The attrition of indigenous and non-indigenous child sexual abuse cases in two Australian jurisdictions

The attrition of indigenous and non-indigenous child sexual abuse cases in two Australian jurisdictions. Bailey, Cate; Powell, Martine; Brubacher, Sonja P. Psychology, Public Policy, and Law, Vol 23(2), May 2017, 178-190. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/law0000119

Abstract: Indigenous children are significantly more likely to be victims of sexual abuse than non-Indigenous children. To investigate justice outcomes for Indigenous children, we aimed in this study to compare Indigenous versus non-Indigenous cases of suspected child sexual abuse as they proceed through the criminal justice system in 2 Australian jurisdictions. In Study 1, case progression of the 2 groups was compared at the following 5 stages: Forensic disclosure (child disclosed to police in a forensic interview), case is charged, case is proceeded by public prosecutors, case goes to court, and conviction. The results revealed that in both jurisdictions, Indigenous children were less likely than non-Indigenous children to make an allegation of abuse and to have the case proceeded by public prosecutors. These findings suggest that it was more difficult for Indigenous cases of suspected child sexual abuse to proceed through the criminal justice system. A second study investigated which case characteristics predicted forensic disclosure. Previous disclosure by the child and the availability of a corroborating witness were significant predictors of a case having evidence in the form of a forensic disclosure, in both jurisdictions. In conclusion, cases for Indigenous children were less likely to have evidence in the form of a forensic disclosure than non-Indigenous children, and community related variables significantly predicted abuse allegations, in both cohorts. If an Indigenous child did not make an allegation of abuse within the community, the child was unlikely to make an allegation of abuse to police.

High School Genetic Diversity and Later-life Student Outcomes: Micro-level Evidence from the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study. C. Justin Cook, Jason M. Fletcher. http://www.nber.org/papers/w23520

Abstract: A novel hypothesis posits that levels of genetic diversity in a population may partially explain variation in the development and success of countries. Our paper extends evidence on this novel question by subjecting the hypothesis to an alternative context that eliminates many alternative hypotheses by aggregating representative data to the high school level from a single state (Wisconsin) in 1957, when the population was composed nearly entirely of individuals of European ancestry. Using this sample of high school aggregations, we too find a strong effect of genetic diversity on socioeconomic outcomes. Additionally, we check an existing mechanism and propose a new potential mechanism of the results for innovation: personality traits associated with creativity and divergent thinking.

NBER Working Paper No. 23520
NBER Program(s):   EFG   LS

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But these authors find worse results:
Ethnic and linguistic fractionalization contributes to poverty levels
Ethnic Diversity and Poverty. By Sefa Awawory Churchill, Russell Smyth
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.worlddev.2017.02.032
World Development, Volume 95, July 2017, Pages 285–302

Maybe it is a case of both trends at the same time...

Lying because we care: Compassion increases prosocial lying

Lying because we care: Compassion increases prosocial lying. Lupoli, Matthew J.; Jampol, Lily; Oveis, Christopher. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, Vol 146(7), Jul 2017, 1026-1042. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/xge0000315

Prosocial lies, or lies intended to benefit others, are ubiquitous behaviors that have important social and economic consequences. Though emotions play a central role in many forms of prosocial behavior, no work has investigated how emotions influence behavior when one has the opportunity to tell a prosocial lie—a situation that presents a conflict between two prosocial ethics: lying to prevent harm to another, and honesty, which might also provide benefits to the target of the lie. Here, we examine whether the emotion of compassion influences prosocial lying, and find that compassion causally increases and positively predicts prosocial lying. In Studies 1 and 2, participants evaluated a poorly written essay and provided feedback to the essay writer. Experimentally induced compassion felt toward the essay writer (Study 1) and individual differences in trait compassion (Study 2) were positively associated with inflated feedback to the essay writer. In both of these studies, the relationship between compassion and prosocial lying was partially mediated by an enhanced importance placed on preventing emotional harm. In Study 3, we found moderation such that experimentally induced compassion increased lies that resulted in financial gains for a charity, but not lies that produced financial gains for the self. This research illuminates the emotional underpinnings of the common yet morally complex behavior of prosocial lying, and builds on work highlighting the potentially harmful effects of compassion—an emotion typically seen as socially beneficial.

Romantic Love vs. Reproduction Opportunities: Disentangling the Contributions of Different Anxiety Buffers under Conditions of Existential Threat

Romantic Love vs. Reproduction Opportunities: Disentangling the Contributions of Different Anxiety Buffers under Conditions of Existential Threat. By Annedore Hoppe, Immo Fritsche & Nicolas Koranyi. European Journal of Social Psychology, http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ejsp.2322/abstract

Abstract: Romantic relationships and offspring are discussed as anxiety buffers in terror management processes. We examined the relationship between these possible buffers and tested whether romantic relationships reduce existential threat due to reproduction opportunities or if they represent a distinct anxiety buffer. Contrary to our initial expectations, thinking about a positive romantic relationship without (vs. with) own children increased partner affect (Study 1) and commitment (Study 2) and decreased punishment intentions (Study 2) after mortality salience. These effects were mediated by participants’ desire for romantic love. Furthermore, thinking about positive non-parental (vs. parental) romantic relationships lowered death-thought accessibility (Study 3). Together, these findings suggest that romantic relationships form a distinct anxiety buffer which is only effective when the cultural (romance) instead of the biological (having children) nature of the relationship is highlighted. We discuss the role of anxiety buffer salience for determining whether offspring concerns buffer or increase existential threat.

My comment: the article is much more interesting that the summary. The introduction is, although brief, very good. It speaks about TMT, terror management theory (which is summarized in a chapter of the Handbook of prejudice, stereotyping, and discrimination: 2nd edition -- anyone wishing to get the chapter can ask for it), and anxiety buffers (pantallas o buffers de/contra la ansiedad). Please read the full article if you've got the time, less than 36 double-spaced pages, about 18 single-spaced ones.

Excessive users of violent video games do not show emotional desensitization: An fMRI study

Excessive users of violent video games do not show emotional desensitization: An fMRI study. Gregor Szycik et al. Brain Imaging and Behavior, June 2017, Pages 736–743, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27086318

Abstract: Playing violent video games have been linked to long-term emotional desensitization. We hypothesized that desensitization effects in excessive users of violent video games should lead to decreased brain activations to highly salient emotional pictures in emotional sensitivity brain regions. Twenty-eight male adult subjects showing excessive long-term use of violent video games and age and education matched control participants were examined in two experiments using standardized emotional pictures of positive, negative and neutral valence. No group differences were revealed even at reduced statistical thresholds which speaks against desensitization of emotion sensitive brain regions as a result of excessive use of violent video games.

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Remember too: Overstated evidence for short-term effects of violent games on affect and behavior: A reanalysis of Anderson et al. (2010). By Hilgard, Joseph; Engelhardt, Christopher R.; Rouder, Jeffrey N. Psychological Bulletin, Vol 143(7), Jul 2017, 757-774. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/bul0000074

Nervousness while in an unfamiliar context, perceived as uppity or classy

David Brooks has a point – upper class kids have invisible cultural advantages. By Henry Farrell. The Washington Post, Jul 11, 2017. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/monkey-cage/wp/2015/09/23/why-are-working-class-kids-less-likely-to-get-elite-jobs-they-study-too-hard-at-college

A few years ago, an older working-class woman had done a special favor for me, and I wanted to show her my gratitude. I took her out to a restaurant that wasn’t fancy, exactly, but it was a definite cut above Chili’s. To me, this was my way of showing her my gratitude: to take her to a place that was out of the ordinary. At the table, I was distressed to see her obviously struggling to enjoy herself. She appeared anxious and uncomfortable, and I couldn’t figure out why.

Later, her daughter told me that as grateful as her mother was for the invitation, she was a nervous wreck at the restaurant. Her mom saw unfamiliar words on the menu, and felt stupid. And she thought everybody in the restaurant was surely looking at her, and seeing that she didn’t belong.

Coke vs. Pepsi: Brand Compatibility, Relationship Power, and Life Satisfaction

Coke vs. Pepsi: Brand Compatibility, Relationship Power, and Life Satisfaction. Danielle Brick et al.
Journal of Consumer Research, https://doi.org/10.1093/jcr/ucx079

Abstract: Individuals often evaluate, purchase, and consume brands in the presence of others, including close others. Yet relatively little is known about the role brand preferences play in relationships. In the present research, the authors explore how the novel concept of brand compatibility, defined as the extent to which individuals have similar brand preferences (e.g., both partners prefer the same brand of soda, etc.), influences life satisfaction. The authors propose that when brand compatibility is high, life satisfaction will also be high. Conversely, because low brand compatibility may be a source of conflict for the relationship, the authors propose that it will be associated with reduced life satisfaction. Importantly, the authors predict that the effects of brand compatibility on conflict and life satisfaction will depend upon relationship power. Across multiple studies and methodologies, including experimental designs (studies 2, 3, 5) and dyadic data from real-life couples (studies 1, 4, 6), the authors test and find support for their hypotheses. By exploring how a potentially unique form of compatibility influences life satisfaction, including identifying a key moderator and an underlying mechanism, the current research contributes to the literatures on branding, close relationships, consumer well-being, and relationship power.

Keywords: brand compatibility, close relationships, relationship power, consumer well-being, multilevel modeling, actor-partner interdependence model

Violence Against Women and Household Ownership of Radios, Computers, and Phones in 20 Countries

Violence Against Women and Household Ownership of Radios, Computers, and Phones in 20 Countries. Lauren Cardoso & Susan Sorenson. American Journal of Public Health, July 2017, Pages 1175-1181, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28520478

Methods: Women aged 15 to 49 years in 20 countries were surveyed via UNICEF’s Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys between 2006 and 2014. Multivariate logistic regressions accounted for individual-, household-, and structural-level variables.

Results: Household ownership of any ICT (radio, computer, fixed phone, or mobile phone but not television) was associated with increased odds of women rejecting wife beating. The largest association was with computer ownership: women in homes with a computer were more likely to reject wife beating (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 1.81; 97.5% confidence interval [CI] = 1.69, 1.93). Number of ICTs was important: women in households with 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 ICTs (vs 0) were more likely to reject wife-beating justifications (AOR = 1.10 [97.5% CI = 1.03, 1.17]; AOR = 1.10 [97.5% CI = 1.03, 1.18]; AOR = 1.19 [97.5% CI = 1.11, 1.29]; AOR = 1.71 [97.5% CI = 1.54, 1.88]; and AOR = 2.85 [97.5% CI = 2.48, 3.26]; respectively).

Conclusions: Independent of household wealth, country development, and other sociodemographic factors, the more ICTs in a household, the more likely that women will reject wife-beating justifications. Policymakers and program planners should consider potential implications of ICT access relating to intimate partner violence.

Cross-Disciplinary Survey of Beliefs about Human Nature, Culture, and Science

Joseph Carroll et al.: Cross-Disciplinary Survey of Beliefs about Human Nature, Culture, and Science. Evolutionary Studies in Imaginative Culture, Vol. 1 | No. 1 | Spring 2017. http://journals.academicstudiespress.com/index.php/ESIC/article/view/10/52

Abstract: How far has the Darwinian revolution come? To what extent have evolutionary ideas penetrated into the social sciences and humanities? Are the “science wars” over? Or do whole blocs of disciplines face off over an unbridgeable epistemic gap? To answer questions like these, contributors to top journals in 22 disciplines were surveyed on their beliefs about human nature, culture, and science. More than 600 respondents completed the survey. Scoring patterns divided into two main sets of disciplines. Genetic influences were emphasized in the evolutionary social sciences, evolutionary humanities, psychology, empirical study of the arts, philosophy, economics, and political science. Environmental influences were emphasized in most of the humanities disciplines and in anthropology, sociology, education, and women’s or gender studies. Confidence in scientific explanation correlated positively with emphasizing genetic influences on behavior, and negatively with emphasizing environmental influences. Knowing the current actual landscape of belief should help scholars avoid sterile debates and ease the way toward fruitful collaborations with neighboring disciplines.

Keywords: human nature, culture, science, science wars, cultural construction, evolutionary social science, social science, humanities, biocultural theory