A comparison of the abuse experiences of male and female adults molested as children

Do the molestation experiences of boys and girls differ? The present study analyzed data from 365 adults molested as children, and compared findings for males and females on the identity of the perpetrator, age at onset and end of molestation, duration of molestation, type of sexual acts, and whether the molestation was reported to law enforcement. Results indicated that boys and girls were equally likely to be molested by natural fathers, girls were more likely to be molested by stepfathers, and boys were more likely to be molested by friends of the family. Molestation started at the same age for boys and girls, but lasted longer and ended at a later age for girls. Males and females were equally likely to experience fondling from the waist down and oral intercourse. However, there were significant differences for incidence of anal intercourse and fondling from the waist up. Findings are discussed in the context of previous research in the field.     

Analyzing Multiple-Item Measures of Crime and Deviance I: Item Response Theory Scaling

Multiple-item measures of self-reported offending typically provide the principal outcome measures for individual level research on the causes of crime and deviance. This article directs attention to the substantial problems presented by the task of forming composite scores for these measures, and it presents a possible solution to those problems. We consider scaling by means of the graded response model from item response theory (IRT) as a potential means of overcoming the shortcomings of traditional summative scaling and of obtaining valuable information about the strengths and weaknesses of our measures. We illustrate this strategy through a scale analysis of a fourteen-item, self-report measure of delinquency, using three years of data from the Monitoring the Future study, an annual national survey of high school seniors. The graded response model proves to be consistent with the data, and it provides results that address important substantive questions about self-report measures. The findings are informative about the strengths and weaknesses of alternative strategies for developing self-report instruments, indicating that there is little to be gained by making fine distinctions in the frequency of individual delinquent acts.     

Reviews

Arabic Edition of the British Council Map of Europe and the Middle East. Scale 1: 11,000,000. Royal Geographical Society

Iraq Irrigation Handbook: Part I. Euphrates. Compiled by Ahmed Sousa, under the direction of J. D. Atkinson. Published at Baghdad by the Government of Iraq, 1944. 10” × 7”. Pp. in, with 35 tables, 18 figures and 1 plate, also, in a portfolio 15” × 14”, 16 other plates. Price not stated.

Jenghis Khan. By W. Yan. Hutchinson International Authors, Ltd. 9s. 6d.

From Tunisia to Normandy. By Major‐General H. Rowan‐Robinson, C.B., C.M.G., D.S.O. Hutchinsoh.

Defence is Our Business. By Brigadier J. G. Smyth, V.C., M.C. Hutchinson and Co. 10s. 6d.

Anna and the King of Siam. By Margaret Landon. Illustrated by Margaret Ayer. John Day Co., New York. Pp. 391.

The Modern Prison System of India. By Lieut.‐Colonel F. A. Barker, C.I.E., O.B.E., M.A., M.D., B.C., I.M.S. (Retd.).

Fabian Colonial Essays. With an Introduction by A. Creech Jones, M.P., and edited by Dr. Rita Hinden. Geo. Allen and Unwin. Pp. 261. 8s. 6d. 1945.

Modern Exploration. F. Kingdon Ward. 124 pp. Published by Jonathan Cape at 6s.     

The new constitutions of east Germany

The restoration of the Lander in the former GDR in 1990 and the unification of Berlin called for a round of constitution drafting in the east that resulted in considerable discussion and controversy within the attentive public and, especially, among legal scholars in all of Germany. Controversy focused on two general issues: direct democracy and certain constitutional provisions such as social rights and state goals. Direct democracy is nothing new for the Länder, since most West German Land constitutions provided for referenda long before the Wall collapsed. But the three‐step process adopted in the east, and in particular the relatively low signature requirements for initiatives and petitions, both of which were in fact first introduced by Schleswig‐Holstein in 1990, did not meet with universal approval. Even more controversial were certain provisions in the Land constititions, for example, Brandenburg, that probably violate the Basic Law, and a number of unenforceable social rights and state goals that raise questions about feasibility and false expectations. This leaves us with questions about just how different from their western counterparts the constitutions in the new Lander really are and whether, given the relatively weak position of the Lander in the policy‐making process in the German federal system and the EU, their constitutional provisions matter that much.     

Permission to speak: British women in the established churches during the First World War

The first decade of the twentieth century witnessed the growth of the suffrage movement, and a vigorous debate about the public role of women. Britain’s established churches were caught up in this discussion, as they addressed calls for women to have more authority in religious institutions. Dialogue among church leaders ranged between two extremes. Conservatives viewed women’s roles through the lens of ‘traditional’ gender constructs, opposing a public role and voice for women. Progressive factions contended that women should receive the political suffrage and the right to participate in church councils. The male hierarchy argued that empowered women were necessary for the ongoing ministries of the churches, and would be supportive of traditional morality. By 1919, the progressives had prevailed. This matched developments in the franchise, in which gendered qualifications for voting were swept away. Thus, the typically conservative churches played an important role in redefining women’s public roles.