Understanding perpetrators of nonphysical sexual coercion: characteristics of those who cross the line

Sexual coercion is defined here as a form of male sexual misconduct in which nonphysical tactics (e.g., verbal pressure) are utilized to gain sexual contact with an unwilling female partner. This study compares the risk characteristics of sexually coercive (n=81) and nonoffending college males (n=223) across several domains. Results revealed that sexual coercers differed from nonoffenders in that they more often subscribed to rape myths, viewed interpersonal violence as more acceptable, reported greater hostility toward females, and perceived male-female relationships as more inherently adversarial. In addition, compared to nonoffenders, sexually coercive males showed stronger indicators of promiscuity and delinquency, reported more psychopathic personality traits, had more empathic deficits, and were more likely to have experienced certain forms of childhood abuse. In most respects, coercers did not differ from those who reported engaging in more severe forms of sexual assault involving the use of physical force. These results suggest important differences between nonoffending males and those who "cross the line" by engaging in sexually coercive acts. In addition, consistent parallels can be drawn between the predictors of sexual coercion identified in this study and those documented in the sexual aggression (e.g., forcible rape) literature.     

Increased risk of alcohol abuse among college students living on the US-Mexico border: implications for prevention

Alcohol abuse is a serious problem for students on college campuses. The authors conducted a cross-sectional study to (1) compare measures of alcohol-risk behaviors among college students attending a university on the US-Mexico border with other students and (2) identify factors associated with risk behaviors among border students. They used a self-administered survey to collect data from 286 freshman and sophomore students. Rates of binge drinking were higher among study respondents than among respondents in a national survey of freshman and sophomore college students (46% vs 42% to 45%, respectively). Drinking in high school and drinking in Mexico were significantly associated with all outcomes (binge drinking, drinking and driving, and riding with a drinker). The findings underscore the need for targeted prevention programs among this high-risk population.     

Social work, siblings, and SIDS: conceptual and case-based guidance for family system intervention

Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) is a tragic loss event within the family, impacting adults as well as children. This article uses three case illustrations to discuss the role of a SIDS event on the family system with a special focus on the emergent challenges for surviving siblings of various ages. Practice application examples are woven throughout the review to illustrate the age-specific grief responses which may occur following a SIDS event. The article also presents a theoretically supported intervention matrix that integrates models of bereavement support and family system responses, taking into account children's varying developmental needs and tasks based on sibling age.     

Key considerations for logic model development in research partnerships: a Canadian case study

Community-academic partnership research is a fairly new genre of community-based participatory research. It has arisen in part, from recognition of the potential role of alliances in the development and translation of applied knowledge and the elimination of health disparities. This paper reports on the learning process of academic and community members who worked together in developing a logic model for a research program focusing on partnerships with vulnerable populations. The Partners in Community Health Research is a 6-year training program that seeks to combine research, training, and practice through the work of its "learning clusters". As these types of partnerships proliferate, the articulation and exploration of clear models will assist in their implementation. The authors, coming from both academia and community agencies, present a logic model meant to facilitate program management. Key considerations in the model's development are discussed in the context of an ongoing research partnership; namely, the complexity of the research partnership, power and accountability, alignment with health promotion policy, and the iterative nature of program design. Recommendations challenge academics, policy-makers, service providers, and community members to reflect on the elements needed to support and manage research partnerships and the tools necessary to ensure continued collaboration.     

Parenting as a moderator of minority, adolescent victimization and violent behavior in high-risk neighborhoods

Adolescent male youth in high-crime neighborhoods are at the greatest risk for personal victimization and violent behavior. The temporal relationship between victimization and violent behavior for minority youth in high-crime neighborhoods was examined to determine whether victimization is a risk factor for or by-product of violent behavior. Whether parenting and other control factors moderated the relationship between victimization and violent behavior was also examined. Interviews with 349 urban Hispanic and African American youth revealed that victimization was strongly associated with violent behavior and violent behavior was found to precede direct victimization. Race was found to moderate the relationship between parental attachment and violent behavior. African American youth with the highest levels of parental attachment also had the highest levels of violent behavior, while higher parental attachment for Latino youth was associated with lower violent behavior.     

Men's and Women's Interpretation and Endorsement of Items Measuring Self-Reported Heterosexual Aggression

Early research on sexual aggression (e.g., sexual coercion, sexual assault, and rape) mainly focused on men as perpetrators and women as victims; more recently, researchers have begun to investigate women as perpetrators of sexual aggression as well. However, most measures of sexual aggression perpetration were designed for use with men and have not been well validated with women. This study sought to examine two different measures of sexual aggression perpetration in terms of their convergent validity for both men and women and to examine gender differences and similarities in item interpretation using open-ended inquiries. Participants were 590 individuals (395 women, 195 men) with a mean age of 25 years (SD = 8.1) recruited from an undergraduate psychology subject pool and an online convenience sample. The majority of the sample was White (65.4%) and Black (20.3%). All measures were completed online anonymously. Results suggested that convergent validity for the two measures was less than optimal, particularly for women. Further, item interpretation analyses revealed that, compared to men, more than twice the percentage of women provided a false-positive response to one of the measures, suggesting that women may be more likely than men to endorse self-report perpetration items incorrectly.     

'If you could change one thing...' What community-based researchers wish they could have done differently

Community-based research (CBR) is rapidly gaining recognitionsas an important tool in addressing complex environmental, healthand social problems. CBR attempts to marry community developmentwith knowledge generation. However, little is known about theCanadian CBR context. This paper reports on the analysis ofan element within a web-based survey to investigate the statusof CBR in Canada. The survey included 25 questions. This paperfocuses on responses to one open-ended question (Q20): ‘Ifthere was one thing you could change about [your last CBR] project,what would it be?’ A content analysis approach guidedanalysis and responses were coded into main theme and subthemes.Our collective reflections offer other CBR practitioners anopportunity to more effectively plan future partnerships.