The ‘basket case’ and the ‘poster child’: explaining the end of civil conflicts in Liberia and Mozambique

Through a comparison of protracted domestic conflicts in Liberia and Mozambique this paper evaluates several standard explanations regarding the roles of leaders, third parties and domestic social forces in resolving or continuing civil wars in Africa. The paper finds that no single account of how peace is achieved is sufficient to explain the continuance of violence in Liberia and the successful attainment of peace in Mozambique. Rather, an explanation that can accommodate the divergent outcomes of conflict in the two countries must combine insights from elite, structuralist and agency‐based approaches. Furthermore, the paper addresses the ways in which the construction of social organisations, particularly women's groups, during wartime affects the direction of donor funding and the shape of reconstruction efforts after the peace is signed. We illustrate our argument by examining the efforts of leaders, third parties and local actors, particularly women, to perpetuate violence or to bring about peace in Liberia and Mozambique, and the gendered contexts in which donor aid is distributed in the postwar period.     

The politics of reconciliation: Germany in central‐east Europe

The role of united Germany in the new Europe has been the source of considerable debate and speculation. This study analyses the impact of Germany's continued commitment to reconciliation with its neighbours in central‐east Europe (CEE) on traditional power relations in the region. It argues that the politics of reconciliation scramble conventional power calculations in substantive ways to elevate CEE authority in their relations with Germany. Moreover, the politics of reconciliation highlight the intersection of domestic and foreign policy which, since 1990, have favoured the ability of domestic factors in Germany and CEE to promote or impede reconciliation. The Treaties of Friendship, signed by Germany with Poland, Czechoslovakia and Hungary after unification provide the empirical benchmark used to compare the different trajectories in bilateral relations which have developed under the umbrella of reconciliation.     

In Vivo Facial Tissue Depth for Canadian Aboriginal Children: A Case Study from Nova Scotia,Canada

This study examines facial tissue depth in Canadian Aboriginal children. Using ultrasound, measurements were taken at 19 points on the faces of 392 individuals aged 3–18 years old. The relationships between tissue thickness, age, and sex were investigated. A positive linear trend may exist between tissue thickness and age for Aboriginal females and males at multiple points. No points show significant differences in facial tissue depth between males and females aged 3–8 years old; seven points show significant differences in facial tissue depth between males and females aged 9–13 years old; and five points show significant differences in facial tissue depth between males and females aged 14–18 years old. Comparisons were made with White Americans and African Nova Scotians. These data can assist in 3‐D facial reconstructions and aid in establishing an individual's identity. Previously, no data existed for facial tissue thickness in Canadian Aboriginal populations.     

Linking informal social control and restorative justice: moving social disorganization theory beyond community policing

Much of what is at the heart of social disorganization theory’s approach to neighborhood crime prevention has been ignored in favor of policies that are more closely associated with deterrence and rational choice theories. Specifically, ideas of informal social control and collective efficacy have often been translated into policies of community surveillance and the reporting of suspicious behaviors to the police. While these policies may make neighborhoods less attractive to offenders because they create higher certainty levels of recognition, and subsequently arrest, social disorganization theory, at its heart, suggests crime prevention policies of a very different nature: policies that are more closely associated with restorative justice, re‐integrative shaming and peacemaking criminology. These associations are highlighted and provide a conceptual model for a community crime prevention program that is more consistent with the underlying nature of social disorganization theory.     

Living and learning in Tacna,Peru

I spent the summer after my first year of college in Tacna, Peru. I lived in community with five Peruvian nuns and worked in the school where they were the administrators. I was completely immersed in the culture and language as no one spoke English. It was an experience that allowed me to connect with new ideas about community and social justice, ideas that have contributed to the way I have come to understand my position and my responsibilities in my global community. When I returned home from Peru, I wrote this reflection about my experience adapting and living in this wonderful and vibrant community.     

Making space for restorative justice in criminal justice and criminology curricula and courses

Restorative justice, rooted in the practices of indigenous people across the globe, has grown exponentially in both theory and practice since its beginnings in Canada in the 1970s. Restorative justice has influenced the interactions between offenders and victims, helped community members address crime and develop self-efficacy, and changed the way some countries rebuild after a history of oppression. Despite these restorative justice influenced changes, many criminology and criminal justice programs pay scant attention to restorative justice in curricula. This paper will examine ways to include restorative justice in criminal justice and criminology curriculum and the challenges involved in the process. The paper will then examine how the Law and Justice Department at Central Washington University has incrementally added restorative justice components to its curriculum, culminating most recently with the addition of a Community and Social Justice course. The paper will conclude with several examples of classroom activities and assignments that have helped connect students with the theory and practice of restorative justice.     

Patterns of Variation and Match Rates of the Anterior Biting Dentition: Characteristics of a Database of 3D‐Scanned Dentitions

An understanding of the variability of the anterior human dentition is essential in bitemark analysis. A collection of 1099 3D laser scans of paired maxillary and mandibular arches were studied using geometric morphometric methods. Analyses were performed without scale (shape only) and with scale (shape and size). Specimens differing by no more than experimentally obtained measurement error were counted as matches, or as indistinguishable. A total of 487 maxillary (396 size preserved), 131 mandibular (83 size preserved), and one paired dentition (two size preserved) matches were found. Principal component analysis and partial least squares revealed interpretable patterns of variation and covariation in dental shape, principally dominated by variation in dental arch width. The sensitivity of match rate to assumed degree of measurement error was also determined showing rapid increases in match rate as measurement error increased. In conclusion, the concept of dental uniqueness with regard to bitemark analysis should be approached with caution.