This study explores characteristics of youth who experienced domestic violence in Poland. Specifically, young adolescents who were victims of physical abuse perpetrated by parents and young adolescents who were exposed to parental intimate partner violence (IPV) were studied to determine whether the groups had similar or different psychological outcomes. Additionally, the study looked into ways by which these youth cope with stress and demonstrate self-efficacy. Data were collected from 90 youth aged 11 to 14 years using quota sampling; 30 were victims of physical abuse, 30 were victims of exposure to parental IPV, and 30 were members of a comparison group. Parents gave written consent for participation while adolescents provided verbal assent and subsequently completed questionnaires. Analyses revealed that adolescents who experienced physical abuse showed higher levels of trait anxiety and outwardly directed anger, and a lower sense of self-efficacy, than adolescents exposed to IPV. In contrast, those exposed to parental IPVexhibited a lower level of trait anxiety, a higher level of inwardly directed anger, and a greater sense of strength and perseverance. No statistically significant differences existed between groups in terms of coping with stress. The findings suggests that adolescents experiencing different types of family violence victimization may have different outcomes, which could call for differential treatment. Future research should more closely examine victims of physical abuse and exposure to IPV in Poland to see if findings hold. This would help clinicians recognize outcomes associated with different experiences and tailor appropriate strategies.

The presented study aims to compare men and women (N = 227), perpetrators of domestic violence in terms of psychosocial characteristics, present conditions of socialization in which the perpetrator grew and the motives for committing violent act against partners. The population of violence offenders under study and its sub-groups (women and men) did not differ from the norm group in terms of personality traits and temperament. The differences were noticed only in two KSP scales: secure style and avoidance style. The comparison of women and men revealed differences, in three variables: openness for experience, emotional intelligence and avoidance-ambivalence style. Moreover, study showed that despite the good relationship between the subjects’ parents, some perpetrators suffered violence from the loved ones. It should be noted that women were more affected by physical and psychological aggression in childhood. Analysis of motives to commit acts of violence indicated that they are associated with three factors: advantage over your partner, influence and control.

BackgroundHashimoto thyroiditis and type II diabetes are chronic diseases which have adverse consequences impacting emotional and cognitive functioning. Healthful behaviours focused on improvement of one’s health or on combating the illness play a key role in psychosocial functioning of a person, particularly one suffering from a long-term illness. The aim of the research was the measurement and analysis of healthful behaviours and the distinction of variables determining healthful behaviours. We attempted to examine the connection between adhering to healthful behaviours, and the level of illness acceptance, self-efficacy and self-esteem, in terms of exhibiting healthful behaviours in the above-mentioned groups of patients.Participants and procedureThe study group consisted of 140 persons (70 persons with type II diabetes, 70 persons with Hashimoto’s disease). The following measurement techniques were used: the Health Behaviour Inventory by Z. Juczyński, the General Self-Efficacy Scale by R. Schwarzer and M. Jerusalem adapted for Polish by Z. Juczyński, the Acceptance of Illness Scale by B. J. Felton, T. A. Revenson and G. A. Hinrichsen, and the Self-Esteem Scale by M. Rosenberg.ResultsThe results show that for the group of type II diabetes patients self-efficacy constitutes a statistically significant moderate positive predictor of psychological attitude and appropriate eating habits, and is a positive weak predictor of general healthful behaviour and prophylaxis at the tendency level. For Hashimoto’s sufferers the sense of self-efficacy is a statistically significant moderate predictor of healthful behaviours.ConclusionsThe study investigated significant relations between the level of illness acceptance, the sense of self-efficacy and self-esteem, and engagement in healthful behaviour. The sense of self-efficacy determines higher healthful practices in both research groups. The study allowed for a comparison of two groups of long-term illnesses sufferers – type II diabetes, and Hashimoto’s disease – in terms of adhering to healthful behaviours, and dependencies between selected psychological variables and patients’ preferred healthful behaviours.

The objective of the research conducted by the author was to obtain an answer to the question: could we distinguish different types of intrafamily violence perpetrators considering a specified profile of personality factors and temperament traits and how domestic violence perpetrators cope with stressful situations? The research was conducted on a group of 325 men who were convicted pursuant to article 207 §1 & 2 of harassment over family members. In terms of a gender the group was homogenous. On the basis of the literature on the subject, the following personality traits of violence perpetrators were categorised: locus of control, self-acceptance, aggressiveness, hostility, intelligent quotient and temperament traits. The following research techniques were employed in the study: the Wechsler Intelligence Scale, Berger's Self-Acceptance Scale, the Delta Questionnaire by R. Drwal, the SABD Questionnaire-Buss-Durkee (prepared by J.M. Stanik, A. Roszkowska, J. Kucharewicz), Formal Characteristics of Behaviour-Temperament Inventory (FCZ-KT) by J. Strelau, the WCQ questionnaire (The Ways of Coping Questionnaire) by R.S. Lazarus and S. Folkman, a categorised interview and an analysis of court records. As a result of the analysis conducted on a group of the studied sample of violence perpetrators, four subgroups (clusters), differing in terms of selected personality traits, were specified. They are reactively aggressive perpetrators (113 persons), perpetrators of low preventive competences (71 persons), psychopathic and retaliatory perpetrators (66 persons) and perpetrators with a big adaptive potential (75 persons). Further on, four distinguished groups have been characterised in terms of stress-coping strategies, and psychological processes of coping with stress proceeded differently in the research group.

In the article analysed the practice of obtaining opinions of expert psychologist in juvenile delinquency cases. The choice of types of cases is premeditated, and is based on their specific character. Juvenile delinquency cases are special in terms of their subjects (children and adolescence) and aims to be achieved (the welfare of the child/adolescence). Forensic psychology expertise plays a significant part in arriving at a court ruling. Therefore, it is important to raise the quality of diagnostic procedures, expertise activities, and to establish evaluation standards for evidence from psychological expertise. The presentation of proposed psychological expertise standards should take a form of guidelines and recommendations to be met by the experts, and serve as an aid to expertise evaluation performed by courts. To reach these goals, we gathered and analyzed court records of juvenile cases in six districts (N = 253). The results of the research are related to a) the analysis of the methodological and diagnostic procedures used by experts in the process of psychological evaluation in juvenile cases and b) the formulation of principles for evaluating the evidence of psychological opinions for trial authorities. The research project indicates the practice of psychological experts by the court, the diagnostic procedure and the method of formulating psychological opinions. The analysis of the material showed, first of all, the diversity of the diagnostic and opinion practices of psychologists, thus confirming the lack of procedures standardizing the process of psychological evaluation. The variety of assessment tools, and method, and areas of diagnosis make difficulties in assessing of the evidentiary value of psychological-court opinions. The lack of principle for assessing level of opinions’ quality may promote the practice of so-called junk science.