Social Work Commons^™

“I See You Have Been Convicted Of A Felony; Can You Tell Me About That?” Workforce Development Challenges For Restorative Citizens Seeking Employment, Terrance Hinton

Journal of Prison Education and Reentry (2014-2023)

Incarceration has been an issue nationwide in the United States for decades due to policies from the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s that lead to mass increases in incarceration. In the past decade, several states have overhauled their criminal sentencing and prison structure to lower prison populations. This has resulted in the release of thousands of restorative citizens and has expanded the need for reentry services. Released individuals who have been incarcerated face a number of social, political, and economic barriers that prevent them from re-entering society successfully. The inability to obtain employment is often cited as one of the most …

Cumulative Socio-Contextual Risk And Child Abuse Potential In Parents Of Young Children: Can Social Support Buffer The Impact?, Moira R. Riley, Lucy Mcgoron, Laura V. Scaramella

Children, Family & Elder Services Publications

Child abuse potential refers to characteristics and practices closely linked to child abuse. Past investigations document that the number of risk factors parents experience is a correlate of child abuse potential. The purpose of this investigation was to test a model with multiple domains of risk including cumulative socio-contextual risk, parenting locus of control, children’s externalizing behavior problems, social support, and child abuse potential. Using self-report data from eighty-seven mothers of children between the ages of 1–5 years old, bivariate correlations and linear regression analyses revealed that cumulative socio-contextual risk was positively associated with child abuse potential and that this …

Human Behavior And The Social Environment: Fall 2020 Syllabus, Rigaud Joseph

Social Work Faculty Publications

Syllabus for graduate course on Human Behavior and the Social Environment. (Critical examination and application of biological, psychological, and social aspects of human development from infancy through old age. Major theories, risk and protective factors.)

Human Behavior And The Social Environment: Fall 2020 Syllabus, Rigaud Joseph

Q2S Enhancing Pedagogy

Syllabus for graduate course on Human Behavior and the Social Environment. (Critical examination and application of biological, psychological, and social aspects of human development from infancy through old age. Major theories, risk and protective factors.)

Social Work Practice (Sw4001) Syllabus, Michael Edwards

Q2S Enhancing Pedagogy

This syllabus is the prototype for SW 4001 a revitalized generalist micro social work course that will first be taught in the semester system. The format is a departure from the quarter system format and the process of development involved faculty within the BASW program.

Sw 6042 Human Behavior And The Social Environment - Critical Topics (Prototype Semester Syllabus), Herb Shon

Q2S Enhancing Pedagogy

This syllabus is the prototype for SW 6042, "Human Behavior and the Social Environment - Critical Topics" social work graduate course that will be taught in the semester system. The format is a departure from the quarter system format and the process of development involved all faculty who teach Human Behavior and the Social Environment graduate courses.

Q2s Macro Social Work (Sw 6062) Syllabus, Nicole Arkadie

Q2S Enhancing Pedagogy

This syllabus is the prototype for SW 6062 a revitalized generalist macro social work course that will first be taught in the semester system. The format is a departure from the quarter system format and the process of development involved all faculty.

Advanced Generalist Micro Practice I Syllabus, Msw Program, Carolyn Mcallister

Q2S Enhancing Pedagogy

This syllabus updates the first in the Advanced Generalist Micro (Individuals, Families, and Groups) Practice Course for the MSW Program. The course structure was changed, the course assignments adjusted, and the readings for the class updated.

Semester Syllabus Template Sw 6021 May 2020, Alicia Harris

Q2S Enhancing Pedagogy

This syllabus is the prototype for SW 6021, a revitalized generalist micro social work course that will first be taught in the semester system. The format is a departure from the quarter system format and the process of development involved all faculty.

Healing, Srinivasan Ragothaman

Creative Work

This is a poem reflecting on the current human conditions in the USA, India-China conflict, racism, and other human conflicts. It calls for healing and asks every one to follow the golden rule: treat others as you want them to treat you!

Invisible Poverty: Awareness, Attitudes, And Action, Joseph W. Johnson

Doctor of Ministry Theses

In small-town rural America, we do not tend to see poverty. Poverty is relatively invisible, especially among our youth and children. Invisible Poverty explores the issues, challenges, stereotypes, and causes of small-town rural poverty while presenting possible solutions. Drawing from Alvin Luedke, Craig Van Gelder, Alan Roxburgh, Patrick Keifert, Cynthia Duncan, and Shannon Jung, Invisible Poverty presents a missional theology of accompaniment seeking justice and avoiding shame. In an effort to understand the complexity of rural poverty, Invisible Poverty asks; How might Action Research interventions affect awareness, attitudes, and actions of the congregation concerning the issues of poverty?

Social Justice Education Framework: Examination Of An Integrated Model For Teaching And Evaluating Social Justice Education Through Historical Injustices, Amber D. Bell

Title III Professional Development Reports

Social justice continues to be emphasized within the social work profession as a central principle and value, often identified as the professional value that separates it from other human service professions. As varied as definitions of social justice are, so are approaches to effectively teaching about social justice within social work education across the curriculum (practice, research, HBSE, and policy). Equally absent are evidence based approaches to teaching social justice.In recent years, historical injustice and our societal lack of knowledge regarding it has been examined. Numerous studies have confirmed that the K-12 education system is grossly negligent in providing students …

Deborah Olsen Public Service Essay, Sierra Miller

Examples of Student Work

In this essay, Sierra Miller reflects on her summer spent interning with Awaken, a faith-based non-profit organization in Reno, Nevada whose mission is to increase awareness and education surrounding the issue of commercial sexual exploitation and to provide housing and restoration for its victims.

Poverty In The United States: An Analysis Of Its Measurement And The Long-Term Social And Economic Costs, Abby Magnus

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the role of poverty in the United States and how it has impacted social and economic systems. It explores how U.S. poverty measurements developed in the 1960s may not be accurately measuring poverty now, and the ways in which these measures could be improved upon. This work also reviews literature on health and educational inequities stemming from socioeconomic class, and the role these play in long-term economic mobility. Finally, it analyzes how larger social institutions like mass incarceration and capitalism have developed around poverty, and the role they play in maintaining its prevalence today. This thesis finds …

Is There A Difference Between Democrat And Republican States In The Percentage Of Male High School Students Who Carry Weapons On School Property?, Stephen Church, Wayne L. Davis

Lincoln Memorial University Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences

Compared to other industrialized countries, America is a relatively violent country. The impact of violent crime on America’s youth is alarming and there is no clear solution. School violence is a serious problem that threatens American youth, and politicians are concerned about the high number of violent crimes committed by teens. However, Democrats and Republicans have very different policy platforms on dealing with violent crimes. On the one hand, Republicans support Stand-Your-Ground laws and believe that individuals have a right to protect themselves. On the other hand, Democrats oppose Stand-Your-Ground laws and believe the government is the best source for …

Sw 4011 Generalist Field (Basw Syllabus), Herb Shon

Q2S Enhancing Pedagogy

This syllabus is the prototype for SW 4011 & SW 4012, revitalized generalist field social work courses that will first be taught in the semester system. The format is a departure from the quarter system format and the process of development involved all faculty.

Review Of Serving The Amish: A Cultural Guide For Professionals By James A. Cates, Carol A. Leibiger

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

A Call To Change: Rebuilding Relationships And Addressing Injustice, Brittany Pickard, Kailee Jenness, Lexi Van Surksum, Tori Conner

Student Projects

The goal of this community project was to initiate conversation and bring awareness to the gap between the local Orange City Police Department and persons of color. Through research, the organizers recognized a need for relationship rebuilding in Orange City, Iowa, and strived to do this through the means of community participation. The organizers have collected stories from community members and worked to represent individuals who have been underrepresented. Through this process, the organizers created a petition to provide tangible proof for the police department that members within the community strive to rebuild relationships and address racial injustice.

Review Of The Book Homesteading The Plains: Toward A New History, Peter A. Kindle

Contemporary Rural Social Work Journal

Review of the book Homesteading the Plains: Toward a New History

Towards A Social Justice Agenda: Intimate Partner Violence Among Rural, African American Women, Shani Collins Woods

Contemporary Rural Social Work Journal

The social work profession is rooted in community-based work that seeks to eradicate social injustice everywhere. Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a global phenomenon which impacts women from diverse socio-economic and racial/ethnic backgrounds. It involves power and control, economic abuse, and physical and sexual violence. When compared to other racial and ethnic groups, African American women are likelier to experience physical violence, rape, and homicide. Intimate partner violence among African American women is a social justice issue.

When compared to other racial and ethnic groups, rural and/or low-income African American women are likelier to experience IPV. They are also likelier …

Holistic Approach To Addressing Community Needs In Rural Communities, Ebony L. Hall Lang, Stephanie J. Hamm, Nathalie P. Jones

Contemporary Rural Social Work Journal

The purpose of this study was to assess health of a rural Texas community in efforts to better understand and develop a plan of action for developing community intervention for increasing availability of human resources. Researchers asked various questions to understand the availability and accessibility of resources within a rural community using a community needs assessment approach. Participants were recruited by the researchers directly within the community using purposive and snowball sampling techniques. The sample size included 361 participants in a rural community. The overall quality of life for the rural participants was slightly lower than what researchers considered to …

Mental Health Advocacy: Building An Interdisciplinary Program For Agriculture Professionals, Abby E. Blankenship, Erica E. Nason, Olivia Hayes, Sebastian Bliss

Contemporary Rural Social Work Journal

The suicide rate among agriculturalists is 3.5 times higher than the general population. A number of external factors related to the farming and veterinary work put individuals in agricultural populations at risk for poor mental health outcomes, including economic variables (e.g. tariffs, market prices), environmental factors affecting yield (e.g. drought, pests), and exposure to difficult or traumatic life events (e.g., mistreatment of animals, loss of crop). Rural values including self-reliance, work orientation, and individualism combined with logistical and systemic barriers to competent behavioral health care further increase risk. Project GROW (Generating Resilience in Our Workforce) is a multifaceted full semester …

“The Gates Are Closed Here”: A Mixed Methods Study Examining The Lived Experiences Of Black South African Township Youth, Jason St. Mary

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

South African Black township youth encounter immense risks within their environment, with little opportunity for perceived success. The Langa Township, the oldest established segregated community in Cape Town, South Africa, is enveloped in massive unemployment rates, substantial poverty, and violent gangsterism. Extensive literature exists in North America on the relationship between positive youth development (PYD) and successful outcomes for young individuals, although there is limited research examining the framework in an international context. Due to historical oppression forced on South African youth, postcolonial theory provides a critical foundational component to PYD in the study. This mixed methods study examined the …

Social Work, Social Justice, And The Causes To Which We Are Called: Attitudes, Ally Behavior, And Activism, Brittanie Atteberry Ash

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

As a profession, social work has codified within its ethical guidance and educational policies a commitment to social justice. While social justice is enumerated in several guiding documents, social work continues to lack consensus on both the meaning and merit of social justice (Abramovitz, 1993; Funge, 2011; Hong & Hodge, 2009; Specht & Courtney, 1995; Van Soest & Garcia, 2003). Due to the lack of agreement within the profession about the centrality and meaning of social justice, many educational practices, attitudes, and actions of those working within the profession may not align with socially just ideals that are codified in …

Staying Safe In A Tornado: A Qualitative Inquiry Into Public Knowledge, Access, And Response To Tornado Warnings, Jayme E. Walters, Lisa Reyes Mason, Kelsey N. Ellis

Sociology, Social Work and Anthropology Faculty Publications

Tornadoes in the southeastern United States continue to cause substantial injury, death, and destruction. The present study seeks to 1) understand inadequate warning access, less understanding, and/or less likelihood of responding to tornado warnings; 2) examine public attitudes about NWS communications; and 3) explore the perceptions of NWS personnel regarding public response to tornado warnings, factors that might influence response, and how their perceptions impact their communication. Participants include a purposive sample of NWS forecasters in Tennessee (n = 11) and residents (n = 45) who were identified as having low access to, low knowledge of, or an unsafe response …

Stinky Water And Other Ills: Environmental Justice For Rural Services, Michael R. Daley

Contemporary Rural Social Work Journal

Environmental justice concerns affect rural communities and the people who are members of them. Social workers’ long-standing involvement in improving living conditions of the people and communities with whom they work make environmental justice an important responsibility. Yet there is a rural-urban divide on topics related to the environment, and rural and urban communities tend to establish different environmental priorities. Rural communities tend to prioritize local conditions and solutions over global and societal ones. Rural people distrust national policies especially those established by governmental as not being responsive to their interest. Some common environmental rural problems are identified. Environmental justice …

Review Of The Book Rural Poverty In The United States, Peter A. Kindle

Contemporary Rural Social Work Journal

Review of the book Rural Poverty in the United States

Dress Like Me: An Exploration Of Rural Graduate Social Work Attire, Jody Long, Jocelyn Martin, Audra Pierce, Sean Creech, Stephen Guffey

Contemporary Rural Social Work Journal

During graduate school internship training, some students wear more formal attire and others casual attire. This study’s purpose was to explore rural areas clients’ preference for graduate social work interns’ attire. Clients from internship sites located in a rural southern location were asked their attire preferences based on comfort and confidence levels, degree of warmth, returning appointments, and during a crisis. One hundred and twenty-six subjects participated in the study and responded that casual dress was preferred in terms of specific impressions. The results of the study were to build rapport; graduate social work interns should consider their clientele when …

Supports For Migrant Farmworkers: Tensions In (In)Access And (In)Action, Susana Caxaj, Amy Cohen, Sarah Marsden

Health and Rehabilitation Sciences Publications

Purpose: This study examined the role of support actors in promoting or hindering access to migrant agricultural workers' (MAWs) needs, and, to determine the factors that influence adequate support for this population.
Methodology: Employing a Situational Analysis methodology, we carried out focus groups and interviews with 35 support actors complimented by a community scan (n=28) with public-facing support persons and a community consultation with migrant agricultural workers (MAWs).
Findings: Two major themes were revealed: (In)access and (In)action, and; Blurred Lines in Service Provision. The first illustrated how support actors could both reinforce or challenge barriers for this population through tensions …

Safe Injection Sites: Existing Evidence And Implications For Massachusetts

The Graduate Review

No abstract provided.