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Rural Primary Health Care Providers' Response To Intimate Partner Violence And Survivors' Perceptions Of Helpfulness, Annah Bender

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Intimate partner violence (IPV) affects the health and mental health of many women in the United States, with some estimates projecting that one in three women will experience physical, sexual, and/or psychological abuse from a current or former partner during their lifetimes (National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey [NISVS], 2011). The problems many survivors of IPV face as they attempt to secure help and establish a life free from violence are numerous and include housing, legal, employment, medical, and other domains. Such problems are frequently compounded for survivors residing in rural areas of the U.S., where access to social …

Labor Force Participation And Crime Among Serious And Violent Former Prisoners, Nora Ellen Wikoff

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

This project examines the relationship between work and crime among male former prisoners. Criminological theories and observational studies suggest that work reduces crime, but recent studies cast doubt on the ability of employment programs to reduce recidivism among former prisoners. Ongoing weak evaluations may imperil support for employment-focused rehabilitative programming. Using data from the Serious and Violent Offender Reentry Initiative (n = 1,575), this study examines whether selection bias and unobserved heterogeneity contribute to weak evaluation findings.First, this study tests whether unobserved heterogeneity contributes to jobs programs' weak treatment effects. It uses group-based trajectory modeling and propensity score methods to …

Domestic Violence Shelter Policies Across The State Of Florida, Kyra Nickell

HIM 1990-2015

Domestic violence shelters can vary greatly in the services available to victims and their families. The funding shelters receive can impact the shelter’s ability to provide specialized services. Since the availability of services might vary from shelter to shelter, victims can have different experiences based on their location. This cross-sectional study contacted representatives from nine shelters in the State of Florida and asked the representatives nine questions about the services which are available at their respective shelter. The findings from this research show that these nine shelters offer a greater number of services than the study expected. However, there is …

Examining The Relationship Between Childhood Victimization, Health Risk Behaviors, And Adult Physical Health Outcomes Among Women On Probation And Parole., Tanya R. Renn

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study aims to begin to identify and describe the pathways through which childhood victimization negatively affects adult physical health. In particular, the proposed research will examine the relationship among childhood victimization, health risk behaviors and adult physical health in a population of criminal justice involved women. Previous research has depicted a relationship between childhood victimization, and physical health outcomes, but there is scant research that examines why this relationship exist. Among the most frequent health risk behaviors are alcoholism, smoking, illicit drug use and sexual risk behaviors. Health risk behaviors are highly intertwined with the bio-psycho-social factors that result …

Modeling Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Among Victimized Women On Probation And Parole : Examining The Impact Of Childhood Victimization., Katherine M. E. Winham

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Women are the fastest growing segment of the criminal justice population in the United States (Minton, 2013; Pew Center on the States, 2009). Research is needed to understand Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) among women involved with the criminal justice system to inform prevention and rehabilitation efforts. Despite findings suggesting that a mental health diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is common among women in this population (Lynch, DeHart, Belknap, & Green, 2012; Salina, Lesondak, Razzano, & Weilbaecher, 2007), little research has examined the presence of this disorder among women involved with the criminal justice system with experiences of childhood victimization. …

The Effects Of Cumulative Victimization On Psychological Distress., Amanda Dishon Brown

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Justice-involved women experience significantly higher rates of victimization and psychological distress when compared to the general population. While both childhood victimization and adult Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) both directly contribute to psychological distress, scant research examines the effects of cumulative victimization (both child and adult IPV) across a woman’s lifetime on psychological distress. Additionally, a gap in the literature is the investigation of behavior specific mechanisms (self-esteem, social support, coping, and substance use) that may mediate the relationship between victimization and psychological distress. As such, the primary aim of this dissertation was to explore the relationship between cumulative victimization (childhood …

Contrasting Perceptions Of Motivation To Change: Clinicians And Substance Abuse Clients, Arthur Tabrizi

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Substance abuse persists as one of the most costly, prevalent, and damaging health problems in the United States. As of 2012, an estimated 22 million individuals, approximately 8.9 percent of the total population, were diagnosed with substance abuse or dependence disorder. Considering the significant number of clients served, successful national completion rates among individuals utilizing outpatient care remain markedly low. In the state of Nevada, where the present study is conducted, successful intensive outpatient treatment (IOP) completion rate remains at an alarmingly low 20.1 percent. Early dropout is a particular concern in that duration of participation in treatment has been …

"I'Ve Been There Too": Peers In Co-Occuring Services And Fidelity Over Time, Jennifer E. Harrison

Research and Creative Activities Poster Day

Integrated Dual Disorder Treatment (IDDT) is an evidence-based pracitice (EBP) for adults with co-occuring mental illness and substance use disorders, a group with poor outcomes. In Michigan, IDDT has been altered by adding peer specialists to treatment teams in some of 68 teams and 122 fidelity reviews. Results included that fidelity significantly improved over time (F(2, 120) = 1.87, p

Coercion And Motivation: Construct Analysis And Factor Association In Entering Treatment For Substance-Abuse, Arthur Tabrizi

Graduate Research Symposium (2010 - 2017)

Informed by the theoretical underpinnings of Self-determination theory (SDT), we aimed to examine relationships between motivation and independent measures of external pressure and explore whether or not a directional association exists between perceived coercion and motivation. Using the Circumstance, and Motivation subscales of the CMR and availability sampling method, we surveyed 63 clients seeking substance abuse treatment under legal coercion, social coercion, and voluntarily. Results suggest that motivation to engage in substance abuse treatment is not reliably inferred from referral source. Treatment seeking groups appear to experience greater external pressures to leave treatment than to enter treatment. Results are consistent …

"It Takes Time To Shift Historical Paradigms": Changes In Structure, Governance, Perception, And Practice During A Decade Of Child Welfare Policy Reform In Florida, Amy Catherine Vargo

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation explored changes in structure, governance, perception and practice within Florida's child welfare system over a ten-year period (2001-2011) inclusive of two concurrent, statewide reform efforts: the privatization of child welfare services and implementation of a Title IV-E Waiver Demonstration. Using an anthropological perspective and holistic approach, the child welfare system is presented as a type of meta-organizational culture inclusive of subsystems and subcultures which are all embedded in historical and socioeconomic context that involves alternations between child safety and family preservation approaches to care.

Guided by a grounded theory approach to qualitative data analysis, content analysis of child …

Clinical And Criminal Justice Outcomes In The Jail Diversion And Trauma Recovery (Jdtr) Program, Daniel Harold Ringhoff

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This mixed methods study evaluated clinical and criminal justice outcomes of the Florida Jail Diversion and Trauma Recovery (JDTR) program that utilized compensated veteran peer mentors. Quantitative results showed veteran participation in JDTR improved clinical outcomes, such as PTSD symptoms, function difficulty and depression scores, but not criminal justice outcomes such as re-arrest rates. Study limitations, however, prevent the drawing of conclusions regarding the potential effectiveness of veteran peer interventions improving criminal justice outcomes. Qualitative results showed participants overwhelmingly viewed their assigned veteran peer mentor as a "peer" and rated them as "very important" to their future success. Improvements in …

The Lives Of Young Adults Who Have Graduated From Residential Children's Mental Health Programs (Full Report), Gary Cameron, Karen Frensch

Partnerships for Children and Families Project

This report presents the results of a research process in which 59 young adults who had received residential mental health treatment in the past were sorted into descriptive profiles based on the information they shared about their lives and personal functioning with researchers. Five different groups of young adults emerged from this process and represent the clearest categorizations for understanding this particular sample of young adults from across Southern Ontario who received residential treatment.

Sorting young adults into distinct groups based on their functioning within key life domains (like education, employment, social connections, personal functioning) is useful to understanding the …

The Lives Of Young Adults Who Have Graduated From Residential Children's Mental Health Programs (Summary Report), Gary Cameron, Karen Frensch

Partnerships for Children and Families Project

What happens to children and youth after they leave residential mental health treatment? How do these youth navigate normative developmental transitions like finishing school, getting a job, and finding a place to live? What types of assistance might facilitate these transitions? Despite the critical importance of these questions for youth themselves, for the educational, justice, and mental health systems, and for the development of more appropriate transitions to community programming, surprisingly little is known about what happens to these children and youth over time.

This report presents the results of a research process in which 59 young adults who had …

Challenges In Implementing Restorative Justice Practices In The United States, Erin Roaza

Capstone Collection

The purpose of this study was to research the challenges that restorative justice practices come across in their institutional and implementation phases within the United States. The modern concept or philosophy of Restorative Justice has been around for about four decades since the 1970s or 80s. There have been multiple studies made to prove that restorative justice practices might reduce recidivism incarceration costs, while also creating a more fulfilling experience for all parties involved, including minimizing feelings of revenge from the victim. So why has the United States criminal justice system not made more advancements to incorporate more restorative justice …

Medication-Assisted Treatment For Pregnant Women: A Systematic Review Of The Evidence And Implications For Social Work Practice, Amber M. Holbrook, Viba H. Nguyen

Social Work (Graduate) Faculty Publications

Evidence-based practice with pregnant clients who are opioiddependent can be especially challenging because pregnant women are rarely included in clinical trials. The paper synthesizes systematic reviews on the outcomes of medication-assisted treatment for opioid dependent pregnant women and compares the effectiveness of methadone and buprenorphine. We explore evidence on maternal and neonatal outcomes, the safety of breastfeeding, and discuss the implications for social work practice. Searches were conducted in 6 databases. Ten reviews met the inclusion criteria. Results suggest medication-assisted treatment with either methadone or buprenorphine are equally effective in reducing maternal substance use, although methadone may offer slightly higher …

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

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

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 for …

Mission Critical: Reforming Foster Care And Child Protective Services In Massachusetts, Emily M. Douglas Ph.D, Melinda Gushwa Ph.D, Martha J. Henry Ph.D, Denise A. Hines Ph.D, Mickayla Aboujaoude, Annie E. Casey Foundation

Mosakowski Institute for Public Enterprise

One major topic of debate during the 2014 gubernatorial elections was the functioning of the Department of Children and Families (DCF) in Massachusetts. Prior to the debates and subsequently as well, the media has highlighted some challenges and issues that plague DCF, and several high-profile cases have sparked not only the attention of our state government, but the public at large as well. After consultation with legislators, we decided that our 2015 Massachusetts Family Impact Seminar would focus on this crisis.

Beyond Ferguson: Empowering Low-Income People To Build The Future Of Their Communities, Dorothy Stoneman

Center for Social Development Research

Beyond Ferguson: Empowering Low-Income People to Build the Future of Their Communities

Primary Mental Health Prevention Themes In Published Research And Academic Programs In Israel, Ora Nakash, Liat Razon, Itzhak Levav

School for Social Work: Faculty Publications

Background: The World Health Organization Comprehensive Mental Health Action Plan (CMHAP) 2013-2020 proposes the implementation of primary prevention strategies to reduce the mental health burden of disease. The extent to which Israeli academic programs and published research adhere to the principles spelled out by the CMHAP is unknown. Objective: To investigate the presence of mental health primary prevention themes in published research and academic programs in Israel. Methods: We searched for mental health primary prevention themes in: (1) three major journals of psychiatry and social sciences during the years 2001-2012; (2) university graduate programs in psychology, social work and medicine …

Evaluating Voices Of Youth: A Violence Prevention Program, Jeannette B. Wyatt, Trisha A. Hicks

Journal of Adolescent and Family Health

Faced with rising rates of youth violence in Philadelphia, the United States’ Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania developed a program designed to help youth tell their stories related to violence and to take a role in violence prevention. Youth from five different schools worked with two filmmakers over a three-month period and created films that discussed the impact violence had on their lives. The program provided an exploratory look into creative outlets for cathartic expression. Several lessons learned during the development and implementation of the program can be used for other organizations planning youth violence prevention programs.

Closing The Racial Wealth Gap: Innovative Solutions For Change, Southern Regional Asset Building Coalition

Center for Social Development Research

Closing the Racial Wealth Gap: Innovative Solutions for Change

Does Wilderness Therapy Reduce Recidivism In Delinquent Adolescents?: A Narrative Review, Jamie M. Clem, Stephanie Grace Prost, Bruce A. Thyer

Journal of Adolescent and Family Health

Adolescent recidivism rates remain high in the United States despite the fact juvenile crime has declined since the 1990’s. Wilderness therapy (WT) is an emerging treatment approach for adolescents involved in the juvenile justice system. This review examines outcome studies utilizing a wilderness therapy program in an effort to reduce adolescent recidivism. Studies were eligible if they: (a) evaluated a WT intervention, (b) utilized an adolescent population, (c) included a measure of recidivism as an outcome variable, and were (d) published in English between 1990 and June of 2010 in a peer-reviewed journal. A total of seven studies on WT …

From Mass Incarceration To Smart Decarceration, Carrie Pettus-Davis, Matthew W. Epperson

Center for Social Development Research

American Academy of Social Work and Social Welfare Grand Challenges Initiative Concept Paper

Hispanic Subgroups, Acculturation, And Substance Abuse Treatment Outcomes, Karen G. Chartier, Tom Carmody, Maleeha Akhtar, Mary B. Stebbins, Scott T. Walters, Diane Warden

Social Work Publications

This study explored Hispanic subgroup differences in substance use treatment outcomes, and the relationship of acculturation characteristics to these outcomes. Data were from a multisite randomized clinical trial of motivational enhancement therapy versus treatment as usual in a sample of Spanish-speaking substance abusers. Participants were Cuban American (n = 34), Mexican American (n = 209), Puerto Rican (n = 78), and other Hispanic American (n = 54). Results suggested that Cuban Americans and individuals with more connection to Hispanic culture had lower treatment retention. Hispanics born in the U.S and those who spoke English at home …

“I Am Not Free While [Anyone] Is Unfree”: A Proposal And Framework For Enmarginalized Feminist Policy Analysis, Avina Ross

Social Work Student Works

This paper introduces a new feminist approach and framework to policy analysis. As an integration of intersectionality, Black feminist thought and endarkened feminist epistemology, enmarginalized feminist policy analysis (EFPA) offers an intersectional and flexible scope in a framework to assess policy for a diversity of populations, focusing on groups who are forced to live marginal and oppressed lives. Discussion is provided on existing approaches and frameworks in addition to an overview of the theoretical underpinnings of EFPA. A nine-component framework, which includes a section for analyst reflexivity, is provided to guide users in conducting EFPA. The author concludes with implications …

A Systematic Evaluation Of A Multidisciplinary Social Work– Lawyer Elder Mistreatment Intervention Model, Victoria M. Rizzo, David Burnes, Amy Chaify

Social Work Faculty Scholarship

This study introduces a conceptually based, systematic evaluation process employing multivariate techniques to evaluate a multidisciplinary social work–lawyer intervention model (JASA-LEAP). Logistic regression analyses were used with a random sample of case records (n = 250) from three intervention sites. Client retention, program fidelity, and exposure to multidisciplinary services were significantly related to reduction in mistreatment risk at case closure. Female gender, married status, and living with perpetrator significantly predicted unfavorable outcomes. This study extends the elder mistreatment program evaluation literature beyond descriptive/bivariate evaluation strategies. Findings suggest that a multidisciplinary social work–lawyer elder mistreatment intervention model is a successful …

A Phenomenological Analysis Of African American Students, Delinquent Behaviors And Future Academic Achievement, Jack S. Monelland, Brittany Spencer

Contemporary Issues in Juvenile Justice

No abstract provided.

Six Northeast Los Angeles Residents Indicate Reasons Local Youth Join Gangs And Offer Suggestions For Lowering Violence, Fernando Parra, Frank Malgesini, Emma Escobedo, Anna C. Ballesteros

Contemporary Issues in Juvenile Justice

No abstract provided.

The Argument For Moving Away From Residential Placement For Most Juvenile Offenders, Marika Dawkins

Contemporary Issues in Juvenile Justice

No abstract provided.

Aggregate Correlates Of Status Offender Case Outcomes Across Counties, David A. Bowers, S.E. Costanza

Contemporary Issues in Juvenile Justice

No abstract provided.