Discerning reported suicide attempts within a youthful offender population

With suicide being the third leading cause of death among young people, early identification of risk is critical, particularly for those involved with the juvenile courts. In this study of court-involved youth (N = 433) in two Midwest counties, logistic regression analysis identified some expected and unexpected findings of important demographic, educational, mental health, child welfare, and juvenile court-related variables that were linked to reported suicide attempts. Some of the expected suicide attempt risk factors for these youth included prior psychiatric hospitalization and related mental health services, residential placement, and diagnoses of depression and alcohol dependence. However, the most unexpected finding was that a court disposition to shelter care (group home) was related to a nearly tenfold increased risk in reported suicide attempt. These findings are of importance to families, mental health professionals, and juvenile court personnel to identify those youth who are most at risk and subsequently provide appropriate interventions to prevent such outcomes.     

SELF‐OWNERSHIP AND THE STATE: A DEMOCRATIC CRITIQUE

Libertarians often invoke the principle of self‐ownership to discredit distributive interventions authorized by the more‐than‐minimal state. But if one takes a democratic approach to the justification of ownership claims, including claims of ownership over oneself, the validity of the self‐ownership principle is theoretically inseparable from the normative justification of the state. Since the idea of the state is essential to the very assertion (not just the positive enforcement) of the principle of self‐ownership, invoking the principle to discredit a distribution of ownership authorized by the state commits libertarians also to weakening that principle's validity. Put differently, appealing to the self‐ownership principle to circumscribe the state's power to distribute property is problematic when the state is necessary to assert the validity of that principle. This is because anytime the self‐ownership principle is used to undermine a state‐based distribution of property it is also implicitly eroding the ground for asserting its own validity. 1     

Father Identity,Involvement and Work–Family Balance: An In‐depth Interview Study

Work and family roles have changed considerably in the past number of decades. Fathers are now expected to fulfil the role of ‘new father’ that involves actively caring and sharing in child rearing and, at the same time, maintain commitment to their occupational role. As a consequence, men are subject to the same pressure that women were when they initially entered the workplace decades ago and indeed still are today. This study aims to explore the meanings fathers attach to their life roles, how these meanings influence behaviour within these roles and how they negotiate the demands of these roles. In‐depth interviews were carried out with 15 fathers, and the results were analysed adhering to the principles of grounded theory. The findings show the variability among fathers in both their commitment to fathering and the meanings they attach to that role. A significant tension between new fatherhood ideals and actual fathering practices is also apparent. These findings are discussed drawing upon traditional definitions of masculinity and wider occupational and cultural influences. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Evaluating clinical significance: Incorporating robust statistics with normative comparison tests

The purpose of this study was to evaluate a modified test of equivalence for conducting normative comparisons when distribution shapes are non‐normal and variances are unequal. A Monte Carlo study was used to compare the empirical Type I error rates and power of the proposed Schuirmann–Yuen test of equivalence, which utilizes trimmed means, with that of the previously recommended Schuirmann and Schuirmann–Welch tests of equivalence when the assumptions of normality and variance homogeneity are satisfied, as well as when they are not satisfied. The empirical Type I error rates of the Schuirmann–Yuen were much closer to the nominal α level than those of the Schuirmann or Schuirmann–Welch tests, and the power of the Schuirmann–Yuen was substantially greater than that of the Schuirmann or Schuirmann–Welch tests when distributions were skewed or outliers were present. The Schuirmann–Yuen test is recommended for assessing clinical significance with normative comparisons.     

Assessing the performance of brushtail possums (Trichosurus vulpecula) on the Mechner counting procedure

Animal Cognition - This study assessed brushtail possums’ performance on the Mechner counting procedure. Six brushtail possums were required to produce different Fixed-Ratio (FR) response...     

To Belong or Not to Belong. Affective Self-Nationalization in Thailand

Through analyzing conflict narratives regarding Khao Phra Wihan, a territorial conflict important for nationalists in Thailand, this article aims to detangle how nationalization is experienced and performed on an individual level. In this article, the concept “affective self-nationalization” is proposed to analyze the emotional and embodied practices through which individuals fashion themselves into nationalized subjects. In Thailand, self-nationalization is instigated by the governing agency through repeated, regular, mandatory, public performances of loyalty through which individuals create the nation collectively. These performances create automatic feelings to the nation, establishes national others as fearsome, and rule through the basic human need of belonging. At the same time, individuals’ emotions shape the society through how they decide to perform nationalization. The concept of “affective self-nationalization” captures the connections between the official nationalizing program of “outside” society in a form of nationalist emotional socialization with individual experience of nationalizing.     

Parkinson’s Disease: Patients’ Knowledge,Attitudes, and Interest in Genetic Counseling

The objective of this study was to assess the genetics knowledge of patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD), and to explore their attitudes on genetic testing and interest in genetic counseling. We surveyed 158 patients from the University of Maryland Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders Center. Patients averaged a score of 63% on general genetics knowledge and 73% on PD genetics knowledge. Participants had an overall positive attitude toward genetic testing: 80% believed that the use of genetic tests among people should be promoted, and 83% would undertake genetic test for PD if it was available. Patients reported a high interest to discuss the benefits, risks, and impacts of genetic testing for PD (mean sum score?=?26, range?=?9–35), and 43% patients expressed interest in meeting with a genetic counselor. Multivariate regression analysis showed that patients who had more positive attitudes toward genetic testing for PD were more interested in meeting with a genetic counselor (β?=?0.6, p?<?0.001). This study is the first to demonstrate an interest in genetic counseling among patients with PD. Our findings demonstrate a new niche for genetic counselors to support patients in clarifying gaps or misconceptions in knowledge about PD genetics as well as the possible risks, benefits, and limitations of genetic testing.     

Engagement in community activities and trust in local leaders as concomitants of psychological distress among Israeli civilians exposed to prolonged rocket attacks

Background and objectives: Present study, conducted in the aftermath of the 2014 Israel–Gaza conflict, investigated psychological toll of exposure to rockets attacks in a sample of residents of central and southern Israel. Analyses focused on the distress-protective functions of collectively grounded resources: engagement in community activities and trust in local leadership.

Design: This cross-sectional study was conducted between 2 and 3 months after the hostilities.

Method: Participants (N?=?764) were recruited by an online survey company that distributed a questionnaire assessing, in addition to focal predictors, sociodemographic factors and prior exposure to trauma. The outcome variables were post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and nonspecific distress symptoms.

Results: Conservative regression analyses revealed that greater exposure to rocket attacks was predictive of higher levels of posttraumatic stress symptoms. Higher engagement in community activities exhibited a partial trauma-buffering function. However, higher levels of trust in local leaders appeared to exacerbate, rather than diminish, negative impact of rocket exposure on PTSD. Symptoms of psychological distress were not influenced neither by trauma exposure nor by stressor interactions with resources. Trust in local leadership exerted a beneficial main effect on distress.

Conclusions: Collectively based resources are important for coping in times of community-wide stressors, yet their role is complex.