Compulsive traits and police officer performance

As a general rule, pathologies tend to impair job performance. In a study involving performance criteria and the Personality Assessment Inventory in a sample of Louisiana police officers (N=800), OCD characteristics correlated significantly in a negative direction with several performance criteria, such as involvement in an on-duty or off-duty at fault moving violation, number of on-duty or off-duty at fault moving violations, any citizen complaints regarding unprofessional conduct, number of unprofessional conduct, and accusation in any way of racially offensive conduct, behavior, verbalization, or complaints. It has been found that the traits of obsessive-compulsive disorder, in moderation, may actually improve performance in police officers. This agrees with the Yerkes-Dodson law, which states that peak performance occurs when a person experiences mild to moderate levels of stress. Authors' Note: Emily DeCoster-Martin was an undergraduate psychology major at The University of Evansville at the time this paper was written. William U. Weiss, Ph.D., is a professor in the Department of Psychology, The University of Evansville, 1800 Lincoln Av., Evansville, IN 47722. Robert D. Davis, Ph.D., is executive vice-president and director of science, research, and development for Matrix, Inc., Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Cary Rostow, Ph.D. is president of Matrix, Inc.     

Parenting in Dependency Drug Court

The Dependency Drug Court (DDC) in Miami, Florida, addresses the needs of families affected by substance abuse through a comprehensive and therapeutic approach. The DDC works with community agencies to provide services that effectively treat the family as a unit. This article discusses the process of adapting a parenting program to meet the needs of families in the DDC.     

LAW ENFORCEMENT AND THE RULE OF LAW: IS THERE A TRADEOFF?

This essay assesses whether a strong evidence‐based argument can be made to support the proposition that when police violate the rule‐of‐law they do more harm than good with respect to their collective, as well as personal, interests. The assessment is undertaken to counter the common presumption among police officers that circumstances often justify cutting legal corners in the interests of public safety. The essay first examines what research shows about the facilitators of police law breaking. It then examines seven reasons why violating the rule‐of‐law works against the instrumental interests of the police themselves. After assessing the strength of the evidence against the instrumental benefit of violating the rule‐of‐law, suggestions are made about research that is needed to make the case more compelling. In conclusion, the essay discusses how empirical knowledge might be most productively used to change the culture of contemporary policing.     

The Limits of Disclosure: What Research Subjects Want to Know about Investigator Financial Interests

Research participants' views about investigator financial interests were explored. Reactions ranged from concern to acceptance, indifference, and even encouragement. Although most wanted such information, some said it did not matter, was private, or was burdensome, and other factors were more important to research decisions. Very few said it would affect their research decisions, and many assumed that institutions managed potential conflicts of interest. Although disclosure of investigator financial interest information to research participants is often recommended, its usefulness is limited, especially when participation is desired because of illness.     

论医源性不合理医疗费鉴定与赔偿

目的　探讨医源性不合理医疗费产生原因、表现形式 ,以及法医学鉴定与赔偿的可行性。方法随机抽取人身损害赔偿案件 480例 (自 1996到 2 0 0 2年 ,每年 80件 ,不包括 1999年 ) ,对其医疗费进行全面的调查研究 ,并作统计分析。结果存在医源性不合理性医疗费的案件数逐年上升 ,有关费用数额也逐年增加。结论开展对医源性不合理医疗费的审查和鉴定 ,并追究侵权行为主体的法律责任具有必要性和可行性     

Gambling, substance use, and other problem behaviors among youth: A test of general deviance models

Understanding the relationships between youthful gambling, substance use, and other problem behaviors is of interest to researchers studying deviance and to policymakers developing improved prevention strategies. This study used first-order and second-order factor models to test the hypothesis that gambling, alcohol misuse, other drug use, and delinquency were manifestations of a single general deviance construct. Respondents were seventeen to twenty-one year-old youth who were interviewed in two separate general population studies. Contrary to the hypothesis, the second-order model with a single deviance construct did not fit as well as a model specifying only correlations among all first-order factors. A single latent variable representing general deviant behavior did not explain deviance as well as distinct types of problem behaviors. This was true for overall samples and for gender-specific subgroups. Thus, while problem behaviors were related, there also must be uncorrelated antecedents predicting distinct types of youthful problem behaviors.