Social Work Commons^™

Brotherhood: Black Male Perception On The Impact Of Mentorship, Berinda Hollis-Sapp

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

During the adolescent stage of development, identity is a foundational aspect of one’s development, and its absence leads to a negative outcome, characterized by role confusion. Positive interventions are necessary to develop a strong sense of self. The purpose of this generic qualitative project was to explore the perspectives of black males and the impact of mentorship on their identity during adolescence. The theoretical framework chosen for this study was Erikson’s identity versus role confusion, the fifth stage of his psychosocial development theory. Based on this concept, the research supported the idea that adolescent Black males should participate in culturally …

Examining Social Workers’ Perceptions Of Collaborating With Police Officers To Foster Community Trust In Oklahoma, Lashonda Lanette Dale

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The current study was administered in order to examine Oklahoman social workers’ perception of collaborating with police officers to foster community trust. The goal was to determine whether the collaboration amongst social and police officer fostered trust when collaborating during services calls. The theory of planned behavior and policing (TPBP) studied by Ishoy and giving credit to Ajzen’s were the foundational theory used to support this study. Collaboration among social workers and police officers can foster community trust and benefit both parties. Such collaboration could also lead to joint training and education, as well as alleviating public fears and misconceptions. …

Finding Solutions: Meeting Essential Needs To Overcome Health And Educational Inequities Among College Students, Nicholas Freudenberg, Rashida Crutchfield

Publications and Research

Many economic, academic, and social factors influence college completion, and scholars have documented that a significant cause of students leaving school before graduation is that many do not have their basic needs for food, housing, and health care met. These barriers undermine their academic success by forcing students to reduce the time spent on their studies, work more hours, or stop out of school to support themselves or their families. Unmet essential needs jeopardize academic and life success for students in higher education across the United States and widen racial/ethnic and class inequities in college completion and health. Our review …

Experiences Of Child Welfare Workers In Ohio Serving Justice-Involved Youth Who Exhibit Aggressive Behaviors, Charnella Boykins

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Social workers with high work demands and low resources are likely to experience burnout. The specific social work practice-focused research problems that were addressed in this project were job demands, available resources, and perceptions of burnout in child welfare social workers. The focus was on burnout in social work practice from the perspectives of child welfare social workers providing services to justice-involved children with aggressive behaviors. The practice-focused research questions for this project concerned the participants’ descriptions of job demands and employer-provided resources and their feelings of burnout when working with justice-involved youth who have aggressive behaviors. Bakker and Demerouti’s …

Racial And Ethnic Differences In Experiencing Administrative Burdens In Public Benefit Programs, Stephen Roll, Mathieu Despard, Yung Chun, Kourtney Gilbert

Center for Social Development Research

Complex program rules can make it difficult to enroll and stay in public programs. These barriers are administrative burdens, the difficulties program applicants and participants face in accessing the benefits to which they are entitled under law. Drawing upon data from the Workforce Economic Inclusion and Mobility Survey of a nationally representative sample of 2,511 low-wage U.S. workers, this brief examines whether the experience of administrative burdens in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and Medicaid vary by the race and ethnicity of the individual interacting with the program.

Investigating The Relationship Between Noun Classes And Plant Folk Taxonomy In Chasu Language Of Kilimanjaro Region In Tanzania, Peter Rabson Mziray

Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences

The current study investigates the relationship between noun classes and plant folk taxonomy in Chasu (G 22). The study focuses on two objectives: the first objective is to describe the plant folk taxonomy in Chasu and the second objective is to determine the relationship between noun classes and plant folk taxonomy in Chasu. Data were collected from rural villages in Same and Mwanga districts by using free listing, field interviews (jungle-walk-and-identify), and written texts containing Chasu plant names. The findings reveal that Chasu folk taxonomy reflects different ethnobotanical categories; including a unique beginner which is mmea/mimea ‘plant(s)’, and three life …

Disability Accommodations In Field Education: Exploring The Msw Student Perspective, Alicia Dawn Melnick

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The number of students with disabilities is increasing, yet little is known about how graduate social work students navigate accommodation during field placements. This study addressed the limited understanding of Master of Social Work (MSW) students’ experiences applying Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) accommodations in practicum settings. How accommodations are managed can determine whether disabled students gain equitable access to training and the profession. The purpose of this exploratory qualitative study was to examine how MSW students with disabilities describe their experiences with applying ADA accommodations during field placements. Critical disability theory guided the study, emphasizing ableism and structural barriers …

Beyond Money: Early Asset-Building Policy Supports Mothers, Strengthens Families, And Builds Children’S Futures, Jin Huang, Michael Sherraden, Margaret Clancy, Lissa Johnson

Center for Social Development Research

To foster stronger futures for children and families in the United States, policymakers and researchers are increasingly turning their attention to early-life asset-building policies, recognizing that such policies are vital components of family well-being and support. In this brief, CSD researchers discuss evidence from the SEED for Oklahoma Kids experiment (SEED OK), which shows that Child Development Account policy shapes mothers, families, and children in profound ways. Child Development Accounts, they conclude, represent a scalable and bipartisan family-support policy, offering early and automatic foundation that reinforces parental hopes and planning while promoting both equity, through progressively structured design, and responsibility, …

The Experience Of Administrative Burdens In Snap And Medicaid: New Evidence From A Nationally Representative Survey Of Low-Wage Workers, Stephen Roll, Mathieu Despard, Yung Chun

Center for Social Development Research

When functioning correctly, the U.S. social safety net ensures that everyone can reach a basic standard of living, regardless of economic circumstances, and provides financial support to help families who have fallen on hard times due to job losses or other adverse life events. However, the programs often have complex rules around eligibility, documentation requirements, and compliance. Those features and negative experiences with program staff impose psychological costs—collectively referred to as administrative burdens—that can make enrolling and staying in the programs difficult for many families. Drawing upon data from the Workforce Economic Inclusion and Mobility Survey of a nationally …

Chinese Women’S Rising Refusal Of The Family : The Problems, The Resistance, The Post-Family And Post-Capitalist Work Imaginaries, Peier Chen

Lingnan Theses (MPhil & PhD)

A new generation of Chinese women is questioning the family by examining internal contradictions in parent-child relationships, particularly in how intimacy and care are enacted, while also challenging the legitimacy of the family institution that underpins gendered divisions of labor and hierarchies. Some of them are revealing the problems within the family and refusing patriarchal marriage and family as their daily act of resistance. Their resistance extends beyond the family, into their workplaces, where gender division and hierarchies are also at work. This emerging phenomenon presses us to theorize today’s family problems, especially concerning those related to women’s gendered oppression, …

Placement, Duration And Re-Entry Outcomes For Children In Foster Care With Disabilities, Jill Mcleigh, Alan Huang, Rong Huang, Gunjan Singh

Health Status, Outcomes, and Literacy and Healthcare Utilization

National, longitudinal studies exploring characteristics and outcomes of children in foster care (CFC) with disabilities are lacking. This study explores the prevalence, characteristics and relative risk of experiencing placement instability, staying in care for longer than 2 years, and returning to care within 3 years for CFC with a disability and by disability type.

For questions about this study or others, please email [email protected]

childrens.com/fostercare

Living Longer, Working Longer, Michele Dinman, Cal J. Halvorsen

Harvey A. Friedman Center for Aging

According to the Pew Research Center, nearly one-in-five Americans ages 65 and older (19%) were employed in 2023, a rate nearly twice that from 35 years ago. They’re also working more hours, on average, than in the recent past. In fact, more than three-in-five older workers (62%) work full time, an increase from the 47% working full time in 1987. Older workers today are also more educated and are more likely to be receiving employer-sponsored benefits, such as retirement savings plans and health insurance, than in earlier decades. While only 4% of the entire labor force was made up of …

Driving And Beyond, Michele Dinman, Nancy Morrow-Howell

Harvey A. Friedman Center for Aging

Transportation is a daily necessity in our lives, and many of us rely on driving our own automobile to get where we need to go. According to the Federal Highway Administration, in 2023 there were approximately 35 million licensed drivers aged 70 and older—fewer drivers than younger age groups and a group that drives fewer miles.

The Covid-19 Pandemic’S Effects On Older People, Michele Dinman, Morgan Van Vleck

Harvey A. Friedman Center for Aging

The COVID-19 pandemic has had wide ranging effects on people of all ages. In many respects, older people had the same experiences as younger people, but there were some aspects of the pandemic unique to the older population. While COVID-19 cases have been equal among different age groups, older people experienced a greater number of hospitalizations and deaths compared to younger people.

Living With Purpose, Michelle Dinman, Cal J. Halvorsen, Nancy Morrow-Howell

Harvey A. Friedman Center for Aging

Having purpose is good for all of us at any age. Patrick Hill, Professor of Psychological and Brain Sciences at WashU, defines purpose as the “notion that you have daily activities you find meaningful or engaging and that give you direction for your life [and] reasons to continue going.” In a major sense, purpose can be described as the why of living, instead of the how.

Selective Sharing And Social Bonding: A Qualitative Study Of Online Health Information Behaviour Among Older Adults In Shanghai, Minzhi Ye, Yan Liu

School of Social Work Faculty Publications

The health information landscape has been revolutionised by the advent of social media, significantly affecting older adults’ access to and interaction with online health information. In this study, we examine how older adults interact with health information on social media. In total, 30 participants aged 60 years and older from Shanghai were interviewed, focusing on their health information-seeking behaviour, perceptions, and subsequent actions using a semi-structured, in-depth interview approach. Furthermore, in this study, we employed grounded theory to analyze the data, and the results revealed that older adults utilise a comprehensive cognitive process for evaluating health information. Information-sharing decisions among …

Three Good Things And Family Process, Julia Prouty

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

There is a need for adaptive and affordable prevention/intervention strategies to promote happiness, health, and well-being in families. Three Good Things (3GT) is a free exercise from the field of positive psychology meant to shift an individual’s focus and perceptions towards gratitude. 3GT promotes focusing on gratitude by reflecting on what an individual is grateful for from the past day/week. Persons are encouraged to write down and share their 3GT with another individual. A mindset of gratitude is closely associated with improved happiness, health, and well-being. The exercise of reflecting on 3GT is adaptive to most individuals/families. To date, most …

Art Therapy In Social Work Practice, Laura Gebur

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

Art therapy is an emerging practice among mental health professionals looking for new ways to engage with their clients and encourage nonverbal communication. Creativity is a means of processing memories, improving relationships, and strengthening the mind-body connection across a variety of age groups and practice settings. The efficacy of art therapy has led to its integration into social work practice, benefitting a diverse range of client populations within the field. While a lack of macro-level research studies has prevented the implementation of standardized art therapy techniques in social work, clinical research trials have examined art therapy across several areas of …

Obesity Vs. Overweight Status: Differential Predictions To Poly-Substance Use In Young Adulthood, H. Isabella Lanza, Kailey Waller, Lalaine Sevillano

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

Background:

Though past research has identified links between higher weight status and substance use in young adulthood, prospective studies are scarce and mixed, the role of higher weight status on vaping is less clear, and little empirical work has examined differences between obesity vs. overweight on poly-substance use. The current study assessed the role of weight status on poly-substance use trajectories across young adulthood.Methods1,303 young adults (20.5 ± 2.3 years; 63% female; 41% Latina/o/x, 30% Asian-American/Asian, 18% Caucasian/White) from a public, urban university were surveyed at six-month intervals from spring 2021 (W1) to spring 2023 (W5). Weight status was measured …

A Descriptive Study Of Black College Students’ Perceptions Of Law Enforcement After Police Brutality, Alisia L. Collins

PANDION: The Osprey Journal of Research and Ideas

Police brutality is a social issue that has tormented the mental health of the Black community for decades. Seeing brethren battered and bruised countless times has taken an emotional toll on the relationship of the Black community with the American justice system and the officers meant to uphold it. Previous research has shown that the Black community primarily has a negative perception of law enforcement because of factors like police brutality, unjustified shootings, and legal policies within the justice system. Compounding experiences can occur for people with disabilities within the Black community. Specifically, autistic people have a higher risk of …