Search

Cryptocurrencies provide a unique opportunity to identify how derivatives impact spot markets. They are fully fungible, trade across multiple spot exchanges at different prices, and futures contracts were selectively introduced on bitcoin (BTC) exchange rates against the USD in December 2017. Following the futures introduction, we find a significantly greater increase in cross-exchange price synchronicity for BTC--USD relative to other exchange rate pairs, as demonstrated by an increase in price correlations and a reduction in arbitrage opportunities and volatility. We also find support for an increase in price efficiency, market quality, and liquidity. The evidence suggests that futures contracts allowed investors to circumvent trading frictions associated with short sale constraints, arbitrage risk associated with block confirmation time, and market segmentation. Overall, our analysis supports the view that the introduction of BTC--USD futures was beneficial to the bitcoin spot market by making the underlying prices more informative.

The paper analyses cross-border co-operation with regard to its degree of formalization. Herewith, the focus is not on single cross-border organizations, but on the encompassing governance systems in the respective regions. That means that the specific combination of differently organized cross-border arrangements is analyzed. Cross-border governance systems are facing multiple governance challenges which ask either for a certain degree of institutionalization or for more informal solutions. Based on an empirical comparison of the two experienced, but differently organized, cross-border regions in Europe the Lake Constance Region and the Upper-Rhine Region, the paper illustrates that the organizational variation of cross-border governance systems show specific patterns. From these findings, first arguments are deduced for balancing formalized and more informal co-operations in cross-border governance systems.

Behavioural Family Therapy (BFT) is a skills based intervention that aims to support families where a member is experiencing a mental health problem. The Meriden Family Programme has extensive experience in supporting families who have complex needs. The programme delivers training in the approach and works with families with the aim of providing information, education and reducing stress within the family environment. Training has recently taken place within various mental health services to equip staff with the skills to work collaboratively with families and to understand and support their needs.

In 1996, a coordinated community response (CCR) was formally established in a mid-sized Midwestern city to improve the criminal justice response to intimate partner violence (IPV). Data for this study included all IPV-related incidents to which the local police department responded since the establishment of the CCR for a fourteen year period. Effective CCRs provide for IPV offender accountability through citation and prosecution of IPV-related crimes. Concerns about demographic variables affecting citation and prosecution rates have been identified in the literature. Compared to national statistics, gender differences were consistent but higher citation and conviction rates were identified in this community. While differences related to race were found, they were small in size. Although lack of data available from the time prior to the implementation of the CCR model for comparison precludes a definitive conclusion about the effectiveness of the CCR, our findings suggest there is benefit to having one.

This paper reviews recent research dealing with fiscal discipline and revisit the issues of fiscal control in federal systems, focusing on selective case studies covering the 2000s, before and after the Global Financial Crisis (GFC). We start by contrasting the recent fiscal history of California to that of Greece, illustrating the different ways of dealing with fiscal deficiencies in a mature union, U.S., versus a young union, Eurozone. We continue with an overview of the fiscal developments in Brazil, illustrating the challenges facing federal systems in emerging markets, and possible ways to move forward in upgrading a country's fiscal institutions. We conclude with the fiscal history of Iceland before and after the financial crisis--a standalone small country, assessed favorably by rating agencies prior to the GFC, and now recovering from a deep financial crisis.

The risk-fear paradox, whereby people who experience the least criminal victimisation report the greatest fear of crime, has been established in the extant literature. That this paradox is gendered, notably that women report greater fear yet are less likely to experience crime, has also been consistently identified. However, there remains a largely unanswered call to explore further the distinctive experiences of women and men. There are likely to be substantial within-group differences as well as between-group differences in experiences of crime and reported fear of crime. For instance, women may experience fear differently by relationship type. Specifically, women in non-traditional families, notably same-sex couples and single, divorced and widowed women may be more fearful. Therefore, for women, the risk-fear paradox may not function equivalently across relationship types. What is more, the impact of experiencing crime may have broader effects on women’s well-being, with those in families with complex needs shouldering a greater burden. We apply 2012 European Social Survey data to investigate reports of experiencing crime, feeling unsafe and anxious and sleeping restlessly for a sample of European women (n = 28,768). Our results demonstrate that single, separated and divorced women are more likely to experience crime than married women. Divorced and widowed women, as well as those who experience crime, are more likely to report feeling unsafe. Single women, compared to married women, who experience crime are more likely to feel anxious and sleep restlessly. Our results indicate that crime has differential effects on women by relationship type particularly regarding well-being. These findings offer important nuance to the experiences of women.

Poor outcomes and several complaints to the judicial system against residential services for children have triggered a deep review of the Chilean child welfare services, particularly in relation to family reunification. This paper offers strategic guidelines to improve alternative care for children younger than six years of age, who are under protective measures. To define such guidelines, a case study was developed based on current models of residential services and foster home programs, which included local (Chile) and international evidence, also this research includes original empirical data collected through focus groups and interviews with key stakeholders of these programs in Chile and in two countries with advanced social services for children (Sweden and Italy). Findings refer to a structural need for reforming social services for Chilean children. Such reform should involve appropriate legislation to guarantee the rights of children and families, a substantial budgetary review leading to an increase in spending, and boosting professional specialization, and raising the capacity for offering integrated services.

There is documented correlation between parental substance abuse, child maltreatment, and poor outcomes. In two health districts in Sydney, Australia (Site A and B), specialised clinics were established to provide comprehensive assessments for infants of substance abusing mothers (ISAM). We aimed to determine whether there was a difference in outcomes between infants who attended clinic versus those who did not; and to identify differences in the pathways to care between sites. We analysed child protection reports and available health markers of all ISAM referrals in 2011. We held stakeholder meetings with services involved with ISAM in both sites; to describe service components; strengths and weaknesses of pathways. Fifty-five per cent (11/20) attended clinic in Site A; 80% (25/31) in Site B. Three-quarters of ISAM had at least one referral to child welfare; child protection service involvement was more common in those who attended. Immunisation status was lower than the national Australian average; approximately half were seen by community nursing services. Gaps in services, lack of database, and differences in pathways between sites were identified. Attending clinics correlates with child protection service involvement and may afford health protection. Transparent communication, service integration, and shared learning can improve outcomes for this vulnerable group.

This study examines the effects of two interethnic ideologies (assimilation and multiculturalism) on in-group favoritism and discrimination intention toward immigrants. Specifically, this study aims to test the concomitant impact of these two ideologies on intergroup biases in order to affirm whether these two paths are related to intergroup bias. Moreover, this study is designed to extend previous work that found relationships between interethnic ideologies and in-group favoritism to discrimination intention. Graduate students in management programs ( N = 182) answered a questionnaire. The findings show that both interethnic ideologies are concomitantly related to in-group favoritism. In particular, while assimilation is positively related to in-group favoritism, multiculturalism is negatively related to in-group favoritism. Additionally, it shows evidence of indirect relationships between interethnic ideologies and the discrimination intention through in-group favoritism. The results are discussed in light of interethnic ideologies literature and presents directions for future research.

Randall Collins’ theory of interaction ritual chains is widely cited, but has been subject to little theoretical elaboration. One reason for the modest expansion of the theory is the underdevelopment of the concept of emotional energy. This paper examines emotional energy, related particularly to the dynamics of negative experiences. It asks whether or not negative emotions produce emotional energies that are qualitatively distinct from their positive counterparts. The analysis begins by tracing the development of Interaction Ritual Theory, and summarizes its core propositions. Next, it moves to a conceptualization of a “valenced” emotional energy and describes both “positive” and “negative” dimensions. Six propositions outline the central dynamics of negative emotional energy. The role of groups in the formation of positive and negative emotional energy are considered, as well as how these energies are significant sources of sociological motivation.

This paper analyzes common confusions involving basic concepts in statistical hypothesis testing. One-third of the social science statistics textbooks examined in the study contained false statements about significance level and/or p -value. We infer that a large proportion of social scientists are being miseducated about these concepts. We analyze the causes of these persistent misunderstandings, and conclude that the conventional terminology is prone to abuse because it does not clearly represent the conditional nature of probabilities and events involved. We argue that modifications in terminology, as well as the explicit introduction of conditional probability concepts and notation into the statistics curriculum in the social sciences, are necessary to prevent the persistence of these errors.

После введения Россией запрета на ввоз отдельных видов сельскохозяйственной продукции, сырья и про- довольствия из США, ЕС, Канады, Австралии и Норвегии, ухудшения отношений с Украиной и Молдавией остро встала проблема импортозамещения отечественными продуктами и соответствующей кор- ректировки аграрной политики. Для ускоренного импортозамещения в Госпрограмму развития сельско- го хозяйства и регулирования рынков с/х продукции, сырья и продовольствия включены новые подпро- граммы. Однако практически ни по одной из новых подпрограмм нельзя сказать, что она действитель- но способствует импортозамещению. В ряде случаев (субсидирование приобретения элитных семян, закупки сырья) она работает прямо противоположным образом. Практически везде финансирование урезано настолько, что не понятно, почему эти отрасли объявили приоритетными и как выполнять целевые показатели. Все это свидетельствует о необходимости доработки аграрной политики РФ.

This thirty-year case study uses surveys, semi-structured interviews, and content analysis to examine the adaptive capacity of Zanjera San Marcelino, an indigenous irrigation management system in the northern Philippines. This common pool resource (CPR) system exists within a turbulent social-ecological system (SES) characterized by episodic shocks such as large typhoons as well as novel surprises, such as national political regime change and the construction of large dams. The Zanjera nimbly responded to these challenges, although sometimes in ways that left its structure and function substantially altered. While a partial integration with the Philippine National Irrigation Agency was critical to the Zanjera’s success, this relationship required on-going improvisation and renegotiation. Over time, the Zanjera showed an increasing capacity to learn and adapt. A core contribution of this analysis is the integration of a CPR study within an SES framework to examine resilience, made possible the occurrence of a wide range of challenges to the Zanjera’s function and survival over the long period of study. Long-term analyses like this one, however rare, are particularly useful for understanding the adaptive and transformative dimensions of resilience.

There is a growing engagement in a better understanding of the relation between “Life and Medicine”, medical schools becoming more innovative, by combining art and medicine, while marketing is challenged to spread the healing further by focusing on customer’s needs and helping them. The following case is a documentation of effects by art therapy stabilizing the subjective life-quality of the today’s healthcare “customer”, the patient, while proving a better understanding, compassion and empathy in the interaction.

Document management systems are complex systems, which offer services as storage, versioning, metadata, security, as well as indexing and retrieval capabilities. Large numbers of documents could be automatically grouped into classes of documents, which contain similar information. Therefor we propose to use clustering methods in order to group the documents. Clustering is an important process in text mining used for groping documents based on their contents in order to extract knowledge. In this paper we will present some requirements for clustering algorithms for a document management system

Štúdie na tému európskej identity možno vo všeobecnosti rozdeliť na tie, čo sa zaoberajú európskym povedomím a tie, v ktorých je diskutovaná identita Európy. Obe dimenzie európskej identity, európske povedomie i identita (imidž) Európy, sú charakteristické relatívne vysokou mierou priestorovej variability, a to predovšetkým na úrovni jednotlivých národných štátov. Kým však medzinárodné disparity v miere európskeho povedomia bývajú predmetom analýz pomerne často, analýzy medzinárodných, či iných priestorových rozdielov v percepcii identity Európy, sú veľmi zriedkavé. Pritom, ak chceme byť schopní adekvátne interpretovať existujúce medzinárodné rozdiely v miere európskeho povedomia, musíme nevyhnutne začať venovať vyššiu pozornosť medzinárodným disparitám v percepcii Európy. V prezentovanom článku sú analyzované disparity v percepcii identity Európy na úrovni jednotlivých krajín Európskej únie a ich skupín. Analýza je založená na údajoch získaných v rámci prieskumu Eurobarometer 73.3 realizovaného v roku 2010. Prieskum potvrdil predpokladaný vzťah medzi identitami jednotlivých krajín EÚ a príslušnou národnou percepciou Európy. (Studies on European identity can be broadly divided into those dealing with European consciousness and those, in which the identity of Europe is discussed. Both European consciousness and the perception of the identity of Europe (the image of Europe) are characterized by a relatively high degree of spatial variability, especially at the level of individual nation states. However, while international disparities in the degree of European consciousness have been subject of analysis quite frequently, analyzes of international or other spatial differences in the perception of the identity of Europe are very rare. If we want to be able to adequately interpret existing international differences in European consciousness, we must necessarily start paying more attention to international disparities in the perception of Europe. The paper takes a closer look at disparities in the perception of the identity of Europe across individual European Union countries and their groups. Analysis of disparities is based mainly on data derived from the Eurobarometer 73.3 survey, which took place in 2010. The survey confirms the assumed relationship between the identities of individual nation states and the particular national perceptions of Europe.)

In this paper, we will present a case study regarding the current situation in the strategic management of student enrolment for the Department of Computer Science, Engineering Faculty. We will present some theoretical aspects of the strategic enrollment management applied by the Computer Science Department. Based on a questionnaire we will identify the geographical area where the students came from and their motivations to enroll to this specialization. In addition, we will analyze the expectations of students regarding their future employment.

Можно выделить три наиболее существенные проблемы, характерные для инфраструктурных от- раслей российской экономики: определение контуров рынков отраслей естественных монополий, кратное сокращение объемов перекрестного субсидирования и привлечение государственного и част- ного капитала в инфраструктурные отрасли. В этой связи последние инициативы Правительства по созданию единого регулятора естественномонопольных секторов выглядят опережающими раз- витие рынков. Именно обозначенные проблемы, а не вопросы о том, какое из ведомств должно при- нимать решения в области регулирования отраслей естественных монополий, должны быть перво- степенными при формировании государственной политики в отношении естественных монополий.

The EU and most aid donors invoke a strong normative power face by explicitly connecting foreign aid with human and social development. However, how well the EU’s rhetoric is consistent with its practices as a multilateral development actor has not been explored extensively. In this study, we challenge the normative dimension of the EU’s development policy and explore whether the EU’s Official Development Assistance to Sub-Saharan Africa is based on objective deprivation on the part of recipient countries or whether it is “interest driven”. We use a least squares dummy variable model regression to examine aid flows from the EU to all 48 Sub-Saharan African states for the period 2000 to 2010. The evidence found indicates that in certain instances, aid allocation contradicts the normative rhetoric that the EU uses to describe its development policy, as the donor’s own interests in the region seem to supersede priority given to the needs of the aid recipient states. A limitation to the findings is the fact that normative values and strategic interests are not mutually exclusive. Nevertheless, the present study suggests that the EU’s portrayal as a force for good in international relations requires cautious critique.

This article discusses the safeguarding movement in the context of child protection. After providing it’s key principles and precepts, the relevant provisions of the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child which link to safeguarding are stipulated, as well as a brief description given of the mandate of the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child. Some aspects of the practical working methods of the Committee are thereafter considered. With reference to the Committee’s interface with non-governmental organisations, some proposals concerning the Committee and the safeguarding movement are put forward.

Placement in kinship family has existed informally throughout time. There are many countries in which kinship family care is the most common measure used for child protection. However, it is a subject of continuous debate. One of the major issues is that kinship foster care is relied upon without carrying out an evaluation study of the family, often the child is placed directly with grandparents and uncles simply because they are direct family. This article presents an assessment tool to evaluate extended families in order to ensure the welfare of the child. The tool was created as a result of the cooperative research of 126 professionals from seven regions of Spain. The tool can identify the strengths and weaknesses of families by considering six factors: personal characteristics, the coverage of basic needs, collaboration with professionals, the family structure and dynamics, the relationship between family, child, and biological family, and, finally, the attitude towards the placement. The assessment tool is innovative and introduces the opportunity to consider the skills of the kinship foster care family, the needs of support, and which families are unfit to take care of the child. To conclude, the tool tries to overcome one of the principal disadvantages of kinship foster care: the lack of knowledge about the kinship family.

This article describes the evolution of forensic interviewing as a method to determine whether or not a child has been sexually abused, focusing primarily on the United States. It notes that forensic interviewing practices are challenged to successfully identify children who have been sexually abused and successfully exclude children who have not been sexually abused. It describes models for child sexual abuse investigation, early writings and practices related to child interviews, and the development of forensic interview structures from scripted, to semi-structured, to flexible. The article discusses the controversies related appropriate questions and the use of media (e.g., anatomical dolls and drawings). It summarizes the characteristics of four important interview structures and describes their impact of the field of forensic interviewing. The article describes forensic interview training and the challenge of implementing training in forensic practice. The article concludes with a summary of progress and remaining controversies and with future challenges for the field of forensic interviewing.

Relevant others (e.g., fellow group members) influence how goals and goal-directed behaviors are construed and valued. In turn, according to the “expectancy × value” model of motivated behavioral choice, people engage in goal-directed behaviors when they expect success and ascribe high values to a certain task. In this pilot study, we combine predictions from a social psychological goal perspective with recent theoretical developments from educational psychology, testing the processes that link a person’s social identity with the effort for the achievement goals. With a pilot study using a sample of 86 university students, we tested the assumption that expectation for success and subjective task values mediate the relation between the student identity and effort intentions. In line with our expectations, stronger identification with the group of students was related to stronger effort intentions, mediated via interest and attainment value. These results suggest that social identity may have a profound impact on the engagement decisions made in educational settings.

This article considers selected drivers of decision variability in child welfare decision-making and explores current debates in relation to these drivers. Covering the related influences of national orientation, risk and responsibility, inequality and poverty, evidence-based practice, constructions of abuse and its causes, domestic violence and cognitive processes, it discusses the literature in regards to how each of these influences decision variability. It situates these debates in relation to the ethical issue of variability and the equity issues that variability raises. I propose that despite the ecological complexity that drives decision variability, that improving internal (within-country) decision consistency is still a valid goal. It may be that the use of annotated case examples, kind learning systems, and continued commitments to the social justice issues of inequality and individualisation can contribute to this goal.

The purpose of this study is to enrich the Romanian historiographical research concerning the British interest towards the Romanian Principalities in the nineteenth century. Historians such as Paul Cernovodeanu, Radu Florescu, Beatrice Marinescu and Constantin Ardeleanu presented us with different phases of this interest. Two of them, Marinescu and Florescu, also approached the subject of Stratford Canning`s preoccupation towards the Principalities, but Marinescu did not have access to the ambassador`s correspondence with the British State Secretary, the correspondence being at the Foreign Office Archives, while Florescu focused more on the British Consuls`activity in the Principalities than on the activity of the ambassador at Constantinople. Having access to the papers at the British Archives, this study comes to enrich the view of how the Principalities`space was perceived by Great Britain through the work and the diplomatic papers of a British ambassador in the capital of the suzerain power in a time when the Principalities were going through significant changes.

On producing this theme we have relied upon the fantastic theories present in Roger Caillois` work `In the heart of the fantastic ` and in Tzvetan Todorov `s volume `An introduction to the fantastic literature`. Our text aims at interpreting the literary `signs` that are employed in a permanent correlation on the syntagmatic axe and create a field of the imaginary marked by the cathegories of the strange and the fantastic on the paradigmatic axe, present within the novel `The fall into the world` by the well known contemporary writer Constantin Toiu.

Expectations of contemporary child protection apparatuses are strongly influenced by beliefs inherited from the nineteenth century child rescue movement. In particular, the belief that child abuse determination is obvious. However, this assumption fails to make a distinction between nineteenth century’s emphasis on impoverished environments and the twentieth century introduction of the pathological child abuser. Moreover, the proliferation of kinds of child abuse, and the need to distinguish child abusers from non-abusers, means knowledge is now spread across an array of disciplines and professions, which necessarily destabilizes the definition of child abuse. The increasing exposure of alternate care systems as potentially abusive has similarly destabilized the old common sense solution to neglected children—namely removal. Finally, as uncertainty increases, and definitions become more divergent, the question of what child abuse is, and what should be done about it, becomes increasingly politicized.

In Spain, an average of 480 children per 100,000 is receiving some type of temporary care, and the reunification process is typically lengthy. Providing the biological family with specific training as part of the reunification process is key to solving this problem. Although previous research and social policy have emphasized the importance of such training to reunification, the training has not been fully implemented in Spain. This study investigates the specific training needs during the transition phase of the reunification process in which the child prepares to return home. The data were obtained from focus groups and through semi-structured interviews with 135 participants: 63 professionals from the Child Protection System and 42 parents and 30 children who have undergone or are currently undergoing reunification. A qualitative methodology and Atlas.ti software were used to analyze the interview content. The results indicate three specific training needs: (a) understanding the reasons for reunification and the reunification phases, (b) empowerment strategies, and (c) social support. These findings suggest the best practices for formulating specific support programs for this population during the reunification transition period.

Children at risk of abuse are more likely to be hospitalized and utilize health services according to international research. In a large metropolitan health region in New South Wales, Australia, there was little known of the clinical burden of child physical abuse and/or neglect (PAN), or of systems for clinical assessment of children presenting with abuse/neglect. We aimed to identify the number of children presenting with suspected PAN to emergency departments (EDs) and paediatric services in this region, to determine enablers and barriers to assessment for children with PAN presenting to frontline services, and to identify best practices to address gaps. We collated available data on children presenting to EDs and paediatric services with suspected PAN in 2007. We interviewed 36 health professionals from nine hospitals and 12 statutory child protection professionals, across the region before undertaking relevant document analysis. Of 64,700 paediatric ED presentations, a quarter were due to injury, 2%–5% of these were due to maltreatment. Clinician estimates and assessments of PAN varied widely, health and welfare workers identified major practice gaps, as well as good local practice. We identified feasible minimum standards for improving clinical assessment and follow-up for children presenting with PAN, given the right organizational support.

With the broadening of focus on child maltreatment beyond intra-familial settings, there is growing awareness of occurrences of maltreatment within the sport context. Millions of children participate in organized sport annually, and despite a tendency to view sport as a context by which to enhance the overall health and development of children, it is also a context in which children are vulnerable to experiences of maltreatment. The well-documented power ascribed to coaches, the unregulated nature of sport and a “win-at-all-costs” approach contribute to a setting that many propose is conducive to maltreatment. A number of high profile cases of sexual abuse of athletes across several countries in the 1990s prompted sport organizations to respond with the development of child protection measures. This study examined seven child protection in sport initiatives in terms of the extent to which they originated from research, had content that was consistent with scholarly work and were evaluated empirically. The findings indicated that these initiatives were not empirically derived nor evaluated. Recommendations are made to more closely align research with these initiatives in order to protect children and to promote a safe and growth-enhancing experience for young participants in sport.

Some child protection cases exemplify a certain kind of cooperative interdependence, a consequence of the ways in which practitioners and clients are entangled. Client and practitioner are “stuck” with each other and need each other to succeed. There is also an intrinsic power imbalance that technique, ideology, and skill cannot hide and that has risks for the well-being and success of the practitioner-client relationship. There is also a risk to the practitioner of biases caused by successful influence. “Productive conflict,” defined as conflict under conditions of cooperative interdependence, may compensate for these challenges and lead to “integrative solutions.” In these cases the conflict itself is a kind of collaboration.

This study is a needs assessment of ethnic Chinese older adults in Japan. The Delphi method was applied to identify the needs addressed by the focus groups. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs model guided the examination of the community’s political, economic and social environment in satisfying the needs of older community members. The needs were matched with a city’s Health, Welfare, and Long-term Care Insurance Program Plan seeking to identify differences between ethnic Chinese and Japanese community members. Most of the needs were similar to those of the Japanese citizens, but there were a few issues related to financial and cultural needs that were unique to the ethnic Chinese group.

We studied the inclusion of traditionally underrepresented groups in society, females, persons of non-European ethnic background and people with apparent disabilities. Specifically we addressed their participation as program leaders in children’s programs in the Swedish Public Service Television to see if they corresponded to their relative share of the population. Using the official web site of the Swedish Public Service Television, listing all their programs, we found that of 65 program leaders in 41 television programs, 42% were female, 12% of the program leaders were of non-European ethnic background and 20% had apparent disabilities. There was a non-significant trend for women to be underrepresented as program leaders, people of ethnic non-European background had significantly higher representation than their share of the population, and people with apparent disabilities had significantly much higher percentage than their share of the Swedish population as program leaders for children programs. This case study indicates that traditionally underrepresented groups such as people of non-ethnic European background and people with disabilities do well in the competition for positions as program leaders for television programs that target children. This can be seen as an encouraging step from the present norm in Swedish society of mainly hiring people that you know.

Child protection in sport emerged at the start of the 21st century amidst headlines about coaches raping, sexually assaulting and abusing children. Against this backdrop, in 2001 the UK government established an independent agency, the English Child Protection in Sport Unit (CPSU), which introduced national child protection standards for sports organizations. This included the requirement to appoint national “safeguarding lead officers”. Utilizing the theoretical framework of sociologist Pierre Bourdieu, this paper considers the impact of “safeguarding and child protection” (SCP) within the English sports community through the experiences of those who have been at the vanguard of its implementation in the early years of its establishment within sport. Utilizing data from qualitative interviews with nine national safeguarding lead officers (SLOs), the paper discusses the challenges experienced by SLOs and critically appraises the relation between them (their habitus ) and the prevailing logic ( capital ) within their sporting fields . We discuss the extent to which SLOs have been supported by their organizations and conclude with a consideration of the degree to which national governing bodies of sport (NGBs) have been invested in SCP.

The Children and Families Act 2014 has introduced a 26-week timeline for Children Act 1989 care and supervision court cases. This article discusses the risks and possible ramifications for children and parents of this measure, which halves the average length of care proceedings. This is to be set against evidence that faster resolution of children’s cases is possible without prejudicing the quality of court decision making, however, careful monitoring is indicated to ensure that child welfare is at the forefront in the decision making process and the individual rights of all concerned are protected.

On 12 November 2012 the then Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard announced she was recommending to the Governor General the establishment of a Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. Following inquiries in Australia and elsewhere much is already known about institutional and inter-institutional child protection failures and what is required to address them. That Australia’s national government has pursued another abuse inquiry with terms of reference limited to institution-based (excluding the family) sexual abuse is of interest given the lack of political will to enact previous findings and recommendations. This article examines the background to the Government’s announcement, the Commission’s terms of reference and some of its settings, and literature on the nature of royal commissions across time and place. After the lack of success in implementing the recommendations of previous inquiries into how to better protect Australia’s children, the question is: how will this Royal Commission contribute to Australian child protection and safety? Will the overwhelming public support generated by “truth speaking to power” in calling for this inquiry translate into action?

This paper starts from the assumption of a structural analogy between mega-events and large-scale disasters. Both imply forceful interruptions of everyday routines, and both involve imperatives for imminent action. Similar to the immovable deadline of an opening ceremony, a looming natural disaster triggers a complex set of precautions and preparations to cope with the inescapable forthcoming shock. In the case of mega-events, of course, this shock is self-induced. In fact, cities fiercely compete to host mega-events. In the face of the daunting challenges of hosting a mega-event—the immovable timeframe, the rigorous standards set by regulatory bodies, and the exceptional public visibility—the authorities and organizations in charge traditionally have resorted to strategies of a strict adaptation to the conditions imposed on them. Aligning all available resources and capabilities to match the foreseeable demands, however, undermines the adaptability to cope with unpredictable perturbations. This paper seeks to explore the strategies and practices to attain adaptability during the preparation, staging and implementation of legacy plans of a mega-event with an evidentially noteworthy record: the London Olympic Games 2012. The paper seeks to demonstrate that the project ecology in charge managed to enhance adaptability by implementing three key features of heterarchy : ambiguity , redundancy and loose coupling . By leveraging the principles of heterarchy, the project ecology was able to draw lessons from previous mega-events and both to anticipate and respond to unforeseen challenges.

In health research, socioeconomic position (SEP) is used to measure the context of social inequality. Studies on low birth weight (LBW) that attempt to capture social inequality have generally used single measures of SEP or have employed conventional SEP measures, such as income and education, without regard to how other indicators could influence findings. This study investigates the association between SEP and LBW across blacks and whites using multiple and alternative indicators of SEP. We use a stratified random sample of 13,513 postpartum mothers, obtained from the Michigan Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (2000–2006), and evaluate four SEP measures across race: maternal education, Medicaid before pregnancy, Women, Infants and Children (WIC) enrollment during pregnancy and paternal acknowledgment. Results indicate that associations between SEP and LBW vary depending on the SEP measure used and the racial subpopulation under consideration. To explain and reduce social inequalities in LBW, a more differentiated approach that does not assume equivalence among SEP measures and across racial/ethnic groups should be employed.

Mandatory reporting laws have been created in many jurisdictions as a way of identifying cases of severe child maltreatment on the basis that cases will otherwise remain hidden. These laws usually apply to all four maltreatment types. Other jurisdictions have narrower approaches supplemented by differential response systems, and others still have chosen not to enact mandatory reporting laws for any type of maltreatment. In scholarly research and normative debates about mandatory reporting laws and their effects, the four major forms of child maltreatment—physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, and neglect—are often grouped together as if they are homogenous in nature, cause, and consequence. Yet, the heterogeneity of maltreatment types, and different reporting practices regarding them, must be acknowledged and explored when considering what legal and policy frameworks are best suited to identify and respond to cases. A related question which is often conjectured upon but seldom empirically explored, is whether reporting laws make a difference in case identification. This article first considers different types of child abuse and neglect, before exploring the nature and operation of mandatory reporting laws in different contexts. It then posits a differentiation thesis, arguing that different patterns of reporting between both reporter groups and maltreatment types must be acknowledged and analysed, and should inform discussions and assessments of optimal approaches in law, policy and practice. Finally, to contribute to the evidence base required to inform discussion, this article conducts an empirical cross-jurisdictional comparison of the reporting and identification of child sexual abuse in jurisdictions with and without mandatory reporting, and concludes that mandatory reporting laws appear to be associated with better case identification.

This paper presents two conceptual models that we have developed for understanding ways that social media can support learning. One model relates to the “social” aspect of social media, describing the different ways that people can learn with and from each other, in one or more of three social forms: groups, networks and sets. The other model relates to the ‘media’ side of social media, describing how technologies are constructed and the roles that people play in creating and enacting them, treating them in terms of softness and hardness. The two models are complementary: neither provides a complete picture but, in combination, they help to explain how and why different uses of social media may succeed or fail and, as importantly, are intended to help us design learning activities that make most effective use of the technologies. We offer some suggestions as to how media used to support different social forms can be softened and hardened for different kinds of learning applications.

Between 1940 and 2005, in the United States, the rate of unnatural death declined about 75 percent in infant and young child boys and girls, a remarkable indicator of successful child protection. During this same period, the rate of reported homicide in infant boys increased 64.0 percent, in infant girls increased 43.5 percent, in young child boys increased 333.3 percent, and in young child girls increased 300.0 percent, a dismal and disturbing indicator of failed child protection. Can these simultaneously encouraging and discouraging observations be reconciled? The four categories of unnatural death, homicide, suicide, motor vehicle accident (MVA), and non-MVA, are mutually exclusive classifications. Correlations between the four categories of unnatural death among U.S. men and woman in all age groups for the years 1940 through 2005 were calculated. A negative correlation between homicide and non-MVA death rates was shown for all age groups, encompassing the entire human lifespan, in both genders. This consistently observed negative correlation was only observed between homicide and non-MVA death rates, and was not demonstrated between other causes of unnatural deaths. Moreover, this negative correlation was strongest (less than −0.7) in infants and young children. These observations are consistent with the suggestion that as the rate of unnatural death in infants and young children dramatically declined, society gave greater scrutiny to those fewer occurring unnatural deaths and demonstrated an increasing propensity to assign blame for those fewer deaths.

The aim of the Gathering the Voices project is to gather testimonies from Holocaust survivors who have made their home in Scotland and to make these testimonies available on the World Wide Web. The project commenced in 2012, and a key outcome of the project is to educate current and future generations about the resilience of these survivors. Volunteers from the Jewish community are collaborating with staff and undergraduate students in Glasgow Caledonian University in developing innovative approaches to engage with school children. These multimedia approaches are essential, as future generations will be unable to interact in person with Holocaust survivors. By students being active participants in the project, they will learn more about the Holocaust and recognize the relevance of these testimonies in today’s society. Although some of the survivors have been interviewed about their journeys in fleeing from the Nazi atrocities, for all of the interviewees, this is the first time that they have been asked about their lives once they arrived in the United Kingdom. The interviews have also focused on citizenship and integration into society. The project is not yet completed, and an evaluation will be taking place to measure the effectiveness of the project in communicating its message to the public.

Each year, hundreds of thousands of children in the U.S. are victims of child maltreatment. Experts recommend behavioral, skill-based parent training programs as a strategy for the prevention of child abuse and neglect. These programs can be enhanced using innovative technology strategies. This paper presents a brief history of the use of technology in SafeCare®, a home visiting program shown to prevent child neglect and physical abuse, and highlights current work that takes a technology-based hybrid approach to SafeCare delivery. With this unique approach, the provider brings a tablet computer to each session, and the parent interacts with the software to receive psychoeducation and modeling of target skills. The provider and parent then work together to practice the targeted skills until mastery is achieved. Initial findings from ongoing research of both of these strategies indicate that they show potential for improving engagement and use of positive parenting skills for parents and ease of implementation for providers. Future directions for technology enhancements in SafeCare are also presented.

The aim of this paper is to highlight key themes within the process of online grooming from the victim’s perspective. Eight adolescents who experienced online grooming were interviewed and data were analysed using Thematic Analysis. It was found that participants, who had been both sexually abused online and/or offline, were subjected to a range of grooming experiences. Consistent grooming themes within this sample included: manipulation; deception; regular/intense contact; secrecy; sexualisation; kindness and flattery; erratic temperament and nastiness; and simultaneous grooming of those close to the victim. These themes are similar to those identified by the literature surrounding grooming offline. Analysis demonstrated that once a participant was ‘enmeshed’ in the relationship with the offender, they were more likely to endure negative feelings associated with the grooming, than if the victim was not ‘enmeshed’. This paper supports the notion that grooming is a varied and non-linear process. Recommendations are made for practitioners, parents and carers, as well as suggestions for primary preventative education.

This study uses observations of team meetings and interviews with 17 primary care professionals in four GP practices in England to generate hypotheses about how “vulnerable family” team meetings might support responses by GPs to maltreatment-related concerns and joint working with other professionals. These meetings are also called “safeguarding meetings”. The study found that vulnerable family meetings were used as a way of monitoring children or young people and their families and supporting risk assessment by information gathering. Four factors facilitated the meetings: meaningful information flow into the meetings from other agencies, systematic ways of identifying cases for discussion, limiting attendance to core members of the primary care team and locating the meeting as part of routine clinical practice. Our results generate hypotheses about a model of care that can be tested for effectiveness in terms of service measures, child and family outcomes, and as a potential mechanism for other professionals to engage and support GPs in their everyday responses to vulnerable and maltreated children. The potential for adverse as well as beneficial effects should be considered from involving professionals outside the core primary care team (e.g., police, children’s social care, education and mental health services).

This paper examines the responses of state and third sector agencies to the emergence of child abuse in sport since the mid-1980s. As with other social institutions such as the church, health and education, sport has both initiated its own child protection interventions and also responded to wider social and political influences. Sport has exemplified many of the changes identified in the brief for this special issue, such as the widening of definitional focus, increasing geographic scope and broadening of concerns to encompass health and welfare. The child protection agenda in sport was initially driven by sexual abuse scandals and has since embraced a range of additional harms to children, such as physical and psychological abuse, neglect and damaging hazing (initiation) rituals. Whereas in the 1990s, only a few sport organisations acknowledged or addressed child abuse and protection (notably, UK, Canada and Australia), there has since been rapid growth in interest in the issue internationally, with many agencies now taking an active role in prevention work. These agencies adopt different foci related to their overall mission and may be characterised broadly as sport-specific (focussing on abuse prevention in sport), children’s rights organisations (focussing on child protection around sport events) and humanitarian organisations (focussing on child development and protection through sport). This article examines how these differences in organisational focus lead to very different child protection approaches and “solutions”. It critiques the scientific approaches used thus far to inform activism and policy changes and ends by considering future challenges for athlete safeguarding and welfare.

Physical fighting is an important behavioral concern of public health importance among adolescents worldwide. The present study examines the patterns and correlates of physical fighting among a school-based population in a low-income country setting. Data on 6235 adolescents aged 11–16 years were derived from the Republic of Ghana contributions to the Global School-based Health Survey. Three thresholds of participation in a physical fight during a 12-month recall period were compared against several independent sociodemographic variables. Bivariate analyses were used to screen for statistically significant associations and multinomial logistic regression was used to examine significant relationships while adjusting for covariates. Within the recall period, 32% of adolescents had reported being involved in two or more physical fights. Those involved in a physical fight during three or more days during the recall period were more likely to have been bullied (relative risk ratios (RRR) = 1.86; 99% confidence intervals (CI): 1.38–2.52), have had a troubled experience with alcohol (RRR = 2.202; CI = 1.55–2.64), and miss days of school (RRR = 2.02; CI = 1.39–2.92). When adjusted only for age and sex, having understanding parents was protective (RRR = 0.64; CI = 0.53–0.78) as was having a positive school environment (RRR = 0.73; CI = 0.55–0.97). Our findings suggest that school-based programming which simultaneously targets multiple risk behaviors and conflict resolution may be helpful in interventions to reduce rates of physical fighting.

Europe has become a vivid example of intergroup dynamics with all the risks and chances it holds for peaceful and respectful co-existence. While Europe as a superordinate social category has the capability of solidarity between its subcategories ( i.e. , nations), negative emotions and behaviors among the countries’ citizens have become more prevalent throughout the emerging crisis. This article aims to analyze the psychological outcomes ( i.e. , negative attitudes) following on from the structural and economic imbalances within the European Union. More precisely, we argue that political reactions towards the Euro crisis facilitated routes to nationalism and thereby fostered supremacy in a few countries. This perceived supremacy of some countries, in turn, legitimized negative reactions towards others. Based on predictions from a social identity perspective, we describe how these processes perpetuate themselves. We also suggest strategies that might prevent the idea of a common Europe from failing.

As the future movements of financial time series like the European Central Bank’s benchmark rate are exposed to uncertainty, financial market participants regularly have to rely on professional analysts’ forecasts. Not surprisingly—and for decades already—the quality of survey forecasts has been evaluated, with heterogeneous results. In addition, forecasters’ performance can change through the course of time. This may happen not only due to wrong or inadequate underlying models. Especially in times of financial turmoil or monetary crisis—like the European debt crisis—the interest rate moves made by central bankers may become even harder to predict (at least the direct reaction to the crisis). Because of this, we evaluate the performance of survey forecasts for the three months rate in the Euro zone performed by financial professionals and test for structural breaks to evidence for crisis related changes and the corresponding forecast errors.

Climate change is globally defined as a “reality”. This does not mean however that the way in which it is understood is the same all over the world. Rather, perceptions may differ at different places and times, even if physical and geographical conditions are similar. For the time being, this phenomenon has not been dealt with on a theoretical-conceptual level. The article will address this desiderate. Based on the approaches of social constructivism as well as actor-network theory, a theoretical concept will be suggested as a heuristic model for empirical analysis. By the examples of Lübeck and Rostock, two cities on Germany’s Baltic coast, it will be shown that climate change related perceptions of vulnerability and resilience may build on physical- material aspects but that they are above all considerably interwoven with specific cultural and social patterns of interpretation. In the framework of the local discourse in Lübeck, it is the strong Hanseatic tradition which consumes the climate change issue, whereas in Rostock it is the problems and historical breaks of a transformation society which shape the way of viewing climate change. View Full-Text