A Narrative Approach to Group Work with Men Who Batter

A narrative approach to group work with men who batter is presented with case examples. The approach is based in feminist and constructionist theory and seeks to expose and undermine the effects of patriarchal discourse in the lives and relationships of group members. The approach emphasizes an understanding of gender discourse, taking responsibility for actions, and exploring new definitional possibilities for participants and their relationships. The techniques of radical listening, the principle of least contest, breaking the allure of male entitlement and its effects, and cocreating a new male way of being are discussed with case examples.     

An Evaluation of a Group Program for Men Who Batter

This article describes a research study which evaluated a group service for men who batter. Change was evaluated both by self report and as interpreted from the Hemler Scale of Social Functioning. It was demonstrated that male batterers who entered into the group treatment process showed significant change with respect to human social functioning and in the cessation of physical violence towards their partners. Although the personal journey along which a batterer takes responsibility for his actions and finds appropriate coping mechanisms is intensely individual, this study adds to the literature which confirms that a supportive group experience can facilitate this process.     

A Comparison of Two Types of Pregroup Preparation for Men Who Batter

This article describes a comparison of the efficacy of two pregroup preparation formats for reducing drop-outs from groups for men who batter their female partners. Eighty men attending a weekly, four-session preparation group were compared with 103 men attending an intensive eight hour workshop format prior to joining open-ended, ongoing groups. The quasi-experimental comparison revealed that the intensive workshop format resulted in significantly fewer drop-outs from the ongoing group prior to completion of four sessions.     

Safety and Comfort,Content and Process: Facilitating Open Group Work with Men Who Batter

Based on the open group format of the McGill Domestic Violence Clinic this paper discusses four important concepts in treatment group work with men who batter: safety, comfort, content and process. This paper explores why men who batter might wish to avoid treatment groups as well as what might encourage them to attend these groups regularly. Interventive techniques such as "the comfort/discomfort level." "empathic projection," use of humor and the "process statement" are defined and highlighted by case examples. The paper concludes by suggesting what benefits the treatment group client takes with him when he moves on from the group.     

Men Who Murder Children Inside and Outside the Family

The focus of this paper is on men who murder children. The dataare drawn from a larger study of Murder in Britain,¹ which examinedall types of murder and included data from a total sample of866 case files of both men and women convicted of murder andserving a life sentence in England or Scotland. This analysisis based on a subset of ninety cases of men convicted of themurder of a child. Two types of child murder are compared: menwho kill children within the family (FM, n = 49) and men whomurder children outside the family context (NFM, n = 41). Thetwo types of murder are compared in terms of the childhood andfamily backgrounds of the perpetrator, the circumstances atthe time of the murder and elements of the murder event itself.The main findings reveal many significant differences betweenthe two groups of perpetrators, indicating a need for more nuancedpolicy and practice responses to the murder of children.     

Sexual Communication and Seroadaptation Practices in HIV-Negative Midlife and Older Men Who Have Sex With Men

Advances in treatments have increased the longevity of people with HIV. The high prevalence of HIV among men who have sex with men (MSM) creates a greater risk for exposure that increases with age. Seroadaptation, which includes serosorting (sexual behavior and condom use based on knowing the serostatus of self and partners) and strategic sexual positioning (choosing receptive versus insertive anal sex), is sometimes used as an HIV risk-reduction strategy. This study examined seroadaptation, sexual communication, and HIV-risk behaviors in 420 sexually active HIV-negative MSM aged 40–81 years in South Florida via anonymous pen-and-paper questionnaire. Recreational drug use and serosorting (i.e., not using condoms if the partner said he was HIV-negative) were associated with higher risk for unprotected receptive anal intercourse. Younger age, greater number of partners, and serosorting were associated with higher risk for unprotected insertive anal intercourse. Understanding these behaviors in this group might help guide HIV-prevention efforts. Future research may examine the role of HIV-prevention medication (PrEP) in influencing sexual behavior in midlife and older MSM.     

Men and Anti-Sexism

Correspondence to Dr Neil Thompson, 1, Worcester Road, Bangor on Dee, Wrexham, Clwyd, LL13 0JB. Summary This paper explores the negative impact of sexism on both womenand men and considers what active part men can play in challengingand undermining sexism. The costs of living and working in apatriarchal society are outlined, and related to the differingexperiences of women and men. It is argued that, although womenclearly bear the brunt of sexism, gender stereotyping is notwithout significant costs for men. This leads us into an exploration of possible anti-sexist strategiesthat men can promote and implement as part of the developmentof anti-discriminatory and anti-oppressive practice. The aimis not for men to ‘colonize’ or take over the struggleto achieve emancipation from oppressive gender norms. Rather,it is for men to play a part in the collective struggle to removethe inhumanity of patriarchal social relations. The paper is grounded within a professional value base premissedon a commitment to combating discrimination and oppression,and within a theory base informed by existentialist philosophy(Thompson, 1992a).     

Who Participates?

Reported membership of voluntary organizations is taken as an index of community participation. Data derived from a Mental Health Survey in Canberra in 1971 are analysed and participation behaviour compared with information from American participation studies. A high participation rate was expected because of Canberra's high ranking on socio-economic variables compared with Australia as a whole. However, nearly half of the adults sampled report belonging to no formal organizations. Sex, age and socio-economic status are found to be related to joining behaviour and conform to well-established findings in the United States.     

不堪一击的所谓“牛人”

周立波口水战落幕之际,我们发现,往往被公众视为"牛人"的人物,在"让子弹飞"后,就迎来"一声叹息",不得不匆匆收官。既然"牛人"收官,就可以盖"官"定论了,简单打扫一下战场,总结一下得失。回顾是为了进步,深思是为了走得更好。     

“祥林嫂”是谁?

人们通常认为《祝福》是一篇反封建的小说,主人公祥林嫂的命运及其遭际则是数千年中国下层妇女的一个缩影。但本文认为,透过《祝福》的文本缝隙,我们能够看到在这个人物身上所体现的不仅是一个封建妇女的形象,而且还有鲁迅先生本人的身影,而对于这一点的解读则是理解《祝福》的关键所在。     

Probation Officers Working with Men

Correspondence to Jonathan Scourfield, School of Social and Administrative Studies, University of Wales Cardiff, 50 Park Place, Cardiff CF1 3AT, UK. Summary Recent debates on making masculinities explicit in work withoffenders are reviewed as the context for a qualitative researchstudy. Interviews were conducted with probation officers andfiles and pre-sentence reports read with the aim of exploringthe construction of masculinities within the probation service.Tensions about gender were found within and between the threeareas of professional rhetoric, practice and internal relations.The most significant finding is a gap between rhetoric and practice.While most officers interviewed spoke of an interest in focusingeither directly or indirectly on their clients' identity asmen, the files and reports found only a very small amount ofdirect work on this. There was a larger amount of evidence ofwork that could be seen as indirectly challenging masculinites,but another significant part of the files and reports on menreflected a tendency towards ignoring gender or even colludingwith oppressive masculinities.     

每个男人都需要一场战争

陈可辛纳了"投名状",冯小刚吹响了"集结号",新一轮的贺岁大戏上映了.正如冯小刚所说:每个男人心中都有一部战争片.无论是古代兵刃相见还是近代坦克大炮,舍命拼杀中的男人最为迷人--坚毅、刚强、英勇、机敏,男人在战争中磨砺得英气逼人.毫无疑问,每个男人都需要一场战争来警醒、证明自己,当"集结号"吹响,他们载着荣誉从战地走来,残缺的身影映在一片用鲜血染红的土地上.     

Part-Time Workers in Welfare: Who Wins,Who Loses,and Why?

This paper reviews the literature on part-time employment and presents data from a survey of part-time social workers in Melbourne. Information on part-time employment by age and gender is presented and industrial issues relevant to part-time work are discussed. Data on demographic characteristics, working conditions and employer perception of advantages and disadvantages of part-time social work are presented from a postal survey of Melbourne health and social welfare agencies.     

2010,他们感动中国

2月14日,中央电视台《感动中国》2010年度人物颁奖盛典给人们的心灵带来入春后的第一股暖意。不少观众含着热泪看完节目《感动中国》唱响了"让整个民族为之动容的精神史诗"。十大感动中国人物成为2010年度带给我们温暖与震撼的力量源泉。     

狼烟沙场 谁曾逐鹿辽阳

Liaoyang, once a political, economic and cultural center in Northeast China, was a military important town, where many battles happened in its 2400-year history.     

Who Leaves Social Work?

Summary Turnover and wastage rates among social work staff are highand subject to marked variation between grades, locations andlocal authorities. Such high rates have a number of deleteriouseffects on the quality of social work, and consequently on clients,on the costs of delivering personal social services and on thegeneral administration and organization of social care. Employingdata on 13,750 basic grade field social workers employed byEnglish and Welsh local authority social services departmentsin 1974–75, turnover and wastage rates were predictedusing information on the personal characteristics of employeesand the workplace locations. The analyses revealed the importanceof age, sex, educational background, social work qualifications,length of service and workplace in determining the probabilitiesof changing social work jobs and leaving social work completely.     

营造一片闪烁世界的金草坪--下岗职工卜广艳的创业之路

卜广艳,给自己用废旧轮胎研制成的彩色橡胶地砖起了个名字——金草坪。如今这靓丽的名字已走出国门, 在斑斓的世界里闪烁着夺人眼目的光彩。也正是在这块金色的草坪上,深深地印下了创业者艰辛跋涉的足迹。一天都不能消沉     

Men and Machines at the Chessboard

The author critically analyzes the origins, composition, and intended domestic and foreign policy functions of the new Presidential Commission to Counteract Attempts to Harm Russia's Interests by Falsifying History.