Predictors of adult attitudes toward corporal punishment of children

This study identifies predictors of favorable attitudes toward spanking. Analyses were performed with survey data collected from a representative sample of 1,000 adults from Quebec, Canada. According to this survey, a majority of respondents endorsed spanking, despite their recognition of potential harm associated with corporal punishment (CP) of children. The prediction model of attitudes toward spanking included demographics, experiencing or witnessing various forms of family violence and abuse in childhood, and perceived frequency of physical injuries resulting from CP. Spanking was the most reported childhood experience (66.4%), and most violence and abuse predictors were significantly and positively correlated. Older respondents who were spanked in childhood and who believed that spanking never or seldom results in physical injuries were the most in favor of spanking. On the other hand, respondents who reported more severe physical violence or psychological abuse in childhood were less in favor of spanking. Findings are discussed in terms of prevention of CP and family coercion cycle.     

Risk assessment and offender victim relationship in juvenile offenders

The present study compares the Historical, Clinical, and Risk Management-20 (HCR-20) checklist in a male offender population of 108 adolescents using the relationship between the offender and the victim as a classification factor. Two types of relationship were retained for comparison purposes: family victim/known victim and unknown victim. All adolescents admitted to the Adolescent program of Montréal's Philippe-Pinel Institute from February 1998 to April 2003 were assessed and their families were met. The HCR-20 checklist was completed for each adolescent. Statistically significant differences were observed for the mean rank of the total score of the HCR-20 and two sub-scales, the historical subscale (H) and the risk management subscale (R). The results indicate that the adolescents who victimize strangers have more violent risk factors compared to those who victimize family/known victims. These results have important implications regarding prevention and treatment.     

SWIMMING AGAINST THE TIDE

<正>A maverick has become one of Kulangsu’s most endearing and emblematic figures When memory fades and blurs the boundary between reality and fantasy,larger-than-life characters may emerge.Han Guangle is one of them.In his late60s—he doesn’t even know his real age—Han is the epitome of eccentricity,a modernday Beau Brummel who cuts a striking figure in     

LIVING THE DREAM

<正>Dynamic entrepreneur finds her calling—and love—on Kulangsu Island Wandering through a maze of alleyways just a stone’s throw away from the crowded Sanqiutian Wharf on Kulangsu Island in Xiamen,Fujian Province,the surrounding peace and tranquility is broken only by the whisper of banyan tree leaves in the gentle     

Young,middle, and late adolescents' comparisons of the functional importance of five significant relationships

The present study investigated how young (11–13-year-old), middle (14–16-year-old), and late (17–19-year-old) adolescents compared the relative functional importance of their relationships with their mother, their father, their most important sibling, their best same-sex friend, and their most important teacher. Mothers and fathers were perceived as highly important sources of affection, instrumental aid, and reliable alliance by all adolescents; however, the parent-adolescent child relationship was also ranked high on the conflict dimension. Best same-sex friends were ranked highest in all three adolescent groups for intimacy and companionship. Siblings, too, were perceived as important sources of intimacy and companionship; they were also ranked high for the nurturance and conflict dimensions. Relationships with teachers received very low ratings in general.This study was made possible by a grant to the authors by the National Institute of Mental Health, grant 1 RO1 MH42858-01A1, and by funding through the Home Economics Research Institute of the College of Family and Consumer Sciences and the Iowa Agricultural and Home Economics Experiment Station, Iowa State University.The first author received his Ph.D. degree in 1976 from the Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota. His area of specialization is developmental psychology. He is a professor in the Department of Human Development and Family Studies at Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011. The second author received her Ph.D degree in 1987 from Iowa State University; her area of specialization is educational measuremenl and statistics. She is the teacher specialist for research, testing and evaluation for the Ames Community Schools system, and a research associate at Iowa State University. Both authors share an interest in studying the effects of stress factors on adolescent development and educational achievement.     

The Humanitarian Factors: An ICRC Perspective

More than ten years have passed since the beginning of the Global War on Terror and the consequent launch of Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan.Today,at the dawn of intemational forces' withdrawal,some substantive improvements are recorded in the field of infrastructure,power,communication,and education.The question is whether this relative progress is sustainable and whether the Afghan population will get the help it will actually need in an unpredictable,but a priori extremely difficult,future.