by rbartels | Jun 30, 2022 | Funding Success
In March 2022, FCRG members – Lauren Smith and Rachael Mason, along with Karen Harrison (Law) and Lauren Hall, Helen Nichols and Gary Saunders (from Social and Political Sciences) were awarded just over £19,000 from the QR Policy Support Fund for the dissemination of their findings in relation to the well-being of Prison Governors.
The dissemination will include working with external consultants who are experts in policy-related communications and will result in the production of a short video, a range of illustrations relating to the key themes, a briefing report and a collaborative stakeholder event held at the Ministry of Justice.
by rbartels | Jun 30, 2022 | Publications
Current MSc student, Megan Hartley, has recently published a study in the Sexual Abuse journal with Ross Bartels. The experimental study was focused on public attitudinal judgments of men who have committed child sexual abuse (CSA), specifically whether the relationship between the child and adult, as well as the degree of relational proximity, affected these judgments.
Hartley, M., & Bartels, R. M. (2022). Public perception of men who have committed intrafamilial and extrafamilial sexual offences against children. Sexual Abuse, 10790632211062188.
Abstract
This study examined whether the attitudinal responses toward child sexual abuse (CSA) differ due to the person’s relationship with the victim (intrafamilial vs. extrafamilial) and/or proximity to the victim (close vs. distant). An online sample of 292 participants completed a measure assessing pre-existing attitudes toward people who commit sexual offenses, before being randomly presented with a vignette describing a CSA case committed by a biological father, biological uncle, babysitter, stranger, or stepfather. Participants then rated the perpetrator’s level of dangerousness and pedophilic interest, their own feelings of disgust, and their punitive judgments. Controlling for pre-existing attitudes, the extrafamilial cases (stranger and babysitter) were perceived to be more dangerous (large effects; ds > .50) and more pedophilic than the stepfather (large effects; ds > .60). Also, participants reported greater levels of disgust toward the stranger than both the babysitter and uncle (medium effects; ds > .30). The findings demonstrate the need to account for the established heterogeneity of men who commit CSA when studying the public’s attitudinal responses. Methodological limitations and suggestions for future research are also discussed.
by rbartels | Jun 30, 2022 | Funding Success
In March 2022, FCRG members Todd Hogue, Lauren Smith, and Rachael Mason, along Niko Kargas (from the School of Psychology) and Jim Rogers (from the School of Health and Social Care) were awarded just under £60,000 to conduct an Independent Review of Services for Adults with a Learning Disability and Autistic Adults in Midland’s prisons.
In addition to the review, the team will be working with Electric Egg to adopt creative methods to disseminate findings in a suitable and accessible format for prisons.
by rbartels | Jun 30, 2022 | Other
In March, Ross Bartels was invited to be an Editor-in-Chief for the journal ‘Sexual Offending: Theory, Research, and Prevention‘ (SOTRAP).
SOTRAP is the official journal of the International Association for the Treatment of Sexual Offending (IATSO).
by rbartels | Jun 30, 2022 | Publications
In March 2022, Rachael Mason, Amanda Roberts, and Todd Hogue (along with several other colleagues) published a paper entitled “Ambulance attendance for substance and/or alcohol use in a pandemic: : Interrupted time series analysis of incidents” in Drug and Alcohol Review journal.
Abstract
Introduction
The ambulance attendance for substance and/or alcohol use in a pandemic (ASAP) study explores incidents during the COVID-19 lockdown in the East Midlands region of the United Kingdom (23 March–4 July 2020).
Method
Retrospective cross-sectional count per day of ambulance attendances from the East Midlands Ambulance Service Trust. Ambulance attendances relating to alcohol or other drug use in the year prior, during lockdown and weeks following, were examined using interrupted time series analysis by patient demographics and geographical location.
Results
A total of 36 104 records were identified (53.7% male, 84.5% ethnicity classified as White, mean age 38.4 years). A significant drop in the number of attendances per day at the start of lockdown (−25.24, confidence interval − 38.16, −12.32) was observed, followed by a gradual increase during the ongoing lockdown period (0.36, confidence interval 0.23, 0.46). Similar patterns were found across genders, age groups 16–64 and urban/rural locations.
Discussion and Conclusion
The pattern of ambulance attendances for alcohol or other drug use changed during the COVID-19 lockdown period. Lockdown significantly affected the use of ambulances for incidents involving alcohol or other drug use, impacting on health-care services. Further research into hazardous use of alcohol or other drugs during the lockdown periods is needed to inform policy, planning and public health initiatives.
