Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Finding A Fit Between Work And Family Life: Support For Working Caregivers, Eileen M. Brennan, Julie M. Rosenzweig, Alice Myrth Ogilvie

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

This article examines the ways in which families with employed caregivers and children with emotional and behavioral disorders manage to meet the demands of employment and family responsibilities. Finding a fit between the demands of work and family life is a struggle for every employed mother and father. For parents whose children have emotional, behavioral, or mental disorders, meeting this challenge can prove extremely stressful, particularly since supportive services are notably lacking. There has been little research on the perceptions of employed parents of children with mental health concerns about the ways in which work and family responsibilities can fit …

Toward A Model Of Work And Family Balance: How Families With Children Having Serious Emotional Disorders Manage Caregiving And Worklife, Julie M. Rosenzweig, Alice Myrth Ogilvie, Eileen M. Brennan

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

Employed parents of children with serious emotional disorders must manage the competing demands of home and job. Although every situation is unique, all parents cope daily with the interface between employment and home. As the number of single employed mothers and dual-worker households has increased, so has the research on work and family. A review of this literature offers an examination of the different ways work and family relate within the busy lives of employed parents. Three primary models emerge from the review that describe experiences of mothers and fathers challenged by meeting both the needs of family members and …

Balancing The Demands Of Employment And Family Life: Results Of The Family Caregiving Survey, Eileen M. Brennan, John Poertner

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

This article describes patterns of work and family balance that were examined for employed parents who give family care to children with serious emotional disorders. A secondary analysis of data from the Family Caregiver Survey was performed for a subsample of 184 caregivers employed outside the home or having a partner employed full time. Families having different work structures (patterns of part- or full-time employment and of parenting arrangements) reported significantly different levels of job stress, pleasure in work and intimate relationships, work used as coping, and satisfaction handling home responsibilities. Although reported child behaviors were significantly related to stress …

Women, Welfare, And Work, Norman L. Wyers, Portland State University School Of Social Work

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

There are many popular misconceptions about people on welfare. This study challenges these myths with empirical findings, confirming the results of earlier studies. Four misconceptions contradicted by the findings of this study are as follows:

1. MYTH: She Doesn’t Want to Work
2. MYTH: Welfare Breeds Welfare
3. MYTH: She Rides the Gravy Train
4. MYTH: She Finds Life is Easy on Welfare

Reaganism And The Poor Family: Life On Afdc After The Budget Cuts, Norman L. Wyers, Robert C. Holloway

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

Recent changes in federal and state welfare policies have had negative consequences for public welfare recipients. This paper summarizes a study which focused on the impact of these policy changes on the AFDC population in the most populous region of Oregon. Of particular importance are the changes in income levels, employment, and social service utilization of recipients. Personal reactions of recipients are also reviewed, as are expectations for the future. The differential economic impact of the policy changes on various categories of recipients is stressed.

Testimony Provided Before The Joint Ways And Means Subcommittee, Human Resources Committee, House Of Representatives, Oregon State Legislature, Norman L. Wyers

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt:
My name is Norman Wyers. I am an Associate Professor, with a specialty in income maintenance from Columbia University, at the School of Social Work, Portland State University. I would like to talk with you today about the formulation of well-articulated welfare policy, in this case policy which would more effectively link social services with income maintenance. I am using this particular piece of welfare policy for illustrative reasons but also because it is badly needed.

Administrative Thinking On Youth And Youth Programs, Norman L. Wyers, John F. Longres

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

Administrators have a lot of influence over the nature of youth programs. Because of this, their thinking on the causes of delinquency, the nature of ideal youth programs, and the role of youth workers were tapped. In the past, people in the field of delinquency have been accused of assuming an individual, personal problem or deficiency point of view. This study of administrators in the Portland, Oregon metropolitan area suggests that, while some evidence for a more social structural understanding exists, in general the individual problem perspective prevails. An explanation for the persistence of a personal problem perspective is advanced …

Wages, Welfare, Or What? [Statement Of Norman L. Wyers] - Salem, Or, Norman L. Wyers

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

In his testimony to joint hearings before a task force of the welfare reform subcommittee of the US House of Representatives held on November 9, 1977, in Salem, Oregon, as part of a proposed welfare reform bill, H.R. 9030, Professor Norman L. Wyers shared the diverse opinions of participants of Oregon town hall meetings on economic security, entitlement, eligibility and responsibility. The public opinion survey findings revealed Oregonians' support for humanitarian policies, universal benefits, and a focus on job creation over training. Wyers urged policymakers to consider the liberal attitudes uncovered in the survey, emphasizing the need for a steady …

Wages, Welfare, Or What? [Statement Of Norman L. Wyers] - Washington D.C., Norman L. Wyers

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

Professor Norman L. Wyers, representing participants of Oregon town hall meetings and the Oregon Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers, addressed the joint hearings before a task force of the welfare reform subcommittee of the US House of Representatives in Washington, D.D. In his testimony on welfare reform philosophy, Wyers emphasizes Oregonians' strong support for government-sponsored employment (68%) over income maintenance and preference for job development (42%) as a primary strategy. Surprisingly, 56% favor universal benefits, challenging assumptions about selective programs. Wyers warns against work relief proposals in H.R. 9030, citing historical failures. According to the town meeting …

Shame And Public Dependency: A Literature Review, Norman L. Wyers

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

All research related to under-utilization of income maintenance programs as well as to their impact on recipients has discovered the presence of stigma. A survey of the pertinent literature points out that much is known about stigmatization but that social welfare has been slow to incorporate this knowledge in any attempt to reduce the destructive effect of stigma on program users. Both liberal and radical reform measures are proposed as remedies.