Social Work Commons^™

Trust, Jealousy And Communication In Long-Term Couples Practicing Consensual Non-Monogamy, Christina Wang

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This cross-sectional exploratory quantitative study examined trust and communication patterns among adults practicing consensual non-monogamy (CNM). Previous relationship research in this area has primarily examined couples in demographically homogenous relationships (heterosexual, white, and married). A review of the literature suggested that adults engaging in consensual non-monogamy are more diverse. Our recruitment strategies and study design was successful in recruiting a more diverse group of participants. Twenty-eight adults in long-term CNM relationships completed a 56-item online questionnaire. Responses were examined to explore the relationship between communication patterns and relationship tenure. The relationship tenure of couples and the gender preference of participants …

Impact Of Support Groups On Kinship Care Providers : A Project Based On An Investigation At Community Coalition, Los Angeles, California, Judith Farber Weissman

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

The purpose of this study was to explore how peer support groups influence kinship care providers’ (KCPs’) sense of self-worth and empowerment, and how they impact KCPs’ ability to advocate on behalf of the children in their care. Few studies to date have examined self-worth in the realm of KCPs’ parenting issues of guilt and regret, nor have they explored whether support group participation encourages relearning parenting skills and therefore instills a sense of empowerment. Although the majority of KCPs in the United States are informal care providers, most prior research on this population focused on formal kinship care providers; …

"Resisting Disconnection" : An Exploratory Study Of Transgender Adults' Experiences Of Community Support And Resilience, Aj Metthe

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This qualitative study collected narrative data from transgender adults about their experiences of community support from other transgender individuals and about their experience of their own resilience. Due to previous research findings about the marginalization of transgender populations, particular attention was paid to narrative data that explicitly suggest structural oppression. Narrative data were collected from two samples drawn from adult transgender populations. One sample (N=12) participated in hour-long semi-structured individual interviews (Interview Sample [IS]). Another sample (N=4) participated in a Focus Group [FGS]) conducted at a transgender conference in the northeast.

The major findings that emerged from participants’ reports of …

Servicenet Participatory Action Research Program Evaluation : A Project Based On An Independent Investigation At Servicenet In Northampton, Ma, Heather L. Crawford, Caroline W. Evans, Margot E. Reilly

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This research project sought to evaluate if program participants of ServiceNet’s Mental Health Recovery Services (MHRS) feel supported to meet their self defined needs and goals. These researchers were guided by the principles of Participatory Action Research (PAR) and facilitated three focus groups who designed a mixed methods survey tool to be distributed by ServiceNet Recovery Counselors. Twelve surveys were refused and returned unopened, 56 program participants received the survey envelopes and did not return them, and 34 surveys were returned completed (n=34).

Participants demonstrated high satisfaction around housing, transportation, personal growth, emotional support, feeling treated like a human being, …

Hospice Social Work And The Patient Protection And Affordable Care Act, Christine A. Couture

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This study was undertaken to explore how hospice social workers based at United States hospice agencies perceive changes in their work responsibilities in relation to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA). Secondly, this study sought to explore hospice social worker support of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act healthcare policy reform.

A nonprobability sample of availability was used to find research participants. The researcher recruited participants through online social and professional networking groups and forums and by snowball sampling methods. Self-selected participants electronically confirmed their eligibility for participation in the study, prior to completing the 20-question online …

"War Was Either Going To Be A Skeleton In My Closet Or I Could Try To Make It Something Else" : An Exploration Of Moral Injury, Moral Repair, And Veteran Anti-War Activism, Zoe Rose Rudow

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This exploratory study investigates the impact of collective anti-war organizing on veterans’ experiences of moral injury. Moral injury refers to the emotional, psychological, and spiritual unrest that emerges as the result of “perpetrating, failing to prevent, [or] bearing witness to… acts that transgress deeply held moral beliefs and expectations” in the context of war (Litz et al., 2009, p 695). While current literature centers treatment for moral injury through clinical interventions, this study investigates if and how anti-war activism can provide a process for moral repair. Qualitative interviews with six veteran anti- war activists reveal that many intervention steps proposed …

Unhealthy Weight Control Behaviors In Adolescents : Are There Classes Of Risk?, Grace M. Van Schoick

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This quantitative secondary analysis was undertaken to determine if classes of risk exist for the use of Unhealthy Weight Control Behaviors (UWCBs) in adolescents. Engagement in UWCBs increases the likelihood that an adolescent would develop a full-syndrome eating disorder, which are both difficult and expensive to treat. Using data previously collected as part of the 2013 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System, it was possible to conduct a Latent Class Analysis (LCA) using 8,885 responses which contained data about a number of potential risk factors that might influence a participant’s likelihood to engage in UWCBs. Factors considered were gender, race/ethnicity, experiences …

Student Satisfaction With The Quality And Quantity Of Mental Health Services Offered By Their Msw Programs, Willa R. Mayo

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This study sought to explore the mental health needs of clinical MSW students, and the degree to which they feel satisfied by the quality and quantity of mental health services provided to them by their schools. For this mixed-methods study, 111 current MSW students were surveyed, representing twenty eight different graduate programs. Participants reflected on their experiences with counseling services at their schools and commented on their level of satisfaction with the resources provided to them. Overall, 13% of respondents reported being “somewhat” or “very satisfied,” 31% were “not very” or “not at all” satisfied, and 50% were “neutral.” Areas …

Toxic Stress : Exploring Mental Health Narratives Of Environmental Justice In Richmond, California, Elizabeth Gonzalez

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

The purpose of this exploratory study was to gather narratives of residents and/or community members who perceive the presence of the Richmond Chevron Oil Refinery in their community as a psychological stressor. The study used semi-structured interviews with eight community organizers and activists to gather qualitative data providing personal accounts of the possible psychological impact of living near a toxic facility with great political power in the city. The common trend among the narratives was the tendency of the participants to focus on a macro interpretation of how mental health is affected by a corporate giant. A collective sense of …

Caregiver Involvement In Child And Adolescent Psychiatric Inpatient Care : A Clinician's Perspective, Erika Wentworth

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This mixed-methods exploratory study aimed to contribute to the knowledge about caregiver involvement during child and adolescent inpatient psychiatric treatment, as it is the most agreed upon factor of treatment outcomes by both psychiatric providers and previous research. Thirty-two licensed clinicians who either currently work or worked within the last five years on child and/or adolescent psychiatric inpatient units completed an online survey. The survey included both multiple choice and open ended questions about participants’ perceptions of how they involved caregivers during treatment as well as the involvement of the unit and day programming. The findings of the study confirmed …

Clinician Perceptions Of Harm Reduction, Psychotherapy And The Role Of Traditional Abstinence Models, Abigail R. Vayda

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This study sought to better understand clinicians’ perceptions of harm reduction, psychotherapy, and the role of traditional abstinence models when working with actively using clients. This study analyzed the results from a survey completed by 52 practicing clinicians in the United States. The survey contained demographic questions and Likert scale questions measuring attitudes toward harm reduction, abstinence, and psychotherapy with actively using clients. In addition to rating questions, there was also one open-ended question allowing participants to express their understandings of the development of a substance use disorder. The overall response to this survey was a positive attitude toward harm …

Social Work Professional Ethics, As Affected By The Concept Of The Wounded Healer : An Investigation Into The Gatekeeping Practice Of Clinical Social Work Supervision, Cristina B. Bloom

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

The objective of this exploratory qualitative study was to assess how the field of social work currently maintains and preserves professional social work ethics in the clinical practice field. This study sought to understand how, in a field where the self is one of the main tools utilized, the field ensures that the practitioner’s self is fit to practice and to do so ethically. This is of particular significance in a field that research indicates that high percentages of people are attracted to because of challenging personal life experiences (Lackie, 1982; Marsh, 1988; Vincent, 1996). More specifically, this study centered …

Farm Work As Treatment For Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, Mindy L. Walls

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This exploratory, descriptive study assessed what, if anything, is beneficial about engaging in agricultural work, or, farm work, for individuals living with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). An anonymous, online survey was utilized, asking a series of multiple choice and open ended questions about the participants’ farm work history, PTSD experience, and demographic information. Thirty-nine participants responded with varying identities and work history, but many shared experiences of PTSD. Almost all of the participants found farming to be beneficial for managing PTSD. Specifically, four themes arose from the data that explained what about farming was beneficial for individuals with PTSD: farming …

I Googled. "How Do You Know You're Gay?" : A Qualitative Study On Lgbtq Identity Formation And The Internet /, Rebekah M. Meresman

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This qualitative, exploratory study examined the impact of the internet on the identity formation process of LGBTQ individuals. This study aimed to answer the question: How and why do some LGBTQ-identified adults use the internet as a tool to formulate their sexual/gender identity? Through an anonymous online survey, LGBTQ identified participants were asked several open-ended questions about their identity formation experiences, and the role of the internet on this process.

Fifty individuals participated in the study, from a wide range of sexual and gender identities, half of which identified as transgender or gender non-conforming. Of these participants, most indicated that …

What Would Increase The Accessibility And Desirability Of College Counseling Services For Music Majors Presenting With Various Mental Health Issues?, David J. Winston

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

Based on the perceptions of 11 college counselors interviewed at 5 private universities and music conservatories throughout New England, this qualitative research study examined the accessibility and desirability of college counseling services for music majors presenting with mental health issues. Findings suggested that the desirability of college counseling services would increase if there were more outreach and advertisements toward music majors from counseling centers. Participants reported that more flexible hours and increase in staff to accommodate the unique needs of music majors would be the solution to improving accessibility. An unexpected finding in this study was reported instructor abuse of …

Adoption And The Use Of Self-Disclosure : A Qualitative Inquiry Of The Clincial Professional, Heather L. Smith-Jackson

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

One of the intentional purposes of this study was to expand upon the limited research that is offered from a clinical perspective regarding self disclosure, but with a concentration on adopted mental health professionals. This study: explored the nature of therapeutic relationship, investigated continued controversial topic of self disclosure and explored specifically adoption identity formation and self disclosure grounded in social constructivism.

Twelve female participants who identified as mental health professionals completed in person interviews. The goal was to recruit 16 participants evenly divided between clinicians who were adopted and non adopted. However because of limitations, the sample consisted of …

Art As A Clinical Tool In The Treatment Of Complex Ptsd : A Theoretical Study, Emma T. Brenner-Malin

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This theoretical thesis explores how art-making can be used as a clinical tool in social worker’s psychodynamic treatment of complex post-traumatic stress disorder. A theoretical thesis was chosen in order to address the gap in the social work literature discussing the integration of creative action into trauma-informed care. D.W. Winnicott’s object relations theory and Trauma-informed art therapy theory are the two theoretical lenses applied and discussed. A review of the literature indicates that art created during therapy can function as a transitional object, facilitating the client’s ability to learn how to regulate their affect, recall dissociated affect and memories, bolster …

"The Most Badass Thing I'Ve Ever Done" : Experiences Of Transgender And Gender Non-Conforming Birth Parents, Lauren Ambrosini

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

To most people, the ability to carry and bear children is one that is inextricably linked with femininity and womanhood. However, some individuals who gestate and give birth to a child do not identify as women or as feminine. At the forefront of disentangling these two concepts from pregnancy and birth are gender non-conforming individuals, including masculine identified women, transgender men, and folks who identify as outside the gender binary of man/woman, who have chosen to carry and bear children. Beyond the narratives of a few well known transmen (e.g., Thomas Beatie) and masculine-of-center lesbians (e.g., A.K. Summers) who have …

Navigating A Paradoxical Identity : The Experiences Of Mixed Race Individuals Who Are Perceived As White, Marcella Emily Galvez Wagner

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This qualitative exploratory study examines the experiences of mixed race individuals who are perceived as White by others based on physical appearance. Literature on the mixed race population has only more recently focused on the phenomenon of racial misrecognition, or the incongruence between racial identity and racial perception by others. This study seeks to advance this literature by exploring the experiences of individuals who have a particular form of racial misrecognition where they hold a non-dominant racial identity and yet are perceived as White by others. The study explored racial identity, racial markers, disclosure and passing, family context, experiences of …

Moral Injury In Veterans : A Theoretical Investigation Of The Psychic, Moral And Social Sequelae Of War Trauma, Sarah C. Towers

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

Although the idea that a violation of deeply held moral and ethical values can result in a profound psychic, social and spiritual wounding is an ancient one, the exploration of the phenomenon of moral injury in the field of mental health has only recently gained traction. Moral injury is increasingly being regarded as its own psychological phenomenon, one that shares symptomology with PTSD, but is also distinct, and as yet not sufficiently accounted for in current PTSD criteria. This theoretical thesis charts the evolving clinical construct of moral injury and draws on two bodies of theory, narrative theory and adult …

Exploring Clinicians' Use Of Evidence-Based Interventions That Treat Attachment Problems Between Children, Five Years Of Age And Under, And Their Primary Caregivers, Jean Faucher

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This exploratory quantitative study was an attempt to address the dearth of research regarding the use of attachment-focused evidence-based treatments (AF EBT) in the clinical setting. Thirty-eight Master’s level or higher licensed mental health clinicians who work with children that are five years old and under, as well as with their primary caregivers, were surveyed via an anonymous web based questionnaire. The survey explored clinicians’ level of awareness, training, use, adaptation, and perceived effectiveness regarding four AF EBTs, as well as potential barriers that may have impeded their use. The AF EBTs were Child-Parent Psychotherapy (CPP), Attachment and Biobehavioral Catch-UP …

Therapists' Experiences Treating Clients With Dissociative Identity Disorder, Alexandra E. Paull

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

The purpose of this exploratory study was to collect qualitative data to examine what social workers describe as their experience working with clients who fit the diagnosis of Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID). This study interviewed twelve licensed therapists through in person, phone, and skype interviews. These interviews explored the experience of their clinical work and its impact on them personally. Seven major themes were identified from coding the narrative data: the challenges and rewards of treatment, characteristics of the population, characteristics of the clinicians, treatment structure, what treating their first client with this disorder was like, misconceptions, and places current …

What Does The 'Q' Stand For Anyway? : Queerness And Agency Competence, Eleanor C. Taylor

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This exploratory study’s purpose was to explore queer identity in mental health practice through the question, "Does queerness emerge as a distinct cultural category through the language of conversation, clinical practice, and administrative policy in mental health agencies that serve queer people, and in what practices is this reflected?” This project was undertaken in order to begin to fill gaps in existing cultural competence literature, particularly regarding queer identity.

This project entailed semi-structured interviews with ten participants, who worked in direct service at mental health agencies that serve LGBTQIA+ populations. This study examines the meanings and effects of queerness in …

An Exploration Of Romantic Adult Attachment, Marital Satisfaction And Parenting Stress In Couples Participating In The Supporting Father Involvement Program, Sarah T. Robins

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

Over the years attachment theory and research have provided frameworks for understanding infant attachment and adult attachment. More recently, the phenomenon of romantic attachment between couples has been examined. The current mixed-methods study investigates the relationship between romantic adult attachment, marital satisfaction, and parenting stress in partners participating in the Supporting Father Involvement Program. Quantitative and qualitative results indicate that there is an association between adult attachment styles, marital satisfaction, and parenting stress. More specifically, fearful insecurities in mothers are associated with more parenting stress while secure attachments in mothers are connected to more satisfaction in the marital relationship. Fathers …

Racism In Assisted Living Facilities : A Comparative Study, Alissa Lee Nickey

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This exploratory, comparative study was undertaken in two separate assisted living facilities, a for-profit facility and a non-profit facility, located in the City of Atlanta, Georgia to determine if employees in both settings experience the same or similar level of racism within their work environment. The following six research questions guided this study: Is there a relationship between type of racism in non-profit and for-profit assisted living facilities? Is there a relationship between healthcare provider age and perceived racism in non-profit and for-profit assisted living facilities? Is there a relationship between healthcare provider educational level and perceived racism in nonprofit …

The Applicability Of William E. Cross’S Model Of Black Identity Development And Vivienne Cass’S Model Of Lesbian/Gay Identity Formation To The Experience Of Black Lesbians, Lisa Lynelle Moore

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

The purpose of this research was to explore the applicability of William E. Cross' Black identity development model and Vivienne Cass' model of lesbian/ gay identity formation to the experience of Black lesbians. Through evaluating their applicability the experience of identity integration was addressed in the experience of Black lesbians whose intersections of identity may conflict within a predominately heterosexual Black community and in the visible lesbian community which is often perceived as predominately White.

Through using an interview guide comprised of ten open-ended questions developed by the researcher, sixteen women between the ages of nineteen and forty-nine participated in …

Re-Envisioning Family: Voices Of Lesbian Mothers Adopting Across Racial Lines, Robin Rice Chalfin

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

No abstract provided.

The Effect Of Movie Portrayals Of Therapy And Therapists On College Students' View Of Therapy And Therapists, Karin Perlman

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This study was undertaken to explore the effects of movie portrayals of therapy and therapists on the public's view of therapy and therapists. lt was hypothesized that much of the information that forms individuals' views of therapy comes from the media, specifically the portrayals they see in movies.

To explore to what extent subjects felt their impressions of therapy and therapists were informed by movies and by other sources, volunteers were enlisted to fill out questionnaires. The questionnaire asked subjects to identify and then describe the sources of information that they felt have formed their understanding of therapy and therapists. …

Whose Daughter Are You? : Exploring Identity Issues Of Lesbians Who Are Adopted : A Project Based Upon An Independent Investigation, Anne Mi Ok Bruining

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

No abstract provided.

Experience Of Stigmatization And Discrimination Of Former Psychiatric Inpatients, Amy Rappaport

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

In our culture as well as other cultures, there are social norms that are prescribed and expected to be followed. If an individual does not act in accordance with these social norms, there are often consequences. In Edgerton's (1971) article, "Anthropology, Psychiatry, and Man's Nature," he states, "Sometimes, of course, the sanctions against deviant behavior are supernatural, consisting of immediate and horrible punishment by gods, spirits, ancestors or the like" (p. 45). In present day culture in the United States, the researcher contends that there are both traditional and modern belief systems that serve to ostracize the stigmatized deviant.