Couples' self-control and marital conflict: Does similarity, complementarity, or totality matter more?

Research that approached self-control as a dyad-level predictor of relationship outcomes is hitherto scarce. To address this research gap, this study investigates three configurations of couples' level of self-control on marital conflict. We test three competing hypotheses suggested in the literature: similarity hypothesis, complementarity hypothesis, and totality hypothesis. The data used to test these hypotheses is a unique couple data (N = 1698 individuals from 894 married couples) of husbands and wives from a representative sample in Hong Kong. Two-level random-intercept models were employed. Based on our analysis with the difference-score method and response surface analysis, we find evidence to support the similarity hypothesis. The similarity of self-control between husband and wife is important in predicting marital conflict. In contrast, the total level of self-control is not predictive of marital conflict. This study highlights that marital conflict is strongly associated with the mismatch of self-control between partners.

Strain, self-control, and spousal violence: a study of husband-to-wife violence in Hong Kong.

This study examines the applicability of Agnew's strain theory and Gottfredson and Hirschi's self-control theory in explaining husband-to-wife psychological aggression and physical assault in a community survey of 871 couples in Hong Kong. Three strains, each belonging to 1 type of Agnew's types of strain, were selected, namely, dissatisfaction with family financial situation, dissatisfaction with relationship with spouse, and physical abuse by parents in childhood. Self-control was measured with a simplified version of 12 items selected from the 24-item Self-control Scale developed by Grasmick, Tittle, Bursik, and Ameklev (1993). The conditioning effect of self-control on the relationship between strain and husband-to-wife violence was also examined. Results show that 2 of the 3 types of strain and self-control significantly affected both types of spousal violence. In addition, self-control has a conditioning effect on the relationship between strain and husband-to-wife violence, reducing the likelihood of strain leading to violence. Theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed.

Heterogeneous and vulnerable: the health risks facing transnational female sex workers.

Representations of transnational sex workers have been dominated by the trafficked victim discourse that often overlooks the heterogeneity of this population and variations in the health risks that different sub-groups face. This paper addresses this deficiency by examining differences in the socio-economic backgrounds, working conditions, HIV/AIDS knowledge, and vulnerability to health risks of female sex workers from Russia, Vietnam, Thailand, and Mainland China currently working in the Chinese city of Macau. It also examines the correlates of three health risks: client-perpetrated violence, non-condom use and condom failure. The results show major differences in the socio-economic profiles, working conditions and exposure to health risks of the four groups of workers studied. They also suggest that age, ethnicity, education, economic pressure, AIDS and STI knowledge, and workplace condom-use norm are significant correlates of the three health risks examined. The findings shed light on the importance of locating the social and cultural contexts that constrain the response of different groups of transnational sex workers to health risks, and the need to tailor intervention measures to meet the specific conditions of individual groups. They also point out the urgency of tackling the interpersonal and structural obstacles to safe sex practices among marginalised populations.

Wife beating in South Africa: an imbalance theory of resources and power.

This article develops an imbalance theory to explain physical violence against women in intimate relationships in South Africa. The theory proposes four typologies: dependence, compensation, submission, and transgression, through which imbalances in resource contribution and power distribution between spouses are hypothesized to contribute to violence. The dependence hypothesis suggests that economic dependence of the wife will lead to more violence. The compensation hypothesis argues that the husband will use force to compensate for his inability to live up to the male-provider norm. The submission hypothesis suggests that violence will increase due to the submission of women in male-dominated families. Finally, the transgression hypothesis argues that men in female-dominated families will use force to punish their wives for supposedly transgressing the gender norm of male dominance. Empirical evidence provided some support for the dependence, submission, and transgression hypotheses.

Client-perpetuated violence and condom failure among female sex workers in southwestern China.

OBJECTIVES: This research examined factors associated with condom failure, i.e., slippage or breakage, among female sex workers (FSWs) in China. Special attention was paid to the association between client-perpetuated violence and condom failure. METHODS: Two hundred FSWs were recruited for a community-based voluntary human immunodeficiency virus prevention project. Participants completed a face-to-face structured questionnaire that collected information on their sociodemographic characteristics, working conditions, experience of client-perpetuated violence, and sexual risk behavior. RESULTS: The prevalence of condom slippage and condom breakage in the 3 months before the survey was reported at 36.2% and 34%, respectively, of all sexual contact in which a condom was used. The prevalence of client-perpetuated violence in the previous year was 68.4%. Logistic regression analysis showed that after adjusting for other factors, condom failure was significantly associated with drug use [adjusted odds ratios (aOR = 4.01)], condom use of coworkers (aOR = 0.39), and client-perpetuated violence [aOR = 2.30 (low violence vs. high violence)]. CONCLUSION: Condom failure is a common problem among FSWs, particularly drug-using sex workers and those who have experienced client-perpetuated violence. On the other hand, condom use of coworkers is negatively associated with condom failure.

Obstacles to colorectal cancer screening in Chinese: a study based on the health belief model.

BACKGROUND: Colorectal cancer (CRC) has emerged as the second most common cancer in Asia. This study uses the Health Belief Model (HBM) to examine the factors associated with the uptake of CRC testing. METHODS: A population-based telephone survey in which 1,004 randomly selected Chinese residents of Hong Kong aged between 30 and 65 yr were interviewed in 2006. Instruments were developed to measure the variables pertinent to the HBM, including perceived susceptibility, severity, benefit, barriers, and cues to action. The relationships of these predictors with CRC testing were examined using bivariate and multiple logistic regression analyses. RESULTS: Ten percent of the respondents had undertaken a CRC screening test. In the multiple logistic regression analyses, knowledge factors that were positively associated with CRC testing included knowledge of CRC symptoms (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 3.33, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.21-9.11) and knowledge of CRC risk factors (aOR 2.61, 95% CI 1.16-5.88). Five of the variables pertaining to the HBM were significant correlates of CRC testing-perceived severity of CRC (aOR 0.28, 95% CI 0.13-0.65), perceived health and psychological barriers to CRC testing (aOR 0.42, 95% CI 0.21-0.84, 95% CI 0.21-0.85), perceived access barriers to CRC testing (aOR 0.22, 95% CI 0.05-0.85), physician's recommendation (indicator of cues to action) (aOR 23.50, 95% CI 10.66-51.80), and having health insurance (indicator of cues to action) (aOR 2.06, 95% CI 1.01-4.19). CONCLUSIONS: CRC testing compliance among this Asian population is low. Knowledge of CRC symptoms and risk factors are low. Perceived health, psychological, and access barriers to CRC testing are high. The physician's recommendation and having health insurance coverage significantly increase testing, but physicians mainly recommend patients with a family history of CRC for testing, and only around one-third of the population has health insurance.

The influence of power, poverty and agency in the negotiation of condom use for female sex workers in mainland China.

This paper analyses barriers to consistent condom use in the context of transactional sex among female sex workers in mainland China. It reveals how differences in socioeconomic profile and organisational hierarchies amongst different groups of sex workers create different barriers to condom use. Data was collected by means of field observation of entertainment venues and in-depth interviews. Findings suggest that, compared with other sex workers, street-walkers are less likely to use condoms with their clients, hold highly disadvantaged socioeconomic profiles and work in isolation. Major barriers to condom use link to economic deprivation and threats of violence from clients. For the women working in entertainment venues, drunkenness of clients, pricing mechanisms and familiarity with clients pose barriers to condom use. Yet within all these constraints women are not powerless and instead find ways to exercise agency and gain personal protection and economic advantage. In the newly emerging China, both structural hierarchies of work and individual agency inform condom use by female sex workers. Future HIV intervention programmes need to take these factors into account in order to meet the needs of different groups of women sex workers.

Ethnicity and risk factors in needle sharing among intravenous drug users in Sichuan Province, China.

Combining survey and ethnographic data, this research examined differences in the risk factors associated with needle sharing amongst intravenous drug users (IDUs) in the Sichuan Province of China. A comparison was made between the province's majority Han population and its Yi minority. We developed a theoretical framework consisting of risk factors at the individual level (including risk factors such as lack of AIDS knowledge, low self-efficacy, and economic pressure), interpersonal level (having an IDU primary partner and lack of family support), and community level (social discrimination). The findings suggested that the Yi minority group was more socially disadvantaged and had a higher risk of contracting HIV than the Han group. Furthermore, the factors that put them at risk were different to those which affected the Han group. OLS regression results showed that, for Han IDUs, needle sharing was positively associated with having an IDU primary partner and with economic pressure. On the other hand, for the minority group, needle sharing was significantly associated with being male, AIDS knowledge, the lack of family support, and social discrimination. These findings highlight the need for HIV prevention work to target marginalized populations in China, such as ethnic minorities, and to tailor appropriate prevention strategies to meet the specific needs of different groups.

Gender and HIV risk behavior among intravenous drug users in Sichuan Province, China.

Using data from a community-based study of injection drug users (IDUs) in Sichuan Province in China, this study compared the level of HIV risk behavior (needle sharing and unsafe sex) amongst female and male IDUs, and examined the risk factors separately for these two groups. Five risk factors were examined in the analysis, including a lack of family support, having an IDU primary sex partner, economic pressure, lack of access to a methadone program, and younger age. Regression results showed that male and female IDUs had different risk factors. For male IDUs, younger age and a lack of family support increased their level of HIV risk behavior. For female IDUs, having an IDU primary sex partner and economic pressure were predictive of their HIV risk behavior. Sex differences in risk factors are explained with respect to gender norms surrounding HIV risk behavior in the context of social relations. Female IDUs who were sex workers suffered additional HIV risk due to their powerlessness in negotiating safe sex with male customers. Practical implications of the findings for HIV/AIDS prevention and intervention work in China are discussed.

Mechanisms of racial inequalities in prevalence of diarrhoea in South Africa.

Decades of apartheid policies have resulted in marked racial inequalities in health in South Africa. The black:white rate ratio of diarrhoea among children aged less than five years, one of the five most common causes of infant and child deaths, stood at 6.5 in 1998. Using data from the 1998 South African Demographic and Health Survey, this paper examines the mechanisms of this racial disparity. The research confirms the presence of persistent racial inequalities in access to safe drinking-water and sanitation and in maternal education and household wealth, with the black population constituting the most disadvantaged group. While the living environment and access to safe drinking-water explain the excessive risk of diarrhoea among the black population compared to the coloured and Indian populations, the excessive risk of diarrhoea among the black population compared to the white population cannot be explained by disparities in the living environment, hygiene levels, and socioeconomic factors.