International Crimes in the Courts of England and Wales

This article considers the international criminal offences which have been incorporated into the law of England and Wales, and the challenges to bringing, and defending against, proceedings for these offences

Sexual Exploitation and Abuse by UN Peacekeepers: A Threat to Impartiality

This article reconceptualizes the idea of the impartiality of UN peacekeeping in light of allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse by peacekeeping personnel. It considers the role that sexual exploitation and abuse play both during and after conflict. The paper argues that sexual exploitation and abuse are political acts that bring about financial and propagandist benefits for the warring parties. It then tracks the history of neutrality in UN peacekeeping – originally defined as objective inaction against the warring parties – and its development into impartiality – now identified as unbiased interference, but with greater reference to core universal values such as fairness and justice. Peacekeepers’ involvement in sexual exploitation and abuse is of political advantage to the parties and therefore breaches the principle of impartiality

Sex, Statistics, Peacekeepers and Power: UN Data on Sexual Exploitation and Abuse and the Quest For Legal Reform

The UN Secretariat provides annual statistics on allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse made against peacekeeping personnel, with reduced numbers of allegations leading to claims of success for the UN’s ‘zero tolerance’ policy. This article explores the use of data as ‘technologies’ of global governance, to examine the function that these annual statistics serve for the UN and the impact that they have on calls for legal reform. Thus far, the statistics have attracted little academic appraisal. Yet, they have been used to establish the UN’s authority to resolve the ‘problem’ of sexual exploitation and abuse, diminishing the space for critique of UN policy and undermining the quest for improved legal arrangements

Relationships Among Personality, Burnout, Perceived Stress in the COVID-19 Pandemic

The COVID-19 Pandemic and the measures taken for social distancing have caused a wide range of consequences for one’s social life, mobility, and working life (Getzmann, Stephan, et al. 2021). Personality can be a protective or risk factor in relation to these changes, as it influences not only the exposure to potential stressors or negative stimuli, but can also exert influence on the way each adolescent manages them (Plomecka, Martyna, et al. 2021). Studies have found that personality differences are related to distinct behavior patterns in school context (Carvalho et al., 2014). Our study aims to uncover the differences in ways one handles these life changes based on their personality. This study utilized 60 participants selected from Belmont’s introductory Psychology courses. Our participants were administered a Qualtrics survey that was used to assess their levels of burnout and perceived stress during the COVID-19 pandemic and how this relates back to their personality. We hypothesized that neuroticism will be positively associated with burnout and extraversion will be negatively associated with burnout and this will have a higher association than concern about the pandemic. We also hypothesized that higher neuroticism and agreeableness will be positively correlated to perceived stress. Recognizing patterns in personality in relation to burnout and stress during the pandemic may provide insight for how personality personally impacts one’s life and allow researchers to use this information in future studies

Depression, Loneliness, and Life Satisfaction in Emerging Adults

Abstract: Existing research indicates that loneliness can lead to negative outcomes such as depression and anxiety (United States Department of Health and Human Services, 2023). When examining the role sleep plays in this relationship, research has shown that an increase in sleep quality is related to a decrease in levels of loneliness (Hladek, 2021). In addition, we examined the relationship between depression and life satisfaction, with the variable gratitude serving as a mediator to that relationship. Previous research has indicated that higher levels of gratitude negatively effects levels of depression (Wood et al., 2008). In previous research, as levels of depression began to decrease, life satisfaction levels increased with hope and gratitude both serving as mediators (Kwok, 2016). However, within our study we are focusing our research on emerging adults and focusing solely on gratitude to evaluate a mediated relationship. Within our study, emerging adult college students (N= 46) took a Qualtrics survey that measured: demographics and levels of life satisfaction, gratitude, loneliness, and sleep quality. Results indicated that higher levels of loneliness did not significantly predict lower levels of life satisfaction, considering sleep quality as a mediator. However, there was a significant indirect effect of depression on life satisfaction via gratitude as a mediator, b = -0.237, boot SE = 0.094, 95% bootstrap CI [-0.432, -0.071]. These results indicate that lower levels of gratitude can be attributed as a reason why high depression leads to lower life satisfaction, and further suggests that improving gratitude may be necessary to combat the negative effects of depression on life satisfaction in the emerging adult population

Clinic Capacity to Provide Patient-centered Contraceptive Care to Adolescents in the U.S. South: Impact of Rurality and Clinic Type

Introduction: Federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) and health departments (HDs) are essential in providing contraceptive care and ensuring reproductive autonomy for adolescents. Through offering adolescent-specific services and by training providers in adolescent-specific care and patient-centered contraceptive counseling, clinics can ensure access to high quality contraceptive care for adolescents. Despite the significant decrease in adolescent pregnancy rates, rates remain high in the South and in rural counties, suggesting that clinics in these areas may not have the capacity to provide adolescent-specific services and patient-centered counseling. This study compares the capacity to provide adolescent-specific and patient-centered contraceptive services in rural and urban FQHCs and HDs in two southeastern states -- South Carolina (SC) and Alabama (AL). Methods: Data were collected from a statewide survey of FQHC and HD clinics in SC and AL in 2020. A total of 239 clinics were included (FQHC N=112 and HD N=127) and were identified as rural (N=101) or urban (N=138) using Rural-Urban Continuum Codes. Capacity to provide patient-centered adolescent care is defined as 1) a clinic offering adolescent-specific services; 2) providers at the clinic receiving training in patient-centered counseling; and 3) providers receiving training in adolescent-specific care. To measure capacity, these three survey items were dichotomized into Yes/No responses and then combined into a new variable to measure clinics who responded Yes to each survey item. The type of adolescent-specific services was also measured as being onsite, offsite, outreach, or none. Capacity to provide patient-centered adolescent care was compared across clinics located in rural and urban settings and by clinic type. Statistical differences were determined using the Chi-Square test of independence (α= 0.05). Results: Overall, 44.8% of participating clinics in SC and AL had the capacity to provide patient-centered adolescent contraceptive services. Approximately 51.8% of rural and 66.1% of urban HDs reported the capacity to provide adolescent-specific services. In contrast, 26.7% of rural and 35.4% of urban FQHCs reported the capacity to provide adolescent-specific services. Approximately 55.4% of rural and 71.4% of urban HDs provided any adolescent-specific services, but fewer rural HDs (30.2%) provided onsite services than urban HDs (59.3%) (p=0.003). Fewer than half of rural (42.2%) and urban (48.8%) FQHCs provided adolescent-specific services, with approximately 23.8% of rural and 27.9% of urban sites providing onsite services. Conclusions: The capacity of clinics in SC and AL to provide contraceptive counseling to adolescents, which is anchored in reproductive autonomy, is contingent upon the provision of adolescent-specific services and provider training. Most clinics, especially rural clinics, did not have the capacity to provide patient-centered contraceptive counseling to adolescents. This gap in services may contribute to the higher adolescent pregnancy rates in rural areas of SC and AL. Clinics in SC and AL, especially FQHCs, should develop policies that support adolescent-specific contraceptive services and provider training