Sex offender punishment and the persistence of penal harm in the U.S

The U.S. has dramatically revised its approach to punishment in the last several decades. In particular, people convicted of sex crimes have experienced a remarkable expansion in social control through a wide-range of post-conviction interventions. While this expansion may be largely explained by general punishment trends, there appear to be unique factors that have prevented other penal reforms from similarly modulating sex offender punishment. In part, this continuation of a “penal harm” approach to sex offenders relates to the past under-valuing of sexual victimization. In the “bad old days,” the law and its agents sent mixed messages about sexual violence and sexual offending. Some sexual offending was mere nuisance, some was treatable, and a fraction “deserved” punishment equivalent to other serious criminal offending. In contrast, today's sex offender punishment schemes rarely distinguish formally among gradations of harm or dangerousness. After examining incarceration trends, this article explores the historical context of the current broad brush approach and reviews the unintended consequences. Altogether, this article reinforces the need to return to differentiation among sex offenders, but differentiation based on science and on the experience-based, guided discretion of experts in law enforcement, corrections, and treatment.     

First be a woman? rural development,social change and women farmers’ lives in Thessaly-Greece

This research is prompted by a desire to portray how Thessalian women farmers’ lives have been and are still affected by agrarian, economic, political and social transformations that took place in Greece from 1950 onwards. Using a cueing technique, we collected 2034 autobiographical memories from 74 women farmers. In general, the story our data tell indicates that the progress regarding woman’s position within family and society was slow and erratic, whereas it is still underway, since gender role appropriateness remains a robust construction. The analysis proved that the first signs of change appeared in the 1970s, when the migration from Thessaly to Europe brought about some unprecedented ideas on woman’s social and domestic roles. Other factors, such as the modernization of agriculture in 1980s and the consequent economic flourishing, along with the aura conveyed by the new (female) members of farming communities, and the opening of rural societies in 1990s and 2000s, facilitated this change.     

“I'd like to participate,but . . .”: women farmers' scepticism towards agricultural extension/education programmes

This mixed research is inspired by our desire to explain why rural women are cautious in their attitudes towards agricultural extension/education. Fifty-two women livestock farmers from Thessaly-Greece were randomly selected to participate in the study. Our results indicate that at one end of the spectrum women express a high willingness to participate in agricultural extension/education programmes, while at the other end this willingness is not translated into participation mainly because of women's perception that agricultural extension/education constitutes a male dominated area. Another key determinant restricting women's participation arises from their low familiarity with education and the unpleasant experiences they recall from school.

« J'aimerais participer, mais… » : le scepticisme des agricultrices concernant les programmes de vulgarisation/d’éducation

Ce travail de recherches mixtes s'inspire de notre désir d'expliquer pourquoi les femmes en milieu rural font preuve de circonspection dans leurs attitudes envers la vulgarisation/l’éducation agricoles. Cinquante-deux éleveuses de Thessalie (Grèce) ont été sélectionnées au hasard pour prendre part à cette étude. Nos résultats indiquent qu’à une extrémité de l’éventail, les femmes expriment une forte volonté de participer à des programmes de vulgarisation/d’éducation agricoles, tandis qu’à l'autre cette volonté ne se traduit pas en participation, principalement du fait que les femmes considèrent que la vulgarisation/l’éducation agricoles constituent un domaine dominé par les hommes. Un autre facteur déterminant clé qui restreint la participation des femmes provient de leur manque de contact avec les services d’éducation et des expériences désagréables dont elles se souviennent du temps où elles allaient à l’école.

“Me gustaría participar, pero…”: el escepticismo de las campesinas ante los programas de extensión o de educación agrícola

Esta investigación mixta fue motivada por el objetivo de los autores de explicar las razones por las cuales, en sus actitudes, las mujeres campesinas son reticentes a la extensión o a la educación agrícola. En este sentido, se seleccionaron aleatoriamente 52 mujeres ganaderas de Thessaly, Grecia, con el fin de que participaran en el estudio. Los resultados obtenidos demuestran que, en un extremo de la gama de opiniones, las mujeres expresan mucho interés en participar en los programas de extensión, mientras que, en el otro extremo, el interés expresado no se traduce en una participación real. En general, ello responde a la percepción de que la extensión/educación agrícola constituye un área dominada por los hombres. Asimismo, otro factor clave que representa una limitante para la participación de las mujeres tiene que ver con su poca familiaridad con la educación y con las experiencias desagradables que vivieron en la escuela.

“Eu gostaria de participar, mas . . .”: ceticismo das mulheres produtoras rurais em relação a programas de extensão/educação agrícola

Esta mescla de pesquisas é impulsionada pelo nosso desejo de explicar por que as mulheres da área rural são reticentes em suas atitudes em relação a programas de extensão/educação agrícola. Cinquenta e duas mulheres produtoras de gado de Tessália-Grécia foram aleatoriamente selecionadas para participar do estudo. Nossos resultados indicam que em um dos extremos, as mulheres expressam uma vontade muito grande de participar de programas de extensão/educação agrícola, enquanto que em outro extremo essa vontade não se traduz em participação, principalmente devido à percepção das mulheres de que a extensão/educação agrícola constitui uma área dominada pelos homens. Um outro determinante-chave que restringe a participação das mulheres surge da pouca familiaridade delas com a educação e de experiências desagradáveis que elas tiverem na escola.