Representative sampling of maritally violent and nonviolent couples: a feasibility study

Despite the methodological advantages of representative sampling, few researchers in the field of marital violence have employed random samples for laboratory assessments of couples. The current study tests the feasibility and sampling success of three recruitment methods: (a) random digit dialing, (b) directory-assisted recruitment, and (c) a hybrid method. The number of successful telephone contacts with couples does not differ across the three methods; most successful calls contact nonviolent couples. The sample recruited through all three methods does not appear to match the demographics of the calling area, and all methods require a high monetary and human resource investment.     

Getting the Big Picture on Nanotechnology Insurance Issues: Addressing Coverage Issues for Long Tail Claims Can Help Prevent Big Headaches

The possible applications of nanotechnology seem limitless and span across a wide variety of industries including manufacturing, agriculture, environment, pharmaceuticals, health care, security, information technology, communications, energy, chemicals, and even space exploration. However, the potential loss scenarios could go far beyond anything experienced to date and could bring about a new dimension in personal injury, property damage, and third-party liability risks.

Insurers and re-insurers have been keeping a close eye on the development of nanotechnology. Of particular concern is the prospect that nanotechnology may give rise to “long tail” liabilities such as the asbestos, environmental, and toxic tort liabilities that have plagued insurers, policyholders, and society in the United States. Businesses involved in any aspect of nanotechnology should be prepared for possible liabilities arising out of progressive injuries by conducting meaningful risk management and familiarizing themselves with their insurance coverage programs to avoid having big, uninsured problems if they are confronted with losses arising from nanoscale materials.     

Trajectories of Physical Aggression Among Hispanic Urban Adolescents and Young Adults: An Application of Latent Trajectory Modeling from Ages 12 to 18

This study sought to identify trajectories of physical aggression among urban Hispanic youth, and to examine the effects of risk and protective factors at age 11 on trajectories of physical aggression over time (ages 12–18). Relying on data from 731 urban Hispanic adolescents from Project Northland Chicago (PNC), latent trajectory modeling was used to determine the number of trajectories, and multinomial logistic regression was used to identify the predictors associated with trajectory membership. The results suggested five trajectories of physical aggression (non-aggressive, low stable, escalators, early-rapid desistors, and high aggression/moderate desistors). After adjusting for several risk and protective factors, language preference (e.g. speaking Spanish at home) was identified as a protective factor, while indirect exposure to alcohol, sadness/depression, fewer negative alcohol-related attitudes, and threatening to fight were associated with increased risk for physical aggression. Study implications indicate that early, multilevel prevention efforts are necessary to deter the initiation and promote the desistance of physical aggression over time among urban Hispanic adolescents.     

Teaching Constructive Dialogue as a Social Medicine Tool for Peace

The social medicine learning communities of which we are a part comprise individuals from Uganda, Rwanda, Zimbabwe, Haiti, the United States, Canada, and Lebanon among other countries. United in an interest to understand and address the social and structural determination of health, learners have spanned a wide range of religious, ethnic, socioeconomic, and racial backgrounds. These diverse social locations have shaped lives in unique ways and given rise to profoundly divergent perspectives on sexual orientation, gender norms, reproductive health, and the role of medicine and health professionals in society among other issues. To navigate these differences and to equip our students with an integral tool for social justice and health equity, we teach constructive dialogue as a tool, amongst many others, for health professionals.     

Online victimization risk and self-protective strategies: developing police-led cyber fraud prevention programs

ABSTRACT

The prevalence and impact of cyber fraud continues to increase exponentially with new and more innovative methods developed by offenders to target and exploit victims for their own financial reward. Traditional crime reaction methods used by police have proved largely ineffective in this context, with offenders typically located outside of the police jurisdiction of their victims. Given this, some police agencies have begun to adopt a victim focused, crime prevention approach to cyber fraud. The current research explores with a sample of two hundred and eighteen potential cyber fraud victims, the relationship between online victimization risk, knowledge and use of crime prevention strategies. The study found those most at risk of cyber fraud victimization despite accurate perceptions of risk and knowledge of self-protective behaviors in the online environment underutilise online prevention strategies. This research has important implications for police agencies who are designing and delivering cyber fraud education. It provides guidance for the development of effective prevention programs based on practical skills development.     

Fatal Complications of Aesthetic Techniques: The Gluteal Region

Cosmetic procedures are common and utilize many techniques to obtain aesthetically good outcomes for patient satisfaction with acceptable safety standards. Cosmetic procedures that involve the gluteal region are becoming increasingly popular as various procedures can target the gluteal region such as liposuction, tumescent liposuction, cosmetic filler injections, autologous fat transfer, depot drug delivery, and implants. Complications of cosmetic gluteal procedures can be localized or systemic with systemic complications being responsible for most deaths. These reported systemic complications include sepsis, thromboembolism, fat embolism with or without fat embolism syndrome, macroscopic fat embolism, anesthesia‐related and blood volume abnormalities. We herein report 10 deaths due to elective gluteal cosmetic procedures. Autologous fat transfer (fat grafting, lipoinjection) following liposuction resulted in 8 of 10 fatal outcomes of the gluteal aesthetic procedures. A comprehensive discussion of gluteal anatomy, gluteal contouring procedures, and the approach to such cases is presented along with the autopsy findings of the reported cases.     

The Impact of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy on Positive Parenting Strategies Among Parents Who Have Experienced Relationship Violence

Evidence supports the use of acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) for well-being and behavior change among parents. This study examined the impact of a brief ACT intervention on positive parenting strategies, psychological flexibility, and distress among parents who have experienced relationship violence.As part of a larger study, 43 parents were recruited from a community outreach center and completed measures of parenting, ACT processes, and distress. Participants were pseudo-randomly assigned to either receive their treatment-as-usual (TAU) or ACT plus TAU. Twenty-five participants received four weekly sessions of ACT plus TAU, and 18 received TAU only. Positive parenting behaviors among parents in the ACT?+?TAU group improved immediately following treatment compared to the TAU group. Improvements were maintained six weeks following treatment. The hypothesis that psychological flexibility would mediate improvements was not supported.The present study provides initial, preliminary support for the secondary benefits of brief, broad ACT interventions for positive parenting behaviors among parents who have experienced relationship violence. Clinical implications for implementing ACT for parents who have experienced relationship violence and methodological limitations are discussed.     

Participation in Laboratory Research Result in Emotional Distress with One’s Partner: Comparing Violent and Nonviolent Couples

The present study compared impact of participating in laboratory research assessments on couples experiencing partner violence and nonviolent couples. Across two studies, 192 couples participated in a variety of potentially distressing laboratory procedures, including discussing relationship problems, viewing videotapes of their discussions, and completing questionnaires about personal and relationship problems. At the end of each laboratory session, participants rated their emotions about their partners as a result of having participated in the study procedures. Couples, recruited from the community, were placed into one of three groups: experiencing violence (V), nonviolent but maritally distressed (NVD), and nonviolent and nondistressed (NVND). Overall, study participants did not report high levels of negative feelings toward their spouses at the end of lab sessions. Few differences between V and NVD spouses were statistically significant, suggesting that violent spouses are not at greater risk than NVD spouses for negative feelings following study participation, although the finding of greater fear among V partners in one study deserves future attention. Relative to V and NVD couples, happy couples reported more positive and fewer negative feelings; NVD wives were the most likely to report negative emotions, in sessions involving a marital problem discussion. These findings can be used in discussions with Institutional Review Boards about the potential risks of laboratory procedures for violent couples recruited from the community.

A Framework for Analyzing Emergency Management with an Application to Federal Budgeting

Emergency management is a complex policy subsystem that involves an intergovernmental, multiphased effort to mitigate, prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters. This article develops a framework for analyzing the fiscal and functional aspects of disaster policy. It uses established theories of intergovernmental relations to offer a rationale for examining the capabilities required to implement disaster policy and the behavioral incentives that drive policy formulation. In particular, the article identifies the extent to which the capabilities and political objectives characteristic of each level of government are aligned, and illustrates the interplay between incentives and competencies by reviewing the federal disaster funding process. The current rules for federal budgeting may inappropriately promote spending on disaster response and recovery, while de-emphasizing mitigation and preparedness. Various proposals for reform could establish more coherent incentives, making disaster spending more consistent with the relative functional capabilities of the various levels of government.