Sex differences in self-reported delinquency and official records: A multiple-group structural modeling approach

There has been a large increase in research in the last 10 years or so on the nature, extent, and causes of female delinquency, especially on how patterns differ from those of male delinquency. Few research efforts, however, have systematically examined sex differences in the reliability and construct validity of the most common technique used in causal research-the self—report method. The present study addresses this issue by empirically examining male-female differences in self-report reliabilities and the effect of the prevalence and incidence of delinquent behavior on official contact (i.e., arrest, court referrals). Multiple-group covriance structure models are employed to test hypotheses of measurement and structural invariance. The major conclusion is that while self-report measurement parameters (e.g., reliabilities) may differ, the structural link between the prevalence and incidence of delinquent behavior and official contact is generally invariant with respect to sex.     

Latent-variable models in criminological research: Applications and a generalization of Joreskog's LISREL model

This paper examines issues in LISREL models involving latent, or unobserved, variables. We discuss estimating parameters in multiple-indicator models, various approaches to assessing goodness of fit, different types of linear measurement models, using LISREL to correct for attenuation in models involving single indicators with known reliabilities, and estimating parameters in structural equation models involving latent exogenous and endogenous variables. Finally, we present a generalization of the standard LISREL model which explicitly identifies implicit constraints on parameters in the standard LISREL model. We argue that the generalization can accommodate a wider range of models and provide additional diagnostic information on some assumptions in the standard LISREL model. By example, we show how the more general model can be estimated using Joreskog's LISREL program.     

Models and methods of cost-effective child custody evaluation

Child custody evaluations (CCEs) are often seen as a necessity by the legal system when caregivers cannot find a resolution to their child custody disputes. In many instances, these evaluations are quite costly for the litigants and cost can act as a barrier to equal access to justice. Affluent families are better able to access private evaluators while families with lesser means may encounter delays in receiving services or be unable to afford an evaluation at all. This can, in turn, prolong resolution of league disputes, increasing the emotional toll on families, and hamper courts in making decisions in the best interests of the children involved. This article examines models of providing CCEs outside of an isolated individual provider private practice format. It examines the benefits and considerations for lower-cost evaluations, while discussing how to maintain high quality services that adequately assess family systems. Broader issues that impact the courts and overall access to justice through offering cost effective evaluations are also discussed.     

浅议秘密侦查之立法

秘密侦查手段是对付走私、贩毒、贩运假币,有组织犯罪等无被害人的隐蔽性、复杂性案件的一项卓有成效的侦查措施。然而,秘密侦查措施由于其方式的隐蔽性,手段的技术性,视角的穿透性等特点导致了侦查机关在实施秘密侦查时不规范,秘密侦查手段的效率难以发挥。我国应该借鉴外国的经验,对秘密侦查在立法上进行授权,对秘密侦查适用范围、条件、程序等进行规定,尽快制定有关法律,把秘密侦查纳入法制化的轨道。     

The Influence of Selected Fingerprint Enhancement Techniques on Forensic DNA Typing of Epithelial Cells Deposited on Porous Surfaces

Fingerprints deposited at crime scene can be a source of DNA. Previous reports on the effects of fingerprint enhancement methods have focused mainly on fingermarks deposited in blood or saliva. Here, we evaluate the effects of fingerprint enhancement methods on fingerprints deposited on porous surfaces. We performed real‐time quantification and STR typing, the results of which indicated that two methods (iodine fuming and 1,2‐indanedione in ethyl acetate enhancement) had no effect on the quantity of DNA isolated and resultant STR alleles when compared to control samples. DNA quantities and allele numbers were lower for samples enhanced with silver nitrate and 1,2‐indanedione in acetic acid when compared to control samples. Based on DNA quantity, quality, and observable stochastic effects, our data indicated that iodine fuming and 1,2‐indanedione in ethyl acetate were the preferred options for the enhancement of fingerprints on porous surfaces.     

The Spatial Dimensions of Gentrification and the Consequences for Neighborhood Crime

This study examines neighborhood economic improvement, what is occurring in nearby neighborhoods, and the consequences for neighborhood crime rates. Negative binomial regression models are estimated to explain the relationship between the increase in average home values (a component of gentrification) and crime in Los Angeles between 1990 and 2000. We find that the spatial context is important, as gentrifying neighborhoods located on the “frontier” of the gentrification process have significantly more aggravated assaults than gentrifying neighborhoods surrounded by neighborhoods also undergoing improvement. Furthermore, this effect is stronger in neighborhoods that began the decade with the highest average home values. Our findings indicate that the extent to which neighborhoods are more or less embedded in a larger process of economic improvement, and where the neighborhood is at in the economic development process, has differential effects on neighborhood crime.     

Party system dynamics and the making and breaking of Italian governments

This paper explores the dynamics of the highly fluid Italian legislative party system. It uses the same theoretical approach as the paper by Laver and Kato (this issue) to explore the making and breaking of governments in Italy following electoral reform. Under office-seeking motivational assumptions, the electoral system provides incentives for parties to band together into cartels in order to fight elections, with the winning cartel forming a government coalition. Inter-electoral legislative party competition, however, within a structure of permissive rules on the formation of legislative party groups, provides incentives for at least some members of the winning cartel to defect. The facility with which legislative parties can split and combine in Italy creates a highly dynamic decisive structure underpinning the making and breaking of governments. This cannot usefully be analysed with traditional models that take parties as unitary actors and assume that the party system is essentially fixed for the entire inter-electoral period.     

Determinants of popular financial reporting: Evidence from Swedish municipalities

This paper investigates popular financial reporting, to determine how contextual factors can favour or hinder its development. A balanced panel dataset from 289 Swedish municipalities spanning the period 2015–2021 is utilised for the empirical analysis, which is based on bivariate correlations and logistic regression models. The results are interpreted through the lens of legitimacy theory, integrated with innovation and diffusion models. The findings suggest that, while political factors play a certain role, it is primarily the local accounting networks, which enable the exchange of experiences among neighbouring municipalities within the same regional area, that are the most influential factor. These results may prove to be helpful in various contexts, contributing to the academic debate on the relevance of institutional and contextual factors in explaining the voluntary decision to prepare popular financial reports.     

Where Have All the Ministers Gone?

The relationship between ministers and public servants has been a longstanding topic among students of Australian public administration. Recent debate has centred on issues of supposed politicisation and excessive responsiveness in the Australian Public Service (APS), caused, in part, by the weakened tenure of department heads (secretaries). The recent Moran report has little to say on this relationship. It endorses changes to the appointment processes for secretaries which are presumably designed to strengthen secretaries’ independence from their political masters. It adopts a view of citizen‐centred service and strategic leadership that appears to marginalise ministers. Its approach to public sector leadership is taken from international management theory that works well in a business context and in the United States (US) government system. It is less well‐suited to Westminster‐style systems.     

A Comparison of Methods for Analyzing Criminological Panel Data

We demonstrate that fixed- and random-effects models for pooled cross-sectional and time series data, and latent growth curve models for panel data are special cases of a more general model. We compare the estimates obtained from each type of model for a data set consisting of homicide rates and a vector of explanatory variables for 400 US counties over a 15-year period. Most, but not all, estimates are similar in the two models. We identify circumstances under which one approach may be advantageous to the other.