In this reflective chapter, we examine the structural biases and empirical challenges underlying human trafficking ‘indicators’ (especially problem, risk and performance indicators) that are... Show moreIn this reflective chapter, we examine the structural biases and empirical challenges underlying human trafficking ‘indicators’ (especially problem, risk and performance indicators) that are routinely used to describe and measure human trafficking, assess risk, identify abuses, evaluate responses, and encourage accountability. While frequently used, such indicators can give an undue illusion of objectivity and reliability when they are neither neutral nor unskewed. In fact, numerous factors affect which elements are privileged as ‘indicators’ and which are obscured. We therefore examine here the selectivity, politics, racialized and gendered concerns that relate to the production and use of human trafficking indicators. Since human trafficking is a complex, highly-contested, and multi-faceted practice, it is not easily reduced to the crude generalizations upon which many indicators rest. We explore how the uncritical use of indicators can both contribute to stereotypical and unachievable ideals of victimhood and engender undue criminalization or withholding of victim support. In doing so, we disentangle some paradoxes around who is deemed ‘vulnerable’, ‘at risk’, ‘worthy of support’ and requiring ‘protection’. We highlight the – routinely overlooked – weak empirical basis and other limitations of many commonplace ‘indicators’ and challenges in building empirically-stronger and more robust indicators. The chapter concludes with overall implications of these critical reflections for policy, interventions, and research. Show less
Commercial sex policies are often at the core of many anti-trafficking efforts, yet rigorous empirical evidence about the effectiveness of these policies in preventing sex trafficking is lacking.... Show moreCommercial sex policies are often at the core of many anti-trafficking efforts, yet rigorous empirical evidence about the effectiveness of these policies in preventing sex trafficking is lacking. In response to ongoing debates about which commercial sex laws and policies would help prevent sex trafficking, we seek to contribute to more nuanced discussions on commercial sex policies in relation to sex trafficking victimizations. The purpose of this essay is to identify the pitfalls in the debate on how to govern commercial sex markets, emphasizing 1) the lack of recognition of the variation in laws and policies on commercial sex; 2) the moral instead of empirical underpinnings of the debate; 3) ambiguous and stigmatizing notions of vulnerability to sex trafficking victimizations; and 4) a continued reliance on a traditional criminal justice system response that may cause harm to victims. We conclude with five premises to promote more nuanced, inclusive, and collaborative debates and governance of commercial sex markets that allow countries and local jurisdictions to move away from response models for which harm-reducing effects are either unknown or refuted. Show less
This dissertation focuses on the overall study, as well as the nuances, of bullying behaviours among school-going youth in India. A systematic review of past literature from India is presented by... Show moreThis dissertation focuses on the overall study, as well as the nuances, of bullying behaviours among school-going youth in India. A systematic review of past literature from India is presented by synthesizing 37 empirical studies examining psychometric properties of the instruments adopted, methodological characteristics, sample size and procedures, and characteristics of bullying behaviour. Results show that bullying is widely spread, and certain factors, like caste and religion, and their association with bullying behaviours are typical to the Indian culture. This dissertation also examines if dimensions of psychopathy, namely callous-unemotional traits, narcissism, and impulsivity, can differentiate between, bullies, victims, and bully-victims in a longitudinal capacity. Using a multi-informant approach and multinomial logistic regression analyses, it was found that psychopathy dimensions taken together provide a better fit in predicting bullying than the independent psychopathic subscales. The dissertation further investigates the structure and context of the relationship between victimization and Body Mass Index through a transactional model. Key results of structural equation modeling analyses yielded mainly concurrent relations between BMI and victimization, emphasizing that results from western countries may not generalize to India. Finally, bullying behaviours among youth as a function of their socio-economic status (SES) in classroom and self-perceptions of minority status are examined using a moderated-mediation growth model. Results show classroom level SES plays a significant role in predicting victimization cross-sectionally, and is mediated through perceptions of self. However, in the long run, being part of a minority, and perceiving self as such, leads to decreased victimization among youth in India. Show less
This study provides a systematic review of literature from India on traditional bullying and victimization among school-going adolescents. A search of bibliographic electronic databases PsycINFO,... Show moreThis study provides a systematic review of literature from India on traditional bullying and victimization among school-going adolescents. A search of bibliographic electronic databases PsycINFO, MEDLINE, ERIC, Web of Science, and PubMed was performed in May 2020. Thirty-seven studies were included in the review. For each study included, the following specifics were examined: (a) methodological characteristics, (b) prevalence estimates of bullying behavior, (c) forms of bullying, (d) risk factors, and (e) consequences of bullying. Itwas found that bullying happens in India, and some risk factors for bullying and victimization in India are typical to the Indian context. In addition, bullying in India is associated with adverse consequences for both the aggressor and the victim. Many studies on bullying from India should be interpreted cautiously because of problems with data collection processes, instrumentation, and presentation of the findings. Cross-cultural comparisons for prevalence estimates, and longitudinal studies to examine the direction of possible influence between bullying and its correlates need to be conducted, tocater to the large adolescent population of India. Show less
Victim reports are the main source of information for the police regarding where crimes are committed, and also the basis for most subsequent actions of the criminal justice system. Therefore, the... Show moreVictim reports are the main source of information for the police regarding where crimes are committed, and also the basis for most subsequent actions of the criminal justice system. Therefore, the victims' decision to report to the police is crucial. However, much criminal victimization is not reported and, consequently, many offenders are never prosecuted. Why are some crimes reported and others not? Substantial differences in reporting are found across crime locations, neighborhoods and countries. In this book, a socio-ecological model of victims' decision-making is introduced which endeavors to explain these contextual differences in reporting. To empirically test the main hypotheses derived from this model, several data sources are used and different research strategies are employed, with which the effects of crime, victim and contextual factors on victims' reporting behavior are simultaneously analyzed. Factors constituting the context in which crime incidents take place (e.g. whether the location is in the private or public domain), as well as factors composing the neighborhood context (e.g. the neighborhood social cohesion) and – to a lesser extent – the country context in which victims reside, were found to play a role in victims's decision (not) to report. Show less
