Clinically Significant Trauma Symptoms and Behavioral Problems in a Community-based Sample of Children Exposed to Domestic Violence

This study assessed the associations of characteristics of domestic violence incidents with clinically significant levels of traumatic symptoms and behavioral problems in a socio-economically and ethnically mixed sample of 687 children participating in a community-service program for children witnessing violence. Study predictors included child/family demographic characteristics, type and chronicity of exposure, and child’s perceptions of control over the event and threat to personal safety. Outcomes consisted of traumatic symptoms and behavior problems. Results showed that perceived threat and control were associated with greater odds of clinically significant levels of several trauma symptoms (and behavior problems in the case of perceived threat) after adjusting for effects of demographic factors and violence characteristics. Child co-victimization increased odds of reaching clinically significant levels of traumatic symptoms compared to children who witnessed the event but were not victimized. Female sex and White ethnicity increased odds of specific trauma symptoms and behavior problems. Increasing age reduced odds of some trauma symptoms. Associations between predictors and one outcome measure did not generalize across the other outcome measure. Implications of study findings, and directions for future research are discussed.     

Latinos/as in the criminal and juvenile justice systems

With few exceptions, prior explanations of racially disparate punishment have followed a dichotomous approach (i.e., African American versus Caucasian), due in part to the limitations of existing data. Researchers have either excluded Latino/a, defendants or treated them as a monolithic group. Consequently, there is not much on Latinos/as, whose experiences with the criminal and juvenile justice systems differ from those of African American and Caucasian. This article expands on current literature by providing a thorough overview of existing literature on Latino/as. It critiques this body of literature and lists ten common methodological flaws that may contribute to findings of equal treatment. Finally, it provides a concise summary of the main subgroups within the umbrella term ‘Latino/a’ to highlight the heterogeneity within this classification.     

Assessing Readiness to Change among Perpetrators of Intimate Partner Violence: Analysis of Two Self-report Measures

Recent interest in the construct of motivation to change among male perpetrators of intimate partner violence (IPV) has led to development of two self-report measures of this construct: the University of Rhode Island Change Assessment for Domestic Violence (URICA-DV; Levesque et al. 2000) and the Safe at Home Inventory (SAH; Begun et al. 2003). We examined the internal structure of these instruments using confirmatory and exploratory factor analyses in a sample of 199 male IPV perpetrators waiting to begin court-mandated batterer intervention programs. Results indicated that the scales had adequate internal consistency. However, using confirmatory factor analyses, the hypothesized structural models of each instrument fit the data poorly. Subsequent models suggested by a series of exploratory factor analyses failed to improve model fit substantially for both scales. For the URICA-DV, a 3-factor model including items from the Precontemplation, Contemplation, and Action subscales fit the data adequately. No acceptable model fit could be found for the SAH. Intercorrelations among similar subscales across the two inventories suggested only a modest degree of intercorrelation (r’s = 0.16–0.52), and a factor structure more dependent on scale of origin than item latent content, suggesting that the scales assess different facets of the readiness to change construct. These results suggest that before the stages of change construct can be fully applied to the IPV area, more research and evaluation are needed on how to accurately assess abuser readiness to change.     

The Legacy of Violence on Post-Civil War Elections: The Case of El Salvador

Over the last several decades, numerous civil wars have ended as a consequence of negotiated settlements. Following many of these settlements, rebel groups have made the transition to political party and competed in democratic elections. In this paper, I assess the legacy of civil war on the performance of rebel groups as political parties. I argue that the ability of rebels to capture and control territory and their use of violence against the civilian population are two key factors explaining the performance of rebels as political parties. I test these hypotheses against the case of the Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (FMLN) in El Salvador using one-way ANOVA and multivariate regression analyses. In analyzing the FMLN’s performance in the 1994 “elections of the century,” I find that, as a political party, the FMLN benefited both from the state’s violently disproportionate response and its ability to hold territory during the war.     

‘I Wasn’t Really Bonded with My Family’: Attachment,Loss and Violence among Adolescent Female Offenders

This study analyzes the role of trauma and disrupted attachments in the development of adolescent girls’ violent behavior. A grounded theory approach was applied to the narratives of 24 young women (age 13–16 years old) who were adjudicated and remanded to custody for an assault or robbery. Three types of loss were inductively derived from the data (death of a loved one, physical absence, and psychological unavailability) as were two categories of violence (in the home and in the community). Findings suggest that extensive losses and violent experiences disrupted the young women’s attachment to their caregivers, and these experiences were disregarded or inadequately addressed. Detachment and the absence of supportive others left the young women poised to engage in a variety of maladaptive behaviors including violence. Theoretical and programmatic implications are discussed.     

Still lying abroad? On the institution of the resident ambassador

What explains the persistence and proliferation of the resident ambassador? Why is the role apparently important both to the conduct of international affairs and to the work of governments? I do not try to propose a new theory of ambassadors, but I do offer conclusions about the nature of living in a globalized society of states where the economic logic of markets and the political logic of communities are at cross-purposes. It is a world in which we depend on institutions to help us maintain order and stability. Ambassadors are one of those institutions. At one level they are the concrete day by day reproduction of the society of states. At another level they act on behalf of the members of their community, helping that community to maintain its strength and cohesion by doing what needs to be done, abroad. An increase in the intensity of interactions among states, therefore, seems to lead to an increase in diplomatic representation facilitated rather than impeded by the new technologies of transportation and communications. Ambassadors are still lying abroad, it seems, because changes in technology have brought 'abroad' much closer to home while the myriad effects of globalization have made much more of abroad relevant to people and their governments. Far from being in decline, the resident ambassador seems likely to continue flourishing.