Legislative Institutions as a Source of Party Leaders' Influence

Legislators' actions are influenced by party, constituency, and their own views, each weighted differently. Our survey of state legislators finds that legislator's own views are the strongest influence. We also find that institutions are an important source of party leaders' influence. Legislators in states where members rely more on party leaders—states without term limits, with less professional legislatures, and where the majority party controls the agenda—put more weight on leaders' preferences. Beyond direct party influence, the views of party leaders are preemptively incorporated into legislators' preferences when the rules of the legislature make party leaders more powerful.     

Law Enforcement and the Rights of the Accused: Are the Police Getting a Bad Rap?

Nationwide, law enforcement professionals have endured increasing scrutiny regarding their treatment of custodial suspects and their alleged abridgement of suspects’ Constitutional rights. At the same time, in the interests of community safety, many members of the public fully expect police officers to function efficiently in arresting and facilitating the prosecution of likely perpetrators. These perspectives reflect due-process and crime-control models respectively. Very little is known, however, about how law enforcement professionals actually view the rights of the accused when not acutely immersed in the cross-currents of public opinion. Using an anonymous survey, the current investigation addresses both Miranda rights as well as the European Union’s (EU) much more comprehensive approach to the rights of the accused. In general, this sample of 209 urban police officers favored protections of criminal suspects that went considerably beyond Miranda safeguards.     

Sexual Orientation,Race, and Trauma as Predictors of Sexual Assault Recovery

Sexual minorities and racial minorities experience greater negative impact following sexual assault. We examined recovery from sexual assault among women who identified as heterosexual and bisexual across racial groups. A community sample of women (N?=?905) completed three yearly surveys about sexual victimization, recovery outcomes, race group, and sexual minority status. Bisexual women and Black women reported greater recovery problems. However, Black women improved more quickly on depression symptoms than non-Black women. Finally, repeated adult victimization uniquely undermined survivors’ recovery, even when controlling for child sexual abuse. Sexual minority and race status variables and their intersections with revictimization play roles in recovery and should be considered in treatment protocols for sexual assault survivors.     

Changes in staff confidence and attributions for challenging behaviour after training in positive behavioural support,within a forensic mental health setting: a replication study with follow-up

Positive behavioural support (PBS) is a proactive approach to managing challenging behaviour. Staff in a forensic mental health service were provided training in PBS. The study aimed to assess the effectiveness of training by measuring changes to staff confidence and attributions for challenging behaviour before training, post training and at six-month follow-up. Qualified and unqualified staff were compared, as were male and female staff. Confidence was measured using an adapted version of the Confidence in Coping with Patient Aggression Instrument. The Challenging Behaviour Attributions Scale and the Causal Dimension Scale II assessed staff attributions. Staff confidence levels in working with challenging behaviour increased following PBS training, and this increase was maintained at six-month follow-up, for unqualified, qualified, male and female staff. Changes in attributions for challenging behaviour were observed post training; however changes were not maintained at follow-up. Limitations and clinical implications were outlined.     

The League of Polish Families between East and West,past and present

Historical legacies play an important role in the rise of radical right parties in Central and Eastern Europe. This article conducts an in-depth study of the trajectory of a particular radical right party, the League of Polish Families, in a particular Central and East European country, Poland. The central objective of the article is to highlight that, although there are important similarities between the League of Polish Families and other radical right parties in both Central and Eastern Europe and Western Europe, the League of Polish Families differs in some respects, such as the composition of electorate and ideology from these parties. The article shows that the observed differences have their roots in the Polish historical legacy, that on some accounts deviates from the historical legacies present in other Central and East European countries.     

Childhood bads,parenting goods,and the right to procreate

Abstract

Harry Brighouse and Adam Swift, together with many other philosophers, think that adults’ interests in raising a child can give them a moral right to parent when they will be adequate parents. We consider whether the same interest could give such adults a moral right to procreate, as a means of acquiring a child to raise. We argue that the interest in parenting cannot support a right to procreate, because the features of childhood that make parenting uniquely valuable for adults are bad for children. Adults may have a right to procreate, but they do not have that right due to their interest in a parent–child relationship.     

The reputations of NGOs: Peer evaluations of effectiveness

This article explores the reputations of transnational non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and their determinants. Although the concept of reputation has received extensive treatment in international relations, NGO reputation has received less attention. Yet reputations are critical to the construction of NGO authority and to patterns of collaboration. We develop a framework for studying NGO reputation. We then provide empirical evidence on the construction of a particular dimension of NGO reputation, that of organizational effectiveness from the perspective of NGO peers. Based on a mixed-method, in-depth interview study of transnational NGO leaders, we identify specific factors associated with NGOs’ effectiveness reputations among their peers. Larger, older, more highly visible organizations, organizations adopting hybrid strategies, and organizations headquartered outside of Washington, DC enjoy higher reputations for organizational effectiveness. Our analysis provides context for understanding the influence of transnational NGOs in world affairs and offers insight into the role of reputation in global politics more generally.     

A Person-Centered Analysis of Risk Factors that Compromise Wellbeing in Emerging Adulthood

The transition to adulthood is a major life course transition that can pose risk to wellbeing. Research is needed to identify patterns of risk for compromised wellbeing, in order to best identify supports for individuals during this potentially vulnerable transition. The purpose of this study was to identify profiles of risk in an emerging adulthood sample, and to relate these profiles to mental health and subjective and academic wellbeing. Undergraduate emerging adults (N?=?903, 82?% female), aged 18–25 years (M?=?21.14, SD?=?1.75), completed a series of questionnaires about risk factors, mental health, and academic variables. Results from a latent profile analysis identified four distinct risk profiles: Low Risk (76?%), Low Social Support Risk (4?%), Financial Risk (11?%), and Multiple Risk (8?%). The risk profiles were subsequently related to mental health and subjective and academic wellbeing outcomes, using a pseudo-class draws approach. Analyses indicated that the risk-pattern profiles differed in several ways across outcomes. Implications for targeted interventions are discussed.