This study used experimental methodology to investigate the differential impact of various levels of sexual victimization on women's perceptions of risk and evaluative judgments of sexual assault within a dating interaction. Single- and multiple-incident victims were compared with nonvictims. Results supported the hypothesis that revictimized women would exhibit longer latencies than either single-incident victims or nonvictims in signaling that an audiotaped date rape should be halted. Revictimized women with greater posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, arousal symptoms in particular, exhibited latencies similar to those of nonvictims, whereas revictimized women with lower levels of PTSD symptoms had significantly longer latencies. Dissociative symptoms were not related to latency. These findings suggest that PTSD-related arousal symptoms may serve a buffering effect, increasing sensitivity to threat cues that portend a sexually coercive interaction.

IN BRIEF Most diabetic patients are managed by primary care physicians, but clinical inertia and limited time with patients hamper efforts to meet treatment goals. Successfully caring for the medical and psychosocial needs of the expanding diabetic population seen in primary care will require new strategies. This article reviews interdisciplinary efforts by primary care physicians, advanced practice nurses, and clinical pharmacists that can achieve improvements in clinical processes and outcomes at reasonable costs.

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This study investigated the relationship between college men's self-reported histories of coercive sexual behavior, alcohol consumption, and alcohol expectancies regarding sexual behaviors. Hypotheses were (a) history of sexually coercive behavior would be associated with more alcohol consumption, (b) sexually coercive men would hold greater alcohol expectancies for sexual behaviors, and (c) alcohol expectancies would moderate the relationship between alcohol consumption and sexual coercion. In addition, the authors hypothesized that alcohol expectancies would vary as a function of the method of sexual coercion used, such that men reporting that they had sexually coerced a woman by giving her alcohol would hold greater alcohol expectancies than would coercive men who used other methods. Results supported the first three hypotheses. However, men who used alcohol as a means of coercion did not hold significantly greater alcohol expectancies than did coercive men who used other means.

BackgroundThe large and growing number of probationers with mental illnesses pose significant challenges to the probationer officers who supervise them. Stigma towards mental illnesses among probation officers is largely unstudied and the effectiveness of training initiatives designed to educate probation officers about mental illness is unknown. To address these gaps in the literature, we report findings from a statewide mental health training initiative designed to improve probation officers’ knowledge of mental illnesses. A single-group pretest posttest design was used and data about stigma towards mental illnesses and knowledge of mental illnesses were collected from 316 probation officers. Data were collected prior to and shortly after officers viewed a series of educational training modules about mental illnesses.ResultsOfficers’ knowledge of mental illnesses increased and officers demonstrated lower levels of stigma towards persons with mental illnesses as evidenced by scores on a standardized scale.ConclusionMental health education can help decrease stigma and increase knowledge of mental illnesses among probation officers. More research is needed to assess the impact of these trainings on probationers’ mental health and criminal justice outcomes.