The forensic investigation of propane gas asphyxiation

Two unusual suicides of a 19-year-old white man and a 47-year-old white man, involving propane inhalation and plastic bag suffocation, are described. The special characteristics of propane gas as an asphyxiant agent are discussed, as well as its effect on the human body. The discussion emphasizes the postmortem examination and the collection of samples for toxicologic analysis.     

Party Feminism: Gender Gaps within Nordic Political Parties

On the basis of surveys of Danish and Norwegian political party members, this article shows that female presence is comparatively high in Danish and Norwegian parties, and that there are a number of consistent and politically significant gender differences in political opinions within the parties. These gender gaps are largest regarding issues that are not central to the ideological core of the parties and on issues where women are particularly affected. The study still reveals the importance of party in the sense that the differences between the members of different parties are greater than the gender gaps within parties. In the Nordic party systems, gender as such does not constitute a political force transcending the left–right dimension.     

Personal Identity Development in Hispanic Immigrant Adolescents: Links with Positive Psychosocial Functioning,Depressive Symptoms,and Externalizing Problems

The present study was designed to examine trajectories of personal identity coherence and confusion among Hispanic recent-immigrant adolescents, as well as the effects of these trajectories on psychosocial and risk-taking outcomes. Personal identity is extremely important in anchoring young immigrants during a time of acute cultural change. A sample of 302 recently immigrated (5 years or less in the United States at baseline) Hispanic adolescents (M_age?=?14.51 years at baseline; SD?=?0.88 years, range 14–17) from Miami and Los Angeles (47?% girls) completed measures of personal identity coherence and confusion at the first five waves of a six-wave longitudinal study; and reported on positive psychosocial functioning, depressive symptoms, and externalizing problems at baseline and at Time 6. Results indicated that identity coherence increased linearly across time, but that there were no significant changes in confusion over time and no individual differences in confusion trajectories. Higher baseline levels of, and improvements in, coherence predicted higher levels of self-esteem, optimism, and prosocial behavior at the final study timepoint. Higher baseline levels of confusion predicted lower self-esteem, greater depressive symptoms, more aggressive behavior, and more rule breaking at the final study timepoint. These results are discussed in terms of the importance of personal identity for Hispanic immigrant adolescents, and in terms of implications for intervention.     

Childhood Predictors and Mid-Adolescent Correlates of Developmental Trajectories of Alcohol Use among Male and Female Youth

The identification of salient risk factors for alcohol consumption among male and female adolescents is an important topic not only for etiology research but also for designing effective gender-specific alcohol prevention programs for young people. This study examined the extent to which problematic alcohol use trajectories from ages 14 to 18 among male and female youth were related to childhood predictors assessed at age 9 (i.e., impulsivity, academic self-confidence, social problems with peers), socio-demographic variables, and mid-adolescent correlates [i.e., parental use, body mass index (BMI), risky peer context, conduct problems at school, parent–child relationship, somatic complaints]. Data analysis was based on a representative German longitudinal study (1986–1995, n = 1,619, 55 % female). Using growth mixture modeling methodology, associations of childhood predictors and mid-adolescent correlates to distinctive trajectories of alcohol use were examined for males and females separately. For males, a problematic consumption trajectory was associated with poor relationships to parents in adolescence and small community size. For females, low impulsivity during childhood, high BMI, and contact with deviant peers during adolescence predicted problematic as compared to normative alcohol use trajectories. Additionally, high parental alcohol use, low parental educational background, and conduct problems at school during adolescence were common predictors of a problematic alcohol use trajectory in both genders. The results provide insights regarding differences in the gender-typical development of adolescent alcohol use as well as stress the need of gender-specific intervention components along with universal prevention strategies against problematic consumption trajectories.     

Revenue Diversification in Public Higher Education: Comparing the University and Polytechnic Sectors

Financial stringency has been an increasing concern in the higher education sector, especially in the aftermath of the financial crisis. As a result, public higher education institutions have been under increasing pressure to diversify their funding sources through tuition fees and other nonpublic revenues. This article reflects on the institutional impact of those changes by analyzing a panel of 30 higher education institutions from the Portuguese public university and polytechnic sectors for the period between 2003 and 2009. The authors explore the relevance of institutional characteristics such as enrollments in undergraduate and postgraduate programs, the qualifications of academic staff, and the regional environment where institutions are located. Results suggest that certain institutional characteristics related to mission differentiation and the path of development of binary systems are important determinants of higher education institutions’ ability to earn income from tuition fees and other nonpublic sources.     

Thoughts about a model of constitutional articulation of the public power in the field of biomedical sciences]

This article analyses from a substantive and organizational point of view the current scope of competence of the Spanish public powers in the field of biomedical sciences. The general rule is established whereby the competence belongs to the State. The autonomous communities opt for silence, except for exceptional cases (Cantabria, Catalu?a, Madrid). Given this situation coupled with the lack of rulings by the Consitutional Tribunal on the possible conflicts that could arise between an autonomous community and the State in the field of biomedical sciences, Profesor Fonseca correctly concludes that there is a need to draft an express distribution of competences between the different public powers in this matter.     

Ukraine twenty years after independence: Concept models of the society

This paper attempts to create an overview of the Ukraine twenty years after independence by presenting prevailing conceptual narrative models of Ukraine employed by Ukrainian and foreign experts. Based on the analysis of 58 interviews of Ukrainian political and intellectual elites and foreign experts, the study revealed several categories of conceptual narrative models employed by respondents: (1) a state without a national idea and a common identity; (2) a country in an unfinished transition and degradation; (3) a divided society; and (4) Ukraine as a colony or “wild capitalism”. The analysis of these categories helps to assess conflict potential in Ukraine and discuss some ideas for conflict prevention and resolution.