Search results

The Dutch Custodial Institutions Agency has commissioned a number of research projects on offenders with intellectual disabilities (ID) in prison. A continuing problem has been that it is not known what the prevalence of ID in Dutch prisons is, and how to identify ID in individual detainees. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

With this in mind a screening instrument (screener for learning disabilities and intelligence (SCIL)) has been developed that screens for IQ < 85. This instrument has been piloted in four different penitentiary institutes.

The papers briefly describes the results of the studies preceding the pilot before turning to the pilot itself. The pilot shed light on what considerations need to be taken into account when implement screening for ID in the current prison system, and on the potential added value for prison staff of knowing whether a detainee possibly has an ID. In addition, the pilot gave some insight into the characteristics of Dutch prisoners.

The main conclusion is that the SCIL can be successfully implemented within these settings, provided that sufficient attention is being paid to the advance instructions to staff and to the introduction of the screening to the detainees.

This chapter investigates two different uses of social networking sites (SNSs) within the same higher education institution. One was used as a means of communicating with students while they were still making their study choices, whereas the other aimed to create a medium for student interaction before they arrived at university. While both attempts had some degree of success in the setting up of the SNSs, dissemination, and control of content were not without their difficulties. Having outlined the theory behind SNSs, the chapter then highlights both the rationale behind the decision to use them and the experience of both users. It then describes how lessons learnt led to changes being made in the following year, before concluding by providing some recommendations for others looking to try similar techniques.

The purpose of this paper is to develop and assess an organizational intervention consisting of psychological first aid (PFA) and Open Space Technology (OST), and its impact on individual resilience and perceived organization support.

The study used a non-experimental, pre-test and post-test design. Measures of employee post-trauma, resilience and organizational support were measured before and after the PFA intervention.

Paired sample t-tests revealed significant pre/post-increases in individual resilience and perceived organization support. Correlational analysis revealed that resilience was associated with perceived organization support. Evaluations revealed that participants found the small group sharing, information about coping and the open space problem-solving activities particularly worthwhile.

A limitation of the study was the lack of a randomized control group in the design. Future research may utilize more robust designs such as experimental and longitudinal studies to evaluate impact.

This study indicates how the use of an organization-based intervention can be adopted for employees who undergo an emergency in their workplace. The combination of PFA and OST was found to be valuable in improving individual resilience and perceived organization support. In addition, OST can better facilitate problem-solving performance in intact groups, as it enhances collective interaction and community efficacy among survivors.

The study contributes to the dearth of knowledge on the use of PFA when used in an intact organization as part of its crisis intervention.