Social Work Commons^™

Book Review 2 Optimize Your Life! The One-Page Strategic Planner By Bernhoff A. Dahl, M.D., William C. Mcpeck

William C. McPeck

This is my personal review of Optimize Your Life! The One-page Strategic Planner by Bernhoff A. Dahl and published by Wind-Breaker Press in 2003.

Book Review 1 The New Science Of Selling And Persuasion: How Smart Companies And Great Salespeople Sell By William T. Brooks, William C. Mcpeck

William C. McPeck

This is my personal review of The New Science of Selling and Persuasion: How Smart Companies and Great Salespeople Sell by William T. Brooks and published by Wiley in 2004.

Bridges And Barriers To Housing For Chronically Homeless Street Dwellers: The Effects Of Medical And Substance Abuse Services On Housing Attainment, Tatjana Meschede

Center for Social Policy Publications

In the winter of 1998/99, after the deaths of 16 homeless people in the streets of Boston attracted wide attention by the media, the Commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (MDPH), Dr. Howard Koh, convened a group of I stakeholders serving the homeless street population. The goal of this MDPH Homeless Taskforce was to reduce the number of homeless people dying on the streets as well as to improve service delivery to those homeless individuals most at risk of dying. A wide range of individuals serving or encountering the homeless street population, including homeless outreach teams, law enforcement …

Self-Help Group Participation And Empowerment In Hong Kong, Bong-Ho Mok

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

This paper reports on the first comprehensive study of self-help groups in Hong Kong. Initial findings from the quantative and qualitative data suggest that self-help group participation has an impact on intrapersonal, interpersonal and community/political empowerment. Based on existing data, this study has resulted in the development of a hypothetical model encompassing the interrelationships among self-help group participation, social support, social learning, leadership and empowerment, for testing in future research.

Informal Care-Two-Tiered Care? The Work Of Family Members And Friends In Hospitals And Cancer Centres, Christina Sinding

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

In a qualitative study conducted in Ontario, Canada, family members and friends of ill people defined a normal territory in which care from health professionals could not be counted on to be timely, effective or empathic. Under these conditions relatives and friends took on considerable responsibility, both for providing care and for securing care from health professionals. Yet considerable variation was apparent in this study in the sense respondents had of their own capacities to provide and secure care. Findings from this study suggest that service tiers exist in the institutional care system, linked to the time, knowledge and resources …

Social Support Protects Against The Negative Effects Of Partner Violence On Mental Health, Ann L. Coker, Paige H. Smith, Martie P. Thompson, Robert E. Mckeown, Lesa Bethea, Keith E. Davis

CRVAW Faculty Journal Articles

Objectives: Social support for abused women may reduce the impact of abuse on mental health, yet few studies have addressed this issue. We wish to determine associations between intimate partner violence (IPV) and mental health outcomes and to assess the protective role of abuse disclosure and support on mental health among abused women.

Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted of 1152 women, ages 18–65, recruited from family practice clinics from 1997 through 1999. They were screened for IPV during a brief in-clinic interview, and physical and mental health status was assessed in a follow-up interview.

Results: IPV, defined as sexual, …

Research In Home-Care Telemedicine: Challenges In Patient Recruitment, Usha Subramanian, Faith Hopp, Julie Lowery, Peter Woodbridge, David Smith

Social Work Faculty Publications

This study reports challenges in recruiting patients for a randomized controHed trial of home-care telemedicinae. Descriptive statistics on patient eligibility for home-care telemedidne services and patient refusals for participation are provided. Frequency counts of reasons for study exclusion and participant refusal and Chi-square tests to compare race and age-related differences are given. Of 302 home-care patients reviewed, 197 (65.2%) did not meet inclusion criteria. The most common reasons for study exclusion were patients either needing <2 visits per month (n = 59, 30%) or >3 skilled nurse visits per week (n = 46, 23.4%). Of the eligible patients (n = 105), 79 …

Review Of The Loss Of A Life Partner: Narratives Of The Bereaved. Carolyn Ambler Walter. Reviewed By Amanda Smith Barusch., Amanda Smith Barusch

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Book review of Carolyn Ambler Walter, The Loss of a Life Partner: Narratives of the Bereaved. New York: Columbia University Press, 2003. $52.50 hardcover, $26.50 papercover.

Review Of Refusing Care: Forced Treatment And The Rights Of The Mentally Ill. Elyn R. Saks. Reviewed By Kai J. Bentley., Kia J. Bentley

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Book review of Elyn R. Saks, Refusing Care: Forced Treatment and the Rights of the Mentally Ill. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2003. $35.00 hardcover, $24.50 papercover.

Review Of Handbook Of Drug Abuse Prevention: Theory Science And Practice. Zili Sloboda & William J. Bukowski (Eds). Reviewed By Sean R. Hogan., Sean R. Hogan

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Book review of Zili Sloboda and William J. Bukoski (Eds.), Handbook of Drug Abuse Prevention: Theory, Science, and Practice. New York: Kluwer Academic Publishers, 2003. $150.00 hardcover.

Spirituality And Self-Efficacy In Counseling And Social Work Trainees, Pam J. Matthews

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationships of the counseling/social work trainee spirituality and religion/spirituality awareness to trainee self-efficacy in counseling clients with religious/spiritual issues or backgrounds. In addition, the study explored the influence of demographic variables on spirituality, religion/spirituality awareness, and self-efficacy including: (a) religious/spiritual affiliation (Christian, Non-Christian), (b) ethnicity (Caucasian, Non-Caucasian), (c) training/accreditation program affiliation, (d) gender, and (e) age.

Review Of Family Health Social Work Practice: A Macro Level Approach. John T. Pardeck (Ed.) Reviewed By Marsha Blachman, Marsha Blachman

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Book review of John T. Pardeck (Ed.), Family Health Social Work Practice: A Macro Level Approach. Westport, CT: Auburn House, 2002. $ 67.95 hardcover.

Achieving Justice In Child Protection, Rob Neff

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

As formal systems for the protection of children have evolved in this country, certain barriers to achieving justice within the child protection system have emerged concomitantly. Specifically, these barriers involve ambiguous definitions of abuse and the appearance of social inequality and bias within the child protection system. One means of surmounting these barriers to justice is family group conferencing (FGC). Support for this assertion comes from the integration of the restorative justice model and procedural justice theory. When applied to the practice of FGCs in child protection, the integration of these theoretical perspectives provides a strong rationale for the use …

Sharing Power With The People: Family Group Conferencing As A Democratic Experiment, Lisa Merkel-Holguin

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Can family group conferencing be leveraged to promote the democratic ideals of voice, freedom, justice, fairness, equality, and respect, and provide the citizenry with the opportunity to build a more just and civil society? This article reviews family group conferencing, and various model adaptations, from a democratic context and through the lens of responsive regulation.

Family Involvement Interventions In Child Protection: Learning From Contextual Integrated Strategies, David Stuart Crampton

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

The use of family group conferencing and related family involvement interventions in child protection is rapidly increasing in the United States and many other countries. There is some concern that the child welfare field will travel down the same road as it did with intensive family preservation services; that is, tremendous enthusiasm later derailed by rigidly designed evaluations that showed unimpressive effects. The work of John Braithwaite suggests an alternative path for finding justifiable excitement about these interventions. Drawing upon Braithwaite's writings and ongoing evaluation research, this article suggests a few steps we can take towards an integrative strategy for …

Review Of Addiction Treatment: A Strengths Perspective. Katherine Van Wormer & Diane Rae Davis. Reviewed By Mike Gorman., Mike Gorman

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Book review of Van Wormer, Katherine and Davis, Diane Rae, Addiction Treatment A Strength's Perspective, Pacific Grove, CA: Thomson Brooks Cole, 2003. $ 51.92 papercover.

Women's Perception Of Substance Abuse Treatment And How It Affects Compliance, Jessica Lynn Watkins

Theses Digitization Project

The purpose of this study was to investigate how women's perceptions of the helpfulness of services received at a substance abuse treatment clinic affected their compliance with the treatment program. The study surveyed thirty-two women who were receiving treatment from Inland Behavioral and Health Services. The study investigated the efficacy of these elements: parenting classes, health classes, substance abuse therapy groups, group therapy, drug screening, health clinics, Narcotics Anonymous meetings, Dual Diagnosis Anonymous meetings, Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, homeless support services, individual therapy, case managers, daycare, transportation.

Perceptions Of Motivation In The Recovery Process Among African American Women With Children, Raven Nicole Pagson

Theses Digitization Project

Substance abusing women with children are a diverse group, but some of them are among the most disadvantaged individuals in the United States. These women are in dire need of effective treatment modalities in order to sustain sobriety. Using a quantitative research design, this study examines the perception of motivation in the recovery process among African American women with children. Through research surveys these women identify the motivating factors necessary for successful treatment outcomes. Scales were created to measure extrinsic motivators, intrinsic motivators, and barriers to treatment. Factors examined included attendance at twelve step meetings, church attendance, court mandates, family …

Substance Abuse Treatment: Perceptions From The Client's Point Of View, Margarita Brunilda Salazar

Theses Digitization Project

The focus of this study was to explore and analyze the perceptions of treatment effectiveness among substance abuse clients involved in Bilingual Family Counseling Outpatient Treatment. The intent was to have a better understanding of a treatment centers program's outcome from the clients' point of view and its effectiveness in terms of the usefulness to the client.

Insights: An Exploration Of Experiences With Schizophrenia And Schizoaffective Disorder, Leslie D. St. Jacques

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This qualitative study explores the experiences of nine people with diagnoses of schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder, living in the area of Guelph, Ontario. The stigma and poor prognosis traditionally attached to schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder rage on. The profound disruption caused by the symptoms of schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder and the social repercussions of receiving these diagnoses, contribute to the individual's disconnection from family and community. Major alterations in the person's social roles and sense of self follow. Stigma and discrimination compound the injury to self-esteem to the extent that a person internalizes them. Yet, however grim the situation appears, …

Client Satisfaction And Goal Achievement: From A Client's View At Cambridge Interfaith Family Counselling Centre, Dawn Diane Yarker

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Qualitative interviews were conducted with eleven clients, former and active, at CIFCC (Cambridge Interfaith Family Counseling Centre) to understand how client satisfaction and goal achievement in therapy were related. Content analysis of the interviews revealed that satisfaction with the counsellor, especially rapport building, is the greatest contributory to client satisfaction. This observation is discussed for counselling practice.