Psychological Abuse in Young Couples: Risk Factors

ABSTRACT

In a study conducted at a major university in Spain, 648 university students between the ages of 17 and 23 years were assessed to identify the manifestations of psychological abuse prior to the consolidation of marital status (e.g., matrimony, start of cohabitation). To evaluate psychological abuse in the students’ intimate relationships, the authors created a Questionnaire on Psychological Abuse. Results show coercive patterns of interaction in the students’ dating relationships. Significant differences were found between men and women, with behavioral factors such as hostility, blaming, and abusive insistence. Future research is suggested that would permit changes in attitude and behavior to be introduced into dating relations.     

The role of attributions in the cognitive appraisal of work-related stressful events: An event-recording approach

Abstract

This paper describes a micro-analysis of the cognitive appraisal of daily stressful events in a sample of correctional officers (COs). More specifically, the authors examined whether three attribution dimensions mediated the relationship between the occurrence of stressful events and the ‘significance’ of these events, and whether the latter functioned as a mediator between the attribution dimensions on the one hand and negative affect (outcome variable) on the other. Convincing indications were found for the mediating role of the ‘significance’ of a stressful event, while weak indications were found for the mediating role of the attribution dimensions. Finally, the strengths and weaknesses of daily event-recording methods are discussed at length.     

Public Policies Addressed to the Social and Solidarity Economy in South America. Toward a New Model?

Since the beginning of this century, most South American countries have modified their position within society, challenging the self-regulating nature of markets and intervening in social issues. This approach supports the transition toward a “third-generation” model for the social policy field, one in which Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE) acquires a relevant role. In the last few years, many public policies have included SSE in their design, with the purpose of addressing the key issues of developing societies: unemployment and poverty. This article analyzes the main regulatory dimensions and conditionings of the national programs that promote SSE in South American countries and aim to enhance social inclusion and employment. Particularly, the article examines the most illustrative social programs implemented at the national level in Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador, Uruguay and Venezuela in the last decade.     

Talking Yiddish at the boundaries

This essay uses the contemporary urban consumption practice of speciality coffee as a means to explore the complex ways in which global brands seek to enhance the promotional currency of their products through the mobilizing of local ‘commodity biographies’. It begins by outlining the place-specific strategies of promotion employed by speciality coffee retailers such as Starbucks and the Seattle Coffee Company, examining the range of ways in which Seattle as centre of US ‘coffee culture’ was deployed as the locus of ‘origin’ in order to create lucrative distinctions between speciality coffee and homogenized, mass-market coffee products. It then places this symbolic geography of coffee within the long history of coffee as a global commodity, tracing the recent emergence of speciality coffee as a ‘niche’ product, and situating it in the context of restructuring urban economies geared towards service-sector, consumption-oriented activities. The essay then moves on to consider the difficulties encountered by Starbucks, the market leader in speciality coffee, in monitoring and manipulating the symbolic geographies of its coffee commodities as they migrated from the coffee shop and into other realms of representation. In particular it explores the issue of Starbucks’ product placement in the a number of motion pictures in the 1990s, arguing that such placements were embraced by the company as an opportunity to defuse criticism of the company's activities that amplified as the decade evolved. Finally, the essay looks at the high profile targeting of Starbucks coffee shops by protestors at the anti-globalization protests that accompanied the hosting of the 1999 WTO Ministerial Conference Meeting in Seattle, arguing that this moment can be seen to capture much of the complexity of mobilizing circumscribed place-specific ‘commodity biographies’ for a global product in an era characterized by increased scrutiny of the international division of labour.     

Elder abuse and neglect among veterans in Greater Los Angeles: prevalence, types, and intervention outcomes

This study examined the prevalence, types, and intervention outcomes of elder abuse/neglect among a veteran population. A review of medical records of 575 veterans who had received services from the Veteran's Affairs Geriatric Outpatient Clinic in Los Angeles during a three-year period found 31 veterans (5.4%) who had an elder abuse report filed on their behalf. Prevalence of elder abuse/neglect was higher among older (80+) and Caucasian and African American veterans. Eight of 31 victims suffered from more than one type of elder abuse including self-neglect. Financial abuse and self-neglect were the most commonly reported types. Family members were perpetrators in the majority of the cases, excluding self-neglect. However, three-quarters of financial abuse cases were committed by non-family members. Almost one-half of the victims had dementia and eight were clinically depressed. The most common intervention was to move victims from their unsafe home into a nursing home or board and care facility, followed by conservatorship arrangement. These interventions were most frequently used for victims with dementia, and conservatorship was often arranged with another type of intervention, such as a move to a nursing home. Victims who remained at home received conservatorship or outside supportive services or a combination of both. This study calls for more comprehensive and systematic research on elder abuse/neglect at multi-settings in order to generate useful information for prevention and detection of, and effective intervention in elder abuse and neglect in the veteran population.     

The recalled childhood gender questionnaire‐revised: A psychometric analysis in a sample of women with congenital adrenal hyperplasia

We administered the 18‐item Recalled Childhood Gender Questionnaire‐Revised (RCGQ‐R), female version, to 147 adult women with congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) representing three different degrees of prenatal androgenization due to 21‐hydroxylase deficiency and to non‐CAH controls. A principal components analysis generated 3 components accounting for 46%, 9%, and 6% of the variance, respectively. Corresponding unit‐weighted scales (high scores = feminine) were labeled Gender Role (13 items; Cronbach α = .91), Physical Activity (3 items; a = .64), and Cross‐Gender Desire (2 items; α = .47). Discriminant validity was demonstrated in terms of highly significant comparisons across the 4 groups. We concluded that the first 2 RCGQ‐R scales show good psychometric qualities, but that the third scale needs to be evaluated further in a sample that includes women with gender identity disorder.     

Sexual Orientation Moderates the Effect of Gender on Body Satisfaction: Results From a National Probability Sample

Body image concerns typically affect women more so than men, but there is reason to believe that this pattern may depend on sexual orientation. The present study examined differences in levels of body satisfaction among men and women who identified as heterosexual, plurisexual (bisexual and pansexual), gay, and lesbian, using data from a large-scale national probability sample from New Zealand (N = 17,005). As expected, heterosexual men reported higher body satisfaction than heterosexual women. Gay and plurisexual men reported lower body satisfaction than heterosexual men. Gay men also reported lower body satisfaction than lesbian women, and did not differ significantly from heterosexual and plurisexual women. Ratings of heterosexual, plurisexual, and lesbian women’s body satisfaction did not differ significantly. Results held when adjusting for a range of demographic covariates (including age and BMI), and highlight the importance of examining the psychological and health outcomes associated with poor body image among gay men. These findings emphasize the relevance of sexual orientation in understanding men’s body image-related issues.     

Rethinking and Revising Goode’s Contribution to Global Family Change

Abstract

This essay provides a comprehensive overview of William J. Goode’s contribution to the study of global family and social change. I begin by describing Goode’s theoretical perspectives and outlining his theses dating back to the 1960s. I then provide an assessment of where and why some of his predictions proved wrong and elaborate on what we have learnt on changes in families at the global level over the past half century. Lastly, I speculate on how Goode would rethink his arguments nowadays in light of fifty years of new evidence and scholarly developments – both theoretical and methodological. In so doing, I highlight shortcomings of current approaches and outline directions for future family research and theorizing.