Violence, according to one dictionary, is defined as "(1) exertion of any physical force so as to injure or abuse, (2) injury by or as if by distortion, infringement, or profanation, (3) intense, turbulent and often destructive action, or force." In his book Powershift Alvin Toffler identifies violence or the threat of violence as one of the three fundamental sources of all human power, the oth...

AIMS Alcohol-related harm places a significant strain on victims, perpetrators and society. The present research reports on how licensed alcohol outlet business hours may influence the reported incidence of interpersonal violence and the associated burden of disease. METHODS We examined the relationship between alcohol outlet business hours and violent crime in 2009 in New York State (excludi...

Few studies have considered how intimate partner violence (IPV) impacts children's overarching attitudes and beliefs about the prevalence and acceptability of aggression. This pilot study included 92 preschool children exposed to IPV who reported on attitudes and beliefs about violence using a new, theoretically driven measure. Findings illustrate that preschoolers were able to respond reliably...

The prediction of near-term violence among psychiatric inpatients has become an important goal in recent years. The Imminent Risk Rating Scale (IRRS) is a screening tool that has been designed to enhance clinicians' knowledge of their patients' risk of violence in the hours and days following evaluation. Drawing on the imminent-violence literature, the instrument includes 7 items touching on pe...

The actuarial Violence Risk Appraisal Guide (VRAG) was developed for male offenders where it has shown excellent replicability in many new forensic samples using officially recorded outcomes. Clinicians also make decisions, however, about the risk of interpersonal violence posed by nonforensic psychiatric patients of both sexes. Could an actuarial risk assessment developed for male forensic pop...

Psychosocial interventions are part of the complex understanding and treatment of violent behavior in our state mental health hospitals. A comprehensive assessment of violence and aggression includes attention to all 3 domains of prevention and assessment (primary-institutional, secondary-structural, and tertiary-direct). Trauma experiences and their consequences may include behavioral violence...

Interpersonal trauma is pervasive globally and may result in long-term consequences physically, cognitively, behaviorally, socially, and spiritually (Bryant-Davis, 2005b). One of the protective factors that have emerged in the literature is religious coping. Religious coping, spirituality, and faith-based approaches to trauma recovery include endorsement of beliefs, engagement in behaviors, and...

INTRODUCTION Although preventing recurrent violent injury is an important component of a public health approach to interpersonal violence and a common focus of violence intervention programs, the true incidence of recurrent violent injury is unknown. Prior studies have reported recurrence rates from 0.8% to 44%, and risk factors for recurrence are not well established. METHODS We used a state...