Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

"We Are All Mentally Ill" : Grassroots Efforts To Provide Lgbtq Affirmative Psychotherapy & Social Services, 1960-1987: Oral History Project, Seattle, Washington, Dexter Rose

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This thesis reports on the preliminary oral history findings collected for a larger national study directed by David S. Byers and Stephen Vider. The findings reported here focus on experiences of clinicians and social service providers in Seattle, Washington. Another student, José Hernandez conducted similar field research in Los Angeles, California. Both projects were under the supervision of the principal investigators.

The larger study—and this thesis—examines the motivations and strategies of clinicians and social services workers offering lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) affirmative psychotherapy and social services during a time when homosexuality and later egodystonic homosexuality were listed …

The Political Birth Of Gay Affirmative Social Services, José A. HernáNdez.

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This thesis reports on the preliminary oral history findings collected for a larger national study directed by David S. Byers and Stephen Vider. The findings reported here focus on the experiences of clinicians and social service providers in Los Angeles, California. Another student, Dexter Rose, conducted similar field research in Seattle, Washington. Both projects were under the supervision of the principal investigators. This investigative oral history study examines the perspective of clinicians and social services workers who provided affirmative services to gay and lesbian communities in the years 1960-1987. These years are of great importance because they mark the beginning …

Flow In The Therapy Setting : An Examination Of Optimal Experience In Clinical Social Work Practice, David E. Landry

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This study's purpose was to understand how licensed clinical social workers described their optimal experience when they are engaged in clinical practice. The specific focus of this study was to conduct interviews to obtain subjective narrative descriptions of these experiences. The question was based on the theoretical model of flow, a state of mind where one is wholly absorbed in the moment. Data reflected that the social connection between the therapist and client was the strongest indicator of optimal experience. Data from this study showed evidence that participating licensed clinical social workers described their optimal experience in practice within the …

Altruism In Relationship To The Therapeutic Process : An Exploratory Study Of The Perspectives And Experiences Of Clinical Social Workers, Leslie M. Hammer

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

While engaging in altruism has been found to be therapeutic in many settings including mutual aid groups, there is a lack of empirical data regarding altruism in the context of clinical social work with individuals. Using qualitative methods, this study gathered perspectives on the current state of altruism in clinical social work, and inquired specifically about the use of altruism as a clinical tool. Semi-structured interviews were completed with 13 licensed clinical social workers. Participants varied in their perspectives about engaging in conversations about altruism with clients and the therapeutic use of participating in altruistic acts. Clinicians expressed being guided …

A Sense Of Pride Over My Size : A Qualitative Study Of Women Of Size Who Consider Themselves Body Positive, Ruth A. Salen

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This qualitative exploratory study investigated how women who self identify as a person of size and who have a positive body image developed their positive body identity. Through the process of a semi-structured interview, the study explored the personal experience of the participants from their youth into adulthood regarding the messages they received about their bodies and how they responded and resisted the impact of those messages. The theoretical underpinnings of this study were based on body objectification theory, stigma theory and feminist theory. Sixteen female participants participated in the study and shared what they believed contributed to their body …

Character Strength And Character Disorder : An Investigation Into How Personality Disorder Diagnosis Intersects With Character Strength Measurements, Joshua T. Tecu

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

On the eve of the release of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual 5, with major revisions planned in its diagnostic approach to personality disorder (PD), qualitative research was conducted via face-to-face interviews to explore the perspective of seasoned mental health clinicians regarding their experience working with personality disordered individuals, and how that experience squared with current debates within personality science and positive psychology. Eight experienced clinicians were asked how they saw PD in regard to character strength, what relationship they imagined existed between the two, and whether they saw them as existing on the same dimensional axis. Participants chose from …

Parent Education Para Mi? : The Relevance And Usefulness Of Mainstream Parent Education For Latino Parents, Gabriela Bustamante

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This study involved the development of a parent education curriculum derived from the evidence-based parenting literature, and the pilot testing a single intervention from this curriculum to compare responses of Latino and non-Latino parents to interventions originally designed for the mainstream culture. Parents also received and responded to an overview of the curriculum as a whole. It was expected that Latino parents would rate the curriculum content and the single intervention as less relevant and useful than their non-Latino counterparts; and would rate instructor modeling, and opportunities for support as more relevant and useful than non-Latinos. The pilot test was …