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Following the Supreme Court’s 1988 decision in Basic, securities class plaintiffs can invoke the “rebuttable presumption of reliance on public, material misrepresentations regarding securities traded in an efficient market” [the “fraud-on-the-market” doctrine] to prove classwide reliance. Although this requires plaintiffs to prove that the security traded in an informationally efficient market throughout the class period, Basic did not identify what constituted adequate proof of efficiency for reliance purposes.

Market efficiency cannot be presumed without proof because even large publicly traded stocks do not always trade in efficient markets, as documented in the economic literature that has grown significantly since Basic. For instance, during the recent global financial crisis, lack of liquidity limited arbitrage (the mechanism that renders markets efficient) and led to significant price distortions in many asset markets. Yet, lower courts following Basic have frequently granted class certification based on a mechanical review of some factors that are considered intuitive “proxies” of market efficiency (albeit incorrectly, according to recent studies and our own analysis). Such factors have little probative value and their review does not constitute the rigorous analysis demanded by the Supreme Court.

Instead, to invoke fraud-on-the-market, plaintiffs must first establish that the security traded in a weak-form efficient market (absent which a security cannot, as a logical matter, trade in a “semi-strong form” efficient market, the standard required for reliance purposes) using well-accepted tests. Only then do event study results, which are commonly used to demonstrate “cause and effect” (i.e., prove that the security’s price reacted quickly to news – a hallmark of a semi-strong form efficient market), have any merit. Even then, to claim classwide reliance, plaintiffs must prove such cause-and-effect relationship throughout the class period, not simply on selected disclosure dates identified in the complaint as plaintiffs often do.

These issues have policy implications because, once a class is certified, defendants frequently settle to avoid the magnified costs and risks associated with a trial, and the merits of the case (including the proper application of legal presumptions) are rarely examined at a trial.

Bullying is a complex phenomenon that is grounded in intricate interactions between an individual and the social and environmental systems that surround the individual. At the present time, all 50 states and the District of Columbia have adopted bully prevention legislation to reduce the prevalence among school-aged youth. Unfortunately, bullying is associated with adverse long- and short-term outcomes, where students with disabilities, including those with behavioral disabilities, may be at escalated risk for involvement and difficulty navigating the effects of prolonged exposure to bullying. Given the complexity of bullying, several participatory roles have been established to help guide identification and intervention delivery by recognizing the reciprocity between bullying and victimization. Most importantly, interventions should be situated within a multitired or component framework and grounded in skill development, where bully prevention programming is delivered to all students based on individual need. By recognizing the risk characteristics and understanding the various student profiles, especially as they related to youth with disabilities, schools can development, adopt, and implementing prevention programming that is designed to simultaneously increase academic, functional, and behavioral development, while decreasing bullying involvement.

Individuals are often stigmatized by virtue of their status on various dimensions and as a consequence, they typically evoke negative cognitions, affect, and emotions among observers. In addition, they are often the targets of both access and treatment discrimination in organizations. Thus, we present a model of the cognitive, affective, and cultural influences on stigmatization in organizations, detail how stigmatization affects human resource management processes and practices, and consider strategies that can be used to reduce the problems faced by stigmatized individuals in organizations.

The themes of love, commitment and honour are explored within the context of the American Mafia. In most capitalist-focussed conventional organizations managers acquire assets and income through exchanges, through wages, direct operations and build cultures and cultural norms (Friedman, 1970). The authors argue the Mafia organization has similarities and differences to conventional organizations, differences being in how money is acquired and in ethical behaviours which could be described as counter to what is the expectation of conventional organizations. Parallel to the Christian Ten Commandments, baptism and initiation rituals existing within the Mafia are drawn that provide insights into Mafia values that guide behaviours. Honour as a key Mafia value is argued in this article as being a misnomer, being more reflective of dishonourable values of revenge, fear and punishment. Love and commitment within Mafia families ¹ including roles of women are examined. It appears that love for family appears secondary to primary commitment to the Mafia Family. This paper contributes to literature on the Mafia in highlighting how ‘love’ and virtues are relative terms from which unethical acts can be justified within Mafia codes of behaviours. Also highlighted is that organizations valuing vice can survive and sustain if shrouded in secrecy rather than transparency. In the Mafia organization as in conventional organizations, codes of behaviours and commitment central to all money-making organizations are a key to survival.

The school-to-prison pipeline is a term used to describe the pathway traveled by students from public schools to incarceration in secure juvenile detention and correctional programs. It begins with students who are marginalized by the education system because of their academic and behavioral issues. The pipeline leads from school failure and disciplinary exclusion to involvement with the juvenile justice system. Youth who are ethnic minorities (especially those who are African-American or Hispanic) as well as those with educational disabilities (especially those with learning and behavioral disorders) are significantly overrepresented in data sets representing key points along the pipeline (e.g., students with poor academic achievement, high rates of suspension, expulsion, and dropout) as well as their high rates of incarceration. From his personal perspective and experience with the juvenile justice system, the author attempts to explicate the pipeline, and to describe efforts to impact it positively.

The disparities of COVID-19 vaccination rates between the rural and urban areas have become apparent during this pandemic. There is a need to understand the root causes of vaccine hesitancy demonstrated by the rural population to increase coverage and to contain the disease spread throughout the United States. This study aimed to explore other factors influencing vaccine hesitancy among rural dwellers besides the geography-related barriers such as poor health care access and individuals having no or suboptimal insurance coverage.

By reviewing existing data and literature about vaccination, health literacy, and behaviors, and prevailing ideologies, we discuss the potential causes of vaccine hesitancy in rural areas that could create barriers for successful public health efforts related to vaccine coverage and provide suggestions to ameliorate the situation.

Geography-related barriers, health literacy, and preconceived notions are key determinants of adopting healthy behaviors and complying with public health authorities' recommendations among rural individuals during a public-health crisis. We argue that ideology, which is much deeper than preconception or misconception on vaccination, should be incorporated as a key factor to redefine the term “vulnerable populations” in public health research.

The limitation of our study is that we have not found an effective way to encourage the populations who hold conservative religious and political ideologies to join the efforts for public health. Even though geography-related barriers may strongly impact the rural dwellers in achieving optimal health, the various forms of ideologies they have toward certain health behaviors cannot be discounted to understand and address vaccine-related disparities in rural areas. There is a need to redefine the term “vulnerable population” particularly as it relates to rural areas in the United States. During large-scale public health disasters, scholars and public health authorities should consider the ideologies of individuals, in addition to other factors such as race/ethnicity, area of residence (rural vs. urban), and socioeconomic factors influencing the existing vulnerabilities and health disparities.