Linda Jeffrey

Middle school bullying as a context for the development of passive observers to the victimization of others

SUMMARY School bullies create a climate of fear and intimidation that may affect not only those students who are the direct targets of the bullying but also the secondary victims (i.e., those students who witness the victimization of peers). Results from a survey of New Jersey middle school students indicate that eighth graders were significantly more indifferent to bullying and less sympathetic to victims than fifth graders. Older students were also more likely to identify themselves as outsiders and bullys assistants in bullying situations. In the absence of bullying prevention programs, witnesses to peer aggression become less willing to intervene on behalf of victims and more indifferent to the distress of the victim. The implications of these findings for the prevention of bullying and the achievement of civic responsibility are discussed.

Child and adolescent mental health in Iraq: current situation and scope for promotion of child and adolescent mental health policy

Violence and instability in Iraq have had highly detrimental effects upon Iraqi children and adolescents. This article summarises the magnitude of Child and Adolescent Mental Health (CAMH) problems, and the available services in a country suffering from severe and extended conflicts, war, and international isolation. Possible interventions to promote child and adolescent mental health are discussed, including feasible CAMH policy, mental health plans and strategies. Barriers to successful implementation of CAMH services are identified and possible solutions are suggested.

Iraqi children's rights: building a system under fire.

War violates every human right of children. In recent years, the lives of Iraqi children and the livelihoods of their families have become precarious. Conflict has split the communities where they live and taken the lives of hundreds of their friends and family members. The literature focuses on the negative effects of armed conflict on Iraqi children, and the steps that need to be taken to ameliorate their condition by adapting evidence based but culturally sensitive measures. A comprehensive solution to child protection problems clearly will take time. The primary need for the protection of Iraqi children is an end to conflict. Family and educational order and social stability are central to efforts to achieve progress in child protection. Solutions to armed conflict and its aftermath work best when they are responsive to local cultural practices and beliefs, and are drawn from an understanding of child development. Child safety, security and well-being should be in the forefront of the national agenda to ensure a more positive future both economically and socially to achieve a healthier Iraq.

Effect of Communicating Experimenter Attitudes on Subject Response to a Sex-Role Attitude Questionnaire

Summary Eight male and 13 female assistants communicated nontraditional sex-role attitudes to one group of undergraduate and graduate students and traditional sex-role attitudes to another group (N = 418) and then administered a sex-role attitude questionnaire. Subjects in the “nontraditional” group gave fewer traditional responses than those in the “traditional” group. Sex of the experimenter was not a significant variable.

An Iraqi-Specific Perspective on Adolescent Pregnancy

The effects of exposure to war, armed conflict, and civil disorder on the youth and children, and their needs for services and therapeutic/educational interventions have been described in a number of research studies. In this case, the children and adolescents are Iraqi. In this chapter, the Iraqi history and culture that shape adolescent sexual development are examined in light of 40 years of conflict and war, and their sequelae of traumatic exposure. Critical issues faced by contemporary Iraqi girls and women are safety and security. They define themselves within their families and society in the context of traditional patriarchal values. Daily life is challenging in Iraq. Even obtaining basic services including electricity and clean water is difficult, let alone gaining access to quality healthcare and education. Complicating the narrative for the youth of Iraq is the evolving religious and cultural practice of consanguinity and family-arranged marriages. The meaning and nature of teen motherhood in Iraq will also evolve in the face of contemporary realities. While the impact of early marriage tends to limit female access to education and self-determination, early marriage can also be an adaptive response to the risks and uncertainty of dangerous civil unrest, crushing exposure to harsh economic realities, and social upheaval. Growing up in situations of chronic danger and ongoing traumatic stress associated with dangerous environments present ongoing developmental challenges. This is of paramount importance. Like other countries and regions that have and will be devastated by armed conflict in the future, as Iraq again takes its place as one of the leading countries in the Middle East, it will be up to the youth of Iraq to pick up the pieces and play a major role in resolving the widespread trauma and cultural contradictions that challenge contemporary Iraq.

Middle East Perspectives on the Achievability of Peace

This chapter focuses on Middle Eastern perspectives regarding the achievability of world peace. The Middle Eastern region, although rife with national and transnational conflict, has undertaken many peacebuilding efforts, such as the Madrid-Oslo process, as outlined in this chapter. This chapter also briefly discusses conflicts in this area that have hampered peace. A sample of 398 respondents from Middle Eastern countries responded to two survey questions regarding the achievability of world peace. Responses were coded for agency, disengagement, and humanitarian engagement, as well as prerequisites for peace. Despite living in an area that has been conflict laden for thousands of years, respondents to the survey were largely optimistic regarding the achievability of world peace, offering many solutions they believed could bring about peace. Perhaps not surprisingly, there was also considerable recognition that war, hate, and violence are barriers to the achievement of peace. This chapter ends by discussing the region’s future in relation to the recent Arab Spring, mentioning important steps necessary to achieve peace and factors that must be taken into consideration in peace efforts.

Perspectives on Apology and Reconciliation in the Middle East

This chapter examines, within the ecological model, developed by Bronfenbrenner (1979) and later refined by (Belsky, 1993), the individual, social, and cultural factors that influence the attitudes toward apology and reconciliation in the Middle East. The sample consisted of 341 participants (males = 181, female = 159) from 12 countries: Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Oman, and Bahrain. In addition to demographic and military service history questionnaires, participants were asked to fill out the Personal and Institutional Rights to Aggression and Peace Survey (PAIRTAPS; Malley-Morrison, Daskalopoulos, & You, 2006). Three major categories were identified in responses to the apology item: the response (a) indicates that the effectiveness of the apology depends on the situation, (b) agrees with the idea that an apology will lead to reconciliation, or (c) disagrees with idea that an apology will lead to reconciliation. In addition, responses regarding reconciliation were categorized into three major categories: (a) reconciliation is possible by a specific means; (b) reconciliation is not possible; and (c) the participant does not know if reconciliation is possible.

Definition of Peace and Reconciliation in the Middle East

This chapter begins by providing a context for Middle Eastern definitions of peace and reconciliation, with particular attention to the control of the region by major powers exercising economic dominance, maintenance of client rulers during and beyond the Cold War, the relationship between Israel and the United States, and the role of two Zionisms – Christian Zionism and Jewish Zionism – in contributing to lasting conflicts in the Middle East. A sample of 601 participants from Afghanistan, Bahrain, Iran, Israel, Jordon, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates responded to the Personal and Institutional Rights to Aggression and Peace Survey (PAIRTAPS), including providing definitions of “peace” and “reconciliation.” Rather than viewing peace just as the cessation of violence, the majority of participants focused on structural requirements for lasting peace such as justice and fairness, as well as describing the benefits of peace. Reconciliation was commonly conceptualized as a process such as coming to terms, making agreements, compromising, and negotiating. This chapter concludes with a consideration of the extent to which circumstances in the Middle East are reaching the kind of tipping point in the balance of power leading each party to the conflict to believe that, on balance, it may have more to gain by the cessation of conflict than by its continuance.

Perspectives of Protest in the Middle East

The freedoms of assembly and association are mentioned as individual rights in various international legal documents. They are recognized as cornerstones of a functioning democracy, and much has been written about these rights as they are understood and pertain to western democratic societies. With the aim of expanding our understanding beyond the west, this chapter focuses on perspectives on protest held by persons living in 12 Middle Eastern countries. Given the diversity within and among these states, a brief comparative overview of their demographics follows a discussion of protest and freedom of assembly as global concepts. The wave of protests that recently occurred throughout the Middle East/North Africa (MENA) region is examined, as these protests are active examples of the thoughts shared by survey respondents. Analysis of the qualitative survey data collected from nationals of each state revealed that the majority of respondents are pro-protest (91 %). They view protest as a socially sanctioned right, a human right, and a moral responsibility. Men were more likely than women to portray protest is a moral responsibility. Persons with military service were more likely to view protest as a socially sanctioned right, while persons with no military service most often cited the goal of protest as peace. Seventy-five percent (75 %) of respondents were in favor of exercising pro-social agency in response to police violence against nonviolent protesters and gave examples of personal initiative, activism, and legal action as ways they would respond to the police in such instances.

Definitions of War, Torture, and Terrorism in the Middle East

The term “Middle East” was conceived in 1902 by Alfred Mahan, a United States Navy flag officer, to describe an area covering a large region in northeastern Africa and southwestern Asia (Adelson 1995). The term was created by outsiders for military purposes, not by the people living there. Today, the Middle East is considered to include nineteen territories: Armenia, Afghanistan, Bahrain, the Gaza Strip, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, the West Bank, and Yemen (CIA World Factbook 2011). The Middle East is a diverse region with various ethnicities, tribes, government systems, religions, sects, political ideologies, landscapes and weather, economic situations, traditions, and histories. Living in these 16 countries are Jews, Christians, and Muslims, along with adherents of other older religions, such as the followers of prophets Abraham and Noah. The area is also rich in the variety of ethnic groups, which include Arabs, Kurds, Turks, Persians, Indians, and European and Eastern Jews, among others (Owen 2004). Religious sects and movements include Sunnis, Shiites, Reform Jews, Orthodox Jews, Christian Orthodox and Maronites (in Lebanon), and Christian Copts (in Egypt). There are nationalistic movements among Arabs, Iranians, Turks, Egyptians, Pakistanis, and others.