Social Work Commons^™

Sympathetic Symbols, Social Movements, And School Desegregation, Marisela Martinez-Cola

Sociology, Social Work and Anthropology Faculty Publications

An important theoretical contribution to the study of social movements involving legal mobilization is framing theory. Framing encourages an analysis of the parties involved and the tools used to make meaning of their cause. A scholarly gap emerges, however, when considering the race, gender, and class of the litigants and the social challenges they face. In this article, the author blends framing theory with controlling‐images theory to provide a conceptual tool of ‘the sympathetic symbol’ to analyse the effects of race, gender, and class. Next, the author introduces the legal and social histories of two school desegregation cases involving Chinese‐American …

Parenting And Youth Adjustment Across Deployment, Allison E. Flittner O'Grady, Shawn D. Whiteman, Jean-François Cardin, Shelley M. Macdermid Wadsworth

Human Development and Family Studies Faculty Publications

This study examined how changes in at‐home parents' mental health and parenting practices related to changes in their children's adjustment throughout the course of a service members' military deployment. Participants included at‐home parents from 114 National Guard families who were interviewed at four different occasions across the deployment cycle. The results revealed changes across the deployment cycle among the following three indicators: parental warmth, depressive symptoms, and children's externalizing behaviors. Changes in parental warmth were associated with changes in children's adjustment. Overall, these findings indicate that during parental separation, at‐home parents' responses to children have important implications for children's adjustment.

The Relationship Between Black And Gay Community Involvement And Hiv-Related Risk Behaviors Among Black Men Who Have Sex With Men, Dexter R. Voisin

Faculty Scholarship

Black gay men must navigate identities and stigmas related to being gay and Black, and report higher HIV incidence relative to their White male counterparts although they report lower rates of drug use and risky sexual behaviors. This study examined whether closeness to the gay or Black community correlated with HIV-related risk and protective behaviors. Data were drawn from uConnect, a population-based cohort study of young Black men who have sex with men (YBMSM) on Chicago's South Side. The sample consists of 618 Black MSM ranging in age from 16 to 29. Cross-sectional measures for this study include Black and …

Mystory: Scary Head…, Gonca Soyer, Mehmet Soyer

Sociology, Social Work and Anthropology Faculty Publications

This work is an example of critical autoethnographic study of the writer’s personal experiences. In this particular study, I share my experiences while wearing a headscarf in Turkey, and my desire to settle down in United States in order to pursue my academic career. Due to the political changes in Turkey and United States, my experiences while wearing a headscarf in academia and social environments triggered me to write a reflection about them. In this article, my goal is to deconstruct the symbolic meanings of the Muslim headscarf in social spaces. In addition, the piece will show my “double consciousness" …

Heroes: How Hr Leaders Can Help End Sexual Violence Against Women, Wyatt Pagano

Marriott Student Review

This article explores the nature of the negative consequences of sexual violence for victims and the resulting problems that sexual misconduct can cause for businesses. Also, the article aims to demonstrate ways that HR leaders can help prevent violence and alleviate its consequences, leading to a better, safer workplace and world for women everywhere.

Assessing Receptivity To Empirically Supported Treatments In Rape Crisis Centers, Tonya Edmond, Rachel Voth Schrag

Social Work Faculty Publications & Presentations-Archive

Survivors of sexual violence are at risk for PTSD, depression, and anxiety. There are several empirically supported treatments (EST) that are effective for addressing these trauma symptoms; however, uptake of these ESTs among Rape Crisis Center (RCC) counselors is low. This research project sought to determine counselors’ attitudes toward evidence-based practices (EBPs); their perceptions of the intervention characteristics of three specific ESTs: Prolonged Exposure (PE), Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Therapy; and differences in attitudes and perceptions based on agency setting (urban/rural) and counselor education. The Consolidated Framework for Advancing Implementation Science (CFIR) was used …

“These Classes Have Been My Happy Place”: Feasibility Study Of A Self-Care Program In Native Hawaiian Custodial Grandparents, Loriena Yancura, Heather Greenwood-Junkermeier, Christine A. Fruhauf

Asian/Pacific Island Nursing Journal

Native Hawaiian custodial grandparents have a distinctive set of strengths and challenges that may lead them to benefit from a structured self-care program. The purpose of this paper is to describe a feasibility study with nine Native Hawaiian custodial grandparents who participated in a 6-week self-care intervention. Based on open-ended questions during the post-questionnaire and at the 6-month follow-up focus group, grandparent participants noted that their grandchildren needed education and clothing. Most grandparents did not endorse statements that their grandchildren had any mental or physical health conditions. Grandparents reflected that the intervention provided them with skills to help cope with …

Effectiveness Of Social Work Reentry Programs At Preventing Recidivism, Daniel C. Grijalva

Publications and Research

Each year in the United States, thousands of individuals are released from prisons and must reintegrate into society. Ensuring these individuals obtain adequate employment upon release is key to keeping them from returning to the penal system. This paper examines different social work programs that attempt to secure employment for ex-offenders. This paper reviews the obstacles these programs face and considers how social workers can improve the effectiveness of these programs at preventing recidivism. This paper acknowledges that some of these programs have achieved moderate success in preventing recidivism but recognizes the need to research current programs’ methodologies so that …

Lived Experiences Of Women Facing Domestic Violence In India, Shreya Bhandari, Jennifer C. Hughes

Journal of Social Work in the Global Community

This article describes the lived experiences of domestic violence victims among a convenience sample of 21 low-income Indian women. The experiences of abuse are drawn from in-depth, face-to-face interviews conducted in Mumbai, India. The qualitative analysis describes four major categories of their lived experiences: (a) types of abuse, (b) family involvement in abuse, (c) treatment of children, and (d) abandonment. Domestic violence in Indian culture includes violence from the husband as well as the in-laws. Women are expected to endure violence for fear of bringing shame to their families. Social and financial support for abused woman is lacking.

Reflections From The Road: Vincentian Hospitality Principles In Healthcare Education For The Indigent, John M. Conry

Journal of Vincentian Social Action

Hospitality and health care are clearly connected, both etymologically and practically. Health care has traditionally been delivered in hospitals. Vincent de Paul and Louise de Marillac developed the concept and practice of Vincentian health care, demonstrating a preferential option for the poor. It is important that those who work in healthcare understand and remain committed to Vincentian and hospitality based health care, particularly for the indigent and marginalized. The need for Vincentian and hospitality-based health care remains relevant and necessary in contemporary society, as there remains health inequity, particularly for the poor.

Promoting Student Success: Bilingual Education Best Practices And Research Flaws, Lillian Fassero

Senior Honors Theses

This paper first determines the benefits which bilingual education offers and then compares transitional, dual-language, and heritage language maintenance programs. After exploring the outcomes, contexts, and practical implications of the various bilingual programs, this paper explores the oversight in most bilingual studies, which assess students’ syntax and semantics while neglecting their understanding of pragmatics and discourse structures (Maxwell-Reid, 2011). Incorporating information from recent studies which question traditional understandings of bilingualism and argue that biliteracy requires more than grammatical and vocabulary instruction, this paper proposes modifications in current research strategies and suggests best practices for transitional, dual-language, and heritage maintenance programs.

Fostering Strengths: Using Testimonios To Identify Community Cultural Wealth In Foster Youth, Katherine Mullin

Master's Projects and Capstones

Foster youth voices have been silenced in schools, work environments, and many other settings.There is very little research around what works well for foster youth and what their assets are. Foster youth have many skills and resources that they use to navigate systems that continually marginalize them. But these are often ignored or overlooked. This project uses youth voices through Testimonios and Community Cultural Wealth to create a training for group home staff.

Learning To Heal: The Impact Of A Restorative Justice Program On Crime Victims, Jacquelyn P. Poplawsky

Theses & Dissertations

In the United States, someone is murdered, raped, robbed, or assaulted every 26 seconds (Federal Bureau of Investigation, 2015). Violent victimization is a uniquely disorienting dilemma because it is the result of harm from another human being. Extensive research has shown that crime victims’ complex emotional and psychological needs are not adequately fulfilled by the dominant retributive system of justice. The other paradigm of justice that has received extensive consideration from theorists and scholars, with research that now covers multiple continents and 3 decades, is restorative justice.

Restorative justice theory and practice have become effective complementary, and at times, alternative …

Homelessness Among Women Veterans: A Systematic Review Of The Risk Factors, Staceyann Graham

Social Work Theses - Archive

Background: As more women joined the armed forces the population of women veterans inevitably increased and with it so did the rates of women veteran homelessness. Women veterans are a unique group of women who also possess protective factors from homelessness, yet are 3 to 4 times likely to become homeless than non-veteran women. The purpose of this systematic review is to glean from other articles and studies what the risk factors for women veteran homelessness are. Method: A systematic review of 7 articles were conducted using the PRISMA method as a guideline for selecting the articles. Results: 5 articles …

Interviews And Conversations About Leaving Services (Icals): A Review Of Resources After Tanf, Maria C. Cole

Social Work Theses - Archive

The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) policy is designed to protect the nation’s most vulnerable families from severe hardship. The policy encourages moving people from “welfare to work” and improving child welfare. TANF, though, has remained largely unchanged since its adoption in 1996 despite persistent poverty nationwide and worsening poverty in the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area. Consequently, TANF has not effectively responded to poverty nor has it improved child welfare. The researcher conducted a comprehensive literature review which identified employment barriers found to affect families leaving TANF services. Several studies illuminated that mental or behavioral health, substance abuse, race …

Enhancing Paternal Engagement In A Coparenting Paradigm, Marsha Kline Pruett, Kyle D. Pruett, Carolyn P. Cowan, Philip A. Cowan

School for Social Work: Faculty Publications

Despite the benefits for children and families of fathers who are involved positively with their children, most parenting programs in the United States and globally focus on and collect evaluation data from mothers almost exclusively. Engaging fathers is still viewed as a complex endeavor that is only somewhat successful. In this article, we summarize what is known about engaging fathers in parenting programs, then argue that programs are most effective when coparenting is the focus early in family formation. We rely on two decades of the Supporting Father Involvement program as an example of an initiative that has been effective …

Perceptions Of Macro Social Work Education: An Exploratory Study Of Educators And Practitioners, Katherine Hill, Christina L. Erickson, Linda P. Donaldson, Sondra J. Fogel, Sarah M. Ferguson

Social Work Faculty Publications

Social work graduate education is responsive to and reflective of larger environmental forces, including economic and job market trends, regulations by diverse organizations, and student interests. A national online survey of macro social work educators (n=208) and macro social work practitioners (n=383) explored their perceptions of the intersections between these forces and graduate social work education. Findings indicate that while there remains a consistent level of support for and inclusion of macro social work within MSW programs from both groups, macro practitioners identified a concurrent experience of negative perceptions, attitudes, and experiences toward macro social work education while in their …

Preschoolers And Pandas Making Friends: A Journey About Healing From Brain Injury, Barbara Anne Doucette

Museum Studies Projects

Preschoolers that have obtained Non-Accidental Injury (NAI) from familial child abuse are in need of having a unique place for neurorehabilitation in correlation with traditional therapies. My thesis project suggests adding an exhibit annex to an existing giant panda exhibit that will give preschoolers an opportunity to help develop new neuropathways when exposed to mediation and creative activities. Meditation and creative activities are being examined by neuroscientists as an aid in neuroplasticity after brain injury. This thesis reviews the neurotypical preschooler’s milestones and the playful means by which they are achieved. Conjoining the contemporary museums’ and zoological gardens’ outreach to …

Monterey County Behavioral Health - "Transition To Integrated Care", Jose Francisco Barajas Chavez

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

The rate of clients discharging from acute mental health services in Monterey County is low. According to Monterey County Behavioral Health Services Act (2017), “the demand for services has greatly increased with the ACCESS programs serving 90% more individuals in the past two years [2015-2016], and a 168% increase in the last 5 years [2011-2016].” The increase in demand for services has impacted staff psychiatrist and social workers in providing quality treatment services.

The Monterey County Behavioral Health Bureau (MCBH), a division of Monterey County Health Department, has identified clients who’ve shown improvement in their mental health recovery and are …

San Benito County Parents Learning About Drugs And Alcohol In Spanish, Nancy Zermeno

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

Hispanic or Latino non-speaking English Parents are not familiarized with the different types of drugs in the community. Various studies have indicated that San Benito County teenager that suffer from drug and alcohol are at-risk of being truant, dropping school, or becoming criminals. This project aimed to address a Drug prevention intervention class in Spanish to target the population of non-speaking English parents. The majority of non-speaking English parents are not familiarized with the culture or laws in the United States. The project was implemented by the Juvenile Division of San Benito County Probation Department in collaboration with Youth Alliance. …

Solution Focused Creativity In Social Work, Emilie R. Kenneally

Creativity and Change Leadership Graduate Student Master's Projects

Solution Focused Brief Therapy is a well-known method of therapy used by many clinicians and social workers. There are similarities between this therapy and the creative problem solving process. Creating a workbook that adapts creative problem solving tools to include solution focused language and concepts can make social workers’ jobs easier and also help them work more effectively. When social workers are able to do their jobs in a more creative way, they will have less stress and create better outcomes for their clients. Using a framework that already exists (i.e. Solution Focused Brief Therapy) and comparing it to creative …

The Visiting Nurses Association And Hospice Connection Program Binder Update: A Need For Current Community Resources, Melina Correa

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

Residents in Monterey and San Benito county need up-to-date information on resources and services in their communities to enhance their quality of life. In partnership with the Central Coast Visiting Nurses Association and Hospice, the Connection Program has helped to implement an update of their 2014 Connection Program Resource Binder to address this need. The 2017 Connection Program Resource Binder is a research and needs-based project that will supply staff members with information and applications necessary to help their patients and, in turn, for the community to become more aware of what resources are available to them. The project was …

Foster The Future, Gabriela Zuno

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

Thousands of foster children are moving on to becoming adults without the needed life skills education to be successful in life. Chamberlain’s Children Center is a non-profit organization that provides services and housing for foster children. The administration department is the division in the organization that is implementing the life skills course for the teen girls. The project is an educational workshop series addressed to meet the need of daily living skills education for the future success of foster youth. The course consisted of weekly two-and-a-half-hour lessons prepared by community professionals and volunteers for a total of six weeks during …

Functional Isolation: Understanding Isolation In Trafficking Survivors, Liz Mahan

Student Theses

This study examined how traffickers used different elements of isolation and how such tactics may have contributed to the traffickers’ success in maintaining control over the victim. I examined in-depth narratives from 14 women between the ages of 20-53, primarily immigrants, who were recruited from an agency serving victims of sex trafficking in a large metropolitan city. The tactics used by traffickers varied and included not only the commonly defined structural isolation in which victims are restricted physically and socially, but also included a shrinking of safe social space and an elimination of privacy and social support. The latter is …

Build Exito: A Multi-Level Intervention To Support Diversity In Health-Focused Research, Dawn M. Richardson, Thomas E. Keller, De’ Sha S. Wolf, Adrienne Zell, Cynthia Morris, Carlos J. Crespo

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

Background and purpose: As part of the NIH BUILD initiative to diversify the scientific workforce, the EXITO project is a large multi-institutional effort to provide comprehensive support and training for undergraduates from traditionally underrepresented student populations who aspire to health-related research careers. Portland State University, a major public urban university that prioritizes student access and opportunity, and Oregon Health & Science University, a research-intensive academic health center, lead the EXITO network comprised of eleven 2-year and 4-year institutions of higher education spanning Oregon, Washington, Alaska, Hawaii, Guam, American Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands. The EXITO project aims for …

Addressing Social Issues Affecting Vulnerable Populations In San Benito County Through Community Events, Lucila Alvarez

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

In San Benito County there is a high concentration of Triqui community members. They originate from the state of Oaxaca in Mexico and flee their homeland due to political prosecution and violence. Many times, Triqui community members arrive in the United States speaking and understanding only their native Triqui language. Their customs and traditions clash with those of the United States and due to fear they isolate themselves and do not seek any community services. Community Solutions addressed these issues by organizing the first ever Indigenous Cultures Day in Hollister, CA on May 21, 2017. The event consisted of a …

Interns Matter: Maximizing Integration Of Interns Into Community Agencies, Valerie Garcia

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

Hope Services is a non-profit agency serving individuals with developmental disabilities in six counties. Over the years, there have been many agencies that have formed connections with Hope Services. One of these collaborative partnerships has been with CSU Monterey Bay’s (CSUMB) integration of interns through their field placement program. However, recently former Hope Services South District Manager, Greg Dinsmore, witnessed a lack of utilization and integration of interns across all Hope Services agencies. Through firsthand experience as a mentor, he witnessed the benefits of utilizing interns and saw the need for further advocacy and support for the integration of interns …

An Exploration Of Dementia Friendly Communities From The Perspective Of Persons Living With Dementia, Catherine Hebert

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The growing global prevalence of dementia coupled with a shift in public perception from a hopeless disease to the possibility of living well with dementia has led to the formation of dementia friendly communities (DFC). DFCs are a new phenomenon in the United States, with a gap in knowledge on input from people living with dementia (PLWD). This study investigated DFCs from the perspective of PLWD in Western North Carolina, with the following research questions:

1. How are interactions and relationships experienced by persons living with dementia in the community?
2. How is community engagement experienced by PLWD?
3. To what extent and …

Undergraduate African American Males’ Narratives On The Personal Factors Influencing Retention In The Social Sciences, Dorrance Kennedy, Linda Wilson-Jones

Journal of Research Initiatives

The purpose of this study was to explore the perceptions of undergraduate African American social science majors on the personal factors that influenced their retention in higher education. This was a qualitative study with 15 African American males who were enrolled in three universities in the University of North Carolina system. The data were collected using face-to-face interviews of approximately 45 minutes duration that took place on two separate occasions. They appeared eager to discuss their experiences as freshmen and the factors that influenced them to return to the university a second year. The main findings from this study were …

“If I Don’T Take Care Of Myself, I Can’T Take Care Of Them:” Exploring Caregiving Grandmothers’ Experiences Of A 9-Session Self-Care Curriculum, Jacquelyn J. Lee Phd, Lcsw, Stacey R. Kolomer Phd

GrandFamilies: The Contemporary Journal of Research, Practice and Policy

Abstract

The predominance of research on custodial grandparent caregiving focuses on prevalence, risk factors, and challenges; less attention has been paid to the development of interventions to support this population. In response to a decrease in length of service provision at a local agency, a 9-session self-care curriculum was designed to focus on caregiver health through the empowering, multi-dimensional practice of self-care. The curriculum uses a mind-body approach and was integrated into a pre-existing 9-month support program for grandparents raising grandchildren. Using a basic, interpretive qualitative design, the purpose of this study was to explore how grandparent caregivers: 1) understand …