Transsexuals within the Prison System: An International Survey of Correctional Services Policies

This survey examined policies of correctional facilities as they relate to transsexual inmates in the European Community as well as Australia, Canada and the United States. Where formal policies were reported, we inquired into whether these policies addressed the following issues: is hormonal therapy provided and if so under what conditions; are transsexual inmates at greater risk of physical or sexual assault; is surgery ever available to those in the prison system; and are placement decisions of corrections departments influenced by surgical status. We found that only 40% of correctional services departments had either formal or informal policies which addressed issues such as hormone treatment. While more than half of correctional services departments would not initiate hormone therapy, almost half would maintain previously prescribed hormone treatment. Genital status was the overwhelming factor in determining placement in a men's or women's prison. There was no consensus on the risk of either physical or sexual assault of transsexual inmates. The 60% of respondents without formal or informal policies were largely consistent in asserting that policy is developed and implemented on a case management basis in the best interests of the institution and the inmate.     

Alzheimer's disease patients' cognitive status and course years prior to symptom recognition

This is a prospective examination of the cognitive performance and cognitive course of persons in an asymptomatic "preclinical" phase who eventually developed Alzheimer's disease (AD). We compared performances on the Mayo Cognitive Factor Scales (MCFS) of 20 persons in a neurologically normal cohort who subsequently developed AD to the performances of 60 persons who remained free of dementia symptoms. For the AD patients, exams occurred prior to the appearance of dementia symptoms (an average of 4.2 and 1.5 years prior to symptom onset). Results reveal strong group differences on learning and retention, with eventual AD patients scoring lower than controls years prior to reporting symptoms of the disease. There was no significant interaction effect (group x testing session) for memory retention, suggesting that memory decline in this preclinical period may be too slow to be a useful indicator of future AD. A significant interaction (but no group effect) was seen for verbal comprehension.     

Contributions of Religious Actors to Peace and Security

The past decade has seen a shift of rhetoric, where religious actors are presented not just as aberrations in the secular and democratic order, but also as significant players in the development of peaceful and diversified societies. However, experiences of extremist religious groups raise questions about the legitimacy of involving religious actors in these kinds of processes, in particular in relation to security, which according to a classical perspective is a matter of national and international security agencies. This paper analyzes the challenges relating to the inclusion of religious actors in security situations in East Africa, particularly those involving confrontations between religious actors, in which the concept of the “religious other” has a specific reference. The main finding is that religious actors have a contribution to make in relation to security and conflict involving religion and faith, given that security is understood in a broader sense than the classical.     

Multicultural Perspective on Middle‐Class Women's Identity Development

In this qualitative study using grounded theory, Caucasian women and African American women told the story of their identity development across a lifetime. The Difference Model (U. Oleyamade & P. Rosser, 1980) was used to analyze the interviews separately for each cultural group. The pattern of development for each group is explained and comparisons between the groups were explored. The present study provides an explanation of how African American women sustain their identities in the face of oppression and how Caucasian women struggle to emerge from embeddedness in their self‐definitions and regain their sense of identity.     

POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS REACTIONS AMONGST RESCUE WORKERS AFTER A MAJOR RAIL ACCIDENT

Abstract

Rescue tasks under heavy strain may act as traumatic events creating stress reactions among the rescue workers. After a major rail accident the rescue workers were examined by questionnaire at 3 and 7 months postaccident using the General Health Questionnaire-28 (GHQ), Impact of Event Scale (IES) and a structured questionnaire made for the purpose. Eighteen percent of the 77 rescue workers who participated in the study had GHQ-case-score and 10% had IES-case-score at 7 months using the usual GHQ-cut-off (4/5) and a low IES-cut-off (19/20). For the case-scorers there was a tendency towards increased GHQ- and IES-scores from 3 to 7 months. Five (6%) had post-traumatic stress disorders (PTSD) of low to moderate severity at 7 months.     

Beyond the Individual: Promoting Mental and Behavioural Health in Low- and Middle-income Countries

This brief report describes a programmatic approach to health promotion that can help address the social determinants of mental-health and associated risky behaviours. Using a South African case example, we illustrate that while micro-system interventions help to strengthen individual resilience and immediate proximal protective influences, group system interventions can assist to promote health enhancing social identities and representations. We conclude that multi-level interventions that assume a systemic focus can strengthen community transformative efforts to address social determinants of mental and behavioural health.