Reviews

Vexing questions: Women and philosophy

Moira Gatens, Feminism and Philosophy: Perspectives on Difference and Equality (Polity Press) Cambridge, 1991; Rosi Braidotti, Patterns of Dissonance (Polity Press) Cambridge, 1991.

Rethinking democracy, reaffirming equality

Ann Ferguson, Sexual Democracy: Women, Oppression, and Revolution (Allen & Unwin) Sydney, 1991; Anne Phillips, Engendering Democracy (Polity Press) Cambridge, 1991.

Women's health

Claudia Bepko (ed.), Feminism and Addiction (Haworth Press) Binghamton, 1991; Helen Roberts (ed.), Women's Health Matters (Routledge) London, 1992.

Distinguishing the Intertwined: Multiplicity as Methodology and Recent Studies of Gender, Class, Ethnicity and Culture

Gill Bottomley, Marie de Lepervanche and Jeannie Martin (eds), Intersexions: Gender/Class/Culture/Ethnicity (Allen & Unwin) Sydney, 1991; Kalpana Ram, Mukkuvar Women: Gender, Hegemony and Capitalist Transformation in a South Indian Fishing Community (Asian Studies Association of Australia Women in Asia Publication Series) (Allen & Unwin) Sydney, 1991; Shanti Rozario, Purity and Communal Boundaries: Women and Change in a Bangladeshi Village (Asian Studies Association of Australia Women in Asia Publication Series) (Allen & Unwin) Sydney, 1992; Ann Game, Undoing the Social: Towards a Deconstructive Sociology (Open University Press) Buckhingham, 1991

Writing through the body?

Judith A. Allen, Sex and Secrets: Crimes Involving Australian Women since 1880 (Oxford University Press) Melbourne, 1990.

Re‐mapping terrains

Carol Pateman, The Disorder of Women (Polity Press) Cambridge, 1989; Lorraine Code, What Can She Know? Feminist Theory and the Construction of Knowledge (Cornell University Press) Ithaca & London, 1991; Elisabeth J. Porter, Women and Moral Identity (Allen & Unwin) Sydney, 1991.

Inversions

Betsy Warland (ed), Inversions: Writing by Dykes, Queers and Lesbians (Press Gang) Vancouver, 1991.

Living laboratories

Robyn Rowland, Living Laboratories, (Sun) Melbourne, 1992.

Sharing household work

Janeen Baxter, Diane Gibson with Mark Lynch‐Blosse, Double Take: The Links Between Paid and Unpaid Work (Australian Government Publishing Service) Canberra, 1990; Michael Bittman, Juggling Time: How Australian Families Use Time (Office of the Status of Women, Department of Premier and Cabinet) 1991.

Feminist knowledge

Sneja Gunew (ed.), Feminist Knowledge: Critique and Construct and A Reader in Feminist Knowledge (Routledge) London, 1990.

Emotion and Gender

June Crawford, Susan Kippax, Jenny Onyx, Una Gault and Pam Benton, Emotion and Gender: Constructing Meaning from Memory (Sage) London, 1992.

As good as a yarn with you

Carole Ferner (ed.), As Good As A Yarn With You: Letters between Miles Franklin, Katharine Susannah Prichard, Jean Devanny, Marjorie Barnard, Flora Elder show and Eleanor Dark (Cambridge University Press) Oakleigh, 1992.

Women's rights

Elizabeth Kingdom, What's Wrong With Rights?: Problems for Feminist Politics of Law (Edinburgh University Press) Edinburgh, 1991; A‐J. Arnaud and E. Kingdom (eds), Women's Rights and the Rights of Man (Aberdeen University Press) Aberdeen, 1990.     

Quantifying and Ranking Quality for Acquired Recordings on Digital Video Recorders

As the closed-circuit television (CCTV) security industry transitioned from analog media to digital video recorders (DVRs) with digital storage, the law enforcement community struggled with the means with which to collect the recordings. New guidelines needed to be established to determine the collection method which would be efficient as well as provide the best quality evidence from live DVRs. A test design was developed to measure, quantify, and rank the quality of acquisition methods used on live systems from DVRs typically used in digital CCTV systems. The purpose was to determine guidelines for acquiring the best quality video for investigative purposes. A test pattern which provided multiple quantifiable metrics for comparison between the methods of acquisition was used. The methods of acquisition included direct data download of the proprietary file and open file format as well as recording the video playback from the DVR via the available display monitor connections including the composite video, Video Graphics Array (VGA), and high-definition multimedia interface (HDMI). While some acquisition methods may provide the best quality evidence, other methods of acquisition are not to be discounted depending on the situation and need for efficiency. As an investigator that needs to retrieve video evidence from live digital CCTV systems, the proprietary file format, overall, provides the best quality evidence. However, depending on the circumstance and as recording technology continues to evolve, options other than the proprietary file format may provide quality that is equal to or greater than the proprietary file format.     

Embedding SMEs in national systems of innovation: Participant perceptions of Australia's CRC-P program

Governments throughout the world employ a variety of policy mechanisms to promote economy-enhancing innovation, although the embedding of SMEs in national systems of innovation has generally proved problematic. The Australian Cooperative Research Centres – Projects Program represents a recent attempt to do precisely this. Interviews with participants in the first two rounds of the Program report high levels of satisfaction, but also highlight potential for friction between SMEs and research providers, together with the opportunity for strategic manipulation. This study provides government officials and other stakeholders with preliminary recommendations regarding where the Program is succeeding, and where further vigilance may be required.     

The Role of Social Networks in Physical and Relational Aggression Among Young Adolescents

Despite the veritable influence of the peer context on the elaboration of adolescent aggression, few studies of relational aggression have directly identified and measured peer groups, limiting our ability to draw formal conclusions about the level and nature of peer influence. The current study used a developmental framework to examine peer group influence on individual levels of physical and relational aggression over a year with 6th and 7th grade students (n = 346, 51 % female). A multilevel network approach was used in which peer groups were identified via social network analysis, and peer group influence was evaluated with hierarchical linear modeling (HLM). HLM analyses indicated that peer group aggression (physical and relational) at time 1 was predictive of individual aggression levels at time 2 after controlling for other peer group characteristics as well as other individual risk and protective factors. Although both forms of aggression were embedded in peer networks, findings suggest that physical aggression is relatively less endemic to peer networks, and is more likely to occur in smaller, predominantly male networks. The current study highlights the importance of understanding the influence of peer group membership on adolescent aggression and points to important implications for prevention.     

LGB and Questioning Students in Schools: The Moderating Effects of Homophobic Bullying and School Climate on Negative Outcomes

Lesbian, gay, and bisexual students (LGB) and those questioning their sexual orientation are often at great risk for negative outcomes like depression, suicidality, drug use, and school difficulties (Elliot and Kilpatrick, How to Stop Bullying, A KIDSCAPE Guide to Training, 1994; Mufoz-Plaza et al., High Sch J 85:52–63, 2002; Treadway and Yoakam, J School Health 62(7):352–357, 1992). This study examined how school contextual factors such as homophobic victimization and school climate influence negative outcomes in LGB and questioning middle school students. Participants were 7,376 7th and 8th grade students from a large Midwestern county (50.7% Female, 72.7% White, 7.7% Biracial, 6.9% Black, 5.2% Asian, 3.7% Hispanic, and 2.2% reported “other”). LGB and sexually questioning youth were more likely to report high levels of bullying, homophobic victimization, and various negative outcomes than heterosexual youth. Students who were questioning their sexual orientation reported the most bullying, the most homophobic victimization, the most drug use, the most feelings of depression and suicidality, and more truancy than either heterosexual or LGB students. A positive school climate and a lack of homophobic victimization moderated the differences among sexual orientation status and outcomes. Results indicate that schools have the ability to lessen negative outcomes for LGB and sexually questioning students through creating positive climates and reducing homophobic teasing.     

Multilevel Modeling of Direct Effects and Interactions of Peers,Parents, School,and Community Influences on Adolescent Substance Use

This study tested a social-ecological model of adolescent substance use. Multilevel modeling was used to investigate how systems, such as parents, peers, schools, and communities, directly influence and interact together to influence adolescent substance use. Participants included 14,548 (50.3% female) middle school students who were 78.6% White, 5.4% Biracial, 4.8% Asian, 4.8% Black, and 3.6% Hispanic. Participants completed a survey with scales assessing substance use, peer influences, parental influences, and characteristics of their school and community. Hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) was used to consider the variation of parental and peer influences on substance use and how schools and communities relate to both substance use and the relationship between substance use and peer and parental factors. Results indicated that a positive school climate and a positive sense of community were associated with less adolescent substance use and that a positive sense of community moderated the relation between peer and parental influence on adolescent substance use, thereby acting as a protective factor.

Fashion and feminism

Valerie Steele, Fashion and Eroticism: Ideals of Beauty from the Victorian Era to the Jazz Age (Oxford University Press), New York, 1985; Elizabeth, Wilson, Adorned in Dreams: Fashion and Modernity (Virago), London, 1985.