Wanted and Unwanted Sexual Experiences and Family Dysfunction During Adolescence

The goal of this study was to examine the relationship between family dysfunction and wanted, unwanted, and illegal sexual experiences that occurred during childhood and adolescence. Three hundred fifty-three subjects from a sexual abuse clinic, a family practice clinic, and a family planning clinic anonymously completed a survey on childhood sexual experiences and physical violence, family substance abuse, violence toward others, and family quality. Overall, 50% had had unwanted (USE) and wanted sexual experiences (WSE) before they turned 18. Subjects in the sexual abuse clinic had the highest percentage (90%) of unwanted or illegal sexual experiences, followed by the family planning subjects (40%) and the family practice subjects (30%). Both USE and WSE were related to family dysfunction scores, even when they were controlled for demographic influences. Family dysfunction scores were highest for those who reported USE and legal WSE and were lowest for those who reported no USE or WSE.     

Test of an alternative method for determining sex from the os coxae: applications for modern Americans

A recently proposed method for determining sex from the os coxae reports a 98% success rate using European collections. The purposes of the present study are to (1) evaluate the success rate of this proposed method using modern American os coxae from different population subgroups; (2) compare the success rate of the new method with that obtained using traditional techniques; and (3) determine replicability of the new method and interobserver error. Eight hundred and seventy-six adult left os coxae were independently evaluated by both authors. Summary statistics for sex classifications were calculated for the total sample and for a random sample of 400 individuals. The impact of sex and ancestry on the success of each method was calculated on the random sample using Pearson's chi2 values. Results demonstrate that for modern American os coxae, neither sex nor race have a significant impact on the success rate for either the new or traditional methods (p < 0.01). Additionally, the success rate of the new method is comparable with that obtained using traditional techniques. Finally, interobserver error using the new method for overall sex determination is low.