Stalking on the College Campus: The Influence of Suitable Target and Guardianship Variables on Victimization Comparing Male and Female Students

Current estimates predict that more than 5% of men and 8% women will be stalked at some point in their lifetime, and up to 6% of both men and women will be stalked during their time at college. While variables related to sexual assault have been extensively examined, factors that contribute to stalking and influences specific to university students remain a point of concern for administration and those attending the institution. Using a proportioned stratified sampling technique, this study obtained cross-sectional survey data collected from 873 students at a university in the upper Midwest. Utilizing a routine activity theory theoretical perspective, hierarchical and binary logistic regression are employed to investigate the prevalence of stalking, as well as the influence of individual and campus guardianship variables on the stalking victimization of college students, and an experiential comparison of female and male students. Findings reveal that among the total female student sample, 43% had been stalked at some point in their lifetime, with 13% stalked during their time at the university. Of the male students, 34% had been stalked, with 18% stalked while at the university. Sexual history, year in school, and perceived vulnerability were positive predictors of stalking.     

How Stable is the Condition of Family Homelessness?

Although research has documented the majority of homelessness experienced by individuals and families in the US to be transitional rather than chronic, the mechanisms by which some families successfully escape homelessness while other do not remains relatively unclear. To provide more information to this area of inquiry, this study analyzed the transitional nature of homelessness for a sample of families with school-aged children who were homeless under the McKinney-Vento definition. By conducting a survey with over 1000 homeless families with children enrolled in two public school systems in Central Florida, we find that over a quarter of families exit homelessness in less than six months. We compare these families to those that remained homeless to examine the potential importance of demographic differences and other potential barriers to securing housing. Many of the commonly assumed barriers were not significant predictors of continued homelessness; the most salient difference between the groups was income underscoring the importance of employment opportunities for families to allow them to exit homelessness.     

Different Stressors, Different Strategies, Different Outcomes: How Domain-Specific Stress Responses Differentially Predict Depressive Symptoms Among Adolescents

As a time of notably increased stress and a marked rise in depressive symptoms, adolescence is a key period in which to examine how stress is related to mental health outcomes. Many studies examine stress as a unitary construct; however, research suggests that how adolescents respond to stress within different domains may differentially predict depression. The current study used an 8-week weekly diary design to assess how adolescents’ cognitive appraisals, rumination, and co-rumination in response to dependent, independent, social, and nonsocial stressors differentially predicted depressive symptoms. Participants were 111 high school students (72 % female) ages 14–19 years (mean age 16.4). Results indicated that rumination and co-rumination about dependent and social events, rather than independent or nonsocial events, prospectively predicted depressive symptoms. Negative cognitive appraisals prospectively predicted depressive symptoms regardless of domain. This study provides support for the hypothesis that adolescents’ responses to stress in different domains differentially predict depressive symptoms.     

Does federally subsidized rental housing depress neighborhood property values?

Few communities welcome federally subsidized rental housing, with one of the most commonly voiced fears being reductions in property values. Yet there is little empirical evidence that subsidized housing depresses neighborhood property values. This paper estimates and compares the neighborhood impacts of a broad range of federally subsidized rental housing programs, using rich data for New York City and a difference‐in‐difference specification of a hedonic regression model. We find that federally subsidized developments have not typically led to reductions in property values and have, in fact, led to increases in some cases. Impacts are highly sensitive to scale, though patterns vary across programs. © 2007 by the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management     

Recovery of a mummified pregnant woman from a 55-gallon drum more than 30 years after her death

The body of a 28-year-old near-term pregnant woman was found in a 55-gallon steel drum in a crawl space under a house more than 30 years after her disappearance and death. At autopsy the body was remarkably well preserved and mummified, as was that of a male fetus. The decedent had 10 scalp lacerations and multiple comminuted depressed skull fractures and had died as a result of blunt force head trauma.     

A multilevel comparison of child abusers with nonabusers

An integrative, ecological model developed by Belsky (1980) implies that to understand child abuse researchers must examine factors at four levels: the individual, the family, the environment, and the culture. This study compared abusive and nonabusive parents at three of these four levels. At the individual level, abusers were found to have lower self-esteem than controls. Also, male abusers were likely to be relatively impulsive and hostile. At the level of the family, abusers described their children as more troublesome than control parents, but they did not perceive them as developmentally delayed. At the level of the environment, abusers identified more intense life stressors than nonabusers. Results of this investigation supported Belsky's argument that child abuse involved multiple factors and levels.