Bystander opportunity in situations of alcohol and violence risk: Exploring the feasibility of collecting daily diary data.

Objective: One strategy to address the health issues among college students is through bystander intervention. However, much is still unknown about bystander behavior. The purpose of the current study was to assess the feasibility of daily diary methodology as applied to bystander opportunity. Method: Using a convenience sample, we examined (1) the frequency at which students encounter alcohol use risk and SDV risk bystander opportunities, and (2) the association between participants' daily alcohol use and daily bystander opportunity. Participants were a small group of 32 college students (75% women; 100% heterosexual; 93.7% White; 6.3% multiracial; 3.1% Hispanic) who took up to nine daily diary surveys for a total of 207 days. Results: Over 80% of participants completed the required days. Participants experienced at least one bystander opportunity on 24% of days. Participants were significantly more likely to report an alcohol risk bystander opportunity on days when they drank alcohol, compared to non-drinking days.

Post-traumatic Growth in Women With Histories of Addiction and Victimization Residing in a Sober Living Home.

Research consistently documents the deleterious sequelae of interpersonal trauma, including domestic and sexual violence (DSV). More recently, however, researchers and practitioners have focused on positive outcomes, such as post-traumatic growth (PTG), in survivors of DSV. Although research has begun to document the prevalence and correlates of PTG, no study to our knowledge has explored PTG in a sample of women with histories of addiction and victimization residing in a trauma-informed sober living home (SLH). The purpose of the current study was to examine this gap in the literature. Participants were 59 women (89.8% White; 86.4% heterosexual; mean age = 41.6) who completed a survey while residing in a SLH. Most women reported moderate to high levels of PTG. At the bivariate level PTG was related to less depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, and financial worries, and greater active coping, and sense of community. PTG was also related to the absence of past 6-month physical intimate partner violence. In regression analyses, PTG was related to less depression and greater sense of community. These data offer insights into modifiable factors such as fostering a sense of community while also promoting mental health treatment that could be the focus of interventions to increase PTG in women with histories of addiction and victimization residing in SLHs.

Feasibility and Acceptability of a High School Relationship Abuse and Sexual Assault Bystander Prevention Program: School Personnel and Student Perspectives.

Relationship abuse (RA) and sexual assault (SA) are concerning issues for high school youth that occur at alarmingly high rates. Therefore, school-based prevention programs are often developed to try to mitigate these issues. The attitudinal and behavioral changes stemming from school-based intervention programs are often the primary focus of outcome research, but it is also important to identify program feasibility (e.g., dosage, adherence) and acceptability (e.g., likeability). The current study assessed the feasibility and acceptability of a high school classroom-based RA and SA intervention, Bringing in the Bystander-High School Curriculum (BITB-HSC); the BITB-HSC also includes a workshop and reading materials for school personnel and parents. Data were collected after the BITB-HSC was administered in high schools from students who participated in the program (N = 970) and school personnel who were exposed to some components of the BITB-HSC and provided feedback (N = 161). Results indicate that overall students were adherent to the BITB-HSC (e.g., attended sessions) and that the majority of students understood the information presented, thought the program was good, and liked the facilitators. School personnel data indicated that they were generally supportive of the program and found the school personnel workshop and handout helpful. These findings extend current knowledge regarding the implementation of school-based violence prevention programs and highlight the importance of research on program feasibility and acceptability when developing a program for large-scale dissemination.

Youth Strategies for Positive Bystander Action in Situations of Dating and Sexual Violence: Implications for Measurement and Programming.

Research on bystander behavior in situations of dating violence (DV) and sexual violence (SV) in youth populations is growing; yet, there is a distinct lack of qualitative studies to identify nuances in specifically how and when youth are taking action to help to inform theory, measurement, and programming. The current study examined bystander action plans of high school youth after their participation in a classroom-based, bystander-focused prevention program, to inform bystander behavior measurement and programming within the context of DV and SV research and practice. High school youth (N = 889) from schools across New England completed a bystander-focused violence prevention curriculum and subsequently wrote a bystander plan of action addressing a situation of DV or SV that they had seen before or were likely to see again in the future. The responses were qualitatively coded for type of situation and bystander action, while noting situational aspects (e.g., location, relationship to those involved, engagement of others). Students reported a variety of strategies (ranging from directly telling the perpetrator to stop to creating a distraction) and ways of thinking about situations of DV and SV, and related behaviors (e.g., bullying). Many students listed unique situations and bystander behaviors that were not addressed as part of the curriculum. Bystander action plans also varied as a function of situational variables (e.g., relationship to those involved). These results indicate that measures of bystander behavior for high school students need to look different from established measures for older age groups. Furthermore, bystander programming may be more effective if more thoughtful attention is given to how youth see helping in situations of DV and SV as connected to other problematic behaviors.

A once-in-one-hundred-year event? A survey assessing deviation between perceived and actual understanding of flood risk terminology.

The US National Flood Insurance Program maps and classifies flood risk based on observed data for the frequency of flood events, using terms such as '100-year flood' and '500-year flood.' The purpose of these classifications is to convey information about the likelihood of a flood event to property owners and to inform the decision or mandate to purchase flood insurance. The flooding that followed Hurricane Harvey in 2017 brought heightened use of 100-year-flood terminology in the media. Often, the term was incorrectly used, misrepresenting the risk that is intended to be conveyed by the technical term. Misuse of flood terminology and related misperception of risk has important implications for society, including over- or under-insuring property owners and inadequate individual and collective preparedness. This paper presents the findings of a survey conducted to gauge understanding of Federal Emergency Management Agency flood risk terminology and to examine links between estimating flood risk and proximity to flooding, knowledge of independent probabilities, and demographics. We found that the driving force behind correctly interpreting technical flood terminology was understanding of independent probabilities, while education and recent exposure or proximity to a severe flood event did not have a statistically significant influence.

Disease Risk from Human-Environment Interactions: Environment and Development Economics for Joint Conservation-Health Policy.

Emergence of COVID-19 joins a collection of evidence that local and global health are influenced by human interactions with the natural environment. Frameworks that simultaneously model decisions to interact with natural systems and environmental mechanisms of zoonotic disease spread allow for identification of policy levers to mitigate disease risk and promote conservation. Here, we highlight opportunities to broaden existing conservation economics frameworks that represent human behavior to include disease transmission in order to inform conservation-disease risk policy. Using examples from wildlife markets and forest extraction, we call for environment, resource, and development economists to develop and analyze empirically-grounded models of people's decisions about interacting with the environment, with particular attention to LMIC settings and ecological-epidemiological risk factors. Integrating the decisions that drive human-environment interactions with ecological and epidemiological research in an interdisciplinary approach to understanding pathogen transmission will inform policy needed to improve both conservation and disease spread outcomes.

Effects of a brief interpersonal conflict cognitive reappraisal intervention on improvements in access to emotion regulation strategies and depressive symptoms in college students.

Objective: Research has demonstrated relative success with brief interventions that utilize social psychological theory to target the root cause of unwanted behaviours. Given the intersections among anxious attachment, depression, and emotion dysregulation, the current research utilises an interpersonal conflict cognitive reappraisal intervention to evaluate improvements in depressive symptoms. We also evaluated mediation via improvements in emotion regulation and moderation by attachment anxiety. Design: Undergraduates (N = 260) completed a baseline assessment and were randomised to one of four writing conditions: An interpersonal conflict from (a) their own perspective; (b) the other party's perspective; or (c) a neutral, third-party perspective (primary experimental condition) or about their day (control condition). They also completed a follow-up survey online two weeks later. Main outcome measures included limited access to emotion regulation strategies and depressive symptoms. Results: Consistent with hypotheses, compared to control, participants who adopted the perspective of neutral third party reported improvements in access to emotion regulation strategies. There was also a significant indirect effect on depressive symptoms through changes in strategies. Finally, improving strategies led to a reduction in depressive symptoms, especially for those higher in attachment anxiety. Conclusion: We present promising emerging results for a single-session, conflict-focused, brief cognitive reappraisal intervention on changes in emotion regulation and depressive symptoms.

Incorporating Health Outcomes into Land-Use Planning.

The global trend toward increased agricultural production puts pressure on undeveloped areas, raising the question of how to optimally allocate land. Land-use change has recently been linked to a number of human health outcomes, but these are not routinely considered in land-use decision making. We review examples of planners' currently used strategies to evaluate land use and present a conceptual model of optimal land use that incorporates health outcomes. We then present a framework for evaluating the health outcomes of land-use scenarios that can be used by decision makers in an integrated approach to land-use planning.

Effects of a brief cognitive reappraisal intervention on reductions in alcohol consumption and related problems.

Research has shown links between interpersonal conflict and problematic drinking behaviors as a way to cope. The present research examined the effects of a brief interpersonal conflict cognitive reappraisal intervention on short-term reductions in alcohol-related problems in a sample of college student drinkers. Undergraduates who were regular drinkers (N = 190) participated in a randomized control online study, completing self-reported measures of alcohol consumption and alcohol-related problems at baseline and 2 weeks later. After completing the baseline survey, participants completed a brief writing intervention during which they were asked to reflect on a recent interpersonal conflict and write about it from 1 of 3 possible perspectives, 2 of which were targeting cognitive reappraisal (i.e., a neutral, third-party perspective and the other party's perspective), their own perspective, or to reflect on their activities that day (control). Results from negative binomial regression models supported both reappraisal conditions: Compared with control, those who thought about the conflict from a neutral third-party perspective and those who thought about the conflict from the other party's perspective reported significantly fewer drinking problems at follow-up. Results from this study suggest preliminary efficacy of a single-session writing intervention aimed at reappraising interpersonal conflict. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Longitudinal Associations of Binge Drinking with Interpersonal Violence Among Adolescents.

Binge drinking may be associated with adolescents' experience of multiple types of interpersonal violence perpetration and victimization, and if so, could be a malleable intervention target to prevent interpersonal violence. The current article explores the between- and within-person associations of binge drinking (i.e., 4/5 or more drinks in a row for girls/boys) with interpersonal violence among adolescents (N = 1322, 50.3% girls/women, 88.9% White/non-Hispanic, 85.9% heterosexual, 18.6% free/reduced lunch, aged 13-19) using a longitudinal design (three waves of data collection across more than a year). Overall, adolescents who engaged in binge drinking at more time points were more likely to perpetrate sexual harassment and stalking, and more likely to be victims of stalking and dating violence. At time points when adolescents had engaged in binge drinking in the past month, they were more likely to perpetrate dating violence, less likely to perpetrate stalking, and more likely to be sexual harassment victims. Addressing binge drinking in prevention programs may reduce some forms of interpersonal violence.

Impacts of Pathogen Introduction Risk on Importer Behavior and Gains from Trade in the Livestock Industry.

Trade eliminates geographic barriers, allowing for novel exchange of goods and services, but also creates pathways for the unintentional spread of infectious pathogens such as foot and mouth disease. In the absence of trade regulation, a producer's choice of import origin depends on relative prices and costs associated with trading partners. This paper develops a framework for exploring importer behavior in a non-regulated economy, allowing for price and risk heterogeneity among potential import sources. In the model, importers determine the risk of introducing foot and mouth disease to home soil and choose import volumes using risk and market data. When importers consider the possibility of unreported or undetected outbreaks, they choose to import from multiple sources to minimize risk and simultaneously create gains from trade over the regulated outcome. Our results have implications for the development of import and inspection policies that could be specifically designed to target highest risk imports of livestock.