Terrorism and Profiling

A key problem for counterterrorism is how large numbers of individuals can be screened most efficiently to discover terrorists. This question arises at security checkpoints of all kinds, from roadblocks to airline security counters. Some argue that certain categories of individuals, for instance, young Muslim men in the airline context, should be screened more heavily than others. Others deride this as racial profiling, and argue that any such scheme would be easily evaded. I examine a model of searching for terrorists among a population divided into categories that vary in their potential reliability or ease of recruitment as agents of terrorist attacks. The equilibria in the model feature profiling, in that different categories are searched with different intensities. Practical difficulties in implementing a rational profiling scheme are discussed.     

Six rather unexplored assumptions about al-Qaeda

For all of the prodigious output on the subject of al-Qaeda from scholars and policy-makers alike recently, a number of consequential assumptions about the group remain startlingly unexplored. This paper examines six such assumptions, revealing each one's foundational role in assertions and debates about al-Qaeda (and, in most cases, about terrorism more broadly) despite the relatively unexplored status of each. These six assumptions relate to: (1) the link between the causes or roots of al-Qaeda's violence and deep-rooted anti-Americanism; (2) the relationship between fighting ‘Al-Qaeda in Iraq’ and fighting al-Qaeda globally; (3) the effect of eliminating individual terrorists; (4) the strategic versus social sources of terrorists' motivation; (5) the demonstrative effects of increased homeland security; and (6) the role of the internet in actual terrorist activity.     

Screening procedures in the United Kingdom for positions of trust with children

Abstract

Child services organisations need policies that minimise the risk of sexual abuse of the children in their care. In particular, managers (and the public) are justifiably concerned when abuse is perpetrated by individuals who should not have been working with children in the first place. Unfortunately, there has been relatively little work on determining unacceptable risk for sexually abusive behaviour in child service organisations. The purpose of this paper is to describe the contexts in which screening procedures are appropriate, review the academic literature on screening procedures and present the results of a pilot survey of current screening practices in the United Kingdom. We comment on the effectiveness of screening measures available for use by organisations and provide suggestions for improvement. Specifically, we recommend that screening procedures consider risk factors associated with the onset and persistence of child sexual abuse perpetration.     

Dilemmas and consequences of prior criminal record: a criminological perspective from England and Wales

This article considers the contemporary architecture of criminal record usage in England and Wales. We focus upon impact on ‘employment status’, partly because work is often now seen as key to good health and other self-esteem indicators in the modern world. First, we examine in the context of England and Wales, (a) the development of the contemporary criminal record system and extent of availability of prior record information in terms of employment (and other licensing purposes) and (b) the factors that helped shape the current architecture. Second, this article outlines what is known from the British criminological literature on employment and conviction records and what more is needed in terms of criminological research. Finally, we consider how convictions become ‘spent’ – in particular the English approach to ‘expungement’/sealing of the criminal record according to the 1974 Rehabilitation of Offenders legislation.     

Using self-report inventories to assess recidivism risk among prisoners about to be released on parole supervision in Sweden

Prison release planning is rarely based on adequate assessment using evidence-based instruments. This study uses well-established self-reports for screening of problem severity and for predicting recidivism, measured as reconvictions during one-year following release, in prisoners about to be conditionally released on probation in Sweden between 2009 and 2010. One Hundred and six prisoners completed the following measures: Karolinska Scales of Personality, Hopkins Symptom Checklist-25, Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test, Drug Use Disorders Identification Test. Results show frequent mental health and substance use problems and high scores on the KSP psychopathy factor. Anxiety and problematic drug use were the two most important factors associated with one-year recidivism. Prior to release, self-reports could be useful for screening of problem severity, and for predicting recidivism.     

Brief mental health screening of prison entrants: psychiatric history versus symptom screening for the prediction of in-prison outcomes

While prisoners are known to suffer very high rates of mental illness, evidence is often lacking to inform the development of effective approaches to prison mental health service provision, including the approach to mental health screening. In addition, research to date has been dominated by prevalence studies and little is known about the mental health needs of prisoners over time. A random sample of prison entrants was recruited from a large remand and reception prison in New South Wales, Australia (n = 707) for the completion of a brief health survey. A second survey was completed during the subsequent six months (n = 317) in order to examine the effect of timing of assessment on mental health status. Those followed up within three months (n = 182) were further included in an analysis of predictive validity comparing the performance at baseline of self-reported history of previous diagnosis versus current symptom screening for psychological distress, in predicting subsequent mental illness. When assessed over six months from prison entry, mental health status was found to vary by timing of assessment. At prison entry, self-reported history of previous diagnosis of a mental health disorder was found to be a better predictor of mental illness over three months than screening for psychological distress.     

41种抗生素LC/MS联合测定的谱图库建立

目的建立常见41种抗生素LC/MS联合测定谱图库。方法采用ZORBAX sb-aq,2.1mm×150mm×3.5μm（带预柱）;柱温：30℃;流动相：甲酸（0.1%）甲醇和甲酸（0.1%）水溶液梯度条件;流速：0.4mL/min;通过电喷雾电离（ESI）,自动三级质谱检测。结果应用液质联用仪通用检测方法,得到了含有41种常见抗生素的自用质谱谱库和保留时间参数谱图库。通过谱图解卷积和保留时间锁定软件方法实现数据自动处理。结论该方法具有不易漏检和减少假阳性的优点,完全可替代手工检索质谱,可用于实际案件检验。     

When There Is No Blueprint: The Provision of Mental Health Services in Alternative School Programs for Suspended and Expelled Youth

A variety of alternative programs are being implemented in Canada and the United States for students who have exhibited conduct problems and who are suspended or expelled from their schools. Given the complexity of issues that these students frequently face, treatment must be multifaceted, wrap-around, delivered by trained professionals and be targeted to these students' unique biopsychosocial needs. This article reviews the literature on delivery of mental health services within the broader school-based context. Specific mental health issues endemic in the high-risk adolescent demographic are highlighted, and implications for mental health professionals, particularly psychologists, working with such individuals are discussed. Suggestions are made with respect to screening and assessment instruments and treatment.     

液相色谱-串联质谱法筛查鉴定203种毒品

目的建立203种毒品的液相色谱-串联质谱筛查鉴定方法。方法选用Accucore TM Phenyl/Hexyl苯基己基柱(100 mm×2.1 mm,2.6μm)为色谱柱,柱温50℃,以甲醇乙腈混合溶剂(体积比1:1,含0.1%甲酸和2 mmol/L甲酸铵)、水(含0.1%甲酸和2 mmol/L甲酸铵)作为流动相进行梯度洗脱,流速0.4 mL/min。质谱采用电喷雾正离子模式(ESI+)进行离子化,使用多反应监测(MRM)模式采集数据,总分析时间14 min。结果该方法实现了203种毒品的筛查鉴定分析,各目标物的方法检出限均为10 ng/mL。结论建立的筛查鉴定方法具有快速、准确、灵敏等优点,能够满足禁毒工作的日常需要。