Social Work Commons^™

Exploring College Student Identity Among Young People With Foster Care Histories And Mental Health Challenges, Rebecca Miller, Jennifer E. Blakeslee, Chanel Ison

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

Young adults with foster care histories experience unique barriers to success in postsecondary academic settings, including higher rates of mental health challenges. This study reports the perspectives of college students with foster care histories and self-identified mental health concerns (N = 18) about how these factors relate to their post-secondary academic experiences. Study participants describe managing their mental health amid other academic and life stressors, share their perspectives on campus-based support and help-seeking experiences, and highlight the need for acknowledgement of their foster care identities in conjunction with their developing college student identities. Participants make a case for programming to …

Understanding Support Network Capacity During The Transition From Foster Care: Youth-Identified Barriers, Facilitators, And Enhancement Strategies, Jared Best, Jennifer E. Blakeslee

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

This study explores how foster care experiences can impact support network functionality as young people exit the foster care system. This can be conceptualized as a function of both network member capacity to provide adequate support to address young adult needs, and network stability, which reflects cohesion within and across relationships to facilitate consistent support over time. We conducted support network mapping and semi-structured interviews with youth in foster care aged 16–20 (N = 22) and used theoretical thematic analysis to explore support barriers and facilitators in relation to the organizing concepts of support capacity and network stability. Overall, support …

What’S Happening During Home Visits? Exploring The Relationship Of Home Visiting Content And Dosage To Parenting Outcomes, Peggy Nygren, Beth Green, Katie Winters, Anna Rockhill

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

Research has documented modest positive impacts of early childhood home visiting programs. However, understanding more about what home visitors do during visits and how much time they spend on specific topics may provide insight into the variability in effectiveness of services. Methods Outcome data were collected via parent survey at program enrollment and 12 months from 123 women in three MIECHV-funded home visiting models. Home visitors completed weekly home visit content and activity logs. Results Families received an average of 28 visits during the study (3.1 visits per month). Of ten content areas, the three most often discussed were early …

Peer Support For Youth And Young Adults Who Experience Serious Mental Health Conditions: State Of The Science, Janet S. Walker, Caitlin Baird, Mary Beth Welch

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

Peer support for youth and young adults who experience serious mental health conditions (SMHCs) is rapidly growing in popularity as an addition to the mental health service array in communities around the United States. Research focusing on various aspects of the youth/young adult peer support role has been accruing in recent years; however, many questions remain regarding how the role is defined and supported, and what sort of outcomes can and should be expected once peer support is implemented as a service. This brief reviews the research literature that bears on these topics, describes how current work at Pathways RTC …

Social Network Enhancement Strategies To Address Limited Support Networks In Young Adulthood: State Of The Science, Jennifer E. Blakeslee

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

This review focuses on populations where systems involvement is presumed to impact the size, strength, and supportiveness of social networks, including young people who have experienced out-of-home placement in foster care, juvenile justice, or residential treatment.

Measuring The Support Networks Of Transition-Age Foster Youth: Preliminary Validation Of A Social Network Assessment For Research And Practice, Jennifer E. Blakeslee

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

Multi-dimensional social support is an important factor in any positive transition into young adulthood, and youth who are exiting foster care ideally receive comprehensive social support from a range of informal and formal sources. Yet the social networks of transition-age foster youth are likely influenced over time by child welfare involvement, which can weaken or disrupt natural support relationships, while introducing service-oriented relationships that are not intended to last into adulthood. To better understand the social support context of youth aging out of care, we can apply social network theory and methods to systematically identify their networks of supportive relationships …

Association Of Childhood Physical And Sexual Abuse With Intimate Partner Violence, Poor General Health And Depressive Symptoms Among Pregnant Women, Yasmin V. Barrios, Bizu Gelaye, Qiuyue Zhong, Christina Nicolaidis, Marta B. Rondon, Pedro J. Garcia, Pedro A. Mascaro Sanchez, Sixto E. Sanchez, Michelle A. Williams

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

Objective

We examined associations of childhood physical and sexual abuse with risk of intimate partner violence (IPV). We also evaluated the extent to which childhood abuse was associated with self-reported general health status and symptoms of antepartum depression in a cohort of pregnant Peruvian women.

Methods

In-person interviews were conducted to collect information regarding history of childhood abuse and IPV from 1,521 women during early pregnancy. Antepartum depressive symptomatology was evaluated using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9. Multivariable logistic regression procedures were used to estimate adjusted odds ratios (aOR) and 95% confidence intervals (95%CI).

Results

Any childhood abuse was associated with …

Parents As Navigators: How Caregivers Of Children With Mental Health Difficulties Find Supports In The Workplace, Eileen M. Brennan, Marlene Penn, Katherine J. Huffstutter, Jennifer R. Bradley, Julie M. Rosenzweig

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

Presentation given at the 19th Annual Research Conference: A System of Care for Children's Mental Health: Expanding the Research Base, Tampa, FL, February 2006.

Men As Caregivers At The End Of Life, Erik K. Fromme, Linda L. Drach, Susan W. Tolle, Patricia Ebert, Pamela Miller, Nancy Perrin, Virginia P. Tilden

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

Background: Few studies have focused on men as caregivers at the end-of-life. The objective of this secondary data analysis was to examine the experiences of men involved in end-oflife caregiving, focusing on caregiver strain.

Methods: We used a random sample of Oregon death certificates to telephone survey family caregivers of Oregonians who had died 2 to 5 months earlier in private homes, nursing homes, and other community-based settings. Measurements included single-item indicators and embedded scales to measure caregiver strain and perceived decedent symptom distress. For the 25 husbands, sons, wives, and daughters who reported the highest levels of strain, we …