Questions "supply-push" theory of rural development, which suggests that upgrading workers' skills will guarantee rural development. Data from past two decades show tendency of decreasing growth in job skills and in requirement for quantifiable job skills (e.g., level of education). Upgrading job skills by itself seems unlikely to pay…

The lack of consensus among researchers in defining the focal construct of rurality has led to contradictory conclusions of whether or not a rural-urban performance gap exists in higher education. Compounding this problem are the changing definitions of rural and urban, even among governmental agencies. Thus, this study used two different…

This booklet profiles key economic and social features of rural Arkansas. Data are drawn from reports by the U.S. Census Bureau, the U.S. Department of Commerce, and Arkansas state agencies. About half of Arkansas' people live in rural areas, and most of these live in open country (not incorporated areas) and are completely dependent on county…

Examines the roles of demographic composition, education, and industrial mix in explaining metro-nonmetropolitan differences in underemployment. Documents higher prevalence of "discouraged workers," unemployment, and underemployment in nonmetropolitan areas. Shows educational composition is single most important component accounting for…

Multivariate hazards regression analysis of data from the 1979-85 National Longitudinal Mortality Study provided mixed results concerning the social integration hypothesis of suicide. Among white males, divorced or separated men and those living alone had significantly higher risks of suicide mortality, but single and widowed men did not have…

While sociologists and the public at large are increasingly interested in the life conditions of animals, conceptual and empirical development of the topic is limited. This paper seeks to further develop the sociological research on attitudes toward animal well-being. We build on insights from contemporary stratification theory to explain the…

This paper analyzes economic trends to determine if education should be the focal point for rural economic development. According to the labor shortage/skills mismatch view, the movement toward a "service economy" will accelerate in the 1990s, increasing the number of skilled jobs and the demand for skilled workers. This…

The author discusses the differences in attainment and learning in Paraguay and attempts to determine whether equality of educational opportunity exists within the country by investigating the distribution of educational resources. He concludes that there is inequality in the distribution of educational resources, and makes suggestions for…

Data on rural-urban differences in access to telecommunications technology suggest that the U.S. "digital divide" is diminishing. However, major shortcomings in telecommunications infrastructure persist in rural America, and more serious barriers to rural development are related to human capital shortages. These may be resolved in some…

Current Population Survey data indicate an overall decline in the rural-urban pay gap during the early 1990s (due to declining urban wages, not rising rural wages). In 1993, the earnings of 30 percent of rural full-time workers were below the poverty level. Compares low-income workers by gender, age group, education, and race/ethnicity. (LP)

In 1985, poverty rates in Texas nonmetro areas were 41 percent for Latinos and 53 percent for Blacks, compared to 27 percent for both groups in Texas metropolitan areas. Individual, household, and structural factors were related differently to poverty status among the ethnic/residence groups. Contains 62 references. (SV)

Analysis of census data indicates that earnings inequality among full-time workers increased in the 1980s. Compared to metropolitan areas, nonmetro economic inequality was greater and was explained better by both neoclassical and restructuring frameworks. Gender and college education accounted for far more earnings inequality than other sources…

Current Population Survey data indicate that value-added industries, which tend to use raw lumber and agricultural products as inputs, employed one-third of all rural manufacturing workers in 1996. Compared to other rural manufacturing workers, value-added workers generally had lower occupational status, less education, and lower incomes, and were…

A study of characteristics and motives of migrants to the Northern Great Plains surveyed 1,590 new residents in Nebraska and North Dakota. New arrivals were younger and had higher educational levels than existing residents. Most often cited reasons for moving were desire to be closer to relatives, safety concerns, and quality of the natural…

Analysis of the video watching behavior of 1,996 Israeli adolescents reveals that small town youth spend much more time watching videos than central city youth. Screen watching has taken the place of real socialization as almost the sole leisure activity of small town adolescents. The social-psychological implications of this are discussed. (BJV)