Intimate Partner Violence and Psychological Health in a Sample of Asian and Caucasian Women: The Roles of Social Support and Coping

This study examined the potential mediating effects of social support and coping strategies on the relationship between intimate partner violence (IPV) and psychological outcomes. A sample of 100 Caucasian women and 61 Asian women were recruited from domestic violence agencies. Structural equation modeling was used to test the proposed model. Analysis of the combined group revealed that there was an indirect effect of the level of violence on psychological outcomes via the mediating variables of perceived social support and passive coping strategies. Ethnic group comparisons, however, indicated differences between Caucasian and Asian women. In the Caucasian group, the level of violence had an indirect effect on psychological outcomes via the mediating variables of perceived social support and passive coping strategies. In contrast, in the Asian group, the direct effect of the level of violence on psychological outcomes was strong and significant, and the mediating roles of these variables were not found. Research implications for practice are delineated. This study was funded by the Institute on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault (IDVSA) at the University of Texas at Austin.     

Business Development Support and Knowledge-Based Businesses

Knowledge-based businesses are vital to the economic development and revitalization of many regions, especially areas that have experienced a decline in traditional industries. Notwithstanding the importance of KBBs to areas with marginal economies, little is known about the business development support requirements of these firms and the extent to which their support needs are being met. Through the use of a telephone survey, this empirical study investigates the demand-side perspectives and experiences of entrepreneurs in a peripheral region of Canada to determine the types and sources of support used at various stages of business development, and to identify potential support gaps. Findings indicate support used by KBBs differs from more traditional firms and that support needs change as firms move through the life cycle. There appears to be a low level of awareness among firms in the study region of available support services and a perception that support beyond the start-up stage is generally lacking. These findings have important implications for researches and for agencies with a business development support mandate.     

FAMILY SUPPORT AND MAINTENANCE: EMERGING ISSUES IN SOME DEVELOPING COUNTRIES WITH MIXED JURISDICTIONS

Family support and maintenance laws in several developing countries with mixed legal traditions derived from colonial and local laws are based on a litigation model. This model often fails to give adequate legal relief in the socioeconomic context of poverty. The situation is made worse by inequitable and gender‐biased inheritance laws. This article will use examples mainly from countries in South Asia and Commonwealth Africa to demonstrate how reformist legislation and constitutional jurisprudence in the area of public law and judicial activism highlight the issues that must be addressed if the legal system is to provide an effective system of family support and maintenance.     

儿童最佳利益：少年司法社会支持体系之伦理议题

少年司法社会支持体系是司法实务部门探索创新和理论研究的热点，然而相关伦理问题的研究仍是空白。通过社会支持和社会化处遇使得进入刑事诉讼程序的未成年人获得适当保护是“儿童利益最大化”原则在少年司法中的体现。保障儿童最佳利益的“责任伦理”是少年司法社会支持主体责任中政府主导、社会力量广泛参与的伦理基础，也是平衡“国家亲权”与“父母亲权”的伦理依据。社会力量对未成年人进行社会支持的过程中，应当遵循平等与尊重、接纳与认可、赋权与发展等基本伦理规范，以最大限度地保障儿童最佳利益。     

PREVENTION PROGRAMS FOR DIVORCED NONRESIDENT FATHERS

Divorced nonresident fathers are a promising target for preventive efforts to assist families after divorce. The research literature suggests that such programs should focus both on the frequency and the quality of the child's contact with the father, as well as the quality of postdivorce mother–father relations. Dads For Life (DFL) is the program for this target group with the most convincing evidence of preventive effects. This eight-week program centers on professionally made videos. It was tested in a randomized trial with 214 families. In comparison to control families, children in families in which the father participated in DFL had significantly lower internalizing problems. The preventive impact of DFL was strongest for the most troubled youngsters.     

WTO框架下我国农业国内支持的立法思考

世贸组织的《农业协议》明确规定了各国农业的国内支持规则 ,而我国在入世时也就此问题作出了郑重的承诺。在现阶段 ,研究我国农业的国内支持和补贴水平 ,分析国内支持措施的重要作用 ,对提高我国农业的国际竞争力和增加农民收入有着重要的意义。本文拟结合 WTO的相关规则和我国的国内实践 ,从立法角度对我国农业的国内支持措施的调整作出有益的探索 ,以建立一套行之有效的国内支持的法律体系。     

THE AUSTRALIAN CHILD SUPPORT AGENCY:

The Australian Child Support Agency is recognized as a world leader in the delivery of child support services. But the rapid growth in debt between 1998 and 2003 signaled a need to develop strategies to counter the growth in owed child support. A Debt Study was undertaken in late 2002 to establish the collectibility of debt by category of cases with debt, search for the most cost-effective methods of debt collection, and determine if other client and debt segmentation methods were warranted. The success of the Debt Study led to the implementation of the Intensive Debt Collection strategy in 2003–04.     

SUPER-SIZED KIDS:

Morbid obesity is an unfortunate problem that is only becoming worse everyday. The alarming aspect of it is that it is affecting people at a much earlier age; thus, young children are becoming morbidly obese and are experiencing the same health problems as middle-aged adults. The first section of this note defines morbid obesity and its causes and trends. Section two describes child neglect in general and then distinguishes medical neglect. Section three discusses education and prevention, which are both crucial steps in the struggle with weight-loss and weight-gain. Section four summarizes the beneficial aspects of removing a morbidly obese child who is in a life-threatening position from his or her parents. Section five highlights case-studies from California, Iowa, Indiana, New Mexico, and Texas, where children have either died or were removed from their families because of morbid obesity. Section six briefly touches upon similar child neglect scenarios where removal is permissible and compares those situations with those of morbidly obese children. The seventh section considers some credible counterarguments to government intervention, and the final section suggests some recommendations on how to prevent the morbid obesity crisis from becoming worse than it already is. Too many people are dying from weight-related problems already, yet morbid obesity is preventable! This severe state of obesity is something that can be controlled and prevented, but only if parents take an active role in their child's diet and exercise.     

浅探父母离婚后的子女监护问题

父母离婚后对未成年子女的监护是我国监护制度中的核心内容，而共同监护在离婚亲子关系中体现了子女最佳利益原则。在共同监护中，父母双方的责任如何分担是共同监护的关键所在。