Decisional Capacity to Consent to Clinical Research Involving Placebo in Psychiatric Patients

Evidence from a few studies indicates the existence of several issues related to psychiatric patients' decisional capacity to give informed consent to clinical research. Clinicians often face difficulties in acquiring valid informed consent in clinical practice and even more so in drug trials. Participants often fail to fully understand or retain information regarding the actual implications of research protocols. The Brief Assessment for Consent to Clinical Research (BACO) was developed to investigate capacity to consent to clinical trials and further compare patients with schizophrenia and healthy comparisons' decisional capacity. A method to avoid possible confounding effects of choosing a treatment regarding a current disease was applied. The study groups were administered the BACO and the MacArthur Competence Assessment Tool for Clinical Research. Psychiatric patients performed poorer in comprehending, appreciating, and reasoning abilities, than their healthy counterparts. Impaired cognitive functioning and psychiatric symptoms severity were associated with reduced capacity to consent.     

National Security vs Criminal law. Perspectives,Doubts and Concerns on the Criminalisation of Organised Crime in England and Wales

This paper will interpret and critically analyse the new offence for organised crime in England and Wales (Section 45 of the Serious Crime Act 2015) from a criminological perspective in light of evidence found in research in the country. It will argue that changes in the law relate to changes in political narratives rather than to variations in the criminal panorama of organised crime. It will discuss these changes within three perspectives, which address various levels of concern: a narrative perspective, which reflects on the overlapping of meanings in the use of the words ‘organised crime’; an evolution perspective, which reflects on the origins of the new participation offences with reference to both national and international pressures; a management perspective, which reflects on some of the immediate effects of the new offences of organised crime on the criminal justice system. This paper will conclude that political narratives have indeed influenced criminal policy, while there is no significant change in the phenomenon of organised crime to justify such narratives.     

The interaction of international institutions from a social network perspective

The literature increasingly acknowledges that international institutions do not exist in isolation, but regularly interact with each other. This interplay might induce influence, affecting institutions’ development and performance. The following research adds to this debate by systematically analyzing the quantitative evidence on how institutional interaction drives institutional design from a network perspective. Using dyadic cross-sectional data on international environmental agreements in 1952–2000, the authors find support for their theoretical argument that regimes’ similarity in design as captured by their degree of legalization strongly depends on institutions’ interaction. However, while “soft law” disseminates between regimes that are well connected through direct or indirect links, this does not apply to “hard law.” The authors explain this divergence with states’ concerns about binding-law commitments and sovereignty costs associated with the latter. This research may have important implications for studies of international institutions and of network analysis in general.     

Determination of phenotype associated SNPs in the MC1R gene

Prediction of physical appearance based on genetic analysis is a very attractive prospect for forensic investigations. Recent studies have proved that there is a significant association between some genetic variants of the melanocortin 1 receptor (MC1R) gene and red hair color. The present study focuses on the potential forensic applicability of variation within this pigment-related gene. Sequencing of the complete MC1R gene was performed on a group of red-haired individuals and controls with different pigmentation. A major role in determination of red hair color is played by two MC1R variants--C451T and C478T. The optimized minisequencing assay for genotyping of the above positions and three other important red hair-related MC1R polymorphisms, C252A, G425A, and G880C was successfully applied to analyze typical forensic specimens. Determination of a homozygous or heterozygous combination can be a good predictor of both red hair color and fair skin of a subject.     

Post-mortem interval estimation based on insect evidence in a quasi-indoor habitat

Insects collected on indoor cadavers are frequently used for post-mortem interval (PMI) estimation. Buildings encountered during crime investigations vary according to temperatures inside, the extent of insect access restriction or sanitary conditions. This article reports the PMI oriented analyses of insect evidence sampled from the human cadaver in the atypical indoor habitat. The body was found in the uninhabited house, on the floor covered with rubbish, in the room with no doors and windows. Thermal conditions in the room were less variable than in the local weather station, however still much more variable compared to the typical indoor habitat, indicating the need for retrospective correction of temperature records from the station. Cadaver entomofauna was surprisingly diverse and abundant. We recorded several taxa usually not occurring on indoor cadavers, e.g. immature stages of Necrodes littoralis (Coleoptera: Silphidae) or Stearibia nigriceps (Diptera: Piophilidae). PMI was based on the age and the pre-appearance interval estimated for live puparium of S. nigriceps, giving the total interval of 37 (±7.4) days plus 4–20?days resulting from the absence of first colonizing specimens of the species. This estimate was corroborated with the age estimate for empty puparia of Sarcophaga argyrostoma (Diptera: Sarcophagidae) with traces of Nasonia sp. (Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae) eclosion. Other insects indicated shorter but consistent PMI. Difficulties and limitations of insect-based PMI estimations in unusual indoor habitats are discussed.     

Distinguishing Characteristics of Robotic Writing

Advances in robotic handwriting technology create new challenges for forensic document examiners. In the past, devices such as the autopen were used to replicate signatures of government officials and corporate companies. In today's technology, companies such as Bond utilize robots to create written documents, which mimic natural patterns of handwriting. They generate customizable written samples by simulating pen movements and letter formations. Four forensic document examiners were given various reproduced questioned documents and utilized a modified ACE‐V (analysis, comparison, evaluation, verification) methodology to determine their genuineness. Examiners were able to make a distinction between the human writing samples and the skilled robotic equivalents. Several distinct features that are not seen in natural handwriting, such as even pen pressure and the superimposition of letterforms were observed in the robotic samples. Careful examination of identifying features of the Bond produced documents resulted in an opinion of nongenuineness.     

Associations Between Police Work Stressors and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Symptoms: Examining the Moderating Effects of Coping

The role of coping in the association between stress and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is not clear. We investigated the effects of active and passive coping strategies on the associations between police stress (administrative and organization pressure, physical and psychological threats, and lack of support) and PTSD symptoms in 342 police officers. Linear regression model was used in the analyses. The association between physical and psychological stress and PTSD symptoms was stronger in officers who used lower active coping (B?=?4.34, p?<?0.001) compared to those who utilized higher active coping (p_-interaction?=?0.027) (B?=?1.79, p?≤?0.003). A similar result was found between lack of support and PTSD symptoms (p_-interaction?=?0.016) (lower active coping, B?=?5.70, p?<?0.001; higher active coping, B?=?3.33, p?<?0.001), but was not significantly different comparing the two groups regarding the association between administrative and organizational pressure and PTSD symptoms (p_-interaction?=?0.376). Associations of total stress, administrative and organizational pressure, and physical and psychological stressors with PTSD symptoms were significantly stronger in officers who utilized higher passive coping (p_-interaction?=?0.011, 0.030, and 0.023, respectively). In conclusion, low active or high passive coping methods may exacerbate the effect of work stress on PTSD symptoms.     

Legal professionals’ knowledge and experience of autistic adults in the family justice system

Abstract

Access to justice is a key theme in the family justice system, especially for those with particular vulnerabilities. Autism, a development condition characterised by difficulties in social communication and interaction, and the presence of rigid, repetitive behaviours, presents particular challenges in this area. This paper reports the findings of a mixed-methods study with legal professionals working in the family justice system, asking about their knowledge of autism, their perceived self-efficacy when working with autistic clients, and their experience of cases involving autistic litigants. The study reports high levels of knowledge, but low levels of confidence, by legal professionals (N = 204), and addresses the experiences of particular cases in follow-up discussions (N = 10). The paper concludes by making a series of recommendations for legal professionals to assist autistic people to engage fully in family court proceedings.