Articulating the threatened suffragette body: suffragette embroidered cloths worked in Holloway Prison, 1911–1912

ABSTRACT

In public archives there are a number of hand-embroidered cloths worked by suffragettes incarcerated in Holloway Prison between 1911 and 1912. Denied political status, some of the embroiderers used the hunger strike as a political tool and were forcibly fed. In this paper the embroideries are reframed as material and discursive evidence of suffragette prison experiences. The material narratives of the embroidered cloths are traced, drawing on a dialogue between critical theory, material object enquiry, practice as research and the work of contemporary textile practitioners. Embroidering by suffragettes is explored as an embodied and situated ‘thread act’ that materialised the making of networks, the need for protection of the body and mind, the powers and dangers of boundary crossing, and proto-political thinking.     

Should Abused Women's Reports of Partner Substance Abuse Be Accepted as Valid?

Current research suggests that a husband's substance abuse is correlated with severity of physical abuse and the woman's decision to leave a violent situation. Often, only the battered woman's report of abuse is available. This study compares women's reports of their partners' substance use/abuse with their partners' report using a brief measure of polydrug and alcohol abuse, the Substance Abuse Subtle Screening Inventory (SASSI) and the Conflict Tactics Scale (CTS). Data were analyzed for 25 recovery couples and 25 nonrecovery couples. The correlations for all 50 couples between the male's reported use and the female's report of her partner's use on the SASSI and the CTS were significant on all but one of the CTS scales. They ranged on SASSI from .73 to .33 and from .31 to .06 on the CTS. This suggests that the SASSI and possibly the CTS could be used as valuable tools for assessing women's reports of their partner's substance use/abuse.     

How Stable is the Condition of Family Homelessness?

Although research has documented the majority of homelessness experienced by individuals and families in the US to be transitional rather than chronic, the mechanisms by which some families successfully escape homelessness while other do not remains relatively unclear. To provide more information to this area of inquiry, this study analyzed the transitional nature of homelessness for a sample of families with school-aged children who were homeless under the McKinney-Vento definition. By conducting a survey with over 1000 homeless families with children enrolled in two public school systems in Central Florida, we find that over a quarter of families exit homelessness in less than six months. We compare these families to those that remained homeless to examine the potential importance of demographic differences and other potential barriers to securing housing. Many of the commonly assumed barriers were not significant predictors of continued homelessness; the most salient difference between the groups was income underscoring the importance of employment opportunities for families to allow them to exit homelessness.     

Not Just Robo-Students: Why Full Engagement Matters and How Schools Can Promote It

Research has long linked academic engagement to positive social, psychological, and physical developmental outcomes; however, qualitative studies in high-performing schools find that some students who work hard in school may be compromising their mental and physical health in the pursuit of top grades. Such research calls for closer and more contextualized examinations of the concept of engagement. This study examines academic engagement in a sample of 6,294 students (54 % female; 44 % White, 34 % Asian, and 22 % other racial or ethnic background) attending 15 high-achieving schools. Findings show that two-thirds of students at these schools are not regularly “fully engaged” in their academic schoolwork; that is, they do not regularly report high levels of affective, behavioral and cognitive engagement. Although most students report working hard, few enjoy their schoolwork and find it valuable. This lack of full engagement, particularly the absence of affective and cognitive engagement, is associated with more frequent school stress, higher rates of cheating, and greater internalizing, externalizing, and physical symptoms of stress. The study also finds that full engagement is strongly related to positive teacher-student relationships. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.     

Suicidal ideation in adolescence: Depression,substance use,and other risk factors

The interrelationships of depression and suicide with adolescent drug use, delinquency, eating disorders, and the risk factors for these different problems were investigated among 597 9th and 11th graders in an urban high school. There is a strong association of drug use with suicidal ideation among girls, and a stronger relationship with attempts among girls and boys. Suicidal youths are ill-adjusted and display a lack of attachment and commitment to family and school. Causal models indicate that poor interpersonal interactions with parents, absence of peer interactions, and life events lead to depression, which in turn leads to suicidal ideation. Depressive symptoms are the strongest predictors of suicidal ideation. Among females, depression predicts drug involvement, and in turn, drug use increases suicidal ideation. Drug use is only one class of problem behaviors that constitutes a risk factor for suicidal behavior in adolescence. Delinquency and eating disorders also have direct effects on suicidal ideation beyond those of depressive affect. As for drug involvement, these problem behaviors are more predictive of suicidal behavior among girls than boys. Similarity and specificity of the predictors for problem behaviors within and between the sexes are discussed. Although young women use drugs to handle feelings of depression, drug use appears ineffective in the long run in relieving these depressive feelings. Understanding the dynamics of suicidal ideation in adolescence has important public health implications, since ideation is a strong predictor of attempts, especially among females.Revised version of a presentation at the Workshop on Adolescent Depression, Princeton, NJ, June 3, 1987.Work on this research has been partially supported by Research Grants DA00064, DA01097, DA03196, and DA02867, and by Research Scientist Award DA00081 from the National Institute on Drug Abuse; and awards from the John D. and Catherine MacArthur Foundation and the Research Foundation for Mental Hygiene, New York State Psychiatric Institute. Partial support for computer costs was provided by Mental Health Clinical Research Center Grant MH30906-07 from NIMH to the New York State Psychiatric Institute.Received Ph.D. in Sociology from Columbia University. Research interests include adolescent psychosocial development, epidemiology and risk factors for drug use, and interpersonal networks.Work on this research was carried out while a Research Associate at the School of Public Health, Columbia University. Received Ph.D. in Sociology from Columbia University. Research interests include personal networks and social support systems in chronic illness, societal factors in mental health, psychosocial consequences of drug use and abuse, panel mortality, and survey methodology.Received M.P.H. from Columbia University. Research interests include reliability and child psychiatry.     

women,theatre and Calypso in the English-speaking Caribbean

The present essay discusses how women calypsonians in the English-speaking Caribbean use Calypso performances as a theatrical platform to offer a gendered critique of the nation and engage in a dialogue, which despite exhibiting pride in the nation, questions its various exclusions in ways that seek to redefine dominant constructions of the nation as ‘we’. Not only do they offer a vision of the nation and its cultural aspects that is more inclusive, they also speak out against cultural and political oppression. I analyse specific performances by Singing Sandra (Trinidad) and Queen Ivena (Antigua) from my position as an ‘indigenous-outsider’ and ‘outsider within’ in order to demonstrate that Calypso performance is a post-colonial form of theatre in the English-speaking Caribbean that is being used by women as a site for feminist action and agency.     

A comparative evaluation of a new generation jail

This study reports findings from an evaluation of a new generation jail in a large southwestern state. The jail is one component of a complex containing a traditional jail, an indirect supervision facility (barracks), and the new generation jail. Using survey and operational data, we compare the new generation jail to the other two facilities. The findings provide generally positive support for the effectiveness of the new generation jail. Inmates and staff were much more satisfied with the physical facilities. Staff perceived it as more secure, though they reported only limited advantages in safety and security. Violence and disciplinary problems were substantially lower. However, no savings in staffing levels were noted, nor were there differences in job satisfaction for staff in the new generation jail. We discuss the implications of the findings and suggest additional directions for jail evaluations.