Child Sexual Abuse Attributions Among Undergraduate Psychology Students in Singapore

ABSTRACT

Experimental vignettes were used to investigate attributions relating to child sexual abuse with a focus on the degree of blame allocated to the family and to society, factors thought to be particularly relevant in a collectivist society. One hundred and sixty-two undergraduates in Singapore evaluated media reports describing a case of child sexual abuse. A 2 x 2 x 2 between-subjects design manipulated victim sex, perpetrator sex, and victim–perpetrator relationship. Participants rated the vignettes on degree of blame and prevention potential and rated the abusiveness of the case. Individualism and collectivism attitudes of the participants were also measured. While the highest blame ratings were attributed to perpetrators, significantly more blame was attributed to the family and to society than to the victim. The demonstration of the present attributions of blame to family and to society is a timely finding given recent recommendations to broaden approaches to child abuse prevention by moving away from a reliance on school based child protection programs, which leave the onus on the child to prevent and report abuse, toward a public health approach, which is particularly inclusive of parent and community education approaches . Allocation of some blame to victims, in spite of their status as children, while not a unique finding in victimology research, emphasizes the challenges still to be faced in encouraging the reporting of child sexual abuse.     

Child Abuse Prevention During Infancy: Intervention Implications for Caregivers' Attitudes Toward Emotion Regulation

Increasing numbers of states are in the process of passing laws requiring all new parents to receive educational materials to prevent shaken baby syndrome (SBS). These laws create powerful opportunities to reach large numbers of families with an important prevention effort. Results from the effort to raise SBS awareness described here indicate that not only is the content of SBS prevention (e.g., consequences of shaking; emotion regulation/coping skills; safety planning) an important consideration; so too is the approach any given prevention program utilizes. By incorporating social work theory on family-centered practice, social workers, home visitors, and other prevention professionals strengthen the likelihood of having a meaningful impact on caregivers' safe strategies for coping with the frustrations of caring for an infant.     

The vital few foster mothers

Many foster parents serve only briefly, and foster and adopt few children. Anecdotal reports suggest that a small percentage of foster parents provide a disproportionate amount of care; however, we know virtually nothing about these parents. This study applied the Pareto Principle, also known as the 80–20 rule or Vital Few, as a framework to conceptualize these foster parents. Using latent class analysis, two classes of mothers were identified: one accounted for 21% of mothers and the other 79%. We refer to the former as the Vital Few and the latter as the Useful Many. Vital Few mothers fostered 73% of foster children — 10 times more than Useful Many mothers although only fostering three times longer. They adopted twice as many foster children while experiencing half the yearly rate of placement disruptions. Vital Few mothers were less likely to work outside the home, had better parenting attitudes, more stable home environments, more time to foster, and more professional support for fostering, but less support from kin. Further, they were as competent as the Useful Many on numerous other psychosocial measures. Understanding characteristics of these resilient Vital Few can inform recruitment and retention efforts and offer realistic expectations of foster parents.     

Breve comentario sobre el estudio de los conceptos de emoción

Resumen

Las tareas de grupo han sido una temática de amplio interés en décadas pasadas, proponiéndose diferentes modelos que han abordado sus posibles tipos así como sus dimensiones nucleares. En este artículo se propone un modelo de las tareas de grupo (el MITAG o modelo de incertidumbre de las tareas del grupo) que sintetiza e integra las principales dimensiones propuestas por modelos anteriores. Se presenta una escala que permite su evaluación así como una primera validación del modelo en una muestra de 164 personas pertenecientes a 34 grupos de 3 organizaciones. El análisis factorial revela una estructura de cuatro factores (con el 45% de la varianza explicada), con dos factores nucleares que explican el 36,9% de la varianza (claridad de objetivos y de procedimientos y requerimientos múltiples) y otros dos factores menores (elección entre múltiples formas/familiaridad y conflicto de demandas).     

FEMALE TACTICS AND STRATEGIES OF INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE: A STUDY OF INCIDENT REPORTS

Researchers have debated the extent to which females pursue violence against their male partners for purposes of enforcing or resisting control. In an effort to shed light on this important topic, we examined 43 incident reports of women who were court-referred to a batterer intervention program to explore how and why they engaged in intimate partner violence. Our analysis of the reports revealed that the most common tactic of physical violence was pushing and the most common tactic of psychological violence was intimidation. The motive to enforce was observed in the majority of the incident reports, while attempts to resist, retaliate, and punish occurred in about one third of the reports. We also found that female violence typically occurred in the contexts of anger and fear. The implications of our research for violence intervention programs are discussed.     

Multidimensional risk profiles on teen parenthood: Evidence from Britain in the 1970S

Research on the antecedents of teen parenthood has most often focused on the family of origin as the primary locus for understanding parenthood risk; however, several theoretical perspectives promote the inclusion of multiple domains of adolescents’ lives for understanding behavior. Using data from a British cohort who grew up during the 1970s (the National Child Development Study), this study considers the degree to which family characteristics from the teenage years mediate and are mediated by physical development, psychosocial characteristics, academic performance and attitudes, and future plans. Multidimensional risk factors show little variation by gender; however, risk factors differ according to the marital status of the teen when she or he became a parent.     

Social connectedness among international students at an Australian university

A representative sample of undergraduate and postgraduate international students at a large Australian university (n = 979, 64% females) completed a mail-back survey examining their perceptions of social connectedness. Four aspects of social connectedness were investigated: (1) connectedness in Melbourne, (2) social mixing and interaction with co-culturals and Australians, (3) involvement in organisations, associations and groups, and (4) connections to home and family. The majority of students report being well-connected to others in Melbourne, although some desire increased personal support from people who know and care about them. Connectedness in Melbourne is related to students’ cultural background and communication skills in the new culture and their evaluation of their perceived academic progress. Students from Asian countries reveal different patterns to other students, especially in the relationships between connectedness and interactions with co-culturals. Awareness of these and other differences among international students from varying cultural backgrounds can help target assistance in achieving a sense of well-being.     

Reporting quality data on your hospital website: what? why? how?

Explore the challenges in making performance improvement data publicly available on hospital websites, and consider some practical tips and suggestions for aligning organizational goals with community and consumer needs.     

In sickness and in health: A qualitative study of elderly men who care for wives with dementia

It is estimated that approximately 1,000,000 elderly men care for spouses with Alzheimer's disease or other forms of cognitive impairment, yet we have only a limited understanding of their work, and central questions arise. What do men caregivers do, and what meanings do they ascribe to their work? What are their distinctive strengths and vulnerabilities, and what can we learn about men and caregiving from their stories? This qualitative study was based on in-depth, open-ended interviews with 14 elderly men who are primary caregivers to wives with dementia. All interviews were taped, transcribed, and manually coded. The resulting information then underwent analysis from which three major themes emerged: feelings of isolation and invisibility of their care work, a style of caregiving that jointly utilizes management and nurturing, and feelings of commitment, responsibility, and devotion.