Betting shops in the public eye: A commentary

Betting shops are a familiar feature in towns and cities throughout the UK. However, in recent years, increasing social and political concerns have been expressed about the presence of betting shops in high streets and about the role of betting shops in encouraging gambling. Such concerns include the concentration of betting shops in areas of social deprivation, the impact of such shops on the vitality of and viability of town centres, the perceived links between betting shops and both anti‐social behaviour and criminal activity and the presence of Fixed Odds Betting Terminals in betting shops. This commentary paper outlines the origin and characteristics of betting shops, explores some of the recent concerns betting shops have attracted and offers some brief concluding reflections on the impact of policy responses to these concerns.     

Post-conflict justice in divided democracies: the 1984 anti-Sikh riots in India

Abstract

Official figures claim that almost 3000 people were killed, and many more injured or displaced, in four days of rioting aimed at the Sikh population of Delhi in late October and early November 1984 following the assassination of Indira Gandhi. This article analyses the efforts made to address the human rights violations that occurred. It argues that as a divided democracy, India has struggled to do justice to the victims, despite multiple commissions of inquiry, compensation schemes and a prime ministerial apology. It argues that this has occurred not simply because of challenges commonly faced by democracies dealing with similar incidents, but also because of the particular problems faced in a context in which we see continuity of rule by a political elite allegedly implicated in the abuse and in which there is acute concern for the survival of a fragile divided polity.     

MEDIATION AND DIVORCE

This article describes the Danish system, tracing its roots from the days when the crown dealt with all matters involving the family. The role of the amtmen in granting divorce through this administrative process is described. A total of 94% of all divorces in Denmark are handled through this procedure.     

Effects of Partner Violence and Physical Child Abuse on Child Behavior: A Study of Abused and Comparison Children

This study tests a model of the effects on child behavioral outcome of the child's exposure to partner violence and child abuse, in children who have experienced the two forms of victimization either separately or together. Recognizing that family contextual factors play an important role in influencing child outcome, an ecological model is proposed that designates family stress as the principal exogenous factor, with effects on child outcome mediated through caretaker distress, partner violence, and child abuse. The sample consists of 100 confirmed cases of physically abused New York City schoolchildren, ages 9 to 12 years, and their families, and 100 nonmaltreated classmates, matched for gender, age, and, as closely as possible, for race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status, and their families. Child behavioral outcome is assessed by classmates for antisocial, prosocial, and withdrawn behavior and by parents and teachers for externalizing and internalizing problem behavior. Results are generally consistent with the hypothesis that partner violence and caretaker distress, both associated with family stress, increase the risk for child abuse and thereby raise the child's risk for poor outcome. Implications of differences among raters for the model's applicability, and implications of the results for clinical intervention, are discussed.     

A single approach to the recovery of DNA and firearm discharge residue evidence.

The Laboratory of the Strathclyde Police Forensic Support Department extracts DNA from cellular material recovered from garments submitted as evidence. The standard method used an adhesive tape attached to a plastic or acetate support. This paper demonstrates a method whereby a single sample, recovered from clothing, can be examined for Firearm Discharge Residue and then extracted for DNA.     

Occupational stress and psychological functioning in law enforcement officers

Law enforcement officers experience a variety of stressors because of their police work responsibilities. The use of avoidance coping in order to cope with emotions, thoughts, and memories of traumatic or stressful events may explain increases in occupational stress and poorer psychological functioning. In this study, avoidance coping, occupational stress, and psychological distress were assessed in law enforcement officers. The sample was majority Caucasian, male, and married with a mean of 12.4 years of law enforcement experience. Results indicated that participants reported high levels of psychological distress as compared to an adult male non-patient sample. The use of avoidant coping was associated with higher levels of organizational stress. Additionally, a predictor of psychological distress was the use of avoidant coping strategies and high levels of occupational stress, respectively. Implications of these findings concerning the role of workplace acceptance in a law enforcement setting are discussed. Authors’ Note: Significant institutional support was provided by the police administration to conduct this study. The authors would like to thank all of the police officers that took their time to participate in this study. This study was funded by a fellowship from the Jim Mikawa Ethnic Minority Fund. Data collection was provided by Rebecca M. Pasillas. Natalie M. Rice. Kathleen M. Palm. Leah, M. Leonard, and Lindsay Gray.     

Opposites Do Not Attract: The Impact of Domestic Institutions, Power, and Prior Commitments on Alignment Choices

States that choose to involve themselves in an ongoing dispute do so by choosing to align with or against one of the original disputants. What factors lead states to prefer to help one side over the other? We consider the effect of the disputants' power, political and economic institutional similarities between each disputant and the aligning state, and formal alliance commitments between each disputant and the aligning state on these alignment choices. We evaluate these expectations empirically by examining the alignment choices of states that joined with one side or another in a Militarized Interstate Dispute during the period of 1816 to 1986. The results indicate that regardless of regime type, institutional similarities matter to the aligning state's decision. We also find that power concerns matter only to autocracies; democracies do not seem to base their alignment choices on the power of the sides in the dispute. Finally, the evidence indicates that the alignment choices of democracies cannot be anticipated by their prior alliance commitments, although the alignment choices of autocracies can. These results suggest interesting implications for research on the democratic peace, the determinants of threat in the international system, and the impact of selection effects. The consistent empirical evidence that institutional similarity affects alignment decisions also increases our confidence that future investigations of institutional similarity generally, rather than an exclusive focus on joint democracy, will prove fruitful.