AimTo examine age and gender differences in the prevalence and incidence of child sexual abuse, the level of acquaintance of the child and the perpetrator, and correlations between experiencing family violence and sexual abuse on a nationally representative sample of 11, 13, and 16 years old children.MethodA probabilistic stratified cluster sample included 2.62% of the overall population of children aged 11 (n = 1223), 13 (n = 1188), and 16 (n = 1233) from 40 primary and 29 secondary schools. A modified version of ISPCAN Child Abuse Screening Tool – Children's Version was used. Five items referred to child sexual abuse (CSA) for all age groups.ResultsIn Croatia, 10.8% of children experienced some form of sexual abuse (4.8% to 16.5%, depending on the age group) during childhood and 7.7% of children experienced it during the previous year (3.7% to 11.1%, depending on the age group). Gender comparison showed no difference in the prevalence of contact sexual abuse, whereas more girls than boys experienced non-contact sexual abuse. Correlations between sexual abuse and physical and psychological abuse in the family were small, but significant.ConclusionComparisons with international studies show that Croatia is a country with a low prevalence of CSA. The fact that the majority of perpetrators of sexual abuse are male and female peers indicates the urgent need to address risks of sexual victimization in the health education of children.

Ajduković M., Rajhvajn Bulat L., Su sac N. The internalising and externalising problems of adolescents in Croatia: Socio-demographic and family victimisation factors This study assessed Croatian adolescents' problems in relation to socio-demographic characteristics and experienced family violence in early and late adolescence. A national representative sample of 1,780 Croatian students (45.3% males) in two age groups representing early (M 5 13.20; SD 5 0.42) and late adolescence (M 5 18.14; SD 5 0.38) participated. The questionnaire included the Youth SelfReport, modified version of ISPCAN Child Abuse Screening Tool -Children's Version, and socio-demographic data. Results show that internalising problems were more present in female adolescents, in adolescents who perceived family financial hardship and in those whose biological parents did not live together. More externalising problems were reported in late adolescence by students who were living in large cities and whose families had either low, or above-average, financial status. Adolescents who have experienced family violence were at higher risk of developing internalising and/ or externalising problems.

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Sveučilište u ZagrebuPravni fakultet Studijski centar socijalnog rada ALKOHOL KAO KRIMINOGENI ČIMBENIK KOD UBOJSTVA I POKUŠAJA UBOJSTVA SAŽETAK Cilj ovog istraživanja bio je proučavanje i spoznavanje obilježja kaznenog djela ubojstva s obzirom na psihofizičko stanje, ali i karakteristike samih počinitelja. Istraživane su osobitosti počinitelja s obzirom na njihovo psihofizičko stanje pod vidom varijabli sociodemografskih, psihosocijalnih obilježja te obilježja kaznenog djela. Analizirani su pojmovi alkoholizma, akutne intoksikacije alkoholom i ubojstva. Istraživanje je provedeno na podacima o počiniteljima kaznenog djela ubojstva i pokušaja ubojstva u Republici Hrvatskoj, vještačenim u Zavodu za forenzičnu psihijatriju NPB Dr. Ivan Barbot u Popovači. Rezultati istraživanja pokazuju specifičnosti tri ispitivane skupine (počinitelji kaznenog djela ubojstva koji su djelo počinili u akutno opitom stanju/stanju alkoholne intoksikacije, počinitelji s dijagnozom alkoholizma te počinitelji koji su djelo počinili u trijeznom

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Relationship commitment is one of the key constructsin studies on relationship quality and stability. In this study, the Investment Model (Rusbult, 1980) was used as a theoretical basis, where commitment is emphasized as the central construct for relationship maintenance and endurance. The aim of the study was to examine the role of psychological violence in predicting commitment and perceived relationship stability within the aforementioned model. The participants were students of the University of Zagreb (N = 154), with female students (77.9%) being more represented in the sample. The obtained results confirmed the assumptions of the basic model and all regression analyses resulted in a high percentage of explained variance of the examined criteria. The frequency of experiencing psychological violence was a significant negative predictor of commitment and perceived relationship stability, and this relationship was only partially mediated by other examined constructs. Contrary to expectations, more frequent experiencing of psychological violence also had a direct contribution in predicting less perceived relationship stability. The paper discusses the meaning of individual mediation effects and their contribution to explaining the relationships between the investigated constructs. The implications for future studies and for potential practical application of the results are also indicated. Key words: psychological violence; commitment; stability; partner relationships; Investment model