Providing Financial Empowerment to Mothers on Welfare

SUMMARY

Three samples of urban Latina and African-American women in hospitality training programs were assessed on their perceived self-efficacy. In Sample 1, the typical Latina (n= 25) and African-American (n= 71) woman was a young, single, mother of three children who had received benefits for over six years and who, at the start of a two-week training program, reported low self-efficacy and moderate social desirability. Sample 2 participants were mostly single Latina (n= 25) or African-American (n= 49) mothers who received six weeks of training/internship, but reported no significant change in their level of self-efficacy, social desirability, or hopefulness from pre- to post-training. Sample 3 (16 Latinas, 36 African-Americans) was a subset of women from the first sample who were interviewed by telephone four months after completing the two-week training program and were now employed. These working women reported a significant increase in their level of self-efficacy compared to the start of training. Results suggest that some minority women may benefit from job skill training in terms of their sense of mastery over their life situation, although the impact of such training may not emerge until after they have been actively employed.     

Introduction

SUMMARY

Previously homeless women (17) and men (12) were surveyed on their experience as a caregiver to physically challenged senior citizen clients (16 men, 13 women: age M= 64.7, SD = 16.8). Caregivers had training in service delivery and experience before the survey. More satisfaction than stress from providing care was reported by caregivers. Caregiving satisfaction was significantly positively related to global life satisfaction and a sense of personal vulnerability to being disabled. Caregiving stress was significantly negatively related to perceived knowledge of the disability. Overall, these previously homeless caregivers reported that providing care to the disabled was positive, and would be repeated and recommended to Others.     

Community Elder-Care in Tasmania

SUMMARY

Adult caregivers (n = 184; M age = 43.9 years old) working at a non-profit, eldercare program at five geographically diverse sites located in the self-contained, island state of Tasmania, Australia, completed a set of self-report measures. Results across the five sites indicated that respondents experienced a relatively strong sense of self-efficacy toward making a difference in their local community. However, there were significant differences (controlling for social desirability) when comparing caregivers from rural northern (n = 45) with urban southern (n = 139) communities, with rural caregivers claiming stronger sense of common mission with others, reciprocal responsibility to help others, and caregiver satisfaction, plus lower disharmony with other members and caregiver stress in helping the elderly than urban caregivers. Implications suggest that community self-efficacy may be high among eldercare staff, but their sense of community and caregiving perceptions may reflect geographic differences, especially in Tasmania.     

The methodological and conceptual basis of environmental policies for children

Abstract

The literature on environmental effects on children is pervaded by value‐laden statements. This article stresses careful examination of the factual basis of such statements. Selected research findings on children's health, play behavior, social interactions, and school behavior indicate a need for environmental policies for children. This need is further augmented by children's characteristics regarding their level of development, their decision‐making authority, and their economic position. Four approaches to child‐environment congruence are distinguished. A fable then underscores the importance of basing environmental policies for children on a certain and integral conception of how children's development over time relates to the environment. Space‐time methodology is discussed as one such framework, elucidating contexual considerations that surround research and policies regarding children's environments.     

Career Search Efficacy Among an At-Risk Sample

SUMMARY

Since the introduction of welfare reform more job training programs have become available to welfare recipients; however, these programs rarely undergo thorough assessments of their effectiveness in improving the psychological well-being of participants. The purpose of this study was to examine how career search efficacy may change among welfare (n= 14) and non-welfare recipients (n= 27) enrolled in a 10-week work training program that included classroom instruction, job simulation practice, and an internship. Results suggested that both welfare and non-welfare recipients improved on two career search efficacy factors (interviewing and network efficacy) from the start to end of the training program.     

The Victimization of LGBTQ Students at School: A Meta-Analysis

ABSTRACT

Although research suggests that LGBTQ youth are at risk for victimization at school, it remains unclear just how much more likely they are to be victimized relative to heterosexual or cisgender youth, or the conditions under which their risks for victimization are highest. Accordingly, we conducted a meta-analysis on the relationship between LGBTQ identification and school victimization. Multilevel analysis of 276 effect size estimates, from 55 studies, revealed a moderate overall mean effect size (r = .155). Moderator analyses indicated the relationship was stronger for transgender youth, homophobic victimization, and students in the Western United States; and weaker for questioning youth. We conclude with recommendations for policy and future research, and suggest that theories of victimization be broadened to better explain the risks that LGBTQ students face.     

Chapter 12

Abstract

This study examined the perspectives and definition of leadership by women and mothers with children (n= 40) affiliated with Oxford Houses, a communal mutual-help recovery setting. Participants were asked questions relating to their experiences living in an Oxford House including the strengths and challenges encountered and how leadership impacted the stability in their house. Results illustrated the value of female leadership and highlighted the characteristics deemed important for women leaders in Oxford House, as well as some differences between these women's perception of leadership and the standard definition of leadership. The implications of the findings and how they may be useful to women's and mothers' with children houses are discussed.     

IV-E or not IV-E,that is the question: comparisons of BSW Child Welfare Scholars and matched trainee confidence and retention

ABSTRACT

Our longitudinal study examined the effectiveness of BSW IVE Scholar training (n = 52) compared with a matched cohort (n = 57) of traditionally trained employees. The BSW IV-E Scholars felt significantly more prepared than their traditionally-trained coworkers. BSW IV-E Scholars were significantly more likely to be retained in the first five years of employment than the matched cohort trainees. The study lends strong support for the retention and preparation advantages of BSW Title IV-E training over traditional employee training. This is important given the significant investment of training dollars for IV-E at the Federal, state, and local levels.     

A Call for Help?: How Public School Principals’ Subjective Report of Institutional Weakness Relates to Disciplinary Incidents

ABSTRACT

Disciplinary incidents at U.S. public middle- and high-schools are a public policy concern. Although businesses popularly give credence to leaders’ subjective intelligence, principals’ reports of their schools’ strengths and weaknesses are questioned. To determine whether principals’ reports carry legitimacy as indicators of student offenses, the current study utilized a nationally representative survey of principals who reported on their sense of the institution and the number of disciplinary incidents in the past year (N = 1,872; replication cohort, N = 1,833). Findings showed that the more institutional shortcomings a principal endorsed, the higher total number of incidents occurred, even after controlling for institutional strength and several indicators of school crime. These findings have policy and intervention implications for improving student outcomes, and so would be of interest to funding agencies, school administrators, teachers, and parents.     

Child and Parent Perspectives on Routes to and from School in High Crime Neighborhoods

Abstract

This study examined children's understanding of the danger and potential harm they face while traveling to and from school in two urban neighborhoods with high crime and violence rates. A qualitative methodology was used to explore how students negotiate danger or potential harm within the context of their routes to and from school.Structured interviews with three hundred seventy-seven second, fourth, sixth, and eighth graders (and 106 of their parents) were analyzed utilizing an inductive coding process (emergent themes). When students were asked to discuss the safety of their school routes, emergent themes included student's fear/awareness of death, fear of violence/victimization, and fear of gangs. Students also mentioned getting driven to school and better monitoring as ways that their school routes could be made safer. Parents discussed similar fears and concerns as their children. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.     

Two Into One

Abstract

A preventive consultation guided by an ecological perspective was carried out in a suburban public school system. The broad goal of this consultation was to facilitate the closure of one public junior high school and its consolidation into another school which was quite different in terms of student body characteristics, administrative philosophy, and social and physical environments. The elements of the consultation consisted of: (1) serving as a source of support and information for the school administrator who was almost single-handedly orchestrating both the closure and the consolidation; (2) attempting to illuminate potential resources to enrich the consolidation process; and (3) developing events to aid both staff and students in understanding the existing social environments of both schools and the common culture to be formed as a result of the consolidation. In addition, conclusions about the usefulness and limitations of an ecological approach to consultation are outlined, and reactions of members of the two schools involved in the consultation are presented.     

Carrying a Weapon to School

ABSTRACT

Eighth and tenth grade students (n= 1,619) reported on exposure to risk and protective assets in their day-to-day lives. The relationship between carrying a weapon to school and risk and protective factors in the home and school ecological domains was explored through logistic regression conducted separately by gender. Environmental control in the home, one factor previously unexplored in the context of resiliency to interpersonal violence-related risk behavior, was incorporated into the analysis. Results support previous research that suggests school violence prevention efforts should address both risk and protective factors in multiple ecological domains. Further, results suggest violence prevention efforts should be sensitive to gender differences, and that additional research is necessary to clarify the role of environmental control as a factor influencing youth resiliency to violence.     

Liked by Peers or Liked by Teachers: Differential Patterns of Bullying over Time

ABSTRACT

We examined the tendency for high status children to bully their classmates. Children liked by peers only (LPO), liked by teachers only (LTO), liked by both (Both), liked by neither (Neither), and children with average peer and teacher liking (Average) were compared on self-, teacher-, and peer-reported bullying. Participants were 676 fourth-grade children (50.7% girls). Children in the Neither group evinced the highest level of bullying, which increased significantly from fall to spring. We found little evidence that children in the Both group differed from other groups or that their bullying increased over time. Self-reported physical bullying increased for boys in the LPO and Average groups and for girls in the LTO and Neither groups. Gender-specific findings have implications for researchers and practitioners.     

Chapter 10: Preventive Interventions in the Environment

Summary

This chapter describes preventively-oriented efforts at developing more satisfactory natural and built environments. Programs dealing with the collection and disposal of solid waste and the design of court facilities are presented as examples of the contributions municipal officials, citizen groups, environmentalists, engineers, architects, and psychologists have made in these areas. A final section highlights the general issues illustrated by current efforts in environmental intervention, including the complexities of initiating and sustaining preventive efforts at environmental change.     

Principal Perceptions of School Safety

Abstract

In a climate of continued national concern over school safety, school personnel are faced with a flood of statistics and advice about the prevalence of youth violence, and recommended responses. In the spring of 2000, a school safety survey (Sprague, Colvin, & Irvin, 1995) was sent to all public school principals in Oregon to assess their perceptions of risk and protective factors affecting school safety. We also asked questions about school safety concerns and intervention programs. We compared the results of the present survey with those found from administering the same survey in 1995. Results indicate that protective factors were rated higher than risk factors in 1995 and 2000. Bullying and harassment, poverty, and transiency were top rated risk factors in 2000 and these were different from results found in 1995. Principals rated response to conflict, suicide prevention, and staff training as top protective factors in 2000 and these also differed from the 1995 ratings. Regarding priorities for change, principals rated improvement of the academic program as their highest priority, followed by school safety and discipline improvement. Results are discussed in terms of their implications for local and state-level policy planning in education and government. We also address limitations of the current study and directions for future research.     

Chapter 9: Partnerships Between Health Professionals and Self-Help Groups

SUMMARY

The study aimed to identify the meanings and mechanisms of partnership between health professionals and self-help group members. The three project stages involved in-depth individual interviews of professionals (n = 47) and of members (n = 49) using a semistructured interview guide; separate group interviews of professionals and members to rank themes which emerged in Phase I, and a joint professional/member workshop. A Partnership Framework was developed. The predominant partnership characteristics identified by professionals were egalitarian, flexible, decreased professional control, understanding and shared goals; and by members were trusting, reciprocal, shared goals, flexible and understanding. The five critical obstacles to partnerships, from professionals' standpoint were communication, attitudes, role ambiguity, the format health care system and ideological conflicts, and from self-help groups' perspectives were knowledge, the system, skills deficiency, attitudes and ideological conflicts. The foremost mechanisms for achieving partnership according to health professionals involved education, clearinghouses, and role and goal clarification; to self-help group members, they entailed trust building, communication building, and education. [Note: italics denote consensus by professionals and members.]     

E-SITES FOR SAFE SCHOOLS

Abstract

Uncontrolled outbursts of violence, of both an individual and group nature, are distinctive elements of social and economic changes occurring in Poland. They affect all social environments and institutions in this country, and unfortunately many people believe in violent solutions of problems (at least as represented in the media). Between aggression and submission, well-fixed in the school environment, there is a space for assertiveness and empathy; its persistent and thoughtful promotion among pupils, school personnel, and parents may be an effective answer to the expectations of further changes in Polish schools.     

Schizophrenia,AIDS and the Decision to Prescribe HAART

SUMMARY

Individuals with schizophrenia are at risk of developing HIV and are known to experience barriers to optimal medical care. Our goal was to determine, among a cohort of HIV clinicians, whether or not the diagnosis of schizophrenia affected the clinical decision to offer highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) to AIDS patients.

This is a cross-sectional study of a random, national sample of HIV experts drawn from the membership of the American Academy of HIV Medicine. Participants were mailed a self-administered questionnaire with a case vignette of a new onset AIDS patient and were specifically asked whether or not they would recommend HAART treatment. Vignettes were randomly assigned to include a diagnosis of schizophrenia or not. We located 649 clinicians (93%); 347 responded (53.4%). Responders and non-responders did not differ in demographics or work characteristics. Recommendation of antiretroviral treatment did not differ between those who received a case vignette with schizophrenia versus those who did not (95.8% vs. 96.6%, p = 0.69). Compared to those who received a case vignette without schizophrenia, those who received vignettes with schizophrenia were more likely to avoid prescribing efavirenz, a medication with known neuropsychiatric side effects (17.7% vs. 45.5%, p < 0.01), more likely to agree to be helped by a specialist (34.5% vs. 12.9%, p < 0.01), and more likely to recommend directly observed therapy (20% vs.10%, p = 0.01). HIV clinicians recognize the importance of recommending HAART treatment to individuals with schizophrenia and AIDS and avoid using antiretroviral medication with known neuropsychiatric side effects.     

BOOK REVIEWS

ABSTRACT

A HISTORY OF CHILD PROTECTION IN AMERICA. Myers, John E. B. 2004, 460 pp., ISBN 1-4134-2301-9 (softcover), ISBN 1-4134-2302-7 (hardcover). Reviewed by Leslie Leighninger.

CHILD WELFARE IN THE LEGAL SETTING: A CRITICAL AND INTERPRETIVE PERSPECTIVE. O'Brien, Thomas M. New York: The Haworth Press, 2004, 302 pp., ISBN 0-7890-2351-2. Reviewed by Sue D. Steib.