Researching the reintegration of formerly abducted children in northern Uganda through action research: Experiences and reflections

This paper presents experiences and reflections on the use of a participatory research methodology under the difficult conditions of a war situation in northern Uganda. We draw from two complimentary approaches in action research to explain our methodology while doing research on the reintegration of formerly abducted children. First, the experience oriented approach, which emphasizes the need to articulate experience as a basis for learning and knowledge. Second, the exemplary participatory approach which highlights the importance of enhancing empowerment and the need to find solutions for social problems. We find these two approaches useful for doing action research in a conflict area because of their emphasis on experience and empowerment respectively. In our research, experience is important because of the children's encounter with the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) rebels that both needs to be understood and justifies reintegration. On the otherhand, empowerment is important for our assumption that the children's experience and encounter with the LRA has disempowering effects on them. We demonstrate the use of the approaches in our research by enhancing participation, balancing power relations and being aware of ethical issues while at the same time attempting to make the research valid inspite of the challenges. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Local communities responding to ecological challenges—A psycho‐social approach to the Natura 2000 Network

The institutionalization of biodiversity conservation through legal instruments has led to mixed reactions at both the individual and community levels, with conflict and resistance co‐existing with support. The overall purpose of this paper is to describe how rural communities living in areas included in the Natura 2000 Network of protected sites, where local practices of land use are regulated by new legal directives, receive biodiversity conservation goals. Previous studies suggest that this reception is strongly shaped by place identification, but their contradictory results demand further clarification. This study examines the role of psycho‐social variables identified by previous studies as potentially relevant moderators of identification: (a) Vested interest in natural resources, (b) evaluation of the designation process of protected areas and (c) institutional trust. It further extends previous research by analysing the support given to contextually relevant ecological practices. Results reveal a positive link between place identification and attitudes in the high vested interest condition and show that support for conservation practices is better predicted in the high vested interest and low trust conditions. The discussion focuses on the relevance of analysing contextually relevant psycho‐social moderators when attempting to understand how local communities' relation with biodiversity conservation is affected by legislative innovation. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

母亲守门行为与母亲教养投入、母子依恋的关系及发展性差异

基于家庭系统理论与依恋理论提出了一个母亲守门行为通过母亲教养投入预测母子依恋的间接效应模型, 同时考察了这一模型在青少年发展阶段上的差异。采用问卷法对597个核心家庭的母亲和青少年进行调查, 结果发现：(1)总体上, 母亲开门行为对母亲教养投入和母子依恋均具有正向预测作用, 母亲教养投入对母子依恋具有正向预测作用, 间接效应模型成立; 母亲关门行为对母亲教养投入的预测作用不显著, 对母子依恋具有负向预测作用, 间接效应模型不成立; (2)从发展阶段来看, 母亲开门行为的间接效应模型在三个发展阶段均成立, 且间接效应大小无差异; 母亲关门行为的间接效应模型只在早期和后期成立, 且两发展阶段的作用性质相反, 早期为正向预测作用, 后期为负向预测作用。结果补充和扩展了母亲守门行为的作用效果研究, 并且强调了青少年发展阶段在其中的作用, 对家庭教育实践具有一定的指导意义。     

Linking Birth Order to Political Leadership: The Impact of Parents or Sibling Interaction?

Despite mounting evidence that first-born children are overrepresented among incumbents in political office, there is no consensus about the cause of this overrepresentation. Some stress the impact of differential parenting, arguing that the first-born receive a larger share of parental resources and have a greater need to live up to parental expectations. Others emphasize the interaction among siblings, arguing that first-born children are better prepared for power struggles, having experience both as followers and as leaders within the family. This study, using birth-order data for nearly 1,200 incumbents in various offices in local and national politics in the Netherlands, found more support for the parental impact perspective. Singletons were also overrepresented among incumbents, whereas middle-born children were underrepresented. The data suggest that this birth-order effect is weaker among younger generations and is more pronounced among women.     

Genetic Counselors' Experiences with Paternal Involvement in Prenatal Genetic Counseling Sessions: An Exploratory Investigation

Limited research exists concerning male partners' participation in prenatal genetic counseling (R. Kenen, A. C. M. Smith, C. Watkins, & C. Zuber-Pitore, J. Genet Corns 9, 33–45, 2000). To further understand paternal participation, we interviewed 17 experienced prenatal genetic counselors to assess their perspectives on this issue. We investigated 6 research questions: 1) How do genetic counselors define paternal involvement, 2) how do they determine and address problematic involvement, 3) what factors influence involvement, 4) was paternal involvement addressed in training, 5) how might training be improved, and 6) how do participant strategies for addressing involvement compare to those of marriage/family therapists? Qualitative analysis revealed that 1) participants regard paternal involvement asimportant; 2) most address problematic involvement with strategies similar to those of marital/family therapists; 3) influential factors include male partner's characteristics, the couple's relationship (including culturalpractices), and pregnancy factors; and 4) participants received little or notraining on paternal involvement and recommended didactic and experientialactivities. Implications and research recommendations are presented.     

Relation of Behavioral and Psychological Involvement to a New Four-Factor Conceptualization of Work-Family Interference

The relation of role involvement to work-family interference has had inconsistent results in past research. By paying closer conceptual attention to the measurement of role involvement and work-family interference, this study addresses past inconsistent findings. First, a new four-factor measure of work-family interference is proposed that incorporates the dimension of externally generated versus internally generated conflict, which has been ignored in previous research. Second, role involvement is considered from both a behavioral and a psychological perspective. Data were obtained from a sample of 534 employed adults with families. The results suggest that a mapping of behavioral and psychological involvement to specific dimensions of external and internal work- family interference appears to be important when examining the general relation of role involvement to work-family interference.     

A vicious or auspicious cycle: The reciprocal relation between harsh parental discipline and children’s self-regulation

Children’s ability to exercise self-regulation is a key predictor of academic, behavioural, and life outcomes, but the developmental dynamics of children’s self-regulation are not adequately understood. We investigated how children’s self-regulation skills and harsh parental discipline reciprocally predict each other across 12,474 children at ages three, five, and seven in the U.K. (Millennium Cohort Study). Cross-lagged structural equation models indicated that high initial levels of harsh parental discipline predicted lower subsequent self-regulation, which then reciprocally predicted higher levels of harsh parental discipline. Conversely, high initial levels of child self-regulation predicted lower subsequent harsh parental discipline. Implications for policy and interventions are discussed.     

长时间相处是亲子关系的保护性因素吗？——疫情背景下基于微博大数据的质性分析

目的：采用大数据技术与质性分析相结合的方式,探索疫情期间青少年长时间与父母相处的条件下,亲子冲突的演变特征。方法：利用Python3.8编写程序,以“亲子冲突、初中生、高中生、青少年、冲突、父母、与父母冲突”等为关键词在微博平台上搜索个人发布的内容,经数据整理,选择286条微博文本纳入文本分析,用NVivo12质性分析软件辅助编码。结果：亲子冲突的表达包含了冲突诱因、冲突类型、冲突领域,和冲突管理策略等四个方面的特征。结论：研究建构了冲突诱因、冲突领域、冲突类型和冲突应对策略之间的关系模型。亲子冲突的发生是在社会文化背景下,由于家庭功能失调引发的亲子互动方式异常。亲子冲突发生以后,取积极应对策略有助于家庭功能的良性调节。