Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

The Dysfunctional Dialectics Of The Prison, Richard A. Ball

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

According to the functionalist perspective, the survival of an organization is a matter of functions performed. A dialectical framework allows us to deal with the fact that durability is not necessarily connected with functionality. Organizations may be built on retrogressive accomodations which amount to dysfunctional dialectics. The prison represents an example in that it has developed as a polarity of commonweal and service organization, and is divided against itself. The coercive structure results in compliance patterns of an alienative nature. The basic dialectical units are roles which divide prisoners by emphasizing power relationships. Staff authority is weakened by a process …

The Death Penalty And Discretion: Implications Of The Furman Decision For Criminal Justice, Marc Riedel

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Whether the deatn penalty should remain as a penalty available in American criminal law continues to be a subject of controversy among social scientists, lawyers, the judiciary and the public. While the traditional areas of debate over whether the death penalty is a deterrent and whether it is imposed ina discriminatory manner continue to be important issues, the recent Supreme Court decision (Furman v Georgia, 1972) and subsequent legislation has introduced another dimension: the nature and use of discretion.

Current litigation on the death penalty (Fowler v North Carolina, 1974) is directed toward a resolution of issues raised by Furman. …

Police And Social Workers As Members Of New Crisis-Management Teams, Karl Schonborn

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

A variety of programs have emerged of late which involve the close collaboration and cooperation of police and social workers in order to deal with family crises. By pooling their respective skills and resources, police and social workers hope to respond more effectively to the diverse situations and challenges presented by family crises. Several of these programs are reviewed here and one is probed in depth. Also, various questions are raised regarding some of the possible problems associated with this kind of collaboration.

Community Milieu Approach: Resource For Criminal Justice System, Jack Sarmanian, Peter Knox

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Never before in our history has there been such a need for sophisticated programming to deal with the deviant patterns of behavior that are becoming so prevalent in our society. Violent acting out, and a myriad of other self-destructive and socially unacceptable behaviors are emerging which demand immediate attention. This article is devoted to describing the approach of a community-based counseling/rehabilitative program that has responded to the dilemma.

Adolescent Counseling in Development was created several years ago to answer the specific need of a community experiencing a tremendous increase in the use and abuse of drugs. The program has continued …

Consultation As A Mode Of Field Instruction, Frank B. Raymond

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

In recent years both pedagogical and pragmatic considerations have prompted numerous experiments in field instruction for social work education. A novel approach used by one school is based on a consultation model. In this mode of field instruction a faculty based field instructor serves as a consultant to the student placed in a community agency. The relationship between consultee and consultant is distinctly different from that which exists between a student and a "teacher," "instructor," or "supervisor" in traditional field placements. Rather than a hierarchical, obligatory relationship, there exists between consultant and consultee a coordinate, facultative relationship in which the …

Journal Of Sociology & Social Welfare Vol. 3, No. 5 (May 1976)

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

TABLE OF CONTENTS

• An Examination of "Right to Treatment" Standards: Mental Health Policy Within The Context of The State Hospital System - KATHRYN GLASS - pp.492
• Differential Utilization of the Health Care Delivery System by Members of Ethnic Minorities - PATRICIA A. BROWN - pp.516
• Community Planning Organizations Coping With Their Problems: The Case of The Welfare Council - FRED M. COX, JOHN E. TROPMAN - pp.524
• Community Organization Practice: An Elaboration of Rothman's Typology - JERRY D. STOCKDALE - pp.541
• Dilemmas of Planning and Self-Determination - CHARLES D. COWGER - pp. 552
• The Practice Implications of Interorganizational Theory For …

The Practice Implications Of Interorganizational Theory For Services Integration, Nancy Runkle Hooyman

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

The interorganizational theories of Litwak and Rothman and Levine and White are utilized to suggest the need for practitioners, involved in services integration efforts, to consider the situational variables of size, resources, awareness of interdependence, and type of task exchanged. The effect of these variables upon the formality and autonomy of linkage mechanisms between human service agencies is illustrated in terms of a regional services integration project in Minnesota. Implications are presented for practitioners who are attempting to coordinate services.

Upward Mobility Potential Attitudes Toward Mental Illness And Working-Class Youth, Gary Rosenberg, Honey A. Mendelson

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

The investigators were interested in assessing the relationship between upward mobility potential and attitudes toward mental illness. For the 147 male adolescents studied, it was hypothesized that those working-class youth who demonstrated a high predictability of future upward social mobility would score more liberally on the five factors of the Opinions about Mental Illness Scale than those working-class youth who demonstrated a low predictability of future upward social mobility. Through the use of the aforementioned scale, the Otis Quick Scoring Mental Ability Test and Zero Order Correlations, the hypothesized relationship was confirmed; i.e., the upwardly mobile group was significantly more …

An Examination Of "Right To Treatment" Standards: Mental Health Policy Within The Context Of The State Hospital System, Kathryn Glass

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

This paper discusses the use of court-imposed standards for public mental hospitals as a method of improving public mental health services. The standards set out in Wyatt v. Stickney are examined, and the author concludes that if implemented nationally such standards would transform the public hospitals. In addition, implementation would alter the power structure of mental health workers, effect the allocation of state and federal funds, and influence the larger system of mental health services. Socio-economic characteristics of public mental hospital patients, and an assessment of present care in this system are presented as central issues in mental health policy …

Differential Utilization Of The Health Care Delivery System By Members Of Ethnic Minorities, Patricia A. Brown

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Research and statistical reports of the 1960's strongly attested to the underutilization of the health care delivery system by members of ethnic minorities. For example, a 1968 national report on hospital utilization showed that a larger proportion of white persons was hospitalized than were persons of 'color.'I This was found to be true regardless of sex and age; but "... as family income increased, the rate for white persons and those of other races became closer." This fact not withstanding, each income level saw whites using hospitalization more than persons of 'color.' Reasons for this difference in utilization were offered …

Community Planning Organizations Coping With Their Problems: The Case Of The Welfare Council, Fred M. Cox, John E. Tropman

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Community welfare councils, sharply attacked in the 1960's, have survived, while many of their competitors have lost ground. Understanding their survival may help community planning agencies and planners. This study combines data from a survey of community welfare councils with data from a longitudinal study of a single council. The basic problem of councils is conceptualized as value precariousness, following Clark and Selznick, and data are provided that tend to confirm the existence of this problem among councils. The ways in which councils cope with the problem are described in some detail. Finally, the findings are compared with three similar …

Dilemmas Of Planning And Self-Determination, Charles D. Cowger

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Self-determination is examined as the premier social work value. It is argued in this paper that the positive or negative impact of planning is dependent on who is planning what for whom, and that not planning may be a more serious threat to self-determination than planning.

The Welfare Poor: Patterns Of Association And Interaction In Discretionary Time, Francis P. Noe, Kirk Elifson

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

The welfare poor in America are classified into a "subterranean' strata not solely because of economic inequality but entrenched by racial ethnicity, age disadvantages, physical and psychological impairment, and broken family structures. While the misery and plight of the poor are often recognized in basic terms in which the survival necessity of food, clothing, health care, and shelter are real concerns, seemingly other less important cultural considerations are glossed over as trivia. Leisure participation continues to be neglected by researchers and because of this low priority, little or nothing is known of the leisure life style of the poor. Less …

The Living Together Arrangement: Social Work And The Lost Client, Robert W. Weinbach, Anne C. Blankenship, Sarah M. Friedman, Judy C. Rutledge, Claudia A. Thompson

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

A recent research study suggests that persons living together outside of marriage do not view social work services as a potential source of help for problems brought into the living together arrangement, those common to all intimate long-range dyadic relationships or those directly related to choice of lifestyle. A multi-faceted approach is suggested which would aim at reaching this potential client group in a climate which will neither stigmatize or judge the alternate lifestyle or the persons who practice it.

Community Organization Practice: An Elaboration Of Rothman's Typology, Jerry D. Stockdale

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Four change approaches encompass much purposive social change at the community level: locality development, traditional planning, advocacy planning and social action. Locality development and traditional planning are similar on at least six dimensions, as are advocacy planning and social action. On two other dimensions similarities exist between locality development and social action and between traditional planning and advocacy planning. If social change practitioners are to select the most effective strategies for the situations in which they will act, it is essential that they understand the characteristics and assumptions of these approaches.

Evaluation Research: Some Possible Contexts Of Theory Failure, Pranab Chatterjee, Lenore Olsen, Thomas P. Holland

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

What can evaluation research tell us about social science theory? It is the purpose of this paper to examine that question. There has been much written in the current literature about the relationship between theory and practice. Because it is evaluation research (Breedlove, 1972: 71-89; Newbrough, 1966: 39-52; Suchman, 1971: 43-48; Suchman, 1967; Weiss, 1973: 37-45; Fitz- Gibbons and Morris, 1975: 1-4) that attempts to analyze the results of practice, it is the authors' belief that an examination of evaluation research studies for possible contexts of theory failure will contribute to a linkage between theory and practice.

Block Clubs And Social Action: A Case Study In Community Conflict, Mohan L. Kaul

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

A "Block Club" may be defined as a group of citizens in a neighborhood who get together and work together to improve their neighborhood. Kahn defines "block organizing as a highly manageable technique, usually "an urban technique" (1970:36). In this context, "organizing may be viewed as a means of achieving and guiding local control over problems that orginate elsewhere in society" (Ecklein & Lauffer 1972:11). shereas services focus on individual needs, organizing focuses on the location of common problems and joint efforts aimed at their solution. Community organizers have generally used a natural leader-informal association approach to organizing Block Clubs …

Queueing Or Creaming? Will Or Lose, Neil A. Cohen

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

A review of the Work Incentive Program (WIN) provides insight into some of the issues and options confronting manpower planners and administrators. It becomes apparent that the strategies regularly utilized and reinforced by federal funding practices can clearly be labelled as "creaming." The "queueing" model is presented as an alternative decisionmaking process that appears more likely to lead to rational and purposive outcomes for manpower programs.

Philosophy, Sociology And The Theory Of Social Welfare: A Conceptual Starting Point, Robert D. Herman

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

In this paper I want to explore and 2begin to elucidate a fundamental problem in social welfare theory. The problem centers on the conception of the relation between individuals and social structure. Before proceeding with this task, it is important to note the senses in which the term "social welfare" will be used. The term has two basic senses, deriving from two more or less distinct intellectual traditions. In one sense the term refers to the provision of goods and services to needy individuals, either through government "transfers" or private philanthropy. In this comparatively narrow sense social welfare is a …

An Analysis Of Political Violence With Ramifications For Options Of Response, James Lubben

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

The latter years of the Sixties brought a wave of political violence to this country that paled the face of America in startled fear and utter disbelief. Unrest on college campuses, racial conflict spiraling crime rates, and civil disobedience related to the Viet Nam War caused many Americans to identify this period as one of the most violent in U.S. History. Such a sense of public paranoia swept the country that on July 29, 1967 President Johnson issued Executive Order 11365 establishing a National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders. The nation remained tense and June 1968 saw the creation of …

Praxis In The Human Services As A Political Act, David G. Gil

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

My purpose in this paper is to develop a rationale for, and to suggest approaches to, the conscious integration of a political component into professional practice. Involved in this is a re-definition or re-conceptualization of professional roles in the human services as potentially powerful means of a radical, revolutionary political strategy. The overall aim of such a political strategy is to eliminate the systemic sources and dynamics of social, economic, and political inequalities - in my view, the major underlying causes of the entire array of social problems with which the human services profess to be concerned.

Journal Of Sociology & Social Welfare Vol. 3, No. 4 (March 1976)

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Issue Editor: PRANAB CHATTERJEE, School of Applied Social Sciences, CASE-WESTERN RESERVE UNIVERSITY

• Editorial, pp. 370
• Philosophy, Sociology and The Theory of Social Welfare: A Conceptual Starting Point - ROBERT D. HERMAN, pp. 371
• Evaluation Research: Some Possible Contexts of Theory Failure - PRANAB CHATTERJE, LENORE OLSEN, THOMAS P. HOLLAND, pp. 384
• Social Participation and Social Integration of The Aged: Implications for Social Welfare - ELLEN FISCHGHUND, pp. 409
• Public Housing for the Elderly - CARA J. ORBEN, pp. 421
• Block Clubs and Social Action: A Case Study In Community Conflict - MOHAN L. KAUL, pp. 437
• An Analysis of Political …

Social Participation And Social Integration Of The Aged: Implications For Social Welfare, Ellen Fischgrund

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

The purpose of this paper is to provide a critical review of the literature regarding the informal social participation patterns of the aged. The factors associated with degree of interaction with friends will be elaborated. For example, the relationship between morale and friendship patterns emerges as a predominant concern in the research literature. An effort will be made to examine the accumulated evidence in terms of implications for practice or further research. Finally, these findings regarding the informal social participation patterns of the aged will be analyzed within the framework of prevailing theoretical notions about social integration.

Public Housing For The Elderly, Cara J. Orben

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

"In passing the Older Americans Act of 10(5, the Congress took the position that 'in keeping with the inherent dignity of the individual, older people of our Nation are entitled to suitable housing, individually selected, designed and located with reference to special needs and available at costs which older people can afford'" From studies that have been done in different parts of the country, it has been found that most older people prefer independent living arrangements over living with children or in nursing homes. Housing becomes increasingly important as people get older. In a report on housing from the 1971 …

The Punishment Of Divorced Mothers, Herman Borenzweig

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

As the clinical social worker to seven young divorced mothers I began to wonder why the lives of these women had become so remarkably unbearable. I compared the experiences of the women who were coming to me for group psychotherapy with about thirty similar divorced mothers who were also members of the West Side Jewish Community Center of Los Angeles. All the women were experiencing similar difficulties. I also explored some of the literature about the problems faced by divorced mothers! This essay is the culmination of my research. It summarizes some of my conjectures about the disadvantaged social status …

Low Income, Ethnicity, And Voluntary Association Involvement, Nancy G. Kutner

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Data on voluntary association participation among low-income members of major ethnic groups in the U.S. are reviewed. Low-income blacks are most likely to participate, followed by (2) whites and Mexican Americans and (3) Italian Americans and Puerto Ricans. Reasons for these ethnic differences are considered. More general factors affecting voluntary association patterns of low-income persons are also considered, and a means for increasing their voluntary association involvement is suggested.

Journal Of Sociology & Social Welfare Vol. 3, No. 3 (January 1976)

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

TABLE OF CONTENTS

• Social Policies and Social Development-A Humanistic-Egalitarian Perspective - DAVID G. GIL, pp. 242
• Public Welfare: Utilization, Change, Appropriations, Services - JOHN E. TROPMAN, pp.264.
• The Punishment of Divorced Mothers - HERMAN BORENZWEIG, pp. 291
• Low Income, Ethnicity and Voluntary Association Involvement - NANCY G. KUTNER, pp. 311
• Social Change and Social Action - BERNARD J. COUGHLIN, S.K. KHINDUKA, pp. 322
• The Mystique of Expertise in Social Service: An Alaska Example - DOROTHY M. JONES, pp.332
• Humanism as Demystification -ALFRED McCLUNG LEE, pp. 347

Humanism As Demystification, Alfred Mcclug Lee

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Under a variety of labels, many academic disciplines focus on the unsettling impact of fresh and vivid interpersonal experiences upon pre-existing beliefs and behaviour patterns. Reference is to philosophical discussions of sophism and humanism, historical theories about frontier influences, anthropological interest in culture shock, psychiatric concern with empathy and with perceptive listening, and sociological analyses of marginality, uses of participant observation and life-history data, and clinical studies of social behavior. Their significant similarity is that they are all discussions of demystifying influences on social thought and action. They are demystifying in the sense that they tend to translate the distant, …

Social Policies And Social Development - A Humanistic-Egalitarian Perspective, David G. Gil

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

This essay explores the relationship of social policies and of policy-relevant societal values to social development. Its thesis is that the scope, direction, and quality of the social development process are largely shaped by the social policies and the dominant value positions of societies.

Public Welfare: Utilization, Change, Appropriations, Service, John E. Tropman

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

During the decade of the 1960's there was continually increasing interest in the programs of public welfare. This interest sprang from several sources. Citizens, always worried about welfare expenditures, developed resurgent concern. Recipients, long a quiet group, became more active, forming the National Welfare Rights Organization. And then there was the rediscovery of poverty as a social problem, and a realization that very many Americans were poor, many more than anyone had somehow realized.

The general interest in poverty and the measures used to relieve it had an effect on the academic community, generating some sustained and critical attention to …