Social Work Commons^™

Citizen Participation In Neighborhood Organizations In Poor Communities And Its Relationship To Neighborhood And Organizational Collective Efficacy, Mary Ohmer, Elizabeth Beck

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Collective efficacy describes residents' perceptions regarding their ability to work with their neighbors to intervene in neighborhood issues to maintain social control and solve problems. This study examines whether citizen participation in neighborhood organizations located in poor communities is related to neighborhood and organizational collective efficacy among residents. The results indicate that the more residents participated in their neighborhood organization, the greater their level of organizational collective efficacy, but not neighborhood collective efficacy. The results of the current study will help support social workers and other community practitioners understand how to effectively facilitate citizen participation in ways that enhance collective …

Financial Knowledge Of The Low-Income Population: Effects Of A Financial Education Program, Min Zhan, Steven G. Anderson, Jeff Scott

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

This study examines the effects of one large financial management training program for low-income people. The data are from tests of pre- and posttraining financial knowledge of 163 participants. The test was designed to measure basic knowledge of participants in five content areas: predatory lending practices, public and work-related benefits, banking practices, savings and investing strategies, and credit use and interest rates.

The findings demonstrate that substantial pre-training knowledge deficiencies existed on basic financial management issues, especially on public and work-related benefits and savings and investing. Results also indicate that the program was effective in improving the financial knowledge of …

An Older Adult’S Rights, University Of Maine Center On Aging

Maine Center on Aging Service and Consultation

It is important to remember that older adults have rights just like every other individual. These include the right to medical care, to live free from abuse, to feel safe, to report abuse without fear of retaliation, to determine how your money is spent, to appropriate food and clothing, to be happy, among others. To make a report of abuse, neglect, or exploitation of an incapacitated or dependent adult, call Adult Protective Services at 1-800-624-8404. For more information about elder abuse and resources in your community, contact your local Area Agency on Aging at 1-800-353-3371.

Community Centers And Settlement Houses In Appalachia, Roger A. Lohmann

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

Community centers were originally outside imports into an Appalachian culture that often placed much greater emphasis on individuality and family than on community but they continue to thrive in the region. Yet there have been important contributions from the region: L.J. Hanifan, Superintendent of Rural Instruction in the original WV Department of Education introduced the concept of social capital to the world. Miles Horton and the Highlander Center provide a direct link between Appalachia and the international settlement house movement. Senior centers may be the most pervasive type of community center in Appalachia today. Settlement houses, religious missions, senior centers, …