Defining Acquaintance Rape: College Students\u27 Perceptions of Sexual Consent and Coercion

Perceptions of rape have evolved dramatically over the past decade. Prior to the second wave of the feminist movement, rape was perceived to be committed by a psychotic man against a woman. The feminist movement brought the term acquaintance rape into the popular lexicon and into the forefront of women\u27s consciousness. As a result, throughout the 1970s and 1980s state governments enacted laws to prohibit sexual assault, or expanded existing rape laws to include a variety of relationships or sexual acts. However, public perceptions of rape did not evolve as rapidly. Despite legislative efforts, there is no universally understood definition of rape. As a result there is great confusion over what constitutes rape. The purpose of this study is to examine how college students perceive acquaintance rape. Focusing on common elements of anti-rape movement legislation, the researcher developed a survey to assess perceptions of acquaintance rape through scenarios involving verbal non-consent and verbal coercion, in a variety of sexual acts. Survey scenarios depicted same-sex offenders and victims, female offenders/male victims, and male offenders/female victims engaging in various types of sexual acts under the influence of alcohol. Survey participants were to determine if the scenario was acquaintance rape or consensual sexual contact. The researcher hypothesized that variation in gender of offender and victim affect whether an individual labels an event acquaintance rape or consensual sex . Moreover, participants were asked to assign blame (offender, victim, or alcohol). Analyses revealed that individuals do have differing perceptions of acquaintance rape. Study participants, both male and female, were more likely to label the male offender/female victim scenario as acquaintance rape and label all other scenarios as consensual sex. Male and female participants differed in their designation of the acquaintance rape label, with female participants significantly more likely to label the male offender/male victim and female offender/male victim scenarios as acquaintance rape. The designation of acquaintance rape did not necessarily correspond to the presence of coercion and lack of consent. Moreover, the designation of acquaintance rape did not necessarily respond to offender responsibility and the lack of responsibility on behalf of the victim

Making a Difference: Creating New Gateways to Mental Health and Wellness

Participants were invited to voluntarily participate in one of three focus groups which were held in the Near East Side community. The focus groups were facilitated by a person who has cultural awareness and competence in the African American community and a psychiatric/mental health clinical nurse specialist. Participants completed an informed consent form and a demographic questionnaire. During the group, the co-facilitators asked a series of questions. The responses were audiotape recorded. However, the participants' names were not connected to their voices or to their demographic questionnaire. In addition, all participants were told that what was said in the focus group was private and were encouraged not to talk about what is said in the group outside of the group. Each focus group lasted one hour. Light refreshments were available. Participants who needed help with transportation were provided a COTA bus ticket. At the end of the group, each participant received a $30 gift card for participating in the group. The co-facilitators provided written information to participants about stress and community resources for participants who desired more information. Participants who attended the focus group may have experienced some feelings when they spoke about stress or traumatic life events or when they heard others speak. These feelings may have included sadness, anger or other emotions. No one was forced to speak; participants may have elected to not answer a question or to be silent during the group if they wished. The co-facilitators were available to participants at the end of the focus group to provide information or referrals if the participant desired more information or services to cope with stress.AUTHOR AFFILIATION: Elizabeth Fitzgerald, Associate Professor of Clinical Nursing, College of Nursing, [email protected] (Corresponding Author); Morgan Ciehanski, BSN Honors Student, The Ohio State University; Caroline Buck, BSN Honors Student, The Ohio State University; Barbara Warren, Professor of Clinical Nursing, The Ohio State University.This poster will display the results of a qualitative research study on stress to help identify the resources, services and sources of support that members of the Near East Side community prefer and desire. In all, 28 African-American adults participated in focus groups. Audiotaped recordings of the focus groups were transcribed, and themes emerged from the data. The themes of toxic stress and communal discipline will be discussed. The importance of collaboration between academic institutions and community partners through a steadfast presence in the community will be highlighted

Using information for problem solving

For more about the East-West Center, see http://www.eastwestcenter.org/</a

Rod-cone interaction in monocular but not binocular pathways

Photopic background stimulation elevates scotopic increment thresholds (rod-cone interaction) at moderate background levels when both test and concentric disk-background stimuli enter the same eye (monocular condition) but not when they enter different eyes (dichoptic condition). Only when background levels are made extremely high is there any measurable dichoptic interaction, and this interaction does not resemble that observed monocularly. Rod-cone interaction, as usually studied, is a property of monocular pathways in human vision.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/26966/1/0000533.pd

Connecting with the image: how art psychotherapy can help to re-establish a sense of epistemic trust.

The International Centre for Arts Psychotherapies Training (ICAPT) was established by CNWL NHS Foundation Trust in London in November 2011. The centre was set up to further research and advance clinical practice within NHS mental health settings. At the la unch of the research arm of ICAPT in July 2012, Professor Peter Fonagy spoke on the subject of the future of research in arts psychotherapies. This paper is a response to Professor Peter Fonagy’s presentation (The ICAPT 2012) on the potential arts psychoth erapies have to enhance the development of the therapeutic relationship. During the presentation Fonagy suggested to a group of arts psychotherapists that: ”˜the future of research is trying to understand what you guys do that actually helps re - establish in our patient a sense of epistemic trust, a sense that human knowledge and human communication, as communicated by fellow human beings can be trusted, can be relied on ... ’ A recording of this presentation is followed by a discussion section in which two art p sychotherapists explore and expand upon the ideas presented by Fonagy. They explore his question about what the processes of making and reflecting on images in a therapeutic context can add to the development of ”˜epistemic trust’ within the therapeutic rel ationship. It is suggested that creative arts have the potential to enhance the development of epistemic trust within the therapeutic relationship by offering opportunities for contingency and joint engagement. Individual, group and dyadic art psychotherap y allow for the creation of an external object which is congruent with the maker's internal world. The art making process and the art object itself can create an additional channel of communication which helps the art psychotherapist to understand the client’s inner world. This greater understanding can support the psychotherapist’s capacity to respond in an attuned way to the client. The authors explore the idea that joint engagement in art making can lead to opportunities for enhanced mentalizing and that with sufficient research and theoretical underpinning, this type of model could help to define clinical practice for arts psychotherapies in mental health.Key Words: Fonagy; mentalization; contingent communication; mechanisms of change; joint engagement

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The Differential Effects of Mindfulness and Distraction on Affect and Body Satisfaction Following Food Consumption

This study investigated whether engaging in mindfulness following food consumption produced changes in affect and body satisfaction, as compared to a control distraction task. The moderating effects of eating pathology and neuroticism were also examined. A total of 110 female university students consumed food and water before engaging in either a mindfulness induction or a control distraction task. Participants completed trait measures of eating pathology and neuroticism at baseline, and measures of state affect and body satisfaction before and after food consumption, and after the induction. Results revealed that consuming food and water reduced positive affect. Unexpectedly, both the mindfulness group and distraction control group experienced similar improvements in negative affect and body satisfaction following the induction. Eating pathology and neuroticism did not moderate the observed changes. These findings suggest that both mindfulness and distraction may contribute to the effectiveness of treatments for disordered eating that incorporate both of these techniques, such as Dialectical Behavior Therapy

Developing principles of best practice for art therapists working with children and families

In 2010 the British Association of Art therapists asked art therapists working with specific client groups to produce clear guidelines about current views on best practice in the field. Using the Nominal Group Technique and a modified Delphi process, the special interest group Art Therapists working with Children Adolescents and Families (ATCAF) produced 18 Principles of Best Practice with a range of associated indicators. This paper presents the methods and the results of that process followed by a brief discussio