Digital watermarking as a form of copyright protection

This article assesses the advance of digital water-marking as a form of rights management in the protection and authentication of digital images, audio and video files.     

Exposure to interpersonal violence as a predictor of PTSD symptomatology in domestic violence survivors

This study examines the interrelationships between childhood abuse, exposure to maternal domestic violence, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptomatology in a multiethnic sample of 111 adult female residents of a domestic violence (DV) shelter. Participants completed structured interviews about the DV and their prior violence exposure, as well as the Impact of Event Scale-Revised. As hypothesized, there was high co-occurrence between exposure to maternal DV and childhood physical and sexual abuse, and the frequency of lifetime violence exposure predicted PTSD symptomatology. A series of multiple regressions indicated a more complex pattern of relationships, in which specific forms of prior violence exposure predicted different PTSD symptom dimensions. A history of witnessing maternal DV predicted intrusion symptoms, and a history of childhood sexual abuse predicted hyperarousal symptoms. Ethnicity was not related to levels of violence exposure or to PTSD symptoms. Clinical implications of the findings are discussed.     

Publication bias as a threat to the validity of meta-analytic results

This paper reviews the evidence in support of the contention that publication bias is a potential threat to the validity of meta-analytic results in criminology and similar fields. It then provides a critique of the traditional file drawer or failsafe N method for examining publication bias, and an overview of four newer methods that can be used to detect publication bias. These include two (trim and fill and cumulative meta-analysis) that enable the researcher to estimate the magnitude of the influence of publication bias on the overall mean effect size. Advantages and limitations of both traditional and newer methods are examined. The methods reviewed are illustrated through their application to a meta-analysis of the effects of drug courts on recidivism by Wilson et al. (Journal of Experimental Criminology, 2, 459–487, 2006).

Perpetrator methodology as a predictor of traumatic symptomatology in adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse

This retrospective study explores, through quantitative and qualitative methods, the relationship of two variables (perpetrator relationship and perpetrator methodology) to posttraumatic and dissociative symptomatology. The quantitative sample comprised a nonpsychiatric group (N = 39) of Australian adults reporting sexual abuse histories. A MANOVA revealed that current levels of posttraumatic and dissociative symptomatology were significantly higher in the group reporting sexual abuse by a perpetrator in a relationship of trust, guardianship, or authority. The qualitative sample comprised a purposively selected subgroup of the quantitative sample (n = 20). Thematic content analyses of perpetrator methodology suggest that perpetrator strategies involving emotional manipulation, rather than the perpetrator relationship per se, appear to differentiate between groups with clinical or nonclinical levels of post traumatic and dissociative symptomatology. The combination of qualitative and quantitative methods provides integrated, contextualized data with implications for future research and clinical practice.     

Investigating polyurethane foam as a form of trace evidence.

The aim of this study was to determine whether polyurethane (PU) foam fragments from different sources could be discriminated from each other. Low and high power microscopy was used to determine whether or not foam fragments were distinguishable from each other under various lighting conditions. Once similar foam fragments were declared microscopically indistinguishable, the visible range microspectrophotometer was highly competent in further distinguishing the spectral characteristics in various fragments from each other. Foam fragments from the same source were shown to display no microscopical or chemical variation. Conversely, it was possible to make clear distinctions between foam fragments from different sources.     

作为课程形态的教育学

教育学存在两种不同的形态:作为学科的教育学和作为课程的教育学.从学理上讲,两种形态的教育学既相互独立,又相伴相生,彼此有着极为深刻的影响.现实中的教育学课程形态主要表现为:教师教育体系中的教育学课程;教育科研体系中的教育学课程;基础教育、成人教育体系中的教育学课程.据此,未来的教育学可能分化出三种品格:其一是大众教育学;其二是"临床"教育学;其三是人文教育学.无论是大众化还是精英化,无论是实用性追求还是超越性追求,我们的旨趣都在发展人、生成人.因此,只要"成人"之需要存在,教育学就不会终结,教育学的课程形态也将不断演变、发展乃至走向相对意义的完善.     

Forensic medical examination of a medical malpractice case as a form of situational expertise

The authors propose to divide the process of forensic medical examination of a medical malpractice case into several stages and substantiate the possibility of their realization as a form of situational forensic medical expertise.     

Orchestration as a form of public action: The EU engagement with voluntary sustainability standards

EU authorities have come to engage with transnational private standards in the domain of sustainability in forms which are different from the traditional interplay based on agency relations and incorporation by reference. This phenomenon is evident in the domain of global value chain sustainability where the employment of voluntary sustainability standards (VSS) is permitted in certain EU measures. This contribution depicts the main features of orchestration as a distinct form of public action involving transnational private regulation. It lays down the reasons underpinning public ‘use’ of forms of public authority, it highlights the potential for orchestration in publicising transnational private rules and it exposes the hidden dynamics stemming from the interplay between public and private rules. It discusses the conditions under which orchestration can enhance the effectiveness of public measures, and how orchestration can transform transnational private regimes by steering their substance and procedures.     

Pump-gun as a weapon. Type of injuries, prohibition of weapons

Pumpguns are shotguns with pump action whose injuries and wound mechanisms have several special features: extremely high kinetic energy of the shot (2500 to 3500 J) frequent cases of "Kr?nlein shots" (exenteration of the brain) punchmark/imprint immediately adjacent to the entrance wound from the front of the pipe magazine exit wounds from buckshot may be similar to pellet entrance injuries from a distant shotgun discharge the use of various shotgun cartridges (plastic ammunition, slug bullet, various lead pellets) within the same weapon. The change in the Austrian gun law and the banning of the pumpgun in 1995 is also discussed in the article.     

The Need for a Stronger Definition: Recognizing Abandonment as a form of Elder Abuse Across the United States

Elder abuse is a growing public health problem in the United States and statistics show that each year, hundreds of thousands of elders are abused in some manner. This Note discusses elder abuse while focusing specifically on the occurrence of elder abandonment and how the majority of states do not recognize elder abandonment as a form of elder abuse in their statutes. Moreover, this Note proposes a model statute to be adopted by every state in an effort for elder abandonment to become more widely reported. Elder abandonment is an unfortunate phenomenon and those who contribute to elder abandonment should face criminal liability similar to those abusers who engage in elder neglect or other types of elder abuse. Furthermore, this Note emphasizes that there should be a greater focus on how caregivers can seek assistance in order to prevent elder abuse in the United States.     

Towards a better consent form

The medical profession is in the habit of using a standard "consent form" to record a patient's consent to medical therapy, particularly for a surgical operation. This article explores how to design a consent form to avoid the many traps to be found in the law of consent.     

Can you maintain a patent as granted after seeking maintenance of the patent in a more limited form?

This case concerns whether an appellant-patentee from a decisionof the Opposition Division can, before the Board of Appeal,have as a Main Request the maintenance of the patent as grantedeven though the Main Request before the Opposition Divisionwas for the claims in a more limited form.     

The ethics of maxima and minima combined with social justice as a form of public corruption prevention

In recent decades, corruption has become one of the main problems perceived by Spanish society. As a result, the country’s citizens are experiencing a high level of disenchantment with politics and a general loss of confidence in the way public institutions function. Although in the last few years more stringent laws have been brought in to speed up procedures and help pursue crimes of corruption, the fact of the matter is that they have done little to reduce these cases and so they are not enough to put an end to the problem. There is a strong likelihood that, if a positive morality and a strong mutual union between ethics and politics were in place, legal loopholes would not be used for individual profitmaking operations that make a mockery of justice and the common good. Because of this, and taking public ethics as a basis, this article will review and discuss Adela Cortina’s hermeneutic definitions “of maxima and minima” and Agustín Domingo Moratalla’s concept of “social justice” in order to suggest tools that can be applied in preventing and fighting against political corruption.

     

Head banging as a form of self-harm among inpatients within forensic mental health and intellectual disability services

Introduction: ‘Head banging’ is a common form of self-harm, linked to numerous negative outcomes including significant brain damage. However, little research has investigated head banging behaviour and its correlates in clinical populations. Method: Head banging episodes were identified from the incident records (n = 5417) of two inpatient forensic services (one intellectual disability and one mental health), using relevant search terms. Rates were compared between individual patients, by gender, diagnosis and level of security. Incident accounts were analysed qualitatively using thematic analysis. Results: Head banging incidents occurred approximately every 3 days in each service, with 229 incidents recorded in 1 year. Individual patient rates varied widely, ranging from 1 to 38 incidents within 1 year. Women, and patients in higher levels of therapeutic security, were significantly more likely to engage in head banging. Qualitative incident reports indicated that head banging was associated with mental distress, anger and psychotic experiences. Discussion: Head banging occurs frequently in forensic services, and has documented associations with traumatic brain injury in affected individuals, thus negatively impacting progress through the care pathway and treatment outcomes. Further research should investigate short- and long-term management strategies and treatment approaches, in order to minimise harm.     

志愿者赈灾救助立法思考

我国蓬勃发展的志愿者服务事业在强烈呼唤着志愿者服务立法的完善。本文作者首先阐述了志愿者服务立法的历史渊源,继而分析我国当前志愿者服务立法现状及存在问题,主要包括：志愿者立法级别低;对志愿者的权利保障规定还不够完善;缺乏与突发事件有关的志愿者立法等。因此,为进一步促进志愿者服务事业的发展,建议建立全国范围内的志愿者统一立法,并在统一立法中要建立志愿者奖励机制,加强对志愿者权益的保障,实行志愿者分类管理,完善NGO登记管理制度,加强与国际志愿者的合作,同时还要加强与突发事件有关的志愿者立法。     

Predictors of trauma symptomatology in sexually abused adolescents: a 6-month follow-up study

This study examines the natural course of trauma-specific symptoms 6 months after disclosure. Furthermore, this study investigates whether severity and type of abuse (intrafamilial or extrafamilial sexual abuse), negative appraisals, coping strategies, and crisis support measured at time of disclosure can be predictive of trauma symptoms 6 months later. Sixty-five sexually abused Flemish adolescents are reassessed 6 months after disclosure. Information from the participants is obtained through self-report questionnaires. Forty-six percent of the adolescents report clinically significant trauma symptoms. Although internalizing symptoms significantly decreases after 6 months, externalizing symptoms persist. Type or severity of the abuse does not account for differences in symptomatology. Two predictors of ongoing trauma symptomatology are identified: postdisclosure trauma symptomatology and a lack of initial crisis support. Information on the victims' postdisclosure symptomatology as well as information on the initial received social support is critical in understanding which abused adolescents are most at risk for poor outcomes in the long term.