Perceptions of Older Adult Eyewitnesses: Will You Believe Me When I'm 64?

Participant-witnesses (young adults/young seniors/older seniors) viewed one of two versions of a simulated videotaped crime (crime context either familiar to young or older adults). The witnesses were videotaped responding to direct and cross-examination questions about the video. The older seniors were significantly less accurate than the young adults and young seniors. Familiarity of the crime context did not affect testimony accuracy. However, the older seniors were more verbose when describing a familiar context. Participant-jurors viewed the testimony videotapes and evaluated the witnesses' credibility. All witnesses were regarded as equally credible in testifying and less accurate in response to cross-examination questioning.     

Sexual Harassment in the Federal Workplace Revisited: Influences on Sexual Harassment by Gender

Using data from the U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board's most recent survey on sexual harassment, this study examines influences on sexual harassment in the federal workplace. We investigate the effect of workers'sociodemographic characteristics, aspects of their daily work environment (the sex of the supervisor and female/male ratio of coworkers), and agency location. Drawing on a variety of theoretical models and addressing a limitation of a previous study, we assess whether and how influences on sexual harassment differ for men and women. Not only does the likelihood of sexual harassment differ for men and women, but the determinants of harassment differ as well. Women are more likely to indicate receipt of unwanted sexual attention as their ratio of male coworkers increases, and men are more likely to indicate its receipt as their ratio of female coworkers increases. We also find differential effects for sex of supervisor, age, education, and job type, among other variables. Our analyses highlight that gender conditions the influences on sexual harassment.     

Two Sides of the Same Coin? The Relations between Prosocial and Physically Aggressive Behaviors

The direct and indirect relations between six types of prosocial behavior and physical aggression were examined. Data were gathered from 252 college students (M age = 21.67 years; 184 women) who completed measures of sympathy, prosocial behavior, and physical aggression. Structural equation modeling revealed that sympathy fully mediated the relations between compliant prosocial behaviors and physical aggression, and partially mediated the relations between altruism and physical aggression and public prosocial behaviors and physical aggression. The findings suggest that the relations between prosocial behaviors and aggression are complex and that prosocial behavior should not be treated as a unitary construct. is Professor of Developmental Psychology at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Dr. Carlo's main interests include the individual, parenting, and cultural correlates of positive social and moral behaviors in children and adolescents.     

Body Morph: Feasibility Testing of an Interactive CD-ROM to Teach Young Adolescents about Puberty

The aim of this pilot study was to examine the feasibility of an interactive computer program among 34 sixth and seventh grade children and to assess the potential for knowledge acquisition about puberty. Based on a developmental self-esteem approach to teach children about their bodies, the Body Morph program was designed to maximize the educational experience by: (1) tailoring puberty information to boys or girls, and (2) creating a confidential experience. Preliminary results indicated that students significantly improved their knowledge about puberty after using the program. Satisfaction among boys and girls for this type of educational approach suggests that it is a compelling format from which to learn about puberty.This research project was funded with the support of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) 1R43DK061269-01A2 to develop an educational computer program to improve body image in middle schoolers.     

Going to the ground (or AstroTurf): a grassroots view of regime resilience

While disproportional resources and curbs on civil and political rights clearly matter to electoral authoritarian persistence, long-term acculturation to political norms and modes of governance on the ground in such regimes – of which Singapore and Malaysia are the most durable examples – complicate transformation. A combination of what amounts to classic machine politics with the structural “assist” of sub-par elections renders electoral authoritarianism extraordinarily increasingly resilient over time, not just because it is hard or unlikely for voters to vote in new leaders, but also because the aspiring or elected opposition may end up reproducing rather than subverting key attributes of that regime. Clientelist political praxis may be highly responsive, offer direct accountability, and align with voters’ rational self-interest, at least in the short term. However, its persistence impedes pursuit of new ideological or programmatic objectives, perpetuates piecemeal and inefficient allocation of resources, assumes that most voters should expect little from state policies, and discourages attention to proactive legislation, in favour of a more localized, reactive politics. A machine-oriented political regime, then, is not only exceptionally hard to shake, but suboptimal in the long term.     

White pregnant bodies on the Australian beach: a visual discourse analysis of family photographs

In this paper, I discuss a group of photographs that feature a place intrinsically related with Australian women’s photographic memories of pregnancy – the beach. Building on feminist interdisciplinary studies of family photography, I argue that family photographs of pregnancy contribute to alternative ways of knowing and interpreting the Australian beach landscape and the entangled social relations and interactions within these spaces. Data are drawn from a set of 34 pregnancy photographs that were taken at the beach in [Tasmania] between 1945 and 2013 and collected as part of a larger, ongoing mixed methods research project involving the analysis of 236 Australian family photographs of pregnancy. In this paper, I conduct a visual discourse analysis of three categories of beach pregnancy images including (1) the family holiday photograph, (2) the bikini photograph and (3) the ‘natural’ pregnant body/landscape photograph to enable a more precise account of how personal and cultural memories of the Australian beach intersect. In the concluding discussion, I suggest that the beach is a critical site for deepening sociological and feminist understandings of the production and expression of pregnant identities and Australian national identity.     

Examining Predictors of Depression Among Older Incarcerated Women

For older women in prison, adjustments to prison life are often affected by a variety of mental and physical health symptoms. Many come to prison with specific histories of traumatic life experiences that place them at risk for high levels of depression. Using data gathered from 327 older women (mean age = 56.5), we examined the relationship between a variety of preprison conditions and prison deprivation factors as possible predictors of depression. Stepwise regression results indicated that depression was greater for those with prior abuse histories, functional health problems along with poorer perceptions of mental and physical health, safety and other prison environment concerns. Although race was not a significant predictor in the regression model, a t-test did find that whites were more depressed than African Americans in our sample. Other correlates of depression are also identified that lend insights into the high rates of depression found among elderly women in prison. With such high rates of psychiatric disorders among women offenders, more treatment interventions are needed to adequately serve this population.     

“I'll Make Them Shoot Me”: Accounts of Death Row Prisoners Advocating for Execution

About 11% of death‐sentenced prisoners executed in the United States hastened executions by abandoning their appeals. How do these prisoners persuade courts to allow them to abandon their appeals? Further, how do legal structures and processes organize these explanations, and what do they conceal? An analysis of Texas cases suggests that prisoners marshal explanations for their desires to hasten execution that echo prevailing cultural beliefs about punishment and the death penalty. The coherence of these accounts is amplified by a non‐adversarial, unreliable legal process. This article contributes to our understanding of legal narratives, and expands their analysis to include not only hegemonic stories and legal rules, but also the legal process that generates them.     

“My World Is Upside Down”: Transnational Iraqi Youth and Parent Perspectives on Resettlement in the United States

The U.S. war with Iraq led to the displacement of millions of Iraqis, many of whom have resettled in the United States as refugees. We explore the challenges Iraqi families face after resettlement, with a particular focus on the agency of refugees and challenges/opportunities of familial social reproduction in a transnational context. We conducted 181 qualitative interviews with 38 Iraqis (11 youth, 27 adults) and 5 service providers. Our findings highlight the importance of exploring refugee agency and illuminate how the interplay between structure and agency in transnational contexts is a useful framework for understanding transformations around social roles.