Social Work Commons^™

Taking Stock Of Ten Years Of Research On The Relationship Between Assets And Children's Educational Outcomes: Implications For Theory, Policy, And Intervention, William Elliott Iii, Mesmin Destin, Terri Friedline

Center for Social Development Research

This paper has two main goals. First, we provide a review of 38 studies on the relationship between assets and children’s educational attainment. Second, we discuss implications for Child Development Accounts (CDAs) policies. CDAs have been proposed as a potentially novel and promising asset approach for helping to finance college. More specifically, we propose that CDAs should be designed so that, in addition to promoting savings, they include aspects that help make children’s college-bound identity salient, congruent with children’s group identity, and that help children develop strategies for overcoming difficulties.

Race And The Local Politics Of Punishment In The New World Of Welfare, Richard C. Fording, Joe Soss, Sanford F. Schram

Graduate School of Social Work and Social Research Faculty Research and Scholarship

To illuminate how race affects the usage of punitive tools in policy implementation settings, we analyze sanctions imposed for noncompliant client behavior under welfare reform. Drawing on a model of racial classification and policy choice, we test four hypotheses regarding client race, local context, and sanctioning. Based on longitudinal and cross-sectional multilevel analyses of individual-level administrative data, we find that race plays a significant role in shaping sanction implementation. Its effects, however, are highly contingent on client characteristics, local political contexts, and the degree to which state governments devolve policy control to local officials.

Review Of Theories Of Social Capital: Researchers Behaving Badly, By Ben Fine, Sanford F. Schram

Graduate School of Social Work and Social Research Faculty Research and Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Review Of Social Work And Social Development: Theories And Skills For Developmental Social Work. James Midgley & Amy Conley, Eds. Reviewed By Margaret Lombe., Margaret Lombe

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Book review of James Midgley & Amy Conley (Eds.), Social Work and Social Development: Theories and Skills for Developmental Social Work. New York: Oxford University Press (2010). $45.00 (hardcover).

Human Trafficking In San Luis Obispo County: Assessing The Local Law Enforcement's Mechanisms For Prevention, Paige K. Wopschall

Social Sciences

No abstract provided.

Review Of Contesting Development: Critical Struggles For Social Change. Philip Mcmichael, Ed. Reviewed By Andrew Gibbs., Andrew Gibbs

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Book review of Contesting Development: Critical Struggles for Social Change. Philip McMichael, Ed. Reviewed by Andrew Gibbs.

Review Of Economic Sociology: A Systematic Inquiry. Alejandro Portes. Reviewed By Eric Cheney., Eric Cheney

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Book review of Alejandro Portes, Economic Sociology: A Systematic Inquiry, Princeton University Press, (2010). $27.95 (paperback).

Journal Of Sociology & Social Welfare Vol. 38, No. 1 (March 2011)

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

TABLE OF CONTENTS

• PROTECTING OLDER WORKERS: THE FAILURE OF THE AGE DISCRIMINATION IN EMPLOYMENT ACT OF 1967 - Jessica Z. Rothenberg and Daniel S. Gardner
• ATTITUDES, BEHAVIOR, AND SOCIAL PRACTICE - Harris Chaiklin
• SHOULD I STAY OR SHOULD I GO? WHY APPLICANTS LEAVE THE EXTENDED WELFARE APPLICATION PROCESS - Marci Ybarra
• U.S. IMMIGRATION POLICY AND IMMIGRANT CHILDREN'S WELL-BEING: THE IMPACT OF POLICY SHIFTS - David K. Androff, Cecilia Ayón, David Becerra, Maria Gurrola, Lorraine Salas, Judy Krysik, Karen Gerdes, and Elizabeth Segal
• ANALYZING THE POVERTY REDUCTION EFFECTIVENESS OF THE CANADIAN PROVINCES: DO POLITICAL PARTIES MATTER? - Robert D. Weaver, Nazim …

College Success And College Savings Plan Innovations: A Summary Of Research, Center For Social Development

Center for Social Development Research

This paper summarizes CSD publications that resulted from this research and policy work. As a group, these publications demonstrate the scope of CSD’s work in this area from 2009 to present, and yield important insights for policy testing and future research.

Protecting Older Workers: The Failure Of The Age Discrimination In Employment Act Of 1967, Jessica Z. Rothenberg, Daniel S. Gardner

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

A growing number of older adults are finding that retirement is no longer affordable and they must work well into their later years. Unfortunately, over 42 years after passage of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) of 1967, age discrimination in the workplace continues to present serious impediments to employment in later life. Using a critical gerontology perspective, this paper reviews the history of work-related age discrimination and analyzes the ADEA and its limited effectiveness at protecting the civil and economic rights of older workers. The authors discuss implications and suggest policy alternatives that would support the employment and …

Attitudes, Behavior, And Social Practice, Harris Chaiklin

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

The relationship between attitudes and behavior is not symmetrical. A literature review is used to organize a summary of methodological and practical problems in this area. In turn, these findings are used to comment on how sociology and social work practice can take this into account.

Should I Stay Or Should I Go? Why Applicants Leave The Extended Welfare Application Process, Marci Ybarra

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Since welfare reform of 1996, the use of extended application periods as a condition of welfare participation has become increasingly popular. Extended application periods include mandatory work activities and caseworker meetings for a period of time as a condition of and prerequisite to eligibility for welfare services. While much scholarly work has focused on welfare participants, we know comparatively less about those who apply for services but ultimately do not participate or receive benefits. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with a random sample of twenty recent welfare applicants in the state of Wisconsin who did not complete the extended welfare application …

U.S. Immigration Policy And Immigrant Children's Well-Being: The Impact Of Policy Shifts, David K. Androff, Cecilia Ayon, David Becerra, Maria Gurrola, Lorraine Salas, Judy Krysik, Karen Gerdes, Elizabeth Segal

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

America is built upon a history of immigration; yet current immigration policy and anti-immigrant sentiment negatively affect the vulnerable population of immigrant families and children. Immigrant children face many problems, including economic insecurity, barriers to education, poor health outcomes, the arrest and deportation of family members, discrimination, and trauma and harm to their communities. These areas of immigrant children's economic and material well-being are examined in light of restrictive and punitive immigration policies at the federal and local level. Implications for social policy reform, such as decriminalization, are discussed.

Analyzing The Poverty Reduction Effectiveness Of The Canadian Provinces: Do Political Parties Matter?, Robert D. Weaver, Nazim Habivov, Lida Fan

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

The implementation of the Canada Health and Social Transfer in 1996 marked a new era for the Canadian welfare state, as greater discretion in the area of social welfare policy and programming was granted to the provinces. In this study, the authors analyzed nationally representative data to determine if the governing provincial parties, characterized by distinct ideological and party platform positions, differed in regards to their poverty reduction effectiveness during 1996-2005. The authors' analysis yielded no differences between the governing provincial parties in terms of their poverty reduction effectiveness. The study's implications for future research, including research on subnational variation …

The Differentiated Impact Of Bridging And Bonding Social Capital On Economic Well-Being: An Individual Level Perspective, Saijun Zhang, Steven. G. Anderson, Min Zhan

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Social capital refers to trust, norms, and social networks. One of the most important features of social capital is its claimed capacity of promoting economic well-being. Theorists have assumed that any such effects vary according to the nature of different types of social capital. Using longitudinal data from a nationally representative dataset, this study investigates the differentiated effects of individual bonding and bridging social capital on subsequent personal income and income-to-needs ratios. The analyses demonstrate that bridging capital, indicated by involvement in various voluntary organizations, has small but significant effects on future economic wellbeing. However, bonding capital, indicated by connections …

Inabel Burns Lindsay: Social Work Pioneer Contributor To Practice And Education Through A Socio-Cultural Perspective, Annie Woodley Brown, Ruby Morton Gourdine, Sandra Edmonds Crewe

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Dr. Inabel Burns Lindsay (1900-1983), founding dean of the Howard University School of Social Work, was an early proponent for the consideration of race and culture in social work education and practice with racial and ethnic minorities. Using primary and secondary data sources, the authors trace the evolution of Dr. Lindsay's thinking on the role of race, class, gender and ethnicity in the helping process and finally her development of a socio-cultural perspective. Particular attention is given to her persistent efforts to disseminate this information and incorporate it into the curriculum of the Howard University School of Social Work decades …

Surviving The Early Years Of The Personal Responsibility And Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act, Joyce Bialik

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

A system that increasingly stigmatized its recipients only became more stigmatizing with the enactment in 1996 of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) program. This program has been so successful in deterring cashneedy people from applying for assistance that the decline in participation from the start of the program continues-even in times of economic downturn. The study reported here follows 150 impoverished families during the first three years of PRWORA, when the economy was booming. The data were derived from the Early Head Start Research and Evaluation Project of 1996-2001. Through this secondary analysis a construct was …

Review Of The Uses Of Pessimism: A Review Essay. The Uses Of Pessimism And The Danger Of False Hope. Roger Scruton. Reviewed By Paul Adams., Paul Adams

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

The Uses of Pessimism: A Review Essay Scruton, R. (2010). The Uses of Pessimism and the Danger of False Hope. New York: Oxford University Press, $29.95 (hardcover).

Review Of A Dream Deferred: How Social Work Lost Its Way And What Can Be Done. David Stoesz, Howard Jacob Karger, And Terry Carrilio. Reviewed By Michael Reisch., Michael Reisch

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Book review of David Stoesz, Howard Jacob Karger, and Terry Carrilio, A Dream Deferred: How Social Work Lost its Way and What Can Be Done (2010), New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Publishers. $39.95 (hardcover).

Review Of The New Jim Crow In The Age Of Colorblindness. Michelle Alexander. Reviewed By Marguerite G. Rosenthal., Marguerite G. Rosenthal

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Book review of Michelle Alexander, The New Jim Crow in the Age of Colorblindness (2010). New York & London: The New Press. $27.95 (hardcover).

Review Of Myth Of The Social Volcano: Perceptions Of Inequality And Distributive Injustice In Contemporary China. Martin King Whyte. Reviewed By Richard Levy., Richard Levy

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Book review of Martin King Whyte, Myth of the Social Volcano: Perceptions of Inequality and Distributive Injustice in Contemporary China. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, (2010). $27.95 (paperback).

Inquiry, Innovation, & Impact: Report To The Community, Center For Social Development

Center for Social Development Research

Inquiry, Innovation, & Impact: Report to the Community

Stretching The Paradigm: Crisis As A Problem In Mental Health Research, Roger A. Lohmann

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

Crisis intervention is an established paradigm of community mental health theory and practice in which the nature and circumstances of crises are assumed to be well understood and the subject of established research findings and theory. Review of existing crisis research literature fails to support such assumptions. There is, in fact, little current evidence available on the nature and circumstances of mental health crises, despite the importance of crisis intervention in contemporary practice. This paper presents descriptive findings of a study of the frequency, duration and severity of mental health crises, based on analysis of more than 500 crisis incidents …

Closing The Wealth Gap: Promoting Change By Working Together, Jennifer Heffern, Aja Riley

Center for Social Development Research

Closing the Wealth Gap: Promoting Change by Working Together

The Age Old Question, Which Comes First? A Simultaneous Test Of Children's Savings And Children's College-Bound Identity, William Elliott Iii, Eun Hee Choi, Mesmin Destin, Kevin H. Kim

Center for Social Development Research

This study has three goals: (1) to provide an extensive review of research on the assets/expectation relationship, (2) to provide a conceptual framework for how children’s savings effects children’s college-bound identity (children’s college expectations are a proxy for children’s college-bound identity), and (3) to conduct a simultaneous test of whether owning a savings account leads to college-bound identity or college-bound identity lead to owning a savings account using path analytic technique with Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). Our review reveals asset researchers theorize about college-bound identity in two distinct but compatible ways: college-bound identity as a “linking mechanism," and college-bound identity …

Whose Space? Whose Rules? Social Challenges In Mixed-Income Developments, Mark L. Joseph

Faculty Scholarship

Mixed-income developments are being built in Chicago and across the country as a strategy to help address poverty and rebuild communities in the inner city. Tese eforts seek to attract higher-income residents to the sites of former public housing developments and integrate low-income residents back into them in contexts of greater safety, stability, opportunity, and order. Such eforts are not without challenges, however. Based on feldwork conducted between 2007 and 2009, this brief focuses in particular on the challenges raised in negotiating the uses and expectations of space in three mixed-income developments that are part of Chicago’s Plan for Transformation: …

International Volunteerism In Asia, Caroline Brassard

Center for Social Development Research

This article discusses the implications of key findings from Emerging Perspectives on International Volunteerism in Asia, the first comprehensive study on international volunteerism on the continent. Among those findings is the documentation of a growing trend toward “Asia-to-Asia” volunteer placements and of the trend’s benefits, both for organizations that send volunteers and for those that host them. The article also discusses challenges identified in the report.

Survey Response In A Statewide Social Experiment: Differences In Being Located And Collaborating By Race And Hispanic Origin, Yunju Nam, Lisa Reyes Mason, Youngmi Kim, Margaret Clancy, Michael Sherraden

Center for Social Development Research

This study examines whether and how survey response differs by race and Hispanic origin, using data from birth certificates and survey administrative data from a large-scale statewide experiment. The sample consists of mothers of infants selected from Oklahoma birth certificates using a stratified random sampling method (N=7,11). This study uses Heckman probit analysis to consider two stages of survey response: (1) being located by the survey team and (2) completing a questionnaire through collaboration with the survey team. Analysis results show that African Americans, American Indians, and Hispanics are significantly less likely to be located during the study recruitment than …

"We Try To Create The World That We Want": Intentional Communities Forging Livable Lives In St. Louis, Joshua Lockyer, Peter Benson, Daniel Burton, Leeann Felder, Danielle Hayes, Erica Jackey, Alysa Lerman

Center for Social Development Research

This paper analyzes ethnographic research conducted in five intentional communities in the St. Louis region. Intentional communities have long been formed and entered into by people seeking to create more ideal, more livable lives. Our research focused on the demographic and socioeconomic characteristics of the members of the five communities, the motivations of members for joining, and the benefits and shortcomings they experience. In reporting these findings we summarize common themes that help us to better understand why people join intentional communities, how those communities work, and the values and goals that underpin conceptions of quality of life there. We …

Ten Year Trends (1992 To 2002) In Sociodemographic Predictors And Indicators Of Alcohol Abuse And Dependence Among Whites, Blacks, And Hispanics In The U.S, Raul Caetano, Jonali Baruah, Karen G. Chartier

Social Work Publications

Background

The objective of this paper is to examine 10-year trends (1992–2002) in the number and type of indicators of DSM-IV abuse and dependence among Whites, Blacks and Hispanics in the U.S.

Methods

Data are from the 1991–1992 National Longitudinal Alcohol Epidemiologic Survey (NLAES; n = 42,862) and the 2001–2002 National Epidemiologic Study on Alcohol and Related Conditions (NESARC; n = 43,093). Both surveys used multistage cluster sample procedures to select respondents 18 years of age and older from the U.S. household population.

Results

Increases in the prevalence of alcohol abuse between 1992 and 2002seem associated to a rise in …