Sexual maltreatment of unaccompanied asylum-seeking minors from the Horn of Africa: A mixed method study focusing on vulnerability and prevention

ObjectivesThe study described in this paper sought to identify the social, cultural, and political factors that effect African unaccompanied asylum-seeking minors’ (UASM) vulnerability to sexual maltreatment in England. It aimed to illuminate how child protection measures could be strengthened for this highly marginalized group.MethodsA mixed method approach was used. Former UASM from Ethiopia, Eritrea and Somalia who had been sexually maltreated in the UK were interviewed in-depth. Prior to the interviews they all completed a questionnaire which captured their biographical details as well as sensitive but factual information.ResultsOf the 53 (N = 53) former UASM who participated in the study only 2 were males. Most arrived in the UK aged 15–17. A range of sexual maltreatment, from sexual harassment to rape was reported. Three quarters experienced more than 1 incident. Most initial incidents happened in the first 12 months of their arrival in the UK. Two perpetrators were female carers. Many participants reported being groomed and sexually maltreated by people from their own country. Many described being seriously sexually maltreated, particularly by groups of young males living in the same accommodation or nearby, some reportedly also asylum seekers. Participants that had been warned of the dangers of sexual maltreatment were more likely to both disclose and to seek professional help.ConclusionsProfessionals should assume that UASM will suffer sexual maltreatment in their host country if not protected adequately, which they are unlikely to disclose. They are likely to need more protection from outside sources and help to develop their personal resources than many have received in the past.Practice implicationsPreventative measures include provision of safer environments, ideally single sex housing; more monitoring and supervision; more opportunities to develop trustworthy relationships and have emotional needs met; greater opportunities to develop language skills/access to interpretation; early information regarding the social system, culture, and sexual maltreatment; and improved professional awareness and competence in dealing with minors from other cultures.     

People with Disabilities in China: Changing outlook— new solutions— growing problems

One new child is born with a serious disability every 40 seconds in China. With the number of people with a disability already exceeding 50,000,000 (approaching the size of the whole population of the UK) it can be seen that this rapidly developing third world country is facing a monumental task in rehabilitation and education. This paper does not attempt to offer solutions, but describes the variety and complexities of the problems facing the People’s Republic of China at the present time and makes estimates of its future needs. It also describes some of the ways China is trying to deal with the problems and gives a realistic appraisal of the difficulties faced by academic, clinical, and social welfare authorities.     

Immigrant Chinese Mothers’ Socialization of Achievement in Children: A Strategic Adaptation to the Host Society

Academic socialization by low‐income immigrant mothers from Mainland China was investigated in two studies. Immigrant Chinese mothers of first graders (n = 52; M_age = 38.69) in the United States (Study 1) and kindergartners (n = 86; M_age = 36.81) in Hong Kong (Study 2) tell stories that emphasized achieving the best grade through effort more than did African American (n = 39; M_age = 31.44) and native Hong Kong (n = 76; M_age = 36.64) mothers, respectively. The emphasis on achievement was associated with mothers' heightened discussion on discrimination (Study 1) and beliefs that education promotes upward mobility (Study 2), as well as children's expectations that a story protagonist would receive maternal criticism for being nonpersistent in learning (Study 2).     

Teachers’ professional selves and motivation for continuous professional learning amid education reforms

Promoting in-service teachers’ continuous professional learning is indispensable to educational reforms that demand knowledge acquisition and practice innovation. Addressing this issue, this mixed-method study examined the relationship between teachers’ professional selves and continuous professional learning. Two hundred and nighty-one practicing teachers completed a questionnaire that assessed their current and future professional selves, learning motives, strategy use, self-efficacy, control beliefs, learning interests and intentions. Cluster analyses found that strongly-committed teachers who held strong professional selves had the most engaged patterns of learning followed by teachers who had moderate and weak levels of professional selves. Study two was a follow-up interview study with eight selected teachers who held contrasting professional selves. Strongly-committed teachers discussed their hoped-for selves while weakly-committed teachers expressed concerns about heavy workload and the selves that they feared. These two groups of interviewees differed in the strategies they employed to complete course assignments.     

“I learn for a job promotion!”: the role of outcome-focused career goals in motivating distance learners to learn

Outcome-focused career goals are concerned about studying for tangible career benefits. To what extent do these goals motivate distance learners to learn? Using a mixed-method design, Study 1 found that career-focused learners, when compared with noncareer-focused counterparts, had a propensity to endorse outcome-focused career goals, use surface strategies, value their learning, and achieve better course results. Interview findings showed that career-focused learners used a strategic approach to ensure the timely completion of tasks and examination preparation. Study 2 located two groups of career-focused learners (autonomous and controlled) who endorsed outcome-focused career goals, alongside a noncareer-focused group. MANOVA analyses found that autonomous and noncareer-focused learners had engaged learning patterns. Although controlled learners were less engaged in learning, they achieved better results. It was concluded that outcome-focused career goals are significant sources of motivation for distance learners, despite being extrinsic to learning.     

Self-regulated learning in Singaporean context: a congeneric approach of confirmatory factor analysis

The motivated strategies for learning questionnaire (MSLQ) is widely used as a self-report instrument to assess students’ motivation and self-regulation. This study utilized the MSLQ Junior High to examine the motivational beliefs and self-regulation of secondary school students (Grades 8 and 9) from Singapore. The instrument was slightly modified and administered to students (N?=?610) in mathematics and science classes. In the first sample, 314 students completed the MSLQ Junior High while a second sample of 296 students completed the revised MSLQ Junior High. Using a congeneric approach of confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), the five-factor measurement model was determined with the first sample. This measurement model was further supported using a second sample and its goodness-of-fit indices were compared with other CFA models. Statistical findings showed that the five-factor structure of the revised MSLQ Junior High had a good model fit. The present study contributes a novel methodological approach by investigating the parsimony confirmatory factor structure of the revised MSLQ Junior High in local academic contexts.     

Utilization of CSR to build organizations’ corporate image in Asia: need for an integrative approach

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) has been found to be a strong predictor of a favorable corporate image [Gray, 1986. Managing the corporate image: The key to public trust. London: Quorum Books]. Websites have become an essential communication platform [Dawkins, 2004. Corporate responsibility: The communication challenge. Journal of Communication Management, 9(2), 108–119]. This study aims to investigate how CSR can be used in enhancing organizational corporate image. Content analyses of 150 corporate websites of organizations in Asia headquartered in Singapore were conducted, followed by in-depth interviews with public relations (PR) practitioners to examine the motivations behind their CSR engagement. Findings showed that organizations utilized CSR as a means to enhance corporate image via four ways: Engaging in two-way conversations with stakeholders, adopting an inside-out communication approach with employees, recognizing the relevance of other CSR communication channels, and communicating CSR with authenticity. However, some organizations hesitate to use CSR communication to enhance their corporate image because they wanted to avoid being seen as using CSR as a promotional tool.     

Some Misconceptions about Attribute Sampling Plans

This article explores some common potential misconceptions about attribute sampling plans. Use of the operating characteristic curve easily enables the misconceptions to be overcome.