Correlates of partner abuse in male same-sex relationships

We investigated correlates of partner abuse in male same-sex relationships in a randomly selected community sample (N = 186). We included factors associated with abuse in heterosexual relationships, as well as factors of relevance to gay relationships. We assessed perpetration and receipt of partner abuse to examine whether variables were associated independently with abuse perpetration and/or receipt. Correlates of same-sex partner abuse were largely parallel to established correlates of heterosexual abuse. Income, education, and attachment orientation were associated with bidirectional partner abuse, and family violence and substance use were uniquely associated with victimization. Further, there were factors unique to same-sex partner abuse; HIV status and public outness were associated with bidirectional partner abuse, and internalized homophobia was uniquely associated with abuse perpetration.     

The ethical issues in uranium mining research in the Navajo Nation

We explore the experience of Navajo communities living under the shadow of nuclear age fallout who were subjects of five decades of research. In this historical analysis of public health (epidemiological) research conducted in the Navajo lands since the inception of uranium mining from the 1950s untill the end of the 20th century, we analyze the successes and failures in the research initiatives conducted on Navajo lands, the ethical breaches, and the harms and benefits that this research has brought about to the community. We discuss how scientific and moral uncertainty, lack of full stakeholder participation and community wide outreach and education can impact ethical decisions made in research.     

Combining key elements in training and research: Developing social work assessment theory and practice in partnership

This paper is based on a joint project between staff from a university department of social work and a local social services department and is jointly written by the four people involved. It reports on the development of a package of training and research over the past 5 years designed to improve standards of assessment in the work of child and family social workers employed by the authority. It analyses the positive reception given to the project both from practising social workers and from management. It contends that this model of combining theory, training, research and practice can and should be used more widely as a basis for supporting and developing professional social work. It discusses the introduction of a theoretical framework which anticipated the new national framework for assessment, but which has been used to critically assess it (as well as other models of assessment), and has involved experienced workers in their evaluation.     

Social networks and immigration stress among first‐generation Mandarin‐speaking Chinese immigrants in Los Angeles

This study examined relationships between social networks and immigration stress among first‐generation Chinese immigrants. Using data from a larger study of health behavior among first‐generation Mandarin/English‐speaking immigrants residing in the Los Angeles metropolitan area (N = 1,183), this study found that Chinese immigrants living closer to immediate family and maintaining larger social networks experienced lower immigration stress. Unexpectedly, immigrants with larger family sizes and who participated in voluntary associations (e.g., religious, alumni, and nationality associations) reported increased immigration stress. The findings suggest that practitioners need to be cautious of a possible downside in designing interventions to expand social networks among immigrant clients. The study is especially important in the context of a rapidly increasing immigrant population from Mainland China to the USA. Key Practitioner Message: ● Working with immigration families should incorporate assessment of their social network; ● Interventions designed to facilitate supportive social networks should differentiate different social network ties; ● Different social network ties may affect the stress level of immigrants differently.     

Incentives Policies to Site Hazardous Waste Facilities

This paper addresses the use of mitigation and compensation as incentives policies to stimulate agreement between parties interested in siting a hazardous waste facility and potential host communities. We develop a model of facility siting that distinguishes five key factors which influence the acceptability of a proposed facility when considered in relation to status quo conditions. This model then is used to examine the effectiveness of different incentives policies with regard to (a) mitigating the perceived risks and (b) compensating the adverse impacts of a hazardous waste facility.     

The Impact of Cytochrome P450 2E1-Dependent Metabolic Variance on a Risk-Relevant Pharmacokinetic Outcome in Humans

Risk assessments include assumptions about sensitive subpopulations, such as the fraction of the general population that is sensitive and the extent that biochemical or physiological attributes influence sensitivity. Uncertainty factors (UF) account for both pharmacokinetic (PK) and pharmacodynamic (PD) components, allowing the inclusion of risk-relevant information to replace default assumptions about PK and PD variance (uncertainty). Large numbers of human organ donor samples and recent advances in methods to extrapolate in vitro enzyme expression and activity data to the intact human enable the investigation of the impact of PK variability on human susceptibility. The hepatotoxicity of trichloroethylene (TCE) is mediated by acid metabolites formed by cytochrome P450 2E1 (CYP2E1) oxidation, and differences in the CYP2E1 expression are hypothesized to affect susceptibility to TCE's liver injury. This study was designed specifically to examine the contribution of statistically quantified variance in enzyme content and activity on the risk of hepatotoxic injury among adult humans. We combined data sets describing (1) the microsomal protein content of human liver, (2) the CYP2E1 content of human liver microsomal protein, and (3) the in vitro Vmax for TCE oxidation by humans. The 5th and 95th percentiles of the resulting distribution (TCE oxidized per minute per gram liver) differed by approximately sixfold. These values were converted to mg TCE oxidized/h/kg body mass and incorporated in a human PBPK model. Simulations of 8-hour inhalation exposure to 50 ppm and oral exposure to 5 micro g TCE/L in 2 L drinking water showed that the amount of TCE oxidized in the liver differs by 2% or less under extreme values of CYP2E1 expression and activity (here, selected as the 5th and 95th percentiles of the resulting distribution). This indicates that differences in enzyme expression and TCE oxidation among the central 90% of the adult human population account for approximately 2% of the difference in production of the risk-relevant PK outcome for TCE-mediated liver injury. Integration of in vitro metabolism information into physiological models may reduce the uncertainties associated with risk contributions of differences in enzyme expression and the UF that represent PK variability.     

“Get Therapy and Work on It”: Managing Dissent in an Intentional Community

Based on two years of fieldwork in an intentional community that was officially both egalitarian and therapeutic, we examine how community founders used a discourse of liberation psychotherapy to maintain power over newcomers. When newcomers expressed their desire for more financial accountability or for limiting the expression of anger, the founders managed such dissent by (1) reframing community problems as psychological issues, (2) discrediting critics as psychologically troubled, and (3) emotionally attacking recalcitrant newcomers. In contrast to those who argue that a discourse emphasizing emotions fosters equality within social movement and utopian communities, we show that it depends on how people use the discourse. Our study points to the importance of interaction for research on discourse as well as the importance of discourse for an interactionist approach to power.