Associations Between Child Disabilities and Caregiver Discipline and Violence in Low‐ and Middle‐Income Countries

Using nationally representative samples of 45,964 two‐ to nine‐year‐old children and their primary caregivers in 17 developing countries, this study examined the relations between children's cognitive, language, sensory, and motor disabilities and caregivers' use of discipline and violence. Primary caregivers reported on their child's disabilities and whether they or anyone in their household had used nonviolent discipline, psychological aggression, and physical violence toward the target child and believed that using corporal punishment is necessary. Logistic regression analyses supported the hypothesis that children with disabilities are treated more harshly than children without disabilities. The findings suggest that policies and interventions are needed to work toward the United Nations' goals of ensuring that children with disabilities are protected from abuse and violence.     

Relational Aggression, Overt Aggression, and Friendship

This study ( n = 315 9–12-year-olds) was conducted to assess whether the social problems that relationally and overtly aggressive children typically experience in the peer group context are also exhibited in the dyadic, friendship context. The qualities of children's friendships (e.g., levels of intimacy) and of the importance of those qualities (e.g., the importance of intimacy) were assessed with self-report instruments adapted from past research. Results indicated that the friendships of relationally aggressive children were characterized by relatively high levels of intimacy, exclusivity/jealousy, and relational aggression within the friendship context. In contrast, the friendships of overtly aggressive children were characterized by engaging together in aggressive acts toward those outside the friendship. In addition, overtly aggressive children placed relatively high importance on these coalitional acts and on companionship with their friends. Implications for our understanding of aggressive children and for our knowledge of children's friendships are discussed.     

Motor and coordination difficulties in children with emotional and behavioural difficulties

To date, very few studies have explored the incidence of motor impairment amongst children with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties (social, emotional and mental health (SEMH); formerly SEBD in England). Following research that suggests an increase in motor difficulties in young children and adolescents with SEMH difficulties, this study compares profiles of motor ability using the Movement ABC-2 assessment in children attending a specialist SEMH primary school with a typically developing comparison group and children with a diagnosis of developmental coordination disorder. We report an increased prevalence of borderline or clinically significant motor impairment amongst children with SEMH difficulties compared to the comparison group, with 44% of the SEMH special school sample falling within these ranges. We suggest that bearing in mind the increased likelihood for motor impairment is important in SEMH education, as it has likely impact on classroom functioning and ability and motivation to take part in socially and academically relevant activities.     

Effect of time of day on perceived exertion at work rates above and below the ventilatory threshold

The effect of time of day on ratings of perceived exertion (RPE) at various intensities of cycling exercise, both below and above the ventilatory threshold, was studied in 32 subjects, 18 to 35 years of age. The ventilatory threshold occurred at the same (p greater than .05) mean (+/- SD) work rate in the morning (110.6 +/- 27.0 watts) and in the afternoon (111.9 +/- 23.9 watts) and was perceived as equally strenuous (p greater than .05) in the morning (RPE = 13.8 +/- 2.4) and in the afternoon (RPE = 13.6 +/- 2.8). At intensities below the ventilatory threshold, RPE was the same (p greater than .05) in the morning and in the afternoon; above the ventilatory threshold, RPE was lower (p less than .05) in the morning. We conclude that, during incremental submaximal cycling exercise above the ventilatory threshold, a particular work rate is perceived as less strenuous in the morning than in the afternoon. About 20% of this difference in RPE is explained by lower ventilatory demands in the morning.     

Teacher e-mail message strategies and students' willingness to communicate online

In light of the prevalent use of e-mail between teachers and students, researchers have highlighted the need to assess its uses and effects. Relying on the research and thinking of teacher immediacy and extra-class communication, we developed a scale that measures those e-mail message strategies that influence students' willingness to communicate online with their teachers. Next, we isolated those reasons that students use e-mail to interact with their teachers: (1) to clarify course material and procedures, (2) as a means of efficient communication, and (3) for personal/social reasons. Finally, we examined student characteristics such as gender and ethnicity, and history of e-mail use that may (or may not) influence their attitudes toward e-mail exchanges with teachers.     

Sanitizing the Struggle: Barack Obama,Selma, and Civil Rights Memory

In this article, I examine Barack Obama’s use of collective memory during his 2007 campaign speech in Selma, Alabama. Specifically, I argue that Obama appeals to collective memory to challenge the Black community’s relationship to the past. He reframed the memory of the Civil Rights Movement in a manner favorable to his political aspirations. While this frame was politically expedient, it weakened Black political agency. It robbed the Black community of crucial rhetorical resources used to challenge structural inequalities in society. This article offers insight into the complex relationship between metaphor and collective memory. Specifically, I interrogate the role of metaphor as a crucial site where public memory is formed, disrupted, and rearticulated. Furthermore, I consider the implications of his use of memory for the future of the Black freedom struggle.