pewsocialtrends.org | Recent research of Note

Do Top Teachers Avoid Minority Schools?

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 00:00:00 EST

High-quality teachers tend to leave schools that experience an increase in black students, a Cornell University researcher found. C. Krabo Jackson studied what happened when the Charlotte-Mecklenburg school district ended its race-based busing program in 2002, suddenly distributing minority students across the schools. He found that the share of top teachers immediately declined in schools that experienced an increase in minority enrollment, suggesting that teachers moved in anticipation of more black students.

The Alphabet Effect on Charitable Giving

Mon, 15 Jun 2009 00:00:00 EST

People are more likely to make charitable donations if asked personally rather than via email or mail, according to a National Bureau of Economic Research working paper that used real-world data to replicate experimental findings. Volunteer alumni from one university called prospects on an alphabetized list, but did not have time to finish the list. Prospects with names at the front of the alphabet, researchers report, were most likely to donate.

Facebook Use and Grades

Mon, 01 Jun 2009 00:00:00 EST

College students who use Facebook spend less time studying and have lower grade point averages than other students, according to researchers at Ohio State University. Overall, Facebook users averaged one to five hours a week studying and had grade point averages between 3.0 and 3.5. In contrast, non-users studied 11 to 15 hours per week and had GPAs of 3.5 to 4.0.

The Happiness Gender Gap, Reversed

Tue, 26 May 2009 00:00:00 EST

Women used to report higher levels of happiness than men in the U.S., but that gender gap has flattened or reversed in the past few years, according to a new NBER working paper by two Wharton School professors that examined three decades of General Social Survey data. This holds true regardless of age, or the marital, employment and fertility status of men and women, they report.

Mom's Bad Job May Hurt Kids

Fri, 22 May 2009 00:00:00 EST

The children of mothers with bad jobs do worse than other children on tests of verbal skills, other relevant factors being equal, according to a University of Michigan sociologist and her research partner. The achievement gap may be due to differences in the quality of the time that moms with bad jobs and other mothers spend with their children. The researchers defined bad jobs by the amount of physical hazards and social stress involved.

Working Students and Screen Time

Mon, 04 May 2009 00:00:00 EST

Researchers have long been concerned that high school students who hold paid jobs spend less time on homework. Now, a new analysis using the American Time Use Survey finds that the biggest impact is on �screen time� � that is, TV watching and computer use. �We find that an additional hour of market work reduces time spent on homework by five minutes, sleep by almost 10 minutes, household work by over 11 minutes, and screen time by 24 minutes,� researchers report.

Does This Survey Make Me Look Fat?

Mon, 04 May 2009 00:00:00 EST

Americans are significantly less likely to define themselves as overweight this decade, compared with a decade earlier, according to a Federal Reserve Bank of Boston working paper that attributes this change to �a generational shift in norms related to body weight.� Researchers found that �the declines were particularly pronounced among younger (ages 17�35), normal-weight women and among young-to-middle aged (20�45), overweight men.�

You Look Familiar

Mon, 20 Apr 2009 00:00:00 EST

Voters prefer to support candidates who physically resemble them, according to psychologists from Stanford University. In a series of experiments, the researchers morphed photos of known and unknown candidates with photos of registered voters who participated in the study. Then they asked the participants their voting intentions. �Even in high-profile elections, voters prefer candidates high in facial similarity, but most strongly with unfamiliar candidates," they found.

Immigrants, Skin Color and Earnings

Mon, 30 Mar 2009 00:00:00 EST

Skin color and height affect wages paid to new lawful immigrants to the United States, according to economist Joni Hersch of Vanderbilt University. Using data from a 2003 federally-funded study of recent immigrants, she found that "immigrants with the lightest skin color earn on average 17% more than comparable immigrants with the darkest skin color." Taller immigrants also earn more, controlling for education, English proficiency, occupation and country of birth.

White Line Fever

Mon, 23 Mar 2009 00:00:00 EST

This is a test: How long are the dashed white lines separating traffic lanes on America�s roadways? Most people say two feet, and they�re wrong: The correct answer is 10 feet. Two psychologists who studied the phenomenon say the results suggest drivers are badly misjudging distances when they drive and may be driving too fast as a result.