors. • The findings support the theory-based conceptual framework offered here. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]