3,195 research outputs found
Cultural and Institutional Bifurcation: China and Europe Compared
No full textHow to sustain cooperation is a key challenge for any society. Different social organizations have evolved in the course of history to cope with this challenge by relying on different combinations of external (formal and informal) enforcement institutions and intrinsic motivation. Some societies rely more on informal enforcement and moral obligations within their constituting groups. Others rely more on formal enforcement and general moral obligations towards society at large. How do culture and institutions interact in generating different evolutionary trajectories of societal organizations? Do contemporary attitudes, institutions and behavior reflect distinct pre-modern trajectories?
This paper addresses these questions by examining the bifurcation in the societal organizations of pre-modern China and Europe. It focuses on their distinct epitomizing social
structures, the clan and the city, that sustain cooperation through different mixes of enforcement and intrinsic motivation. The Chinese clan is a kinship-based hierarchical organization in which
strong moral ties and reputation among clan’s members are particularly important in sustaining cooperation. In Medieval Europe, by contrast, the main example of a cooperative organization is the city. Here cooperation is across kinship lines and external enforcement plays a bigger role. But morality and reputation, although weaker, also matter and extend beyond one’s kin.
The analysis exposes the impact of different initial moral systems and kinship organizations on China’s and Europe’s distinct cultural and institutional trajectories during the last millennium. These initial conditions influenced subsequent evolution through
complementarities between moral systems and institutions. The implied social relations, moral obligations, and enforcement capacity further influenced the interactions with other external
organizations (such as other cities or clans, or higher state authority), which further reinforced the distinct trajectories.
This paper’s historical and comparative institutional analysis is based on the model in Avner Greif and Guido Tabellini (2010). It combines the analysis of generalized and limited morality (Tabellini 2008) with the analysis of the evolution of institutional complexes composed of complementary institutional and cultural elements (Greif 2006, ch. 7). A comparable analysis of the impact of initial beliefs and social structures is provided by Greif (1994, 2006, ch 9)
Correction by Focus: Cleft Constructions and the Cross-Linguistic Variation in Phonological Form
No full textGreif M, Skopeteas S. Correction by Focus: Cleft Constructions and the Cross-Linguistic Variation in Phonological Form. Frontiers in Psychology. 2021;12: 648478.A challenging issue of cross-linguistic variation is that the same syntactic construction may appear in different arrays of contexts depending on language. For instance, cleft constructions appear with contrastive focus in English, but in a larger array of contexts in French. A part of the cross-linguistic variation may be due to prosodic differences, since prosodic possibilities determine the array of focus structures that can be mapped onto one and the same syntactic configuration. In the present study, we compare languages with flexible nuclear-accent placement (English, German), with languages that do not use this prosodic strategy (French, Mandarin Chinese). In a speech production experiment, we examine the prosodic realization of contrastive focus and identify prosodic reflexes of focus in all languages. The presence of different phonetic reflexes of focus suggests that - anything else being equal - the same syntactic constructions should be possible in the same array of contexts. In an acceptability study with written questionnaires, we examined the felicity of cleft constructions in contexts licensing a focus within the cleft clause. This focus structure is orthogonal to the preferred focus structure of cleft constructions and can appear in cases of second-occurrence foci (in contexts of correction). The obtained judgments reveal a distinction between languages with flexible nuclear-accent placement (English, German) and languages with other types of reflexes of focus (French, Chinese): languages of the former type have an advantage in using cleft constructions with a focus within the cleft clause, which shows that the array of contexts of using clefts in English and German is not a proper subset of the array of contexts applying to the same constructions in French and Chinese. The obtained differences can be explained by the role of prosodic devices and corroborate the view that prosodic reflexes of focus have different semantic-pragmatic import: it is easier to establish a focus structure that is orthogonal to the syntax in a language with flexible nuclear-accent placement (English, German); this does not hold for prosodic correlates of focus that reinforce the articulation of prosodic constituents (French) or the articulation of lexical tones (Chinese). Copyright © 2021 Greif and Skopeteas
La lepra de Balduino IV en el Reino Latino de Jerusalén: Representaciones históricas, interpretaciones historiográficas
No full textLa interpretación de la lepra y el tratamiento social de los leprosos ocupa un capítulo relevante entre los estudios históricos de la medicina y la asistencia en las sociedades medievales. Rechazo y segregación suelen ser los conceptos que se asocian al lugar de los sujetos que padecían esta enfermedad, sobre todo cuando nos referimos al mundo medieval. De la misma manera, su irrupción en el mundo europeo de la Edad Media aparece vinculado a los grandes contingentes de personas que regresaba de las Cruzadas en Medio Oriente. Hoy sabemos, gracias a la obra de importantes historiadores, que estos constituyen algunos de los mitos historiográficos que aún persisten en torno a dicha enfermedad. A propósito del caso específico del tratamiento social de la enfermedad en el Reino Latino de Jerusalén un conjunto de estudios permitieron destacar la imagen del leproso como sujeto integrado al resto de la sociedad y la existencia de una ideología que permitió un acercamiento positivo al padecimiento de la lepra en los estados cruzados. Para algunos autores, la causa de dicha ideología residía en el rol de los Caballeros de la Orden de San Lázaro y su papel en la asistencia a los enfermos en el Reino de Jerusalén. Para otros, dicha valoración habría derivado fundamentalmente de la figura del rey leproso Balduino IV (1174-1185), tal y como la ilustra Guillermo de Tiro en su importante Crónica sobre los Hechos de los Francos en Ultramar. Es sobre dicha valoración que nos ocuparemos en este trabajo.Fil: Greif, Esteban Augusto. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Saavedra 15. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Historia y Ciencias Humanas; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Filosofía y Letras; Argentin
USING THE ISO 27000 FAMILY OF STANDARDS WHEN PERFORMING IINFORMATION SYSTEM AUDITS
No full textPričujoče diplomsko delo predstavlja področji revizije informacijskih sistemov in upravljanja informacijske varnosti po standardu ISO/IEC 27001. Obe področji sta pri tem povezani z relevantno in veljavno slovensko zakonodajo. Glavni namen te naloge je združiti obe področji v enoten in skladen sistem revidiranja informacijske varnosti. Za dosego tega cilja so usklajene zahteve standarda ISO 27001 s standardnim orodjem, tako revizije informacijskih sistemov, kot tudi upravljanja informatike nasploh COBIT 5. V končni fazi pa so izdelana natančna priporočila za revizijo informacijske varnosti, ki jih omogočata standarda ISO/IEC 27002 in ISO/IEC 27007.The present diploma work presents the fields of information systems audit and management of information security according to standard ISO/IEC 27001. Both areas are linked to the relevant and applicable Slovenian legislation. The main purpose of this diploma work is to unite the two areas into a unified and consistent system of information security auditing. This goal was achieved by aligning the requirements of ISO/IEC 27001 standard with the standard tool for not only performing information systems audit but also management of information technology in general COBIT 5. In the final stage detailed recomendations for information security audit that are made possible by the standards ISO/IEC 27002 and ISO/IEC 27007 are formed
A Companion to Twelfth-Century Schools: Cédric Giraud
No full textFil: Greif, Esteban. Universidad de Buenos Aires; Argentina.Fil: Greif, Esteban. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina
Contract enforcement and institutions among the Maghribi Traders: Refuting Edwards and Ogilvie
No full textEdwards and Ogilvie (2008) dispute the empirical basis for the view (Greif, e.g., 1989, 1994,2006) that multilateral reputation mechanism mitigated agency problems among the eleventh-century Maghribi traders. They assert that the relations among merchants and agents were law-based. This paper refutes this assertion using quantitative and documentary evidence thereby vindicating the position that the legal system had a marginal role in mitigating agency problems in long-distance trade in this historical era. Edwards and Ogilvie constantly present legal actions in non-trade related legal cases as evidence for a reliance on the legal system for matters pertaining to long-distance trade. Their criticism of Greif’s documentary analysis also fails scrutiny. The claim that merchants' relations with their overseas agents were law-based is wrong. This paper is based on quantitative analyses of the corpuses containing the hundreds of documents on which the literature relies and a careful review of the documents and the literature Edwards and Ogilvie cite. Their assertion is shown to be based on unrepresentative and irrelevant examples, an inaccurate description of the literature, and a consistent misreading of the few sources they consulted. In particular, their examples for the use of the court are mainly taken from mandatory legal procedures associated with sorting out the assets and liabilities of deceased traders’ estates. Such examples do not support the claim that agency relations were law-based. The quantitative analysis reveals that empirical basis for the multilateral reputation view is stronger than originally perceived. This paper also sheds light on the roles of the legal system and reputation mechanism during this period.institutions; contract-enforcement; reputation; Maghribi traders; agency relations
Contract Enforcement and Institutions among the Maghribi Traders: Refuting Edwards and Ogilvie
No full textEdwards and Ogilvie (2008) dispute the empirical basis for the view (Greif, e.g., 1989, 1994, 2006) that multilateral reputation mechanism mitigated agency problems among the eleventh-century Maghribi traders. They assert that the relations among merchants and agents were law-based. This paper refutes this assertion using quantitative and documentary evidence thereby vindicating the position that the legal system had a marginal role in mitigating agency problems in long-distance trade in this historical era.** Edwards and Ogilvie constantly present legal actions in non-trade related legal cases as evidence for a reliance on the legal system for matters pertaining to long-distance trade. Their criticism of Greif’s documentary analysis also fails scrutiny. The claim that merchants' relations with their overseas agents were law-based is wrong. This paper is based on quantitative analyses of the corpuses containing the hundreds of documents on which the literature relies and a careful review of the documents and the literature Edwards and Ogilvie cite. Their assertion is shown to be based on unrepresentative and irrelevant examples, an inaccurate description of the literature, and a consistent misreading of the few sources they consulted. In particular, their examples for the use of the court are mainly taken from mandatory legal procedures associated with sorting out the assets and liabilities of deceased traders’ estates. Such examples do not support the claim that agency relations were law-based. The quantitative analysis reveals that empirical basis for the multilateral reputation view is stronger than originally perceived. This paper also sheds light on the roles of the legal system and reputation mechanism during this period.
Sienkiewicz v Greif (UK) Ltd : a cautionary tale for causation.
No full textSienkiewicz v Greif (UK) Ltd : a cautionary tale for causation
Understanding of domestic violence among female students in the faculties of education
No full textMagistrsko delo raziskuje razumevanje problematike nasilja nad ženskami in otroki v družini med študentkami vseh treh pedagoških fakultet. Osrednja pozornost je namenjena opremljenosti z znanjem o nasilju nad ženskami in otroki v družini med študentkami pedagoških študijskih programov in naslavljanju teme nasilja nad ženskami in otroki v družini v učnih načrtih predmetnikov posameznih pedagoških študijskih programov. Teoretični del naloge obravnava dve tematski področji: nasilje nad ženskami in otroki v družini ter vlogo vzgojno-izobraževalnih institucij v povezavi s tem.
V empiričnem delu so uporabljene mešane metode, saj sem kombinirala kvantitativni in kvalitativni raziskovalni pristop. Opisani so izsledki kvantitativne raziskave, v kateri je sodelovalo 187 študentk vseh treh slovenskih pedagoških fakultet. Podatke sem zbirala z anketnim vprašalnikom, ki je pri študentkah preverjal, kakšna je njihova opremljenost z znanjem o problematiki nasilja nad ženskami in otroki v družini ter kako dobro so opremljene za odzivanje nanj v pedagoškem kontekstu. Rezultati so pokazali, da se pojavljajo statistično pomembne razlike v stopnji prevzemanja stereotipov o nasilju nad ženskami in otroki v družini med študijskimi programi in univerzami. Prav tako se razlike med študijskimi programi in univerzami pojavljajo v ravni tolerance do pojava nasilja nad ženskami in otroki v družini. Ugotovila sem še, da študentke pedagoških fakultet v povprečju slabo ocenjujejo obseg nasilja v družini v družbi, pa tudi, da med določenimi študijskimi programi obstaja veliko nesorazmerje med oceno usposobljenosti in njihovo samooceno usposobljenosti za odzivanje na nasilje nad ženskami in otroki v družini v pedagoškem kontekstu.
Kvalitativni del naloge vsebuje analizo učnih načrtov 32 predmetnikov študijskih programov pedagoških fakultet. Analiza je pokazala, da na pedagoških fakultetah primanjkuje vsebin o nasilju nad ženskami in otroki v družini, pri čemer so opazne razlike med univerzami in študijskimi programi. Univerza v Ljubljani študentkam ponuja več vsebin o problematiki nasilja v primerjavi z univerzama na Primorskem in v Mariboru. Pri študijskih programih glede prisotnosti teme nasilja nad ženskami in otroki v družini močno izstopata (prvo- in drugostopenjski) programa socialne pedagogike, zaskrbljujoča pa je ugotovitev, da je tema nasilja nad ženskami in otroki v družini pri nekaterih drugih študijskih programih (prvo- in drugostopenjski program razrednega pouka ter inkluzivna pedagogika) popolnoma ali skoraj popolnoma odsotna.
Raziskava predstavlja kritičen pogled na visokošolsko izobraževanje bodočega pedagoškega kadra o tematiki nasilja nad ženskami in otroki v družini in opozarja na pomembnost poznavanja omenjene problematike v polju vzgoje in izobraževanja. S tem prinaša uporabno vrednost za snovalce izobraževalnih politik, saj pokaže, katerih znanj o nasilju nad ženskami in otroki v družini študentkam manjka in bi jih bilo smiselno v večji meri vključiti v učne načrte pedagoških fakultet.The master thesis explores the understanding of the issue of domestic violence against women and children among students of all three faculties of education. It focuses on the knowledge base on violence against women and children in the family among students of the pedagogical study programs and the addressing of the topic of violence against women and children in the family in the curricula of the courses of the individual pedagogical study programs. The theoretical part of the thesis deals with two thematic issues: violence against women and children in the family and the role of educational institutions in this respect.
The empirical part of the study uses mixed methods, combining a quantitative and qualitative research approach. The findings of a quantitative study involving 187 students from all three Slovenian faculties of education are described. I collected data using a questionnaire that tested the student\u27s knowledge of the issue of domestic violence against women and children and how well-equipped they were to respond to it in a pedagogical context. The results showed that there are statistically significant differences in the level of adoption of stereotypes about violence against women and children in the family between study programs and universities. There are also differences between study programs and universities in the level of tolerance towards the issue of violence against women and children in the family. I also found that students of faculties of education on average have a poor assessment of the extent of domestic violence in society and that there is a large disparity between the evaluation of their competence and their self-perception of their competence to respond to violence against women and children in the family in a pedagogical context among certain study programs.
The qualitative part of the thesis analyses 32 curricula of the study programs of the faculties of education. The analysis shows that there is a lack of content on violence against women and children in the family in the faculties of education, with significant differences between universities and study programs. University of Ljubljana offers more content on violence to its students than the universities of Primorska and Maribor. In terms of the presence of the topic of violence against women and children in the family, the social pedagogy programs (first- and second-level) stand out, while it is concerning to note that the topic of violence against women and children in the family is completely or almost completely absent in some other study programs (first- and second-level classroom education and inclusive pedagogy).
The research presents a critical view of higher education of the future teaching staff on the topic of violence against women and children in the family and highlights the importance of knowledge of this issue in the field of education. In this way, it provides useful value for educational policy-makers, by showing which knowledge on violence against women and children in the family is lacking among students and therefore should be better incorporated into the curricula of faculties of education
A client\u27s perception of change in group treatment of childhood sexual violence by the relational family therapy
No full textSpolno nasilje v otroštvu je resen družbeni problem, saj naj bi bila spolno zlorabljena vsaka peta deklica, spolno zlorabljenih dečkov pa je nekoliko manj. Spolna zloraba lahko travmatično zaznamuje otroka za vse življenje. Veliko raziskav namreč kaže, da je spolno nasilje v otroštvu in adolescenci velik dejavnik tveganja za psihične, čustvene, kognitivne, vedenjske, fizične in medosebne težave, tako v kratkoročnem, kot v dolgoročnem smislu. Precej raziskav prav tako kaže, da imajo posamezniki, ki so bili v otroštvu žrtve spolnega nasilja, več težav kot posamezniki, ki niso bili žrtve spolnega nasilja. V doktorski disertaciji smo zato želeli raziskati razlike v težavah med posamezniki, ki so bili spolno zlorabljeni v otroštvu, in posamezniki, ki niso bili nikoli zlorabljeni, prav tako pa tudi globlje doživljanje žrtev spolne zlorabe, ki so se vključile v skupinsko terapevtsko obravnavo po modelu relacijske družinske terapije.
Doktorska disertacija z naslovom Klientovo doživljanje spremembe v skupinski obravnavi spolnega nasilja v otroštvu po metodi relacijske družinske terapije je razdeljena na teoretični in empirični del. V teoretičnem delu smo najprej opisali pojav spolnega nasilja v otroštvu, pri čemer smo se osredotočili na opredelitve in definicije spolne zlorabe, na razširjenost spolnih zlorab in na razkrivanje ter obravnavanje spolne zlorabe. V drugem poglavju teoretičnega dela smo predstavili posledice spolnega nasilja v otroštvu, tako da smo opisali dejavnike, ki vplivajo na posledice spolnega nasilja, kratkoročne in dolgoročne posledice, vedenjske odzive žrtev ter vpliv travme na možgane. Nadaljevali smo z izbranimi posledicami spolnega nasilja, in sicer: individualni problemi, agresija, samokontrola in čustveno odzivanje. V četrtem delu smo predstavili model relacijske družinske terapije in spolno nasilje, v zadnjem poglavju teoretičnega dela pa smo obravnavali širši vidik razumevanja spolne zlorabe v Svetem pismu, tako v Novi, kot v Stari zavezi.
Sledil je empirični del, ki je sestavljen iz kvantitativnega in pretežno kvalitativnega dela. V kvantitativnem delu so nas zanimale razlike med spolno zlorabljenimi v otroštvu in nikoli zlorabljenimi posamezniki, in sicer na naslednjih področjih: individualni problemi in moči, izraženost agresije, zmožnost samokontrole in zmožnost čustvenega procesiranja. V raziskavo se je prostovoljno vključilo 707 udeležencev, od katerih je 61,39 % udeležencev doživelo nizko, zmerno ali močno obliko spolne zlorabe, kar je nad povprečjem raziskav. Na podlagi analize vprašalnikov smo ugotovili, da imajo posamezniki, ki so doživeli spolno zlorabo v otroštvu, v primerjavi s posamezniki, ki je niso, v odraslosti statistično pomembno več individualnih problemov in manj moči na področjih: izraženost negativnih afektov, odsotnost inhibicije močnih impulzov, življenjska funkcionalnost in samosprejetost, ne pa tudi na področjih: odprtost samoizražanja, nerazumevanje samega sebe, zloraba substanc in fleksibilnost. Nadalje so rezultati raziskave pokazali, da imajo posamezniki, ki so doživeli spolno zlorabo v otroštvu, statistično pomembno slabšo regulacijo agresije, in sicer na vseh področjih agresije: fizična in verbalna agresija, jeza, sovražnost in skupna raven agresije. Ugotovili smo tudi, da imajo posamezniki, ki so doživeli spolno zlorabo v otroštvu, v primerjavi s posamezniki, ki je niso, statistično pomembno manjšo zmožnost samokontrole na področju tolerance do frustracije, ne pa tudi na področjih: impulzivnost, poenostavljanje, tvegano vedenje, fizična aktivnost in osredotočenost nase. Prav tako so rezultati raziskave na področju zmožnosti čustvenega procesiranja pokazali, da imajo posamezniki, ki so doživeli spolno zlorabo v otroštvu, statistično pomembno slabšo funkcionalnost čustvenega procesiranja na področju čustvene stabilnosti, ne pa tudi na področjih: odprtost izražanja čustev, presojanje in uporaba čustev, skupna raven čustvenega procesiranja.
V pretežno kvalitativnem in deloma kvantitativnem delu raziskave nas je najprej zanimal prispevek relacijske družinske terapije pri zmanjševanju problemov pri žrtvah spolnih zlorab v otroštvu na področju individualnih problemov in moči, agresije, samokontrole in čustvenega procesiranja. Prav tako nas je v okviru terapevtske obravnave zanimalo klientovo doživljanje sprememb v terapiji oziroma klientovo doživljanje poteka terapevtskega procesa in terapevtovega delovanja v okviru skupinske obravnave spolnega nasilja. V raziskavo je bilo vključenih deset udeleženk, ki so bile spolno zlorabljene v otroštvu. Rezultati raziskave so pokazali, da je pri žrtvah spolnih zlorab v otroštvu po procesu skupinske obravnave po modelu relacijske družinske terapije prišlo do statistično pomembnega zmanjšanja individualnih problemov in nemoči na področjih: izražanje negativnih afektov, življenjska funkcionalnost, nerazumevanje samega sebe in samosprejetost, medtem ko pri odsotnosti inhibicije impulzov, odprtosti samoizražanja, fleksibilnosti in zlorabi substanc, statistično pomembnih razlik ni bilo mogoče potrditi. Nadalje smo ugotovili, da je pri žrtvah spolne zlorabe v otroštvu po terapiji prišlo do statistično pomembnega zvišanja regulacije agresije na področjih: jeza, sovraštvo in skupna raven agresije, na pa tudi na področjih fizična agresija in verbalna agresija. Raziskava je pokazala, da je pri žrtvah spolnih zlorab v otroštvu po procesu skupinske obravnave prišlo do statistično pomembnega zvišanja samokontrole na področju toleranca do frustracije, ne pa tudi na področjih: impulzivnost, poenostavljanje, tvegano vedenje, fizična aktivnost in osredotočenost nase. Prav tako smo ugotovili, da je pri žrtvah spolnih zlorab v otroštvu po procesu skupinske terapije prišlo do statistično pomembnega izboljšanja čustvenega procesiranja na področjih: zmožnost presojanja čustev, čustvena stabilnost in čustveno procesiranje skupaj, medtem ko na področju odprtost izražanja čustev ni prišlo do statistično pomembnega izboljšanja. V drugem delu kvalitativne raziskave nas je zanimalo klientovo doživljanje spremembe v okviru skupinske relacijske družinske terapije oziroma klientovo doživljanje poteka terapevtskega procesa in terapevtovega delovanja. Ugotovili smo, da je navedeno mogoče vsebinsko razvrstiti na štiri osrednje kategorije, in sicer na: spremembe pri klientu, spremembe v odnosu z drugimi, pogoji na terapiji in lastnosti terapevta. Spremembe, o katerih so tekom terapevtskega procesa poročale žrtve spolne zlorabe, so se nanašale na področje čustev, ovrednotenja zlorabe, sočutja do sebe oziroma boljšega razumevanja sebe, doživljanja moči, dvojnega zavedanja ter na področje telesnih odzivov. Prav tako so poročale o spremembah v odnosu z drugimi, in sicer na področjih: razmejitev, socialne mreže, partnerskega odnosa in odnosov v družini. Nadalje so se pogoji na terapiji nanašali na: pomen in učinek terapije, možnost spregovoriti, občutek, da nisi sam oziroma pripadnost, zaupanje, varnost, motivacijo, pozitivna pričakovanja, na strukturo in rednost srečanj ter na izpostavljenost na skupini. Kot bistvene lastnosti terapevta so se izkazale: sočutje, strokovnost in osebnost terapevta ter terapevtski stavki, ki so pomagali.
Relacijska družinska terapija se je izkazala za varen prostor, kjer posameznik dobi besede za to, kar se mu je zgodilo, preko različnih mehanizmov pa se travma tudi zregulira in žrtvi povrne upanje v normalno življenje. Skupinska terapija se je kot posebej pomembno izkazala tudi zaradi občutka, da ljudje, ki se jim je zgodila travma spolne zlorabe, vedo, da v tem niso več sami in da z njimi ni nič narobe.
Zaključke raziskave je treba razumeti z upoštevanjem omejitev, prvi del predvsem zaradi nereprezentativnega vzorca, v drugem delu pa ni bilo vključene kontrolne skupine, prav tako pa je pri predelovanju spolne zlorabe potrebno upoštevati tudi individualnost in različnost vsakega posameznika, ki se s posledicami travme sooča vsak na svoj specifični način.
Doktorska disertacija je pomemben doprinos k boljšemu razumevanju žrtev spolnih zlorab in prispeva k razvoju relacijske družinske terapije pri obravnavi žrtev, ki so doživele travmo spolne zlorabe.Childhood sexual violence is a serious social problem, as every fifth girl is said to has been sexually abused, while the number of sexually abused boys is slightly lower. Sexual abuse can traumatize a child for a lifetime. Many studies show that sexual violence in childhood and adolescence is a major risk factor for psychological, emotional, cognitive, behavioral, physical and interpersonal problems, both in the short and long term. Many also show, that individuals who were victims of sexual violence in childhood have more problems than individuals who were not victims of sexual violence. In the doctoral dissertation, we therefore wanted to investigate the differences in difficulties between individuals who were sexually abused in childhood and individuals who were not, as well as to understand the profound experiences of victims of sexual abuse who joined group therapeutic treatment according to the Relational Family Therapy model.
The doctoral dissertation entitled A Client\u27s Perception of Change in Group Treatment of Childhood Sexual Violence by the Relational Family Therapy is divided into a theoretical and an empirical part. In the theoretical part, we first described the phenomenon of sexual violence in childhood, focusing on the definitions of sexual abuse, on the prevalence of sexual abuse and on disclosure and treatment of sexual abuse. In the second chapter of the theoretical work, we presented the consequences of sexual violence in childhood by describing the factors that affect the outcomes of sexual violence, short-term and long-term consequences, behavioral responses of victims and the impact of trauma on the brain. We continued with selected aspects of sexual violence, namely: individual problems, aggression, self-control and emotional response. In the fourth part we presented a model of Relational Family Therapy in the context of sexual violence, and in the last chapter of the theoretical part, we discussed the broader aspect of understanding sexual abuse in the Bible, both in the New and Old Testament.
This was followed by the empirical part, which consists of quantitative and predominantly qualitative part. In the quantitative part, we were interested in the differences between individuals who were sexually abused in childhood and individuals who were not abused, in the following areas: individual problems and strengths, the expression of aggression, the ability to self-control, and the ability of emotional processing. The 707 participants voluntarily participated in the study, of which 61,39 % experienced a low, moderate, or severe form of sexual abuse, which is above the research average. By analyzing results of the questionnaires, we found that individuals who experienced sexual abuse in childhood, in comparison to individuals who did not, have statistically significantly more individual problems and less strength in the areas of expression of negative emotions, absence of inhibition of strong impulses, life functionality, and self-acceptance, but not in the areas of openness to self-expression, lack of self-understanding, substance abuse, and flexibility. Furthermore, the research results showed that individuals who experienced sexual abuse in childhood have a statistically significantly worse regulation of aggression, namely in all areas of aggression: physical and verbal aggression, anger, hostility, and general aggression level. We also found that individuals who have experienced sexual abuse in childhood, compared to individuals who have not, have a statistically significant lower capacity for self-control in the area of temper but not in areas of impulsivity, simplification, risky behavior, physical activity, and self-focus. Also, the results of the research in the field of emotional processing ability showed that individuals who experienced sexual abuse in childhood have a statistically significantly worse functionality of emotional processing in the area of emotional stability but not in the areas of the openness of expressing emotions, appraisal and use of emotions, overall level of emotional processing.
In the predominantly qualitative and partly quantitative part of the research, we were first interested in the contribution of Relational Family Therapy in reducing problems in victims of sexual abuse in childhood in the area of individual problems and strength, aggression, self-control and emotional processing. We were also interested in the client\u27s experience of changes in therapy, i. e. the client\u27s experiences of the course of the therapeutic process and the therapist\u27s actions within the group treatment of sexual violence. Ten participants who had been sexually abused in childhood joined the research. The research result showed that after the process of group treatment according to the model of Relational Family Therapy, there was a statistically significant reduction of individual problems and helplessness in the areas of expression of negative affects, life functionality, misunderstanding of oneself and self-acceptance among victims of sexual abuse in childhood, while no statistically significant differences in the absence of impulse inhibition, openness to self-expression, flexibility and substance abuse, could be confirmed. Furthermore, we found that in victims of childhood sexual abuse after therapy, there was a statistically significant increase in the regulation of aggression in the areas: of anger, hostility, and general aggression level, as well as in the areas of physical aggression and verbal aggression. The research showed that victims of childhood sexual abuse after the group treatment process experienced a statistically significant increase in self-control in the area of temper but not in the areas of impulsivity, simplification, risky behavior, physical activity and self-focus. We also found that victims of childhood sexual abuse after the process of group therapy experienced a statistically significant improvement in emotional processing in the following areas: appraisal of emotions, emotional stability and emotional processing together, while there was no statistically significant improvement in the area of openness to expressing emotions. In the second part of the qualitative research, we were interested in the client\u27s experience of change within the framework of group Relational Family Therapy and the client\u27s experiences of the course of the therapeutic process and the therapist\u27s actions. This can be classified into four main categories: client\u27s changes, changes in the relationship with others, conditions during the therapy and characteristics of the therapist. The changes reported by the victims of sexual abuse during the therapeutic process related to the: area of emotions, evaluation of the abuse, self-compassion and better self-understanding, experiencing power, double awareness and the area of bodily responses. They also reported changes in their relationship with others, namely in the areas of delimitations, social network, partner relationships and family relationships. Furthermore, the conditions of the therapy related to the meaning and effect of the therapy, the possibility to speak, the feeling that you are not alone and belonging, trust, security, motivation, positive expectations, the structure and regularity of the meetings, and exposure to the group. The therapist\u27s compassion, professionalism, and personality, as well as therapeutic phrases that helped, proved to be essential qualities of the therapist.
Relational Family Therapy has proven to be a safe space where an individual gets words for what happened to him, and through various mechanisms the trauma is also regulated and the victim regains hope for a normal life. Group therapy has also proved particularly important because of the feeling that people who have been traumatized by the trauma of sexual abuse know that they are no longer alone in this and that there is nothing wrong with them.
The conclusions of this study should be understood by taking into account the limitations, the first part mainly due to the non-representative sample, while the second part did not include a control group, and when processing sexual abuse, it is also necessary to take into account the individuality and diversity of each individual who faces the consequences of trauma in its own specific way.
The doctoral thesis is an important contribution to a better understanding of victims of sexual abuse and contributes to the development of Relational Family Therapy treatment of victims who have experienced the trauma of sexual abuse
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