The Use of Discordant MZ Twins to Generate Hypotheses regarding Non-shared Environmental Influence on Anxiety in Middle Childhood

Non‐shared environmental influence (NSE) has been found to account for around 50 percent of anxiety variance, but specific NSE factors have not been identified. Discordant monozygotic (MZ) twins can be used to generate relevant hypotheses because MZ discordance can be caused by NSE, but not by genes or shared environment. Of 1590 MZ pairs teacher rated for anxiety at the age of seven, we selected the most discordant 19 pairs and conducted interviews with them and their mothers. In explaining discordant anxiety, the mothers emphasised negative school experiences, comparisons within the twin relationship, and illness and accidents. During the maternal interviews neonatal life events, parent–child relationships and peer rejection also emerged as potential NSE sources.     

SELF, IDENTITY, AND DIFFERENCE:

Interesting parallels exist between the thought of George Herbert Mead and some of the writings of contemporary poststructuralists. Both stress the importance of language, the dynamic character of social and cultural life, and the unstable relations of difference. However, where poststructuralists tend to reduce subjectivity and meaning to discourse, Mead sees the subject in behavioral terms and as constituted in a social self. A comparison and contrast of the two approaches reveals limitations of the poststructuralist conception while demonstrating the strengths of Meadian pragmatism and social psychology. Of special importance, Meadian theory implicitly addresses questions of identity and difference, offering a social pragmatic foundation for a discussion of these contemporary themes. The weaknesses of poststructuralism are illustrated by a Meadian critique of the work of Judith Butler, a leading poststructuralist thinker. This critique faults Butler's poststructuralism for lacking an adequate conception of social relations and a notion of self.     

The emotional abuse of elite child athletes by their coaches

This study investigates the prevalence of emotional abuse of elite child athletes by their coaches in the UK. Previous research has focused primarily on the parent–child relationship, with little attention given to date on the sports environment. Participants were 12 former elite child athletes who competed as internationals in their respective age groups. All participants had been identi?ed as elite athletes between the ages of 8 and 16 years (M = 13.1 yr, SD = 2.4 yr) and had competitive careers of between 6 and 10 years. Participants were from the sports of diving (N = 2), football (N = 3), gymnastics (N = 4), hockey, netball and track and ?eld athletics (N = 1 each). The study was a retrospective analysis of their experiences as elite child athletes. (Age at interview: M = 22.9 yr, SD = 0.9 yr. male = 4, female = 8.) Thus, participants were re?ecting on experiences from about 10 years previously, so their responses represented the residual impact of their experiences that had survived over this period. Data were collected using semi‐structured interviews and response‐coding techniques. Abusive behaviours were categorized under eight headings: belittling, humiliating, shouting, scapegoating, rejecting, isolating, threatening and ignoring. Results showed that all (N = 12) of the participants reported experiencing belittling and shouting by their coach, nine athletes reported frequent threatening behaviour, nine reported frequent humiliation, seven reported scapegoating, six reported rejection or being ignored and four reported being isolated when they were elite child athletes. All participants reported that the behaviour of their coaches changed and became more negative after they were identi?ed as elite performers. Participants reported feeling stupid, worthless, upset, less con?dent, humiliated, depressed, fearful and angry as a result of the behaviour of their coaches. The results provide tentative evidence that the behaviour of some coaches is a threat to the psychological well‐being of elite child athletes. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Simulating percentile points: stopping rules,precision, and scale

Two stopping rules are defined for the purpose of minimizing the number of iterations needed to provide simulated percentile points with a certain precision: one stopping rule is a result of defining precision relative to the scale of the random variable while the other is a result of defining precision relative to the tail area of the distribution. A simulation experiment is conducted to investigate the effects of the stopping rules as well as the effects of changes in scale. The effects of interest are the precision of the simulated percentile point and the number of iterations needed to achieve that precision. It is shown that the stopping rules are effective in reducing the number of iterations while providing an acceptable precision in the percentile points. Also, increases in scale produce increases in the number of iterations and/or decreases in certain measures of precision     

Breaking the boardroom gender barrier: the human capital of female corporate directors

Although there is a paucity of female corporate directors in Canada, women are slowly managing to break the gender barrier of all-male boards of directors. Using resource dependency theory a model is developed that identifies the human capital characteristics that contribute to a woman being appointed to an all-male board. The model is tested on a sample of 193 Canadian firms that appointed women to their boards of directors between 1996 and 2004. The results show that women who are appointed to all-male boards have specialized knowledge skills; either they have firm-specific knowledge as insiders, or they are support specialists with a specific financial or legal expertise.     

“Be Ye Transformed”: The Sexual Storytelling of Ex-gay Participants

The ex-gay movement in the United States has, for the last three decades, argued that there can be “freedom from homosexuality.” We draw from eighteen in-depth, semi-structured interviews with individuals seeking help from an ex-gay ministry for same-sex attractions. We argue that the testimonies that “ex-gays” or “strugglers” we spoke with represent a distinct genre of story, what Kenneth Plummer would call a “sexual story,” such as, for example, lesbian and gay coming out narratives. We find that elements of each type of narrative are flexible and culturally resonant across subcultures, demonstrating the creativity with which social movements and individuals construct and reconstruct themselves.     

Proprietary rehabilitation: Challenges and opportunities in the new millennium

Proprietary rehabilitation has developed into a distinct professional sector with procedures, practices, and philosophy that differ from those in the public rehabilitation program. As the new millennium commences, proprietary rehabilitation will face a variety of challenges and opportunities that could affect the future of this sector of the rehabilitation profession. Among these issues are changes in occupational information upon which many proprietary rehabilitation practices are based; increased opportunities for early intervention and establishment of disability management programs within industry; adjustment to the movement to a managed health care system; and the necessity to demonstrate fiscal efficacy of rehabilitation services to workers with compensable injuries. This article discusses these issues and suggests some ways in which those involved in proprietary rehabilitation can properly position themselves to address and benefit from these challenges and opportunities.     

What date/acquaintance rape victims tell others: a study of college student recipients of disclosure

The authors surveyed 828 college students and found that approximately one third (n = 282) of the respondents reported that one or more women had told them that they had been raped by their dates or acquaintances. The 282 respondents who knew 1 or more victims of date/acquaintance rape reported on a total of 396 victims. The number of victims identified by respondents ranged from 1 to 3 or more (1 = 73%; 2 = 19%, 3 = 5%, > or = 4 = 3%). Reactions to disclosure offered by these respondents were generally supportive of the victim. The respondents' reactions suggested that there is a continuing need to educate students about the incidence and risks associated with date/acquaintance rape and the possibility of disclosure, particularly by friends or dating partners, and brought out some possible helpful and some counterproductive reactions to such disclosures.