Complexity and hybrid effects in the delivery and evaluation of youth programmes in a remote Indigenous community

Indigenous Australians continue to experience entrenched disadvantage. Despite billions being spent, ‘Closing the Gap’ indicators remain resistant to change. It has become increasingly apparent that progress has been hindered by persistent administration and implementation issues in Indigenous Affairs, especially with the funding modalities deployed. This study uses the remote Queensland Indigenous community of Aurukun as a case study to examine the effectiveness and evaluation problems arising from overlapping programmes delivered to Aurukun children and youth (5–18 years of age). It documents programmatic crowding occurring in Aurukun, which has the potential to place considerable demands on the intended participants, and results in hybridised effects that are not understood. Within this context, robust evaluation – even through the use of sophisticated methods – is near impossible.     

A Study of the Background Levels of Male DNA on Underpants Worn by Females

This study is the first to examine the background level of male DNA on underpants worn by females in the absence of sexual contact. Here, we examined 103 samples from the inside front of underpants from 85 female volunteers. Samples were examined for the presence of male DNA using NGM SElect and PowerPlex Y23 kits. Only five samples gave a “complete” Y-STR profile, even though 83.5% of our volunteers cohabited with a male. In all cases where a partner reference sample was available, the Y-STR profile matched the cohabiting partner. We have demonstrated that a Y-STR profile is not expected on the inside front of underpants worn by females after social contact alone. The results of this study are informative for evaluating the significance of a Y-STR profile on underpants in cases of alleged sexual assault.     

认罪认罚从宽制度的体系性反思与建构

虽然认罪认罚从宽制度是在我国《刑事诉讼法》中得以正式确立的,但《刑事诉讼法》中涉及此制度的具体规定又都是操作层面的。据此,认罪认罚从宽制度的合理性并不能得以阐释。而依据我国《刑法》,对认罪认罚从宽制度的合理性则可以从形式逻辑、实质逻辑以及价值理念三个维度予以充分证成。由此可知,认罪认罚从宽制度本质上系《刑法》中的一种刑罚裁量制度,认罪认罚本质上是法定的从宽量刑情节。在定罪层面,犯罪嫌疑人、被告人只需自愿承认不法事实系其所为,即构成"认罪",而无需准确评价自身行为的法律性质并准确识别具体罪名;在量刑层面,"认罚"考察的重点是犯罪嫌疑人、被告人的悔罪态度和悔罪表现。应当通过刑法立法的方式将认罪认罚从宽制度与自首制度、坦白制度部分重叠地整合在一起,以避免"概念混同""重复评价"的错误倾向。     

法学研究目标受众选择的大数据分析

文章为谁而写,是法学研究需要解决的基础性命题。从近二十年约2.5万篇法学核心期刊文章的大数据机器学习分类结果看,我国的法学研究成果呈多重目标格局,其中近三成服务于执法机关(包括行政机关和司法机关),同时也有为立法者、执政者建言献策的成果。经检验,目标受众类型的选择与论文的传播能力以及获得基金支持的机会之间有显著相关性。这一决定成果影响力大小的机制迟早会被个体习得并不断强化,成为研究者选择目标受众类型的重要因素。该机制良性运转的关键是处理好学者和实践受众的关系,保持学术研究必要的自主性,警惕学术研究在追逐发表、经济支持时被有关主体“认知俘获”。     

网络信息安全犯罪的定量评价困境和突围路径——大数据背景下网络信息量化标准的反思和重构

刑法对网络安全的保护立场，正由网络运行安全转向网络信息安全。刑事立法更新不断增设网络信息安全专属罪名的同时，刑事司法的定量评价体系却未能一体构建，成为网络安全刑法保护的薄弱环节。当前网络信息安全犯罪的定量评价体系缺乏明确的逻辑主线，同时适用错位的“传统法益侵害程度”量化标准和模糊的“数据规模”新型量化标准，无法满足网络信息安全专属罪名司法适用的准确性和统一性需求，导致了司法适用的困境。消弭规范和技术之间的差异，以“信息规模”为定量评价核心的基础上，建构信息价值的分层评价模型，并将“组信息”作为基础的数据规模计量单位，是大数据时代背景下，突破网络信息安全犯罪司法定量评价困境的合理路径。     

专家参与刑事司法的多元功能及其体系化

从1979年刑事诉讼法颁布至今,专家参与我国刑事司法的制度功能变得开放而多元。专家制度功能的多元化,根源于刑事司法的三重逻辑:弥合法律人与专家之间知识鸿沟的“认知逻辑”;落实公检法机关“分工负责,互相配合,互相制约”原则的“权力逻辑”;保障当事人合法权益与实现控辩平等的“权利逻辑”。从结构主义与整体主义的视角看,当前,刑事专家制度存在明显的体系化缺陷,主要表现为专家制度过度权力化、专家制度功能尚未结构化、专家制度不够规范化。改进刑事专家制度,应当采取体系化路径:首先,将多元专家参与模式调整为鉴定人与专家辅助人二元专家模式;其次,彰显专家制度的“权利逻辑”,矫正过度权力化倾向;最后,构建系统化的专家制度,为专家服务刑事司法创造制度条件。     

从绩效问责到宏观调控工具--2003-2014年国外政府绩效评估综述

尽管绩效评估在我国各级政府中逐渐成为日常性管理制度，但无论实践界还是理论界都还在利用西方20多年前的旧知识来解决新问题。通过客观德尔菲法对 Web-of-Science 数据库中2003-2014年间的317篇政府绩效评估文献进行“硬聚类”，发现国外近十年政府绩效评估的新规律在于：努力对政府的具体部门进行“体检”式绩效评估，诊断每项具体工作的实际绩效状况；利用“体检结果”促进政府问责进程；对政府绩效“病症”寻找“致病”诱因，试图将高绩效政府当作带动整个社会发展的“政策杠杆”来推动国家走出发展低迷；在大数据时代中将信息当作提升政府绩效的“非物质文化”因素，同时认为信息本身就意味着绩效。     

Practice tips for managing challenges in parenting capacity assessments in child protection court

Courts frequently rely on parenting capacity assessments to make decisions about visitation and case progress in child protection court. Although these evaluations can provide valuable information to courts, they often involve assessing areas of human behavior that are not clearly defined in the literature. For example, mental health professionals are often tasked with identifying risk and protective factors for child maltreatment while identifying factors that can impede progress towards reunification. Although some of these factors may be easy to identify and assess (e.g., symptoms of mental illness or substance abuse), others may be more challenging. For example, factors such as denial and minimization about risk factors and maltreatment, a parent(s)’ ability to protect their child(ren) from future incidents of maltreatment, the parent(s)’ potential for change, and the consideration of what is in the best interest of the child are hard to assess. This article will provide a summary of the research in these areas, provide tips for managing these areas, and highlight directions for future investigation that will help inform parenting capacity assessments in child protection court.     

The development and pilot testing of a family treatment court best practices assessment: The model standards implementation scale

In 2019, the family treatment court (FTC) best practice standards (the Standards) were published to clarify attributes of FTC programs associated with superior child, parent, and family outcomes. The Standards cover the breadth of FTC operations including program structure and leadership, substance use treatment and complementary services, and behavioral responses to participants. This study aimed to develop an instrument (the Model Standards Implementation Scale; “MSIS”) that stakeholders can use to assess implementation of the Standards by individual FTCs. The MSIS balances usability with scientific validity. Interrater reliability (IRR), internal consistency, and several types of validity were assessed. Results indicated moderate to strong IRR, high internal consistency, mixed known groups validity depending on Standard, and high convergent and divergent validity. Initial findings suggest good validity and usability of the MSIS for evaluating FTC Standards' implementation. Notably, the process of using the tool functioned to educate FTC team members on the Standards. Although implementation of the MSIS is a resource-intensive process, the opportunity to receive constructive feedback proved to be an effective incentive for initial and subsequent participation in the evaluation among FTCs. Future research is needed to examine predictive validity, including association between Standards' implementation and family outcomes in FTCs.     

The future of parenting plan evaluations: A view from the trenches

As expectations rise for parenting plan evaluators to be well-trained, skilled, and knowledgeable in numerous subject areas, and scrutiny of evaluators' work intensifies, the pool of qualified evaluators is shrinking nationwide. The future of parenting plan evaluation as a forensic subspecialty relies upon the availability of competent and committed professionals to do this challenging work, yet few are entering the field. Five experienced parenting plan evaluators from various regions of the United States, including the authors, met for a roundtable discussion to ponder the future of parenting plan evaluations. The panel discussed what drew them to the work, their experiences “in the trenches,” and what has kept them committed to doing evaluations despite daunting challenges. Their views of the rewards and risks of doing the work, barriers and disincentives to newcomers entering the field, recommendations to new evaluators, and outlook for the future are presented.