Mental Health Literacy and Eating-Disordered Behavior: Beliefs of Adolescent Girls Concerning the Treatment of and Treatment-Seeking for Bulimia Nervosa

This research examined the “mental health literacy” of adolescents concerning eating-disordered behavior. A vignette describing a fictional 16-year old female meeting diagnostic criteria for bulimia nervosa was presented to 522 female high school students, followed by a series of questions concerning treatment of and treatment-seeking for the problem described. Results indicated that primary care practitioners, mothers and close female friends were most highly regarded as potential sources of help. Self-help interventions, including the use of vitamins and minerals, were also highly regarded, whereas participants were less positive about the benefits of mental health specialists and ambivalent about the use of anti-depressant medication. Most participants believed that the problem described would be difficult to treat, and that relapse was likely even given appropriate treatment. An additional finding of note was that among participants with a high level of eating disorder symptoms (n=36, 6.9%), recognition of an eating problem was poor. We conclude that beliefs likely to be conducive to low and/or inappropriate treatment-seeking for eating problems may be common among adolescent girls. In addition, the findings suggest that prevention programs for the eating disorders need to target not only at-risk individuals, but also individuals in their immediate social environment.     

Were Bosnian policy research organisations more effective in 2006 than in 2003? Did technical assistance play a role?

In 2003 the policy development process in Bosnia and Herzegovina was characterised by international community (IC) dominance. The IC provided the vast majority of the analysis of problems facing the country and drafted many of the laws. This article documents developments from fall 2003 to fall 2006 in the use of evidence and analysis in the policy development process and the role of local policy research organisations (PROs—often called think tanks) in it. The likely relation between these changes and the activities of a PRO mentoring project that operated over the same period is also assessed. Evidence comes as a series of interviews in both years with government officials and members of parliament, on the one hand, and leaders of PROs and advocacy NGOs on the other. The broad picture that emerges from the above review is of a substantial positive development in the policy development process in Bosnia and Herzegovina over the period. Factual evidence and analysis are playing a much greater role, and PROs have been a major provider of this information. The evidence indicates that PROs have been successful in convincing the policy community that they are purveyors of objective, disinterested advice and analysis. The improvements occurred in a conducive environment that steadily placed greater responsibility for policy formation on Bosnian officials. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Parenting satisfaction of mothers during midlife

The present investigation explores the relations among midlife identity concerns, marital satisfaction, mental health, and parenting satisfaction among mothers of preadolescents and early adolescents. Data were obtained from 129 intact families with a firstborn child between the ages of 10 and 15. The results suggest that intense midlife concerns are associated with diminished satisfaction with parenting, although this relation is moderated by the mother's reported marital satisfaction and her overall psychological wellbeing. Specifically, mothers with intense midlife crisis symptoms report higher parenting satisfaction when their marital satisfaction is high, but lower parental satisfaction when their midlife concerns are accompanied by psychological distress. The relations among midlife concerns, marital satisfaction, psychological symptoms, and mothers' satisfaction with parenting are not moderated by the sex of the adolescent.The research reported here is part of a larger investigation supported by grants to the second author by the William T. Grant Foundation and the Graduate School Research Committee of the University of Wisconsin —Madison. This paper is based on a senior thesis completed by the first author in the Department of Child and Family Studies at the University of Wisconsin—Madison.Interests are in adolescent development and sex differences.Interests are in adolescent development and family relations.     

The Roles a “Civil Society” Can Play in International Dispute Resolution

Since its very inception, the United Nations has worked with NGOs (non-governmental organizations) or, to use the contemporary term, a "civil society." In fact, every single U.N. department now has an NGO liaison. As the world becomes increasingly smaller, the role and influence of NGOs will continue to be significant in international negotiations.     

Fostering subnational autonomy and accountability in decentralized developing countries: lessons from the Papua New Guinea experience

Using the experience of Papua New Guinea as a case study, this article examines the importance of political and administrative organization, electoral politics and revenue assignments for fostering subnational autonomy and accountability in decentralized developing countries, and hence the success of fiscal decentralization programmes. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Woman abuse in university and college dating relationships: The contribution of the ideology of familial patriarchy

Several theorists contend that male university/college students who physically, sexually, and psychologically abuse their female dating partners are more likely than men who are not abusive to adhere to the ideology of familial patriarchy. These scholars also argue that men who hold familial patriarchal attitudes and beliefs, and who are supported by their male peers, are most likely to victimize their dating partners. This research provides quantitative data from a national representative sample of Canadian male undergraduate students that support these hypotheses. This study was sponsored by a grant from the family Violence Prevention Division, Health and Welfare Canada The views expressed in this paper are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of Health and Welfare Canada.     

Risk and Protective Factors Associated with Alcohol,Cigarette, and Marijuana Use During Adolescence

The purpose of this study was to increase the knowledge base of adolescent substance use by examining the influences of risk and protective factors for specific substance use, namely alcohol, cigarettes, and marijuana. Participants included 271 adolescents and their primary caregivers referred for mental health services across North Carolina. A series of hierarchical multiple regressions showed that the relative influences of risk and protective factors differed depending on the target substance in some cases. History of parental felony predicted use of all 3 substances, although the direction of association was substance specific. Parental behavioral control (how families express and maintain standards of behavior) was predictive only of cigarette and marijuana use, not alcohol use. The different links among risk factors, protective factors, and specific substance use are discussed, and recommendations for both mental health and substance use professionals are offered.She received her M.A. in Psychology from Wake Forest University and is currently a doctoral student in Clinical Psychology at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Her major research interests include developmental pathways to aggressive behavior among females.An evaluator for the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, her major research interests include system of care intervention programming.She received her PhD in Clinical Psychology from Purdue University. Her major research interests include developmental psychopathology and early intervention.His research interests focus on youth violence and youth involved with the juvenile justice system.She received her PhD in Clinical Psychology from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Her research interests focus on early intervention with young children.