Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Examining Contributing Factors To Poor Mental Health Among College Students: A Guide To Student Mental Health Resources, Kora Dutton

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Among college students, poor mental health is an issue that continues to progress. In this literature review, contributing factors to mental health conditions of college students are examined. These factors include financial burden and living standards, violence, substance use, pandemics, and health crises. After the initial onset of a mental illness, the risk for other negative consequences increases. Students with mental illness are less likely to graduate, more likely to develop substance use disorder, and are at an increased risk for other mental health comorbidities and suicide. As poor mental health among college students persists, more accessibility to resources is …

Commuters’ Health Certificate As Social Control During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Suprayitno Suprayitno, Rahmi Rahmi, Lydia Christiani

Proceedings from the Document Academy

In Indonesia, a regulation on large-scale social restrictions (“Pembatasan Sosial Berskala Besar” or PSBB) restricted citizens’ activities in the cultural, social, and economic sectors. These large-scale social restrictions also impact Jakarta’s activities from the commuting communities of Central Java, the Yogyakarta Special Region, and East Java Provinces. As a result, these commuters have become accustomed to travelling back to their hometowns every Friday afternoon. On Sundays, they return to Jakarta and arrive in Jakarta on Monday mornings to go to work. This activity is often referred to as “Pulang Jumat Kembali Ahad” (PJKA) or Going Home Every Friday Evening and …

The Growing Need For Advocacy In The Disabilities Field: An Analysis Of Existing Barriers, Lauren Kilpatrick

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

The goal of this project is to describe the barriers that people with disabilities experience to better advocate for them. It will be a 16-20-page literature review based on a minimum of 30 academic articles. The articles will be analyzed, summarized, and applied to the topic of barriers and advocacy for people with developmental disabilities. A case study of a person with disabilities will be included and any gaps in the literature will be noted as well. The project is designed to equip people who have not experienced these barriers directly to better advocate for this population. This is important …

Experiences And Challenges In Single Fatherhood: A Literature Review On Single, Custodial Fathers, Emily N. Janikowski

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Households led by single, custodial fathers (SCFs) are increasing in the United States, so the need for further research into this population is critical. To best serve this population, it is important for social work professionals to understand the challenges facing these families, their unique experiences, and the best practices. For this purpose, 33 academic journal articles about SCFs were reviewed and the following seven areas were discussed: (1) fatherhood experiences, (2) overall challenges for SCFs, (3) overall perception of SCFs, (4) economic impact, (5) deviance of youth, (6) academic achievement of the children of SCFs, and (7) applicable interventions. …

Review Of Cates, James. 2014. Serving The Amish: A Cultural Guide For Professionals. Baltimore, Md: Johns Hopkins University Press., Lawrence Greksa

Journal of Amish and Plain Anabaptist Studies

Anyone interested in Amish health, particularly mental health, is familiar with the publications of James Cates, a clinical psychologist who has extensive experience working with the Amish in the Elkhart-LaGrange settlement. In this book, Cates set himself the goal of providing guidance for human services professionals working with the Amish. I’m not a human services provider but, in my opinion, he succeeded in this goal. This book will also be useful for others, however, because Cates discusses some sensitive topics (e.g., drug abuse and addiction, violence towards women, and child abuse) that generally receive little attention in descriptions of Amish …

Review Of For The Sake Of A Child: Love, Safety, And Abuse In Our Plain Communities—Allen Hoover And Jeanette Harder, Trudy Metzger

Journal of Amish and Plain Anabaptist Studies

For generations, a silent cry has arisen from within “my people,” the Conservative Anabaptist (CA) community, among whom I grew up: Who will listen, among us, to the cries and plight of abuse victims? Whether due to sexual abuse, neglect, emotional abuse, or other failures to protect, victims have long been voiceless. Long, they have gone seemingly unnoticed. In For the Sake of a Child: Love, Safety, and Abuse in Our Plain Communities, Allen Hoover and Dr. Jeanette Harder answer this question with: We have heard. We will respond. [First paragraph]

Harm Reduction Through Effective Volunteer Training, Rebecca Hohman

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Through a combination of business education and social work competencies, an in-depth analysis of volunteer training was created from existing data and applied to qualitative survey data of nonprofit leaders in the local city of Akron, Ohio. The overall aim of the project was to base volunteer training on evidence, as evidence-based practice is a hallmark of social work practice. In doing so, the training would also aim to build connections among volunteers and between volunteers and the organization to retain the volunteers who were trained and increase the efficiency of the training. Thus, the project sought to reduce two …

Examining The Experiences Of Homicide Co-Victims To Inform A Survivor’S Guide To Healing, Grae Pollard

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

The traumatic and unexpected death of a loved one, such as suicides, homicides, and traffic fatalities, is one of the most difficult experiences a person may go through. In Summit County, Ohio, bereaved families are served by Victim Assistance Program (VAP), who help promote the healing process through education, advocacy, and crisis intervention. VAP identified a need for a workbook to assist families with navigating the days and weeks that follow the death of their loved one. In order to create a brochure considerate of the possible needs of families grieving the tragedy, various aspects of their experience were researched. …

Home Health Care Resource Binder: A User-Friendly Guide For Crossroads Hospice And Palliative Care, Deanna Eder

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Patients and families searching for home health care need accurate information regarding the community resources available to them to promote aging in place and to maintain their quality of life. In connection to the social workers at Crossroads Hospice and Palliative Care, the researcher identified a need for a centralized source of up-to-date information regarding local home health care agencies due to the current resource deficit. Social workers and other health care professionals are expected to benefit from a concise list of resources readily available to provide their patients and families with adequate support to make informed decisions about a …

Religion And Spirituality In Social Work, Caleb Mccoy

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This paper reviews 15 different articles discussing the current state of religion and spirituality (RS) in the social work (SW) field. The 15 articles cover various topics in both SW education and practice. Social workers’ as well as clients’ feelings towards the incorporation of RS into SW practice are presented. Ethical standards regarding the treatment of RS in SW practice is discussed. Finally, a review of the effectiveness of treatments utilizing RS is presented. It was found that there is a lack of education to properly train social workers to incorporate RS into their daily practice. There is also a …

Programs And Strategies For Community Resilience In A Metropolitan Area Public Library: A Case Study, Andreas Vårheim

Proceedings from the Document Academy

This paper reports a case study on community-oriented public library programs in a metropolitan Texan city. A main purpose of the paper is to report the findings from this explorative case study on the relationship of a public library system with its communities from a community resilience perspective. The study is a part of a research project aiming at creating empirically-based knowledge on the role of public libraries in forming community resilience. The description of specific library programs is a basis for further study of the mechanisms contributing to community resilience. Community resilience enables communities to face major environmental change …

Bourdieu In Plain Anabaptist Studies? A Symposium Review Of Good Gingrich, Luann. 2016. Out Of Place: Social Exclusion And Mennonite Migrants In Canada. Toronto, On: University Of Toronto Press., Jeffrey Longhofer, Steven Reschly, Luann Good Gingrich

Journal of Amish and Plain Anabaptist Studies

Editor’s introduction—This symposium offers the reviews of two authors who, without sparing whatever criticism can be mustered, hold her work up as archetypal for rigorous methods and theory in plain Anabaptist studies. I have little more to say about Luann Good Gingrich’s work than that it is has been long, long in waiting. But let me add just a bit more and say why.

Now here is a study where a researcher has brought thick theory to interpret meticulously collected and presented interview data about a plain Anabaptist group (Old Colony Mennonites) in the context of broader forces. Yet, with …

Understanding Access To Menstrual Hygiene Products In The Akron Area, Corinne Plas

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Abstract

The purpose of this project is to contribute to the understanding of the nature of access to menstrual hygiene products in the Akron area. Questions being researched are “Do Akron area residents need better access to menstrual hygiene products?”, “What is the nature of current access to products in the Akron area?”, “What influences a lack of access to products, if anything?”, and “What kinds of products are preferred and actually used?” The project consists of a 30-question survey, which was taken online by 51 participants. Completed analyses were cross tabulation analyses using Qualtrics and IBM SPSS programs and …

Law Students' Perspectives On Interdisciplinary Education: A Qualitative Study, Kellie Lockemer

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

The purpose of this study was to explore law school students’ perspectives on interdisciplinary social work education. For this qualitative study, a purposive sample of current law students (n = 11) were invited to participate in a survey to give their perspectives on their current education and thoughts on interdisciplinary education. The results showed that, although the clinic work was helpful, most law students did not think traditional law classes helped prepare them for client interactions. The students also expressed an openness and desire for more trainings on client interactions. This study’s findings suggest a need for interdisciplinary trainings to …

Calling Attention To The Growing Heroin Epidemic And How To Fight It, Kendal Rozaieski

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

The purpose of this study was to explore the experience of creating a grassroots heroin awareness organization on a university campus through qualitative research. Various meeting types were attended as the grassroots efforts began: a student organization dedicated to the cause, the campus Alcohol and Other Drug Board, a local community treatment center agency, multiple University of Akron faculty members, and other heroin awareness groups in the community. Through observation and journaling of these meetings, I am sharing my experience based off analyzed field notes. After analyzation of these notes, common themes related to the formation of this kind of …

Waste Not, Have Not: A Study On The Possible Symbiotic Relationship Of Food Waste And Food Insecurity, Luke A. Rocco

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Households that are considered to be food insecure do not receive enough support from government agencies like WIC and SNAP to have access to adequate food sources. These agencies only supply $171 dollars per month per person in a household (Coleman-Jensen et al, 2016). The average person needs nearly $200 worth of food a month. These programs also are not offered to everyone that is considered food insecure. Twenty Seven percent of the 15.8 million food insecure households in America do not receive government assistance for food (Mill et al, 2014). This study looks at how those that need food …

Palatable Help: Experiences Of Food Insecurity In A Suburban Environment, Tannya L. Forcone

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Food insecurity is a ubiquitous and stigmatized, equal-opportunity threat to community health. Irregular access to nutritious foods impacts both physical and emotional well-being. Food insecurity is burgeoning in the suburbs. Economic hardships of the recession have impacted families that were previously middle class, and in this environment, food insecurity is often hidden and unacknowledged with unique challenges and coping strategies. This ethnographic study in the Midwestern U.S. examines the intersection of poverty and shame associated with diminished household resources. The research considers solutions and applications beyond food provisioning that can reverse negative emotional impact on individuals while stabilizing the community.

The Misallocation Of Federal Funds In The U.S. Child Welfare System, Lauren A. Brown

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This research paper will explore the impact that the federal financing structure has on the child welfare system in the United States. First, a historical policy analysis of the changing goals of child welfare and an overview of the current federal funding structure will be provided. Subsequently, the consequences of having a changing system with an unchanging funding structure will be explored. Finally, proposed solutions will be explored in terms of their impact on the field of child welfare as well as society as a whole. Unfortunately, antiquated federal programs are being used to fund progressive and innovative child welfare …

Culturally Sensitive Social Work And Mental Health Practice With The Amish, Julissa J. Coblentz Ms.

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

With the growing number of Amish in the United States today, it is important for social workers and mental health practitioners serving this population to do so in a way that is sensitive to their culture. Even though the Amish live a unique, simplistic lifestyle which enables them to focus on the things which they value such as church membership and family, occasionally, they do have mental health and social service needs. This study attempts to explore specific culturally sensitive behaviors which social workers and mental health practitioners can utilize in striving to meet these needs. The researcher compiled a …