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The Manufacture Of Dependency: Shelterization Revisited, Kostas Gounis

New England Journal of Public Policy

Emergency shelters have been the most comprehensive and enduring response to homelessness in the United States, with New York City leading the way since the early 1980s. Shelters have emerged as a hybrid between a degraded type of "public housing" and a new form of "institutionalization." The persistence of shelter dependency, or "shelterization," is an intractable problem that frustrates policymakers and service providers. Popular among certain circles of professional pathologists is the view that shelterization is a form of "adaptation" to the violent, anomic, and generally antisocial environment of the shelter. This explanation of shelter dependency is theoretically flawed and …

Homelessness, Alcohol, And Other Drug Abuse: Research Traditions And Policy Responses, Gerald R. Garrett

New England Journal of Public Policy

Although homeless alcoholics and other drug abusers more often elicit public scorn than sympathy, ironically they enjoy a celebrity status as research subjects. This article provides an overview of research literature on the homeless and their alcohol and drug problems. The evolution of public policies concerning control, rehabilitation, and treatment of homeless substance abusers is also traced with special attention to the interaction between scientific literature and policy responses over the past century. Although homeless populations today are more diverse than their counterparts in earlier decades, the analysis suggests that the policies and programs developed in response to the crisis …

Classification And Its Risks: How Psychiatric Status Contributes To Homelessness Policy, Anne M. Lovell

New England Journal of Public Policy

This article examines the extent to which psychiatric classification in public policy research contributes to the equation of homelessness and mental illness. Surveys that measure psychiatric status of homeless persons are reviewed to understand whether they contribute to biased rates of mental illness among homeless persons. The relationship between psychiatric classification and the concept of need is examined and alternatives to current classification are proposed. Classification is discussed particularly in relation to policies of segmentation for "single" homeless adults.

Victimization And Homelessness: Cause And Effect, Pamela J. Fischer

New England Journal of Public Policy

The literature on the contemporary homeless population is reviewed to examine the association of victimization with homelessness. Although few studies have specifically focused on victimization, findings derived from studies investigating pathways to homelessness, prevalence of health, mental health, and substance-use disorders, and demographic profiles and life histories suggest that victimization both causes homelessness and is an outcome of losing housing. Causal sequences ending in homelessness most frequently involve domestic violence, which mainly affects women, although other types of abuse may extrude individuals from their established housing. Once they become homeless, the risk of violence escalates for people living on the …

The Needs Of Hartford's Homeless Mentally Ill, Steven Kessler

New England Journal of Public Policy

A state budget deficit in Connecticut threatens the closing of state mental hospitals and holds the potential of displacing chronically mentally ill patients into homelessness. This article explores the historical association between deinstitutionalization of patients from mental hospitals and subsequent homelessness. One third to two thirds of homeless individuals are mentally ill and require intensive, specific, and targeted responses by the community to end their homelessness. Trends in the care of the chronically mentally ill and the conditions of those who are homeless in Connecticut are explored. Model treatment programs are discussed to suggest possible actions, and recommendations that would …

Mentally Ill Persons In Emergency And Specialized Shelters: Satisfaction And Distress, Russell K. Schutt, Stephen M. Goldfinger

New England Journal of Public Policy

Emergency and specialized mental health shelters represent different service philosophies and are meant to appeal to different segments of the homeless and homeless mentally ill population. This article describes the different characteristics and needs of users of emergency and specialized mental health shelters for homeless persons in Boston. Service satisfaction is described in relation to these characteristics and needs as well as in terms of shelter type. Implications are identified for social and mental health service policies for the homeless.

Program Design And Clinical Operation Of Two National Va Initiatives For Homeless Mentally Ill Veterans, Robert Rosenheck, Catherine A. Leda, Peggy Gallup

New England Journal of Public Policy

In 1987, in response to reports of large numbers of veterans among America's homeless, the Department of Veterans Affairs established two new national health care initiatives, which have seen over 40,000 homeless veterans since their inception. We present here evaluation and treatment data on a sample of 14,000 of them. Because of differences in their design, the two programs vary in the degree to which they emphasize community outreach, homelessness prevention, and the provision of aftercare services to patients discharged from other VA programs. In spite of these differences, veterans treated in the two programs have similar health care problems …

The New England Shelter For Homeless Veterans: A Unique Approach, Ken Smith, James M. Yates

New England Journal of Public Policy

It has been estimated that veterans comprise one third of the homeless population. To combat this national disgrace, many small veterans' groups have been formed nationwide to serve their homeless "brothers" in such settings as shelters, group homes, and outreach centers.

A Boston group, the Vietnam Veterans Workshop, based its New England Shelter for Homeless Veterans on the simple but powerful concept of veteran helping veteran. The shelter created a program to accomplish three important functions: providing the basic necessities of a bed, a meal, clothing, and a hot shower; rehabilitating the veterans by offering various activities to comfort and …

The Kindred Bonds Of Mentally Ill Homeless Persons, Richard C. Tessler, Gail M. Gamache, Peter H. Rossi, Anthony F. Lehman, Howard H. Goldman

New England Journal of Public Policy

While the unraveling of the kinship bond has long been suspected to play a role in the epidemiology of homelessness, the connection between kinship and homelessness has been little studied. Based on a normative analysis of the role of family structure in response to adversity, this article explores the impact of the amount and quality of kinship ties on episodes of homelessness experienced by discharged psychiatric patients in Ohio. Survey data derived from personal interviews with both former patients and their kin indicate more strain in relations with kin of the homeless than the nonhomeless. The strain in the kinship …

Housing, Community Support, And Homelessness: Emerging Policy In Mental Health Systems, Paul J. Carling

New England Journal of Public Policy

This article summarizes the dramatic changes in public policy through which public mental health systems are attempting to meet the housing and community support needs of persons with severe and persistent mental illnesses, including those who are homeless. It traces the historical approach to meeting these needs through defining people principally as patients and providing some combination of psychotropic medications, outpatient therapy, and structured, supervised quasi-institutional settings such as group homes, shelters, and segregated single-room-occupancy, or board-and-care facilities. A transition phase in public policy has emphasized defining these individuals essentially as service recipients who need greater or lesser amounts of …

Alcoholic Women's Relationships As Related To Intimacy And Trust, Cara Leona Forth

Theses Digitization Project

Community college women -- Variable : parental drinking -- The Personal Assessment of Intimacy in Relationship Inventory -- The Trust Scale.

Empirical Analysis And Evaluation Of The California Department Of Youth Authority's Post Parole Substance Abuse Treatment Program: El Centro, California, Don Allen Josi

Theses Digitization Project

Adolescent parolee revocations.

The Immediate Community Response To Disaster: The East Bay Hills Fire, Norma S. Gordon, Carl A. Maida

FMHI Publications

No abstract provided.

Natural Hazards And The Elderly, Graham A. Tobin, Jane C. Ollenburger

FMHI Publications

No abstract provided.

The Impact Of Media Blame Assignation On The Eoc Response To Disaster: A Case Study Of The Response To The April 26, 1991, Andover (Kansas) Tornado, Henry W. Fischer, Susan Schaeffer, Marna L. Trowbridge

FMHI Publications

No abstract provided.

The Circular Causality And Possible Alleviation Of Pms Symptomology, Linda Whitchurch

Theses

This research was an attempt to investigate the appropriateness of including Premenstrual Syndrome into the revised third edition of the Diagnostic Statistics Manual. The researcher asked 10 women, who felt they were suffering from Premenstrual Syndrome, to compare their normal food intake with a balanced diet and minimal use of stimulants and the ambiguities of the syndrome became apparent. The women who took part in this study of Premenstrual Syndrome and the management of its symptomotology enlightened the author, not only to the multidimensional etiology of the syndrome, but more importantly, to the lack of validation they experienced as women …

A Correlational Study Between Psycho-Social Variables And Successful Drug Abuse Treatment, Paul L. Susic

Theses

Many studies have been performed to clarify variables associated with successful treatment for drug abuse with very confusing, ambiguous results. Based upon this premise this study will attempt to contribute toward the illumination of factors, having therapeutic value, which facilitate recovery.

This thesis was a study of whether there was specific psycho-social treatment outcome. any relationship between variables and successful Assessment information used to derive data for this study were intake assessment data used in the normal operations of a successful outpatient drug treatment program. Subjects were patients entering treatment for recovery from numerous drugs including alcohol, heroin, crack, and …

The Effect Of Genetic And Environmental Stress Factors On Alcohol Consumption In Rats, Sharon E. Pryor

Masters Theses

The etiology of alcoholism continues to be investigated. Heredity and environment have both been implicated as causes; however, the reason some people drink more than others has not been determined by science. Twin and adoption studies in humans yield evidence for genetic factors in alcoholism. Studies of possible markers in humans and studies of laboratory animal models have produced further evidence for the genetic transmission of alcohol preference. This animal study was done to further investigate the effects of heredity and environment on preference for alcohol in laboratory rats. Two genetic strains of rats, Wistar and Fischer-344, (n=39) were given …

A Survey Of Certain Food And Alcohol Related Behaviors And Selected Psychosocial Characteristics Of Adult Female Survivors Of Child Sexual Abuse, Kristine Kay Ama

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The purpose of this study was to describe certain food and alcohol related behaviors and selected psychosocial characteristics of adult female survivors of child sexual abuse. Respondents answered items regarding eating behaviors, alcohol use, psychosocial characteristics, and demographic information. Results of this study are based on the responses to 45 surveys gathered from support groups located throughout Eastern Iowa.

The offenders with the highest reported percentages included in the survey were fathers, strangers, male cousins, stepfathers, brothers, and uncles. Sexual abuse was found to occur most often between the age ranges of 6-10 and 11-15.

The demographic information regarding relationship …

The Relationships Between Marital Adjustment, Family Functioning, Task Management And Family Relationship Concerns In Couples Incorporating A Second Child, Amy Diguiseppe Bade

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships among variables identified as potentially significant during the transition to second time parenthood. The theoretical framework for this study was based on the Circumplex Model of family systems (Olson, Sprenkle & Russell, 1979; Olson, Russell & Sprenkle, 1983), and a five domain structural model of marital and family adaptation (Cowan & Cowan, 1988).

The convenience sample consisted of 49 Caucasian middle class couples all expecting their second child. This was a one group pretest-posttest design with the birth of the second child functioning as the independent variable. The dependent variables …

The Effects Of Two Types Of Hypnotic Suggestions On Analgesic Responding In Moderately Hypnotizable Subjects, Gloria M. Haddad

Masters Theses

This study assessed the effects of two hypnotic suggestions on hypnotic performance in medium hypnotizable subjects. Subjects were exposed at separate intervals to either an hypnotic suggestion patter containing specific imagery or alternatively to a suggestion patter that provided only general problem-solving direction. Hypnotic performance was assessed using tolerance and threshold measures on a cold-pressor test.

The problem-solving suggestions were shown to increase both threshhold and tolerance of noxious stimulation. The imagery suggestions proved to be effective only for the threshhold measure.

These findings are discussed in terms of their implications for the use of hypnosis with subjects who do …

Body-Image Attitudes And Perceptions Among African-Americans And Whites As A Function Of Socioeconomic Class, Christopher Eugene Huffine

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

While many facets of body image have been extensively researched, relatively few studies have examined racial and social class differences in body image. The present paper consists of two studies examining racial and class differences in body image among males and females. Study 1 utilized a national sample of respondents to a 1985 Psychology Today survey to examine racial (Black and White) and educational differences in body image among men and women. Study 2 utilized a smaller sample of Black subjects, half drawn from several Southeastern universities and the other half from non-academic locations in the Tidewater area of Virginia …

Reinforcement Effects On The I.Q. Scores Of Institutionalized Children And Adults With Developmental Disabilities, Jody Robin Lewis

Masters Theses

Eighteen institutionalized school-age and adult subjects with severe/profound developmental disabilities were evaluated for the effects of self-selected reinforcement for correct responding on their I.Q. scores when tested with the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale (Terman & Merrill, 1960) or the Leiter International Performance Scale (Arthur, 1952). Subjects were tested under both standard and reinforcement conditions. The results indicated that overall, subjects when tested under reinforcement conditions showed a significant increase in mean I.Q. scores when compared with the same subjects tested one month previously under standard conditions. Several features of the data reveal intriguing results with regard to subjects and related preexisting …

A Validation Of The Family Of Origin Scale Using Alcoholic And Mental Health Patients, Arthur J. Fedor

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to add to the knowledge of family of origin assessment by demonstrating the utility of the Family of Origin Scale (FOS; Hovestadt, Anderson, Piercy, Cochran, & Fine, 1985) as a posttreatment measure of change with clinical samples. In this context, a second feature of the study was a further validation of the FOS.

Eighty-one clinical subjects in inpatient alcoholism treatment centers and outpatient mental health clinics were administered the FOS prior to treatment and again following treatment. Although the pretest-posttest model of the study was a quasi-experimental design, the focus was on the FOS's …

Gender Effects On Recall, Clinical Judgement And Treatment Recommendations For A Combination Of Major Depression And Alcohol Dependence Symptoms, Jodi L. French

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

This study investigated the effect of client gender on several aspects of clinical decision-making processes and clinical judgement when a client presented with a combination of depressive and alcohol-dependent symptoms. Forty-four male and 44 female clinicians, who came from various mental health disciplines (i.e., psychology, social work, counseling, nursing, and psychiatry), volunteered to participate as subjects.

The subjects were assigned to hear one of four audiotapes (two male tapes and two female tapes) in which mock clients gave the same initial presentation of symptoms and problems. After listening to the tapes, the clinicians were asked to engage in a number …

Crisis Intervention Services In Mental Health: A Review Of The Literature, Roger A. Lohmann, Ellen Neidermeyer

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

This paper is a review of the literature on mobile crisis services and other forms of modern crisis intervention services. It is the first part of a larger project, termed the North Central West Virginia Crisis Study. The purpose of this literature review is to identify recent published literature on crisis services, with particular attention to crisis response services. No attempt has been made to survey the voluminous literature on crisis intervention practice skills and techniques.

Mental Health Services In Hong Kong: History, Modern Development, And Issues, Wai-Kwong Mak

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

This paper provides a comprehensive account of the history, current mental health services, and related-issues in Hong Kong. Psychiatric services provided by the Government such as inpatient, outpatient, and daypatient treatments are highlighted. Community mental health services rendered by the voluntary sector such as the counseling and casework, care in half-way houses, and psychiatric nursing are also discussed. Recent statistical information provides a detailed picture of psychiatric institutions and characteristics of patients. Mental health issues typical of developed countries are discussed.

A Cross-Cultural Perspective On Selected Mental Health Systems, Gary Mathews, Morton O. Wagenfeld

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

The information provided from authors around the world on their respective mental health systems is analyzed and compared. Several key dimensions are utilized, including the relationship of mental health services to other services, institutional care, community care, staffing, prevention and mental health promotion services, and accessibility. Resources and governmental priorities are identified as being essential to the provision of effective services. It is clear that the general trends identified by the experts for mental health in both developing and developed countries are by no means universal in applicability.

Mental Health Services: An International Perspective, Thomas R. Holmes, Merl C. Hokenstad

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

This paper provides an introduction to this special edition on international mental health perspectives. The importance of an international perspective is discussed and key questions are raised to provide the reader with a frame of reference for examining the mental health systems in the countries presented. An orientation to some of the current mental health issues in Europe, the United States, and developing countries is given as point of comparison for the reader. Questions discussed relate to the status of institutional care, outpatient services, the composition of mental health staff, the role of community interventions and prevention, and the availability …

A Descriptive Study Of Commitment Practices In A Selected Jurisdiction, Louis A. Pesnicak

Community & Environmental Health Theses & Dissertations

This study examines the application of commitment procedures in one urban community in Virginia. The study investigated: the concordance rates of clinical recommendation for treatment and the outcome of the commitment hearing. the time lapse between detention of an individual and the hearing outcome. the presenting symptomatology and outcome. and the pre-detention compliance to treatment and outcome. The study's findings showed a concordance rate of 64% between clinical recommendation and outcome. It provided no significant differences in symptomatology/outcome, compliance/outcome, and time lapse/outcome. The lack of any significant findings seems to suggest that application of commitment laws might benefit from institution …