Traumatic bilateral vertebral artery dissection

Traumatic vertebral artery dissection is not often seen by forensic pathologists, and cases investigated are scarce in the forensic literature. We present the case of a 40-year-old woman cyclist who was struck by a car while wearing a helmet, and was neurologically near normal immediately thereafter at Emergency. She presented 48 h later with acute right hemiparesis, decreasing level of consciousness, and unsteadiness. CT revealed massive cerebellar infarction. CT angiography was normal. The patient died in coma 7 days after injury and autopsy revealed bilateral edematous cerebellar infarction and bilateral vertebral artery dissection. Rotational neck injury and mural tear in the wall of the Atlantic parts of both vertebral arteries is suggested as the possible mechanism of the arterial injury. Head and neck injuries are reported as a precipitating cause of vertebral artery injury. The possible influence of trauma may be further underestimated if longer intervals between vessel dissection and ischemia occur. The current case illustrates that "talk-and-die" syndrome may be due to occult vertebral artery dissection, possibly bilateral. In forensic cases of delayed death after mild trauma to the head and neck, the vertebral arteries should be examined for the cause of death.     

Child maltreatment histories among female inmates reporting inmate on inmate sexual victimization in prison: the mediating role of emotion dysregulation

Despite data indicating that child maltreatment (CM) in various forms is associated with adult sexual victimization among community women, few studies have explicitly explored how types of CM might relate to prison sexual victimization. Because little is known about how CM might give rise to prison sexual victimization, the present study also examined emotion dysregulation emanating from early abuse experiences as a potential mediator in the link between early CM and inmate-on-inmate prison sexual victimization. Approximately 168 incarcerated women completed self-report inventories assessing various types of childhood maltreatment, emotion dysregulation, and coerced or forced sexual experiences in prison. Nearly 77% of the sample endorsed experiencing at least one form of CM, with 64% of inmates reporting that they experienced two or more forms of CM. Approximately 9% of inmates reported sexual coercion and 22% reported a forced sexual experience in prison. Each form of CM was associated with prison sexual coercion; however, fewer associations emerged between CM and forced prison sexual experiences. Emotion dysregulation was found to mediate links between CM, particularly co-occurring CM, and sexual coercion in prison, but it was unrelated to forced prison sexual experiences. Implications are discussed.     

Explanatory factors of the relationship between gender diversity and corporate performance

In recent years a growing interest in gender diversity has arisen in the business context, and a significant number of research studies have analysed its effect on corporate performance. Nonetheless, these studies have not led to conclusive results, perhaps owing to the complexity of the relationship. The present work focuses on analysing two possible justifications of the contradictory effects of gender diversity on company performance: the business context and the optimum size of the female presence in decision-making bodies. The results obtained show that when working conditions and academic background are similar, women achieve better performance in sectors traditionally dominated by men. Moreover, to take the best advantage of gender diversity it is recommended that boards of directors should be balanced or have a slightly higher female presence.     

Acts of Intimate Partner Violence and Feelings of Danger in Battered Women Seeking Help in a Spanish Specialized Care Unit

Acts of violence recounted by 161 female victims of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) attended at a psychological care service in Spain are presented. The relationship between acts of violence and feelings of danger, childhood abuse, and dyadic adjustment are analyzed. Reported acts of IPV were obtained through a Semi-structured Interview on Domestic Violence; and marital satisfaction was assessed with the Dyadic Adjustment Scale. The results showed women who have felt their lives were in danger are more likely to have been victimized. In addition, women who were both abused by their partner and sexually abuse as children are the ones that perceive more situations of danger in their adult couple relationship. The importance of studying perceived danger and the diversity of IPV experiences are discussed to aid prevention and intervention strategies.     

Determinants of national patent ownership by public research organisations and universities

This paper focuses on the question of whether the national production functions of patents owned by universities and public research organisations (PROs) differ. We use Eurostat patent and R&D data broken down by institutional sector for the European Union 27 and other countries in years 1982–2007, and we estimate dynamic panel models. The impact of R&D expenditure on patent ownership is higher for PROs than for universities. University patent ownership activity is dependent on business funding, while PRO patent ownership is not. We recommend a reversal of the current decline of PRO R&D expenditure and discuss whether PROs perform better at macroeconomic level vis a vis universities.     

No More! Women Reporting Intimate Partner Violence in Mexico

An analysis of the National Survey of Violence Against Women (2006) in Mexico was performed to estimate the prevalence and the associated factors of women suffering intimate partner violence (IPV) that report their aggressor by severity of violence. Women aged 15 years or older who reported IPV were analyzed by using logistic regression models. Prevalence of IPV was 33.33 %, 64.11 % of them were classified as non-severe violence (NSV) and 35.89 % as severe violence (SV). Women with SV reported the aggressor more often (24.69 % vs. 6.08 % of NSV). Variables associated with reporting the aggressor for both NSV and SV were having children living in the household, higher socioeconomic status, frequent alcohol consumption by the partner, and health personnel informing women that they were experiencing IPV. We can conclude that a low percentage of women reported IPV. Greater efforts should be made to empower women so they can effectively execute their right to live a life free of violence.     

Politicization,banking experience and risk in savings banks

During the global financial crisis, criticism of the politicization and lack of professionalization of the savings banks has taken a central position in the political debate. The aim of this article is to analyze if the political presence of governing bodies in Spanish savings banks has been reflected in their various risk-taking behaviors before and during the financial crisis. We will also analyze whether the influence of the chairman’s banking experience matters. The results do not provide evidence that the composition of the boards of savings bank, or even their politicization, have played a role. However we show that savings banks run by a chairman with previous banking experience are likely to be significantly more solvent and less volatile.