State Weakness in Perspective: Strong Politico-Economic Networks in Georgia's Energy Sector

Taking the case of Georgia, this article considers the role of politico-economic networks in weakening the energy sector in a post-Soviet state. It is hypothesised that incentives, from financial gain to the provision of goods and services, encourage a multitude of actors to create an alternative system to the state. It concludes that in a weak state, networks have replaced legitimate channels of communication and no amount of foreign financial or technical assistance can make up for the lack of will among the stakeholders to develop an efficient energy system.     

Intergovernmental Organizations,Interaction, and Member State Interest Convergence

This article presents a general theory of how the interaction of state agents within intergovernmental organizations (IGOs) leads to a convergence in member state interests over time. The theory is based on the notion that, all else being equal, IGOs that facilitate more interaction between individuals from various states are conducive to greater member state interest convergence over time because there are more opportunities for agents from one or more member states to persuade agents from other member states to accept new ideas that affect how they define their states’ interests. I argue that such persuasion does not necessarily have to involve a shift in state identities but can also involve a diffusion of ideas about cause-and-effect relationships. Also, by focusing on IGOs as structures within which state agents interact, I argue against a narrow focus on socialization defined as the induction of new members into community norms. I present three hypotheses regarding which institutional attributes are conducive to member state interest convergence and test them using an original IGO data set. The findings are supportive of my general theory but provide some interesting support for existing theory that runs counter to one of the hypotheses presented here.     

Adolescent Sexual Debut and Later Delinquency

Does sexual debut (i.e., experiencing sexual intercourse for the first time) increase the risks of participating in later delinquent behavior? Does this risk increase if adolescents experience early sexual debut relative to the timing experienced by one’s peers? Although many factors have been linked to sexual debut, little research has examined whether sexual initiation is linked to later behavioral outcomes. Using data on adolescents participating in three waves of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (N=7,297), we examine the interconnections between sexual debut and later delinquency. In addition, we pay particular attention to the role of timing of sexual debut. We find that experiencing sexual debut is associated with delinquency one year later. In addition, those adolescents who experience early sexual debut relative to their peers are at higher risk of experiencing delinquency compared to those who debut on-time; adolescents who experience late sexual debut are the least likely to participate in delinquency. Moreover, the protective effect of late sexual debut appears to persist for several years. Findings are interpreted by drawing on developmental theory and life course research.     

The Resource Center for Separating and Divorcing Families: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on A Collaborative and Child‐Focused Approach to Alternative Dispute Resolution

The Resource Center for Separating and Divorcing Families (RCSDF) is a teaching model for providing interdisciplinary services to separating and divorcing families. The model was developed by the Honoring Families Initiative at the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System at the University of Denver. Services are provided by graduate and law students at the University of Denver, working side‐by‐side with a supervising licensed attorney, psychologist, and social worker. The experiential and interdisciplinary model of teaching and providing direct client services is the first of its kind in the United States. RCSDF students and staff seek to empower parents to make positive decisions about their family's future in a supportive and educational environment.

Key Points for the Family Court Community
• The current system of preparing graduate and law students for careers in family law is in need of improvement. This article provides information for educators and the family law community about the impact of interdisciplinary and experiential learning for students.
• Parents going through the transition of separation or divorce experience psychological and financial stressors that can create serious behavioral and adjustment issues for their children. The RCSDF works in a holistic manner with parents and children to minimize the levels of stress and anxiety during the transition.

     

School-Based Prevention of Problem Behaviors: A Meta-Analysis

This study examines the features of effective school-based prevention of crime, substance use, dropout/nonattendance, and other conduct problems. It summarizes, using meta-analytic techniques, results from 165 studies of school-based prevention activities that ranged from individual counseling or behavior modification programs through efforts to change the way schools are managed. The results highlight several inadequacies in the existing research for guiding policy and practice, the most notable of which is that many popular school-based prevention approaches have not been well studied to date. The study shows, however, that school-based prevention practices appear to be effective in reducing alcohol and drug use, dropout and nonattendance, and other conduct problems. The size of the average effect for each of the four outcomes was small and there was considerable heterogeneity across studies in the magnitude of effects, even within program type after adjusting for measured method and population differences. Non-cognitive-behavioral counseling, social work, and other therapeutic interventions show consistently negative effects, whereas self-control or social competency promotion instruction that makes use of cognitive-behavioral and behavioral instructional methods show consistently positive effects. Also effective are noninstructional cognitive-behavioral and behavioral methods programs. Environmentally focused interventions appear to be particularly effective for reducing delinquency and drug use.