Cultural Cognition and Public Policy: The Case of Outpatient Commitment Laws

What explains controversy over outpatient commitment laws (OCLs), which authorize courts to order persons with mental illness to accept outpatient treatment? We hypothesized that attitudes toward OCLs reflect “cultural cognition” (DiMaggio, P. Annl Rev Sociol 23:263–287, 1997), which motivates individuals to conform their beliefs about policy-relevant facts to their cultural values. In a study involving a diverse sample of Americans (N = 1,496), we found that individuals who are hierarchical and communitarian tend to support OCLs, while those who are egalitarian and individualistic tend to oppose them. These relationships, moreover, fit the cultural cognition hypothesis: that is, rather than directly influencing OCL support, cultural values, mediated by affect, shaped individuals’ perceptions of how effectively OCLs promote public health and safety. We discuss the implications for informed public deliberation over OCLs.     

Playing the race card: Making race salient in defence opening and closing statements

Purpose. Researchers have reported that making a Black defendant's race salient reduces White jurors' tendency to find Black defendants guilty ( Sommers & Ellsworth, 2000 ). We examined whether making race salient by including racially salient statements in the defence attorney's opening and closing statements (i.e., ‘playing the race card’) reduced White jurors' racial bias against a Black defendant. Method. We obtained scores on racial attitudes for 151 White college students who participated in an experiment where defendant race (Black, White) and race salience (not salient, salient) were manipulated in a between‐subjects design. Participants read one of four trial stimuli and completed dependent measures. Results. ‘Playing the race card’ reduced White juror racial bias as White jurors' ratings of guilt for Black defendants were significantly lower when the defence attorney's statements included racially salient statements. White juror ratings of guilt for White defendants and Black defendants were not significantly different when race was not made salient. This effect was separate from jurors' level of prejudice (as measured by racial attitudes) as high prejudice participants were more likely than low prejudice participants to find the Black defendant guilty, independent of the race salience manipulation. Conclusion. Our study indicated that an explicit attempt by a defence attorney to ‘play the race card’ was a beneficial trial strategy a defence attorney could use to reduce White jurors' bias towards Black defendants. However, the beneficial effect of such a strategy may not reduce White jurors' bias towards Black defendants for all White jurors.     

When second best is good enough: a comparison between a true experiment and a regression discontinuity quasi-experiment

In this paper, we compare the results from a randomized clinical trial to the results from a regression discontinuity quasi-experiment when both designs are implemented in the same setting. We find that the results from the two approaches are effectively identical. We attribute the comparability in part to recent statistical developments that make the model required for the analysis of data from a regression discontinuity design easier to determine. These developments make an already strong quasi-experimental design even stronger.     

Family Support Groups for family members of mentally ill offenders: a pilot study

To date, there is a lack of family interventions for family members of persons with a mental illness who offended (PMIO). With the aim of addressing this issue, a Family Support Group (FSG) has been developed. The current pilot study investigated the impact of two pilot FSGs for family members of PMIO in relation to quality of life, burden, coping strategies, and resilience. Family members completed several questionnaires (i.e. WHOQOL-BREF, ZBI-22, CERQ, RS-nl) both before and after the group intervention. A total of 20 family members participated in both FSGs. The results indicated that participants experienced less self-blame, a decrease in loss of control over their lives, and improved emotional well-being. The findings showed that attending an FSG can be empowering for family members as it offers support in the management of emotional experiences and coping strategies.     

Sudden Death Secondary to an Undiagnosed B‐Cell Lymphoma of the Hypopharynx and Infiltration of the Inferior Constrictor Muscle

The aim of this presentation was to share an uncommon form of sudden death, suffered by a 64‐year‐old woman, due to a mechanical obstruction of hypopharynx by an undiagnosed B‐cell lymphoma, infiltrating the inferior pharyngeal constrictor muscle. A forensic approach by means of scene investigation, circumstantial data collection, autopsy, and histological and toxicological investigations led to conclude that the cause of death was asphyxia, correlated with B‐cell lymphoma of the hypopharynx. The autopsy examination highlighted the presence of a wall thickening, infiltrating, and projecting into the hypopharynx lumen. The histological analysis showed the essential finding of a B‐cell lymphoma of the hypopharynx, diffusely infiltrating the inferior pharyngeal constrictor muscle. To conclude, this case demonstrates once more that in the absence of specific data, a thorough forensic investigation including autopsy, histological examination, and circumstantial data collection is mandatory to reach a correct cause of death.     

Voluntary policing in Sweden: media reports of contemporary forms of police–citizen partnerships

Many Western-style democracies have witnessed a general shift in the distribution of crime prevention responsibility, away from the state and increasingly to citizens themselves. Civil society is today more and more often called upon as an additional policing resource. This article explores the phenomenon of voluntary citizen participation in policing in Sweden, based on an analysis of 9280 news-media articles. One state-sanctioned (the Volunteers of the Police) and one autonomous civic (Missing People Sweden) initiative were examined, from their respective start until 2017, to understand the role played by police–citizen partnerships in the establishment and legitimation of voluntary policing forms in Sweden. A high degree of integration between police and volunteer work was found, enabling not only effective citizen participation, but also having an influence on police operations. The more effective and publicly visible the voluntary policing bodies were, the more pressure there was on the police to defend its legitimacy, ally itself with the volunteers and regulate the latter’s activities while holding them responsible for their actions. Arguably, however, with the police–citizen relationship being one of integration and mutual dependence, the division of labour and the accountability of both parties risk becoming blurred or even confused.     

Generational Effects on Attitudes to Communist Regimes: A Comparative Analysis

Based on survey data, collected in 1993 and 1994 from eleven post-communist societies (N = 13,614), the authors investigate empirically the extent to which generations differ in their retrospective evaluations of their defunct Communist political regimes and command economies. While the aggregate level of approval of the old regime varies between countries, within almost every country a similar pattern of generational differences is found: the youngest generation is least approving of the old regime. The generational effect remains when controls are introduced for education. Generational turnover, reinforced by changes in political socialization caused by the collapse of Communist regimes, is eroding nostalgia for a Communist past. And even among generations most nostalgic about the former political and economic orders, there is very little endorsement of a reactionary return to Communist rule. Journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: H19, P29.     

Right place,right time: Increasing the effectiveness of agricultural development support in sub-Saharan Africa

This paper suggests that smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) are well placed to seize the opportunities from expanding global and regional demand for agricultural products but that this will require a shift from extensive to more intensive production systems. The ability of SSA's smallholder farmers to increase on-farm investments in productivity is, however, constrained by their capacity to manage the risk-return trade-offs in moving towards intensified agriculture. While stakeholders are increasing their investments to assist smallholders in SSA to participate in integrated supply chains, the returns in terms of technical and financial results from these investments are generally lower than in other developing regions. This paper suggests that this is, at least in part, a consequence of problems associated with the role of spatial and temporal coordination in program delivery. Hence, much more focus needs to be devoted to delivering goods and services for smallholders at the right place and the right time, and this should be better monitored and evaluated in the context of development programs.     

Sibling incest: A literature review and a clinical study

Abstract

Few previous studies have explored the characteristics and dynamics of adolescent sibling incest. The objectives of this paper were twofold: first, to conduct a literature review that accounts for earlier research in the area, and secondly, to conduct a clinical study to explore differences regarding the characteristics of a group of adolescent sibling incest offenders (n=21) compared to a group of adolescent non-sibling offenders (n=24). Comparisons were made regarding variables such as family dysfunction, the offenders' prior victimization and offending behaviour. The data were derived from intake assessment files and semi-structured interviews with 45 adolescents who had sexually offended. The sibling incest offender group had grown up more often in dysfunctional families. Moreover, the results indicated that the offending behaviour in the sibling incest group was more severe. The study gives some empirical support for the possibility that sibling incest can be one sign, among others, of maltreatment during childhood.