The Influence of Gun Victimization on Support for Gun Control Legislation.

The primary objective of the current study was to add to the literature and broaden our understanding of gun violence victims by examining attitudes towards gun legislation held by victims of gun violence. To our knowledge, there are only two quantitative studies that have examined the impact of gun victimization on attitudes towards gun control legislation. A secondary objective was to examine the link between impressions of the National Rifle Association (NRA) and gun policy preferences, which remains an understudied area in the gun legislation literature. The current study additionally examined other factors that may impact support for gun control measures. Utilizing data from a national sample of 880 adults and controlling for demographic predictors, logistic regression was employed to examine the impact of gun victimization on attitudes towards gun control legislation. Although prior gun victimization did not yield any significant findings, concordant with prior research, regression results indicated that gun ownership was a strong predictor of opposition to gun control among respondents. Interestingly, holding a favorable attitude towards the NRA was an even stronger predictor of opposition to firearms legislation than gun ownership. Findings point to the need for additional empirical research on the impact of gun victimization and the influence that organizations like the NRA have on public opinion and subsequent gun safety legislative efforts.

High-risk pregnancy in rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta): a case of ectopic, abdominal pregnancy with birth of a live, term infant, and a case of gestational diabetes complicated by pre-eclampsia.

BACKGROUND: Cases of abdominal pregnancy, in the form of intra-abdominal mummified fetuses, have been described in nonhuman primates. Gestational diabetes and pre-eclampsia are common pregnancy complications in women. METHODS: Two timed-bred rhesus monkeys had high-risk pregnancies, an abdominal pregnancy with delivery of a live term infant, and a case of gestational diabetes that later developed pre-eclampsia. RESULTS: The monkey that had abdominal pregnancy later died from septic peritonitis. The monkey had a colonic adenocarcinoma that may have allowed leakage of intestinal contents into the abdomen. Her infant was fostered to another female and survived. The monkey with gestational diabetes and pre-eclampsia was treated with a regimen similar to that used in women, and a live infant was delivered at day 157 of gestation by Caesarian section. CONCLUSION: These cases underscore the value of timed-breeding and the similarities between pregnancy complications in women and in nonhuman primates.

Exploring the relationship between alcohol use, childhood maltreatment, and treatment needs among female prisoners.

OBJECTIVE: This study examined the relationship between child maltreatment and adult alcohol dependency among a sample of newly incarcerated female prisoners. METHOD: This secondary data analysis utilized information gathered through face-to-face interviews with female inmates at intake (N = 1198) within the Texas prison system from 1998 to 1999. RESULTS: Using DSM-IV criteria we found that, among women who reported drinking at least 10 drinks in the last year, 40% scored as alcohol dependent. Bivariate findings revealed that women who were alcohol dependent were also more likely to have grown up in disorganized family situations, including parental drug and alcohol use-related problems, childhood neglect, and childhood physical and sexual abuse. As adults, these women were far more likely to have utilized mental health services and substance user treatment programs. Supportive of Widom and colleagues (1995), multivariate analyses revealed that childhood neglect (not physical or sexual abuse) was a significant predictor of alcohol dependency. Finally, among the alcohol dependent group, 62% indicated a willingness to participate in substance user treatment programs. CONCLUSIONS: These findings emphasize that childhood neglect is related to long-term negative consequences in the form of alcohol use related problems in adulthood. Our findings strongly point to the need for improved screening, assessment procedures, and programming for women prisoners.