Perceptions of restorative justice concepts: an evaluation of university housing residents

This study focuses on the perceptions of students who resided in a university residential hall regarding methods of conflict resolution and concepts of restorative justice. Furthermore, comparisons of perceptions between residents who participated in restorative justice workshops with residents who did not are also made. Variables studied include: understanding the perspectives of others, willingness to approach others, consideration of how to approach others, and awareness of communication styles during conflict situations. Additional considerations include a willingness for inclusion, providing perspectives, and listening and compromising during conflict situations. Also explored is usage of dialogue as well as residents becoming better equipped to approach others, and utilizing or sharing information about restorative justice concepts with others following restorative justice workshops. Findings suggest that residents exposed to restorative concepts during workshops were more likely than non-attenders to listen to the perspectives of others regarding conflict situations. The results indicate that a number of the residents within the university housing setting shared and utilized restorative justice techniques with others following attendance of the restorative workshops.     

Teaching restorative justice: developing a restorative andragogy for face-to-face,online and hybrid course modalities

Teaching restorative justice in an academic setting is different from teaching almost any other academic course. Courses taught in the context of academic criminal justice programs tend to reinforce the structural inequalities in society, replicated and reinforced by instructor driven classroom experiences. In contrast, effective teaching of restorative justice should emulate the values of principles of restorative justice in the organization and management of the course. Teachers of restorative justice must ‘walk the talk’ and apply restorative principles and values to the design and delivery of the course itself. A conceptual framework for ‘restorative andragogy’ is developed that blends principles and values of adult learning with those of restorative justice. Four principles of this approach are identified and applied across three instructional modalities – face-to-face, online only, and hybrid courses. This approach provides a theoretically grounded model for effective teaching of restorative justice courses.     

Autism behind bars: a review of the research literature and discussion of key issues

Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) may experience difficulties coping at all levels of involvement in the criminal justice system. Questions remain, however, regarding the presence and type of difficulties faced by individuals with ASD in the context of incarceration within prison settings. Despite the potential impact for community safety and concerns regarding justice, these issues have received very little academic attention. The research that does exist is generally limited by poor methodology and small sample sizes. The current paper provides a brief review and discussion of the limited extant literature regarding the experiences of prisoners with ASD with the view to summarising areas of difficulties potentially faced by such individuals. It is hoped that this brief review may highlight the need for academic attention in order to inform practice and policy regarding the criminal justice response to this potentially vulnerable population.     

Understanding of and memory for a complex auditory event: an experimental case study to resolve an evidentiary issue in a trial

While many studies have focused on eyewitness’ perception and memory, few studies on earwitness’ ability to understand and remember complex sound events have been conducted. The present study included 73 participants and explored whether it is possible for children and adults to understand and later recall a complex sound event. The aim was to resolve an evidentiary issue in a trial concerning a 7-year-old child’s earwitness testimony and whether is it possible to understand a complex sound environment based solely on aural perception. The participants listened to a recording that replicated the aurally perceived situation described by the child witness in his testimony. The results showed, that adults and children could identify only a few, familiar sounds of the 16 sounds presented in free recall. They recognized the correct sounds poorly (51.9% vs. chance level of 50%): significantly better than chance only if the retention interval was immediate and the sounds could be heard clearly (57.5%). The results suggest that the participants were not able to understand what was transpiring and, thus, could not later recall the sound events. The findings highlight that understanding this kind of a complex sound event is a difficult task and that the experimental role of a witness psychologist is valuable for resolving evidentiary issues for the court. The implications for the case and the limitations of the study were discussed.     

Sexual orientation as a justice issue: Issues of postmodern social philosophy and religion for civil rights

This essay theoretically explores three core concerns for social justice research and analysis in the transition from social and legal philosophical foundations based upon Enlightenment categorical universals to a postmodern context that recognizes concurrent globalization and the constructed nature of particular status identities. Utilizing sexual orientation as a case study, the concerns are, what constitutes a civil right in a postmodern context, how useful are categories versus behaviors in protecting civil rights, and how does religion affect the civil morality that justifies and legitimates justice criteria? The argument is made that a justice construct for sexual orientation must rely both on behavioral freedoms and ontological status for adequate protection of human dignity and equality. It also is argued that interreligious discourse is essential to reparticularize religiomoral assumptions that have justified inequality and to provide an adequate negotiated grounding to legitimate shared norms upon which postmodern justice philosophy can be built.     

Empowering young inventors: an experimental course on IP and patent application drafting at Auburn University

A new one-credit course on IP and patent application drafting was offered at Auburn University jointly by the authors in spring 2009. The course started with a target of 15 students. Within 1 week of its announcement, the course was oversubscribed; the class was filled within a week of its announcement through e-mails to engineering and business students, a few were turned down, 16 were enrolled including one MS and one Ph.D. student from engineering (graduate students were required to do an additional term paper). The goal of this first-of-its-kind course at Auburn was to teach undergraduate and graduate students to understand the protection of intellectual property rights, and to train them to prepare a patent application fit for submission to the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). The hands-on experience was intended to give them the freedom to grab their own new ideas and protect them through patents as a first step towards the commercial exploitation of their intellectual property (IP). The paper explains the limited goals of the course, outcome and conclusions with a recommendation for other universities to offer a similar course. The course fulfilled an important need and empowered some of the young inventors in the class to consider venturing into a new business based on their product ideas.     

Disclosure of child sexual abuse: expressed emotions and credibility judgments of a child mock victim

Both lay persons and professionals believe that the emotions displayed by a child witness during disclosure of sexual abuse are a factor of importance when judging the child's credibility. Unfortunately, not all children display emotions according to expectations, leading to misjudgments, and possible miscarriage of justice. In the present study, we examined how lay people's credibility judgments were influenced by a child's displayed emotions during the disclosure of sexual abuse. Participants (n?=?119), viewed video recordings of a mock police interview of an 11-year-old child actor disclosing sexual abuse, displaying one of four emotional expressions (angry, sad, neutral, and positive). Results showed that participants were strongly influenced by the emotions displayed; in particular, the display of strong negative emotions (anger) or positive emotions during disclosure significantly reduced judged credibility. The credibility ratings predicted the participant? judgments of the defendant's guilt and the willingness to pass a guilty vote in a hypothetical trial.     

以苏轼为例：中国哲学语境中的诗画理论

中国诗画理论历来存在着诗评与画评标准的不一致性,但中国诗画理论又在美学精神上达到了对诗画共同艺术本质揭示的高度.苏轼"诗中有画""画中有诗"的命题就是对中国诗画艺术创作经验和理论的一次高度总结和归纳.在苏轼的这个命题中,前者揭示了中国传统诗歌追求"画境"的形下取向,而后者则揭示了中国传统绘画追求"诗意"的形上取向.中国诗画理论特别是苏轼诗画命题与中国哲学道器观有着深刻的内在联系,中国哲学道器观为中国诗画理论提供了哲学背景和言说语境.     

Cuts and tears on a paper towel: a case report on an unusual examination of damage

The examination of damage to a paper towel, an item of evidence in a murder case, is described. Simulations performed with selected tools and the observation of the lacerations present on the towel permitted to infer that they were originated by cleaning of a pointed and sharp implement. Some marks, considered characteristic of scissors, were detected on the exhibit. This experimental outcome resulted critical in challenging the declarations of the suspect. A rather significant analogy between damage examination on paper towels and on textiles was established.     

Psychopathy,intelligence and emotional responding in a non-forensic sample: an experimental investigation

This study examined the relationships between psychopathy (primary and secondary), intelligence and emotional responding in a sample of 50 university students, using a task measuring autonomic responses to 40 pictorial stimuli (20 neutral and 20 emotionally provoking). Results indicated no significant direct relationship between primary or secondary psychopathy and emotional response, or primary or secondary psychopathy and intelligence. However, a significant moderating effect of intelligence on the association between both psychopathy factors and emotional response was observed, indicating those scoring higher on psychopathy but with lower intelligence portray the expected emotional responses to the affective stimuli (primary: β?=??.56, p?β?=?.80, p?<?.001). These findings indicate abnormal reactivity to emotional stimuli in lower intelligence, higher psychopathic individuals, and suggest differing roles for the two facets of psychopathy in affective responsiveness deviations.     

Self-interest,distributive justice,and the income distribution: A theoretical fragment based on St. Anselm's postulate

The Mertonian starting idea for this paper is St. Anselm's idea that the will has two inclinations: an affection for what is to the person's own advantage and an affection for justice. We show that in decision-making situations, where the individual must choose a course of action from among a set of alternatives, the individual, subject to the two inclinations and thus guided by the twin considerations of own good and the common good as he/she forms the preference orderings for the alternatives, is in one of three states: (i) the state of Harmony, defined by perfect coincidence of the orderings induced by the two criteria; (ii) the state of Conflict, defined by perfect reversal of the orderings; and (iii) the state of Ambiguity, defined by ordering-pairs which are neither identical nor exactly opposite. The most general result states that if the number of alternatives is two, then the individual is in either Harmony or Conflict; if, however, the number of alternatives exceeds two, then Ambiguity is also a possible outcome. We then apply the framework to the case of choosing an income distribution, letting the own-good and common-good criteria dictate orderings based on personal outcomes (such as own income or own income rank) and social outcomes (such as mean income or income inequality), respectively, and examining the relation between the two orderings in five families of probability distributions. In the special case where own good is an increasing function of own income and the common good is a decreasing function of income inequality, our results show that each society has a group in Harmony (the poorest group) and one additional group, either in Conflict or in Ambiguity. Finally, we speculate about the behavioral and social implications of the three states and their configurations in the population.     

Addressing individual and community needs in the aftermath of campus sexual misconduct: restorative justice as a way forward in the re-entry process

ABSTRACT

Restorative justice is an approach to incidents of harm involving a high level of support and accountability for people who cause harm. To date, there is neither federal regulation nor commonly applied standard of care for re-entry to campus by a student who has been found responsible for sexual misconduct. Restorative justice re-entry circles represent a promising approach to the reintegration of students, taking into account the needs of the individual survivor, the student who violated policy, and the safety concerns of the campus community. Using a case study, this article outlines an example of a re-entry circle at a university in the United States and discusses the lessons learned with regard to concerns about the student’s mental health status, issues of race and racism on campus, and the role of a trauma-informed approach to circle practice in incidents involving a complex interplay of mental health, social status, and race on campus.     

Abolition and pedagogy: reflections on teaching a course on alternatives to punishment,state repression and social control

Abolitionism is an important, but often overlooked, theoretical and political alternative to the failings and injustices of the penal system and other forms of social control. While many have documented different approaches to abolitionist strategy, few have explored the work that is done sensitizing individuals to abolitionism, including in university settings. Through an analysis of student journal entries, this study discusses how students enrolled in a mandatory abolition course engaged with the viability of, and barriers to, a world without prisons, punishment and other forms of control. By looking at abolition as a threshold concept, we consider how students negotiate the concept of abolition as a radical justice alternative. As the journal entries showed, while students were able to understand the basic tenets of abolition, many remained in a liminal state between the existing system and the unknown landscape of abolition, and could not see its viability or possibility as a radical alternative. We conclude that other learning strategies may have been helpful in moving student through such a ‘dangerous’ concept. Further research on sensitising individuals to abolition is needed given the current proliferation and intensification of penal and carceral institutions today.     

犯罪嫌疑人、被告人自报身份虚假陈述问题研究——以东部G省为视角的实证分析

犯罪嫌疑人、被告人自报身份虚假陈述现象在沿海发达地区已经十分突出,给司法机关履行法律职责带来极大困难。解决这一问题应该从加强户籍身份管理入手,完善司法机关之间的协作机制;另外,在法律层面上应及早明确自报身份虚假陈述的法律责任,同时制定相关的纠错程序及救济措施。     

An experimental study of a therapeutic boot camp: Impact on impulses, attitudes and recidivism

Two hundred thirty four adult male inmates entering prison were randomly assigned to an early release program in either a correctional boot camp or a large, traditional prison in the Maryland state correctional system. Boot camp releasees had marginally lower recidivism compared to those released from the traditional prison. A pre-test, post-test self report survey indicated the boot camp program had little impact on criminogenic characteristics except for a lowering of self control. In contrast, inmates in prison became more antisocial, lower in self control, worse in anger management, and reported more criminal tendencies by the end of their time in prison. Criminogenic attitudes and impulses were significantly associated with recidivism. The impact of the boot camp diminished to non-significance when antisocial attitudes or anger management problems were added to the models predicting recidivism. Implications for jurisdictions considering whether to operate correctional boot camps are discussed.     

One image is worth more than a thousand words: producing an atlas of medical signs for teaching clinical and forensic toxicology

Clinical and forensic toxicology are critically involved in the acquisition of basic skills to correctly suspect intoxication, collect biological and non-biological materials for toxicological analysis, comprehend the complexities inherent to laboratory activity, and understand the fundamentals of toxicokinetics and toxicodynamics that underlie the interpretation of results. This works presents a pedagogical innovation proposal for the teaching of clinical and forensic toxicology based on a compilation of more than 3 000 cases where the image was fulcra for suspicion. The experience in this article follows the model practiced in bachelors, masters, and PhD degrees, as well as in other continuing training courses, where we are teaching toxicology for more than 15 years. All these levels of education are considered fundamental to the sound development of this science. This approach aims also to offer strength to the intervention of the true toxicologist in all the toxicological phases, besides the classic analytical chemistry. Indeed, it is impossible to provide effective clinical and forensic toxicological interpretations without a proper and broad education, and not thinking exclusively in terms of laboratory techniques. In the future, it will be interesting to evaluate knowledge retention and to propose a database of videos of signs related to intoxications.     

Experiential training for real-life professional impact: the formation of professional identity in trainee solicitors through a discrete intervention course on ethics and lawyering skills

The apprenticeship model of solicitor training in Ireland is split between time spent in the law firm and time spent in professional education at the Law Society of Ireland. Learning in law is a process of shaping identity and becoming part of a community, and professional socialisation is a key aspect of this professional development. However, many trainees arrive at the vocational training stage with little or no understanding of how their personal morals and ethics will impact on their future roles as lawyers. This article relates to an intervention study in the Law Society of Ireland with trainee solicitors at professional legal education level in the form of a two-month course entitled “Certificate in Legal Ethics and Lawyering Skills”. This intervention embraces an experiential learning approach and a wide view of ethics that moves beyond a defensive rule-based approach and supports trainees in grappling with ethics and negotiating within the more rigid and collectively based moral discourses which are a necessary part of constructing professional identity. The course framework embraced a variety of pedagogic approaches for effective teaching and fostering ethical professional identity such as role-play, small group discussion, video and online discussion forums and mixed method assessment.     

历史与逻辑统一：文学史研究的伪命题

历史与逻辑统一,出自哲学领域,有其错误与弊端.该命题出于预定式思维方式,实违背辩证法精神.历史与逻辑统一,与历史、文学史研究的特性不合,是文学史研究的一个伪命题.应放弃此类理论幻想,追求文学研究的多样与灵活.