Distal Humerus Morphological Variation and Sex Estimation in Modern Thai Individuals,

Due to differential preservation, it is necessary to develop sex estimation methods on varied anatomical regions, including the distal humerus. Sexually dimorphic differences of the medial epicondyle angle, olecranon fossa shape, trochlear extension, and trochlear constriction have been documented in several non-Asian groups. This study examines distal humerus morphological variation in 616 modern Thai individuals (f = 198; m = 418) 18–96 years old and tests the methods on a hold-out sample of 152 individuals (f = 91; m = 61). The results indicate that population-specific binary probit regression performs the best (74.1–100%), followed by composite scoring (77.0–90.1%), binary logistic regression (63.3–92.2%), and univariate sectioning points (37.7–90.1%). Age minimally effects the expression of the medial epicondyle angle in males, and trait scoring is susceptible to high intra- and interobserver error. While demonstrating relatively high sex biases, distal humerus morphology can be used to estimate the sex of Thai individuals when more sexually dimorphic regions are absent.     

Leadership Traits and Ghana’s Foreign Policy: The Case of Jerry Rawlings’ Foreign Economic Policy of the 1980s

This article examines Ghana’s foreign policy-making with reference to internal and external determinants (structural/systemic). Besides these determinants, political actors (primarily, presidents/heads of state) have shaped the country’s foreign policy outcomes, but this field of enquiry (i.e. the individual-level analysis) has not, received much attention in the literature. To enhance the understanding of leadership and personality traits in foreign policy-making, this study draws on the theory of Leadership Trait Analysis to examine Jerry John Rawlings and Ghana’s foreign economic policy in the early 1980s. It argues that the leadership traits of Rawlings to some extent shaped Ghana’s foreign economic policy decisions in the early 1980s.     

Perceptions of police-juvenile contact predicts self-reported offending in adolescent males

ABSTRACT

Evidence suggests that positive experiences with the police can foster attitudes of respect towards the justice system that can reduce an adolescents’ propensity to commit later illegal behaviors. To advance prior work, we tested whether this association might be stronger for those adolescents who associate with deviant peers. Additionally, we tested whether the link between attitudes towards police and the justice system, and the influence of peer delinquency, would be weaker for those with elevated callous–unemotional (CU) traits. These predictions were examined in a prospective study using a sample (N?=?1,216) of adolescent males who were followed prospectively for 2 years following their first official contact with the juvenile justice system. Positive experiences with the police following the youth’s first arrest were associated with less self-reported delinquency 2 years later, which was partially mediated by reductions in adolescents’ cynicism about the legal system. However, this link was only significant for youth with low levels of peer delinquency. Although CU traits were related to less positive perceptions of experiences with the police and greater cynicism about the justice system, CU traits did not moderate the associations among experiences, attitudes, and later illegal behavior nor did they moderate the influence of peer delinquency.     

The Development of a Thurstone Scale for Identifying Desirable Police Officer Traits

Screening applicants for the position of peace officer is a very uncertain process. Concomitantly, trying to select applicants who will be successful throughout their careers adds another, important dimension. Unfortunately, the selection process has primarily been one of screening-out those who are for one reason or another unfit. This article used the Thurstone Scale as the methodological basis to identify those traits that experts agreed are the ones that are meaningful in predicting police officer career success.     

日本社会教育的发展特点及对中国的启示

日本的社会教育经历了以科技教育为主要形式的学校教育依属阶段、以职业技能拓展为主要形式的发展阶段以及以终身学习为愿景的社会教育完善阶段的发展历程，总结出了完善以企业内部培训为平台的社会教育发展模式、形成以“学社融合”的社会教育发展模式、完善的社会教育学科研究以及注重民生为本的教育模式。总结日本的经验，从中获得启示，对中国的社区教育的整体发展具有一定的参考作用。     

浅谈反恐基层一线警察的心理特征——以心理健康、人格特征和工作应对方式的研究为中心

特殊的任务和使命使反恐基层一线的警察承受着较大的职业压力和职业风险,而他们所承受的压力源和应激源又完全不同于其他的警察,因此探索反恐基层一线警察的心理健康状况、人格特征及应对方式,对于提高他们的心理健康水平,工作效率以及维护社会稳定有重大意义。     

Statistical Classification Methods for Estimating Ancestry Using Morphoscopic Traits,

Ancestry assessments using cranial morphoscopic traits currently rely on subjective trait lists and observer experience rather than empirical support. The trait list approach, which is untested, unverified, and in many respects unrefined, is relied upon because of tradition and subjective experience. Our objective was to examine the utility of frequently cited morphoscopic traits and to explore eleven appropriate and novel methods for classifying an unknown cranium into one of several reference groups. Based on these results, artificial neural networks (aNNs), OSSA, support vector machines, and random forest models showed mean classification accuracies of at least 85%. The aNNs had the highest overall classification rate (87.8%), and random forests show the smallest difference between the highest (90.4%) and lowest (76.5%) classification accuracies. The results of this research demonstrate that morphoscopic traits can be successfully used to assess ancestry without relying only on the experience of the observer.     

Psychological and behavioral adjustment in female youths with high or low psychopathic traits

The aim of the present study was to analyze the role of psychopathic traits in female juvenile delinquency. Using a sample of 236 young females from the Juvenile Detention Centers of the Portuguese Ministry of Justice and schools in the Lisbon area, a group of female youths with high psychopathic traits (n = 118; M = 15.84 years of age; range = 14–18 years of age) and a group of female youths with low psychopathic traits (n = 118; M = 15.77 years of age; range = 14–18 years of age) were formed based on the Portuguese version of the Antisocial Process Screening Device-Self-report (APSD-SR). The results showed that young females with high psychopathic traits start engaging in criminal activities and come into contact with the justice system earlier in life; exhibit higher levels of behavioral problems, conduct disorder, delinquent behaviors and serious criminality; and demonstrate lower levels of self-esteem and pro-social behavior. The importance of some variables in predicting group membership (high versus low psychopathic traits) was established through a binary logistic regression. Our findings reinforce the importance of the psychopathy construct for the early identification of potentially high-risk female youths and for the assessment of female youths who have already come into contact with the judicial system.     

特征表型信息SNP在法医学分析中的研究进展

以DNA为基础的STR和SNP遗传标记的检验,已广泛应用于各种个人识别、亲子鉴定和人口失踪案件。但现场DNA样本分型不能与相关个体匹配时,利用特征表型信息SNP则可能为侦查提供有价值线索。本文综述了近年来特征表型信息SNP在法医学应用中的研究进展,并简述其发展方向,旨在为相关研究和应用提供参考和借鉴。     

Identifying Southwest Hispanics using nonmetric traits and the cultural profile

Due to the increasing number of Southwest Hispanics in the United States, as well as the overwhelming number of foreign nationals that die every year trying to enter the United States along the southern United States border with Mexico, new methods for classifying individuals have been established at the Pima County Office of the Medical Examiner in Tucson, Arizona (PCOME). For each of the past 5 years, the PCOME has investigated a record number of deaths associated with these border crossings. The overwhelming majority of the identified decedents are Mexican Nationals. However, approximately 25% of these undocumented border crossers have yet to be identified, making it clear that improved methods for human identification are greatly needed. The first goal of this paper is to delineate the suite of skeletal nonmetric traits utilized in assessing Southwest Hispanic ancestry at the PCOME. This suite of nonmetric traits has proven to be an effective component in establishing the "biological profile" of unknown individuals in these cases. The second goal of this paper is to introduce methods used at the PCOME to establish the "cultural profile" of individuals in these cases. The "cultural profile" is a set of identification criteria that include: the geographic context of recovery, personal effects, dental health, and cultural accoutrements. Establishing the "cultural profile" in these cases is essential in identifying individuals as foreign nationals who have died trying to cross the border.