Implementation of Antibullying Legislation in Iowa Schools: A Qualitative Examination of School Administrators’ Perceived Barriers and Facilitators

Adolescent bullying is linked to numerous adverse psychosocial effects that can persist into adulthood. In response to this problem, in 2007 Iowa adopted an antibullying statute requiring all school districts to adopt an antibullying policy. From 2013–2014, 47 semistructured interviews were conducted with school and district administrators in Iowa. Administrators identified many policy implementation challenges including limited funding and staff, and difficulties selecting prevention programs, applying the law’s bullying definition in investigations, and understanding the school’s jurisdiction for policy enforcement. Contextual barriers to implementation (e.g., media portrayals of bullying and parental attitudes) also emerged. This is the first study to use the interactive systems framework to examine antibullying law implementation, highlighting the importance of coordination among research translators, supportive organizations, and on-the-ground implementers.     

Shaping Structured Out-of-School Time Use Among Youth: The Effects of Self,Family, and Friend Systems

To explore predictors of adolescent participation in structured out-of-school activities, various types of structured out-of-school time use and their correlates were examined among 454 adolescents in Grades 9–12 in a rural southeastern state. Using a developmental-ecological model as an organizing framework, four different uses of time were explored with regard to self, family, and friend systems. Regression analyses revealed that time in after-school extracurricular activities was predicted by parent endorsement of activities, ethnicity, and friend endorsement of activities, whereas time spent in nonschool clubs was predicted by peer pressure, parent endorsement, and grades. Socioeconomic status, parental monitoring of activities, school grade level, and family structure predicted time spent in volunteering, and time spent in religious-related activities was predicted by ethnicity, family structure, friend endorsement, and gender.     

Gender and Negotiation in the Small: Are Women (Perceived to Be) More Cooperative than Men?

We surveyed research by experimental economists that examines gender differences in negotiation in the context of two simple, two-player games. Our purpose is to uncover empirical regularities in the results that might be useful to teachers or practitioners of negotiation. In the dictator game, one player unilaterally determines the division of a fixed amount of money. In the ultimatum game, one player offers a division and the other must accept or reject that offer; if rejected, both players receive a zero payoff. The results have shown that, on balance, women tend to be more egalitarian than men, to expect and ask for less in the negotiation. Women also seem to be more responsive to the context of a negotiation and are less likely to fail to reach an agreement than men. These differences are small, however, in comparison with differences in expectations about what women and men will do. We conclude that stereotyping is alive and well in negotiations and that this can help or hinder negotiation outcomes, depending on the context.     

Effects of Family Violence on Child Behavior and Health During Early Childhood

Looking at families where children have been abused/neglected in early childhood, this study examined measures of child behavior and health to see if they tended to be worse when domestic violence is or has been present in a family. Further, caregiver and family characteristics as well as other case factors were examined, as possible moderators or mediators of the effects of domestic violence. Results indicate that domestic violence, of the type and severity occurring in our sample, does not have a direct effect on child outcomes by Age 6, when other associated variables are taken into account, but has considerable indirect effects. There is a pronounced impact of domestic violence on family functioning, the caregiver's general health and well being, and the quality of the caregiver's interaction with the child, which in turn are significantly associated with decrements of child functioning related to behavior problems and health. Some implications of this study for research in the area of domestic violence and child maltreatment are discussed.     

The Role of Nonprofits in Disaster Response: An Expanded Model of Cross-Sector Collaboration

In this study, nonprofit involvement in cross-sector collaborative efforts for post-Katrina and Rita relief, recovery, and rebuilding are examined. Using Bryson, Crosby, and Stone's model as a framework, the collaborative and intermediary roles played by nonprofits in three affected areas, New Orleans, southwest Louisiana, and central Texas, are analyzed. Extensions of the model are introduced to include aspects of organizational capacity and individual and prosocial behaviors resultant of cross-sector collaboration during extreme events. Implications of the findings for nonprofit practice and policy as well as future research in emergency management are discussed.     

To Scrutinise or Not to Scrutinise? Explaining Variation in EU-Related Activities in National Parliaments

There is an on-going debate in the literature as to whether national parliaments can and do play an active role in EU policy-making. The main reason for persistent disagreement is the lack of comparative empirical data on parliamentary behaviour in EU affairs. The article aims to contribute to this debate by presenting the first comparative quantitative data on European affairs activities of national parliaments and by explaining the empirical variation. The development of a unique dataset including all 27 national parliaments allows a series of explanatory variables to be tested for the level of parliamentary activity at both the committee and the plenary levels. The analysis shows that institutional strength in EU affairs plays an important role. Overall, however, EU activities can be better explained with a mix of institutional capacities and motivational incentives. The specific combinations vary for different types of activities.     

Informing the future of capacity building: lessons from an NGO partnership

Despite a recent surge in popularity, critical gaps remain in effectively building the capacity of organisations through global development projects. Two non-governmental organisations, FHI 360 and Conservation Through Public Health (CTPH), established a partnership focused on strengthening CTPH's organisational capacity to conduct high quality monitoring and evaluation and to effectively advocate for integrated population, health, and environment work. To help inform the design and implementation of future capacity building programmes, the partners describe their lessons learnt as illustrated through the five key capacity building steps: stakeholder engagement and partnership formation; capacity needs assessment; capacity plan design; plan implementation; and evaluation.     

Implications of Partner Agreement of IPV for the Gender Symmetry Controversy

Because romantic partners frequently disagree on the violence in their relationship, relying on nondyadic data for perpetration and victimization rates, especially to inform the gender symmetry controversy, is problematic. In order to have a more nuanced understanding of gender symmetry, we urge researchers to be cautious when drawing symmetry conclusions from non-dyadic samples. Furthermore, using both partners, we suggest that researchers employ more qualitative approaches to ascertain IPV agreement, note times in which either partner reports IPV as an indicator of the presence of violence, and investigate the extent to which conclusions regarding gender symmetry stem from participant selection bias.     

Patient narrative: an ‘on-switch’ for evaluating best interests

This article examines how the wishes, feelings, values and beliefs of adults lacking capacity can be evaluated and the extent to which they are given effect in best interests decision-making. One way of fulfilling the clinician’s legal responsibilities to take a patient’s preferences into account is to explicitly link these to the notion of narrative. Narratives provide a compelling grounding and give weight to views and values that may have been informally and consistently expressed in the past. An evaluation of recent case law suggests that the trajectory of a person’s life, their character and personality, and the perspectives of those with whom the patient has valued relationships are given increasing judicial recognition. Attending to the narrative of the patient could lead to a more sophisticated judgement of best interests than an objective ‘balance sheet’ approach would allow and enable greater alignment with the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.