Geoffrey W. Sutton PhD, Psychology and Culture

  Exploring the Problem of Sexual Self-Control and the Suffering of their Victims   I Googled Ravi Z and before I typed his surname, 2,930,000 results appeared. The first two dealt with his problems of sexual self-control. His organization made a public statement following an investigation. In paragraph four they wrote:   To be victimized by unwanted sexual contact, advances, and behavior is horrendous. It is diametrically opposed to everything we believe about the value and dignity of every single person. We believe not only the women who made their allegations public but also additional women who had not previously made public allegations against Ravi but whose identities and stories were uncovered during the investigation. Tragically, witnesses described encounters including sexting, unwanted touching, spiritual abuse, and rape. We are devastated by what the investigation has shown and are filled with sorrow for the women who were hurt by this terrible abuse....

Tweeden's report of her long felt anger in the face of a revealing photo of sexual harassment by Al Franken makes big news for several reasons. We know sexual harassment knows no political boundaries. It's not just a problem for conservatives who have been under fire. But now there is evidence of a Democrat's sexual assault-- plus a photo and an apology. Leeann Tweeden says she accepted Franken's apology, which adds to the complexity of how to handle sexual harassment in society. Sexual harassment is wrong. No one of a sound mind denies the obvious. Different groups concerned about people who are accused of sexual harassment handle reports differently. This difference raises the issue of what consequences should apply to Franken and others when there is evidence of harassment. Voters will judge when they have an opportunity regardless of what any official administrative group (ethics panels etc.) decides. So, politicians have consequences of a different sort t...

FORGIVENESS & RECONCILIATION In a previous post ( 20 February ), I reported the results from two studies, which examined some nuances about forgiveness and reconciliation. This weekend, I follow up on that post with an additional set of 5 beliefs. As you study the questions, I hope you find the variations a useful starting point for considering the topic of forgiveness and reconciliation in more depth. As before, I will list the belief statement so you can think about your own opinion. Then I will post the response of the sample at the bottom of this blog post. BELIEFS 6 THROUGH 10 I will use the numbers 6-10 as a reminder that this is  Part 2 of 2 Parts. Please see the February 20 post for Part 1. 6. It is easier to forgive a friend or family member than a stranger for the same offense. 7. People need to admit what they have done and change before you forgive them. 8. If someone lost their job or position of leadership because...