Social modeling in the transmission of suicidality

Evidence from twin, adoption, and family studies suggests that there is strong aggregation of suicidal behaviors in some families. By comparison, the role of social modeling through peers has yet to be convincingly established. This paper uses data from four large studies (the WHO/EURO Multicentre Study on Suicidal Behaviour, the WHO/SUPRE-MISS, the CASE study, and the Queensland Suicide Register) to compare the effects of exposure to fatal and nonfatal suicidal behavior in family members and nonfamilial associates on the subsequent suicidal behavior of male and female respondents of different ages. Across all studies, we found that prior suicidal behaviors among respondents' social groups were more important predictors of suicidal behavior in the respondents themselves than previous research had indicated. Community-based suicide attempters in the WHO SUPRE-MISS had higher rates of exposure to prior suicide in nonfamilial associates than in family members. In an adolescent population, exposure to prior fatal suicidal behavior did not predict deliberate self-harm when exposure to nonfatal suicidal behavior (both familial and social) were controlled for, but exposure to nonfatal suicidal behaviors in family and friends was predictive of deliberate self-harm and suicide ideation, even after controlling for exposure to fatal suicidal behavior. The potential impact of "containment" of information regarding suicidal behaviors as a prevention initiative is discussed, in light of information behavior principles of social marketing.     

在应对危机中不断拓展的中国外交

2009年是新中国外交的第60个春秋,今天的国际、国内形势以及中国外交与60年前早已不能同日而语,中国外交的目标、对外关系的布局、与不同国家的关系、外交的形式和内涵等都显示了新的时代特点。在承前启后的2009年,中国外交以建国60周年为契机,以应对国际金融危机为主线,积极参与应对全球性问题的国际多边合作,在推动全球经济复苏、应对气候变化,展示了中国负责任的大国形象。在加强全方位外交,充实和拓展总体外交方面取得了瞩目的成就。     

德国政府间财政关系:危机与前景

根据全球通用指标,判断一国经济形势稳定与否主要参考市场物价指数、社会就业水平、财政收支形势、GDP增速及国内外投资力度等相关变量。本文拟从德国近年来的GDP增速、社会失业问题、财政赤字等二大方面揭示德国经济所面临的严峻局面。     

Neo-liberalism and Domestic Capital: The Political Outcomes of the Economic Crisis in Thailand

The 1997 economic crisis in Thailand provided an opportunity for a reinvigoration of neo-liberal economic policies. International financial institutions, together with Thailand's Democrat-led government, emphasised further market reforms, liberalisation, deregulation, decentralisation, privatisation and a reduced role for the state. The deep economic downturn saw a popular rejection of such policies, meaning that the neo-liberal interregnum was short-lived. The 2001 landslide electoral victory of the Thai Rak Thai Party symbolised the intensity of opposition to neo-liberalism. It also showed that national governments remain critical in shaping markets and that domestic economic actors continue to have significant political roles. In Thailand, far from neutering domestic capital's political capacity, the crisis and opposition to neo-liberalism saw this enhanced. One reason for this was that neo-liberal restructuring was not simply about the efficient operation of the market. Rather, it demanded a fundamental transformation of the operations of government and of the ways that business was organised and conducted. This threatened domestic capital. Its economic survival required that it seize the state so that it could control economic policy-making. This was achieved through the Thai Rak Thai electoral victory and its subsequent rule, where the protection of domestic capital's interests was achieved through a re-negotiation of its social contract with other classes.     

Still playing dice with lives: Darfur and security council resolution 1706

This article examines the recent Security Council Resolution 1706 authorising UN peacekeeping in Sudan, in the context of the deteriorating humanitarian crisis in Darfur. It assesses the African Union Mission in Sudan and elaborates on the reasons for its current fatigue and failure. It interrogates the proposed mandate of the UN force, the organising principles and rules of engagement and, sadly, the Realpolitik that continues to derail efforts at ending the genocide. It urges the global community, in particular the Security Council permanent members, to unite their efforts and compel the government of Sudan to accept UN deployment in order to save the dying and end the tragedy in Darfur.     

Bangladesh Politics: Confrontation,Monopoly and Crisis in Governance

Despite the restoration of parliamentary democracy in Bangladesh since 1991, political governance of the country is still mired by innumerable ills. It broadly features a wide array of confrontation, competition, monopolization of state institutions and resources by the party in power. This trend of politics has tremendously weakened the formal accountability mechanisms and put governance in crisis. This article depicts the nature of confrontational politics in Bangladesh, its causes and impacts on governance with supportive evidence from both primary and secondary sources. As case examples, it shows how bureaucracy and local government institutions are grossly politicized as a result of confrontational politics and their impact on governance.     

Crisis,containment and development: the role of the landmine impact survey

This article sets out to explain the Landmine Impact Survey, implemented by the Survey Action Center (sac), which is led by a consortium of mine action organisations. The primary rationale of the survey lies in the need to root mine action priority decisions in a firm understanding of the impact that landmines have upon communities. Data from four countries in which impact surveys have been completed indicate that only a small share of communities—perhaps as few as 10%—can be categorised as high impact, another 25% as medium impact, and the remaining 65% as low impact. This has implications for the prioritisation of scarce mine action resources, but it also makes broad elimination of the impact of landmines within the dates specified by the Landmines Convention appear more realistic, even though total clearance may appear unrealistic. The article places the impact survey initiative in the context of the evolution of a humanitarian response to landmines, from an emerging realisation of the threat in the 1970s and 1980s to the present-day landmine response capacity working with other reconstruction and development initiatives. The success of the sector ultimately hinges on the availability of solid and systematic data on impact.