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A 33-item measure of homesickness (the Homesickness Questionnaire, HQ) was derived from features of grief modified for the circumstance of separation from home. In three samples of year 1 students (N = 264) during their first year at university, total HQ scores were highly correlated with a single-item measure of homesickness used in previous studies, and 28 items showed significant differences between subgroups divided on the basis of the single-item scores. Previous findings that homesick students show more health and psychological symptoms, and cognitive failures, were supported by further comparisons between the two groups, and a meta-analysis of four studies. Factor analysis of the HQ indicated two factors, disliking the university, and attachment to the home, which are consistent with both the separation and strain models of homesickness. Correlations with other variables, and sex differences in the factor scores, further supported the distinction between these two aspects of homesickness. Women showed higher levels of intrusive thinking about the homesickness, but this was mediated by their higher scores on the attachment factor of the HQ. There was no sex difference in avoidant responses to homesickness.

This study addresses the relationship between aggression and behaviors indicative of bullying in a sample of incarcerated male juvenile and young offenders. The study also addresses whether or not offenders who bully others and/or are bullied themselves can be identified by the type of aggression that they report. Ninety-five juvenile and 196 young offenders completed a self-report behavioral checklist (DIPC: Direct and Indirect Prisoner Behavior Checklist) that addressed their experience of and involvement in behaviors indicative of bullying. They also completed the Aggression Questionnaire (AQ), a measure of physical and verbal aggression, anger and hostility. Four categories of offenders were identified from the DIPC -pure bullies, pure victims, those who were both bullies and victims (bully/victims), and those not-involved in bullying behavior. As predicted, behaviors measured on the DIPC that were indicative of 'bullying others' correlated positively with scores on the AQ. There was no indication, however, that physical AQ and physical bullying on the DIPC were the same constructs. There was a closer association between verbal AQ scores and verbal bullying on the DIPC. Bullies and bully/victims reported higher levels of physical and verbal aggression, and bully/victims reported higher levels of hostility and anger, than the other categories. It is concluded that although there are similarities between the AQ and the DIPC, there is no evidence that they are measuring the same type of aggression, although different groups involved in bullying can be partly distinguished by their scores on the AQ. Aggr.

The current study explores the role of coping styles as a predictor of poor psychological health among adolescent offenders. It presents the first study to compare young and juvenile offenders. Two hundred and three male offenders took part: 108 young (18–21 years) and 95 juvenile (15–17 years) offenders. All completed the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ‐28) and a revised version of the Coping Styles Questionnaire (CSQ‐3). Young offenders reported using emotional, avoidant and detached coping styles more than juveniles. They also reported more overall psychological distress than juveniles, with a trend to report increased depression, anxiety and insomnia. For both young and juvenile offenders, emotional coping predicted increased psychological distress. This was consistent across different symptoms (i.e. somatic, anxiety and insomnia, social dysfunction and severe depression). For young offenders, rational coping predicted a decrease in overall distress and was found across all symptoms. For juveniles, although detached coping predicted a decrease in overall psychological distress, across symptoms it only predicted social dysfunction. Increased rational coping was also found to predict decreased depression for juveniles. The study highlights differences between young and juvenile offenders regarding coping styles and how this relates to psychological distress. It highlights the complexities of trying to understand the coping‐health relationship in a prison setting and asks if such settings are increasing the potential for adolescents to over‐use coping styles that may not be the most effective.

Purpose. The main aims of the study were to investigate attitudes towards the victims of bullying, and to explore the role of empathy in bullying others. It was predicted that those who reported ‘bullying others’ would report less positive attitudes towards victims and lower levels of empathy than those who did not engage in bullying behaviour. It was predicted that differences would be found in attitudes and empathy between sex. No predictions were made with regard to adults vs. young offenders. Method. The sample was selected from five separate prison establishments and consisted of 98 young offenders (21 women and 77 men) and 211 adult offenders (53 women and 158 men). Prisoners were categorized as ‘bullies’, ‘bully/victims’, ‘pure victims’ or ‘not involved’ on the basis of a self‐report behaviour checklist (Direct and Indirect Prisoner Behaviour Checklist (DIPC)). A modified version of the Rigby & Slee (1991) Provictim Scale and the Davis (1980) Interpersonal Reactivity Index were used to measure attitudes and empathy respectively. Results. The attitudes of the ‘bully’ and the ‘bully/victim’ group were found to reflect their behaviour in that both were less ‘provictim’ than those not involved in bullying. Women were significantly more provictim than men, and adults were significantly more provictim than young offenders. Women scored significantly higher on some components of empathy than men. The implications of these findings for bullying intervention programmes are discussed.