Regionalism,sub-regionalism and the politics of identity in Oceania

Regional organization in Oceania has a history dating to the early post-war period while the rise of regional identities occurred somewhat later in the context of independence. This paper analyzes regionalization processes and accompanying discourses of regionalism relating to both pan-Pacific and more recent sub-regional developments. It pays particular attention to the dynamics of identity politics in the post-independence period and how these have played out in tensions within and between the varying exercises in regionalization.     

Roads diverged: An examination of violent and nonviolent pathways in the aftermath of the Bosnian war*

Despite renewed interest among criminologists in war and genocide, still understudied are the implications of mass violence for human development and behavior over the life course. By drawing on detailed life history data gathered from 55 male Bosnian refugees and nationals, in this work, I examine the shared beginnings of men who experienced the Bosnian war and genocide (1992–1995) in their youth, as well as examine their divergent pathways over time and across two distinct postwar contexts. My findings reveal that violent pathways are shaped by the confluence of social–psychological mechanisms (e.g., the normalization of violence) and exogenous risk factors (e.g., family disruption and loss of male role models). Compared with nonviolent men, who emphasize themes of catharsis and resilience, and the emulation of prosocial models of masculinity, violent men's narratives are distinguished by themes of persecution and exile, the emulation of violent role models, and contextual barriers to attaining valued masculine identities. Beyond the experience of war, these findings have implications for understanding how early experiences of chronic violence and community disruption shape turning points and cultural frames over the life course, and they indicate that studies of violent pathways should grant greater primacy to the social–historical context and the meaning individuals ascribe to their experiences.     

New Battles and Battlegrounds for Mandatory Arbitration After Epic Systems,New Prime,and Lamps Plus

The Supreme Court's recent decisions interpreting the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) in the employment context generally prioritize arbitration over workers’ labor law rights. The majority in Epic Systems Corporation v. Lewis upheld mandatory individual employment arbitration agreements despite their conflict with the labor law right to act in concert. The same majority in Lamps Plus, Inc. v. Varela rejected a state law interpretation of a contract provision to find that parties to an employment contract intend individual arbitration absent reference to group arbitration. A unanimous Court in New Prime v. Oliveira interpreted the FAA to include independent contractors under the transportation worker exemption, reinvigorating the battle over what it means to be engaged in interstate commerce to qualify for the exemption. These decisions resolved some disputes about the breadth of the FAA, but other questions remain. In the wake of Epic Systems and Lamps Plus, state courts and legislatures are testing the boundaries of the FAA's saving clause, with limited success. Confidentiality provisions, frequently associated with arbitration agreements, may unlawfully interfere with employees’ federal labor law rights. This article recommends that Congress amend the FAA to address these issues by excluding all workers engaged in interstate commerce, not just transportation workers, because the Court has strayed far from the original intent of the Act—to enforce commercial agreements in which the parties had equal bargaining power. State legislation also should provide guidance on what makes arbitration voluntary and fair, and provide a choice to employees on collective action, forum, and confidentiality.     

Identifying gaps in the research literature on illicit markets on-line

As access to technology and the Internet expanded dramatically over the last three decades, so too have opportunities for criminality. Researchers have begun to consider how the Internet enables the formation of illicit markets operating via various communications media in order to sell personal information, hacking tools, and other resources. Many of these studies provide basic information on the operations of on-line illicit markets. There is, however, a need for further research in order to improve the state of the literature and identify key questions to expand our knowledge of the practices of market actors and the social dynamics that facilitate their activities. This article introduces these concepts and outlines the state of the literature generally.     

The online stolen data market: disruption and intervention approaches

This article brings a new taxonomy and collation of intervention and disruption methods that can be applied to the online stolen data market. These online marketplaces are used to buy and sell identity and financial information, as well as the products and services that enable this economy. This article combines research findings from computer science with criminology to provide a multidisciplinary approach to crimes committed with the use of technology.     

The Relationship Between Interpersonal Victimization and Women’s Criminal Sentencing: A Latent Class Analysis

Latent class analysis was used to identify subgroups of incarcerated women differentiated by experiences of child abuse and intimate partner violence victimization. The abuse subscales of the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire and the Abuse Behavior Inventory were used as indicators. Data were drawn from a probability sample of 217 incarcerated women housed in two state-level prisons in North Carolina. Four classes were extracted—Low Victimization, Child Abuse, Lifetime Physical and Psychological Abuse, and Lifetime Sexual Abuse; classes were then related to current sentence length, holding criminological predictors constant. Women in the Child Abuse and Lifetime Sexual Abuse classes had significantly longer sentences, despite the lack of significant between-class differences on criminological predictors. Results suggest that certain victimization patterns, notably experiences of sexual violence, were associated with sentencing disparities despite the use of structured sentencing grids. Recommendations for trauma-informed sentencing are provided.     

Political Inequalities Start at Home: Parents,Children, and the Socialization of Civic Infrastructure Online

We use a two-wave panel survey of parent-child dyads in the United States to connect online democratic divides with the unequal socialization of political interest in the home. We test a model connecting parent socioeconomic status to the amount of political communication in the home and the subsequent development of youth political interest over the course of an election cycle. We develop the theoretical concept of online civic infrastructure to foreground how interest-driven social media use in adolescence may shape future opportunities for civic and political engagement by building network connections and opening up flows of communication that carry news, political information, and opportunities for mobilization.     

What Is the Hidden Figure of Delinquency in Girls? Scaling Up From Police Charges to Self-Reports

Research on males shows discrepancies between official records and self-reports of delinquency, thus creating a scaling-up factor. Comparable information for girls is still needed. We investigated discrepancies (scaling up factors) from official records to self-reports in a large sample of girls between ages 12 and 17 (N = 2,450). On average there were three self-reported juvenile female offenders for every individual charged by the police, and for every police charge there were four offenses that were committed. The scaling-up factor was highest in early adolescence, indicating that female offenders at a young age were more likely to stay undetected by the police. The scaling-up factor was significantly lower for African American than white girls: a higher proportion of African American delinquent girls were charged by the police. Racial differences in scaling up were significant only for prevalence, not for frequency of offending. Knowledge about scaling-up factors is important for the design and implementation of intervention programs. We discuss racial differences, implications for justice administration, and practical implications for intervention science.     

Social Capital and Bystander Behavior in Bullying: Internalizing Problems as a Barrier to Prosocial Intervention

Theory and research suggests that individuals with greater social capital (i.e., resources and benefits gained from relationships, experiences, and social interactions) may be more likely to be active, prosocial bystanders in bullying situations. Therefore, the goal of the current study was to examine the association of social capital (social support and social skills) with prosocial bystander behavior, and the role of internalizing problems as a potential barrier to this relation among 299 students (45.8% girls, 95% White) in sixth, seventh, and eighth grades. Results indicate a positive relation between social capital and prosocial bystander behavior. In addition, internalizing problems were a significant risk factor that may hinder youth—particularly girls—from engaging in defending behavior. Prosocial bystanders are an essential component to prevent and reduce bullying and further research is needed to better understand how to foster prosocial behavior in bullying situations, perhaps by utilizing social capital, related to school bullying.     

Adolescent Caffeine Consumption and Self-Reported Violence and Conduct Disorder

Caffeine is the most widely used psychoactive substance in the world and currently the only one legally available to children and adolescents. The sale and use of caffeinated beverages has increased markedly among adolescents during the last decade. However, research on caffeine use and behaviors among adolescents is scarce. We investigate the relationship between adolescent caffeine use and self-reported violent behaviors and conduct disorders in a population-based cross-sectional sample of 3,747 10th grade students (15–16 years of age, 50.2 % girls) who were enrolled in the Icelandic national education system during February 2012. Through a series of multiple regression models, while controlling for background factors, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder symptoms and current medication and peer delinquency, and including measures on substance use, our findings show robust additive explanatory power of caffeine for both violent behaviors and conduct disorders. In addition, the association of caffeine to the outcomes is significantly stronger for girls than boys for both violent behaviors and conduct disorders. Future studies are needed to examine to what extent, if at all, these relationships are causal. Indication of causal connections between caffeine consumption and negative outcomes such as those reported here would call into question the acceptability of current policies concerning the availability of caffeine to adolescents and the targeting of adolescence in the marketing of caffeine products.