In interviews with 300 Latina women in Los Angeles County, 100 reported experiencing sexual abuse before age 18, and 60 had not disclosed the abuse to anyone. Victims did not differ from other Latina women in demographic characteristics, citizenship status, or level of acculturation. Nondisclosure was related to lower levels of acculturation.…

Interpersonal and intergroup contention is endemic to the social environment of California prisons. Data from in-depth interviews (N = 74) with prison inmates highlights a conceptual difference between the status behavior understood as signaling "deference" versus those signaling "respect." "Deference behavior"…

Reports on a telephone survey of 300 randomly sampled residents of Butte County in Northern California on attitudes, stereotypes, and beliefs about child abuse. (BB)

Federal law prohibits the purchase or possession of a firearm by persons convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence and those under certain domestic violence restraining orders. The purpose of this investigation is to examine public sentiment about the removal of firearms in the absence of a restraining order or misdemeanor conviction following…

This handbook was written to heighten public awareness and understanding about child abuse and to serve as a practical aid for persons who work with children, who are in the field of child abuse prevention, and who are mandated to report suspected cases of child abuse under the California Child Abuse Reporting Law. It provides an overview of the…

Young, sexually abused children should be identified and treated as early as possible. Structured and directive treatment proceeding at a regular pace achieves greater success than an unstructured, nondirective approach. Structure reduces anxiety for the children, parents, and therapists. (Author/BB)

Break the Cycle is a private, nonprofit organization that seeks to end domestic violence by working proactively with youth. Founded in 1996, it includes a preventive education and outreach program, a legal services program, and a peer leadership program. All three programs focus exclusively on youth aged 12-22 years. In 2000, Centers for Disease…

Describes the devastating impact that Spanish colonization had on both traditional gender roles and female mortality among the Kumivit, or Gabrielino, Indians of Southern California. Documents the unique resistance and accommodation responses of Native women, from the shaman Toypurina's revolt against the missionaries to Bartolomea's accommodation…

Intended to heighten public awareness and provide practical information to professionals, this handbook defines and describes child abuse (including sexual abuse) and its associated signs and injuries. The societal and family environments in which child abuse most typically occurs are described, and the California penal code sections pertaining to…

Analysis of 4,132 child abuse cases reported to Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department demonstrated significant differences attributed to ethnic group status, reflecting variations in family structure and childrearing attitudes. Anglo and Hispanic males and Black females were most frequent suspects. Proportion of physical abuse to sexual abuse…

Examination of data from 1985 visits by 110 runaway and 655 non-runaway youth to an outpatient medical clinic reveals that runaway youth are at greater risk for a wide variety of medical problems and of health-compromising behaviors including suicide, depression, prostitution, and drug use. (Author/BJV)