Observed and Reported Psychological and Physical Aggression in Young, At-Risk Couples

The occurrence of observed and reported physical and psychological aggression was examined for young, at-risk mostly unmarried couples using reports from both partners and observational data. It was predicted that males higher in antisocial behavior would be more likely to have an antisocial partner and that antisocial behavior would predict aggression toward the partner. The prevalence of reported physical aggression was comparable to that found for prior studies and was generally higher for the young women than the young men. Observed aggression was significantly associated with reported aggression, and psychological aggression was associated with physical aggression. Assortative partnering by antisocial behavior was found. The young man's aggression toward his partner was predicted particularly by his antisocial behavior, whereas that of the young woman was predicted by depressive symptoms and low self-esteem. Relationship satisfaction was associated with the occurrence of psychological aggression but not of physical aggression.     

Heading off violence with verbal de-escalation

Respect for the rights and dignity of patients is the underlying principle of therapeutic communication. Its effective practice requires the nurse to identify personal issues, stressors, and one's own anxiety and effectiveness levels. It is important that the caregiver maintain self-control to help others control themselves. By constantly observing patient behavior, the nurse should be able to detect agitation and intervene in a timely fashion, avoiding physical confrontation and the physical restraints that are its usual consequence. To make this outcome possible, the nurse should learn to recognize signs of agitation and escalation; should practice presenting himself or herself as a calm, caring professional; and should maintain poise even when facing a potentially violent patient. The nurse should remain open-minded, knowing that patients frequently react to assumptions made about them, and use the information acquired to find acceptable alternatives to aggression. These alternatives should be presented to the patient, making the choices clear, yet allowing the dignity of choice. Every effort should be made to provide opportunity for patients to be in control of their own behavior. Physical confrontation should always be a last resort, and one used only when there is a clear danger of immediate physical harm to a patient or staff member. Keep in mind that the use of force is an encouragement to aggressive behavior and a hindrance to treatment. Effective use of therapeutic communication encourages patients to express their feelings and become cooperative partners in their treatment.     

GLOBALIZATION, NATIONAL CULTURES AND CULTURAL CITIZENSHIP

The article develops an argument in respect of the media of mass communication, globalization processes and what I call cultural citizenship. In the first instance, I argue that in the British and European contexts that national cultures remain more powerful constructions than many postcolonial and postmodern critics seem aware. Secondly, in respect of cultural citizenship, I argue for a three layered component in respect of: (1) the emergence of cultural cosmopolitanism; (2) the specific application of rights and duties to both the television and film industries and; (3) the importance of the concept of civil society. The aim is to thread together a concern for globalizing processes and an attempt to outline a theory of cultural citizenship in respect of the development of systems of communication.     

Rural and urban women's perceptions of barriers to health, mental health, and criminal justice services: implications for victim services

The purpose of this study was to examine rural and urban women's perceptions of barriers to health and mental health services as well as barriers to criminal justice system services. Eight focus groups were conducted, two in a selected urban county (n = 30 women) and two in each of three selected rural counties (n = 98 women). Results were classified into a barrier framework developed in the health service utilization literature which suggests there are four main dimensions of barriers: affordability, availability, accessibility, and acceptability. Results indicate that: (1) women face many barriers to service use including affordability, availability, accessibility, and acceptability barriers; (2) it takes an inordinate level of effort to obtain all kinds of services; however, women with victimization histories may face additional barriers over and above women without victimization histories; (3) barriers to health and mental health service utilization overlap with barriers to utilizing the criminal justice system; and (4) there are many similarities in barriers to service use among rural and urban women; however, there are some important differences suggesting barriers are contextual. Future research is needed to further clarify barriers to service use for women with victimization histories in general, and specifically for rural and urban women. In addition, future research is needed to better understand how women cope with victimization in the context of the specific barriers they face in their communities.     

The impact of educational efforts on first-year university students' acceptance of meningococcal vaccine

The authors measured the impact of educational efforts on the number of college students who received meningococcal vaccine. First-year Brown University students from the classes of 2004 (n = 1,562) and 2005 (n = 1,518) received educational vaccine materials before they arrived on campus, whereas students from the class of 2003 (n = 1.441) did not. Students in the class of 2003, 13% (n = 184) of whom had received vaccine before their arrival on campus, served as the baseline. These educational efforts by the college health services before students arrived on campus increased the number of students immunized before campus arrival to 46% (n = 724) for the class of 2004, and 60% (n = 913) for the class of 2005. Education about the benefits of meningococcal vaccine before students' arrival on campus increased both the number of immunized students and the overall immunization rate among students.     

Men who use violence: intimate violence versus non-intimate violence profiles

The current study examined the differences between three types of violent men based on Holtzworth-Munroe and Stuart's (1994) tripartite typology and a group of non-intimate violent men. First, a cluster analysis was conducted on a sample of 91 domestically violent men, resulting in three clusters that approximated the tripartite model for psychopathology as measured by the MMPI-2, that is, non-pathological, borderline/dysphoric, and antisocial. Based on the violence variables (i.e., severity of violence, family-only violence, and exposure to family of origin violence) only severity of violence approximated what would be expected across the three clusters, that is, the less the psychopathology, the less severe the violence. The other two violence variables had approximate frequencies/percentages of occurrence that would be expected for individual typologies with some but not all three typologies. In comparing the three intimate violent typologies to the non-intimate violent group, the non-intimate and non-pathological groups were within normal limits and did not differ significantly on any of the MMPI-2 scales. These non-intimate and non-pathological groups differed significantly from the antisocial and borderline/dysphoric groups on all the scales that defined the psychopathology of these two groups. On the violence variables, the non-intimate groups reported significantly less severe violence than the borderline/dysphoric and antisocial groups.     

Current treatment of generalized anxiety disorder

Generalized anxiety disorder is the most common anxiety disorder and is second only to depression as the most common disorder diagnosed in primary care. Because it is potentially disabling due to its high comorbidity with other psychiatric conditions, psychiatric nurses must accurately diagnose GAD and formulate individualized treatment plans that promote positive outcomes for clients with this disorder.