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Black and white headshot of author Livia Gershon

Livia Gershon

Livia Gershon is a freelance writer in Nashua, New Hampshire. Her writing has appeared in publications including Salon, Aeon Magazine and the Good Men Project. Contact her on Twitter @liviagershon.

The White House
Business

Introverts at the Office—and the Oval Office

Did introversion harm Presidents Nixon and Carter's ability to perform on the job?
Financial Hardship Application
Politics & History

Is the “Culture of Welfare Dependency” Real?

Welfare dependency theories often point to a weakening of "traditional values of individualism, freedom and self-determination,"
Shelf of law text books
Education

The Origins of American Law Schools

When did law schools become a fixture in the training of elite Americans?
A man and woman look over a work report on a staircase
Business

Employee Morale Campaigns: The Early Years

Intensive studies of workers' moods to improve business performance goes back more than 75 years.
A mall decorated for Christmas
Business & Economics

The Demographics of U.S. Holiday Gift-giving

In a 1991 paper for the Journal of Consumer Research studied the effects of income, family size, and other demographic differences on gift-giving patterns.
A pregnant woman works on a laptop
Politics & Government

A Brief History of Pregnancy Workplace Rights

In a 1986 paper in the Journal of Public Health Policy, traced how pregnancy workplace rights has shifted over the years.
A leader speaks into a megaphone to a crowd.
Business & Economics

When Unions Fought for the Environment

In a 1998 paper in Environmental History, Scott Dewey argues that unions were a key force for the emerging cause of environmentalism in the 1950s and '60s.
Reporters hold old voice recorders and a microphone to their subject
Business

Reputation Management Lessons from Brand Scandals

What does it take for a brand to regain its customers' trust after something goes badly wrong?
Two girls look on at a laptop together in a classroom
Education

What’s the Value of Single-Sex Schools?

Research on the effectiveness of single-sex schools has been mixed.
Education

Rights and Freedom on Campus

There have been a range of debates happening over student rights and freedom.
Education and Leisure
Education

The Rise and Fall of “Education for Leisure”

Where did the notion of teaching people how to spend their free time come from, and why did it disappear?
A Help Wanted sign hanging in a store window
Business & Economics

Can Part-Time Jobs Be Good Jobs?

Brandeis University researcher Hilda Kahne argued for a more thoughtful approach to part-time jobs in a 1994 issue of Social Service Review
Facebook icons noting how many friend requests, messages, and notifications
Education & Society

Why Your Privacy is Not Just About You

Maintaining privacy is more of a social practice than one would think.
A family gathers around the table for Thanksgiving
Politics & History

The Modern Invention of Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving as we know it was deliberately invented in the nineteenth century.
Older black and white photograph of a woman in the middle of a messy living room with three small children of various ages
Politics & History

The Italian-American Immigration Experience

As President Obama prepares to move forward on immigration reform, the debate over the role of immigrants in US society is ramping up.
An empty boat at a tropical shore between two rocky masse
Business

Is Taking Vacation Bad for Your Career?

Is taking time off for vacation bad for career advancement?
Close-up of triple 7's on the face of a slot machine
Business

Who Wins When Gambling is Legal?

Is expanding the role of legal gambling in the U.S. wise?
FedEx trucks lined up in a parking lot
Business

Before Amazon, There Was FedEx

How FedEx's data-driven approach paved the way for Amazon.
A maternity ward worker holds a baby in an empty hospital hall
Business

Ready for the 11-Hour Work Day?

Will the 11-hour work day become a reality?
A baby holding the finger of a caretaker
Education & Society

Making Child Support Work Better for Children

Do child support laws actually benefit children?
Man ironing a work shirt
Business & Economics

How the “Boomerang Generation” Sees Itself — and Adulthood

Researchers looked at young people's sense of their identity as adults after moving back home, with results published in Sociological Forum in 2008.
Ice and carbonation at the top of a glass of cola
Business

When Soda Was Virtuous

Soda had a virtuous aura a century ago.
A pile of tax forms
Business

Self-Employment: Exciting Opportunity or Last Resort?

Does self-employment open up new opportunities or exploit a vulnerable workforce?
Close-up of a paycheck breakdown
Business

Do Living Wage Laws Work?

What do living wage laws mean to workers and local economies?
Refueling Car With Gasoline Pump Nozzle, Selective Focus on pump nozzle
Business & Economics

Falling Oil Prices are Worse for Conservation than You Think

It's not just falling oil prices but any price volatility that makes conservation a harder sell.

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