Harmful Behaviors Research Articles

Remedies of Online Gendered Violence against Women in the Digital Context

Online gendered violence (OGV) is a range of harmful behaviors committed through the use of technology as a means of enforcing gender norms that result in mainly sexual and psychological harm or suffering to women. Based on psychological studies, OGV can be classified into four distinct categories: digital sexual harassment, appearance-based violence, gender role-based violence, and anti-feminism violence. The impact of OGV on women is amplified by the systemic discrimination they face in society, making their experiences of online violence unique and especially harmful. This paper explores the legal recognition of OGV, the mechanisms for holding perpetrators accountable, and the potential relief paths available to victims. Through a detailed analysis of these issues, this study aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of how the legal system can be enhanced to more effectively respond to OGV. It argues that a multifaceted approach—one that includes legal reforms, algorithmic transparency, and stronger social support systems—is essential in mitigating the effects of OGV and ensuring justice for women in digital spaces.

Why is regulation of the online world urgently needed to protect children’s wellbeing?

Abstract Background The online world affords children many benefits, such as connectivity and access to educational and cultural content. Simultaneously, it increases their likelihood of encountering harmful or distressing web-based content and behaviour, such as marketing for harmful products, violent or discriminatory material, and cyberbullying. Yet, there is a dearth of objective research globally on children’s real-time experiences, with current research relying on self-reports or observations made in experimental conditions. This paper reports on the nature and extent of children’s online world. Methods Kids Online Aotearoa is a cross-sectional observational study of children’s real-time experiences of the online world. A strategic sample of 180 12-year-olds from schools in the Wellington region of Aotearoa, New Zealand, used Zoom video conferencing software to record their online world for four days. Recordings were analysed manually and using AI. Results Children spend most of their time online on their phones, often using TikTok. Children spend 25 % of their online phone time gaming or watching games (game time). They encounter many gambling and gambling-like activities while doing so. Of game time, 16% of the time children are exposed to marketing. Preliminary analysis reveals that children are exposed to marketing for alcohol, junk food, tobacco, vapes and gambling. This is counter to national legislation prohibiting or restricting such marketing to children. Conclusions This novel methodology reveals the actual online experiences of children as they go about their daily lives. This includes engaging in harmful behaviours such as gambling and encountering harmful product marketing. While from New Zealand, this study is likely to be relevant for other countries given the global reach of the online world. The research indicates the urgent need for national and global government regulation of the online world to protect the rights of children and ensure their wellbeing. Key messages • Kids Online Aotearoa reveals the nature and extent of children’s online world, including their exposure to harmful product marketing. • National and global regulation of the online world is urgently needed to protect child rights and wellbeing.

The influence of dark personality and pornography on sexual aggression beliefs

IntroductionViolence against women, particularly sexual violence, poses a significant public health concern. Predispositions toward perpetrating such acts often stem from the acceptance of myths that justify or deny these behaviours. This study aimed to explore how dark personality traits (narcissism, Machiavellianism, psychopathy, and sadism) and pornography consumption relate to the acceptance of these myths.MethodsSurveying 598 participants, the research employed Latent Profile Analyses (LPA) to identify distinct population profiles, Additionally, regression analyses were employed to further explore the relationships among variables.ResultsThree profiles emerged, showcasing varying degrees of acceptance of sexual aggression myths. The most concerning profile, encompassing 9.2% of participants, displayed the highest alignment with these myths, alongside elevated scores in dark personality traits and pornography consumption. Notwithstanding the three profiles showed significant differences in the acceptance of these myths. Interestingly, the regression analysis highlighted that Machiavellianism stood out as the primary predictor for accepting sexual aggression myths, overshadowing the influence of pornography consumption.ConclusionThis emphasizes the role of personality traits in influencing attitudes towards sexual aggression myths. Moreover, implications for tailored prevention strategies, focusing on high-risk profiles, are discussed, highlighting the potential for targeted interventions to address harmful beliefs and behaviours.

Gender Swap in Virtual Reality for Supporting Inclusion and Implications in the Workplace

OCCUPATIONAL APPLICATIONS We explored the potential impacts of a virtual gender swap on perceptions toward sexual harassment, which is a harmful behavior that lacks respect and inclusivity. Given that perceptions of harassing behaviors can vary, and that gender may influence one’s interpretation of such behaviors, we implemented gender swap in virtual reality (VR) to examine changes in sensitivity to harassment across genders. Participants reported harassing behaviors as more inappropriate when embodying female avatars, regardless of their own gender. Our results suggest that gender swap in VR may raise awareness and narrow the gender gap in harassment perceptions, showing potential of VR-based interventions for immersive workplace training to effectively address biases and promote inclusivity among diversity, equity, and inclusion training. Our study also shows the potential of VR to simulate diverse scenarios and perspectives for tailored training experiences that cater to the specific needs and challenges of different occupational settings.

“What is all the damage the drugs are doing to my body?” A study of the effect of internalized stigma on harm reduction information-seeking behavior of people who use opioids in Kensington

The United States is in the midst of an opioid crisis. The rate of overdose deaths rose 30% from 2019 to 2020, numbers that represent an escalation theorized to have been brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. Over 112,000 people died of drug overdoses, mainly from synthetic opioids, like fentanyl, in 2023 (CDC, 2024). This poster will display the results of a mixed-methods survey conducted with 101 people who use opioids in the Kensington neighborhood of Philadelphia- commonly called the epicenter of the opioid crisis. Participants were asked about their experiences with getting harm reduction information and how those experiences interacted with their own feelings of stigma. They were asked about their harm reduction information needs, experiences looking for this information, and how best to provide it to them. This poster will display current unpublished results to-date. The data analysis has revealed a meaningful impact on information-seeking behavior for participants who have heightened internalized stigma- even to their known detriment. This study is meaningful to stakeholders, including librarians, who may provide public health information to the community of people addicted to opioids. And, to the conference theme, what is more ethical that providing harm-reduction information to the addicted?

Substance Use and Adverse Mental Health Disparities Between Heterosexual and Sexual Minority Service Members in the U.S. Military.

Nationally representative studies have shown that lesbian, gay, and bisexual adults have higher levels of substance use than heterosexual adults. In the military, substance use is often associated with adverse mental health outcomes and is often comorbid with other mental health conditions and adverse or harmful behaviors. Few military studies to date have comprehensively examined the relationship between sexual orientation, mental health, and substance use. Data from the 2018 Health-Related Behaviors Survey (n = 17,166) were used. Univariate and multivariable logistic regression models were used to examine the association between sexual orientation and substance use. Regression models were also used to examine whether measures of mental health moderate the relationship between sexual orientation and substance use. Compared to heterosexual individuals, lesbian and gay individuals were more likely to engage in illicit drug use (adjusted odds ratio = 3.27; 95% CI, 1.45 to 7.36). Bisexual individuals were more likely to binge drink (adjusted odds ratio = 1.37; 95% CI, 1.08 to 1.74). Individuals with moderate or serious psychological distress were more likely to report binge drinking or smoking tobacco. Individuals with serious psychological distress were more likely to use illicit drugs. None of the interactions tested in this study were statistically significant. Substance use in the military was more likely among sexual minority individuals compared to heterosexual individuals. These findings reflect the patterns of substance use seen in the general population. Increased levels of psychological distress were associated with both the lesbian, gay, and bisexual population in this study and self-reported substance use behaviors. Further investigation of health disparities by sexual orientation may inform more efficacious treatment and prevention programs.

Empowering Digital Civility with an NLP Approach for Detecting Twitter Cyberbullying through Boosted Ensembles

As the number of social networking sites grows, so do cyber dangers. Cyberbullying is harmful behaviour that uses technology to intimidate, harass or harm someone, often on social media platforms like Twitter. Machine learning is the optimal approach for cyberbullying detection on Twitter to process large amounts of data, identify patterns of offensive behaviour, and automate the detection process for corpus of tweets. To identify cyber threats using a trained model, the Boosted Ensemble (BE) technique is assessed with various machine learning algorithms such as Convolutional Neural Network (CNN), Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM), Naive Bayes (NB), Decision Tree (DT), Support Vector Machine (SVM), Bidirectional LSTM (BILSTM), Recurrent Neural Network LSTM (RNN-LSTM), Multi-Modal Cyberbullying Detection (MMCD) and Random Forest (RF). These classifiers are trained on the vectorized data to classify the tweets to identify cyberbullying threats. The proposed framework can detect cyberbullying cases precisely on tweets. The significance of the work lies in detecting and mitigating cyber threats in real-time and it impacts in enhancing the safety and well-being of social media users by reducing instances of cyberbullying and other cyber threat. The comparative analysis is done using metrices like accuracy, precision, recall and F1-score and the comparison results shows that boosted ensemble technique outperforms other compared algorithms with its overall performance. The accuracy rate of CNN, LSTM, NB, DT, SVM, RF, BILSTM and BE (92.5%, 93.5%, 84.6%, 88%, 89.3%, 92%, 93.75% and 96%), precision rate of CNN, LSTM, NB, DT, SVM, RF, RNN-LSTM and BE (90.2%, 91.3%, 88%, 85%, 86%, 91.6%, 92.1% and 94%), recall rate of CNN, LSTM, NB, DT, SVM, RF, BILSTM and BE (89.8%, 90.7%, 90%, 82%, 88.67%, 89%, 91.04% and 93.7%) and F1 score of CNN, LSTM, NB, DT, SVM, RF, MMCD and BE (90.6%, 91.8%, 85%, 84.56% 87.2%, 90%, 84.6% and 94.89%).

The effectiveness of mindfulness-based therapy on enhancing adjustment and reducing impulsivity among Iranian couples

The aim of this study was to assess the effectiveness of a mindfulness-based training program in improving marital adjustment and reducing impulsivity among Iranian couples. The study used a quasi-experimental design with two groups: experimental and control. The sample of the current study consisted of 16 married couples from the city of Tehran, totaling 32 participants. The participants were randomly assigned to two groups, experimental and control, with each group consisting of 8 couples. The results indicated the effectiveness of the mindfulness program in enhancing marital adjustment, with the posttest mean rising to (2.86), and the average impulsivity score decreased to 2.59, indicating a significant reduction in impulsivity among Iranian couples. Mindfulness-based therapy directly affects participants’ ability to regulate immediate emotions. This increased awareness significantly helps in managing harmful mental behaviors such as impulsivity, substance abuse, and poor adaptability. Future research should investigate the broader effects of mindfulness on mental and behavioral outcomes, with a focus on addressing impulsivity in young couples. Additionally, incorporating mindfulness-based therapy for couples both before and during marriage could enhance interpersonal relationships and overall quality of life.

A meta-analysis on polymorphic trait of taste perception mediated by TAS2R38 genotype.

The objective of this study is to review the association of TAS2R38 polymorphisms and taste phenotypes to bitter compounds (phenylthiocarbamide [PTC]/propylthiouracil [PROP]), and its association among persons who drink alcohol and individuals with smoking behavior. A literature search was carried out in PubMed, ScienceDirect, Cochrane, and Wiley online library databases using the keyword "(Bitter taste receptor genes OR TAS2R38) AND (PROP OR propylthiouracil) AND (PTC OR phenylthiocarbamide)," "(Bitter taste receptor genes OR TAS2R38) AND (alcohol)," "(Bitter taste receptor genes OR TAS2R38) AND (tobacco OR smoker)" to find articles evaluating the association of taste phenotypes and TAS2R38 polymorphisms, and its association among persons who drink alcohol and individuals with smoking behavior. The analysis show that TAS2R38 taster genotype (proline-alanine-valine [PAV] allele) was significantly (OR, 5.88; CI [3.87, 8.95], p < .001) associated with taster phenotype for bitter compounds (PTC/PROP), and TAS2R38 nontaster genotype (alanine-valine-isoleucine allele) was significantly (OR, 6.73; CI [4.57, 9.90], p < .001) associated with nontaster phenotype for bitter compounds. Further, TAS2R38 taster genotypes (PAV homozygotes and heterozygotes) were significantly associated with higher alcohol intake (OR, 5.15; 95% CI [2.66, 9.98]; p < .001) and among individuals with smoking behavior (OR, 1.73; 95% CI [1.24, 2.42]; p = .001). This suggests that TAS2R38 single nucleotide polymorphisms can be identified by clinically assessing taste phenotype status for bitter compounds and can be used as a potential therapeutic target in the prevention and treatment of harmful higher alcohol intake and smoking behavior. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Children’s moral judgments and reasoning regarding environmentally harmful behaviors: Variation by victim type and moderation effect of connectedness to nature

Children’s moral judgments and reasoning regarding environmentally harmful behaviors: Variation by victim type and moderation effect of connectedness to nature

Psychoneuroimmunological Perspective of Animal-Assisted Therapy

Animal-assisted therapy is a new and upcoming form of therapy that has shown multifarious benefits to participants. It is a goal-oriented therapeutic process with the incorporation of a qualified therapy animal in the therapeutic activities and conversations. This paper explores these benefits from a psychoneuroimmunological lens, wherein the interplay of and impact on an individual's psychological, neurological and immune systems are discussed. Positive physical interaction with therapy animals reduces undesirable symptoms and ailments such as stress, anxiety, depressive symptoms, aggressive tendencies, harmful behaviours, cardiovascular issues and unhealthy tendencies amongst others. It further promotes a healthier lifestyle, promoting quality of life, better heart health, cognitive functioning and overall well-being. The biological basis of these benefits is discussed.

Cyberbullying: Definition, Prevalence, Effects, Risk and Protective Factors

Cyberbullying is defined as intentional, repetitive, and harmful behaviors carried out using computers, cell phones, or other electronic devices. In recent years, there has been an increase in the rates of cyberbullying parallel to the rise in Internet usage. Particularly among adolescents, the prevalence of cyberbullying and cyber victimization are quite high. Adolescents who cyberbully or cyber victim face serious mental health problems. In this reason, efforts should be made to prevent adolescents from being exposed to these negative effects. It is crucial to identify the risk factors and protective factors related to cyberbullying, as they can guide preventive interventions. The review aims to provide a comprehensive perspective on the risk factors and protective factors influencing cyberbullying. Furthermore, information was provided regarding the definition, historical trend, prevalence, and consequences of cyberbullying. In this review, firstly, the definition of cyberbullying is provided, followed by a detailed discussion of its history, prevalence, risk factors, and protective factors. It is expected that the study, which comprehensively explains the factors related to cyberbullying, will contribute to the literature on cyberbullying and provide guidance to professionals working in this field."

Лицо, совершившее преступление: современные вызовы и ответы

Introduction. The view of criminal law as a means of regulating the behaviour of free willed people, which limits the sphere of criminal repression, has always been corrected by pragmatic considerations related to the need to influence the harmful behaviour of non-personal subjects. In modern society there is a need for it in connection with the assessment of socially significant harm, the source of which are legal entities and artificial intelligence systems, resulting in attempts to include them in the category of subjects of criminal law on the basis of the theoretically questionable concept of distinguishing between subjects of crime and subjects of criminal liability. Methods. The research was carried out by means of various methods, particularly general scientific methods of cognition, such as analysis, synthesis, generalisation, as well as private scientific - formal-legal, comparative-legal, method of interpreting legal norms, etc. Results. It is obvious that the issue of applying measures of influence in relation to non-personal subjects of law should be resolved with regard to and on the basis of philosophical theories of criminal law, the most attractive of which presents criminal law as a means of moral condemnation of acts that destroy the system of values designed to guarantee the stability and sustainability of society, and which does not allow the application of measures of criminal law influence against persons who are not capable of free moral choice. Keeping the current provisions on the possibility of recognising the subject of crime and the subject of criminal liability as exclusively a human being should be considered as a component of the system of maintaining the human aspect of criminal law and protecting the law from its dehumanisation.

Psychiatric disorder and life-event in self harm: A cross-sectional study among clinical population in Bangladesh

BackgroundMental illness is an important risk factor for self-harm behavior. However, the association between self-harm behavior and psychiatric disorders has been poorly studied in Bangladesh. AimsTo determine the prevalence of psychiatric disorders and life-events among patients with a self harm behavior. MethodsThis cross-sectional study was conducted between March 2022 and November 2023. We collected data from 100 patients with self harms from two tertiary care hospital of Dhaka by semi-structured interviews. ResultsOf the 100 cases, 72 were females, 63 % came from semi-urban background. Hanging was the commonest method (31 %) followed cutting and piercing instrument (22 %), and ingestion of Benzodiazepines (20 %). Among the cases, 71 % had at least one psychiatric disorder (Axis I 49 % and Axis II 35 %). In case of life events, 52 % had life-events within immediate 48 h, 15 % in the last one month and 17 % in the last year. Family conflict (30 %) was the commonest risk factor and increased argument with resident family members (38 %) was the commonest life event. ConclusionsThis study revealed a similar proportion of psychiatric disorders revealed in previous studies among suicide attempts. It also unveiled life events in suicide attempts indicating a potential role of life events in suicide attempts in Bangladesh. However, a prudential interpretation is warranted while considering the study results as it was conducted among clinical samples.

CEO self-transcendent values influence top managers’ socially responsible behaviors: from a social learning perspective

Purpose This study aims to explore the impact of chief executive officers’ (CEOs) values on the socially responsible behaviors (SRBs) of top management teams. Drawing from the social learning framework, it examines the mechanisms through which CEOs’ values shape SRBs within organizational leadership. Design/methodology/approach Using the hierarchical regression model, this study assesses direct effects, while the Monte Carlo method is used to evaluate indirect effects. The analysis is based on time-lagged data collected from 122 CEOs and 287 corresponding top managers from small- and medium-sized enterprises in China. Findings The results indicate a positive correlation between CEOs’ self-transcendent values and their own SRBs (i.e. doing-good and avoiding harm behavior). This, in turn, promotes top managers’ SRBs. Originality/value By highlighting the micro-foundations of corporate social responsibility, this study enriches the understanding of SRBs enhancement in management teams. It reveals the significance of CEO self-transcendent values as a precursor to SRBs and elucidates the learning processes involved.

Key elements to consider when choosing an assessment tool for understanding risk related to harmful sexual behaviours

Key elements to consider when choosing an assessment tool for understanding risk related to harmful sexual behaviours

New challenges arise from consolidation of gender, health and transport research

BackgroundBased on a chapter in the recently published 3rd edition of Health of the Move, this article summarizes past and current knowledge regarding how gender, health and transport (GHT) interact, and implications for policy and practice in both transport and health spheres. MethodsThe chapter, ‘Gender, transport and health: Emerging trends and gaps in global research’, comprises an extensive review of research on these topics and their intersections in recent decades. It summarizes key concepts from the earliest publications regarding GHT issues and provides insights from 155 scientific articles published between 2000 and 2023. Results/findings“Gender”, a socially constructed concept reflecting culture-specific perspectives on the roles of men and women, is often used generically to reflect “sex”, that is solely the biological differences. Similarly, the assumption that transport is “gender neutral” remains a powerful arbiter, particularly within engineering and policy. Key findings are: 1) women's mobilities are significantly affected by violence. There is a need to address its association with hegemonic masculinity through sustained focus on the harmful attitudes and behaviours of this gender identity. 2) Women walk more and cycle less than men with positive and negative impacts to health depending on context. Transport infrastructure safety and accessibility must be improved to ensure women's health is equitably associated with travelling actively. 3) Women are more involved in caring for others than men. A gender-sensitive approach to mobilities must consider care-giving needs throughout the lifecycle. ConclusionsGender differences in travel are substantial and highly relevant to health equity. Gender-sensitive planning requires fuller integration of walking, cycling and intermodal solutions into regular transport planning, and requires strong policies to make all transport-related spaces accesible. Major gaps appear in research, particularly how hegemonic masculinity is related to road, gender and criminal violence that clearly limits the mobility of specific groups by gender.

Using and Measuring Motivational Interviewing in a New Setting: Experiences From a Project Highlighting Relationship-Building Skills in the Process of Recruiting New Staff

Relationship-building skills, with empathy and empathic abilities as crucial ingredients, are described as central in human service professions. These professions usually require training on relationship-building skills. However, in many professional groups, with support or care functions, rather than functions specifically oriented towards treatment, the level of education and training required varies. Empathic skills are central in the concept of Motivational Interviewing (MI). It has been suggested that for the ethical reason that treatment staff should not harm clients, workplaces should assess staff members’ empathic skills and ability to refrain from harmful behaviours, and these capabilities should be investigated when recruiting new staff. In accordance with this suggestion, the residential homes at the Swedish National Board of Institutional Care (SiS), which provides compulsory care for young people, initiated a project to develop and trial a work test based on the concept of MI. The aim of the article is to, based on 59 interviews with stakeholders in the SiS-project, add to the discussion on the balancing act required in evidence-based practise of maintaining psychometric stringency versus making contextual and situational adjustments. Focus is on exploring the possibilities for using and interpreting measures of MI in a new setting as well as the possibilities for assessing relationship-building skills in the recruitment process. The results suggest that tinkering is often necessary when using standardised measures for complex skills like relationship building. The study proposes that a nuanced understanding of the method, measurement, and organisational context is essential even with well-established methods.

Rationalising a spectrum of problematic exercise: A qualitative study.

Whilst a substantial body of evidence supports the benefits of exercise for physical and mental health, the overfocus on the benefits of exercise could result in harmful behaviours in some individuals. Conceptualised as a behavioural addiction, research often dichotomises the behaviour through a medical diagnostic model. The present qualitative study explored the meaning of problematic behaviour from the exerciser's perspective. Nineteen UK-based frequent exercisers were interviewed regarding their experiences. Thematic analysis described three themes: 'relentlessly pushing the limits' of their personal best and comparing to others; 'an enabling community' which could promote problematic behaviours; and 'the complexity of the ideal body' focussing on perceptions of weight maintenance. Transcending these themes was the notion of 'rationalising choices'. The results indicate that participants felt that the benefits outweighed the costs, encouraging them to continue, even when causing harm. These findings support the notion of problematic exercise as a continuum, rather than dichotomous.

Bad Guys Finish First? A Moral Emotional Perspective of Job Performance Outcomes for Abusive Supervisors

Do abusive supervisors benefit from their own harmful behaviors, or do they experience the same repercussions as their victims do? This article extends a growing stream of research that aims to understand how bad actors process their own negative actions, when they are most impacted by their adverse behaviors, and how their job performance is influenced as a result. We ground this research in a moral emotions perspective to suggest that enacted abusive supervision elicits prominent moral responses (i.e., shame or guilt), which subsequently influence the supervisor’s own work conduct. Specifically, we suggest that feelings of guilt will prompt an abusive boss to compensate for their negative behaviors by increasing performance efforts, whereas supervisors with feelings of shame will withdraw and exhibit lower work performance. Multiple mediation results from Study 1 revealed that abusive supervisors predominantly experience shame and, in turn, reduced performance. In Study 2, we expand on these findings by considering the moderating role of supervisor core self-evaluations (CSE). We find that the negative relationship between enacted abuse and supervisor performance (through shame) is exacerbated when managers possess a fragile sense of self (i.e., low CSE). Overall, the current article adds to the argument that abusive supervisors do not profit from their own negative behaviors and that they, too, suffer performance setbacks.