Filters of influence: The help-seeking process of African American single mothers living in poverty seeking mental health services for their children

There are a disproportionate number of African American children living in poverty who are in need of mental health services. African American children who live in poverty tend to underutilize mental health treatment due to the barriers their caregivers face; however, far less research has been conducted on the percentage of children who do access mental health treatment and the experiences of their caregivers in maneuvering through the barriers in their environments. This grounded theory study systematically generated a help-seeking theory that was constructed through the experiences of single African American mothers living in poverty who accessed mental health treatment for their children.     

Media influence on attitudes toward guns and gun control

This study employs the 1995 National Opinion Survey of Crime and Justice to examine the effect that media consumption (hours of television viewing per week, regular viewing of crime drama, and primary source of crime news) has on attitudes towards guns and gun control. Logistic regression results indicate that regular viewers of crime shows are more likely to oppose gun control and believe that firearms prevent crime. Respondents who receive their primary crime news from the print media are more likely to disagree with making it easier to conceal firearms. The author suggests that violent depiction of crime on television may influence viewers’ attitudes toward guns and gun control.     

Paradoxical correlates of a facilitative parenting programme in prison—counter-productive intervention or first signs of responsible parenthood?

Parenting programmes are rarely part of prisoners' rehabilitation, and evaluations of such programmes are lacking.     

‘Stalking’ – Seeking the victim's perspective

Abstract

The law has experienced great difficulty in defining ‘stalking’ and framing legislation to deal with the problem. There has been little research as to how the public in general and potential victims in particular view this phenomenon. In an effort to explore this issue, 80 women aged 18 to 55 years were invited to classify which of a range of intrusive behaviours were exemplars of stalking. A cluster analysis of the classification data showed a clear distinction between those which participants felt to be stalking and non-stalking related acts. Further, a number of distinct sub-categories of perceived stalking behaviours were suggested by the analysis. Participants were also asked to indicate whether they had first hood experience of any of these behaviours and to describe their worst personal experience of ‘stalking’. Analysis of this data suggested that instances of what our respondents perceived as ‘stalking’ was widespread in the sample and that some of its more serious manifestations would, if reported, have led to criminal charges. The difficulties of framing legislation, however, to define all the acts which our respondents saw as ‘stalking’ remain.     

The attribution of responsibility in cases of stalking

There is a general belief that stranger stalkers present the greatest threat to the personal safety of victims, despite national victimisation surveys and applied research demonstrating that ex-partner stalkers are generally more persistent and violent. The just-world hypothesis offers a possible explanation for this apparent contradiction. The current research used nine hypothetical scenarios, administered to 328 university students, to investigate the assumptions that underlie attributions of responsibility in cases of stalking. It explores whether these assumptions are consistent with the proposed mechanisms of the just-world hypothesis, and whether they vary according to the nature of the perpetrator–victim relationship and conduct severity. Thematic analysis revealed that the victim was perceived to be more responsible for the situation when the perpetrator was portrayed as an ex-partner rather than a stranger or acquaintance. Furthermore, victims were perceived to be more responsible when the perpetrator's behaviour was persistent and threatening. These findings are discussed in the context of the just-world hypothesis and related to the proposed mechanisms by which a person can reinterpret a situation so that the perceived injustice disappears.