The Relationships Between Childhood Sexual Abuse,Social Anxiety,and Symptoms of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in Women

The relationships between childhood sexual abuse, social anxiety, and symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder were examined in a sample of 313 undergraduate women. Thirty-one percent of the women reported some form of sexual abuse in childhood. Women with a history of sexual abuse reported more symptoms of anxiety, distress in social situations, and posttraumatic stress disorder than other women. Women who experienced attempted or actual intercourse reported more avoidance than women with no history of abuse and women with exposure only, and more PTSD symptoms than all other groups of women. Women who experienced fondling reported more PTSD symptoms than women with no history of abuse. Pressure, age of onset of abuse, abuse by a family friend, and abuse by other perpetrators were all significant abuse characteristics in predicting adult social anxiety. Implications of these results for research and interventions are discussed.     

Reasons for Returning to Abusive Relationships: Effects of Prior Victimization

Studies have demonstrated that women with a history of childhood sexual abuse (CSA) are at increased risk of revictimization, but research has not yet examined whether a history of CSA may affect patterns of remaining in or returning to abusive relationships in adulthood. This study examines the impact of a CSA history on decisions to return to abusive relationships in a sample of 104 adult domestic violence survivors. Participants were interviewed about the number of times that they had previously separated from and returned to their abusive partner, the factors that influenced their decision to return (both psychological/internal and environmental/external factors), and their perceived likelihood of returning in the future. As predicted, CSA survivors (n = 34) reported a significantly greater number of past separations than non-CSA survivors (n = 70). CSA survivors were also significantly more likely to report that their decisions to return were influenced by emotional attachment to the batterer. CSA survivors did not perceive themselves to be at greater risk of returning in the future, suggesting that they may be more likely to underestimate their vulnerability to returning to the battering relationship. Clinical implications of the findings are discussed.     

Liu Ye:Childhood and the World Today

正"I may use certain references to things that infl uenced me as a child,things that fi rst attracted me to art.But these subjects,my‘little people,’are used to describe my world today and certainly far removed from childhood."     

Carefree?Kiddie-hood: Play to Learn

正THE newly opened children’s playground in Fangzhuang Sports Park in Beijing’s Fengtai District has added a heaving hubbub of exuberant youngsters to this otherwise sedate spot where local residents come to relax or take exercise.Built to accommodate the recreational demands of children born in the recent baby boom,the playground is amply equipped with     

集体记忆情境下“80后”晒童年现象的社会学思考

作为青年亚文化的表现之一,2006年以来网络上风行的“80后”晒童年现象,是“80后”一代社会集体记忆情境的重要表现,它反映了当代青年思想的特征,折射出改革时代经济社会的变迁。对晒童年现象的表现、社会时代诱因和特征进行深入分析,有利于我们有针对性地引领青年文化和加强青年工作。     

论幼儿交往生活的缺失

交往对于幼和的成长具有重要意义,它不仅是幼儿情感、个性发展的重要条件,也是幼儿整个生活的组成部分。幼儿之间的理解以及幼儿对成人的理解、成人对幼儿的理解,都必然通过交往活动来实现。然而,幼儿的上境和幼儿教育的现实,造成了幼儿交往生活的缺失,其主要表现在功利社会背景下幼儿正常交往生活的剥夺,竞争状态下幼儿的孤立化,城市化生活中幼儿交往活动的丧失以及独生子女教育策略的失调。满足幼儿的交往权利是教育的重要职责之一。     

Examining the Impact of Early Childhood School Investments on Neighborhood Crime

This study tested the hypothesis that investments in early childhood schools have short-term crime reducing effects in neighborhoods. Time series data from the city of Tulsa, Oklahoma, were analyzed to evaluate the effects of an early childhood school built in the neighborhood of Kendall-Whittier as part of a larger neighborhood revitalization plan, on violent and property crime. Results revealed that after controlling for city-wide crime trends and monthly fluctuations, violent crime declined significantly in Kendall-Whittier. Further analysis indicated that the possible crime-reducing effects of school investments on violent crime spread beyond Kendall-Whittier, and no displacement was found. The results for property crime were mixed. The study demonstrates the use of clustering analysis, a useful tool in neighborhood-level research to identify comparison neighborhoods. The findings shed light on the possibility that investments in early childhood schools can yield results in a shorter term than anticipated, making them a desirable component of urban revitalization.     

Household furniture tip-over deaths of young children

The potential for the injury or death of a child resulting from the tip-over of a piece of household furniture or a domestic appliance has not been previously well recognized. We reviewed nine accidental deaths of young children that resulted from avoidable residential hazards and/or lapses in supervision of the children by their caregivers. The offending household items included televisions, bedroom dressers, a kitchen stove, and a lounge chair. The causes of death were mechanical asphyxia, blunt trauma, and combined blunt head trauma and asphyxia. All of the deaths could have been prevented by appropriate anchoring of the piece of furniture and/or closer supervision of the child. A thorough multidisciplinary investigation is essential in establishing the cause and manner of death in such cases and in identifying risk factors that may aid in the prevention of future childhood deaths.     

Characteristics of Homeless Women with Dependent Children

Abstract

Large community initiatives are a growing phenomenon both in the U.S. and worldwide. These initiatives address a wide variety of issues, including early childhood development, by integrating institutions such as schools, health agencies, and faith-based institutions that focus on separate but related aspects of community concern. A major challenge facing these initiatives is the competing demands of developing organizational capacity to promote effective programming while simultaneously delivering demonstrable results and accountability. Empowerment evaluation (Fetterman, Kaftarian, &; Wandersman, 1996) is an approach to evaluation and organizational capacity building that equips participants at all levels of an organization to pursue programming quality and results. This article describes and presents lessons learned from the development and implementation of a system of tools and processes, grounded in the principles of empowerment evaluation, designed to promote quality in the planning, implementation, and evaluation of a statewide school readiness initiative. While these lessons are specifically applicable to community-based early childhood development initiatives, they are broadly applicable to initiatives fostering systems change through community development.     

Regulating the race: Aboriginal children in private European homes in colonial Australia

Abstract

This article focuses on the incorporation of Aboriginal children into European families on a private basis in the colonial era. While state-based missions and reserves were central sites where Aboriginal children were placed, other Aboriginal children were privately placed with European families during the colonial era. This article explores the shifting reasons for this practice. It finds that Aboriginal children who entered European families away from the control of the state came under the control of Europeans through a variety of ways. Initially, Aboriginal child removals were conducted during the course of violent frontier conflict or involved children who had been impacted by introduced European diseases. Smaller numbers of Indigenous children were taken as objects of curiosity. As the nineteenth century progressed, however, it became increasingly common for settlers to take Indigenous children for labour purposes. The article argues that the white middle-class family was positioned as a site for “civilising” children, where the moral regulation of childhood was conducted. This article adds a new dimension to colonial understandings about the role and structure of the family. It also expands understandings about Indigenous child removal in Australia's past.