Social Work Commons^™

Alternative Approaches To Police Interventions When Responding To Mental Health Crises Incidents, Karen Rivera Apolinar

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Purpose: This study explored mental health workers perspectives on alternative approaches in responding to mental health crises.

The study was carried out in Southern California, in collaboration with mental health workers who currently work or previously have worked in mental health crisis. It adopted a post-positivists paradigm and data was gathered through individual interviews with mental health workers who have direct experience with mental health crisis response in the community and with the police. The twenty participants in the study were men and women working in the mental health field, and of various backgrounds, licensures, and ages.

The study found …

Bridging The Gap Between Foster Youth And Higher Education: Perspectives Of Social Workers, Marielena Lozano

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

This research examined the perceptions of child welfare social workers in their role of supporting foster youth. Specifically, this study will focus on factors contributing to support for foster youth to obtain post-secondary education or vocational training.

This study utilized a qualitative research design. Data were collected from individual, semi-structured interviews with six volunteer participants in Southern and Northern California using a snowball sampling method. Throughout the interviews, the researcher asked current or former child welfare social workers to describe their perceptions and experiences in supporting foster youth in obtaining higher education.

The study found several themes related to the …

Working With The Homeless Population: An Exploratory Study Of Graduate Social Work Student’S Confidence And Willingness, Ana Rosa Ortiz, Mariam Kiara Lowe

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Homelessness is a multilayered problem that affects hundreds of thousands of people across the United States. The social work profession cannot rest on its laurels when large numbers of individuals and families suffer due to a lack of shelter, a necessity. Historically, social work was at the vanguard of interventions against homelessness. However, over the past 30 years or so, the profession arguably has shifted its focus toward micro practice. As a result, macro issues such as poverty and homelessness have received comparatively less interest in the field. Using an exploratory design, this study examined factors associated with level of …