Intimidation

Abstract: Bullying victimization is a topic of concern for youths, parents, school staff and mental health practitioners. Children and adolescents who are victimized by bullies show signs of distress and adjustment problems. However, it is not clear whether bullying is the source of these difficulties. This paper reviews empirical evidence to determine whether bullying victimization is a significant risk factor for psychopathology and should be the target of intervention and prevention strategies. Research indicates that being the victim of bullying (1) is not a random event and can be predicted by individual characteristics and family factors; (2) can be stable across ages; (3) is associated with severe symptoms of mental health problems, including self-harm, violent behaviour and psychotic symptoms; (4) has long-lasting effects that can persist until late adolescence; and (5) contributes independently to children's mental health problems. This body of evidence suggests that efforts aimed at reducing bullying victimization in childhood and adolescence should be strongly supported. In addition, research on explanatory mechanisms involved in the development of mental health problems in bullied youths is needed.

Abstract: Abstract The battle against domestic violence has focused primarily on incidents of extreme physical abuse and the resulting trauma to the victim. While there is a growing understanding of some forms of psychological abuse, such as stalking, there is less understanding of the pattern of abuse where physical attacks are combined with isolation, intimidation, and control. Stark argues that coercive control, which may not include any physical abuse, is actually the more prevalent and devastating form of domestic abuse, yet remains largely invisible to the helping professionals and has no legal standing. He contends that interventions are ineffective for a large number of battered women due to the gap between what these women experience and the singular emphasis on male violence and victim trauma. Drawing extensively on case studies, Stark identifies the problems with our current approach to domestic violence, outlines the components of coercive control, and then uses this alternate framework to analyse the cases of battered women charged with criminal offenses directed at their abusers. He presents the controversial notion that coercive control should be a legal defense for women who attack or kill their abusers.

Abstract: This article reviews research on workplace victimization, which we define as acts of aggression perpetrated by one or more members of an organization that cause psychological, emotional, or physical harm to their intended target. We compare several types of victimizing behaviors that have been introduced into the organizational psychology literature to illustrate differences and similarities among them. We then review studies looking at who is likely to become a victim of aggression. Predictors include personality, demographic, behavioral, structural, and organizational variables. We also review research on coping strategies for victimization, which include problem-focused and emotion-focused strategies. We conclude with a summary of challenges for victimization research. These include addressing the proliferation of constructs and terms into the literature, attempting to clarify inconclusive findings, and using theory to guide the selection of study variables.

Abstract: Important gains have been made in the past two decades in the participation of women in science, engineering, and biomedical disciplines at the undergraduate and graduate levels in the United States. More women than ever are also joining the faculty ranks in these fields and moving into leadership positions in higher education (e.g., as senior faculty, department chairs, and deans). There has been parallel growth in women’s participation in business, government, and the nonprofit sectors as well. While progress is slow, the reduction in the “gender gap” is encouraging. However, more rapid and sustained progress in closing the gender gap in science, engineering, and medicine is jeopardized by the persistence of sexual harassment and its adverse impact on women’s careers in our nation’s colleges and universities. In a survey conducted by the University of Texas System (Swartout 2018), about 20 percent of female science students (undergraduate and graduate) experienced sexual harassment from faculty or staff, while more than a quarter of female engineering students and greater than 40 percent of medical students experienced sexual harassment from faculty or staff. The Pennsylvania State University System conducted a similar survey and found similar results with 33 percent of undergraduates, 43 percent of graduate students, and 50 percent of medical students experiencing sexual harassment from faculty or staff. Other survey data reveal similarly high rates of sexual harassment of students and faculty in our colleges and universities. These data should not be surprising considering that the academic workplace (i.e., employees of academic institutions) has the second highest rate of sexual harassment at 58 percent (the military has the high-