Sex offenders in denial : a study into a group of forensic psychologists' attitudes regarding the corresponding impact upon risk assessment calculations and parole eligibility

A considerable proportion of convicted sex offenders maintain a stance of innocence and thus do not engage in recommended treatment programs. As a result, such offenders are often deemed to have outstanding criminogenic needs which may negatively impact upon risk assessment procedures and parole eligibility. This paper reports on a study that aimed to investigate a group of forensic psychologists’ attitudes regarding the impact of denial on risk assessment ratings as well as parole eligibility. Participants completed a confidential open-ended questionnaire. Analysis indicated that considerable variability exists among forensic psychologists in regards to their beliefs about the origins of denial and what impact such denial should have on post-prison release eligibility. In contrast, there was less disparity regarding beliefs about the percentage of innocent yet incarcerated sex offenders. This paper also reviews current understanding regarding the impact of denial on recidivism as well as upon general forensic assessments.

Sex appeal in advertising : what consumers think

This study examined consumers' attitude toward the use of sexual content in advertisements among there different cultural groups; i.e., individualistic sample (White American), collectivistic sample (US temporal visitors from Asia), and acculturation sample (Asian immigrants). Sixty participants were asked about cultural acceptability of sexual content ads and the favorable attitude toward those ads by using Q-methodology. Asian participants reported less cultural acceptability for sexuality, than either Asian American or North American participants. The findings also revealed that North Americans are more likely to prefer the use of sexual content in advertisement than Asians. Asian-American participants agreed with North American participants in regard to sexually explicit advertising. Implications and limitations were discussed.

Magnocellular and parvocellular pathway mediated luminance contrast discrimination in amblyopia

To evaluate whether luminance contrast discrimination losses in amblyopia on putative magnocellular (MC) and parvocellular (PC) pathway tasks reflect deficits at retinogeniculate or cortical sites. Fifteen amblyopes including six anisometropes, seven strabismics, two mixed and 12 age-matched controls were investigated. Contrast discrimination was measured using established psychophysical procedures that differentiate MC and PC processing. Data were described with a model of the contrast response of primate retinal ganglion cells. All amblyopes and controls displayed the same contrast signatures on the MC and PC tasks, with three strabismics having reduced sensitivity. Amblyopic PC contrast gain was similar to electrophysiological estimates from visually normal, non-human primates. Sensitivity losses evident in a subset of the amblyopes reflect cortical summation deficits, with no change in retinogeniculate contrast responses. The data do not support the proposal that amblyopic contrast sensitivity losses on MC and PC tasks reflect retinogeniculate deficits, but rather are due to anomalous post-retinogeniculate cortical processing of retinal signals.

Predicting the job satisfaction of female sex workers in Queensland, Australia

This study used a cross-sectional survey to examine job satisfaction and its correlates among 247 female sex workers working as private service providers, in licensed brothels and in illegal sectors of the industry (mainly street-based workers). Overall, most sex workers reported positive job satisfaction. Satisfaction was higher in women working legally and was generally comparable with women from the general population. Multivariate analyses revealed that job satisfaction was significantly linked to women’s reasons for initially entering the industry. Sex workers’ age, education, marital status, length of time in the industry and current working conditions were apparently less important for satisfaction.

Knowledge is not power, but it’s a start : what young people know about their rights and obligations in employment

Scholarship addressing the employment concerns of school age workers has identified a number of areas of vulnerability. Prominent among these is that young workers have insufficient knowledge of their rights in employment, yet the extent of this knowledge has not previously been quantified. This study explores areas of strength and deficit in awareness of employment rights and obligations in a sample of 892 young people in Australian high schools. The findings demonstrate that, despite part-time work being a majority experience for school students, young Australians know relatively little of their employment rights. The conclusions underscore the need for education strategies that inform young people prior to and in the very early stages of their working lives.

No sex difference in body fat in response to supervised and measured exercise

It is often reported that females lose less body weight than males do in response to exercise. These differences are suggested to be a result of females exhibiting a stronger defense of body fat and a greater compensatory appetite response to exercise than males do. Purpose This study aimed to compare the effect of a 12-wk supervised exercise program on body weight, body composition, appetite, and energy intake in males and females. Methods A total of 107 overweight and obese adults (males = 35, premenopausal females = 72, BMI = 31.4 ± 4.2 kg·m−2, age = 40.9 ± 9.2 yr) completed a supervised 12-wk exercise program expending approximately 10.5 MJ·wk−1 at 70% HRmax. Body composition, energy intake, appetite ratings, RMR, and cardiovascular fitness were measured at weeks 0 and 12. Results The 12-wk exercise program led to significant reductions in body mass (males [M] = −3.03 ± 3.4 kg and females [F] = −2.28 ± 3.1 kg), fat mass (M = −3.14 ± 3.7 kg and F = −3.01 ± 3.0 kg), and percent body fat (M = −2.45% ± 3.3% and F = −2.45% ± 2.2%; all P < 0.0001), but there were no sex-based differences (P > 0.05). There were no significant changes in daily energy intake in males or females after the exercise intervention compared with baseline (M = 199.2 ± 2418.1 kJ and F = −131.6 ± 1912.0 kJ, P > 0.05). Fasting hunger levels significantly increased after the intervention compared with baseline values (M = 11.0 ± 21.1 min and F = 14.0 ± 22.9 mm, P < 0.0001), but there were no differences between males and females (P > 0.05). The exercise also improved satiety responses to an individualized fixed-energy breakfast (P < 0.0001). This was comparable in males and females. Conclusions Males and premenopausal females did not differ in their response to a 12-wk exercise intervention and achieved similar reductions in body fat. When exercise interventions are supervised and energy expenditure is controlled, there are no sex-based differences in the measured compensatory response to exercise.

Child sex scandal in two countries rocks Anglican church

A CHILD sex scandal involving victims in Australia and Britain has hit the top echelon of the Anglican Church, with allegations that some of its most senior clergymen failed to respond properly to complaints of horrific abuse. The former archbishop of York, now Lord (David) Hope of Thornes, yesterday expressed regret over failing to report to police allegations in 1999 and 2003 about a former Queensland Anglican school principal, who rose to become the head of education for the church in Britain. The late reverend Robert Waddington has been accused of beating and sexually abusing students during the 1960s at St Barnabas boarding school in Ravenshoe, north Queensland, and later, when he was in charge of the choir as dean of Manchester. A joint investigation by The Australian and The Times newspaper in London has revealed that church officials, including Lord Hope, failed to report the 1999 allegations of abuse made by a former Queensland student and similar claims made in 2003 by the family of a choirboy in Manchester. The alleged victims were never told of the existence of the other allegations.

Sex differences in the perceived value of outreach and museums/science centres in students' decisions to enrol in university science, technology and engineering courses

This paper reports a number of findings from the Interests and Recruitment in Science (IRIS) study carried out in Australia in 2011. The findings concern the perceptions of first year university students in science, technology and engineering courses about the influence of museums/science centres and outreach activities on their choice of course. The study found that STE students in general tended to rate museums/science centres as more important in their decisions than outreach activities. However, a closer examination showed that females in engineering courses were significantly more inclined to rate outreach activities as important than were males in engineering courses or females in other courses. The implications of this finding for strategies to encourage more young women into engineering are discussed.

Sex outside the city : sex work in rural and regional New South Wales

During the last decade 'prostitution' has been characterised as a 'social problem' throughout rural and regional New South Wales. As we show here, the urban-centric nature of popular and official discourses of prostitution have inadvertently allowed for the development of regulatory positions which have negatively impacted sex workers in rural and regional communities and lead to conflict among sectors of the rural sex industry and between the sex industry and community activists. In addition to examining the problematisation of sex work in rural New South Wales, this paper sets out to understand why rural sex work has historically lacked visibility in popular and scholarly discourses. We provide an overview of the distinctive organisational aspects of the sex industry in rural contexts. Evidence for our assertions is largely derived from primary interview data collected from sex industry workers based in rural New South Wales. The paper represents the first attempt in the research literature on prostitution to understand sex work as a rural phenomenon.

Social media(tion) and the reshaping of public/private boundaries in employment relations

Tensions surrounding social media in the employment relationship are increasingly evident in the media, public rhetoric, and courts and employment tribunals. Yet the underlying causes and dimensions of these tensions have remained largely unexplored. This article firstly reviews the available literature addressing social media and employment, outlining three primary sources of contestation: profiling, disparaging posts and blogs, and private use of social media during work time. In each area, the key dynamics and underlying concerns of the central actors involved are identified. The article then seeks to canvas explanations for these forms of contestation associated with social media at work. It is argued that the architecture of social media disrupts traditional relations in organisational life by driving employer and employee actions that (re)shape and (re)constitute the boundaries between public and private spheres. Although employers and employees are using the same social technologies, their respective concerns about and points of entry to these technologies, in contrast to traditional manifestations of conflict and resistance, are asymmetric. The article concludes with a representational summary of the relative legitimacy of concerns for organisational actors and outlines areas for future research.