Procedural decisions in intergroup conflict situations: The influence of hierarchical group membership

A review of research on procedural and distributive justice shows that whereas distributive justice research has examined people's actual choice of outcomes, procedural justice research has paid little attention to the investigation of people's actual choice of procedures. In the present paper, three experiments are presented, all investigating people's actual choice of procedures. In all three experiments, participants were in a middle-management position where their subordinates demanded an opportunity to voice their opinion, while their superiors demanded that the subordinates should not be allowed voice. In Experiments 1 and 2 it was found that participants who were induced to identify with the low hierarchical group (subordinates) allowed more voice than participants who were induced to identify with the high hierarchical group (superiors), but that the effect of hierarchical group membership was absent when maximizing performance (Experiment 1) or participative values (Experiment 2) were explicitly emphasized. In Experiment 3 it was found that the effect of hierarchical group membership on procedural decision making was also evident in persons who progressed from identifying with both hierarchical groups to identifying with one hierarchical group. In the discussion it is argued that cross-fertilization between the fields of procedural and distributive justice will deepen our understanding of social justice in general.     

How rumors are born

Jean-No?l Kapferer is an internationally recognized expert on rumors. He is professor of communication at l’école des Hautes études Commercialesand at l’Institut Supérieur des Affairesin Paris, and president of the Foundation pour l’étude et l’Information sur les Rumeurs.He is author of numerous books on communication and persuasion. This article has been adapted from his book Rumors, Uses, Interpretation, and Images,published by Transaction.     

Assessing the Influence of Familial Paternalism on Child Neglect Sentencing Decisions

Familial responsibilities have been found to significantly reduce the severity of sentencing outcomes of defendants in the criminal court. Additional research also has suggested that this leniency might be contingent on the type of offense, with defendants who commit crimes which imply that they are unfit parents (e.g., drug offenses) not receiving a significant reduction in their likelihood of incarceration. Utilizing familial paternalism as the theoretical basis, the current study examines whether having children influences the sentences of defendants charged with forms of criminal child neglect. The findings indicate that having children does result in significantly reduced odds of incarceration for defendants charged with child neglect. These findings support the arguments set forth by familial paternalism. However, they do not support the inference that defendants convicted of child neglect are presumed to be unfit parents. Implication of these results and directions for future research are discussed.     

Minors and informed consent: a comparative approach

The European Convention on Human Rights and Biomedicine of the Council of Europe provides in article 6 for special protection of persons who are not able to give free and informed consent to an intervention in the health field, e.g. minors. According to the second paragraph of this article it is up to domestic law to decide whether and under which conditions a minor is capable of taking autonomous decisions in the health field. In the present article an overview is given of the legal regulations in place regarding the position of minors in a health care setting in the EU Member States that have ratified the European Convention on Human Rights and Biomedicine namely Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Lithuania, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia and Spain. As the overview will show, the legal position of minor patients in a health care setting varies from country to country. This in view of the system they have opted for as well as the age and circumstances under which minors are allowed to take health care decisions autonomously.     

No-show at a forensic psychiatric outpatient clinic: risk factors and reasons

Nonattendance for and late cancellations of scheduled appointments, that is no-show, is a well-known phenomenon in psychiatric outpatient clinics. Research on the topic of no-show for initial and consecutive appointments in the field of forensic psychiatry is scarce. This study therefore aims to determine the prevalence and causes of no-show and to explore reasons for nonattendance. The study was carried out in an outpatient clinic in northern Netherlands. Telephone interviews were administered to 27 no-show clients, 84 follow-up no-show clients, and 41 attendees of 18 years and older. A no-show rate of 24.9% and a follow-up no-show rate of 9.8% was found. The majority of appointments missed were in the beginning phase of clinic contact. No-show clients were younger than their attending counterparts and more often dropped out from clinic contact. Also, less family social support was experienced by nonattendees. Reasons for nonattendance were having forgotten about appointment and work commitments.     

A neolignan-type impurity arising from the peracid oxidation reaction of anethole in the surreptitious synthesis of 4-methoxyamphetamine (PMA)

The neolignan-type substance 2,4-dimethyl-3,5-bis(4'-methoxyphenyl) tetrahydrofuran is presented as a new forensic marker compound for the peracid oxidation of anethole. It is hypothesized that the formation of a stable intermediary carbocation in the hydrolysis reaction of anethole epoxide is not only responsible for the presence of 1,2-diols (and its esters) and 4-methoxyphenyl-2-propanone (PMP2P) but can also be the cause for the creation of this neolignan impurity due to interaction with anethole itself. Moreover, the applicability of this new forensic marker is demonstrated by its retrieval in clandestinely manufactured 4-methoxyamphetamine (PMA) preparations.