Repartnering and the Management of Risk

Social theorists working with concept of ‘risk society’have addressed the issue of family change, suggesting that processesof individualization mean that family relationships have become‘elective’, which has in turn raised questions aboutthe nature of trust and commitment in intimate relationships.The position of those who are repartnering is particularly sensitivein these respects. Their awareness of risks may render themmore likely to make only contingent commitments, or may makethem more anxious to achieve a relationship founded on trustand commitment. We draw on in-depth interviews with a representativesample of people in England who have repartnered from a varietyof types of intimate relationship into different statuses inorder to explore the management of perceived risks. We findthat for most respondents repartnering is a process involvingdifferent kinds of relationships, although living-apart-togetheris understood as something rather different. There is littlesupport for the risk society thesis in respect of intimate relationshipsin respect of rejection of commitment and absence of trust.Rather, changes in relationship status often seem to be partof the process of building trust and of achieving the goal ofa rather traditional relationship. This poses challenges forpolicymakers as they seek to regulate different statuses indifferent ways.     

African American Oxford House residents: sources of abstinent social networks

The current study found that African American residents of Oxford House (OH) used Narcotics Anonymous (NA) at high rates, and that both OH and NA strongly contributed to abstinent social networks. Having siblings and other family members in one's network predicted substance use among network members, whereas spouses, parents, and children did not have an effect on the rate of substance use. These findings suggest that OH and NA may be effective sources of abstinent social support for African Americans recovering from substance abuse. However, family members are well represented in the support networks of African Americans in OH.     

Stress and coping: the roles of ethnicity and gender in substance abuse recovery

This study investigated ethnic and gender differences in reported resource losses and gains for recovering substance abusers living in Oxford Houses (OH). Participants (n = 829) completed a version of Hobfoll's (1998) Conservation of Resources (COR) Evaluation. Results indicated significant individual differences in resources, based on gender, ethnicity, and the length of OH residential stay. Men reported fewer resource gains and losses than women. With respect to ethnicity, African-Americans reported greater gains and losses in resources than European-Americans. Individuals with less time in an OH also reported having experienced more losses in the past 3 months.     

Attitudes of a community members as a function of participatory research with Oxford Houses

Citizen participation in research may include involvement in generating original ideas, planning appropriate designs, collecting data, and helping to implement interventions. Unfortunately, little is known about the attitudes of the community members who participate in such research processes. In the present exploratory study, a team of community members (4 men, 3 women; age > 30 years old) who were employed as investigator research associates to evaluate an innovative substance abuse recovery home were asked for their perspectives about their involvement in the research effort. Findings indicated that these community members felt their participation was a positive experience. Moreover, while their understanding and sense of participation in the research process increased, their identification and affiliation with their support organization was not reduced. Results imply that there is a need to better understand how citizen members of community organizations are affected by their involvement in the research process.     

Creating a home to promote recovery: the physical environments of Oxford House

The interior and exterior physical characteristics of substance abuse recovery program dwellings (11 woman, 44 men) from three geographic sections of the United States were assessed at creating a "house-as-home" for residents. Although each house was independently governed and operated by residents, results indicated vast similarities among the interior characteristics, amenities, and structural aspects. These rented dwellings also had similar well-maintained exterior characteristics, despite their geographic locations. Follow-up interviews of former residents indicated that these house characteristics and amenities helped create a sense of home not found in traditional institutional facilities. Results suggested that residents of self-governed independently operated recovery houses may create and maintain safe and sober settings that elicit a sense of home among residents.     

Nonviolent offenders' and college students' attachment and social support behaviors: implications for counseling

This study examines the relationships between adult attachment orientations and the ability to seek social support as factors in mediating behavior. Data were collected on non violent offenders (n = 57) and college students (n = 89). The results indicated the non-normative group of nonviolent offenders reported being more securely attached and having more satisfaction with their social supports than the normative group of college students. Fewer college students reported being securely attached than the nonviolent offenders but had a larger number of social supports. In the insecure categories, nonviolent offenders reported being more dismissively attached whereas college students reported being preoccupied in their attachment orientation. The study suggests that attachment and social-support-seeking behaviors across different populations may be potential factors in designing counseling services that are used for risk classification and needs assessment.     

Explaining Sexual Harassment Judgments: Looking Beyond Gender of the Rater

Law and Human Behavior - In two decades of research on sexual harassment, one finding that appears repeatedly is that gender of the rater influences judgments about sexual harassment such that...