Responding to coercive control in criminal justice domestic violence perpetrator programmes in England and Wales: Conceptual, operational, and methodological complexities

Evaluations of domestic violence perpetrator programmes have not produced evidence that they are as effective at reducing male, non-violent, coercively controlling behaviours. This article proposes such limitations are understood by adopting a more complex conceptualisation of coercive control for which the reasons are both gendered and biographically unique. Drawing on document analyses and in-depth interviews with eight programme facilitators and an in-depth case study of one male participant, this article explores the merits and limitations of the cognitive behavioural, skills-based criminal justice programme, Building Better Relationships, in addressing coercively controlling behaviours. The dual (re)conceptualisation of coercive control proposed has implications for both practice and programme evaluation methods

Rising Tuition in Higher Education: Should we be Concerned?

The most pressing concern in higher education amongst students, prospects, and parents is high tuition. I sought to assess the magnitude of the problem of high tuition in America and address potential changes that might be made to curb further rises. I found that high tuition is not necessarily a problem as the benefits of a college degree increasingly outweigh the costs. High tuition does not deter people from attending college; it is one of the best investments an individual can make. The only viable change to make is to invest in new online educational technology which has the potential to substantially lower costs, and improve the quality and accessibility of education

The church, Mary and womanhood: emerging Roman Catholic typologies

Is it wisdom, madness, folly or vanity to embark on a thesis which tries to prove that there is some kind of theological mediation point to be found between the authorities of the Roman Catholic Church and those within the Institution who espouse the ideals of Christian feminism? Certainly, it would not be usual to introduce a thesis with an extract taken from a Book that tends to be viewed as fatalistic. Yet, it is relevant here because it reflects a hope born out of the ambiguous position pertaining to the role of women in the Catholic Church today. Furthermore, consideration of the quotation will explain the feelings of confusion, hope and excitem ent one m ight be likely to experience in the pursuit of such a task. This onerous proposal comes from a feeling that it is worthwhile to remain within the Institution despite the rough justice meted out to women who have been so very loyal to the Church throughout the centuries.Yet, is it fair to ask of women who feel betrayed by the Institution to remain within its restrictive structures? Perhaps not, but it might be worthwhile to point out that if they leave there will be no-one interested enough to effect liberating change. Those who decide to stay in the Institution should remember that they can set about their task w ithout having to pay lip-service either to blind faith or to subservient obedience. Em anating from this request the present thesis aims to find a theological common denominator which would make both the women in question and the Church authorities feel comfortable. Inevitably, at this stage, one might begin to enquire as to how one might find suitable data to fit into the above scheme. A response to this question centres on the need to consider three areas of discipline. The first calls for an account of some contemporary Christian feminist thinking in relation to the teaching of the Catholic Church (Christian feminism). The second requires some understanding of the official position of the Church's more problematic teachings in relation to women (official Church teaching). The principle concern, however, is to find a theology which will act as a mediating agent between the two positions. Somewhat surprisingly, this takes the shape of one particular aspect of Marian theology (ecclesiatypology) which will be referred to below. Marian theology, then, becomes a major focus of the thesis

For Better or Worse? Improving the Response to Domestic Abuse Offenders on Probation

As the Ministry of Justice looks to develop a ‘new generation’ of programmes to reduce reoffending, we reflect on what can be learnt from the only accredited domestic abuse programme in England and Wales, Building Better Relationships (BBR). Findings from an ethnographic study of BBR are situated within the Probation Inspectorate’s recent inspection of domestic abuse work within the newly unified Probation Service which revealed a fractured and overstretched workforce. Our central argument is that if we are to avoid making matters worse, practitioners must be equipped with the time, supervision and skill needed to maintain something akin to a ‘therapeutic alliance’, that will endure in moments of crisis in their own lives as well as those of their clients

Evaluation of the Barwon South Western Region Dementia Strategy

The Department of Health (DH) Barwon-South Western (BSW) Region Dementia Strategy was developed with the support of regional health professionals in response to the Regional, State and National Health Departments’ priority to improve services for people affected by dementia. The National Ageing Research Institute (NARI) was commissioned by DH BSW in 2010 to conduct an evaluation of the BSW Region Dementia Strategy

Thrombin, a Mediator of Coagulation, Inflammation, and Neurotoxicity at the Neurovascular Interface: Implications for Alzheimer’s Disease

The societal burden of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is staggering, with current estimates suggesting that 50 million people world-wide have AD. Identification of new therapeutic targets is a critical barrier to the development of disease-modifying therapies. A large body of data implicates vascular pathology and cardiovascular risk factors in the development of AD, indicating that there are likely shared pathological mediators. Inflammation plays a role in both cardiovascular disease and AD, and recent evidence has implicated elements of the coagulation system in the regulation of inflammation. In particular, the multifunctional serine protease thrombin has been found to act as a mediator of vascular dysfunction and inflammation in both the periphery and the central nervous system. In the periphery, thrombin contributes to the development of cardiovascular disease, including atherosclerosis and diabetes, by inducing endothelial dysfunction and related inflammation. In the brain, thrombin has been found to act on endothelial cells of the blood brain barrier, microglia, astrocytes, and neurons in a manner that promotes vascular dysfunction, inflammation, and neurodegeneration. Thrombin is elevated in the AD brain, and thrombin signaling has been linked to both tau and amyloid beta, pathological hallmarks of the disease. In AD mouse models, inhibiting thrombin preserves cognition and endothelial function and reduces neuroinflammation. Evidence linking atrial fibrillation with AD and dementia indicates that anticoagulant therapy may reduce the risk of dementia, with targeting thrombin shown to be particularly effective. It is time for “outside-the-box” thinking about how vascular risk factors, such as atherosclerosis and diabetes, as well as the coagulation and inflammatory pathways interact to promote increased AD risk. In this review, we present evidence that thrombin is a convergence point for AD risk factors and as such that thrombin-based therapeutics could target multiple points of AD pathology, including neurodegeneration, vascular activation, and neuroinflammation. The urgent need for disease-modifying drugs in AD demands new thinking about disease pathogenesis and an exploration of novel drug targets, we propose that thrombin inhibition is an innovative tactic in the therapeutic battle against this devastating disease

Self-blame and (becoming) the crazy ex: Domestic abuse, information sharing and responsibilisation

The 2021 Domestic Abuse Act puts the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme (Clare’s Law) on a statutory footing which allows police forces to share someone’s criminal history to prevent domestic abuse. In this article, we draw on the findings from a wider study on women’s experiences of accessing such schemes and instead highlight the informal ways in which women shared and received information about domestic abuse experiences among each other to prevent domestic abuse. These experiences are located within a ‘red flag’ discourse which we argue inadvertently responsibilises women, who in turn blame themselves for failing to leave abusive relationships. The conclusion makes some suggestions as to how a better understanding of the reality of victim-survivors’ everyday lives might inform the practices of those tasked with supporting women in making sense of disclosures of domestic abuse and providing appropriate support at the right time

Associations of specific-age and decade recall body mass index trajectories with obesity-related cancer.

From Europe PMC via Jisc Publications RouterHistory: ppub 2021-05-01, epub 2021-05-05Publication status: PublishedFunder: Manchester Biomedical Research Centre; Grant(s): IS-BRC-1215-20007BackgroundExcess body fatness, commonly approximated by a one-off determination of body mass index (BMI), is associated with increased risk of at least 13 cancers. Modelling of longitudinal BMI data may be more informative for incident cancer associations, e.g. using latent class trajectory modelling (LCTM) may offer advantages in capturing changes in patterns with time. Here, we evaluated the variation in cancer risk with LCTMs using specific age recall versus decade recall BMI.MethodsWe obtained BMI profiles for participants from the Prostate, Lung, Colorectal and Ovarian Cancer Screening Trial. We developed gender-specific LCTMs using recall data from specific ages 20 and 50 years (72,513 M; 74,837 W); decade data from 30s to 70s (42,113 M; 47,352 W) and a combination of both (74,106 M, 76,245 W). Using an established methodological framework, we tested 1:7 classes for linear, quadratic, cubic and natural spline shapes, and modelled associations for obesity-related cancer (ORC) incidence using LCTM class membership.ResultsDifferent models were selected depending on the data type used. In specific age recall trajectories, only the two heaviest classes were associated with increased risk of ORC. For the decade recall data, the shapes appeared skewed by outliers in the heavier classes but an increase in ORC risk was observed. In the combined models, at older ages the BMI values were more extreme.ConclusionsSpecific age recall models supported the existing literature changes in BMI over time are associated with increased ORC risk. Modelling of decade recall data might yield spurious associations