In this study, survival analysis is used to examine time to rearrest for both domestic violence and nondomestic violence crimes among a cohort of domestic violence offenders (N = 286) over a 10-year period. In addition, risk factors for rearrest such as demographic, offending history, and batterer treatment variables are examined to determine their influence on domestic and nondomestic violence recidivism. Overall, the results suggest that approximately half of domestic violence offenders are rearrested. Furthermore, among those who are rearrested, they are rearrested fairly quickly and for generalized (both domestic and nondomestic violence offenses) versus specialized offending. Risk factors associated with both types of rearrest included age, marriage, and domestic violence offense history. Several additional risk factors were unique to rearrest type. Study limitations are explicitly stated and policy implications are discussed.

The firearm mortality rate in West Virginia (WV) increased over the past four years and is currently 50% higher than the national rate. These alarming statistics, combined with the urban-to-rural shift in firearm injuries, prompted this 10-year epidemiologic overview. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, the current study stands alone as the only report of its kind on firearm injuries in the rural setting of southern WV. Firearm injuries were common in White males within the age range of 20–49 years. Assault, which is typically identified as an urban problem, was found to be the most common injury in the study population. In our data series, injury severity score was the strongest predictor of mortality, followed by self-inflicted cause of injury and trauma to the neck/head region.

Although negative life events are a risk factor for developing depression, cognitive control can help maintain one's mental health. However, whether thought-control ability (TCA) can alleviate the adverse effects of negative life events on depression is unclear. Therefore, two studies were conducted to test if it does, by having participant's complete measures of negative life events, TCA, and depression. Study 1, which included 140 healthy young adults, showed TCA mediated the relationship between negative life events and depressive symptoms, and that TCA also moderated the relationship between negative life events and depressive symptoms. Study 2 recruited patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) to test whether the findings could be generalized to individuals with MDD. Study 2 found TCA also mediated the relationship between negative life events and symptoms of MDD. Suggesting that improving the ability to control negative thoughts in daily life help maintain mental health and prevent depressive symptoms.

It is argued that an examination of various abnormal psychology textbooks reveals that they read more like political propaganda than fair, valid science. All of the examined texts conformed closely to the psychiatric medical model as represented by the latest version Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM). Occasional critiques were levied at the DSM, but they were invariably dismissed and not debated in any serious manner. All of the texts involved in this study invoked the name of psychiatric critic Thomas Szasz and either dismissed his ideas without adequate representation or stated that he need not be taken seriously because he is too radical or possibly disturbed. All manner of assertions were present in these tomes as to the validity of the biogenic etiology of the disorders discussed without either presenting valid empirical evidence to support the assertions or discussing the rich and varied literature that refutes the biogenic hypotheses. It is concluded that students are not being served by these expensive textbooks and should be exposed to a variety of primary source material representing the many sides of conflict within the mental health field.

Starting from a person–environment fit framework, this study investigates whether ethnic congruence—the percentage of co-ethnics in a school—relates to school misconduct and whether congruence effects differ between ethnic minority and majority students. Moreover, we investigate whether eventual associations are mediated by friendship attachment, perceived teacher support, and general school belonging. Multilevel analyses of data from 11,759 students across 83 Flemish secondary schools show that higher ethnic congruence is associated with lower levels of school misconduct but only for ethnic minority students. This effect was not mediated by friendship attachment, nor by teacher support, but it was mediated by general school belonging. We conclude that ethnic minority students in schools with a higher percentage of peers of co-ethnic descent are less likely to break the school rules because they feel more contented in the school context, which is congruent with the person–environment fit framework.

Recent concerns have been expressed that youths are an increasingly violent segment of U.S. society. This report explores such claims by presenting alternative dimensions with which trends in youth violence can be interpreted. Using Uniform Crime Reports and U.S. Bureau of the Census data for 1958-1993, rates of arrests for murder, taken to represent absolute levels of involvement in this form of violence, are analyzed for trends among 15- to 19-year-olds. Relative involvement, operationalized as the ratio of arrest rates for those aged 15-19 to those of the remainder of the population, is also analyzed for trends. A pronounced upward trend since the mid-1980s in both rates and ratios of arrests for murder is found for ages 15-19, resulting in this group now having the highest levels of absolute and relative involvement in murder arrests of any age category, a distinct departure from previous years. As a context for interpreting these levels, the involvement of current 15- to 19-year-olds is shown to exceed by a considerable margin the involvement of similarly aged cohorts of baby boomers, a youth group formerly the object of considerable public concern. Research is encouraged that addresses the multifaceted sources contributing to this dramatic societal shift in age-related patterns of arrests for murder and, by assumption, involvement in homicide offending.

Previous studies have demonstrated a connection between intimate partner violence (IPV) and a child’s alienation from the abused parent, but little is known about the relationships between the type of IPV, aspects, and severity of a child’s alienation, and the target parent’s gender. This study assessed the presence of an IPV history (verbal and physical aspects) among parents who identify as targets of their children’s unreasonable rejection. Also investigated were associations between the form of IPV and manifestations of a child’s alienated behavior, parent’s gender and type of IPV, and parents’ gender and degree of the child’s alienation. Self-identified alienated parents (n = 842) completed an online survey that included an IPV screening measurement (Hurts, Insults, Screams, Threatens screening tool) and a measure of the parent’s perception of their child’s alienated behaviors (Rowlands Parental Alienation Scale). The majority identified as IPV victims and reported a higher level of verbal than physical abuse. More mothers than fathers identified themselves as IPV victims. As a group, IPV victims rated their child as more severely alienated than did non-IPV alienated parents. Mothers were more likely than fathers to report physical aggression by the other parent and more likely than fathers to assess their child’s alienated behaviors as more severe. Victims of physical violence reported their children were less likely to withhold positive affection from them. This knowledge may assist in earlier identification of the alienation process and greater recognition, legitimacy, funding, and opportunities for enhanced collaboration among stakeholders. This, in turn, may lead to improvements in prevention, intervention, and accountability, thus helping to interrupt alienation processes.

The present study examines the controversial issue of whether women and men are equally abused in dating relationships. Undergraduate and graduate students (n = 874) completed a survey about their experiences and perpetration of psychological, sexual, and physical aggression within dating relationships. To enable a more contextualized understanding of these phenomena, motives for and outcomes of dating violence were also assessed. Women and men reported comparable amounts of overall aggression from dating partners, but differed in the types of violence experienced. Women were more likely to experience sexual victimization, whereas men were more often the victims of psychological aggression; rates of physical violence were similar across genders. Contrary to hypotheses, women were not more likely to use physical violence in self-defense than men. However, although both genders experienced similar amounts of aggressive acts from dating partners, the impact of such violence is more severe for women than men.

Dealing with hostile interpersonal relationships at work has been the topic of many popular books and workshops. Yet, with the exception of sexual harassment, there is surprisingly little mention in the organizational research literature on the nature, extent, and costs of abusive work interactions. These more frequent, more tolerated, and, thus, more damaging interpersonal interactions involve hostile verbal and nonverbal nonphysical behaviors directed by one or more persons towards another. The primary aim is to undermine the other to ensure compliance. In this study, we examined the extent to which students experienced nonsexual nonphysical abusive behavior on their jobs, the impact of this experience on job satisfaction, the characteristics of the actor and target, and responses to these behaviors, particularly turnover. The results indicate that although most of the students had very positive interactions at work, exposure to abusive behavior was familiar, was relatively frequent, and had a negative impact on the targets. The actors tended to be bosses and older than the targets. The quality of the interpersonal relationships at work was related to job satisfaction and intention to leave. The implications of these results are discussed with respect to individual, situational, and organizational factors that may be related to the presence and impact of abusive interpersonal interactions. Avenues for research on the nature, extent, and impact of these behaviors at both the individual and organizational levels are identified.

This study adds to the available literature on female-perpetrated intimate abuse by examining Dutton’s (2007) theory of the abusive personality (AP) in a sample of 914 women who had been involved in dating relationships. Consistent with the AP, recalled parental rejection, borderline personality organization (BPO), anger, and trauma symptoms all demonstrated moderate-to-strong relationships with women’s self-reported intimate psychological abuse perpetration. Fearful attachment style demonstrated a weak-to-moderate relationship with psychological abuse perpetration. A potential model for explaining the interrelationships between the elements of the AP was tested using structural equation modeling (SEM). Consistent with the proposed model, recalled parental rejection demonstrated relationships with BPO, trauma symptoms, and fearful attachment. Similarly consistent with the model, trauma symptoms demonstrated a relationship with anger; and BPO demonstrated strong relationships with trauma symptoms, fearful attachment, and anger. Additionally, anger itself had a strong relationship with women’s self-reported perpetration of intimate psychological and physical abuse. Contrary to the proposed model, fearful attachment had a nonsignificant relationship with anger when this relationship was examined using SEM.

The study of men’s violence against their intimate partners is segregated from the study of other forms of violence. Comparing intimate partner violence (IPV) to other violence, however, allows one to examine whether the motivation and the legal response are similar. I examine whether men’s assaults on partners are particularly likely to have a control motive, whether women’s assaults on partners are particularly likely to be motivated by self-defense, and whether intimate partner violence is less likely to be reported to the police and legally sanctioned. The evidence casts doubt on the feminist approach, which has dominated the study of IPV. I suggest that a theory of instrumental violence provides a better understanding of IPV. Such an approach recognizes a variety of motives and emphasizes the role of conflict in intimate relationships, sex differences in strength and violence, and the importance of chivalry. Finally, I suggest that social scientists who study IPV should be more careful in their descriptive terminology.

This study was conducted in the South African context, where education is in a state of transition. One of the central issues in higher education is the development of academic literacy. However, as a result of an inadequate focus on educational linguistics and a lack of explicit instruction in academic literacy, many students do not achieve their full potential. This study focuses on aspects of academic literacy in the examination responses of a group of students studying in the discipline of speech-language pathology. The purpose of the study was to determine whether or not there is a relationship between the students’ academic literacy skills and their ability to answer examination questions. By means of an exploratory retrospective longitudinal record review, the examination scripts of 20 students were rated for evidence of various academic literacy skills. The ratings were highly correlated to the actual examination marks in both years of study, suggesting that there is a need to incorporate explicit instruction in academic literacy to develop students’ metacognitive processes while reading and writing for academic purposes.

We aimed to assess cardiac patients, acceptance of cognitive behavior therapy (CBT); determine if gender was associated with treatment engagement (session attendance and utilization of intervention strategies); and relate engagement to outcome. Of 193 patients receiving an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) who agreed to participate in a randomized controlled trial, 96 were randomized to CBT. Measures of treatment acceptance indicated that most participants rated counseling as “very to extremely helpful.” Gender was associated with only one treatment engagement index. Symptoms of depression and post-traumatic stress improved from baseline to 6- and 12-month follow-up. Number of counseling session attendance was not associated with outcome. Reported utilization of two of the six CBT strategies (modifying faulty thinking, correcting cognitive distortions) was associated with a better treatment outcome. In conclusion, a CBT intervention was well received by ICD patients. There was some indication that treatment engagement related to better treatment outcomes.

Most interventions for men who batter are standardized and “one-size-fits-all,” neglecting individual differences in readiness to change. A multimedia expert system intervention based on the transtheoretical model (the “stage model”) was developed as an adjunct to traditional court-mandated programs. The expert system assesses stage of change, decisional balance, self-efficacy, and processes of change and provides immediate individualized stage-matched feedback designed to increase readiness to end the violence. Fifty-eight male batterer intervention program clients were invited by agency staff to complete an expert system session and an evaluation of the program; 33 men were recruited at program intake and the remainder from ongoing groups. Responses to the intervention were very positive. For example, 87% of participants reported that they found the program to be easy to use, and 98% said it could probably or definitely help them change their attitudes or behaviors. Findings provide encouraging evidence of the acceptability of this stage-matched approach to intervention for domestic violence offenders.

Partner aggression is a major public health concern. Batterers’ intervention programs (BIPs) are commonly used as an alternative to incarceration for offenders who have been arrested for domestic assault. Historically, BIPs have shown little effectiveness in reducing partner aggression. This article presents a new BIP based on acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT; Hayes, Strosahl, & Wilson, 1999). ACT is a third-wave therapy that builds on the cognitive-behavioral tradition, focusing on increasing psychological flexibility by promoting acceptance and mindfulness processes. Several lines of evidence support the use of ACT in the treatment of partner aggression. Achieving Change Through Values-Based Behavior (ACTV; Lawrence, Langer Zarling, & Orengo-Aguayo, 2014) was developed based on ACT principles with a specific focus on feasibility and transferability to the community correctional setting and court-adjudicated treatment. ACTV incorporates experiential skills training and uses innovative methods to engage participants and teach the ACT processes. This article details the components of ACTV, including a case study to illustrate one participant’s journey through the program. We also present preliminary pilot data, which look promising with respect to reductions in domestic assault and violent recidivism.

People may have a visibly different appearance due to various causes, such as congenital conditions, injury, disease, or medical treatment. Some individuals with a visible difference experience social anxiety and isolation, body image dissatisfaction, shame and self-stigma, psychological trauma, and challenges managing their condition. In this article, we synthesize the relevant literature and present the theoretical rationale for the application of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), a third-wave behavioral therapy combining mindfulness skills and value-driven action, to those experiencing distress relating to an unusual or altered appearance. We also outline how ACT may be tailored to the specific considerations of this population and recommend next steps in researching its acceptability and clinical effectiveness.

The present study examined the accessibility of harm and safety information regarding threat-relevant and threat-irrelevant stimuli in analogue contamination-related obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) participants. High OCD participants (N = 24) and low OCD participants (N = 27) generated lists of reasons why four specific situations (using a public restroom, going cliff diving, reading at the library, going to the museum) might be harmful and why they might be safe. Results revealed that, in comparison to the low OCD participants, high OCD participants were able to generate significantly more items on why using a public restroom might be harmful and significantly fewer items on why using a public restroom might be safe. However, no significant differences were found between the two groups in their ability to generate items regarding harm and safety for other situations. Furthermore, number of safety items predicted contamination group status independent of harm items. Content analysis of the harm items generated for using a public restroom revealed concerns primarily related to contagion and disease. Accordingly, the number of items generated for using a public restroom showed a marginal association with disgust levels. The implications of these findings for understanding cognitive biases underlying contamination-related OCD are discussed.

This study examined the relationship between personal characteristics (gender, acculturation, belief in gender stereotypes, recent dating experiences), and attitudes and knowledge about dating violence in urban Latino youth (N = 678). All participants completed self-administered surveys at school. Relative to girls, boys held more problematic (proviolence) attitudes about dating violence and reported less knowledge about dating violence and its consequences. Teens who were more traditional (less acculturated), those who endorsed gender stereotypes, and those who reported recent fearful dating experiences tended to report less knowledge about abuse and lower endorsement of nonviolent attitudes. Multivariate analyses revealed that all four personal variables predicted dating violence knowledge. By contrast, attitudes were predicted by endorsement of gender stereotypes only, or gender stereotypes and gender. Implications for dating violence interventions and future directions for research are explored.