Initial tweet valence, abuse volume, and observer Dark Tetrad characteristics influence perceptions of female celebrity abuse on Twitter.

Research into relationships between victim-generated content, abuse received, and observer characteristics when considering Twitter abuse has been limited to male victims. We evaluated participant perceptions of female celebrity victims and abuse received on Twitter. We used a 3 (Initial Tweet Valence; negative, neutral, positive) × 2 (Abuse Volume; low, high) repeated measures design and online survey method. Participants were shown tweets generated by six female celebrities, counterbalanced such that each participant saw each celebrity in one Valence-Volume condition. Stimuli were presented across six 'lists' such that celebrity 'victims' could be rotated across Valence-Volume pairings. Participants rated-per target stimulus-the level of blame attributable to the victim and the perceived severity of the incident. Furthermore, participants were asked to complete a Dark Tetrad scale-measuring their Machiavellianism, Narcissism, Psychopathy, and Sadism. Analyses determined that victim-blaming was influenced by victim Initial Tweet Valence (greater victim-blaming associated with more-negative content) and observer Machiavellianism. Perceived severity was influenced by victim Initial Tweet Valence, Volume of Abuse received, and observer Machiavellianism. Results were consistent with previous research involving male celebrity victims. Further research is needed to understand the contributions of participants' hostile and benevolent sexism, as well as the role of victim attractiveness.

The Impact of Mental Illness and Intellectual Disability Information on General Public Perceptions of a Person Convicted of a Child Sex Offence.

A person convicted of sex offences (PCSO) is confronted with several challenges upon re-entry to the community, often facing difficulties accessing housing and employment, and experiencing stigmatisation, hostility and harassment from community members. Given the importance of community support for successful reintegration, we examined differences in public (N = 117) attitudes toward a PCSO against a child (PCSO-C) with mental illness or intellectual disability compared to a neurotypical PCSO-C in an online survey. At present, differences in attitudes towards these groups has not been explored. Results indicated the PCSO-Cs with intellectual disability or mental illness were seen to pose less risk of sexual reoffending and prompted higher levels of reintegration comfort than the neurotypical PCSO-C. Participants' prior personal exposure to mental illness or intellectual disability was unrelated to attitudes, but those who believed that PCSOs in general have a low capacity for change attributed greater risk of sexual reoffending, greater risk of future harm to children, higher levels of blame and lower reintegration comfort, regardless of MI and ID information. Female participants also perceived greater risk of future harm to adults, and older participants estimated higher risk of sexual reoffending than younger participants. Findings have implications for community acceptance of PCSO-Cs and jury decision-making processes and highlight the importance of public education regarding neurodiverse PCSO-Cs and PCSO capacity for change to encourage knowledge-based judgements.

Child-Dog Attachment, Emotion Regulation and Psychopathology: The Mediating Role of Positive and Negative Behaviours.

Emerging evidence suggests that pet dogs can offer features of a secure attachment which has been associated with healthy psychological development across the lifespan. Limited research has investigated the underpinning mechanisms that may contribute to the benefits and risks of child-dog attachment during childhood. This study aimed to test the potential mediating role of caregiver-observed positive and negative child-dog behaviours, on the relationship between child-reported child-dog attachment, and caregiver-reported child psychopathology and emotion regulation. Data from 117 caregiver reports and 77 child self-reports were collected through an online survey in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Parallel mediation analyses indicated that child-dog attachment had a significant indirect effect on conduct problems through negative child-dog behaviours only. Child-dog attachment had a significant indirect effect on emotional symptoms, peer problems, prosocial behaviour, emotion regulation, and emotional lability/negativity through both positive and negative child-dog behaviours. Although this study found modest effect sizes, the findings suggest that the types of interactions that children engage in with their pet dogs may be important mechanisms through which pet attachment contributes to psychological development throughout childhood, and therefore further attention is warranted. Positive and safe child-dog interactions can be facilitated through education and intervention, which may have implications for promoting positive developmental outcomes.

Sextual Intercourse: Considering Social-Cognitive Predictors and Subsequent Outcomes of Sexting Behavior in Adulthood.

The purpose of this study was to identify specific social-cognitive factors that may influence the likelihood of engaging in sexting, and potential positive and negative outcomes of such behaviors, in adults. We asked 244 adult participants (64.5% women) to complete a set of online measures reflecting sexting engagement, social-cognitive factors (definitions, differential association, differential reinforcement, and imitation), and outcomes of sexting behavior (risky sexual behavior appraisal, sexual satisfaction, and relationship satisfaction). Results showed that 77.6% of our sample had sexted. Sexting in the context of a romantic relationship was predicted by differential reinforcement and friend imitation, while positive definitions of sexting alone predicted sexting someone outside the context of a romantic relationship. This indicates that motivations for sexting engagement may be context specific in adulthood. Those who had sexted demonstrated significantly higher sexual satisfaction than those who had never sexted. However, sexting outside of a romantic relationship predicted reduced perceived risk and heightened perceived benefit of engaging in real-life risky sexual behaviors. This suggests there may be both positive and negative implications of sexting engagement in adulthood.