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“The End Could Be Just the Beginning”: The Study of Relationship Termination through the Performance of Literature.

November 28, 2018September 30, 2017 by admin

Noting that breaking off romantic relationships can be traumatic even when the end is welcome, this paper describes the strategies and stages of relationship termination and suggests ways for instructors of oral interpretation and/or interpersonal communication classes to illustrate such relational decay. The first section deals with relationship termination strategies, identifying M. J. Cody's five general strategies: behavioral de-escalation, identity management, justification, de-escalation, and positive tone. Examples of statements made by persons using each termination strategy are included, but not examples of specific situations. The second part of the paper looks at M. L. Knapp's five stages of relationship decay: differentiation, circumscription, stagnation, avoidance, and termination. The paper notes that stages are said to be useful, but as with the strategy list, a lack of specific examples reveals a need for something more. In the third section, oral interpretation of literature is suggested as a means for providing...

Rape Fantasies As A Function Of Exposure To Violent Sexual Stimuli

November 28, 2018September 30, 2017 by admin

Abstract

Twenty-nine male students, classified on the basis of questionnaire responses as sexually force oriented or non-force oriented, were randomly assigned to exposure to rape or mutually-consenting versions of a slide-audio show. All subjects were then exposed to the same audio description of a rape read by a female. They were later asked to create their own fantasies. Penile tumescence and self-reports of arousal indicated that relatively high levels of sexual arousal were generated by all of the experimental stimuli. No differences in arousal during the exposure phase were found as a function of the manipulation in the content of the slideaudio show. Sexual arousal during the fantasy period, assessed by means of self-reports, indicated that those who had been classified as force oriented created more arousing fantasies after having been exposed to the rape version of the show, whereas those classified as non-force oriented created more arousing fantasies following the mutually-consenting version...

An Analysis of Interpersonal Manipulation

November 28, 2018September 30, 2017 by admin

Abstract

The term ‘manipulation’ is frequently employed but rarely discussed or defined in psychiatric circles. This paper reviews previous conceptual analyses of the term by philosophers and psychiatrists, and examines its use in ordinary discourse. A series of characteristics which comprise the conceptual core of the term when it is unambiguously applied in interpersonal settings are proposed. Manipulation is contrasted with other behavior control methods such as rational persuasion and coercion, with emphasis on the role played by deception and the communicative context in which the manipulative transaction occurs. It is argued that manipulative behavior is fundamentally intentional, and the usefulness of the concept of ‘unconscious manipulation’ is questioned. Though the proposal that Manipulative Personality Disorder be formally recognized as a new diagnostic category is rejected, it is urged that the concept of manipulation receive wider attention and discussion within the mental health community...

Association Of Criminal Convictions Between Family Members: Effects Of Siblings, Fathers And Mothers

November 28, 2018September 30, 2017 by admin

Abstract

Crime runs in families. Previous research has shown the existence of intergenerational transmission of criminal behaviour. The aim of the present study was to investigate the extent to which variation in criminal convictions may be explained by the criminality of siblings and by the intergenerational transmission of criminal behaviour. Data from the Dutch Criminal Career and Life-course Study (CCLS) were used to analyse cross-tabulations and to conduct multi-level logistic regression analyses. The results indicate that criminal convictions of other family members are indeed correlated with individual conviction risk. The criminal history of siblings is most strongly correlated with the convictions of focal respondents. Results furthermore show that parental convictions only account modestly for the association of criminal convictions between siblings. These findings indicate that a direct influence between siblings is plausible, providing support for learning or imitation theories...

Understanding the Dynamics of Abusive Relationships

November 28, 2018September 30, 2017 by admin

Abusive relationships are fairly simple. They are driven by insecurity, fear that feeds that insecurity and an expectation of inconsistency, both real and perceived.

An abuser is morbidly insecure. S/he (yes, potentially, she) has little sense of his/her own social value and makes an effort to gain or re-gain some semblance of that value through domination and control. The fear that feeds that insecurity has two fronts: fear of not being lovable, and fear of appearing weak. The paradox here is that the abuser is, in fact, weak, which is why s/he abuses -- to maintain a sense of control -- in the first place. The perceived inconsistency on the part of the abuser by the victim is that the victim is not submitting to the abuser's domination.

The victim is also morbidly insecure and for surprisingly similar reasons. S/he...

An Investigation Into The Correlation Of Knife Damage In Clothing And The Lengths Of Skin Wounds

November 28, 2018October 1, 2017 by admin

Abstract

In determining the possibility that a specific weapon was responsible for a specific injury it is often valuable to examine the damage marks left on any clothing worn by a victim. Correlating this damage both to the skin and clothing with the dimensions of the suspect weapon (if available) may help in determining these possibilities. In this work four different types of knives were used to produce damage marks on various different fabrics both stretched and loose over skin. Statistically significant differences were found between the length of wound on the skin and the corresponding damage to the fabrics when the fabric was stretched over the skin while no statistically significant differences were observed when the fabric was loose over the skin. This was true for all of the knives examined.

1. Introduction

Most deaths, which are attributed to stabbing, are caused by objects whose primary...

Murder By Structure: Dominance Relations And The Social Structure Of Gang Homicide.

November 27, 2018October 2, 2017 by admin

Abstract

Most sociological theories consider murder an outcome of the differential distribution of individual, neighborhood, or social characteristics. And while such studies explain variation in aggregate homicide rates, they do not explain the social order of murder, that is, who kills whom, when, where, and for what reason. This article argues that gang murder is best understood not by searching for its individual determinants but by examining the social networks of action and reaction that create it. In short, the social structure of gang murder is defined by the manner in which social networks are constructed and by people's placement in them. The author uses a network approach and incident-level homicide records to recreate and analyze the structure of gang murders in Chicago. Findings demonstrate that individual murders between gangs create an institutionalized network of group conflict, net of any individual's participation or motive. Within this network, murders spread...

Inadvertent Hypnosis During Interrogation: False Confession Due To Dissociative State; Mis-identified Multiple Personality And The Satanic Cult Hypothesis.

November 27, 2018October 2, 2017 by admin

Abstract

Induction of a dissociative state followed by suggestion during interrogation caused a suspect to develop pseudo-memories of raping his daughters and of participation in a baby-murdering Satanic cult. The pseudo-memories coupled with influence from authority figures convinced him of his guilt for 6 months. During this time, the suspect, the witnesses, and all the evidence in the case were studied. No evidence supported an inference of guilt and substantial evidence supported the conclusion that no crime had been committed. An experiment demonstrated the suspect's extreme suggestibility. The conclusion reached was that the cult did not exist and the suspect's confessions were coerced-internalized false confessions. During the investigation, 2 psychologists diagnosed the suspect as suffering from a dissociative disorder similar to multiple personality. Both psychologists were predisposed to find Satanic cult activity. Each concluded that the disorder was due to "programming" by the non-existent Satanic cult... ..

Exotic Dancing and Health.

November 27, 2018October 2, 2017 by admin

Abstract

The health and safety of women who work as exotic dancers are firmly embedded within the social organization of the strip club and the broader social, economic and political context of the work of exotic dancing. Exotic dancers in this study expressed health concerns associated with: the effects of costuming and appearance requirements; dirty work environments; problems due to stigmatization, sexual harassment and assault; and police disinterest or victim blaming. The balance between benefits and hazards related to exotic dancing is influenced not only by the personal choices made by dancers, but also by the organization of the strip club and the broader context within which exotic dancing takes place...

The Conditional Effects Of Victim And Offender Ethnicity And Victim Gender On Sentences For Non-capital Cases

November 27, 2018October 2, 2017 by admin

Abstract

An extensive body of research shows that capital sentences tend to be more likely for Blacks who kill Whites, while more recent studies point to a higher likelihood of capital sentences for killers of White females. The present research broadens these areas of scholarship by including Hispanics and considering sentences for other types of violent crimes. Supporting theory are findings that longer sentences are meted out to offenders who victimize White females, and to Hispanic and African American offenders who victimize Whites. These findings, however, are confined to homicide cases and absent from sexual assault and robbery cases. Contradicting predictions are longer sentences for offenders who victimized Hispanic females, which is observed for robbery as well as homicide. Implications for theory and future research are discussed...

Modus Operandi Of Insane Offenders In Multiple Homicides

November 27, 2018October 2, 2017 by admin

Abstract

Homicides committed by insane offenders have been rarely investigated from the forensic point of view in a comprehensive and detailed manner. The objective of the study was to describe and characterize the modus operandi and personal characteristics in cases when more than one victim was killed and the perpetrator was deemed insane in judicial proceedings. Differences between single and multiple-vitim homicides in the population of insane murderers were also examined. Complete dossiers and forensic examination reports of 21 homicide victims killed by 9 individuals were retrospectively analyzed. The comparative control group consisted of 41 cases with only one victim killed by a single insane perpetrator. The offence and offender variables were subjected to a comparative statistical analysis. The results indicated some specific factors that can be regardetvd as distinctive features more commonly observed in multiple vs. single victim killings perpetrated by insane individuals. There was a significant correlation between, psychosis with...

Barriocide: Investigating the Temporal and Spatial Influence of Neighborhood Structural Characteristics on Gang and Non-Gang Homicides in East Los Angeles

November 27, 2018October 3, 2017 by admin

Abstract

This study explored how changes in neighborhood structural characteristics predicted variation in gang versus non-gang homicides in a policing division of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD). Longitudinal negative binomial models were examined to test the relationship between-neighborhood structural covariates with gang and non-gang homicides over a 35-year period. This study highlights the potential to estimate temporal effects not captured by cross-sectional analyses alone. The results underscore a unique feature that distinguishes gang homicides from other forms of non-gang violence, its tenacious clustering, and spatial dependence over time...

Diffusion in Homicide: Exploring a General Method for Detecting Spatial Diffusion Processes

November 27, 2018October 3, 2017 by admin

Abstract

This article proposes a new method for examining dynamic changes in the spatial distribution of a phenomenon. Recently introduced exploratory spatial data analysis (ESDA) techniques provide social scientists with anew set of tools for distinguishing between random and nonrandom spatial patterns of events (Anselin, 1998). Existing ESDA measures, however, are static and do not permit comparisons of distributions of events in the same space but across different time periods. One ESDA method—the Moran scatter plot—has special heuristic value because it visually displays local spatial relationships between each spatial unit and its neighbors. Weextend this static cross-sectional view of the spatial distribution of events to consider dynamic features of changes over time in spatial dependencies. The method distinguishes between contagious diffusion between adjoining units and hierarchical diffusion that spreads broadly through commonly shared influences. We apply the method to homicide data, looking for evidence of spatial diffusion of youth-gang homicides...

Why And How Normal People Go Mad

November 27, 2018October 3, 2017 by admin

Just about any ordinary person can slip into madness, believes APA President Philip G. Zimbardo, PhD. In fact, all it may take to trigger the process is a special kind of blow to one's self-image to push someone over the edge of sanity.

"My colleagues and I have demonstrated that situational forces...can generate surprisingly powerful contributions to make good people behave in bad ways," he said to a standing-room-only crowd in his presentation, "Why and how normal people go mad," at APA's 2002 Annual Convention in Chicago.

The basis for his ideas is his discontinuity theory, which posits that when people perceive a violation in some domain of functioning vital to their sense of self-esteem, they will search for ways to explain or rationalize the experience. An A-student who suddenly gets poor grades, for example, may develop sexual or eating problems, or exhibit violent fantasies--symptoms that could...

A Brief History Of Restorative Arts

November 27, 2018October 3, 2017 by admin

As early as 1200 BCE, the ancient Egyptians were practicing a range of restorative techniques on the emaciated features of the dead from filling the inside of the mouths with sawdust to improve hollowed cheeks to stuffing linen under the eyelids or replacing eyes with stones. They would continue this procedure, tending to any disability, injury or disfigurement until the face and the body were contoured to approximate the original features and shape of the person they were preparing for their death ceremony.

Since then, modern restorative techniques, renamed restorative arts in 1930, became an important sub-discipline of the aftercare services; mending the body when it exhibited obvious signs of trauma, disease or wounds from war to provide comfort to the bereaved by presenting a loved one who appears familiar in death as they did in life.

It was in 1912, when well-known embalmer, Joel E. Crandall introduced demisurgery, a practice he described as...

Effects of Defense Counsel on Homicide Case Outcomes in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1995-2004 [United States] (ICPSR 32541)

November 27, 2018October 4, 2017 by admin

Summary:

This study measured the difference that defense counsel made to the outcome of homicide and death penalty cases. One in five indigent murder defendants in Philadelphia were randomly assigned representation by the Defender Association of Philadelphia while the remainder received court-appointed private attorneys. This study's research design utilized this random assignment to measure how defense counsel affected murder case outcomes. The research team collected data on 3,157 defendants charged with murder in Philadelphia Municipal Court between 1995-2004, using records provided by the Philadelphia Courts (First Judicial District of Pennsylvania). Data were also obtained from the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, the Pennsylvania Unified Judicial System web portal, the National Corrections Reporting Program, and the 2000 Census. This study contains a total of 47 variables including public defender representation, defendant demographics, ZIP code characteristics, prior criminal history, case characteristics, case outcomes, and case handling procedures...