Childhood Maltreatment,Bullying Victimization,and Psychological Distress Among Gay and Bisexual Men

Sexual minority men report higher psychological distress than heterosexual men, including depression and anxiety. Research suggests that these health disparities may be due to the heightened stressors that gay, lesbian, and bisexual individuals experience. Some of these stressors occur early on in life, such as childhood abuse and bullying, and may include stressors that are topically related to sexual minority status, such as anti-gay bullying and teasing for gender nonconformity to masculine gender norms. We tested a structural equation model on the association between negative childhood experiences and adult psychological distress among 304 gay and bisexual men. The model fit the data well, and demonstrated an indirect effect of negative childhood experiences on adult psychological distress via dysfunctional thoughts toward oneself. The results integrate the childhood abuse and anti-gay bullying victimization literatures by showing that both forms of adverse childhood experiences are associated with adult psychological distress. The findings suggest the benefit of treatments to reduce negative, dysfunctional thoughts among gay and bisexual men who have experienced adverse childhood events.     

The Influence of Attachment Styles on Sexual Communication Behavior

Attachment theory is one of the major theoretical frameworks for understanding romantic relationships. Attachment styles are formed through interactions with caregivers and shape an individual’s expectations of subsequent interpersonal relationships. In this study, we examined how attachment styles influence participants’ ability to communicate with their partners about problems in their sexual relationship. A community sample of 81 couples engaged in two video-recorded discussions, one representing an aspect of the couple’s sexual relationship where the male partner wanted change and the second representing an aspect of the sexual relationship where the female partner wanted change. Conversations were then coded, with each person being rated on three positive communication dimensions (positive affect, offering solutions, and responsiveness) and three negative communication dimensions (hostility, negative affect, and unskilled communication behaviors). As predicted, attachment avoidance was related to more negative and less positive communication for both the individual and his or her partner. Our observational data did not reveal any significant effects of attachment anxiety on sexual communication. These results can be contrasted with findings from self-report studies that do suggest an anxious attachment adversely impacts sexual communication.     

‘Scarred’ young entrepreneurs. Exploring young adults’ transition from former unemployment to self-employment

The recent increase in youth unemployment has major implications for the current and future development of European labour markets. Previous studies reveal the long lasting ‘scarring effects’ of early unemployment experience on later career prospects, including a higher probability of future unemployment or social exclusion. Self-employment is often advocated as a potential remedy for unemployment in general and youth unemployment in particular. In this study, we investigate the individual-level factors that lead young people with the ‘scar’ of previous unemployment to engage in self-employment. Based on a recent survey among young adults in eleven European countries, we show that previous unemployment has a significant moderating effect on other individual-level characteristics usually associated with a higher likelihood of being self-employed. While the overall propensity of self-employment is not affected by unemployment experience, the reasons for becoming one’s own boss differ considerably between those young adults who have and those who have not experienced unemployment in the past.     

Affect and Sexual Responsivity in Men With and Without a History of Sexual Aggression

Despite increased attention to understanding risk factors for sexual aggression, knowledge regarding the emotional and sexual arousal patterns of sexually aggressive men remains limited. The current study examined whether sexually aggressive men exhibit unique profiles of affective responsivity, in particular to negatively valenced stimuli, as well as sexual arousal patterns that differentiate them from nonaggressive men. We presented 78 young men (38 sexually aggressive; 40 nonaggressive) with a series of videos designed to induce positive, sad, or anxious affect. Affect and subjective sexual arousal were assessed following each film and erectile responses were measured continuously. Sexually aggressive men reported significantly higher levels of sexual arousal following both the positive and negative conditions as compared to nonaggressive men. Erectile responses of sexually aggressive men were significantly greater than nonaggressive men’s following the positive affect induction. Self-reported positive affect, but not negative affect, was a significant predictor of subjective sexual arousal for both groups of men. Compared to nonaggressive men, sexually aggressive men showed significantly weaker correlations between subjective and physiological sexual arousal. Findings suggest that generalized heightened propensity for sexual arousal may be a risk factor for sexually aggressive behavior.     

Responses to birth trauma and prevalence of posttraumatic stress among Australian midwives

Background

Midwives frequently witness traumatic birth events. Little is known about responses to birth trauma and prevalence of posttraumatic stress among Australian midwives.

Pregnant adolescent women’s perceptions of depression and psychiatric services in the United States

Problem

Adolescent mothers and their children are at high-risk for depression and the associated negative educational, social, health, and economic outcomes.

Perceived social support in Chinese parents of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in a Chinese context: Implications for social work practice

This article reports the results of a Hong Kong study (no. of parents = 121) which identified perceived social support (PSS), both overall and four types of support, of Chinese parents of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and examined the impact of PSS on the interrelationship between the ADHD symptoms and parenting stress. The parents perceived support of their primary social network as more satisfactory than professionals’. Parenting stress of the high PSS group was lower than the low PSS group’s. The PSS-overall, parenting role, and the ADHD symptoms explained a significant variance of parenting stress. The results pave the way to develop a complex social work model in helping.     

Local Digital Algorithms Applied to Boolean Models

We investigate the estimation of specific intrinsic volumes of stationary Boolean models by local digital algorithms; that is, by weighted sums of local configuration counts. We show that asymptotically unbiased estimators for the specific surface area or integrated mean curvature do not exist if the dimension is at least two or three, respectively. For three‐dimensional stationary isotropic Boolean models, we derive asymptotically unbiased estimators for the specific surface area and integrated mean curvature. For a Boolean model with balls as grains, we even obtain an asymptotically unbiased estimator for the specific Euler characteristic.     

The birth of 'MidPLUS': Australia's new national continuing professional development program for midwives

The national continuing professional development (CPD) program of the Australian College of Midwives, MidPLUS, was officially launched in September 2007. In our role as program developers we were dedicated to the belief that this national CPD program would be an important step for Australian midwives, and contribute to demonstrating a commitment to providing safe and effective care for Australian women and families. This paper outlines key issues involved in providing CPD programs for professional groups and highlights how this information was used in the decision making behind the design of MidPLUS. The key operational elements of CPD programs included program design, program administration and related professional issues. Important features and functions of the MidPLUS program are highlighted and justification is given for our overall design. This information may assist midwives who are considering using the MidPLUS program and are asking the question: CPD-what does it mean for me?