Quality of life of widows involved in Southern Thailand's violence

Becoming a victim of violence is a major transition for widows whereby they would be burdened with the responsibility of becoming the head of the family previously held by their spouses.Thus, the general aim of this study is to investigate the quality of life among widows involved in Southern Thailand’s violence.The research measures the quality of life among the widows according to four components (i.e., physical health, psychological health, social relationship, and environmental health).A total of 337 widows from Pattani were involved as the respondents in this research.This study found that the overall of quality of life among the widows is normal.The results also indicate that the violence situation in Pattani affected the quality of life among widows and especially the feeling safety among the widows.This research suggests that the government should provide specialist welfare to the widows to improve their quality of life and also to empower their family in oder to aid them in the long run

Adolescents’ perceptions regarding effective tobacco use prevention strategies for their younger counterparts: A qualitative study in Malaysia

Purpose: The present qualitative study explored adolescents’ perceptions regarding effective strategies to prevent adolescents from using tobacco products (TP). Apart from the commercial TPs, there has been emerging use of alternatives such as vapes, e-cigarettes and shisha. This unfortunate phenomenon continues despite the currently available preventive strategies. Thus, understanding of the perceptions of the current generation would be valuable to provide new insights.Methods: Purposive sampling was utilized to recruit 40 adolescents between the age of 15 and 16 years old attending public daily secondary schools. Eight focus group discussions were conducted among the TP users, ex-users and non-users. Data were analyzed using a thematic content analysis procedure with NVivo.Results: Among barriers with the currently available strategies were having teachers who smoke tobacco, addiction to nicotine and self-perceptions of being healthy. The content of any program should include knowledge on negative outcomes of using tobacco products and awareness of the legislation together with ways to overcome peer and family influence including improving self-efficacy and refusal skills. Strategies were suggested to be delivered using information technology which provides interactive learning and visual effects. Conclusions: Adolescents agreed that the content and delivery of tobacco use prevention strategies need to be revised to suit the current generation to ensure sustainability

Premarital pregnancy experiences: Profile of young mothers in women shelters

Premarital pregnancy is a highly stigmatized phenomenon and may possibly be traumatic as well. However, there are adolescents and young adults who continue to commit premarital sex.The high likelihood of unwanted pregnancy will remain a serious concern in the Malaysian society which could lead to further psychosocial problems such as baby dumping, mental health problems, and health concerns among others.Despite experiencing the trauma and stigma of being pregnant and unmarried, there are teenagers and young women who decide to carry on with the pregnancy.This research seeks to examine the experiences of unmarried teenagers and young women who choose to continue their pregnancy while seeking protection in women’s shelters.The highlight of this paper is the profile of young mothers who sought protection in five women shelters throughout the country. The findings suggest disturbing information regarding sexual experience of young girls such as the early age of first sexual encounter, abortion attempt, the usage (non-usage) of contraception and the influence of the social circle environment

Understanding premarital pregnancy experiences of young mothers in women shelters: Developing a model for intervention

Being pregnant and unmarried is a highly stigmatized phenomenon in Malaysian society. However, stigma alone has not been successful in preventing adolescents and young adults from committing premarital sexual relations.Unwanted pregnancy could lead to problematic decision making behavior such as baby abandonment, or health and mental health issues such as depression and trauma.Specifically, studies have found that pregnancy involving adolescents is linked to health hazards, substance abuse, impediment to education, and costs to the government. Nevertheless, there are young women who choose to continue their pregnancy despite experiencing trauma and stigma of being pregnant out-of-wedlock.Therefore, this research seeks to examine the experiences of unmarried teenagers and young women who choose to continue their pregnancy while staying in women shelters.The research utilizes a mixed methods approach, incorporating quantitative and qualitative methods.A total of 101 participants were recruited from five women shelters across the country who responded to self-administered questionnaires. Eighteen participants were selected as participants in the qualitative study by means of semi-structured interviews. The findings indicate that a majority engaged in their first sexual intercourse during secondary school age.Majority also had social circles (i.e., family and friends) who engaged in premarital sex and pregnancy.The main reason for seeking shelter was to avoid shame and embarrassment for being pregnant out of wedlock.In the interviews, none of the participants reported having discussion with their parents about sexual issues or pregnancy.Sources of information regarding sexuality involve friends and school. The participants also reported moderate levels of emotional intelligence (EQ), spiritual intelligence (SQ), peer pressure and popularity (i.e., wanting to be popular). EQ was found to be negatively correlated with peer pressure. Age at first sex was negatively correlated with peer pressure, popularity, and SQ. Recommendations for intervention involved six aspects; namely family support, spiritual needs, psychosocial needs, health care needs, educational/career plan, and plan for the baby.Specific care in the assessment should also be given to pregnancy cause (i.e., consensual vs. rape/incest)

Kajian pengetahuan seksualiti dalam kalangan pelajar

Kajian ini memfokuskan kepada pengetahuan seksualiti dalam kalangan pelajar.Objektif kajian ini adalah untuk mengkaji tahap pengetahuan dan sikap pelajar tentang aspek seksualiti, mengenalpasti keterkaitan tahap pengetahuan seksualiti dengan aspek demografi yang terpilih dan mengenalpasti keperluan pendidikan mengenai seksualiti. Kajian ini bersifat kuantitatif di mana pengumpulan data dilakukan dengan menggunakan kaedah tinjauan (survey) melibatkan pelajar di dua seting institusi pendidikan iaitu sekolah dan universiti.Responden kajian terdiri daripada para pelajar yang mengambil kursus-kursus Program Pengurusan Kerja Sosial di Universiti Utara Malaysia (238 orang, 33.7%), dan para pelajar Tingkatan Satu (132 orang, 18.7%),Tingkatan Dua (133 orang, 18.8%), Tingkatan Empat (149 orang, 21.1%) dan Tingkatan Enam Atas (54 orang, 7.6%) di Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Changlun, Kedah.Hasil kajian ini menunjukkan secara umumnya, responden kajian ini menunjukkan tahap pengetahuan yang sederhana tentang hal-hal seksualiti.Analisis korelasi menunjukkan bahawa semakin meningkat usia responden maka semakin baik tahap pengetahuan seksualiti mereka.Begitu juga analisis ujian yang mendapati bahawa terdapat perbezaan yang signifikan tentang pengetahuan berkaitan seksualiti berdasarkan jantina, di mana skor pengetahuan pelajar perempuan adalah lebih tinggi berbanding pengetahuan pelajar lelaki.Dari segi pengalaman berkaitan seksual, didapati bahawa pengalaman paling kerap dilaporkan oleh responden adalah keluar temujanji (dating), menonton filem/video lucah dan mempunyai kawan yang pernah melakukan hubungan seks.Selain itu, responden kajian ini juga mempunyai sikap yang konservatif terhadap isu-isu seksualiti.Berdasarkan kajian ini, sumber pengetahuan seksual yang paling utama dirujuk oleh responden ialah kawan-kawan, diikuti oleh pembacaan buku dan majalah, serta maklumat dari internet berbanding ibu bapa atau sumber-sumber yang lebih formal.Pelajar lelaki didapati lebih cenderung merujuk sumber-sumber yang tidak diketahui kesahihan atau ketepatan maklumat berkaitan seksualiti.Kawan-kawan, internet, CD/VCD serta pengalaman sendiri sering dijadikan sumber rujukan dalam kalangan pelajar lelaki.Berbeza dengan pelajar perempuan yang kebanyakannya merujuk bahanbahan bacaan, guru dan kelas agama.Cadangan untuk menangani masalah yang timbul akibat maklumat seksual yang tidak tepat yang diperolehi pelajar turut melibatkan pihakpihak berkepentingan seperti LPPKN, Jabatan Kesihatan, Kementerian Pelajaran Malaysia dan Kementerian Pengajian Tinggi Malaysia untuk menambahbaik polisi keluarga dan pelaksanaan program-program pendidikan mengenai seksualiti serta program-program pencegahan masalah sosial dalam kalangan pelajar dan anak remaja

Interview Practice of Malaysian Police Officers with Children in Sexual Abuse Cases

Child sexual abuse is a worldwide concern and disclosure continue to be a challenging process for a child to perform since the majority of perpetrators are found to be people known to the victims. In addition to the distressing sexual abuse experience, the developmental abilities and limitations of children also contribute to the challenges of obtaining disclosure from children who are sexually abused. Literature on investigative interviews with children advocates the use of structured protocols and procedures since there are legal implications involved in obtaining disclosure in such cases. This research is driven by the interest to investigate the issues surrounding the practice of investigative interviews in child sexual abuse cases in an Asian setting since the body of literature on investigative or forensic interviews has predominantly documented practice that exist in the western context and developed countries. Utilizing a mixed methods approach involving 2 studies, the research was conducted at the Child Protection Unit (CPU) of the Royal Malaysia Police in Malaysia. In Study 1, 58 video recorded interviews with children in sexual abuse cases were selected for quantitative observations and analysis. In Study 2, semi-structured interviews were utilized with 13 police officers who received investigative interview training and were in charge of interviewing children at the CPU to explore their perceptions concerning their interviewing experience at the unit. Data triangulation was utilized in the analysis to explain interviewing practice. The findings from the video observations indicated that interviewers spent the longest time in the Questioning Stage and that the interview process may not necessarily flow in a linear manner as interviewers were observed returning to rapport building in almost half of the videos observed, especially when the children appeared to be having some problems disclosing. The importance of rapport was supported by participants in Study 2 and was acknowledged as necessary to be revisited during the course of the interview when the need arose. Several problematic interviewer behaviours were also observed in the videos; e.g. the use of leading questions by interviewers typically with younger children and the underutilization of open-ended questions. Study 2 participants explained that the pressure to obtain evidence for court had necessitated the use of leading questions especially when comparing child disclosure in the videos with prior information included in case summaries. Participants also thought that open-ended questions were time consuming and difficult to utilize with young children. The video observations and participants’ account indicated interviewing preschool children as the most challenging. In addition, findings and issues that were Malaysian specific were also highlighted, such as the issue of language and ethnic diversity. The findings of the research also suggested several recommendations for policy and practice changes regarding the operations of the CPU and interviewer training. In conclusion, this research found that Malaysian police interviewers in general were able to adhere to the investigative interviewing procedures although some problematic interviewing behaviours were observed. The research also highlighted that investigative interviewers need to be highly trained so that the legal validity of the recorded evidence is ensured

Developing children's creativity and participation through a community development project

This is a study of children's participation development which focused on Yellow House, a children's organisation in Klang Valley, Malaysia, established with a mission to develop children's creativity and participation. This organisation was established in conjunction with Article 31 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) that stresses the right of the child to leisure, play and participation in cultural and artistic activities. The study investigated and analysed the activities and programmes organised by Yellow House, focusing on how children were given the opportunity to participate in the activities and programmes. This paper highlighted a proportion of the study that focused on activities carried out for children from residential cares and poor community areas in Klang Valley under the HE(althy)ARTS Programme from the year 2004 to 2005

Working with unmarried pregnant young women and teenagers in Malaysia: Implications for researchers

Premarital pregnancy continues to be a social dilemma within the Malaysian society.The increasing statistics of babies being born without a legally registered father’s name presents the legal, health and welfare problems associated with the effects of premarital pregnancy.The need to study this social problem requires not only a receptive understanding of the problem, but also the researcher’s preparation in terms of skills and mental preparedness.The authors conducted a research aimed at understanding premarital pregnancy experiences of those who decided to seek protection in women shelters.A total of 101 young women and teenagers from five women shelters in Malaysia participated in the research. Ethical consideration is highly essential when conducting research with this group of individuals since the focus of such research may at times touch upon sensitive issues or potentially brings up traumatic experience.The focus of this paper is a discussion of the authors’ experience regarding the ethical dilemma and preparation when conducting the research.This paper intends to highlight important issues that may be of guideline to other researchers who wish to conduct similar research with this group of participants

Kecerdasan spiritual dalam kalangan remaja hamil luar nikah

Kebanyakan penduduk di Malaysia berpegang kepada sesuatu agama dan mengamalkannya dalam kehidupan seharian.Agama dan spiritual memainkan peranan utama dalam kehidupan dan memandu tingkahlaku mereka agar mencapai kehidupan yang lebih bermakna.Justeru, perhubungan seks luar nikah dilihat sebagai suatu perbuatan yang melanggar ajaran agama dan dipandang negatif. Walau bagaimanapun, pegangan tersebut tidak berjaya menghindarkan remaja daripada terlibat dalam gejala ini.Oleh itu, kajian ini dilakukan bagi mengkaji tahap kecerdasan spiritual dalam kalangan remaja hamil tanpa nikah dan perkaitannya dengan faktor-faktor demografi. Kajian bersifat kuantitatif ini telah menggunakan kaedah tinjauan (survey) melibatkan 101 responden yang ditempatkan di lima buah rumah perlindungan di Malaysia.Hasil kajian dapatan kajian dan implikasi terhadap profesion perbantuan akan dibincangkan dengan terperinci

Isu-isu penempatan kanak-kanak: Pandangan Pegawai Kebajikan Masyarakat di Kedah

The purpose of this study is to explore the opinions of Kedah's Pegawai Kebajikan Masyarakat (Social Welfare Officers) regarding three issues concerning placement of children (i.e. adoption and foster care) namely inter-ethnic placement, age consideration and relationship with biological parents. Eleven respondents participated in this study. Data was collected using questionnaire distribution and selective face-to-face or telephone interviews. In general, the responses corresponded with global social work values regarding child welfare. However, the issues of child's best interest and religion were raised when discussing inter-ethnic placement, thus, resulting in disparity in their responses regarding this issue. Majority of the respondents also consented on the difficulty of placing children as they get older. In addition, majority of the respondents agreed that the relationship between adoptive/foster children with their biological parents after placement should be encouraged. However, apprehension about the effects of this relationship to the adoptive/foster family and the child was also highlighted