“What Will My Friends Think?” Social Consequences for Danish Victims of Sexual Assaults in Peer Groups

Being exposed to sexual assaults has numerous psychological and social consequences, which may interfere with the adolescent’s still-ongoing development. This article focuses on social consequences for adolescents exposed to sexual assault by someone from their peer group.

Participants were 148 in number and 15–18 year olds (M = 16.34 years, 90.5% female) from Centre for Victims of Sexual Assault’s “Youth Programme.”

A mixed methods design combined extensive survey data collected from the 148 adolescents and five case stories. Almost half of the assaults (47.4%) were committed by someone from the victim’s social circle who was not a family member. Only 30.5% of these victims reported the assault to the police. Fear of social consequences was the main reason for not reporting. The majority of the participants described failure to thrive in school in the aftermath of the assault, for example, because the assailant attended the same school. Result furthermore showed how social relations can be complicated due to an assault and subsequent reactions, which can result in isolation for the victim and exclusion from their peer group.

Sexual assaults in peer groups have great impact on the victim’s well-being. Understanding and support from peers is of the utmost importance. Implications for practice are discussed.     

Examining the effect of the computer-based educational package on quality of life and severity of hypogonadism symptoms in males

Objective: The objective of this study was to determine the effect of the computer-based educational package on men’s QoL and the severity of their hypogonadism symptoms.

Methods: A quasi-experimental study was conducted on 80 male employees. The data collection tool included the ‘Aging Male Symptoms’ (AMS) and ‘Short Form-36’ (SF36) questionnaires. Four sessions were held for the intervention group over a period of 4 weeks. Two months after training, QoL and the severity of hypogonadism symptoms were measured in both the intervention and control groups. The data were analyzed with SPSS 22 software and statistical tests, such as χ², independent t-test, Fisher’s exact test, and paired t-tests.

Results: Significant statistical changes were observed in the intervention group before and 2 months after the training in the QoL score in the overall dimensions of physical–psychological health and all its domains except for three domains of emotional role, social function, and pain. Furthermore, the paired t-tests showed significant differences between 2 months before and after the training in all the domains and the overall hypogonadism score in the intervention group.

Conclusions: Based on our findings, the computer-based educational package has a positive effect on QoL and reduction of hypogonadism symptoms.     

The feasibility of goal attainment scaling to measure case resolution in elder abuse and neglect adult protective services intervention

Objectives: This pilot study describes implementation procedures of goal attainment scaling (GAS) and examines the feasibility of using GAS to measure the multifarious intervention outcome of case resolution in elder mistreatment (EM) adult protective services (APS).

Methods: Substantiated EM victims (n = 27) were recruited prospectively from the State of Maine APS. An adapted GAS approach was implemented involving development of a pre-populated goal scale menu and web-based GAS application.

Results: The GAS menu comprised 18 goals and corresponding scales spanning several domains of case resolution: social support, service access, health/functioning, enhancing independence, and protective measures. The overall GAS process had mean length 33.8 min per case. The mean GAS summary t-score (54.3) aligned with theoretical expectations.

Discussion: Without a measure of case resolution, research cannot compare the effectiveness of different EM intervention models. Findings suggest that GAS is a feasible, client-centered strategy to measure the multifarious EM intervention case resolution outcome.     

Characteristics of Sexually Abused Children and Their Nonoffending Mothers Followed by Child Welfare Services: The Role of a Maternal History of Child Sexual Abuse

Considering the importance of mother’s support in the adaptation of a sexually abused child, it is relevant to determine if the mothers and children involved in an intergenerational cycle of child sexual victimization differ from dyads in which only the child has been abused. The purpose of this study was to compare mother–child dyads with sexually abused children according to whether the mother had herself been victim of child sexual abuse. The sample included 87 dyads with sexually abused children aged 3–18 years old and their mothers (44 reporting maternal and child abuse), followed by social welfare services of the province of Quebec (Canada). The two groups of mothers were compared on their past family abuse experiences and past family relations, their mental health history, their current psychological distress, their parenting behaviors, and their current levels of family functioning. Children were compared on their adaptation. Multivariate analyses indicated that mothers reporting child sexual abuse were more likely to report more other maltreatments in their childhood and greater prevalence of lifetime history of alcohol abuse disorders, dysthymia, and panic disorder compared with mothers who had not experienced CSA. Compared to children whose mothers had not experienced CSA, those whose mothers had experienced CSA showed higher rates of problems behaviors and were more likely to report having been sexually abused by a trusted person. These results highlight the specific clinical needs for the assessment and treatment for sexually abused children whose mothers experienced child sexual abuse.     

The National Elder Mistreatment Study: An 8-year longitudinal study of outcomes

Objectives: To conduct an 8-year follow-up of the National Elder Mistreatment Study (NEMS) and specify risk ratios for negative outcomes of elder abuse, including DSM-5 defined depression, generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and poor self-reported health.

Methods: Attempts were made to re-contact, via Computer Assisted Telephone Interview, all 752 NEMS participants who reported mistreatment since age 60 at Wave I, as well as a randomly selected sample of non-mistreated NEMS participants

Results: 183 NEMS Wave I elder abuse victims and 591 non-victims provided data. In bivariate analyses, elder mistreatment 8 years earlier increased risk of negative outcomes by 200–700%. However, multivariate analyses revealed that Current (Wave II) social support was highly protective against most negative outcomes (excepting PTSD), and even appeared to nullify effects of mistreatment on GAD and poor self-reported health.

Conclusions: Outcomes of elder mistreatment have not been studied prospectively in a national sample. The NEMS 8-year follow-up findings indicate a strong relationship between elder mistreatment at Wave I and negative emotional and physical health 8 years later. Fortunately, current (Wave II) social support appears to be both consistently and powerfully protective against most negative outcomes.     

Feasibility of intervention in elder self-neglecters: Setting the stage for future research

Objectives: Interventions are critical to improving clinical outcomes in elder self-neglecters. This study assessed feasibility of a randomized controlled trial of oral vitamin D in Adult Protective Services-substantiated self-neglect clients ≥65 years.

Methods: Participants were directly observed to consume ergocalciferol 50,000 IU (treatment) or ergocalciferol 400 IU (control), once a month, for 10 months. For months 6–10, half the control group randomly crossed into the treatment group (crossover). Intervention feasibility was measured by number of potential participants who agreed to participate and by retention rates during the study.

Results: Ninety-four referrals were received and 59 (63%) agreed to participate. Forty-nine participants were enrolled after prescreening and 35 completed the two-phase trial for a 72% retention rate. The participants’ average age was 75.2 ± 6.8 years, mainly female (59%), African-American (47%), and living alone (41%).

Discussion: Despite assumptions that self-neglecters are resistant to care, we have successfully conducted the first clinical intervention in this vulnerable population.     

Tackling HIV and AIDS with faith-based communities: learning from attitudes on gender relations and sexual rights within local evangelical churches in Burkina Faso,Zimbabwe, and South Africa

The AIDS pandemic in Africa is devastating the continent. The institution of marriage does not appear to be protecting women – in some countries rates of infection among married women are higher than those among unmarried, sexually active women. Recognising that unequal gender relations are a driving force behind the AIDS pandemic, this article explores the position of local evangelical churches in Africa with respect to gender relations and sex, and the implications for HIV and AIDS. Based on desk and field research carried out by the UK-based NGO Tearfund, the findings indicate that these churches were largely silent on the issue of gender and sex, or were reinforcing traditional values which contribute to HIV infection. In a number of countries, the church seems to have failed to provide leadership to young people, especially young women, facing huge pressure to be sexually active. Strategies for responding are outlined.

In some heavily affected countries, married women have higher rates of HIV infection than their unmarried, sexually active peers. Kofi Annan, UN Secretary General, World AIDS Day 2004.

Adhering to the teachings of the Church, we determined to engage more deeply in challenging cultures and traditions which stifle the humanity of women and deprive them of equal rights. We agreed that our greatest challenge is to nurture and equip our children to protect themselves from HIV, so that we can fulfil the vision of building a generation without AIDS. Pastoral Letter from the Primates of the Anglican Communion, 27 May 2003.

All the pastors’ wives had never seen a condom as it is seen as a tool for unfaithful wives. NGO worker, Burkina Faso.     

The Relationship Between Parent and Child Reports of Parental Supportiveness and Psychopathology of Sexually Abused Children

This study examined the relationship between parent and child reports of supportiveness of intrafamilially sexually abused children and levels of child psychopathology. Fifty-four intrafamilially sexually abused children completed a revised version of the Family Subscale of the Survey of Children's Social Support and the Child Assessment Schedule. Fifty-four parents completed a version of the Family Subscale of the Survey of Children's Social Support, modified for use in parental reporting of their own supportive behaviors. Satisfactory reliability levels were obtained for the revised measures. This study of 54 sexually abused children and their non-offending parents found that although most non-offending parents were supportive of their children, the children reported considerable distress. Although there was no significant difference in mean levels of support reported by parents and children, the two measures were not significantly correlated. This suggests that parents and children perceive supportive behavior differently, although both constructs are of importance. Multiple regression analysis found that both child and parent reports of parental support were predictive of levels of child psychopathology, but that child estimates were a stronger predictor.     

Attitudes and knowledge of social work students towards sexuality in later life

Background: Sexuality in later life may be compromised by restrictive attitudes, and lack of knowledge among professionals. This study examined social work students’ attitudes and knowledge towards sexuality and sexual expression in later life and investigated associated factors.

Method: Undergraduate social work students from Israel (n = 375) completed the Attitudes and Knowledge towards Older Adult’s Sexuality Scale and questionnaires regarding contacts and exposure to older adults, prior sexual education and sociodemographic.

Results: Attitudes and knowledge were correlated. First year students were the most conservative and demonstrated the least knowledge. No differences were found between men and women regarding attitude. However, men and married students had greater knowledge regarding older adults’ sexuality than women or non-married students did. Increased religious observance predicted more conservative attitudes. Age predicted more permissive attitudes and greater knowledge about sexuality in later life. A mediating process examined, suggested knowledge is a mediator variable between age and attitudes towards older adults’ sexuality.

Conclusion: As the population in Israel and in Western countries ages, it is important to examine the knowledge and attitudes of social work students regarding older adults’ sexuality and to develop educational and interventional programs aimed at increasing awareness, knowledge, and positive attitudes in this area.     

Kinship foster parenting; gender,class and labour-force participation

Objective: Knowledge about gender, class and labour-force participation of kinship foster parents in European countries is scarce. This study examines the gendered structure and generational pattern of kinship foster parenting in Norway and compares class components and labour-force participation of kinship foster mothers to the larger female population and to non-kinship foster mothers.

Method: The analysis is based on survey data on relationships between foster parents and child, social demographics and placement characteristics from 123 kinship and 88 non-kinship foster mothers of children in state custody. Labour Force Survey and Education Statistics from Statistics Norway were used to compare the kinship sample to the average female population.

Findings: Kinship foster care in Norway is gendered, in that it is women who assume the responsibility for relatives' children. Kinship foster care reflects class differences in that the educational level of kinship foster mothers and their household income are lower than the average female population and of non-kinship foster mothers in Norway. The labour-force participation of kinship foster mothers in Norway is comparable to that of the country's female population in general, except for women aged 35–55 with children under seven, among whom labour-force participation is lower than for the female population.     

Worry and rumination: Explanatory roles in the relation between pain and anxiety and depressive symptoms among college students with pain

Objective: Pain affects a significant proportion of college students in the United States and has been linked to anxiety and depressive symptoms. Rumination and worry, two transdiagnostic factors linked to comorbidity, may explain the relationship between pain and mental health symptoms.

Current Study: The current study examined worry and rumination as explanatory factors in the relationship between pain and anxiety and depressive symptoms in a sample of college students with pain (n?=?1,577; 79.9% female).

Results: Results indicated that both rumination and worry explained the relationship between pain and depressive and social anxiety symptoms, while rumination alone explained the relationship between pain and anxious arousal symptoms.

Conclusion: The current study provides novel empirical evidence that worry and rumination each help explain the relationship between pain and anxiety and depressive symptoms among college students with current pain, and college students in pain may benefit from targeted psychosocial strategies aimed at decreasing worry and ruminative responses.     

Grandiose and vulnerable narcissism: Associations with alcohol use,alcohol problems and problem recognition

Objective: This study fills a gap in the literature by examining the relationship between two types of narcissism, vulnerable and grandiose, and five alcohol-related outcomes (ie, alcohol use, alcohol problems, evaluation and expectancies of problems, and readiness to change).

Participants: 345 college students (28% men, 72% women) from a Midwestern university were recruited from undergraduate psychology courses from April 2015 to October 2016.

Methods: Participants completed an online survey with questionnaires measuring the variables of interest. Multiple regression analyses were used to test the hypotheses.

Results: Grandiose narcissism was a positive predictor of alcohol consumption and a positive (ie, good) evaluation of alcohol-related problems. Vulnerable narcissism was a positive predictor of alcohol-related problems, problem recognition (ie, readiness to change), and problem expectancies.

Conclusions: The results speak to the effects that different types of narcissism have on alcohol use, alcohol problems and attitudes towards alcohol problems among young adults.     

Recantation of Sexual Abuse Disclosure Among Child Victims: Accommodation Syndrome

Background: Disclosing the sexual abuse may be related on many individual and/or environmental factors in all age groups. The sociocultural context is the most influential factor of the disclosing process especially for those living in patriarchal cultural values. This study compares the impacts of sexual abuse and other sociodemographic variables between recanting and non-recanting victimized groups in Adana city from Turkey.

Methods: The samples attending our department were divided into two groups: group 1 comprised victims who recanted their first abuse disclosure, and group 2 comprised victims who insisted on the veracity of their first report at further evaluations. The characteristics of the child, family, and abuser were compared between recanting victims and non-recanting victims by retrospective data.

Results: Each group included 27 children, for a total of 54 subjects. All adverse social reactions after the sexual abuse, including keeping secrets and a repressive family attitude, were higher among group 1 victims than group 2 victims (p < 0.0001).

Conclusions: Although they are victimized by protecting family integrity, victims may show a tendency to keep secrets and to not immediately disclose an abuse event.     

Heart checks in college-aged students link poor sleep to cardiovascular risk

Objective: To describe the relationships between the cardiovascular health, lifestyle behaviors, and lifestyle beliefs among college-aged students.

Participants: Seven hundred and twenty-nine college-aged students participated between October 2016 and April 2017.

Methods: Heart checks, consisting of a cross-sectional survey and biometric screening, were conducted on a large Midwestern university campus.

Results: A small proportion of students (24.5%) engaged in the recommended 150+ minutes of physical activity per week and 7.9% consumed 5+ servings of fruit/vegetables daily. Half (49.6%) slept 7 hours or less per night. Biometric screenings found that 26.4% of the students had high stress, 31.9% were overweight or obese, and 17.3% had prehypertension or hypertension. Less sleep was significantly associated with higher risks of being stressed, being overweight/obese, and having elevated blood pressure.

Conclusions: Early detection, treatment, and education is critical to identify individuals at risk for cardiovascular disease and to promote healthy lifestyle changes before heart disease develops or progresses.     

Housing in Old Age: Dynamical Interactions Between Neighborhood Attachment,Neighbor Annoyance,and Residential Satisfaction

Objective: Residential satisfaction and neighborhood quality play major roles in aging well. However, longitudinal research about the interplay between such factors is still sparse. Our 1-year study examined whether change in residential satisfaction was associated with change in two indicators of neighborhood quality: neighborhood attachment and neighbor annoyance.

Methods: Findings come from a longitudinal study with 85 community-dwelling German older adults (age range: 60 to 92 years). Participants filled out questionnaires at two measurements that were 1 year apart. The interplay between residential satisfaction and neighborhood was explored using a cross-path model.

Results: Higher levels of residential satisfaction predicted enhanced attachment and reduced annoyance over time. Moreover, attachment predicted positive change in residential satisfaction over the course of 1 year.

Conclusion: Results suggest that older adults may apply adaptive behaviors and strategies to optimize their neighborly experiences. Such findings have implications for improving residential satisfaction in community-dwelling older adults.     

Life after loss: Comparing student service member/veteran and civilian mental health characteristics among individuals exposed to death by suicide

Objective: This study evaluated the mental health characteristics and beliefs of student service members/veterans (SSM/Vs) who have been exposed to another’s death by suicide.

Participants: A total of 39 SSM/Vs exposed to suicide and 32 SSM/Vs not exposed to suicide were sampled from a larger, epidemiological survey. An age- and gender-matched group of 39 civilian (C) students was drawn from a larger sample of individuals exposed to suicide.

Methods: Data were collected as part of an Internet-based, campus needs survey that occurred in Fall 2014. Participants were asked to complete measures about suicide-related behaviors, suicide prevention, help-seeking, and demographics.

Results: SSM/Vs exposed to suicide had more positive mental health/suicide prevention beliefs than SSM/Vs not exposed to suicide. Cs exposed to suicide were not significantly different from either group. Unique help-seeking patterns were also identified.

Conclusions: The current study identifies unique characteristics of SSM/Vs exposed to suicide that may inform prevention programming.     

Book review

Wives and warriors. Women and the military in the United States and Canada L. Weinstein & C.C. White (Eds) Westport, Connecticut; London: Bergin & Garver, 1997. ISBN: 0-89789-491-X (hbk), 0-89789-526-6 (pbk)

Social skills for people with learning disabilities–A social capability approach Mark Burton & Carolyn Kagan (with Pat Clements) London: Chapman and Hall, 1995 ISBN: 0-412-43380-X (pbk)

Social Work with Children. The Educational Perspective

Jobs, Technology and People

Children in Difficulty: A Guide to Understanding and Helping

Step-parenting in the 1990s

Jobs and Economic Development Strategies and Practice

Caring to Work: accounts of working parents of disabled children

The WorWFamily Challenge. Rethinking Employment

No Place to Go. The Civil Commitment of Minors

Black Families in Corporate America     

Book reviews

Law, socialism and social emancipation

Books Reviewed: M. Los, Communist Ideology, Law and Crime. St. Martin's Press: New York. 1988.

Paul Q. HirstLaw, Socialism and Democracy. London: Allen and Unwin 1986.

Citoyens et citoyennes

Review of: C. Pateman (1988), The Sexual Contract, Stanford University Press.

H.M. Hernes (1987), Welfare State and Women Power, Norwegian University Press.

Franco Crespi (1989), Azione sociale e potere, Il Mulino     

Acceptability of an Aboriginal Wellbeing Intervention for Supporters of People Using Methamphetamines

Families and workers often suffer significant stress while supporting people who are experiencing problems related to methamphetamine use yet there is little evidence on how best to help. Small pilot studies can provide valuable information about potential ways to intervene. This paper presents a pilot study of an Aboriginal family wellbeing intervention with workers in an Aboriginal health service. The pilot indicated that participation in the intervention improved the psychosocial empowerment and wellbeing of workers, that these workers perceived the program as relevant to families, and that this was an intervention they felt they could deliver to clients themselves.

IMPLICATIONS

• An Aboriginal family wellbeing intervention was piloted and found to improve the empowerment and wellbeing of workers. Participants regarded it as highly relevant for families supporting people using methamphetamines and other drugs.

• This research has added to our knowledge about how to assist those supporting Aboriginal people using methamphetamines and other drugs.

     

Book reviews

The Political Sociology of Florian Znaniecki and Contemporary Politics (in Polish), Olgierd Sochacki (Ed.) Wydawnictwo Gdanskie, The Scientific Society of Gdansk, 1996

Why Read. Internal Space and the Social Function of Literature: An Investigation with. Psychoanalysts and Psychology Students, Graziella Pagliano (Ed.) Bonanno Editore, 1994

Voix Littéraires de Femmes

Cuadernos sobre Vico, Nos 5–6, José M. Sevilla et al. 1995–96

Studi in memoria di Ernesto Grassi Proceedings of the International Conference in Memory of Ernesto Grassi (Ischia, 4–6 October 1993), Emilio Hidalgo‐Serna and Massimo Marassi (Eds), Napoli, La Città del Sole, 1996

Naples Istituto Italiano per gli Studi Fiosofici, La Gittà del Sole, Napoli, 1996

Family, Women and Employment in Central‐Eastern Europe, Barbara Lobodzinska (Ed.) Greenwood Press, 1995