Digital Commons Network^™

How Living In The ‘Hood Affects Risky Behaviors Among Latino And African American Youth, Anna Maria Santiago, Eun Lye Lee, Jessica Lee Lucero, Rebecca Wiersma

Sociology, Social Work and Anthropology Faculty Publications

Using data from a natural experiment in Denver, we investigate whether the initiation of running away from home, aggressive or violent behavior, and marijuana use during adolescence are statistically related to the neighborhood contexts in which low-income Latino and African American youth were raised. Our analysis is based on retrospective child, caregiver, household, and neighborhood data for a sample of approximately 850 Latino and African American youth whose families were quasi-randomly assigned to public housing operated by the Denver (CO) Housing Authority during part of their childhood. We used Cox PH models and accelerated failure time models to estimate ethnic …

Collective Power To Create Political Change: Increasing The Political Efficacy And Engagement Of Social Workers, Jason Ostrander, Shannon R. Lane, Jennifer Mcclendon, Crystal Hayes, Tanya Rhodes Smith

School of Social Work Faculty Publications

Because social workers are called to challenge social injustices and create systemic change to support the well-being of individuals and communities, it is essential that social workers develop political efficacy: belief that the political system can work and they can influence the system. This study explored the impact of an intensive political social work curriculum on political efficacy and planned political engagement among social work students and practitioners. The findings suggest this model of delivering a political social work curriculum effectively increases internal, external, and overall political efficacy, and that increasing political efficacy has promise for increasing future political engagement.

The Fear Factor: Exploring The Impact Of The Vulnerability To Deportation On Immigrants' Lives, Shirley P. Leyro

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This qualitative study explores the impact that the fear of deportation has on the lives of noncitizen immigrants. More broadly, it explores the role that immigration enforcement, specifically deportation, plays in disrupting the process of integration, and the possible implications of this interruption for immigrants and their communities. The study aims to answer: (1) how vulnerability to deportation specifically impacts an immigrant’s life, and (2) how the vulnerability to deportation, and the fear associated with it, impacts an immigrant’s degree of integration. Data were gathered through a combination of six open-ended focus group interviews of 10 persons each, and 33 …

Fitting-In: How Formerly Incarcerated New York City Black Men Define Success Post-Prison, Mika'il Deveaux

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The problem of community reintegration emerged following the rise of the US prison population, which began in in the 1970s, disproportionately affecting US-born African American men. In this qualitative study, the researcher examined the perceptions of 17 formerly incarcerated New York City African American men to understand how they defined post-prison success after having been in the community at least three years in the wake of the era of mass (hyper) incarceration.

During the study, the researcher employed a constructivist grounded theory (Charmaz, 2006) approach using data from semi-structured interviews to identify factors that enabled these African American men to …

Graduating Msw Students’ Recommended Interventions For Teen Dating Violence: A Descriptive Analysis, Heidi Adams Rueda, Alicia Hawley, Beverly M. Black, Bernadette Ombayo

Social Work Faculty Publications

Teen dating violence (TDV) is a widespread issue that social workers are likely to encounter in their practice with youth, yet little research exists concerning their preparedness to do so. This study assessed the proposed interventions of graduating MSW students (n=73) from two accredited universities in response to two scenarios of TDV. Each scenario reflected various forms of relational violence. Nearly one-third of students’ proposed interventions focused on the need to deliver some form of education, healthy relationships being the most prevalent theme. Other interventions included teaching about appropriate boundaries, issues of control and anger, self-esteem-building, and communication skills. The …

Policy Recommendations For Meeting The Grand Challenge To Promote Smart Decarceration, Matthew W. Epperson, Carrie Pettus-Davis

Center for Social Development Research

This brief was created forSocial Innovation for America’s Renewal, a policy conference organized by the Center for Social Development in collaboration with the American Academy of Social Work & Social Welfare, which is leading theGrand Challenges for Social Work initiative to champion social progress. The conference site includes links to speeches, presentations, and a full list of the policy briefs.

Policy Recommendations For Meeting The Grand Challenge To Eradicate Social Isolation, Suzanne Brown, E. A. Casey, Sandra E. Crewe, Melanie Gironda, Carrie Johnson, James Lubben, Michelle Munson, Erika Sabbath, Elizabeth Tracy

Center for Social Development Research

This brief was created forSocial Innovation for America’s Renewal, a policy conference organized by the Center for Social Development in collaboration with the American Academy of Social Work & Social Welfare, which is leading theGrand Challenges for Social Work initiative to champion social progress. The conference site includes links to speeches, presentations, and a full list of the policy briefs.

Policy Recommendations For Meeting The Grand Challenge To Stop Family Violence, Shanti J. Kulkarni, Richard P. Barth, Jill T. Messing

Center for Social Development Research

This brief was created forSocial Innovation for America’s Renewal, a policy conference organized by the Center for Social Development in collaboration with the American Academy of Social Work & Social Welfare, which is leading theGrand Challenges for Social Work initiative to champion social progress. The conference site includes links to speeches, presentations, and a full list of the policy briefs.

The Teachable Moment: Engaging Students In Social Justice Movements, Tiffany Yvette Lane, Christine M. Chiarelli-Helminiak, Casey Bohrman, Terrence Lewis

Social Work (Graduate) Faculty Publications

Social justice has long been at the forefront of the core values of the social work profession. Social workers are charged to confront social injustices and advocate for social change. In 2014, there was a societal response across the United States to the deaths of two African-American men, Mike Brown and Eric Garner, and the decision to not indict the police officers who killed them. The collective reaction was reflective of a country unsettled by the criminal justice system’s ongoing acceptance of structural discrimination. This article will focus on one university’s social work faculty’s collective response to the brutal killings …

Race, Culture & Abuse Of Persons With Disabilities, Elizabeth P. Cramer, Y. Joon Choi, Avina I. Ross

Social Work Publications

This chapter will explore how race and culture influence the lives of persons with disabilities who are experiencing abuse. The discussion will be framed by an intersectional lens and will be informed by cultural humility and critical race theory. Practitioners need to remain open to the idea that they cannot and will not know all there is to know about any given culture, and they should be open to hearing about their clients’ understanding and experiences of culture. Rather than knowing certain pieces of “knowledge” about a cultural group, it is more important to understand what pieces of culture the …

Trauma-Informed Care And The Juvenile Justice System, Sesha Kethineni

Contemporary Issues in Juvenile Justice

No abstract provided.

Working The Front Lines Of Intimate Partner Violence: Responders' Perceptions Of Interrole Collaboration, Lisa N. Magruder

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Intimate partner violence is an epidemic that requires collaboration among responding professionals. As such, community coordinated responses, which unite responders from multiple IPV-serving agencies, have been suggested as a best practice. Despite their use over the past several decades, there is a lack of concrete evidence for their success. Moreover, problems noted among responders decades ago, such as differing philosophical beliefs around IPV, are still noted in more recent literature. Using an instrument-development variant of a fixed, exploratory, sequential mixed-methods design, this dissertation aimed to gain a better understanding of the collaboration experiences of IPV responders.

The qualitative sequence involved …

Looking Through A Trauma Lens: A Caregiver's Perspective Of Child Welfare Involvement, Erin Ruth Boyce

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The majority of maltreatment perpetrated against children is at the hand of their primary caregiver, most often their mother. The reasons why caregivers maltreat their children are still being investigated. However, the caregiver's history of trauma, in particular cumulative trauma that leads to trauma symptomology is emerging as an explanation for maltreatment. Popular theory describes the coercive and oppressive nature of child welfare system policy and practices, as a source of re-traumatization for caregivers with a trauma history (Harris & Fallot, 2001). Currently, the field of child welfare practice is largely guided by the use of trauma-informed practices, which are …

An Exploratory Study Of Syringe Exchange Program Awareness And Perceptions In Kentucky, Martha Tillson

Oswald Research and Creativity Competition

Research has documented the myriad benefits to public and individual health provided by syringe exchange programs (SEPs), which allow persons who inject drugs access to sterile injection equipment. In 2015, Kentucky passed legislation that permitted public health departments to operate SEPs, but much remains unknown about knowledge and perceptions of the newly-implemented programs, particularly among individuals with histories of substance use. The present study therefore aimed to: 1) describe awareness of SEPs in Kentucky among participants of corrections-based substance abuse treatment programs, surveyed one year after their release into the community; 2) to determine if awareness of SEPs varies based …

Diversion Of Juvenile Offenders In China, Ying Cao

Contemporary Issues in Juvenile Justice

No abstract provided.

Positivity And Delinquency: Is The Glass Half Full?, Alexis J. Harper

Contemporary Issues in Juvenile Justice

Research from control theorist Walter Reckless has shown that positive self-image acts as an insulator from delinquency during adolescence. Current research investigates the connection between an individual’s self-perceptions and their inclination toward delinquency, hypothesizing that rates of delinquency will be lesser for an individual with a positive perception of self. Data from Wave I of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health are compared to follow-up data with participants in Wave II so reported self-image may predict subsequent delinquency. Ordered logistic regression is used to estimate the significance of self-image effects on delinquency, and probability scores for participation in delinquency …

The Effects Of Restorative Justice Programming On Juvenile Offender Empathy, Mike Tapia, Nicholas D. Natividad, Crystal Vasquez

Contemporary Issues in Juvenile Justice

No abstract provided.

Domestic Violence And Parental Substance Misuse In Child Welfare-Involved Families, Bryan Gary Victor

Wayne State University Dissertations

Child welfare worker routinely screen for domestic violence and parental substance misuse given their association with child maltreatment and poorer foster care outcomes such as lower rates of family reunification and higher rates of system reentry. Although childhood exposure to either domestic violence or parental substance misuse in and of itself does not constitute maltreatment in most child welfare systems, workers may consider these factors in their decision-making and service planning when identified. A set of three studies are therefore presented here that sought to determine the impact of caseworker-identified domestic violence and substance misuse on decision-making and service planning …

Maximizing Academic Success For Foster Care Students: A Trauma-Informed Approach, Anna A. Berardi Phd., Brenda M. Morton

Faculty Publications - College of Education

Children in foster care have experienced significant trauma due to the loss of primary attachment figures and the circumstances associated with that loss. Children who have suffered trauma generally present with cognitive, social, physical, and emotional vulnerabilities. These vulnerabilities are often expressed in the P–12 academic setting through difficulties with behavioral and emotional self-regulation, academic functioning, and physical ailments and illness related to chronic stress-induced compromised immune systems. This results in academic failure for half of all children in care. Training in how to respond to children who have suffered trauma is essential to ensure that children are comfortable and …

How The Immigration And Deportation Systems Work: A Social Workers Guide, Carol Cleaveland

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Not only is the question of immigration controversial, it is complex -- laden with legal nuances as well as implications for human and civil rights. This article provides an overview of what happens to an immigrant who seeks to enter the country ‘legally,’ as well as the challenges for an immigrant who enters the country without authorization. Social workers who serve immigrants may find themselves called on to advocate for clients as they traverse a labyrinth court system. I introduce this system to help practitioners and students understand the paths to legal immigration in the United States, as well as …

Factors Associated With Successful Completion Of A Transitional Living Program For Homeless And Former Foster Youth, Megan Brophy-Mclean

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Transitional and Independent Living programs exist to help prepare homeless, at-risk and foster youth to live independently in the community as adults at an age earlier than expected from more privileged youth. The challenges they face often result in poor outcomes such as ongoing homelessness, substance abuse problems, low levels of education, and high levels of unemployment. Because the stakes are so high for these youth, it is imperative that the programs designed to help them are able to meet their needs by having them remain in the program until they are competent to live independently. This study attempts to …

A Mixed-Method Study Examining The Intersection Of Race And Sexual Violence Among Lgbtq Prisoners, Sarah J. Aftab

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

The current mixed-method study examined the intersection of race and sexual violence among LGBTQ prisoners while incarcerated. The study used secondary data from a survey of LGBTQ prisoners collected by an organization in 2014 (N=1093). Historically, the criminal justice system has criminalized and discriminated against LGBTQ persons, and reports show a prevalence of abuse occurs during incarceration. Quantitatively, the study aimed to determine a relationship between race and sexual violence; qualitatively, it aimed to understand how prisoners in this study experienced sexual violence. Findings suggested: Black, Latinx/Hispanic, and Mixed race prisoners had significantly lower likelihood of unwanted touching …

Journal Of Sociology And Social Welfare Vol. 44 No. 4

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

“Children Can’t Learn on an Empty Stomach”: The Black Panther Party’s Free Breakfast Program - Husain Lateef and David Androff

Do We Know What We Think We Know About Payday Loan Borrowers? Evidence from the Survey of Consumer Finances - Mary Caplan, Peter A. Kindle, and Robert B. Nielsen

“I Play Golf With My Kids, Not My Colleagues:” Politicians, Parenting, and Unpaid Work as a Choice? - Cheryl Najarian Souza

The Influence of Socio-cultural Factors on College Students’ Attitudes toward Sexual Minorities - Mark D. Olson and Eros DeSouza

Habitus, Symbolic Violence, and Reflexivity: Applying Bourdieu’s Theories to Social Work …

Active Bystander Behaviors Among High School Students: The Role Of Co-Occurrence Of Violence Victimization And Perpetration In Personal Violence Prevention, Reiko Ozaki

Theses and Dissertations--Social Work

Bystander programs aim to prevent personal violence, such as dating violence, sexual violence, sexual harassment, and stalking. They equip community members with skills to stop the violence before it happens by engaging in active bystander behaviors such as speaking up in potentially risky situations or supporting victims. Given that victimization and perpetration of personal violence, including co-occurrence, are common among youth, high schools have begun implementing bystander programs in recent years. This study examined the relationship between high school students’ experience of personal violence and their active bystander behaviors.

Using the social identity approach as a theoretical foundation, this study …

The Effects Of Idea Part C Early Intervention Services On The Well-Being Of Children And Families In Child Welfare, Ching-Shu J. Fang

Theses and Dissertations--Social Work

There is ample evidence indicating that maltreatment has deleterious effects on the development of infants and toddlers. The Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act of 2003 requires referrals from child welfare (CW) to IDEA Part C Early Intervention services to provide developmental assessments and services for children younger than three with substantiated cases of child abuse or neglect. Thus, this study aims to examine the effects of Part C services on the well-being of young children and their families in CW.

This study used a secondary dataset, the National Survey of Children and Adolescent Well-Being II, to examine the research …

An Exploratory Study Of Incapacitated Persons With Criminal Behaviors Served By Kentucky’S Public Guardianship Program, Karen Martin

Theses and Dissertations--Social Work

State run public guardianship programs are legally mandated to provide custodial care for persons deemed incapacitated by the courts. Historically, the majority of state wards were elderly women residing in skilled nursing facilities. Today, those demographics are rapidly changing. This new incapacitated cohort has become less institutionalized, with a rising number of persons who have entered the program with criminal records and who continue to commit crimes. This exploratory study focuses on incapacitated persons (IP) with criminal behaviors in order to seek what intervention(s) might reduce their criminal activity. Relying on routine activity theory, differing levels of supervision were compared …

A Case Study Exploration Of Teachers' Perspectives On Children's Mental Health Service Needs In Title I Elementary Schools, Natalie Denise Yates

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Children go to school for approximately 32 hours each week of an academic year. Many children who are in need of mental health treatment do not get the services they need because of barriers such as lack of access and stigma. Teachers are one of the primary sources of referrals for children's mental health services, and they often make referrals based on their perceptions of their students' mental health needs. Although teachers are typically the primary source of referrals for mental health services, they usually do not have any specialized mental health training. The purpose of this study was to …

The Transformation Of Homeless Adolescent Mothers Into Adult Leaders: Adolescent Pregnancy And Adolescent Reform, Annie Ware

All Capstone Projects

This phenomenological investigation recruited six female leaders using a convenient sampling method from social media connections and Governors State University’s graduate student distribution email lists to recruit leaders who were once homeless teenage mothers and resided in residential homeless shelters, foster families or without stable living arrangements. The women ranged in ages from 22 to 52. There was no restriction on race, ethnicity, or religion. The study included all women who were once homeless teenage mothers, yet ultimately attained a level of leadership within their chosen profession. Data uploaded into NVivo 11 from surveys and interviews were transcribed and coded …

Provider Perceptions Of People Who Inject Drugs And Harm Reduction Approaches, Ciara Devozza

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

People who use injection drugs (PWID) continue to face high rates of death and disease, further exacerbated by the ongoing opioid epidemic. Research indicates that stigma toward this population is high among health care providers, which is shown to result in poor health outcomes and ostracize these high-risk patients from treatment. In the U.S., the dominant substance treatment model is abstinence-based, despite evidence from around the world supporting use of harm reduction interventions which focus on goals to reduce the harmful impacts of drug use to individuals and communities. This quantitative study examined nurses’ attitudes toward PWID and nurses’ receptivity …

From Yellow Peril To Model Minority : ǂB Deconstruction Of The Model Minority Myth And Implications For The Invisibility Of Asian American Mental Health Needs, Lynda Anne Moy

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

The model minority myth is a racial stereotype imposed upon Asian Americans, often depicting them as a successful and high-achieving monolithic group in the United States. This paper examines sociopolitical functions of the term “model minority” and implications for this broad and diverse racial group by reviewing existing literature and conducting an analysis of qualitative interviews with 12 Asian Americans. The findings of this study suggest that while the model minority myth appears to be a positive stereotype, it may lead Asian Americans to experience distress through (a.) a sense of confinement, (b.) treatment as foreigners, and (c.) …