Suchergebnisse

Examines school-age (8-11 years) children's (N = 689) self-reported experience of a number of negative life events, including a number of conflict-related events in relation to gender, age, socioeconomic status, & religious affiliation in the politically violent context of Northern Ireland. Reports suggest that children's experience of conflict-related events is considerable: 25% had witnessed shootings & street riots. Observed main & interaction effects related children's reported experiences to gender, religious affiliation, & socioeconomic background. The relationship between exposure to political conflict & children's perceived competence was also examined, while accounting for psychosocial factors that independently affect perceived competence. Analysis suggested that children reporting lower behavioral competence are more likely to report experience of conflict-related events, whereas lower global self-worth was related to experience of conflict-related negative events. Discussion of these results emphasizes the importance of accounting for children's conflict-related experiences within the context of their current psychosocial environment to fully understand the influence of political conflict on child adjustment. 5 Tables, 1 Figure, 45 References. Adapted from the source document.

Abstract: Findings are presented of a qualitative exploration of offenders' accounts of themselves, their lives and their offending behaviour. Participants were nine male and nine female offenders, aged 19 to 50 years. A model of crime as described by these individuals was developed. Gendered meanings were explored in both men's and women's accounts. Pathways into crime described by the participants were shaped by a range of personal and social background influences and by processes related to negative social relations, positive evaluations of crime, and crime orientation. Changes in the same influences and processes, with a greater emphasis on the personal level, were apparent in participants' descriptions of their pathways out of crime.

Current understanding of the motivations of young people who engage in paramilitary activity is poor. The youth bulge literature has made important advances in understanding determinants of political violence at population level; however, the psychological processes that underpin engagement with political violence among young people are less clearly understood. Further, the pathologization of terrorist activity has hampered deeper understanding of the motivations of those who seek to effect change using violence. This article explores the explanations offered by 14—16-year-olds regarding possible motivations of young people who engage in paramilitary activities in Ireland. Seventy-four Protestant and Catholic young people residing in the border regions of Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic completed an essay-writing task which elicited explanations for paramilitary involvement. Young people's explanations were multi-levelled and varied, reflecting the breadth and diversity of their personal circumstances and experiences. The essays were analysed using a Grounded Theory approach, which generated four categories of explanations for paramilitary involvement, namely, social identification explanations, family and socialization explanations, developmental explanations and pathological explanations. Though not asked to express a personal judgement regarding such activity, a substantial proportion of respondents did, with females being more likely than males to openly condone or condemn such activity. Discussion and interpretation of these findings centre on understanding of paramilitary involvement in areas affected by political violence.

National and religious identification processes can be seen as the basis of the conflict in Northern Ireland, and over the course of the conflict preferred social and political identities became increasingly oppositional and entrenched. This paper reviews this evidence using population-level studies of self-categorized national and religious identity. In an attempt to explore the bases of these identities, two interrelated qualitative studies examining the constructions of national and religious identification are reported. The findings presented suggest the continuing predominance of national and religious identities that have generally been constructed as opposing. Evidence of complete overlap of the identities is evidenced in conflation of religion and nationality in adolescents' essays. Theoretical sampling of adults living on the border between Northern Ireland, the republic of Ireland, and those in mixed marriages highlight the strategic use of national and religious identities that may act to support divisions in post-Agreement Northern Ireland. References. Adapted from the source document.

This paper reports the findings of a survey of 2295 young people aged from 7 to 17 years, who were attending 119 schools in Northern Ireland. The survey was concerned with the level, extent, antecedents and consequences of sport participation. Four sports (soccer, swimming, netball and Gaelic football) accounted for just over half of the nominated `top sports'. The differences and similarities in the patterns of sport participation among students at Catholic and Protestant schools highlighted the importance of structural factors as well as personal and demographic variables in promoting and maintaining the voluntary involvement of young people in sport.