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Browsing Department of Sociology by Author "Bell, David C."
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Item Accuracy of Retrospective Reports of Family Environment(Springer Nature, 2018-04) Bell, David C.; Bell, Linda G.; Sociology, School of Liberal ArtsRetrospective reports of family environments are often the only way to collect data concerning the influence of a child's experience in the family on later development. However, the accuracy of retrospective measures can be problematic because of social desirability or potential failures of memory. The purpose of this study is to compare retrospective and prospective measures of family environment. In this unique study, 198 parents and 241 adolescent children (mean age 15.7) described their family environment, and then 25 years later completed retrospective reports. We test the effects of memory, positivity, gender, and generation on retrospective reports, as well as testing the ability of prospective and retrospective measures to predict adult well-being and adult-child/elder-parent relationships. Results show moderate correlations of .30 - .45 between prospective and retrospective measures. In examining the relative effectiveness of prospective and retrospective measures to predict later life outcomes, we find that retrospective reports of the family environment most validly capture influences on the child in domains of strong emotional content but are less successful in cognitive domains.Item A Comparison of Network Sampling Designs for a Hidden Population of Drug Users: Random Walk vs. Respondent-Driven Sampling(Elsevier, 2016) Bell, David C.; Erbaugh, Elizabeth B.; Serrano, Tabitha; Dayton-Shotts, Cheryl A.; Montoya, Isaac D.; Department of Sociology, School of Liberal ArtsBoth random walk and respondent-driven sampling (RDS) exploit social networks and may reduce biases introduced by earlier methods for sampling from hidden populations. Although RDS has become much more widely used by social researchers than random walk (RW), there has been little discussion of the tradeoffs in choosing RDS over RW. This paper compares experiences of implementing RW and RDS to recruit drug users to a network-based study in Houston, Texas. Both recruitment methods were implemented over comparable periods of time, with the same population, by the same research staff. RDS methods recruited more participants with less strain on staff. However, participants recruited through RW were more forthcoming than RDS participants in helping to recruit members of their social networks. Findings indicate that, dependent upon study goals, researchers' choice of design may influence participant recruitment, participant commitment, and impact on staff, factors that may in turn affect overall study success.Item Reasons People Give for Using (or not Using) Condoms(Springer, 2016) Farrington, Elizabeth M.; Bell, David C.; DiBacco, Aron E.; Department of Sociology, School of Liberal ArtsStudy participants (N = 348) were asked about 46 reasons that have been suggested for why people use or do not use condoms. Participants were asked which of these reasons motivated them when they were deciding whether to use condoms in 503 sexual relationships. Participants were classified into one of three roles based on their HIV status and the status of each sexual partner: HIV+ people with HIV− partners; HIV− people with HIV+ partners; and HIV− people with HIV− partners. Motivations were looked at in the context of each of these roles. Of the 46 reasons, only 15 were selected by at least 1/3 of the participants, and only seven were selected by at least half. Frequently reported reasons primarily concern protecting self and partner from STDs including HIV. Less frequently reported reasons involved social norms, effects of condoms on sex, and concern for the relationship. These findings have implications for clinical interventions.Item Social Norms: Do We Love Norms Too Much?(Wiley, 2015-03) Bell, David C.; Cox, Mary L.; Department of Sociology, School of Liberal ArtsSocial norms are often cited as the cause of many social phenomena, especially as an explanation for prosocial family and relationship behaviors. And yet maybe we love the idea of social norms too much, as suggested by our failure to subject them to rigorous test. Compared to the detail in social norms theoretical orientations, there is very little detail in tests of normative theories. To provide guidance to researchers who invoke social norms as explanations, we catalog normative orientations that have been proposed to account for consistent patterns of action. We call on researchers to conduct tests of normative theories and the processes such theories assert.