The relationship of self-regulation and aggression: an empirical test of personality systems interaction theory

On the basis of personality systems interaction (PSI) theory, the authors examine self-regulation, conflict behaviour, behavioural resources, and personality disorders in a sample of 83 male offenders and explore the role self-regulatory variables play with respect to aggressive behaviour. Although substantial correlations between self-regulatory functions and aggressive behaviour were found, these variables did not predict aggression in a subsequent regression analysis with measures of self-regulation, conflict behaviour, and personality disorders as independent variables. Antisocial behaviour, behavioural self-control, and affect were among the strongest predictors of aggression. Specific predictions based on PSI theory could not be confirmed. Theoretical implications of the findings are discussed and put into relation with treatment issues of offenders.     

The cartography of responses to state crime: understanding the linkages among state abuses/crimes/deviance/harms/illegalities/wrongs,resistance/control,and state organizational reactions

Although a considerable amount of thoughtful scholarly research on state crime has been conducted and published, researchers have failed to assemble a comprehensive model of the process and reactions that begin after state crime has occurred and been detected. This article outlines a heuristic model that presents the major political actors that participate in this process and the relationships that can develop among them. In order to create the model, research that has been conducted on state crime is reviewed and integrated, difficulties with this work are analyzed, and recommendations about future research that can be conducted using the model are made.     

The impact of protective shields and videotape testimony on conviction rates in a simulated trial of child sexual abuse

In Experiment 1 mock jurors watched a videotape simulation of a sexual abuse trial that included a 10-year-old child witness testifying in one of three different modalities: (1) The child testified in court while directly confronting the defendant (open court condition). (2) The child testified in court with a protective shield placed between the child and the defendant (shield condition). (3) The child testified outside the courtroom and the child's testimony was presented to the jury and the defendant on a video monitor (video condition). The mock jurors judged the guilt of the defendant after watching the entire trial. The modality of the child's testimony had no impact on conviction rates. In Experiment 2 subjects watched the same trial that was used in Experiment 1. The trial was stopped immediately after the child testified (the child was the first witness to take the stand), and subjects judged the guilt of the defendant. The modality of the child's testimony had a significant impact on conviction rates. Subjects in the open court condition were more likely to convict the defendant than subjects in the shield and videotape conditions. These findings are relevant to Supreme Court decisions regarding the use of protective devices with child witnesses.     

Positivism,pragmatism, and everyday life

Steven Ross teaches philosophy at Hunter College and the Graduate Center of the City University of New York.