Social Work Commons^™

The Grand Challenge Of Ending Homelessness, Benjamin Henwood, Suzanne L. Wenzel, Philip F. Mangano, Maryellen Hombs, Deborah K. Padgett, Thomas Byrne, Eric Rice, Sarah Butts, Mathew C, Uretsky

Mathew Uretsky

The notion that homelessness in the United States can be ended, rather than managed, represents a fundamental shift in expectations that has occurred over the past three decades. Many U.S. cities now have plans to end homelessness. Yet homelessness and housing instability are substantial problems that afflict a diverse group of subpopulations such as families, youth, veterans, and chronically homeless single adults. Ending homelessness for each of these populations may require tailored interventions that are responsive to specific individualized needs. These factors make tackling homelessness a difficult task. Although evidencebased solutions exist for some subpopulations, such as housing first ...

The Rest Of The Story: A Nepalese Village Remind That There Often Is A Different Reality Behind The Romantic Narrative, Abukar Adan

Colby Magazine

The rural excursion was part of my semester abroad in the IHP: Human Rights Program, which is intended to give us insight into the rhetoric and reality of human rights through an interdisciplinary, issues-based approach. Over the course of four months, we travel to New York City, Nepal, Jordan, and Chile and learn from a diverse set of individuals and institutions, from academics to indigenous activists, grassroots movements to international aid organizations. Through our visit to this tight-knit village in the hills of the Kathmandu Valley, we were given the opportunity to hear people’s personal narratives.

Exploring 21st Century Skills And Learning Environments For Middle School Youth, Annahita Ball, Hillary D. Joyce, Dawn Anderson-Butcher

International Journal of School Social Work

Resiliency research and strengths-based perspectives highlight the importance of understanding the protective factors that aid youth in overcoming adversity. Likewise, current research identifies the characteristics and skills youth need to be successful in post-secondary education and the workforce. These growing bodies of research emphasize cognitive and noncognitive skills that support youth development and academic success. This exploratory study sought to develop two distinct measurement instruments: (1) the 21^st Century Life & Career Skills scale (21C-LCS); and (2) the 21^st Century Skills Classroom Environment scale (21C-CE). We also examined students’ perceptions of their own skills in these areas. The measures were developed and tested ...

Ptsd From Childhood Trauma As A Precursor To Attachment Issues, Christy Owen

Fidei et Veritatis: The Liberty University Journal of Graduate Research

The past 20 years have been turbulent regarding Reactive Attachment Disorder (RAD), with conflicting research about its causes, effects, treatment, and prognosis. The current diagnostic criteria in the DSM-5 fails to adequately address this disorder. A number of deviant and maladaptive behaviors common amongst children with RAD are not even mentioned in the diagnostic criteria. As such, the diagnostic definition is almost unidentifiable or incompatible with real-life conduct manifestations of the disorder. Rather, this author contends that RAD is foundationally a unique and extreme form of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) from Early Childhood Trauma. The child endured unspeakable neglect and ...

What It's Worth: Strengthening The Financial Future Of Families, Communities And The Nation, Cherie Stueve

Journal of Financial Therapy

This book overviews the financial challenges of vulnerable Americans and creative programs that look beyond income as a metric of financial health is divided into four sections. The first section, “Where We Are,” describes the current financial statistics of households by demographic and economic era. The second (and largest) section, “Why Financial Well-Being Matters for All,” is broken into four topics: the economy, financial services system, and community; employment and business; health and social services; and education. Each illustrates the strong role financial well-being plays in other systems at the individual and community level.

Researcher Profile: An Interview With Jorge Ruiz-Menjivar, Jorge Ruiz-Menjivar

Journal of Financial Therapy

Jorge Ruiz-Menjivar is originally from San Salvador, El Salvador, but has had the privilege to live in several Latin American countries (e.g., Nicaragua, Costa Rica, among others), and to travel through many other regions in the world. He obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting at the University of New Orleans-Louisiana State University. Then, he went on to earn a Master’s degree in Personal and Family Financial Planning at the University of Florida under the supervision of Drs. Michael S. Gutter and Martie Gillen. Recently, Jorge finished his Doctoral degree in Financial Planning, Housing and Consumer Economics from ...

Practitioner Profile: An Interview With Syble Solomon, Syble Solomon

Journal of Financial Therapy

Syble Solomon is a speaker on the psychology of money and the founder and president of LifeWise Strategies. She is best known for Money Habitudes® a deck of cards (and now an online version) that makes it easy to talk about money and discover what motivates our financial behaviors. Before becoming interested in why people manage money as they do, she had careers in early childhood special education, gerontology and executive coaching. Seemingly unrelated, they all provided experience training, developing educational material and empowering people at all socio-economic levels to work through challenging times and transitions. An excellent background for ...

Financial Empowerment And Health Related Quality Of Life In Family Scholar House Participants, Chelsey Franz

Journal of Financial Therapy

Research demonstrates an association between poverty and health. Populations in poverty suffer from poor mental and physical health, and thus, poor health-related quality of life. Research also indicates people living in the lower socio-economic categories experience higher levels of stress that are associated with these health declines. Family Scholar House, a local community intervention designed to alleviate poverty and improve socio-economic status by providing college education and support to single parents, combats these health outcomes by addressing the five social determinants of health (economic stability, education, social and community context, health care, and neighborhood and built environment). Quantitative analysis indicates ...

Ethical Issues And Decision Making In Collaborative Financial Therapy, D. Bruce Ross, Jerry Gale, Joseph Goetz

Journal of Financial Therapy

The purpose of this article is to introduce potential ethical challenges that may arise when a financial and mental health professional collaborate to provide financial therapy and recommendations on how to effectively address these concerns. The development of ethical and professional practices requires extensive dialogue from practitioners in the emerging field of financial therapy; however, it is important to first develop an awareness and sensitivity to the ethical and professional issues across disciplines. This article examines the differences and similarities between the codes of ethics of different financial and mental health disciplines, and addresses six core ethical and professional issues ...

Promoting Savings At Tax Time Through A Video-Based Solution-Focused Brief Coaching Intervention, Lance Palmer, Teri Pichot, Irina Kunovskaya

Journal of Financial Therapy

Solution-focused brief coaching, based on solution-focused brief therapy, is a well-established practice model and is used widely to help individuals progress toward desired outcomes in a variety of settings. This papers presents the findings of a pilot study that examined the impact of a video-based solution-focused brief coaching intervention delivered in conjunction with income tax preparation services at a Volunteer Income Tax Assistance location (n = 212). Individuals receiving tax preparation assistance were randomly assigned to one of four treatment groups: 1) control group; 2) video-based solution-focused brief coaching; 3) discount card incentive; 4) both the video-based solution-focused brief coaching and ...

Editorial, Volume 7, Issue 1, Kristy L. Archuleta

Journal of Financial Therapy

The Journal of Financial Therapy would not exist without the time and efforts of our excellent reviewers. You may be asking, “what does a reviewer do?” JFT is a unique scholarly publication because papers require the rigor of academic standards, but also must be translatable to non-researchers. It is not uncommon for researchers and practitioners to fail to communicate effectively with one another because the two groups speak what seems like different languages. Therefore, it is the goal of JFT to publish quality scholarly research and to emphasize the practicality of the research.

Urban School-Based Behavioral Health Providers' Attitudes Towards Evidence Based Practices, Erik D. Maki

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

Evidence Based Practices (EBPs) in schools show promise in meeting the behavioral health needs of urban students, however there are multiple barriers to implementation. Providers’ attitudes towards EBPs may be one of these barriers. Through a cross sectional survey design, this dissertation answers four major research questions: 1) Is the EBPAS-50 an appropriate tool to use with school based behavioral health providers, 2) Do attitudes vary depending on level of experience (student vs. professional), 3) Do attitudes vary depending on a practitioners’ hire status (school-hired vs. non-school hired), and 4) Do EBPAS-50 scores predict implementation of EBPs? Participants were 160 ...

‘I'M Happy In My Life Now, I'M A Positive Person’: Approaches To Successful Ageing In Older Adults Living With Hiv In Ontario, Canada, Charles A. Emlet, Lesley M. Harris, Charles Furlotte, David J. Brennan, Christina M. Pierpaoli

Charles Emlet

Student Perceptions Of Services For Veterans And Military Personnel, Philip Parsons

Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Many Veterans are returning from the War on Terror and making their way to universities. Due to the many aspects of war and military life many maybe, or are experiencing some level of mental health issue/s. As more Veterans make this transition, resources may not be available for them to be successful in the classroom (Whitley, Tschudi, & Gieber, 2013). After reviewing the literature, a suitable instrument to measure these variables was not available. The researcher developed a survey and sampled students of one Midwestern public university. The variables included basic demographic questions and perceptions of Veterans and the services ...

Palliative Chemotherapy Among People Living In Poverty With Metastasised Colon Cancer: Facilitation By Primary Care And Health Insurance, Kevin M. Gorey, Emma Bartfay, Sindu M. Kanjeekal, Frances C. Wright, Caroline Hamm, Isaac N. Luginaah, Guangyong Zou, Eric J. Holowaty, Nancy L. Richter, Madhan K. Balagurusamy

Social Work Publications

Background: Many Americans with metastasised colon cancer do not receive indicated palliative chemotherapy. We examined the effects of health insurance and physician supplies on such chemotherapy in California.

Methods: We analysed registry data for 1199 people with metastasised colon cancer diagnosed between 1996 and 2000 and followed for 1 year. We obtained data on health insurance, census tract-based socioeconomic status and county-level physician supplies. Poor neighbourhoods were oversampled and the criterion was receipt of chemotherapy. Effects were described with rate ratios (RR) and tested with logistic regression models.

Results: Palliative chemotherapy was received by less than half of the participants ...

The Social Worker’S Role In Ensuring Quality Counsel For Defendants With Mental Illness, Lauren M. Pappacena

21st Century Social Justice

The current literature surrounding the intersection of criminal justice and mental health is addressed. First, the history of overrepresentation of individuals with a mental health disorder in the criminal justice system is discussed, followed by a discussion of the current gaps in the literature. These gaps need to be addressed to inform better practices among public defenders and their decision making role with clients who have a mental health disorder. The lack of research is evident in ambiguous judicial guidance in ensuring that defendants with a mental health disorder are able to exercise autonomy relevant to their case. Social workers ...

Seeking Social Justice In The Literature: Guidelines For Critical Review, Theresa Stewart Moran

21st Century Social Justice

Issues of social justice are not always apparent in publications. This article will examine the roles that recruitment, compensation, and funding play in selection of research topics and their effect on vulnerable populations. Power differentials between researchers, clinicians, and clients will be examined with a focus on participatory action research.

Teen Pregnancy Among Latinas: A Literature Review, Kathleen E. Keogh

21st Century Social Justice

The overall decline of teen birth rates in the U.S. is problematized by persistent racial disparities in these rates. Latina teens are especially affected, as they have the highest teen birth rate of any racial or ethnic group. High teen birth rates among Latinas even persist in locales where the overall teen birth rate is below the national average, such as Suffolk County, NY. Socioeconomic, racial, and cultural factors contribute to the birth rate for Latina teens. Traditional strategies for teen pregnancy prevention, such as comprehensive sexuality education and increased healthcare access, inadequately address Latino cultural values that normalize ...

Lgbtq Homeless Youth In Harlem: A Lack Of Resources Despite Need, Julie East

21st Century Social Justice

Despite only 10% of youth identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queer (LGBTQ), 40% experience homelessness. The lack of services and resources available to the population in New York City have left up to 20,000 LGBTQ youth homeless. A plethora of reasons account for this, such as cultural and religious objections, a lack of resources from the government, and a lack of education about LGBTQ youth. Despite increased funding for and attention to LGBTQ homeless youth services, efforts have been largely inadequate. Therefore, it is necessary for increased involvement and attention from the general public and advocates to ...

Reintegration From Sex Trafficking: Chinese Women In Flushing, Ny, Siyun Deng

21st Century Social Justice

This article attempts to provide a comprehensive analysis of the needs for reintegration from sex trafficking and the gap of current social services provided to foreign national victims in the United States by focusing on Chinese female victims in Flushing NY. Through the research, the author understands the safe long-term housing ranks first among all the victims' needs for social services in the process of reintegration, which hasn’t been sufficiently addressed yet. Although the U.S. Congress passed the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA) to protect and assist international victims, and made T-visas available, the laudable goal of protecting ...