Bail and remand for young people in Australia: a national research project

Abstract Funded and endorsed by the Australasian Juvenile Justice Administrators, this is one of the first national scale research reports into the bail and remand practices for young Australians. A young person can be placed in custody on remand (ie refused bail) after being arrested by police in relation to a suspected criminal offence, before entering a plea, while awaiting trial, during trial or awaiting sentence. Although custodial remand plays an important role in Western criminal justice systems, minimising the unnecessary use of remand is important given the obligations Australia has under several UN instruments to use, as a last resort, youth detention of any kind. This research identifies trends in the use of custodial remand and explores the factors that influence its use for young people nationally and in each of Australia’s jurisdictions

Elusive Geometry

All I have is a collection of parts. Fragments and pieces, segmented and turned over in my mind and in my hands as I try to understand them, stack them together and try to find a system. It seemed so simple at first - I just want to know how it works, of course I can put it back together again. Sometimes it’s a constant dissection, and the tide of incoming information is impossible to keep track of. But it’s alright to sit down and think about where they go and what they’re made of. What structures do I know? What systems can I follow? Don’t worry, if the pieces are small enough, the surface will look almost smooth

Racial/ethnic differences in binge-eating prevalence, clinical and cognitive symptoms, and treatment retention/outcome in a community hospital weight-management sample

Research suggests binge eating (BE) is equally prevalent across racial/ethnic groups. However, the majority of data concerning the assessment and treatment of BE come from clinical trials or specialty clinics where racial/ethnic minorities are underrepresented. Data regarding symptoms and treatment are needed from urban clinical settings where minorities are more likely to seek treatment. The current study assessed racial/ethnic group differences in BE prevalence, clinical and cognitive symptoms, and treatment retention in an ethnically-diverse weight loss treatment-seeking sample. Participants included 127 Hispanic, 204 African-American and 99 Caucasian adults who completed self-report measures of BE frequency, distress, eating-related cognitive symptoms including shape and weight concerns and dietary restraint, depression, stress, and treatment barriers. Data concerning number of treatment sessions attended and body mass index (BMI) were collected at 6-month follow up. The first study developed and validated the Dimensional Assessment of Loss of Control Eating (DALC) scale. The 2-factor DALC demonstrated good internal consistency and convergent, construct and incremental validity. The DALC contributed to variance in eating pathology and depression beyond existing BE measures. The second study examined racial/ethnic differences in BE prevalence, eating-related cognitive symptoms, and BMI. As hypothesized, no racial/ethnic differences in BE frequency were found and the rate of recurrent BE was 20% to 30%; participants with recurrent BE had higher BMIs, levels of depression, and global eating pathology than individuals without; African-American participants with BE had higher BMIs than other racial/ethnic groups, controlling for demographic variables. The hypotheses that Hispanic participants have higher weight and shape concerns, and that African-Americans have higher levels of restraint, were not supported. The third study examined the hypothesis that ethnicity is associated with obesity treatment retention and outcome. African-American participants had lower retention rates than Hispanics and Caucasians combined, and had lower levels of obesity-based stigma, which accounted for their lower retention rates. African-Americans lost less weight than Caucasians but this difference disappeared after accounting for age and income. The findings suggest high BE rates among racial/ethnic minorities at a common entry point for health services utilization. Stigma and African-American ethnicity should be considered when developing retention interventions

Cultural Capital in the Classroom: The Significance of Debriefing as a Pedagogical Tool in Simulation-based Learning

Although social inequality is critical to the study of sociology, it is particularly challenging to teach about race, class and gender inequality to students who belong to privileged social groups. Simulation games are often used successfully to address this pedagogical challenge. While debriefing is a critical component of simulation exercises that focus on teaching about social inequality, empirical assessments of the significance and effectiveness of this tool is virtually nonexistent in sociology and other social sciences. This paper analyzes the significance of debriefing in a simulation game called “Cultural Capital in the Classroom” in order to address this lacunae in the pedagogy literature. The analyses reveal that the simulation contributed to students developing a greater degree of empathy for the working class and that the individual debriefing was a crucial step in developing students’ critical thinking skills. Students gain even deeper insights during the collective debriefing session, which influenced them to question the validity of the ideology of meritocracy

This progressive production: Agency, durability and keeping it contemporary

This is an Author's Accepted Manuscript of an article published in Performance Research: A Journal of the Performing Arts, 17(5), 71-77, 2012 [copyright Taylor & Francis], available online at: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/13528165.2012.728447.Tino Sehgal is a Berlin based Anglo-German conceptual artist who creates ‘constructed situations’; a process whereby he hands over the delivery of the work to selected ‘interpreters’ or in the case of the Tate Modern (London) 2012 commission, to ‘participants’, who he rehearses and supports to carry out the instructions which embody his vision. Each time a Sehgal work is presented, it is animated by those he has asked and paid to participate, for an audience who are often called upon to engage with a question or conversation. In taking this approach, Sehgal explicitly rejects the idea of the artist as a making of objects. However, unlike the sorts of transitory and ephemeral works of art created in the 1970s which were a deliberate challenge to the commodification of art and by extension the artist, Sehgal constructs situations for other reasons which will be explored in this article. This article will also start to consider how dependence on interpreters or participants extends, transforms or circumscribes authorial control. It will begin to consider the extent to which the construction of live artworks that potentially exceed the life time and certainly the physical presence of the maker represent long-term duration. Does such an approach extend the field of influence and the potential for lasting impact? What impact does duration have on the re-enactor/interpreters capacity to comply with the artist's instructions and what investment do they have in embodying another's artistic vision, particularly if they are required to do so for an extended period of time

Behaviours that Challenge in SATB2-associated Syndrome: Correlates of Self-injury, Aggression and Property Destruction

SATB2-associated syndrome (SAS) is a genetic syndrome characterised by intellectual disability, severe speech delay, and palatal and dental problems. Behaviours that challenge (BtC) are reported frequently; however, there is limited research on specific forms of BtC and the correlates of these behaviours. The current study explores correlates of well-defined BtC, self-injury, aggression, and property destruction, in SAS. Eighty-one parents/caregivers of individuals with SAS (53.1% male, Mage 10.12 years) completed questionnaire measures of health, behavioural, emotional, and autism characteristics. Individuals with SAS were grouped based on caregiver responses to the presence or absence of self-injury, aggression, and property destruction on the Challenging Behaviour Questionnaire. Rates of self-injury, aggression and property destruction were 42%, 77% and 49%, respectively. Between-group comparisons were conducted to compare characteristics between behaviour groups. Significantly differing characteristics were entered into separate hierarchical logistic regressions for each form of BtC. Behavioural comparisons indicated variation in the characteristics associated with each behaviour. All hierarchical logistic regression models were significant (p <  .001): self-injury (χ2(5) = 38.46, R2 = 0.571), aggression (χ2(4) = 25.12, R2 = 0.414), property destruction (χ2(4) = 23.70, R2 = 0.346), explaining between 34.6% and 57.1% of the variance in behaviour presence. This is the first study to identify correlates of self-injury, aggression, and property destruction in SAS. Variability in the characteristics associated with each behaviour highlights the importance of specificity when examining BtC. Understanding correlates of specific forms of BtC has important implications for informing SAS-associated pathways to behavioural outcomes and the implementation of tailored behavioural interventions

Obesity and Multiple Sclerosis: A Mendelian Randomization Study.

BACKGROUND: Observational studies have reported an association between obesity, as measured by elevated body mass index (BMI), in early adulthood and risk of multiple sclerosis (MS). However, bias potentially introduced by confounding and reverse causation may have influenced these findings. Therefore, we elected to perform Mendelian randomization (MR) analyses to evaluate whether genetically increased BMI is associated with an increased risk of MS. METHODS AND FINDINGS: Employing a two-sample MR approach, we used summary statistics from the Genetic Investigation of Anthropometric Traits (GIANT) consortium and the International MS Genetics Consortium (IMSGC), the largest genome-wide association studies for BMI and MS, respectively (GIANT: n = 322,105; IMSGC: n = 14,498 cases and 24,091 controls). Seventy single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were genome-wide significant (p < 5 x 10-8) for BMI in GIANT (n = 322,105) and were investigated for their association with MS risk in the IMSGC. The effect of each SNP on MS was weighted by its effect on BMI, and estimates were pooled to provide a summary measure for the effect of increased BMI upon risk of MS. Our results suggest that increased BMI influences MS susceptibility, where a 1 standard deviation increase in genetically determined BMI (kg/m2) increased odds of MS by 41% (odds ratio [OR]: 1.41, 95% CI 1.20-1.66, p = 2.7 x 10-5, I2 = 0%, 95% CI 0-29). Sensitivity analyses, including MR-Egger regression, and the weighted median approach provided no evidence of pleiotropic effects. The main study limitations are that, while these sensitivity analyses reduce the possibility that pleiotropy influenced our results, residual pleiotropy is difficult to exclude entirely. CONCLUSION: Genetically elevated BMI is associated with risk of MS, providing evidence for a causal role for obesity in MS etiology. While obesity has been associated with many late-life outcomes, these findings suggest an important consequence of childhood and/or early adulthood obesity.National Institute for Health Research Cambridge Biomedical Research CentreThis is the final version of the article. It first appeared from Public Library of Science via http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1002053

Measurement tools for behaviours that challenge and behavioural function in people with intellectual disability:A systematic review and meta-analysis of internal consistency, inter-rater reliability, and test-retest reliability

Behaviours that challenge (BtC) are common in people with intellectual disability (ID) and associated with negative long-term outcomes. Reliable characterisation of BtC and behavioural function is integral to person-centred interventions. This systematic review and meta-analytic study quantitatively synthesised the evidence-base for the internal consistency, inter-rater reliability, and test-retest reliability of measures of BtC and behavioural function in people with ID (PROSPERO: CRD42021239042). Web of Science, Embase, PsycINFO and MEDLINE were searched from inception to March 2024. Retrieved records (n = 3691) were screened independently to identify studies assessing eligible measurement properties in people with ID. Data extracted from 83 studies, across 29 measures, were synthesised in a series of random-effects meta-analyses. Subgroup analyses assessed the influence of methodological quality and study-level characteristics on pooled estimates. COSMIN criteria were used to evaluate the measurement properties of each measure. Pooled estimates ranged across measures: internal consistency (0.41–0.97), inter-rater reliability (0.29–0.93) and test-retest reliability (0.52–0.98). The quantity and quality of evidence varied substantially across measures; evidence was frequently unavailable or limited to a single study. Based on current evidence, candidate measures with the most evidence for internal consistency and reliability are discussed; however, continued assessment of measurement properties in ID populations is a key priority.</p

Validity and Reliability of a Fijian Translation and Adaptation of the Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire

Objective: Assessment of disordered eating has uncertain validity across culturally diverse populations. This study evaluated Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire (EDE-Q) performance in an ethnic Fijian study population. Method: The EDE-Q was translated, adapted, and administered to school-going Fijian adolescent females (N = 523). A subsample (n = 81) completed it again within ∼1 week. We assessed feasibility, internal consistency, and test-retest reliability; evaluated construct validity through factor analysis and correlation with similar constructs; and examined the marginal utility of an additional question on traditional purgative use. Results: Internal consistency reliability was adequate for the global scale and subscales (Cronbach's alpha = 0.66–0.91); retest reliability was adequate for both the languages (range of ICCs, 0.50–0.79, and of kappas, 0.46–0.81, excluding purging items). Construct validity was supported by significant correlations with measures of similar constructs. Factor analysis confirms multiple dimensions of eating disorder symptoms but suggests possible culture-specific variation in this population. The majority of respondents endorsing traditional purgative use (58%) did not endorse conventional EDE-Q items assessing purging.Discussion: The EDE-Q is a valid measure of eating disorder pathology for ethnic Fijian adolescent females and measures a unitary underlying construct. © 2009 by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Eat Disord, 201