Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Review Of Chinese Americans And The Politics Of Race And Culture. Sucheng Chan And Madeline Y Hsu (Eds). Reviewed By Julian Chun-Chung Chow., Julian Chun-Chung Chow

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Book review of Sucheng Chan and Madeline Y. Hsu (Eds.), Chinese Americans and the Politics of Race and Culture. Philadelphia, PA: Temple University Press, 2008. $27.95 papercover.

Review Of City Of Disorder: How The Quality Of Life Campaign Transformed New York Politics. Alex Vitale. Reviewed By Stephen Pimpare., Stephen Pimpare

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Book review of Alex Vitale, City of Disorder: How the Quality of Life Campaign Transformed New York Politics. New York: New York University Press, 2008. $40.00 hardcover, $20.00 papercover.

Review Of Rightward Bound: Making America Conservative In The 1970s. Bruce J. Schulman And Julian E. Zeliger. Reviewed By James Midgley., James Midgley

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Book review of Bruce J. Schulman and Julian E. Zelizer, Rightward Bound: Making America Conservative in the 1970s. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2008. $49.95 hardcover, $19.95 papercover.

Improving Reading Fluency And Comprehension In Elementary Students Using Read Naturally, Rebecca Arvans

Dissertations

Difficulty learning how to read is a risk factor for school failure, low grades, behavior problems, juvenile delinquency, truancy, unemployment, jail time, and substance abuse. Reading difficulties are common in the educational setting, afflicting anywhere from 20-40 percent of students. Read Naturally is a computer-based reading program which targets the third "big idea" (i.e„ accuracy and fluency with reading). The current study assessed the efficacy of the Read Naturally program in second through fourth grade elementary students in a public elementary school. Additionally, this study assessed whether improving reading abilities resulted in changes in classroom behavior problems or self-esteem. Eighty-two …

Adolescents' Experience Of The Factors Influencing Their Diabetes Treatment Regimen, Roger W. Apple

Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to better understand and provide a description of the factors that influence adolescents' adherence to the diabetic treatment regimen from the adolescents' experience. The sample consisted of nine adolescents diagnosed with Type I diabetes. A qualitative phenomenological methodology is used to look for significant statements, meanings, and themes that resulted in an exhaustive description of the adolescents' experience.

In-depth interviews are the primary method of data collection. Data analysis includes: transcribing the interviews and reading the transcripts, extracting significant statements, developing formulated meanings, organizing the formulated meanings into clusters of themes, and developing an …

Persistence And Success: A Study Of Cognitive, Social, And Institutional Factors Related To Retention Of Kalamazoo Promise Recipients At Western Michigan University, Michelle Ann Bakerson

Dissertations

The Kalamazoo Promise, a universal scholarship program announced in November 2005 provides four years of tuition and fees at any of Michigan's two- or fouryear public colleges or universities for students who have attended Kalamazoo Public Schools. This investment in the community is being replicated elsewhere across the nation, including Denver and Pittsburgh. The scholarship program lowers the cost of postsecondary education, thereby increasing incentives for high school graduation, college enrollment, and college completion. Of the 307 Kalamazoo Promise Scholarship recipients who have attended Western Michigan University since its inception, 16% have been academically dismissed.

The main objectives of this …

Measuring Graduating M.S.W. Students' Knowledge Of The Steps Of Evidence-Based Practice, Kellie D. Cody Jr.

Dissertations

Knowledge of evidence-based practice (EBP) is essential to social workers entering the workforce. The literature review revealed no studies that have measured the knowledge students have of the steps of EBP in the final semester of their master's of social work (M.S.W.) degree programs.

The purpose of this study was to administer a newly validated instrument to graduating M.S.W. students to measure their knowledge of the steps of EBP. Eighty-six students in four schools in Michigan completed the instrument and scored a mean of 6.23 out of a possible score of 15. An ANOVA showed no statistically significant difference in …

The Politics And Consequences Of Stakeholder Participation In International Development Evaluation, Anne Cullen

Dissertations

Participatory approaches to evaluation have long been vogue in the international development evaluation community. However, despite their widespread use, there is a dearth of research on the impact of stakeholder participation in international development evaluations. Although proponents of participatory approaches to international development evaluation assert many advantages of their use, the evidence to support these claims is largely anecdotal. Similarly, critics of participatory approaches do not have empirical data on which to base their assertions. Further confusing the matter are multiple and conflicting definitions of stakeholder and participation. Some interpret stakeholders to mean funders while others view stakeholders as those …

A Molecular Analysis Of Training Multiple Versus Single Manipulations To Establish A Generalized Manipulative Imitation Repertoire, Breanne K. Hartley

Dissertations

This study evaluates the necessity of training multiple versus single manipulativeimitations per object in order to establish generalized manipulative-imitation. Training took place in Croyden Avenue School's Early Childhood Developmental Delay preschool classroom in Kalamazoo, MI. Two groups of 3 children each were trained to imitate in order to determine the most appropriate number of manipulations required (per object) to establish a generalized manipulative-imitation repertoire. Three children received single-manipulations training, and 3 children received multiple-manipulations training. It was anticipated that the multiple-manipulations training group would acquire a greater amount of generalized manipulative-imitation because the training required that the children discriminate between …

Empirical Essays On The Impact Of Health-Aid On Health Outcomes, Elsy Thomas Kizhakethalackal

Dissertations

This dissertation consists of three essays that empirically explore the impact of multilateral health-aid on health outcomes like infant mortality rate (IMR) and incidences of an infectious disease, Tuberculosis, in developing economies. The first essay uses parametric and semiparametric mean regressions (additive and non-additive specifications) to capture the impact of education and health-aid on the IMR, after controlling for other covariates. Both specifications confirm education as an important factor in reducing IMR. However, the effect of health-aid on IMR is not significant. In our additive model, we do see a threshold level of health-aid after which the impacts of health-aid …

Important Or Impotent? Radical Right Political Parties And Public Policy In Germany And Austria, Marcella J. Myers

Dissertations

Across Western Europe throughout the 1990s radical right political parties emerged and gained some electoral success. Since that time, particularly in the face of the popularity of the National Front in France and the Freedom Party in Austria, many studies have been conducted examining the voting behavior, party membership and ideologies of these parties, and what the parties mean to democratic governments. Largely unexamined are the effects of radical right political parties on public policy. This study attempts to evaluate the effect of radical right parties on public policy by using a most similar, case study research design, relying heavily …

The Collective Voices Of Asian International Doctoral Students In Counseling Psychology In The U.S.: Recommendations For Faculty And Training Programs, Miki Koyama

Dissertations

There is growing interest among scholars to understand the training experiences of international students in applied psychology. Few empirical studies have specifically investigated international doctoral students in counseling psychology. The purpose of the present study was to create an opportunity for the voices of Asian international students in U.S. doctoral counseling psychology programs could be expressed, and to convey their collective voices.

Twelve Asian international students, predominately women from East Asia, participated in two phone interviews. Participants were asked to illustrate their overall training experiences, share helpful and unhelpful aspects of their training, and identify recommendations for faculty and training …

Understanding The Impact Of The Kalamazoo Promise From The Perspectives Of Parents And Community Group Members, Charles Pearson

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to uncover the emerging views of parents and community group stakeholders in regards to The Kalamazoo Promise, and what they believed were the important issues that must be understood by implementers of The Promise in order to provide more effective implementation.

The Kalamazoo Promise is a full-tuition scholarship provided to all eligible graduates of the school district. The qualification criteria are simple, and all graduates attending at least the four years of high school are eligible.

A case study was conducted in one representative school in this midsized, urban district. A multiple-phase approach was …

The Ethnic Identity Of Returning Immigrants To A Pueblo In Yucatan, David Piacenti

Dissertations

This study seeks to understand: 1) motivations for leaving and, if applicable, racialized, segregated environment, which is represented by the returned cholo, whose "urban gangbanger" mentality confronts the traditional, rural ethnic identity. San Francisco also affects the overall perception of immigration and desire for permanent U.S. residence. Of the San Francisco cohort, 42% say immigration is "positive overall." Conversely, 62% of the Kalamazoo cohort says that immigration is "positive overall." Only 29% of the San Francisco cohort desire permanent residence in the U.S. while 54% of the Kalamazoo cohort desire permanent U.S. residence. Therefore, the suburban context of Kalamazoo may …

Validating The Attitudes Toward Sex Offenders Scale, Charmeka. Whitehead

Dissertations

This study investigated the reliability and validity of the Attitudes Toward Sex Offenders Scale (ATS) measurement by assessing attitudes of counselors in training towards juvenile sex offenders. The specific aims of this study were to determine (a) internal consistency of the ATS, (b) construct validity of the ATS based on exploratory factor analysis, and (c) the degree to which this instrument has convergent and discriminate validity. The intellectual merit of this study was to provide appropriate scale validation of the ATS so that it might be used to assess attitudes of mental health professionals who work with juvenile sex offenders. …

A Multidisciplinary Conference On The Challenges & Opportunities For Sustainable Development In Ethiopia & The Greater Horn Of Africa

International Conference on African Development Archives

No abstract provided.

When Personal Dreams Derail, Rural Cameroonian Women Aspire For Their Children, Akuri John, Susan Weinger, Barbara Barton

Social Work Faculty Publications

Data gathered from a convenience sample of 36 women who reside in rural villages lying on the outskirts of Buea, Cameroon is not consistent with the "culture of poverty" proposition which states that personal characteristics of the poor tie them to a life of poverty. These findings run counter to an assumed "culture of poverty" in which persons do not hold career aspirations and socialize their children with attitudes that assure the generational transmission of poverty. Respondents, as a case vignette illustrates, conveyed that besides marriage they had wanted a career in order to achieve a living wage. After their …

Cecp Pride, November 2009, College Of Education And Human Development

Counselor Education and Counseling Psychology News

• Moving Forward by Patrick Munley, Professor and Chair
• Counselor Education and Counseling Psychology Annual Awards
• Dr. White Visits WMU
• President of American Psychological Association, Dr. James H. Bray, visited WMU on April 6-7
• Featured Alumni
• Community Service Projects
• New Faces
• Awards and Recognition
• Student Success
• Research and Scholarship
• In Memoriam

Ethnosymbolism And The Dismemberment Of The State In The Horn Of Africa: The Ethiopian Case Of Ethnic Federalism, Assefa Mehretu

International Conference on African Development Archives

The paper has three major objectives. The first is to do a critical review of the current largely antagonistic narratives of ethnic instrumentalism in Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa that have ultimately led to the balkanization of the state and caused serious political instability and fratricidal conflicts with traumatic and costly consequences in the region. The second is to do a critical review of the policy of the current Ethiopian government to implement ethno-territorial formations under the rubric of killils (Amharic for territorial enclosures), and to demonstrate how this may seriously vitiate national integration along compatible cultural and economic …

Wmu International News Fall 2009, Haenicke Institute For Global Education

WMU International News

In this issue:

WMU's Confucius Institute offers educational/business links to China

Chinese linguist named director of WMU’s Confucius Institute

Kim and crew on task planning cultural, recreational entertaining events

Fashion learning in London takes the runway in Kalamazoo

French immersion points Michigan native to ESL career

The Socializer - Fall 2009, Department Of Sociology

The Socializer

No abstract provided.

Institutions And Savings In Low-Income Households, Jami Curley, Fred Ssewamala, Michael Sherraden

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

This paper examines the influence of structured savings program arrangements on the saving performance of low-income households in individual development accounts (IDAs). Data are drawn from the American Dream Demonstration (1997-2004), which looked at the saving performance of low-income households in matched savings accounts across the United States. Hierarchical multivariate regression is used to identify which specific structural program arrangements are important in influencing the saving performance of low-income families. Findings suggest that overall, structured program arrangements, including financial education, peer mentoring groups and saving targets are important in influencing people's saving performance-including low-income families.

A Mixed Methods Analysis Of Social Capital Of Liberian Refugee Women In Ghana, Alice Boateng

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

This article reports on a mixed methods study of Liberian refugee women at the Buduburam refugee camp in Ghana. The study examined the role and impact of social capital on the women's well-being. Three types of social capital - bonding, bridging, and linking - were examined. The study's findings revealed that although the women had some bonding social capital, they possessed very little bridging social capital, and linking social capital was non-existent. These findings suggest that the refugee women may benefit from national and internationalp olicies andp rograms that seek to both strengthen existing and create new sources of social …

Review Of Research For Action: Cross-National Perspectives On Connecting Knowledge, Policy, And Practice For Children. Robert Chaskin And Jona M. Rosenfeld, Editors. Reviewed By Ann Reyes Robbins., Ann Reyes Robbins

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Book review of Robert Chaskin and Jona M. Rosenfeld (Eds.), Research for Action: Cross-National Perspectives on Connecting Knowledge, Policy, and Practice for Children. New York: Oxford University Press, 2007. $42.95 hardcover.

Review Of The Revival Of Labor Liberalism. Andrew Battista. Reviewed By Larry Nackerud., Larry Nackerud

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Book review of Andrew Battista, The Revival of Labor Liberalism. Champaign, IL: University of Illinois Press, 2008. $45.00 hardcover.

Review Of Diversity, Oppression And Change. Flavio Francisco Marsiglia And Stephen Kulis. Reviewed By Qiaobing Wu., Qiaobing Wu

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Book review of Flavio Francisco Marsiglia and Stephen Kulis, Diversity, Oppression and Change: Culturally Grounded Social Work. Chicago, IL: Lyceum, 2008. $49.95 paper cover.

Review Of A Mother's Work: How Feminism, The Market And Policy Shape Family Life. Neil Gilbert. Reviewed By Cheryl Hyde., Cheryl A. Hyde

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Book review of Neil Gilbert, A Mother's Work: How Feminism, the Market and Policy Shape Family Life. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2008. $26.00 hardcover

Rescuing Children And Punishing Poor Families: Housing Related Decisions, Corey Shdaimah

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Child welfare policy is not self implementing; an understanding of child welfare policy must therefore include the decision making practices by those whom Michael Lipsky (1980) has called "streetlevel bureaucrats." This article reports data from a qualitative study exploring perceptions of child welfare professionals about housing-related child welfare decisions. Interviews were conducted with a purposive sample of 18 child welfare lawyers, judges, and masters level social workers from a large city in the mid-Atlantic U.S. All agreed that there is insufficient affordable adequate housing. They held conflicting views, however, on: 1) the standard for adequate housing in the absence of …

Ethics With Character: Virtues And The Ethical Social Worker, Paul Adams

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

This article explores the relevance to social work of those aspects of applied ethics that are not primarily about identifying and resolving dilemmas. It examines the potential of the ethical tradition rooted in the virtues and character of the practitioner-from Aristotle and Hippocrates to contemporary virtue-based ethics in medicine-to guide and enrich our understanding of the social work profession and the dispositions or qualities of character its practice requires and develops.

The Limits Of Paternalism: A Case Study Of Welfare Reform In Wisconsin, Thomas S. Moore, Swarnjit S. Arora

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

This paper uses a pooled sample constructed from the Food Stamp Quality Control data for the fiscal years 1993 to 2006 to assess the effects of welfare reform upon the employment, earnings, income, and poverty trends among poor, single-mother families, both in Wisconsin and nationwide. It finds that the employment and earnings gains of the Wisconsin families exceed those of comparable families nationwide. However, there has been no significant change in the average income of the Wisconsin families, and the number of extremely poor families has increased more rapidly in Wisconsin than in the country as a whole. These findings …