Intellectual and developmental disabilities and Ontario’s forensic inpatient system: a population-based cohort study

Individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) in forensic inpatient beds are both complex and understudied. Previous studies have been limited and largely based on smaller clinical samples. We used data from a population-based cohort of Ontario adults with IDD (H-CARDD cohort, n?=?66,000) to describe their prevalence in forensic inpatient beds during 2005–2015 and compare their demographic and clinical profiles with non-IDD forensic patients. Results show that forensic patients with IDD and without IDD have similar profiles, with the exception that patients with IDD are more likely to have a psychiatric disorder and to be younger, rural, and have high or very high morbidity. Strong support was found for disproportionate admission: individuals with IDD are 12.2% of forensic inpatients but only 0.8% of the general population (d?=?1.57). Support for disproportionate utilization was less dramatic and mixed. Little difference was found in terms of the per cent of longer-stay (treatment) admissions or multiple forensic admissions; however, patients with IDD did have longer number of bed days over 10 years (averaging 220.6 days more, d?=?0.28). A better understanding of the barriers to discharge for individuals with IDD will support implementation of appropriate pathways out of the hospital.     

A Within-Individual Examination of the Predictors of Gun Carrying During Adolescence and Young Adulthood Among Young Men

Journal of Youth and Adolescence - Although prior studies have identified several risk factors for gun carrying, no prior longitudinal studies have examined a comprehensive set of explanatory...     

Best Practices in Civic Education: Lessons from the Journal of Political Science Education

The Journal of Political Science Education (JPSE) provides over a decade of research on political science pedagogy, featuring empirical research documenting best practices in the field. This article provides an overview of JPSE-published research on the topics of civic education and engagement. It summarizes the number and scope of articles on this topic and highlights key findings from the journal’s first 12 years. This comprehensive overview of past research is designed to facilitate high quality future research. A detailed exploration of past research provides a useful “jump start” for teacher-scholars eager to advance the scholarship and pedagogy of engagement.     

Rethinking the future-seeking narrative of child migration: the case of Ethiopian adolescent domestic workers in the Middle East

ABSTRACT

Recent research on child migration has largely departed from the early trafficking narrative and has tended to highlight young people’s agency and the ways in which children’s migration can play a key role in their ‘future-seeking’. While we acknowledge that Ethiopian girls migrating to the Middle East in order to undertake domestic work primarily move voluntarily for economic reasons, our research – which used a multi-layered, qualitative research approach with girls and their families in the West Gojjam and North Wollo Zones of the Amhara National Regional State – found that the financial, physical, and psychological costs of such migration can far outweigh the benefits. Indeed, we conclude that the earlier trafficking narrative may, in this case, represent the most appropriate lens through which to view girls’ choices and experiences.     

Differentiated legitimacy,differentiated resilience: beyond the natural in ‘natural disasters’

This paper starts with a flood in southern Malawi. Although apparently a ‘natural’ event, those most affected argued that it was made much worse by the rehabilitation of a nearby irrigation scheme. We use this example to interrogate the current interest in resilience from a perspective informed by political ecology and political economy, arguing that a focus on resilience should not be at the expense of understanding the conditions that shape vulnerability, including the ways in which ‘communities’ are differentiated. Complex factors are at play – and the ways in which these combine can result in a ‘perfect storm’ for some individuals and households. These factors include the effects of history combining with ethnicity, of legitimacy influencing voice, and of the interplay of political dynamics at different levels. In particular, processes of commodification have played an important role in shaping how some may benefit at the cost of catastrophic harm to others.     

Invited Commentary: Understanding Brain Mechanisms of Pain Processing in Adolescents’ Non-Suicidal Self-Injury

Whereas non-suicidal self injury (NSSI) is reported in 13–23% of adolescents and is an increasingly studied topic, there has been little investigation into the pathophysiology behind self-injury. This commentary examines recent research into pain and emotional distress to discuss implications for the manner we should understand, research, and treat NSSI in the future. Research indicates that adolescents may be particularly vulnerable to NSSI behaviors due to neurodevelopmental changes in the processing of distress and pain. Additionally, emotional distress and physical pain neural pathways may have been altered in these individuals, leading to the development of NSSI behaviors during adolescence when changes in ongoing brain development may lead to further emotional dysregulation and poor impulse control. Further studies that directly characterize the relationship between emotional distress and physical pain in adolescence, as well as the neural differences between self-injurers and non-self-injurers, are needed.     

School Engagement Among Urban Adolescents of Color: Does Perception of Social Support and Neighborhood Safety Really Matter?

In this study we examined the effects of risk factors (perceived neighborhood crime/delinquency problems, neighborhood incivilities) and protective factors (teacher support, family support, peer support) on the school engagement of 123 urban adolescents of color. Age and gender were also examined to determine if different ages (younger or older) or genders (male or female) significantly modified the relationship between the risk factors and school engagement. Results indicated that perceived neighborhood incivilities was uniquely predictive of school engagement. Contrary to hypotheses, different levels of the perceived social support variables did not modify the effects of risky neighborhood conditions on adolescent’s perceived school engagement. Age, but not gender, significantly modified the relationship between perceived family social support and perceived neighborhood crime on adolescents’ reported levels of school engagement. The implications of the results for prevention and intervention programs that address school engagement among early adolescents of color are considered.

Balancing Regionalism and Localism: How Institutions and Incentives Shape American Transportation Policy

Public policy decisions are increasingly made by regional governance efforts that involve diverse decision makers from multiple government units within a geographic region. These decision-making bodies face competing pressures to represent regional and local interests. We study how decision makers balance preferences for regionalism and localism within metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs), the policymaking entities that are responsible for implementing U.S. federal surface transportation policy at the regional level. Our model of regional governance relates variation in regional policy outcomes to the incentives of MPO decision makers and the institutional environments in which they interact. Analyzing data from a sample of the nation's largest metropolitan areas, we find that MPOs dominated by elected officials produce more locally focused policies, holding other factors constant, while MPOs dominated by nonelected public managers produce more regionally oriented policies. Contextual factors, as well as the regional governance institutions themselves, further shape the balance between regionalism and localism.