Digital Commons Network^™

"What Is The Value Of Youth Work?" Symposium Booklet, Laurie Ross

Local Knowledge: Worcester Area Community-Based Research

As a group of experienced and novice youth workers, we believe that youth work is fundamentally about building trust-filled, mutually respectful relationships with young people. We create safe environments for young people to connect with other supportive adults and peers and to avoid violence in their neighborhoods and their homes. We guide those harmed by oppressive community conditions such as racism, sexism, agism, homophobia, and classism through a process of healing. As we get to know more about young people’s interests, we help them develop knowledge and skills in a variety of areas including: academic, athletic, leadership/civic, the arts, health …

Addressing Health And Social Disparities Through Community-Based Participatory Research In Rural Communities: Challenges And Opportunities For Social Work, Tiffany D. Baffour Ph.D.

Contemporary Rural Social Work Journal

Social workers can increase the translational ability of their research efforts to create sustainable community change in rural communities through the use of community-based participatory research (CBPR). CBPR is a congruent approach to social work values, representing a balance between research and community empowerment. This article focuses on methodological concerns in conceptualization, setting research goals, measurement, data collection, and dissemination of the findings. Recommendations for how interrelated areas of social work education, practice, research, and policy can address rural social and health disparities through CBPR are advanced.

Contemporary Rural Social Work - Fall 2011 (Volume 3, Number 1)

Contemporary Rural Social Work Journal

Contemporary Rural Social Work - Fall 2011 (Volume 3, Number 1)

Full issue

Three Sisters Exchange: Building Alliances And Promoting Justice From The United States To Ecuador, Ariel Climer

Capstone Collection

This paper presents a proposal for a social justice and action-based study abroad program with foundations in the short-term reality tours of the education and human rights-based NGO, Global Exchange, a far-reaching non-profit with friendships built on solidarity against the spread of elite globalization. The program is called the Three Sisters Exchange to honor the sustainable design of indigenous crop planting prevalent around the world. The design comes at a time when international educators offer few programs with foci in social justice. The international education field needs more sustainable programs that take into account global systems. A propagation of such …

Journal Of Sociology & Social Welfare Vol. 37, No. 4 (December 2010)

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

SPECIAL ISSUE ON HOMELESSNESS IN CANADA

• INTRODUCTION TO THE SPECIAL ISSUE: HOMELESSNESS IN CANADA - John R. Graham and Jeannette Waegemakers Schiff, Special Editors
• PERSPECTIVES OF EMPLOYED PEOPLE EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS OF SELF AND BEING HOMELESS: CHALLENGING SOCIALLY CONSTRUCTED PERCEPTIONS AND STEREOTYPES - Micheal L. Shier, Marion E. Jones, and John R. Graham
• THE ECONOMICS OF BEING YOUNG AND POOR: HOW HOMELESS YOUTH SURVIVE IN NEOLIBERAL TIMES - Jeff Karabanow, Jean Hughes, Jann Ticknor, Sean Kidd, and Dorothy Patterson
• OUT OF THE FRYING PAN, INTO THE FIRE: TRAUMA IN THE LIVES OF HOMELESS YOUTH PRIOR TO AND DURING HOMELESSNESS - John …

Review Of Freefall: America, Markets And The Sinking Of The World Economy. Joseph E. Stiglitz. Reviewed By Helen Lachs Ginsburg., Helen Lachs Ginsburg

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Book review of Joseph E. Stiglitz, Freefall: America, Markets and the Sinking of the World Economy. New York, N.Y.: W. W. Norton, 2010. $27.95 hardcover.

Review Of Race, Place, And Environmental Justice After Hurricane Katrina: Struggles To Reclaim, Rebuild, And Revitalize New Orleans And The Gulf Coast. Robert Bullard And Beverly Wright, Eds. Reviewed By Robert Forrant., Robert Forrant

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Book review of Robert Bullard & Beverly Wright, Eds., Race, Place, and Environmental Justice after Hurricane Katrina: Struggles to Reclaim, Rebuild, and Revitalize New Orleans and the Gulf Coast. Westview Press, 2009. $32.00 paperback.

Ethnicity And Health Disparities In Alcohol Research, Karen G. Chartier, Raul Caetano

Social Work Publications

Recent advances in alcohol research continue to build our understanding of alcohol consumption and related consequences for U.S. ethnic minority groups. National surveys show variations across ethnicities in drinking, alcohol use disorders, alcohol problems, and treatment use. Higher rates of high-risk drinking among ethnic minorities are reported for Native Americans and Hispanics, although within-ethnic group differences (e.g., gender, age-group, and other subpopulations) also are evident for ethnicities. Whites and Native Americans have a greater risk for alcohol use disorders relative to other ethnic groups. However, once alcohol dependence occurs, Blacks and Hispanics experience higher rates than Whites of recurrent or …

Bridging Social Capital Formation In A Faith-Based Organization, Angela Kaiser

Wayne State University Dissertations

Previous research on faith-based organizations suggest that these organizations are highly effective at forging relationships between individuals from different racial, ethnic, and religious backgrounds, known as bridging social capital. This study examines the process of bridging social capital formation within MOSES, a faith-based organization located in Detroit, Michigan. Through the use of in-depth interviews, participant observation, archival research, and a member survey, I documented the forms of social capital present within the organization. I also explored whether bridging relationships were forming within the organization and the strategies that facilitated their formation. Diversity within the organization, recognition of member differences, and …

Leading In The Legacy Of Vincent De Paul: Reflections On Vincentian Leadership Today, The Hay Project

Hay Leadership Project Books

Vincent on Leadership: The Hay Project awakens and advances the vision, values and leadership practices of St. Vincent de Paul in people and organizations worldwide. Providing research, leadership development and collaboration in the manner of St. Vincent, the Project ensures the continuation of the legacy of St. Vincent de Paul’s organizational genius and leadership skills in the service of others.

The Failures Of American Poverty Measures, Stephen Pimpare

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

How we think about need or deprivation-how we judge its severity, its causes and effects, and the progress we have made (or not made) over time in reducing it-has much to do with how we define and then measure it. And, we measure it poorly. The insufficiencies of official data on American poverty are reasonably well known, yet they continue, nonetheless, to be the principal means by which we gauge need in the United States. After a review of such official measures, this article discusses alternative means of evaluating need in the United States, highlighting the benefits of examining poverty …

Rethinking Empowerment: Collective Action As Intervention With Women, Melissa Liberty Darnell

Theses Digitization Project

This study explores women's feelings of empowerment that result from participating in collective action events. The study contributes to the growing body of social work scholarship on empowerment practice by identifying and describing the specific variables that may contribute to or enhance empowerment feelings in women as a result of collective action participation.

Social Impact: Green Dream: Environmental Justice Is Emerging From The Shadows., Rick Skwiot

Social Impact Publication

"We have been slow to engage as a profession," Rogge says of social work's inclusion of the natural environment in research, teaching, and practice—a criticism shared by others interviewed here. She knows of no existing specialization or concentration in the United States or Canada for environmental social work or social work in natural environment, as she prefers to call it. But indicators suggest that may soon change.

Social Impact, Edward F. Lawler, Tonya E. Edmonds, Enola K. Proctor, Ellen Rostand, Julie Kennedy, Jessica Martin, Toky Branding + Design, Donna Boyd, A.J. Boyd

Social Impact Publication

From the Dean: Remember the Past. Imagine the Future. Celebrate Today.;

Perspectives: Temperature Rising: Health Care Reform is Back;

Bookshelf: From Incentives to Intuition: What Faculty and Staff are Reading.;

Perspectives with Melissa Jonson-Reid & Brett Drake: Changing the Role of Child Welfare; Perspectives: SEED for Oklahoma Kids.;

Interview: Q&A with Julian Le Grand;

Connecting Individual Health with Public Health: New interdisciplinary approaches are needed to solve today's health care challenges. The solution lies at the nexus of social work, public health, and medicine.;

The Green Dream: The social work profession has been slow to engage the issue of environmental …

Review Of The Quest For Environmental Justice: Human Rights And The Politics Of Pollution. Robert D. Bullard (Ed.). Reviewed By John G. Mcnutt., John G. Mcnutt

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Book review of Robert Bullard (Ed.), The Quest for Environmental Justice: Human Rights and the Politics of Pollution. San Francisco, CA: Sierra Club Books, 2005. $18.95 papercover.

Review Of Inequality And Prosperity: Social Europe Vs. Liberal America. Jonas Pontusson. Reviewed By Martin Evans., Martin Evans

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Book review of Jonas Pontusson, Inequality and Prosperity: Social Europe vs Liberal America. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 2006. $19.95. papercover.

Journal Of Sociology & Social Welfare Vol. 34, No. 3 (September 2007)

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

TABLE OF CONTENTS

• COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT CORPORATIONS AND PUBLIC PARTICIPATION: LESSONS FROM A CASE STUDY IN THE ARKANSAS DELTA - Valerie H. Hunt
• THE ROLE OF INFORMAL SOCIAL NETWORKS IN MICRO-SAVINGS MOBILIZATION - Margaret Lombe and Fred M. Ssewamala
• ADVICE AND HELP-SEEKING INTENTIONS AMONG YOUTH IN ISRAEL: ETHNIC AND GENDER DIFFERENCES - Moshe Sherer
• INCARCERATION AND UNWED FATHERS IN FRAGILE FAMILIES - Charles E. Lewis, Jr., Irwin Garfinkel and Qin Gao
• GREEK-LETTER MEMBERSHIP AND COLLEGE GRADUATION: DOES RACE MATTER? - Ronald E. Severtis, Jr. and C. Andrg Christie-Mizell
• FROM FINANCIAL LITERACY TO FINANCIAL CAPABILITY AMONG YOUTH - Elizabeth Johnson and Margaret …

Review Of A Right To Housing: Foundations For A New Social Agenda. Rachel G. Bratt, Michael E. Stone, And Chester Hartman. Reviewed By John Q. Hodges., John Q. Hodges

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Book review of Rachel G. Bratt, Michael E. Stone and Chester Hartman, A Right to Housing: Foundations for a New Social Agenda. Philadelphia, PA: Temple University Press, 2006. $40.00 papercover.

The Human Rights And Social Justice Mandate Of Social Work: Environmental Health And Well-Being For The Yarloop Community, Steven Denton

Theses : Honours

Social work has a dual concern, focusing on individuals and on their environments; however the discourse of the profession tends to be limited to the social, interpersonal or familial environment. Given the prospect of the current 'ecological crisis' having significant impacts upon human well-being, this research sought to expand this conceptualisation of 'environment' to include the physical environment. This study aimed to explore whether citizens experiences of environmental problems could be understood as social justice and human rights issues. Using an unobtrusive form of qualitative research with various written and audio visual accounts from citizens from the community surrounding Yarloop …

The Social Ecology Of Hurricane Katrina Re-Writing The Discourse Of “Natural” Disasters, Yoosun Park, Joshua Miller

School for Social Work: Faculty Publications

It is increasingly difficult to distinguish natural events from those influenced by human actions. Furthermore, researchers in various fields have established that the level of devastation and the predicted likelihood of recovery of neighborhoods and communities correspond with the amount of political and socioeconomic capital held by neighborhoods and communities prior to disasters such as the Hurricane Katrina. In this paper we analyze the significance of the discourse of “natural disasters” through the framework of social ecology. We contest the neutralist discourse of “natural disasters” by underscoring the numerous interdependent sociopolitical forces, which shape the context in which disasters occur.

From Self-Sufficiency To Personal And Family Sustainability: A New Paradigm For Social Policy, Robert Leibson Hawkins

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Current social policy that affects welfare recipients focuses on the concept of "self-sufficiency" where leaving welfare for work is the goal. While this approach has reduced welfare rolls, it has not necessarily helped low-income people improve their economic, educational, or social outlook. This paper suggests that the concept of Personal and Family Sustainability (PFS) may be a better way to evaluate and direct social policy. A definition of PFS is developed from the environmental and community development roots of sustainability and four domains for creating PFS indicators are introduced.

Because A Better World Is Possible: Women Casino Workers, Union Activism And The Creation Of A Just Workplace, Susan Chandler

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Based on a re-analysis of data from a qualitative study of the work experience of 36 women casino workers, this article examines the contributions and personal characteristics of the 13 women in the sample who described themselves as committed union activists. These women, all leaders in the Hotel Employees, Restaurant Employees Union, were proud that collectively they had improved wages, benefits, and the conditions of work in Nevada casinos, and had created an environment that reinforced pride in a job well-done, provided job security, and promoted strong families and communities. These women's workplace experience serves as a reminder to the …

Rural Social Work Bibliography (1999), Roger A. Lohmann, Nancy Lohmann

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

This bibliography was assembled in response to a request from OUP for a rural bibliography on their website prior to publication of our edited book on Rural Social Work Practice (Oxford University Press. 2005).

Participatory Research And Community Organizing, Sung Sil Lee Sohng

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

The paper summarizes the political economy of knowledge production in an increasingly privatized, postindustrial world of knowledge society. This analysis is linked to the emergence of participatory research movements. It argues that the participatory approach to community research offers epistemology and methodology that address people, power and praxis in our postmodern, information society. The paper then describes howa participatory research project is carried out in community practice, articulating key moments and the roles of the researcher and participants. In order to develop this understanding further, it examines the efforts of two specific projects and shows how knowledge production can serve …