Factors in prison suicide: one year study in Texas.

The goal of the study was to examine psychopathology and stressors suffered by suicide victims, and to describe the characteristics of the suicides in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice between June of 1996 to June of 1997. Data on 25 completed suicides were collected from the records department. Results: The authors identified 60% of the suicide victims with a history of psychiatric disorders. Seventy-six percent had been diagnosed with psychiatric disorders while incarcerated. The most frequent psychiatric disorders were mood disorders (64%), psychotic disorders (44%), personality disorders (56%), and comorbidity with a history of presentencing alcohol and drug abuse was common. Most of the victims experienced chronic and/or acute stressors of acute trauma, disrupted relationship, sentence hearing, and/or medical condition. We concluded that important factors associated with increased risk of prison suicide include psychiatric disorders, comorbid substance abuse, a history of suicide attempt, and chronic and/or acute stressors.     

Getting One's Way in Policy Debates: Influence Tactics Used in Group Decision-Making Settings

This study moves beyond traditional approaches to public administration and public policy decision making to consider how interpersonal influence tactics affect policy decisions in group decision-making settings. Decision makers reported their own use of interpersonal influence tactics to achieve policy objectives, as well as those used against them. Responses were compared to individual decisions made over the course of policy-formulation meetings. The results indicate that the most popular techniques were inspirational appeals and rational persuasion. The most effective techniques for influencing participants varied according to the type of decision to be made: During the visioning process, coalition tactics and inspirational appeals proved most effective; for more concrete decisions about current issues, rational persuasion, inspirational appeals, and consultation influenced decisions.     

The American Founders Entrusted Elites to Save Democracy from Itself

The word “democracy” does not appear in the US Constitution . Nor in the Bill of Rights or the Declaration of Independence . That is because, as most Americans today would likely be surprised to discover , America's Founding Fathers not only distrusted democracy but, based on their close reading of Greek and Roman history, were actually hostile to the notion that it was the best system for governing society .     

Taking Stock of Drug Courts: Do They Work?

ABSTRACT

Although researchers, policymakers, and practitioners alike have long known about the established link between substance abuse and criminal behavior, criminal justice agencies in the United States are still tasked with managing an influx of individuals who display symptoms of abuse and dependence. By the late 1980s, the drug court model emerged as an innovative response to this problem, and this reform has since proliferated to such an extent that it is the most common type of problem-solving court in America. Still, there remains much variation in how drug courts are implemented across jurisdictions, which can have strong implications for the outcomes among the courts’ participants. In this review, we summarize the key research on drug court implementation, followed by an assessment of whether they can be said to “work” in terms of reducing criminal behavior and relapse among adults. We conclude that the model remains an evidence-based practice and suggest some directions for future work, including increased emphasis on theory and causal dynamics and key measurement issues.     

How Social Media Splits the Global Conversation

A disconnect has emerged between authority and influence, between the established platforms of informed public debate and the new dominance of social media.