Belief in a Just World,Causal Attributions,and Adjustment to Sexual Violence

What influence do the personal belief in a just world (i.e., the perception that one usually gets what one deserves) and different kinds of causal attributions have on adjustment to sexual violence? Using a sample of N = 62 victims of sexual aggression (mean age = 21.7) it was shown that respondents were better able to adjust to their experience of sexual violence the higher their personal belief in a just world. Moreover, the more respondents attributed their victimization to situational circumstances (external attributions) and the less they attributed their victimization to their character and personality (characterological self-attributions), the less they felt distressed by past victimization. The degree to which participants attributed their victimization to their own concrete behavior (behavioral self-attribution) was not related to their adjustment. Further analyses showed that the influence of the personal belief in a just world was mediated by the three attribution styles. Additionally, the adaptiveness of external attributions was moderated by participants’ just world belief.     

Effects of victim gender,victim sexual orientation,victim response and respondent gender on judgements of blame in a hypothetical adolescent rape

Objectives. Few studies have examined the judgements made towards adolescent rape victims, and none have investigated attributions towards gay male or lesbian adolescents. The current study examined the effects victim gender, victim sexual orientation, victim response, and respondent gender, on attributions of blame in the depicted rape of a 15‐year old adolescent. Methods. A total of 164 respondents read details of this assault before completing 15 attribution judgments. Results. Respondents were expected to attribute more blame to a victim who was male, gay, and who failed to resist the perpetrator. Male respondents were also expected to be more blaming of the victim than females. Overall these hypotheses were supported. Conclusion. Results are discussed in relation to the role gender stereotypes and homophobia play within attributions blame in sexual assault cases. Specifically, it seems male adolescent rape victims are subjected to the same negative stereotypes as male adult victims. Implications and ideas for future research are considered.     

Attributions in a Hypothetical Child Sexual Abuse Case: Roles of Abuse Type,Family Response and Respondent Gender

The present study examines the impact abuse type, family response, and respondent gender have on attributions of blame in a hypothetical child sexual abuse (CSA) case. Three hundred and ninety three respondents read a hypothetical CSA scenario describing the sexual assault of a 14 year old girl by a 25-year-old man and completed 14 attribution items. Overall, the assault was deemed more serious, the perpetrator more culpable, and the family less culpable when CSA involved (vaginal) penetration. Contrary to expectations, respondents were more negative towards a family who denied the abuse took place versus one which blamed or supported the victim. Finally, male respondents deemed the abuse to be less serious, were more negative towards the victim and their families, and more positive towards perpetrators than were female respondents. The role these factors play in CSA attributions, together with ideas for future research, are discussed.

对强奸罪中轮奸、共犯既未遂问题的思考

目前刑法理论界对于强奸罪中轮奸的成立要件及其是否存在着既遂、未遂问题的观点不一。笔者试图通过一个案例来引出自己的观点,即轮奸作为强奸罪的一种加重处罚的情形,其本身不是单独罪名,故不存在既、未遂的提法,而是应以其轮奸行为是否实际发生作为该款项成立的依据。同时,传统的刑法理论通说认为,共同犯罪中的犯罪完成形态只能是整体既遂或整体未遂,即既遂後不存在部分未遂或中止的可能。笔者认为,在特殊共同犯罪中,基于某种实行犯的行为的不可替代性,故仍应存在部分个体未遂或中止的可能,这是对普通共同犯罪中“部分行为全体负责”这一原则的必要例外与补充。     

Unearthing the realities of rape: Utilising Victorian newspaper reportage to fill in the contextual gaps

This article examines the realities of rape and sexual offences and their treatment through the legal process by use of media reportage, Victorian and modern; using this to contextualise and so to challenge the official record. The starting point is an identification of what constitutes ‹best’ evidence for an exploration of rape and sexual offences – evidence that permits better insights into the impact of such offences on the individuals involved, as well as into the factors governing the ability of the criminal justice process to promote the conviction rate in rape cases. By using a comparative historical perspective, and using media presentations (especially newspaper reportage) this article shows the enduring nature of stereotypes which govern the decisions reached by legal personnel and by jurors – stereotypes which have, since the Victorian period, remained profoundly gendered in ways that are unhelpful to the ‹victims’.     

从传统到现代：性法律理念的更新与调整方式的转换

在传统的农业经济社会,性更多地表现为义务、责任和特权,很难形成系统的性权利观念与实践,与此相应,性法律必然以义务为本位。在现代的市场经济社会,物质生活水平的提高促进了人的性需求量的增加,生产和生活方式的更新改变了性行为的个体模式,科学技术的发展拓展了性行为的自主空间。在这样的社会条件下,民众的性权利意识开始崛起和成熟,与此相应性法律应该以权利为本位。面对这样的社会变迁,中国当代的性法律必须实现立法理念的更新与调整方式的转换     

Mediators of the Relation Between Beliefs in a Just World and Emotional Responses to Negative Outcomes

Research shows that strong believers in a just world respond with less negative and more positive emotion to their own negative outcomes than do weak believers. The present study investigated mediators of this relation. We proposed that strong believers in a just world (versus weak believers) would make stronger internal and weaker external attributions for their negative outcomes, leading to reduced perceived unfairness, which, in turn, was expected to lead to less negative and more positive emotion. We assessed the just world beliefs of a sample of undergraduates as well as measuring their cognitive and emotional responses to an exam grade. Mediational analyses showed that our data were consistent with the processes proposed above. Various cognitive and motivational interpretations of the present findings are discussed     

The influence of car and driver stereotypes on attributions of vehicle speed,position on the road and culpability in a road accident scenario

Purpose. Laymen and legal professionals frequently make decisions on the culpability of drivers involved in collisions on the basis of incomplete and inconsistent information. Could attributions based on car and driver stereotypes influence decisions on culpability? Methods. In Experiment 1, ratings were collected on the perceived on‐road aggressiveness of drivers of different age and gender, and for models and colours of motorcars driven. In Experiment 2, participants read an accident scenario involving two cars and were asked to estimate relative speed, position on the road and blame. The ages of the drivers, colours, make and model of car driven were manipulated using the aggressiveness ratings collected in Experiment 1. In Experiment 3, participants read another scenario and were again invited to allocate blame; colour, model of car and driver's age were varied systematically to establish the relative contribution of the different elements of the stereotype. Results. Combinations of colour, car and driver rated high on aggression were judged as travelling faster, being further across the road and more likely to be the cause of an accident than those rated low on these dimensions. Conclusions. Pre‐existing car and driver stereotypes have a demonstrable influence on judgments of driver behaviour from conflicting accident statements. The possible implications for the handling of accident claims and legal cases are discussed.     

Sexuality, substance use, and susceptibility to victimization: risk for rape and sexual coercion in a prospective study of college women

An 8-month prospective study examined behavioral, personality, and psychological variables thought to increase vulnerability for college women's experience of rape and verbal sexual coercion. Participants were 276 college women who completed self-report surveys. During 1 academic year, 9.5% of women were raped and 11.7% reported verbal sexual coercion. Elevated levels of sexual concerns, dysfunctional sexual behavior, and impaired self-reference were associated with both verbal sexual coercion and rape. Alcohol and marijuana use increased risk only for rape, whereas self-criticism and depression increased risk only for verbal coercion. Findings suggest that multiple aspects of sexuality, such as shame regarding sexuality and using sex to meet nonsexual needs, may increase risk for both types of sexual victimization. Results support conclusions that rape and verbal sexual coercion have both shared and unique risk factors. Implications for future research and intervention programs are discussed.     

The Role of Fantasy in a Serial Sexual Offender: A Brief Review of the Literature and a Case Report

Abstract: Extensive research has attempted to elucidate the role of fantasy in sexual offending. In this paper, the authors summarize the main results of the literature, especially the contents, themes, dynamics, etiopathogenesis, and potential functions of fantasy in sexual offending. Further, the authors analyze the case of a serial sexual offender who assaulted 39 women. The forensic‐psychiatric assessment revealed that his fantasies of forced sex, sexual coercion, and dominance, which were linked to narcissistic personality organization and functioning, were the primary drive mechanism in his crimes, because he imagined himself in the role of the aggressor, identified with the power associated with the role of perpetrator, and was sexually aroused by such images of omnipotent control of the victim. In conclusions, the authors suggest that fantasies of sexual aggression, coercion, and dominance of women may stimulate grandiosity and omnipotence and, in a minority of cases, may lead to sexual offending.     

Allocating responsibility among controllers,processors, and “everything in between”: the definition of actors and roles in Directive 95/46/EC

In Opinion 1/2010, the Article 29 Data Protection Working Party has provided additional guidance concerning the concepts of ‘controller’ and ‘processor’ contained in Directive 95/46/EC. This guidance aims to assist practitioners in their determination of whether an entity is acting as a controller or as a processor towards a particular data processing operation. Despite the fact that this opinion is informative, the existing framework still appears to leave room for a considerable amount of legal uncertainty. This uncertainty is attributable in part to the nature of the existing concepts, but also (and perhaps to a larger extent) to their apparent misalignment with current processing realities. In this paper, the author seeks to articulate why the existing concepts often remain difficult to apply in practice, in order to enable a constructive reflection on how these issues might be addressed in the future.     

Scale, technique and composition effects in the Mexican agricultural sector: the influence of NAFTA and the institutional environment

More than a decade after NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement) entered into force, the environmental effects of agricultural trade liberalization in Mexico are still controversial, emerging, and not fully understood. This paper contributes to the literature that aims to explore trends in input use in the agricultural sector in Mexico during the post-NAFTA period among both commercial/industrial and traditional/rainfed farmers, and examines the influence of the national and multilateral institutional framework on these outcomes. We decompose the post-NAFTA agricultural production data into scale, technique and composition effects to estimate the impact that trade liberalization has had on the use of fertilizer and land use, two key agricultural inputs for which reliable aggregate data is available. We conclude that among commercial farmers patterns of crop type specialization and significant technological improvements have led to some declines in fertilizer use but they have been offset by growth in fertilizer use associated with growing agricultural output. Among traditional farmers increased output and specialization in land-intensive grain crops are contributing to an increase in land under cultivation and technological improvements show the potential, but not yet not the strength, to counteract these effects. We analyse the environmental institutional framework and rural development plans, observing that institutional weaknesses have, in several instances, reduced the environmental benefit of technique and composition effects. We conclude with recommendations about how the Mexican agricultural sector might reap the environmental benefits of international agricultural trade.     

Visualization of latent fingermark corrosion of brass, climatic influence in a comparison between the U.K. and Iraq

Through a comparison of fingermark sweat corrosion of α phase brass in both the U.K. and Iraq, we show how samples from Iraq have improved fingermark corrosion over U.K. samples that require no additional enhancement prior to visualization. Over 50% of Iraqi samples produced fingermark corrosion with full ridge detail compared with 0% from the U.K. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis of the fingermark corrosion products showed that Iraqi samples exhibit more dezincification with the Zn:Cu ratio averaging 1:1.82 compared with 1:3.07 for U.K. samples. Auger spectroscopy showed the presence of both zinc oxide and copper (I) oxide. No copper (II) was observed on the surface of the corroded brass. Opportunities to exploit the optical properties of these thin film oxides to enhance the visualization of fingermark corrosion are considered, and the potential to use fingermark corrosion of metal as a means of visualizing fingerprints in war zones is discussed.