Brief Report: Attitudes About Responding to Survey Questions Concerning Childhood Sexual Abuse by Hispanic Female College Students

In no studies have research participants been asked how they feel about answering questions concerning childhood sexual abuse. We have performed searches from two different search engines again and have found nothing published which specifically addresses this question in the way we have. A questionnaire about childhood sexual abuse was administered to a sample of Mexican-American female college students. Over 32% reported positive histories of childhood sexual abuse before age 18. These subjects were more uncomfortable (37%) than those who did not experience childhood sexual abuse when answering questions about childhood sexual abuse (12%; p < 0.00001), but they were not more uncomfortable in answering questions about alcohol or drug use. Women who were sexually abused in childhood also readily disclosed childhood sexual abuse histories despite revealing discomfort about being asked questions concerning childhood sexual abuse. Our findings support concerns by researchers that childhood sexual abuse is neglected because researchers have an unwarranted perception about how fragile sexually abused subjects are as subjects.     

Remembering Norma (In Memory of Norma C. Lang, 1927–2012)

This tribute to Norma Lang, who died on June 26, 2012, recognizes her contributions to the field of social work and, especially, to social work with groups. Although Lang was a very private person who would not have approved of a tribute, she would have been pleased that a group effort contributed to this article. The group, dubbed the “Toronto Five” by coauthor Patricia Moffat, describes Dr. Norma C. Lang as a matriarch in the social work profession—a complex, strong, capable, and independent pillar with an incredible way of caring for us.     

The Living–Dying Interval in Nursing Home-Based End-of-Life Care: Family Caregivers' Experiences

Guided by concepts from the living–dying interval (Pattison, 1977 Pattison, E. M. 1977. The experience of dying, Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.  [Google Scholar]) this study sought to explore family members' experiences with a dying nursing home resident. In-depth interviews were conducted with 31 caregivers of residents who had died. Interviews were audiotaped and transcribed. Themes that illuminated families' experiences on the living–dying interval were: an acute medical crisis (trigger events, accumulation of stressors, level of care crisis); the living–dying phase (advance care planning, hospitalization, end-stage decisions); and the terminal phase (beginning of the end, awareness of dying). The results illustrate critical periods for social work intervention with families of dying nursing home residents.     

The association of affective and continuance commitment with correctional staff life satisfaction

Previous research suggests that life satisfaction is a stronger predictor of job performance than job satisfaction, and life satisfaction is negatively associated with absenteeism and a desire to retire early. Despite the fact that employees with high life satisfaction are essential for organizations’ optimal efficiency, little empirical research exists to determine the individual and workplace factors that shape and maintain high correctional staff life satisfaction levels. This study investigates the impact of two types of organizational commitment, continuance and affective, on correctional staff life satisfaction at two Midwestern prisons, one private and one public. Continuance commitment was negatively related and affective commitment was positively related with life satisfaction for staff in both prisons. Possible methods to increase affective commitment and life satisfaction for correctional staff are discussed.     

On Becoming a Pragmatic Researcher: The Importance of Combining Quantitative and Qualitative Research Methodologies

The last 100 years have witnessed a fervent debate in the USA about quantitative and qualitative research paradigms. Unfortunately, this has led to a great divide between quantitative and qualitative researchers, who often view themselves as in competition with each other. Clearly, this polarization has promoted purists, namely, researchers who restrict themselves exclusively either to quantitative or to qualitative research methods. Mono‐method research is the biggest threat to the advancement of the social sciences. Indeed, as long as we stay polarized in research, how can we expect stakeholders who rely on our research findings to take our work seriously? Thus, the purpose of this paper is to explore how the debate between quantitative and qualitative is divisive and, hence, counterproductive for advancing the social and behavioural science field. This paper advocates that all graduate students learn to utilize and to appreciate both quantitative and qualitative research. In so doing, students will develop into what we term as pragmatic researchers.     

Ambient air pollution and children’s cognitive outcomes

Population and Environment - Ambient air pollution remains a serious public health concern, with growing literature linking higher concentrations to adverse health effects among children....     

Predicting Vaccination Intention and Benefit and Risk Perceptions: The Incorporation of Affect,Trust, and Television Influence in a Dual‐Mode Model

Major health behavior change models tend to consider health decisions as primarily resulting from a systematic appraisal of relevant beliefs, such as the perceived benefits and risks of a pharmacological intervention. Drawing on research from the disciplines of risk management, communication, and psychology, this study proposed the inclusion of a heuristic route in established theory and tested the direction of influence between heuristic and systematic process variables. Affect and social trust were included as key heuristics in the proposed dual‐mode framework of health decision making. Furthermore, exposure to health‐related coverage on television was considered potentially influential over both heuristic and systematic process variables. To test this framework, data were collected from a national probability sample of 584 adults in the United States in 2012 regarding their decision to vaccinate against a hypothetical avian flu. The results provided some support for the bidirectional influence between heuristic and systematic processing. Affect toward flu vaccination and trust in the Food and Drug Administration were found to be powerful predictors of vaccination intention, enhancing intention both directly and indirectly via certain systematic process variables. The direction of influence between perceived susceptibility and severity, on the one hand, and affect, on the other, is less clear, suggesting the need for further research. Contrary to the opinion of media critics, exposure to televised health coverage was negatively associated with the perceived risks of vaccination. Results from this study carry theoretical and practical implications, and applying this model to the acceptance of different health interventions constitutes an area for future inquiries.     

‘Yes,but ... ’: When Separation Creates an Identity Vacuum

This paper explores the ethical and therapeutic dilemmas of working with clients who come in session after session with an intense need to rehearse and re-rehearse their own view, following a separation. This is a particularly difficult client group with which to work. Individuals may be suicidal, want help, and yet are much more aware of their own words than anyone else's. Four such clients are discussed. I will speculate why three out of four are male, look at the ethics of continuing to work with them, suggest possible strategies, and raise implications for therapist training. The ‘Yes, but ...’ is both the clients’ and mine.