Disinhibition as a Mechanism in Sexual Victimization: A Prospective Study

Disinhibition was examined as a mechanism in revictimization using a prospective research design. Of the sample of 211 young adult women, 43.1% reported prior sexual victimization (birth to the time of our initial assessment) and 32.2% reported sexual assault during the 6-month follow-up. The findings suggest that disinhibition was a partial mediator. Prior sexual victimization was associated with increased disinhibition as well as increased future sexual assault. Greater disinhibition was associated with increased future sexual assault. Once disinhibition was accounted for, the original relationship between prior and future sexual assault was reduced. Disinhibition partially explained revictimization and these behaviors might serve as possible targets of change in sexual victimization prevention work.     

Relationships among Dispositional Attributional Style,Trauma-Specific Attributions,and PTSD Symptoms

The learned helplessness model and its various revisions suggest that causal attributions influence responses to events. This study examined relationships among the 3-factor symptom clusters of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) represented in the 4th edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM–IV; American Psychiatric Association, 1994) and the individual dimensions of dispositional attributional style and trauma-specific attributions (i.e., internal–external, stable–unstable, global–specific). Relationships among attributions and clusters of PTSD symptoms represented by the 4-factor dysphoria model were also examined. Trauma-specific attributions were most predictive of PTSD symptoms, with higher associations for avoidance and numbing symptoms compared to arousal symptoms in the three-factor model and higher associations for dysphoria symptoms compared to arousal and avoidance symptoms in the four-factor dysphoria model. Results suggest that cognitive vulnerabilities could underlie the comorbidity between PTSD and depression and might represent a high-impact target for treatment.     

Using Relational-Cultural Theory to Conceptualize Couple Interventions in the Treatment of Sex Addiction

ABSTRACT

Sex addictions have become an increasing concern since the growth of the sex industry, sex in advertising, and the ease of Internet access to sex. This article uses the foundational principles of Relational-Cultural Theory (RCT) to conceptualize sexual addiction and its relational impact. Particular attention is paid to the principles of connection, mutuality, authenticity, power, and culture. In closing, the author offers some creative interventions for relational transformation for affected couples in order to move from a state of disconnection towards mutuality, growth, and connection.     

CBT and Behavioural Medicine: On Definitions,Applications and Practical Considerations

Abstract

In the late seventies, behavioural medicine was conceptualized as a promising area for the application of cognitive-behaviour therapy (CBT) to medical problems. Although many studies have been published in which CBT has been applied to somatic conditions, they do not always call it behavioural medicine. It is uncertain if the term “behavioural medicine” is the most appropriate to use in the future; its impact on medicine and psychology can be questioned. However, in this paper it is concluded that CBT has great potential in the treatment of somatic conditions. In addition, practical considerations when applying CBT in multidisciplinary somatic team situations are discussed. A combined “scientist-practitioner” role is seen as especially promising for the introduction of CBT in a context wider than isolated research studies.     

Sexual Harassment and the Cultures of Childhood

ABSTRACT

Sexual harassment is increasingly recognized as a common problem for schoolchildren. Four out of five 8th through 11th graders have experienced some form of sexual harassment in their school lives. Of the girls who experience harassment, 38% report that they were first harassed in 6th grade or before (AAUW, 2001). We propose that children construct a peer-based «school society» where attitudes and behaviors are strongly connected to peer group influence and concerns about social status. School-based peer sexual harassment emerges from a climate of tense, unequal social relations between boys and girls during middle childhood, accelerating into adolescence. One unexplored possibility is that some boys with high social status among their peers may engage in or encourage harassment of girls. Next, we turn to a distinct social context embedded within the school society: relationships of abuse between boy and girl peers. We explore how the dynamics of domestic violence apply to sexual harassment between peers, illustrating themes from narratives of child sexual harassment victims derived from interviews and legal cases. We also use these narratives to examine the institutional responses to sexual harassment by school authorities, identifying the parallels to domestic violence legal solutions. Our discussion emphasizes how school service providers can better appreciate and react to the social and relational context of boys' harassment of girls.     

Implications of the National Agenda to Improve Results for Children and Youth with or at Risk of Serious Emotional Disturbance

Abstract

Fragmented, agency-centered services contribute to poor educational and social outcomes. The National Agenda to Improve Results for Children and Youth with Serious Emotional Disturbance targets approaches that are knowledge-based and have a high likelihood of improving outcomes. This article explores the implications of the Agenda's seven targets andthe importance of early identification and prevention.     

Condom Negotiation in Heterosexually Active Men and Women: Development and Validation of a Condom Influence Strategy Questionnaire

The ability to negotiate condom use with a partner is a skill that sexually active men and women must have in order to avoid sexually transmitted diseases including HIV. Despite this fact, there is no psychometrically valid instrument in the literature to measure condom influence strategies. This investigation reports on the development and initial validation of the condom influence strategy questionnaire (CISQ). Exploratory and confirmatory analyses revealed and confirmed six influence strategies used by heterosexually active men and women to negotiate condom use. These CISQ subscales accounted for variance in safer sexual variables including sexual assertiveness, self-efficacy, and partner communication. Further, those who endorsed CISQ subscales were more likely to have intentions to use condoms consistently and to use condoms. Gender differences in subscales favoring women as the ones most likely to use influence strategies also emerged. Implications of these results as well as future directions for research are discussed.     

Peut-on légiférer à propos de l’assistance sexuelle en France ?

The question about sexual assistance law in favor of disabled people in France reveals from double analysis. On one hand, this law is necessary: it would regulate a practice carried out clandestinely. In the other hand, this law is now in conformity with the principle of non-negotiability of human body.