Rami Benbenishty

School Climate, Observed Risky Behaviors, and Victimization as Predictors of High School Students’ Fear and Judgments of School Violence as a Problem

The primary aim of this study is to explore how school-related variables predict high school students’subjective judgements of school violence. Using a nationally representative sample (Israel) of 3,518 high school-aged youth, this study tested the hypotheses that (a) students’personal fear of attending school due to violence and (b) students’ assessment of a school violence problem are best understood as separate conceptual constructs. The findings support the proposition that student fear of attending school and assessments of school violence as a problem are influenced by different types of school-related variables. Student fear of attending school due to violence was directly related to experiences of personal victimization by students and school staff. In contrast with fear, students’judgements of their schools’overall violence problem were directly associated with the variables of school climate, observed risk behaviors, and personal victimization. Implications for policy, theory, and future research are highlighted.

School Violence and Theoretically Atypical Schools: The Principal’s Centrality in Orchestrating Safe Schools

Theories often assume that schools in communities with high violence also have high rates of school violence, yet there are schools with very low violence in high violence communities. Organizational variables within these schools may buffer community influences. Nine “atypical” schools are selected from a national database in Israel. Three years of intense qualitative and quantitative methods are employed at these schools. The most important variable found is the leadership of the principal. These schools emphasize a school reform approach rather than packaged school violence evidence-based programs. The schools demonstrate “outward” oriented ideologies, a schoolwide awareness of violence, consistent procedures, integrated use of cultural and religious symbols, visual manifestations of student care, and the beautification of school grounds.

Children's reports of emotional, physical and sexual maltreatment by educational staff in Israel.

OBJECTIVES This paper reports on the first nationally representative study on the prevalence of emotional, physical, and sexual victimization of children by school staff in Israel. The study identifies groups of children that are at higher risk for such maltreatment. We examine the differences in staff-induced victimization by the childrens gender, age group (junior high vs. high school), cultural groups (Jewish non-religious, Jewish-religious and Arab schools) and by socioeconomic status of the childrens families. METHOD The study is based on a nationally representative sample of 10,410 Israeli students in Grades 7-11 in 161 schools across Israel. Students completed questionnaires during class. In addition, we obtained data on the socioeconomic status of the families of the students in each school. RESULTS Overall, children reported high rates of victimization by staff members. Almost a quarter of all children participating in this study reported being emotionally maltreated by a staff member, almost a fifth (18.7%) reported being a victim of at least one type of physical forms of maltreatment, and 8.2% reported on at least one sexually inappropriate behavior by a staff member. The most vulnerable groups for all types of maltreatment were males, children in junior high schools, children in Arab schools, and children in schools with a high concentration of students coming from low-income and low-education families. CONCLUSIONS The overall prevalence rates of staff maltreatment should be considered high and unacceptable. Although rates of physical and sexual maltreatment were lower than emotional maltreatment, they were still high and are worthy of greater attention. Both cultural beliefs and low family socioeconomic status increase vulnerability to staff maltreatment. We suggest conducting an educational campaign to reduce rates of staff maltreatment. We also recommend allocating more resources to support staff in low SES neighborhoods, to alleviate their stress and to provide them with the support that would reduce maltreatment of children in the educational system.

The Children of Military Service Members: Challenges, Supports, and Future Educational Research

The wars in Afghanistan and Iraq have led to concerning psychological, behavioral, and academic outcomes for children in military families. Of the 1.2 million school-aged children of military service members, only 86,000 actually attend schools administered by the Department of Defense on military installations throughout the world. The remaining military children attend schools administered by civilian public schools, private schools, and other civilian-run educational agencies. At present, there is a knowledge gap in educational research regarding military-connected schools and students. Given the lack of educational research on military children, the primary objective of this review is to outline findings from noneducational disciplinary empirical literatures that are of direct relevance to schooling for educational researchers who want to conduct studies on military-connected schools and students. The authors reviewed studies on military children and their families that examined links between special circumstances and stressors as well as outcomes that are known to impact students’ school experiences. A synthesis of literature generated six themes: mental health in military families, child maltreatment, the impact of deployment on military children and families, the reintegration experience, war-related trauma of the returning veteran parent, and the experience of Reservist and Guard families in civilian contexts. The article concludes with a heuristic model for future educational research, including linkages to school reform.

Substance Use Among Military-Connected Youth The California Healthy Kids Survey

BACKGROUND Young people in military-connected families may be exposed to deleterious stressors, related to family member deployment, that have been associated with externalizing behaviors such as substance use. Substance use predisposes youth to myriad health and social problems across the life span. PURPOSE This study examined the prevalence and correlates of lifetime and recent substance use in a normative sample of youth who were either connected or not connected to the military. METHODS Data are from a subsample of the 2011 California Healthy Kids Survey (N=14,149). Items in the present analyses included present familial military affiliation (no one, parent, sibling); number of deployments (none, one, two or more); gender; grade; and race/ethnicity. Substance use items assessed whether the youth reported lifetime use of alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, other drugs, or prescription drugs; and recent (past 30 days) use of alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, and other drugs. RESULTS Multivariate analysis conducted in 2012 revealed that an increase in the number of deployments was associated with a higher likelihood of lifetime and recent use, with the exception of lifetime smoking. CONCLUSIONS These results indicate that experiences associated with deployment of a family member may increase the likelihood of substance use.

Well-being and suicidal ideation of secondary school students from military families.

BACKGROUND The mental health of children is a primary public health concern; adolescents of military personnel may be at increased risk of experiencing poorer well-being overall and depressive symptoms specifically. These adolescents experience individual and intrafamilial stressors of parental deployment and reintegration, which are directly and indirectly associated with internalizing behaviors. PURPOSE The present study sought to better understand the influence of parental military connectedness and parental deployment on adolescent mental health. METHODS Data from the 2011 California Healthy Kids Survey examined feeling sad or hopeless, suicidal ideation, well-being, and depressive symptoms by military connectedness in a subsample (n = 14,299) of seventh-, ninth-, and 11th-grade California adolescents. Cross-classification tables and multiple logistic regression analyses were used. RESULTS More than 13% of the sample had a parent or sibling in the military. Those with military connections were more likely to report depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation. Controlling for grade, gender, and race/ethnicity, reporting any familial deployment compared with no deployments was associated with increasing odds of experiencing sadness or hopelessness, depressive symptoms, and suicidal ideation. CONCLUSIONS Findings emphasize the increased risk of mental health issues among youth with parents (and siblings) in the military. Although deployment-related mental health stressors are less likely during peace, during times of war there is a need for increased screening in primary care and school settings. Systematic referral systems and collaboration with community-based mental health centers will bolster screening and services.

Keeping in touch: Ecological factors related to foster care visitation

Visitation, assumed to be important for children in foster care, has not been studied in sufficent detail. In the present study, patterns and characteristics of home and foster family visitation and telephone contact are described in a national sample of children in foster care in Israel (n=590). Relations between child, biological and foster family characteristics are explored by type of contact and foster placement. Parent-child contact is most strongly related to foster family characteristics and relations with the biological family. Patterns differ for relative and nonrelative foster families.

An Overview of Methods to Elicit and Model Expert Clinical Judgment and Decision Making

In this article, I analyze a variety of procedures and techniques to elicit and model expert clinical judgment and decision making. I classify these procedures into two basic types-input-output analyses and process-tracing techniques. A number of criteria are offered to assess the strengths and limitations of each technique.

Sexual harassment in Jewish and Arab public schools in Israel

OBJECTIVE Current empirical literature on sexual harassment in schools is mostly based on nonrepresentative samples of middle-class high-school Caucasian female students. Thus the scope of research regarding gender, age, and cultural differences is very limited. This article reports on findings on sexual harassment in Jewish and Arab schools in Israel with regard to gender, age, and cultural differences. METHOD The study is part of the first national survey on school violence in Israel. The representative sample includes 10,400 students in grades 7 through 11 attending public schools in Israel. Students were asked to report whether they were victims of specific acts of sexual harassment in school during the month before the survey. RESULTS Overall, 29.1% of the students were victims of at least one act of harassment. The more common acts were to show offensive pictures or to send obscene letters, to take off or to try to take off part of the students clothing, and to try to kiss a student. The most vulnerable groups are the Arab boys and 8th grade students. Report rates were the lowest among Arab girls. CONCLUSIONS Sexual harassment is prevalent in Israeli schools. The pattern of victimization is different for boys and girls and for students in Jewish and Arab schools. These patterns are a complex phenomenon that must be considered in the intervention and policy measures addressing sexual harassment at school.

The impact of sexual therapy on patients after cardiac events participating in a cardiac rehabilitation program.

Aims To assess the impact of a sexual therapy module on male patients participating in phase 2 cardiac rehabilitation after a cardiac event. Methods and results We randomly assigned 92 consecutive male patients (age ≤ 70 years, mean age 58 years), on their admission to phase 2 cardiac rehabilitation after myocardial infarction/acute coronary syndromes and/or coronary artery bypass graft, into a ‘sexual therapy group’ (n = 47) and a ‘control group’ (n = 45). Two cotherapists met with the patient and spouse for 5 h in three sessions, in addition to cardiac rehabilitation. Sexual therapy included patient education, cognitive restructuring, emotional support, guided imagery, and medication (Viagra). Controls participated in cardiac rehabilitation without sexual therapy. Self-report questionnaires were used three times: before, 1, and 4 months after sexual therapy. Baseline characteristics of both groups were similar. More sexual therapy patients resumed sexual activity within 1 month (87% vs. 50% in control). Sexual therapy patients improved more than controls in quality of sexual function in terms of libido, confidence to attain erection, satisfaction with sexual relationship, frequency of erection, and enjoyment of sex. Sexual therapy patients were highly satisfied with cardiac rehabilitation and sexual therapy. Conclusion Sexual therapy is significantly effective in improving the frequency and quality of sexual activity in a patients postcardiac event beyond the usual cardiac rehabilitation. Sexual therapy should be an integral part of cardiac rehabilitation. Eur J Cardiovasc Prev Rehabil 14:672-678