Do Sons Prevent Marital Disruption More Than Daughters? Evidence From Italy

In a well-known study Morgan, Lye, and Condran (1988 Morgan, S. P., Lye, D. N. and Condran, G. A. 1988. Sons, daughters and the risk of marital disruption. American Journal of Sociology, 94(1): 110–129. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) stated that sons prevent the risk of divorce more than daughters do. The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of the sex composition of children on the stability of the parental marriage in Italy, a country where this research question is particularly interesting because of conservative gender roles within the family. The relative risk of marital dissolution is estimated for individuals with different numbers and sexes of children using a discrete time event-history model. The findings do not support either the hypothesis that sons contribute more to marital stability than daughters or the hypothesis that the effect of the sex composition of children has changed over time.     

In response to Gans: the culture–structure binary

Gans (2012 Gans, H. 2012. Against culture versus structure. Identities: Global Studies in Culture and Power, 19(2): 125–134. [Taylor & Francis Online], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]; Against culture versus structure. Identities: Global Studies in Culture and Power, 19 (2), 125–134) makes four assertions in his claim that ‘Contemporary sociology is saddled with a culture–structure binary but the fault for its existence lies mostly with cultural sociology … and the culture–structure binary should be abandoned’. I argue that (1) defining culture, while problematic, is insufficient reason for abandoning the concept. (2) Marx, among others, proffered a dialectical view of culture that is not structural only or interpretive only. (3) Gans ignores the social and political impact of cultural studies, specifically the Birmingham Centre for Contemporary Cultural Studies. And (4) culturally oriented research has been used extensively to shape and analyse the varying approaches by public policy-makers to critical social issues.     

Social Utility Theory: Guiding Labeling of VNRs as Ethical and Effective Public Relations

Social utility theory suggests that labeling video news release (VNR) source material is the ethical decision (Wulfemeyer & Frazier, 1992 Wulfemeyer, K. T. and Frazier, L. 1992. The ethics of video news releases: A qualitative analysis. Journal of Mass Media Ethics, 7: 151–168. [Taylor & Francis Online] , [Google Scholar]), yet the persuasion knowledge model predicts that the effectiveness of VNRs will decrease as people become aware of this PR tactic (Friestad & Wright, 1994 Friestad, M. and Wright, P. 1994. The persuasion knowledge model: How people cope with persuasion attempts. Journal of Consumer Research, 21: 1–31. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]). Our study found that positive and negative effects were heightened when subjects read about VNRs and viewed a labeled VNR in a newscast. These subjects were most likely to recognize the VNR story source and least likely to perceive the story as credible. Neither reading nor labeling affected evaluations of the VNR message or featured company.     

Perceived Stress,Energy Drink Consumption,and Academic Performance Among College Students

Abstract

Objective: This study explored relationships regarding perceived stress, energy drink consumption, and academic performance among college students. Participants: Participants included 136 undergraduates attending a large southern plains university. Methods: Participants completed surveys including items from the Perceived Stress Scale ¹ Cohen, S, Kamarck, T and Mermelstein, R. 1983. A global measure of perceived stress. J Health Soc Behav, 24: 385–396. [Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar] and items to describe energy drink consumption, academic performance, and demographics. Results: Positive correlations existed between participants’ perceived stress and energy drink consumption. Participants’ energy drink consumption and academic performance were negatively correlated. Freshmen (M = 0.330) and sophomores (M = 0.408) consumed a lower number of energy drinks yesterday than juniors (M = 1.000). Males reported higher means than females for selected energy drink consumption items. Statistically significant interactions existed between gender and year in school for selected energy drink consumption items. Conclusions: Results confirm gender differences in energy drink consumption and illuminate a need for education regarding use of energy drinks in response to perceived stress.     

A Critical Examination of an Urban-Based Youth Empowerment Strategy: The Teen Empowerment Program

ABSTRACT

Youths from marginalized and disenfranchised communities can be empowered to advocate for social justice through civic engagement and sociopolitical action. Examining youth empowerment programs, using critical social theory, builds upon our understanding of sociopolitical systems and oppression and provides a lens to examine mechanisms of change while applying theory to practice. Jennings, Parra-Medina, Messias, and McLoughlin (2006 Jennings, L. B., Parra-Medina, D. M., Messias, D. K. H. and McLoughlin, K. 2006. Toward a critical social theory of youth empowerment. Journal of Community Practice, 14: 31–55. [Taylor & Francis Online] , [Google Scholar]) have identified six dimensions of critical youth empowerment programs, which provide a framework for examining youth empowerment programs. This article presents the Teen Empowerment program, as implemented with high-risk youths in urban communities, and examines it along these six dimensions and provides a model for how to critically examine youth empowerment programs using this framework.     

Comment on Cross,Fine, Jones,and Walsh (2012): Good Therapeutic Services— Therapeutic Advocacy and Forensic Neutrality

Cross, Fine, Jones, and Walsh (2012 Cross, T. P., Fine, J. E., Jones, L. M. and Walsh, W. A. 2012. Mental health professionals in children's advocacy centers: Is there role conflict?. Journal of Child Sexual Abuse, 21(1): 91–108. [Taylor & Francis Online] , [Google Scholar]) provided a thoughtful review and critique of a book chapter describing the interview process at Child Advocacy Centers. They observed some of the ways that concerns raised in that chapter are being addressed and described revised guidelines that further clarify issues. Ongoing research and examination of the important processes carried on by child advocacy centers and the role fulfilled by mental health professionals in the investigation of child sexual abuse contributes positively to service delivery.     

Gender Differences in Alcohol Use and Alcohol-Related Problems: Do They Hold for Lesbians and Gay Men?

ABSTRACT

Research regarding gender differences in alcohol use and alcohol-related problems finds that men drink more and suffer higher rates of alcohol-related problems compared with women. The purpose of the current study was to examine whether these differences also exist between lesbians and gay men. A sample of 335 lesbians and gay men were recruited through lesbian and gay events, Listservs, and friendship networks. Items from the National Household Survey on Drug Abuse (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 2000 Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. 2000. National household survey on drug abuse: Main findings 1998, Rockville, MD: Author.  [Google Scholar]) measured alcohol consumption. The Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test (Selzer, 1971 Selzer, M. L. 1971. The Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test: The quest for a new diagnostic instrument. American Journal of Psychiatry, 127: 89–94. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) and the Drinker Inventory of Consequences (Miller, Tonigan, & Longabaugh, 1995 Miller, W. R., Tonigan, J. S. and Longabaugh, R. 1995. “The drinker inventory of consequences (DrInC): An instrument for assessing adverse consequences of alcohol abuse test manual”. In National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism Project Match, Monograph Series, 4, Rockville, MD: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.  [Google Scholar]) measured alcohol-related problems. Gay men tended to drink more often than lesbians, but there were no significant gender differences regarding alcohol-related problems. Research, theoretical, and clinical implications are discussed.     

Women's Perception of the Divorce Experience: A Qualitative Study

ABSTRACT

Divorce is a personal experience, often negative, and each couple experiences it differently. However, the divorce experience may provide opportunities for personal growth. The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand the challenges and growth opportunities women who have divorced experience from their own perspective. Ten women with similar backgrounds participated in personal interviews. Individual interviews revealed the following themes: (a) dating reflections, (b) married life, (c) self-perceptions, (d) support or lack of support, (e) family, (f) personal emotions, (g) personal growth, and (h) the future. Mezirow's (2000) Mezirow, J. 2000. Learning as transformation: Critical perspective on a theory in progress, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.  [Google Scholar] theory of transformational learning was the framework used to organize the findings to understand growth through transitional phases. This article presents the findings of this study and implications for women going through divorce.     

Far Away So Close: Race,Whiteness, and German Identity

Race and nation have been difficult concepts in Germany since the Holocaust. Although race has seemingly disappeared from public discourse, the concept is very present in the narrative construction of white German national identities. In fact in Germany, race, and more specifically whiteness, disappears into a national naming. On the basis of a qualitative study on women activists, I examine to what extent the research participants struggle with the racialized discourse on German identity and what this struggle looks like. Using John Hartigan's (2000 Hartigan, John Jr. 2000. Object lessons in whiteness: Antiracism and the study of white folks. Identities: Global Studies in Culture and Power, 7(3): 373–406. [Taylor & Francis Online], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) approach to analyzing ethnographic accounts of whiteness, I show how a racialization of German identity plays out in complex and complicated ways. On the one hand, the narratives are complicit with a racialized Germanness, yet on the other hand, the idea of a unified, white, cultural community is being challenged. To move toward a postcolonial narrative of Germanness that includes Germany's history of colonialism as well as fascism, we need to move away from race, but we also need to move toward race. A starting point would be provided by focusing on racism, not as a fringe issue of German society but rather as an urgent matter that is located at the centre of German politics and is actively shaping its history.     

Religiosity as a Potential Moderator of the Effects of R-rated Movies on Delinquency

Previous research suggests viewing R-rated movies is associated with delinquency (Tanski et al. 2010 Tanski , Susanne E. , Sonya Dal Cin , Mike Stoolmiller , and James D. Sargent . 2010. “Parental R-Rated Movie Restriction and Early-Onset Alcohol Use.” Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs 71(3):452–460.[PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]; Titus-Ernstoff et al. 2008 Titus-Ernstoff , L. , M. A. Dalton , A. M. Adachi-Mejia , M. R. Longacre , and M. L. Beach . 2008 . “Longitudinal Study of Viewing Smoking in Movies and Initiation of Smoking by Children.” Pediatrics 121 : 15 – 21 .[Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]), while religiosity leads to decreases in substance use (Jang and Johnson 2001 Jang , Sung Joon and Byron R. Johnson . 2001 . “Neighborhood Disorder, Individual Religiosity, and Adolescent Use of Illicit Drugs: A Test of Multilevel Hypotheses.” Criminology 39 ( 1 ): 109 – 144 .[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]; Kovacs, Piko, and Fitzpatrick 2011 Jang , Sung Joon and Byron R. Johnson . 2011 . “The Effects of Childhood Exposure to Drug Users and Religion on Drug Use in Adolescence and Young Adulthood.” Youth and Society 43 : 1220 – 1245 .[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]; Miller 1998 Miller , W. 1998 . “Researching the Spiritual Dimensions of Alcohol and Other Drug Problems.” Addiction 93 : 979 – 990 .[Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]; Regnerus 2003 Regnerus , Mark D. 2003 . “Moral Communities and Adolescent Delinquency: Religious Contexts and Community Social Control.” Sociological Quarterly 44 : 523 – 554 .[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]). However, the influences of religiosity and viewing R-rated movies have not been examined in conjunction. This article tests whether religiosity moderates the effects of R-rated movies on delinquency, results suggesting that rather than religiosity moderating the effects of R-rated movies on delinquency, viewing R-rated movies actually tempers the pro-social effects of religiosity. This finding only held true for certain types of substance abuse, and not activity-based forms of delinquency such as fighting. The results are discussed in light of their implications for the current study of the effects of religiosity on delinquency, and suggestions are made for future research on the relationship between viewing R-rated movies and delinquency.     

Review of Attachment Theory: Familial Predictors,Continuity and Change,and Intrapersonal and Relational Outcomes

Initially, the major focus of attachment theory was the parent–child relationship, but Bowlby (1988 Bowlby, J. (1988). A secure base: Clinical applications of attachment theory. London: Routeledge. [Google Scholar]) also described the attachment system as active over the entire life course. Accordingly, a proliferation of research on attachment theory in the past two decades has addressed an array of familial predictors as well as intrapersonal and relational outcomes of attachment. The purpose of this review is to present: 1) measurement of attachment, 2) family violence, parental depression, and parental divorce as predictors of attachment, 3) (in)stability of attachment over time, 4) impact of attachment on emotion regulation and psychopathology, and 5) influence of attachment on romantic relationship. Special attention is paid to the role of attachment as a mediator between family of origin experiences and outcomes among youth and adults.     

Unreasonable adjustments: the additional unpaid labour of academics with disabilities

Abstract

Two recent contributions to this section have drawn attention to the barriers which academics with disabilities have to navigate in academia where ableism “is endemic” (Brown and Leigh, 2018 Brown, N & Leigh, J (2018) Abelism in academia? Where are the disabled and ill academics. Disability & Society, 33 (6): 985–989.[Taylor & Francis Online], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]: 4). Hannam-Swain (2018 Hannam-Swain, S (2018) The additional labour of a disabled PhD student. Disability & Society, 33 (1): 138–142.[Taylor & Francis Online], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) highlighted the additional intellectual, emotional and physical labour required of her as a disabled PhD student, and Brown and Leigh (2018 Brown, N & Leigh, J (2018) Abelism in academia? Where are the disabled and ill academics. Disability & Society, 33 (6): 985–989.[Taylor & Francis Online], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) queried “where are all the disabled and ill academics?” However, Brown and Leigh primarily focus on those with invisible “conditions” and the dilemmas raised by disclosure in a context where such conditions negate academic status and credibility. In contrast, since my “disability” is visible, I do not share the dilemma/“luxury” of secrecy. My presence announces my status before me, and this negates my personhood altogether in academic settings. It also places a burden of additional unpaid labour upon me which has significant mental health and career impacts as well as violating principles of equality.     

Is Early Exposure to Pornography a Risk Factor for Sexual Compulsivity? Findings from an Online Survey among Young Heterosexual Adults

ABSTRACT

The aim of this retrospective study was to assess the relationship between early exposure to pornography and sexual compulsivity among Croatian young adults. Using online survey data on pornography use and sexual behavior among 1,528 heterosexual women and men aged 18–25, we tested a hypothesis that pornography use at the age of 14 is a marker for sexual compulsivity in late adolescence and young adulthood. After satisfactory reliability of a four-item subscale of the Sexual Compulsiveness Scale (Kalichman & Rompa, 1995 Kalichman, S. C. and Rompa, D. 1995. Sexual sensation seeking and sexual compulsivity scales: Reliability, validity, and predicting HIV risk behavior. Journal of Personality Assessment, 65: 586–601. [Taylor & Francis Online], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) was confirmed in this sample, construct validity of this composite indicator focused on out of control sexual thoughts and behaviors was assessed. High sexual compulsivity was associated with sexual risk taking, though mainly among women, decreased levels of relationship intimacy and lesser sexual contentment. However, we found no significant association between early exposure to pornography and high sexual compulsivity either among men or women.     

A RETROSPECTIVE INVESTIGATION OF GENDER INEQUALITY AND FEMALE HOMICIDE VICTIMIZATION

ABSTRACT

For the period 1981 to 1993 women represented 21 to 26 percent of homicide victims in the United States annually (Smith and Kuchta 1993 Smith , M. Dwayne and Ellen S. Kuchta . 1993 . “Trends in Violent Crime Against Women, 1973–89.” Social Science Quarterly 74 : 28 – 45 . [CSA]  [Google Scholar]). During this same time period sex-specific homicide rates have been among the forms of disaggregation researchers have used to test the utility of traditional correlates of homicide in predicting rates across various population subgroups and units of analysis. Based upon earlier research of the effects of gender inequality upon rates of lethal violence against women, and by applying a feminist theoretical perspective, it is hypothesized that the effect of general social structural characteristics of cities upon women's risk of homicide is mediated by levels of gender inequality. Specifically, this study examines the effects of gender, socioeconomic, legislative, political and extra-legal inequality upon female homicide victimization among 217 U.S. central cities for the period of 1989–1991. Using structural equation modeling results indicate that, among traditional social structural factors, economic deprivation, population size, divorce rate, and the sex ratio all have significant, positive effects on female homicide rates. However, in subsequent models testing the mediating effects of measures of gender inequality on the association between social structural variables and female homicide rates the divorce rate is the only social structural factor that continues to have a significant, positive effect upon homicide rates. Among the four measures of gender inequality, and in support of an ameliorative feminist argument, socioeconomic inequality has a significant, positive influence on rates of female homicide victimizaton. There is also a significant, negative effect of gender legislative inequality upon these rates. That is, the more laws or acts favorable to women, the lower their rates of homicide victimization. Implications of these findings are discussed.     

What do young adult carers learn through supporting family members? Extending the affirmation model

Abstract

Some writers (e.g. O'Dell, Crafter, de Abreu, Cline 2010 O’Dell, Lindsey, Sarah Crafter, Guida de Abreu, and Tony Cline. 2010. Constructing ‘Normal Childhoods’: Young People Talk About Young Carers. Disability & Society, 25 (6): 643–655.[Taylor & Francis Online], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) have argued that young carers are just one among many categories of youth who navigate the transition to adulthood while already carrying responsibilities usually associated with adulthood. This article explores that position in relation to a research project, undertaken in North-East England, which generated 13 in-depth biographical accounts with 16–25-year-old carers about their transitions to adulthood. It will be argued that their experiences of supporting disabled people in their families resulted in these young adult carers becoming more other-centred than their peers. Otherwise, their transitions to adulthood were mostly typical of young people in other types of adult role. The article discusses whether an affirmation model of disability (Swain and French 2000 Swain, John and Sally French. 2000. Towards an Affirmation Model of Disability. Disability & Society, 15 (4): 569–582.[Taylor & Francis Online], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) can be used to help young adult carers take positive ownership of their identities in the challenging context of post-industrial youth.     

Anxiety and Uncertainty Management in an Intercultural Setting: The Impact on Organization–Public Relationships

Past research has found that relationship cultivation strategies affect relationship outcomes. This study uses Gudykunst's (1985 Gudykunst , W. B. ( 1985 ). An exploratory comparison of close intracultural and intercultural friendships . Communication Quarterly , 33 , 270 – 283 .[Taylor & Francis Online] , [Google Scholar], 2005 Gudykunst , W. B. ( 2005 ). Theorizing about intercultural communication . Thousand Oaks , CA : Sage . [Google Scholar]) Anxiety and Uncertainty Management (AUM) theory as the theoretical framework to examine whether the effects from cultivation strategies to relationship outcomes are mediated through anxiety and uncertainty management. An online survey solicitation was sent to a university's international student listserv, and 246 participants from 32 countries completed the questionnaires. Structural equation modeling was used to analyze the data. Results largely supported the hypotheses, and indicated that cultivation strategies have both direct and indirect effects on relational outcomes, partially mediated by uncertainty and anxiety.     

Thinking the Unthinkable: Anal Sex in Theory and Practice

This essay takes up the issue of anal sexuality among gay men in order to consider the relationship between bodily and psychic penetrability. The lack of recognition some gay men may experience with this aspect of their sexuality suggests the importance that feeling “mentalized” (e.g., Fonagy and Target, 1993 Fonagy , P. & Target , M. ( 1993 ). Aggression and the psychological self . International Journal of Psycho-Analysis , 74 , 471 – 485 .[PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) may play in adult life. Drawing on early gay liberation and ACT UP-era theorizing about anal sex and an extended clinical example, I explore the meanings of gay men's wishes to (and fears of) penetrate and be penetrated on both bodily and psychic levels as well as the consequences of feeling denied entry. My consideration of these matters becomes in turn an occasion for a critical assessment of the mentalization concept itself.     

The Dangers of the Universal: A Critique of Fonagy and Target's Theory of Sexual Enjoyment

Despite the cultural specificity of aspects of attachment theory (Layton, 2006 Layton , L. ( 2006 ). Racial identities, racial enactments, and normative unconscious processes . Psychoanalytic Quarterly , 75 , 237 – 269 .[Taylor & Francis Online], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) it remains influential. Disorganized attachment and the alien self are linked to borderline phenomena and attacks upon the body (Fonagy et al., 2002 Fonagy , P. , Gergely , G. , Jurist , E. , & Target , M. ( 2002 ). Affect Regulation, Mentalization and the Development of the Self . New York , NY : Other Press . [Google Scholar]), including sexual attacks (Straker, 2002 Straker , G. ( 2002 ). Being in two minds: The psychodynamics of paedophilia. In Australian Psychoanalytic Society annual conference, July, Melbourne, Australia . [Google Scholar]). Recently (Fonagy, 2006 Fonagy , P. ( 2006 ). Psychosexuality and psychoanalysis: An overview . In: Identity, Gender and Sexuality 150 Years After Freud , ed. P. Fonagy , R. Krause , & M. Leuzinger-Bohleber . London , UK : International Psychoanalytical Association , pp. 1 – 20 . [Google Scholar], 2008 ——— . ( 2008 ). A genuinely developmental theory of sexual enjoyment and its implications for psychoanalytic technique . Journal of the American Psychoanalytic Association , 56 , 11 – 36 .[Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]; Target, 2007 Target , M. ( 2007 ). Is our sexuality our own? A developmental model of sexuality based on early affect mirroring . British Journal of Psychotherapy , 23 , 517 – 530 .[Crossref] , [Google Scholar]) used the concept of the alien self to explain sexuality in general. This article challenges this extension as it again ignores cultural specificity, presents psychoanalysis as the arbiter of “normal” sexuality, and entrenches heteronormativity. It also lends itself to inadvertently condoning sexual harassment, as evidenced in a case study presented by Fonagy (2008 ——— . ( 2008 ). A genuinely developmental theory of sexual enjoyment and its implications for psychoanalytic technique . Journal of the American Psychoanalytic Association , 56 , 11 – 36 .[Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]).     

Perceptions and Use of Gerotechnology: Implications for Aging in Place

ABSTRACT

Understanding perceptions and use of gerotechnology is crucial to optimize design, application, and education strategies that may reduce caregiver burden, extend healthy aging in place, and minimize demands on the health care system. A pilot project was conducted to explore attitudes, opinions, and preferences of older adults concerning the use of technology to support and extend their ability to “aging in place.” Four major themes emerged as important for older adults to age in place: safety and independence, social interaction, use of technology in the past, and the desire for support. Based on the literature in gerotechnology and the pilot study findings, we present a conceptual model that integrates gerotechnology into the life span theory of control (Heckhausen & Schulz, 1995 Heckhausen, J. and Schulz, R. 1995. A life-span theory of control. Psychological Review, 102(2): 284–304. [Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]; Schulz & Heckhausen, 1996 Schulz, R. and Heckhausen, J. 1996. A life span model of successful aging. American Psychologist, 51(7): 702–714. [Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) and the concept of aging in place.     

Institutional processes of organizational culture

Queries into the creation of collective meaning through social processes arise in both organization culture and institutional theory. This paper applies DiMaggio and Powell’s (1983 DiMaggio, P.J. and Powell, W.W. 1983. The iron cage revisited: Institutional isomorphism and collective rationality in organizational fields. American Sociological Review, 48: 147–60. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) three isomorphic processes (mimetic, normative and coercive) from institutional theory to re‐think how structural and dynamic aspects of culture become nested, taken‐for‐granted and transmitted. We consider both acquiescence and resistance to isomorphic pressures in an effort to understand cultural persistence and transmission, forms of resistance to culture, change, the role of sub‐cultures and power usage through Oliver’s (1992 Oliver, C. 1992. The antecedents of de‐institutionalization. Organization Studies, 13: 563–88. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) de‐institutionalization thesis. Our purpose in applying isomorphic processes to organizational culture is to offer another layer of understanding enhanced by the growing body of research in institutional theory, bridge one division between micro and macro theory and provide some suggestions for future research.