Witness recall across repeated interviews in a case of repeated abuse

In this illustrative case study we examine the three forensic interviews of a girl who experienced repeated sexual abuse from ages 7 to 11. She disclosed the abuse after watching a serialized television show that contained a storyline similar to her own experience. This triggered an investigation that ended in successful prosecution of the offender. Because this case involved abuse that was repeated on a weekly basis for 4 years we thus investigated the degree to which the child's narrative reflected specific episodes or generic accounts, and both the interviewer's and child's attempts to elicit and provide, respectively, specific details across the 3 interviews collected in a 1 month period. Across the 3 interviews, the child's account was largely generic, yet on a number of occasions she provided details specific to individual incidents (episodic leads) that could have been probed further. As predicted: earlier interviews were characterized more by episodic than generic prompts and the reverse was true for the third interview; the child often responded using the same style of language (episodic or generic) as the interviewer; and open questions yielded narrative information. We discuss the importance of adopting children's words to specify occurrences, and the potential benefits of permitting generic recall in investigative interviews on children's ability to provide episodic leads. Despite the fact that the testimony was characterized by generic information about what usually happened, rather than specific episodic details about individual occurrences, this case resulted in successful prosecution.     

The effect of sodium pentobarbital on attraction in the albino rat

Two “target” rats, one drugged and one undrugged, were tethered on opposite sides of an open arena in which single, undrugged “subject” rats were allowed to roam free. On the last 2 days of testing, the S rats spent significantly more time in physical contact with the undrugged target rat than with the drugged target rat. Prior adaptation to the arena of S rats had no effect on the relative preferences for the target animals.     

A comparison of non-verbal and verbal indicators of young children’s metacognition

Metacognition and Learning - In the past decade, research increasingly uncovers emerging metacognitive skills in young children by using child-friendly, creative, and non-verbal measures of...     

Power Relationships in Rumpelstiltskin: A Textual Comparison of a Traditional and a Reconstructed Fairy Tale

Reconstructed fairy tales provide a different point of view and challenge the assumptions of a common set of values; for that reason, these stories provide a medium in which to examine power relationships in texts by applying a critical multicultural analysis (Botelho & Rudman, forthcoming, 2008, A critical multicultural analysis of children’s literature: Mirrors, windows and doors. New York: Lawrence Erlbaum) to identify and analyze power relations of Rumpelstiltskin (Grimm & Grimm, 1812/1987, New York: Bantam) and Rumpelstiltskin’s Daughter (Stanley, 1997, New York: Morrow Junior Books). Specifically, this study examines how power is exercised on a continuum: domination, collusion, resistance, and agency. Findings indicate that by identifying and questioning text ideologies, critical readers can consider how texts maintain, counteract, or promote alternative systemic power structures.

Understanding Images: educating the viewer

Given the growing importance of the visual media in society and in education, relatively little attention has been devoted to educating the viewer. Recent studies suggest this is an important area, and successful programmes of television literacy have demonstrated that it is possible to enhance the comprehension of viewers. Extending this work into the understanding of images (visual literacy), the following study outlines a new course developed and tested on 12‐ and 13‐year‐old pupils that showed highly significant gains in their understanding of a range of images. The implications of this research for television literacy and our understanding of how people respond to images is evaluated, and further research based on this project is suggested.     

The Development of Implicit Memory From Infancy to Childhood: On Average Performance Levels and Interindividual Differences

The present multimethod longitudinal study aimed at investigating development and stability of implicit memory during infancy and early childhood. A total of 134 children were followed longitudinally from 3 months to 3 years of life assessing different age‐appropriate measures of implicit memory. Results from structural equation modeling give further evidence that implicit memory is stable from 9 months of life on, with earlier performance predicting later performance. Second, it was found that implicit memory is present from early on, and no age‐related improvements are found from 3 months on. Results are discussed with respect to the basic brain structures implicit memory builds on, as well as methodological issues.     

An interactive learning environment designed to increase the possibilities for learning and communicating about radioactivity

Information and communication technology (ICT) is a natural part of most people's everyday life, and has also been introduced in schools. Previous studies have tended to focus on issues related to competency of teachers and lack of computer technology in schools. Focus now seems to be moving towards studies that help us understand how ICT may be used to enhance students learning. This article explores the learning environment Radioactivity from the Norwegian Viten project in order to provide insights into how features of the environment may influence student learning. A characteristic of the features of Radioactivity is provided and discussed in light of a set of quality principles for digital learning resources developed by the British Educational Communications and Technology Agency.     

The Principal's Apprentice: Mentoring aspiring school administrators through relevant preparation

This emergent case study explores a special case of mentoring about the value and relevance of graduate administration programmes for professionals aiming to lead schools. It describes a questionnaire that was piloted with a graduate education group and then completed by beginning school administrators who were also interviewed. A graduate professor and student in a leadership programme collaborated on this study in order to more fully represent crucial perspectives. Their analysis of the questionnaire data suggests that some administrative tasks and duties (e.g., mediating school conflicts) are considered of the utmost importance for new school leaders to know. Topics covered by this emergent analysis of administrator preparation and related reform issues include a veteran teacher's story, major climate issues, literature on school administrator preparation that elucidates mentoring themes, insights from new school administrators, and examples of graduate programmes that include relevant education internships. Discussion focuses on concepts and examples of educational internship solutions and initiatives. The authors conclude with a call for programmatic improvement from the perspective of challenges that will need to be addressed to ensure change.     

The communication of forgiveness

This investigation examined the interpersonal dynamics of forgiveness processes, by analyzing personal narratives recounting forgiveness situations. The interpersonal forgiveness process is described as consisting of relationship type, forgiver and offender motivations, forgiver and offender strategies, and relational consequences. Findings indicate that the process of forgiveness plays an important role in determining progress in interpersonal relationships. In addition, the forgiveness process was found to vary by relationship type. Implications and directions for future research are discussed.