Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Exploration Of The Reflective Supervision Relationship: Meaning Making, Communication, And Transformative Learning In Educational Environments, Elizabeth Betsy Stoelt

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Reflective supervision is ongoing professional development, often utilized by the social work field that originates from infant mental health supervisory practices. Reflective supervision increases one’s capacity to become aware and manage the strong emotions that are inherent in direct service work and understand relational dynamics within families and between professionals and family members. Using the 3 central tenets of collaboration, reflection and regularity, the goal of reflective supervision is to develop and maintain effective service delivery by understanding the practitioner’s positionality. This study utilized the practice of reflective supervision with five educators over a 10-week period of time. The goal …

The Relationship Between Adverse Childhood Experiences (Aces) And Substance Use: A Review Of The Literature, Alexandra Scott

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are potentially traumatic events that happen in a child’s life. These experiences can cause multiple negative outcomes for the child even into their adult life. In the United States, roughly one in ten children have experienced three or more ACEs, and nearly half of all children in the United States have experienced at least one ACE. These problems can be physical, mental, personal and social. Of these outcomes, the individual could develop alcoholism or addiction to substances. Substance abuse is the overindulgence or dependence on substances that are addictive, mainly drugs or alcohol. The relevance substance …

The Role Of Cultural Assimilation When Working With Adult Immigrants In Social Work, Jennifer Reyes

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

The purpose of this thesis is to gain a holistic view of immigrants’ experience and identity within the United States through a social work lens. This thesis is based on an extensive literature review which covers the history of immigration, immigration today, classic assimilation theory, assimilation factors, alternatives, and best practices. Findings indicated that retaining a cultural or ethnic identity can create better mental health outcomes and greater life satisfaction for immigrants. From this research, there are several implications for social workers regarding effective and culturally sensitive practices when working with adult immigrants.

Preventing Secondary Traumatic Stress In Social Workers: How To Protect Helping Professionals, Carmen M. Ortega

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

Social workers are often asked to put the needs of others above their own. This, coupled with a propensity for social workers to engage with clients’ trauma, can lead to secondary traumatic stress (STS) disorder. This thesis explores how to better support social workers at individual, environmental, and organizational levels to predict and prevent STS. Based on a review of the literature, recommendations are made to improve social work policy, practice, and research. This analysis suggests that combatting STS must begin with social work students and continue through an individual’s career. Further research is required to inform the implementation of …

Perceptions Of Foster Care Workers On Birth Parenting Times, Pallas Schuster

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

Birth parenting time between children in foster care and their biological parents are often thought of as a standard path toward achieving reunification (Browne & Moloney, 2002; Haight et al., 2003). The overall goal of parenting time is to create space for both the parent and child to have positive parent-child interactions and either work towards or maintain a healthy parentchild relationship. However, birth parenting times can be stressful for the parent, child, foster parent, and the foster care caseworker. To facilitate optimal parenting times, evidenced-based practices recommended foster care workers utilize a relationship-based approach when supervising parenting time. However, …

Critical Black Feminist Mentorship: A Review Of A Middle School And University-Sponsored Program For Adolescent Black Girls, Dyann C. Logwood

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation study aims to illuminate the creation of safe spaces for marginalized youth through mentorship initiatives. Likewise, the study examines the roles of mentorship programs in transforming the lives of Black adolescent girls by providing them with tools to change the narratives depicted by society. A qualitative design was employed that used phenomenological interviewing techniques and ethnographic observations to explore the experiences of the Black adolescent girls in one university-sponsored mentorship program. The findings illustrate what is coined through this research—a critical Black feminist mentorship model that emphasizes an intersectional identity development, the actualization of voice, the creation and …

Understanding Complex Post Traumatic Stress Disorders In Adolescents: A Literature Review, Megan Talbot

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

No abstract provided.

Understanding The Experiences Of School Social Workers In The Upper And Lower Peninsulas Of Michigan: Adolescent Mental Health And Suicidality, Paige Lancour

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

Bullying and suicide is one of the most important contemporary issues among school-aged youth in America today. Chronic rates of mental health issues have stimulated increased focus on the role that school social workers have in tackling these issues. This thesis highlights the interconnections between school social worker roles, funding allocations, resource availability, and the prevalence of bullying and suicidality within schools. It does this by comparing the experiences of five school social workers in the rural Upper Peninsula and urban Lower Peninsula of Michigan. It does this through the analysis of interviews with these social workers and the identification …

Canine-Assisted Therapy: The Impact Of Service Dog Partnership On Symptoms Of Ptsd In Veterans, Katherine Ankenbauer

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

This literature review will seek to review and analyze the efficacy of Canine-Assisted Therapy as a complementary method for combat veterans suffering symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress .Disorder (PTSD), with a particular focus on those who served in Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF), Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) and/or Operation New Dawn (ONO). In recent years, many programs, agencies and therapists have more frequently incorporated the use of service dogs into therapy for post-deployment veterans. In past decades, some studies' results were deemed inconclusive by accredited authorities due to their low level of generalizability and lack of quantitative methodology and analysis. However, …

Forty Year War: Analyzing America's Shifting Crack Cocaine, Sarah Reasoner

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

Understanding the impact of American drug laws created as part of the War on Drugs is vital for social workers in their pursuit for social justice and effective advocacy. This policy analysis utilizes the David Gil policy analysis framework (1970) to evaluate the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986 and the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010. These two laws concerned mandatory minimum sentences for crack cocaine. This research seeks to compare and contrast the history behind these laws, their intended and unintended consequences, and the values underlying these laws. This analysis shows the Anti-Drug Abuse Act and the Fair Sentencing Act …

Interrupting The School-To-Prison Pipeline: Are We Educating Or Incarcerating Our Youth, Gayle R. Springer

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

Zero tolerance policies in schools have led to substantial financial, personal, and social costs. These policies are widely criticized for being discriminatory, particularly among youth from minority backgrounds. The ways we have responded to behaviors in school has changed dramatically over the years. Today, harsh discipline measures result in lengthy out of school suspensions for minor infractions. This literature review examines the school-to-prison pipeline is and how zero tolerance policies have contributed to this social justice issue. Strategies designed to interrupt the school-to-prison pipeline are also discussed.

Bullying In Grade School Children And Its Connection To The School-To-Prison Pipeline, Alyssia Chantel Hence

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

This thesis will explore connections made between the school-to-prison pipeline and bullying. Specifically, findings from a qualitative study conducted in 2016 will be presented and used to inform a review of the literature on bullying to explore connections between the two. The topic of bullying emerged as a prevalent theme among students who participated in the qualitative study by Hence (2017) titled, "Can You Hear Us Now? Engaging young African American Voices in Urban Communities and Schools". This study explored zero tolerance policies, school discipline practices, and its impact on the educational experiences of African American students. The study also …

An Introduction To Feminism And Cross-Cultural Body Image In The United States, Laura Darnell

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

Feminism is a social movement that aims to end the oppression of women and to create opportunities for advancement of women. There are several types of feminism that have their own set of values and beliefs: liberal feminism, radical feminism, cultural feminism, and womanism. Central to these types of feminism is the call for sexism to cease and for women to have equal opportunity. Embedded within modem feminism is intersectionality, which is described as the effect of multiple oppressions that affect women. Misogyny, the hatred of women, affects the way that women feel about themselves. This is done through a …

An Examination Of The Black Honors Student Experience At A Predominantly White Institution, Brandie Bentley

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

Nationwide, there are a small percentage of Black students participating in Honors Programs at the undergraduate college level. Due to the limited representation of students of color within advanced academic programs such as honors programs, the unique stories and experiences of this particular population oftentimes goes overlooked. The goal of this qualitative study is to give Black Honors students a voice and highlight their narratives. Analyzing the benefits and challenges that students of color face within their overall experience in The Honors College at Eastern Michigan University, a Predominantly White Institution can assist in knowledge regarding this population. One focus …

Comparing The Physical And Psychological Effects Of Food Security And Food Insecurity, Sarah K. Weissman

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

Although much research exists on how food insecurity impacts one's quality of life, there are no studies to date that have compared the quality of life between food insecure and food secure individuals. This mixed-methods study explores these comparisons. The online survey assessed quality of life in the areas of performance at school/work, psychological and physical health, and quality of relationships. The survey included closed and open-ended questions and was analyzed using quantitative and qualitative methods. This study reveals that food insecure individuals had a poorer quality of life in most of the areas that were assessed. The results are …

Gender Differences In Populations With Substance Use Disorders: A Review Of The Literature, Allante Moon

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

'·A convergence of evidence suggests that women with substance use disorders are more likely than men to face multiple barriers affecting access and entry to substance abuse treatment" (Tuchman, 2010). There should never be an issue of receiving substance abuse treatment for any gender and exploring these differences can bring awareness to these issues. Several studies report gender differences in men and women who are experiencing substance use disorders. This thesis is based on a literature review of gender differences in experiencing and treating substance additions among populations of minorities, elderly individuals, and HIV positive individuals. Emphasis is placed on …

Photovoice: Community-Based Research In Bluefields, Jamaica, Renee Romer

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

Participatory action research (PAR) approaches to community intervention have demonstrated to be helpful in addressing and identifying community strengths and challenges, along with leading members of a community into action. Photovoice is a qualitative method of community-based participatory action research (CBPR) by which members of a community create and discuss photographs as a means of facilitating personal and community change. While much research using Photovoice has been conducted in rural areas of China and Africa, no research of this type has been found in rural Jamaica. This study implemented PAR research using the CBPR method of Photovoice in the rural …

Women In The Criminal Justice System, Nickole L. Stein-Fisher

Senior Honors Theses and Projects - Social Work

In this paper, seven counties were investigated in Northern Michigan (Otsego, Cheboygan, Emmet, Alpena, Charlevoix, Mackinaw, and Sault St. Marie and compared to Washtenaw County. What was specifically investigated and compared was the criminal rulings that were given to women who have committed a criminal sexual conduct crime. They were compared by their location, race, and formal educational level to see if this had any influence on their court rulings.

The research method used is convenient sampling, of court rulings in two different areas of Michigan. To make the comparison, twenty five women that are on the Michigan State Sex …

Casualties Of The Drug War, Allan Wachendorfer

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

The "War on Drugs" started with the Controlled Substances Act and expanded with the Sentencing Reform Act and Anti-Drug Abuse Acts. Mostly they have provided tertiary measures that have done little to eradicate drugs or drug addiction. Instead, the U.S. remains the number one nation in the world in drug use. In addition, there is an ever growing prison population that has surpassed unsustainable levels. Many of the people behind bars are there for drug related crimes. It is time to examine drug policies, particularly those that send people to prison, and to consider establishing more programs that help people …

The Impact Of A Memory Box Activity On Relationships Between Residents Of A Long Term Care Facility And The Staff, Camilla Reynolds

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

When working in a residential facility it is difficult for staff to take the time to really get to know whom they are helping due to time constraints. This study conducted a pre and post test to determine the impact that a Memory Box Activity has on staff attitudes about the residents. The Memory Box is a box put together by residents (with staff help) that includes items that have meaning to them. The presumption was that by participating in this activity with the residents the staff attitudes would be positively impacted. This study was conducted at two local long-term …

Is There Trauma And Resilience In Adolescents Who Experienced Immigration Raids? An Annotated Bibliography Of Research, Esther Ayers

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

No abstract provided.

Residents Of A Domestic Violence Shelter: A Needs Assessment For Post-Shelter Living, Amber Smith

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

The project goal was to conduct a needs assessment concerning what factors were most important to survivors of domestic violence in terms of post-shelter living. A review of the literature on domestic violence research indicated a lack of studies focusing on long term stability planning. A survey was developed to be distributed among survivors living in a domestic violence shelter. The survey asked the survivors to rate how imp01iant different categories of services of post-shelter living were to them. These categories were: Housing, Education/Employment, Access to Community Services, Services for Children, and Healthcare. The survivors were then asked how important …

Girls Group Survey On Adolescent Substance Use/Abuse, Heather Messina

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

This research study focuses on adolescent substance abuse prevention. By involving a convenience sample of African American high school girls from an Ann Arbor nonprofit organization names, "Girls Group", a survey asked about their involvement in the after school program, their exposure to alcohol and drug use, influence, attitudes, coping skill and drinking context. A prevention-based educational workshop will later be designed and customized in response to the data from this survey. A cross-cultural comparison of the prevention of substance abuse in youth was approached by interviewing a substance abuse prevention specialist from Savannah-la-mar, Jamaica who conducts similar prevention workshops …

The Foster Care And Adoption Process Through The Eyes Of Prospective Parents, Nancy Hocking Berger

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

Every year, thousands of children wait in the Michigan foster care system for a permanent family. Families that express interest in foster care or adoption encounter a complicated and complex child welfare system. In the end, the majority of families that express interest do no progress to fostering or adopting (Katz, Wilson & Green, 2005). There are potential barriers at every step of the process that can impact a family's progress towards providing a home and a family for a waiting child (McRoy, 2007). This study seeks to answer the question: Once interest has been expressed, what are the reasons …

Homeless Veterans: Overrepresented And Underreported, Andrea L. Smith

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

No abstract provided.

Using Daily Behavior Report Cards As Intervention For Primary School Students With Adhd, Kristina Schaefer

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

This study is a secondary analysis of the Daily Behavior Report Card (DBRC), for three primary school aged children diagnosed with ADHD. These children are characterized as having difficulty sustaining attention at school and play, as well as exhibiting inappropriately high levels of hyperactivity-impulsivity. The DBRC data were collected over an eight week period and chartered similar to a single system design for each student. Results showed steady improvement for some, but not all three students.

Stereotypes: Racism And Its Effects On The 2008 Presidential Election And Our Citizens, Mark Anthony Wheeler

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

This is such a historic time in our country’s story, due to the reprieve from the usual choice of middle-aged White males in a presidential election. The make-up of candidates’ age, race, and sex in the 2008 primaries and general election, allowed the unique opportunity for multiple stereotypes to be engaged. This was an exploratory qualitative study, relying on descriptive data, participant observation during the general election campaign, and in-depth interviews (N=8) that happened within six months after the election of Barack H. Obama, first African-American elected president of the United States. The purpose of this study is to examine …

The Invisiblity Of White Privilege, Michael T. King

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

People in our society can go through life without knowing about white privilege or realizing they themselves, may have this privilege. The white or lighter skin color of a person has automatic benefits, right from birth, them not ever having to do anything to attain this privilege. The consequences are mostly good and outweigh the bad, for the ones that have white privilege. However, skin that is not white has far more injustices, they are oppressed and they are the ones that suffer, not having this same privilege. This study will recognize awareness, barriers, and successful ways to treat people …

Practitioners' Views Of Effective Treatment Options For Childhood Trauma, Mary Sue Storie

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

In today’s society the number of children who experience childhood trauma is increasing significantly. As a result of this increase, the number of people seeking treatment is also on the rise. For this study, data were collected using both qualitative interviews (N=10) and an online quantitative survey (N=32). Practitioners’ views of effectiveness ranged from both more traditional treatments to emerging alternative treatments. Recent knowledge from brain research shows trauma impacts both the left and right side of the brain. Many practitioners noted effective treatment needs to be comprehensive. This is supported by literature recommending modalities that work with the effect …

Egyptian Social Services, Miriam Abouzahr

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

No abstract provided.