Community males show multiple-perpetrator rape proclivity: Development and Preliminary Validation of an interest scale

The literature on Multiple Perpetrator Rape (MPR) is scant; however, a significant proportion of sexual offending involves multiple perpetrators. In addition to the need for research with apprehended offenders of MPR, there is also a need to conduct research with members of the general public. Recent advances in the forensic literature have led to the development of self-report proclivity scales. These scales have enabled researchers to conduct evaluative studies sampling from members of the general public who may be perpetrators of sexual offenses and have remained undetected, or at highest risk of engaging in sexual offending. The current study describes the development and preliminary validation of the Multiple-Perpetrator Rape Interest Scale (M-PRIS), a vignette-based measure assessing community males' sexual arousal to MPR, behavioral propensity toward MPR and enjoyment of MPR. The findings show that the M-PRIS is a reliable measure of community males' sexual interest in MPR with high internal reliability and temporal stability. In a sample of university males we found that a large proportion (66%) did not emphatically reject an interest in MPR. We also found that rape-supportive cognitive distortions, antisocial attitudes, and high-risk sexual fantasies were predictors of sexual interest in MPR. We discuss these findings and the implications for further research employing proclivity measures referencing theory development and clinical practice

Socioeconomic and early-life factors and risk of being overweight or obese in children of Swedish- and foreign-born parents.

BACKGROUND: Ethnic minorities/immigrants have differential health as compared with natives. The epidemic in child overweight/obesity (OW/OB) in Sweden is leveling off, but lower socioeconomic groups and immigrants/ethnic minorities may not have benefited equally from this trend. We investigated whether nonethnic Swedish children are at increased risk for being OW/OB and whether these associations are mediated by parental socioeconomic position (SEP) and/or early-life factors such as birth weight, maternal smoking, BMI, and breastfeeding. METHODS: Data on 10,628 singleton children (51% boys, mean age: 4.8 y, born during the period 2000-2004) residing in Uppsala were analyzed. OW/OB was computed using the International Obesity Task Force's sex- and age-specific cutoffs. The mother's nativity was used as proxy for ethnicity. Logistic regression was used to analyze ethnicity-OW/OB associations. RESULTS: Children of North African, Iranian, South American, and Turkish ethnicity had increased odds for being overweight/obese as compared with children of Swedish ethnicity (adjusted odds ratio (OR): 2.60 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.57-4.27), 1.67 (1.03-2.72), 3.00 (1.86-4.80), and 2.90 (1.73-4.88), respectively). Finnish children had decreased odds for being overweight/obese (adjusted OR: 0.53 (0.32-0.90)). CONCLUSION: Ethnic differences in a child's risk for OW/OB exist in Sweden that cannot be explained by SEP or maternal or birth factors. As OW/OB often tracks into adulthood, more effective public health policies that intervene at an early age are needed

Child Health Nurses' experiences of addressing psychosocial risk factors with the families they meet

Aim To examine how child health nurses perceive the routine assessment of psychosocial risk factors in the family environment as well as their self-reported competence and the present organisational conditions in this context. Method A mixed-methods design was used, including three focus group interviews and a web-based survey. Qualitative data were analysed using systematic text condensation. Quantitative data were analysed at the descriptive level. Results Nurses expressed that identifying psychosocial risk factors was both important and relevant to their work. They had little formal training and education on most psychosocial risk factors, and they lacked structured methods to address them. In areas where nurses reported more formal education and a structured methodology (depression, parental stress), they rated to a higher degree that they possessed sufficient skills and sense of security. The nurses perceived that they seldom came into contact with families with financial problems, hazardous alcohol use or intimate partner violence. Conclusions There is a gap between the nurses' attitudes regarding the importance of helping families in need and their ability to do so with the current level of training and methodological support. The results suggest that, in many cases, psychosocial problems remain undetected