Social Work Commons^™

Tradition And Transition: American Orthodox Jewish Women Preparing And Becoming Sexually Active Within Marriage, Shoshannah D. Frydman

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The purpose of this project is to expand knowledge about the lived experience of married Orthodox Jewish women’s preparation and transition into sexual activity in marriage. When Orthodox women get married, they are undergoing a significant shift, for many, this is their first experience having a sexual relationship. In addition to the prohibition of premarital sexual behavior, the Orthodox Jewish community has a number of rituals, laws, and practices specifically related to menstruation and sexual relations within marriage. These laws, taharat hamishpacha, or family purity, are a set of laws and practices that regulate sex within marriage for both …

Student Perspectives On Meaningful Adult Relationships In A Transfer School, Susan E. Collins

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

High school models that provide alternative ways for students who are overage and under-credited and have dropped out or disengaged from school to re-engage and graduate with a high school diploma have grown in New York City in the past ten years. The school model in this study conceives “Building Healthy Relationships” as one of five essential elements of the model and central to the re-engagement and success of students in school. Students in this model are paired with an advocate counselor who supports them while in school and towards graduation from high school. In this study, I interviewed thirteen …

Tax Abatement In Saint Louis: Reforms Could Foster Equitable Development, Claire Dewind, Jennifer Dickey, Ellen O'Neill, Molly W. Metzger

Center for Social Development Research

Across the United States, municipal governments use tax abatement in various ways to incentivize development and revitalize urban areas. In Saint Louis, historical housing trends related to deindustrialization, redlining, and “white flight” led to the City’s depopulation, creating the current need to incentivize development. However, in certain neighborhoods, development now occurs without tax abatement, and some homeowners and developers receive tax abatement despite being able to afford paying taxes. This points to a need to understand where and when tax abatement is necessary, and whether it is being used effectively. In this brief, we ask the following questions: (1) Does …

Challenges And Opportunities For Applying Group Work Principles To Enhance Online Learning In Social Work, Marcia B. Cohen, Shirley Simon, Donna Mclaughlin, Barbara Muskat, Mary White

Social Work: School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Other Works

The recent increase in social work courses being offered on line as well as fully online social work programs raises challenges for social work educators. The literature suggests that group work principles can serve as a foundation for effective online education. This chapter will examine the obstacles and opportunities for using group work principles to advance learning in online education. Three examples of fully online social work courses will be discussed m order to highlight these issues. The potential role of group work educators as leaders in facilitating effective online learning will be explored.

Persistence In Higher Education: A Qualitative Study Of Student Perceptions, Beliefs, Outlook And Context In Qatar, Batoul Khalifa, Ramzi Nasser, Atmane Ikhlef, Janet S. Walker, Said Amali

Regional Research Institute for Human Services

This study attempts to address the challenges of students in higher education in Qatar. The study draws on student perceptions, beliefs, outlook, and context; we approach the study through grounded means by posing leading interview questions with the aim of exploring and probing. The approach is grounded in that no specific theory drives the questions; rather, the responses from the interview often require interpretation through theory to justify the findings. The sample comprised 35 students who were interviewed through probing and questioning techniques. The questions led to converging responses, which were segregated into themes. A large majority of students felt …

A Quantitative Study Of Animal-Assisted Interventions With Youth Who Have Experienced Maltreatment, Meghan Elizabeth Anderson

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Youth who have experienced maltreatment (abuse, neglect, exposure to violence) typically exhibit worse life outcomes (lower graduation rates, higher incident of substance use, unplanned pregnancies, etc.). Effective therapeutic interventions are important to combat these negative effects. Animal Assisted Intervention (AAI) is a popular and growing field. Anecdotal evidence abounds on the efficacy of AAI, however, there is a lack of quantitative and qualitative research and evidence-backed models of treatment particularly with youth. This study sought to increase the amount of quantitative evidence on AAI by specifically focusing on evaluating the Power Tools for Living Equine Assisted Psychotherapy (EAP) model with …

Utilization Of Mental Health Services Among Hispanics, Sally Alejandra Soto

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

ABSTRACT

In the United States, Hispanics have the same prevalence of mental illness as any other group however researchers have found that they are less likely to seek mental health services. This population’s lack of mental health utilization is due to various barriers hindering the population’s need for help, a substantial for social work practitioners. To better understand the factors that lead up to that, the current study explored and identified perceptions toward seeking and receiving mental health services among Hispanic members. Using a qualitative data collection, ten participants were interviewed to elicit their perceptions about mental health services ranging …

Areas Of Conflict, Coping, And Service Needs Among Co-Parenting Persons In San Bernardino County, Sophia Luisa Hernandez

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

This study was conducted in San Bernardino County, California. Participants completed a questionnaire regarding conflicts that arise between co-parents, levels of stress from conflicts, how parts negotiate, cooperate, collaborate and communicate and the types of coping skills that participants use when stressed. The purpose of this study was to examine conflicts between parents and caregivers who share the custody of their children with another parent or caregiver. This study also assessed coping skills and co-parenting resources that are available in San Bernardino County. Twenty-two participants completed the study, 19 were female and 3 were male. Most of the participants were …

North Douglas County Community Needs Health Assessment (Phase 1), Callie H. Lambarth, Diane Reid, Beth L. Green

Early Childhood

Beginning in February 2016, the North Douglas County (NDC) communities of Drain, Elkton, and Yoncalla, Oregon engaged in a Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) planning process, focusing on children ages birth-to-8 and their families. The purpose of this process was to explore, understand, and integrate linkages between early learning and young child and family health; identify health-related resources currently available and accessible to NDC families; and prioritize health areas of interest to be explored during the CHNA.

The North Douglas County CHNA builds on community partnerships already established in the region through initiatives that aim to coordinate and align early …

Ethical Dilemmas In Clinical Social Work Practice : How Are Social Workers Affected And How Do We Respond?, Jennifer S, Graves

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This mixed-methods exploratory research was undertaken to gain insight into how social workers perceive, are affected by, and respond to situations in which they are not able to enact social work ethics, or are asked to facilitate perceived injustice because of workplace restrictions. Seventy-four social workers responded to my online mixed methods survey. In quantitative responses, Likert scaled responses rated participants’ frequency and level of distress when encountering ethical dilemmas involving structural racism, classism, cultural insensitivity, sexism, heterosexism, protocols prioritizing funding over client care, protocols interfering with the treatment relationship, and protocols interfering with client self-determination. Participants also rated their …

Sensory Processing Disorder, Invalidating Childhood Environments, And Mental Health Outcomes In Adulthood, Emma Ross

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This study examined the interpersonal and mental health outcomes of children with sensory processing difficulties or Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD). SPD occurs when the ways in which we interpret sensory input in over-sensitive or under-sensitive ways. This can create a variety of difficulties, including impairment in the areas of touch, taste/smell, auditory, visual, proprioceptor, vestibular, and activity level/emotional reactivity. Previous studies have focused on the biological underpinnings of SPD, however few have looked at the interpersonal relationships of children with sensory processing difficulties as well as the mental health outcomes as those children mature into adults.

Methods:

This mixed methods …

Mixed-Income Developments, Mark L. Joseph, Miyoung Yoon

Faculty Scholarship

A mixed-income development can be defined as a complex with housing and other amenities such as parks, schools and community centers that has the mixing of income groups as a fundamental part of its financial and operating plan. Mixed-income development is a housing policy that has been implemented in the U.S. and around the world to deconcentrate poverty, particularly in public housing developments. Mixed-income development engages private real estate developers to produce public housing and thus exemplifies the shift in the 1990s to a neoliberal approach to urban development and other social services. Mixed-income development has proven to be an …

Current And Prospective Foster Parents’ Perceptions Of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, And Transgender Foster Youth, Shay B. Alvarez, Stephanie K. Funston

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to gain insight into foster parents’ perceptions of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) foster youth through a self-administered survey in an attempt to provide better care for these children. The pool of participants were varied in most areas including age, gender, ethnicity, education levels, and religiosity. However, the majority was heterosexual and had less than 2 years of experience fostering. The results showed no particular demographics, trainings, or level of experience that contribute to more or less acceptance or preparedness. This may be due to response bias, however, it is more likely due …

Predictors Of Gang Affiliation Among Adolescents: Implications For Social Work Students, Caroline G. Mcloughlin

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine what current Master of Social Worker Students in their advanced year know about adolescent gang affiliation, including statistics, predictive factors, and possible interventions. Adolescent gang involvement is a very serious issue that historically has had very problematic effects on society, as well as serious and troublesome effects on the life course of the individual. Despite the knowledge that has been gained in recent years regarding predictive factors of adolescent gang involvement, many intervention programs designed to address this issue are still rarely effective. Despite the fact that there are conflicting findings in …

Predictors Of Gang Affiliation Among Adolescents: Implications For Social Work Students, Caroline George Mcloughlin

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine what current Master of Social Worker Students in their advanced year know about adolescent gang affiliation, including statistics, predictive factors, and possible interventions. Adolescent gang involvement is a very serious issue that historically has had very problematic effects on society, as well as serious and troublesome effects on the life course of the individual. Despite the knowledge that has been gained in recent years regarding predictive factors of adolescent gang involvement, many intervention programs designed to address this issue are still rarely effective. Despite the fact that there are conflicting findings in …

Factors That Contribute To Foster Parent Turnover, Tricia M. Favela, Cristina Velazquez

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Foster parents play a key role in providing care to children that have been removed from their families. The purpose of this quantitative study was to identify factors that contribute to foster parent turnover. A self-administered survey included 6 questions in each section of the following sections; interaction with agency staff, communication, and foster parent training. The study’s findings indicated that over 36% of the study’s participants reported that they were hesitant to discuss concerns with agency workers, and almost 45% were unsure of or did not believe that their worker was open and honest in providing relevant background information …

Perceived Life Satisfaction Among Gay Males: The Coming-Out Process, Kimberly D. Carter

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

This research project was a mixed method of both a quantitative and qualitative design to examine the perception of 38 gay male’s life satisfaction post coming out. In the past few years, laws affecting the gay community have been at the forefront of policies and debates, given all communities an insight into the specific challenges that are endured. As the gay community starts to openly live their lives as a gay man, there has been a need to accept and understand not only the challenges, but to give acceptance.

Additionally, this project sought out to determine if the gay community …

Beliefs About Respite Among Caregivers, Guero Nunez

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The emphasis of this research was to evaluate the beliefs about respite among caregivers of the clients associated with Inland Caregiver Resource Center. The caregivers of the elderly and those who suffer from Alzheimer’s and dementia, or suffer from traumatic brain injury that was organic in nature were the population of interest. These caregivers were unpaid persons who help to keep those with such conditions at home as long as possible. This study used an exploratory pilot survey instrument to assess the perception of benefit of respite used as seen from the view of the caregiver. The primary theory used …

Do Holistic Practices As An Adjunct To Traditional Psychotherapy Affect Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (Gad-7) Scores?, Samantha Suyon Woo

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

ABSTRACT

This study examined the effect of holistic practices on anxiety. The study used a pre-experimental design and measured any differences in outcomes in Generalized Anxiety Disorder clients as measured by General Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) between the two following groups: 1) the experimental group who received holistic services in addition to traditional treatment such as psychotherapy and/or medication as compared to 2) the control group who received psychotherapy and/or medication alone. Pretest of GAD-7 at intake and post-tests at about 4 months into treatment were measured along with a holistic practice survey and analyzed post-hoc through SPSS data analysis. This …

Perceptions Of Mental Health Amongst Pakistani-Americans, Arifa K. Ashraf

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Out of 14.4% of Asian Americans in the state of California, and 5.4% in the United States, Pakistani-Americans are one sub-group, out of ten. Pakistani- Americans are either born in, or have familial ties back to the country of Pakistan. This research emphasizes on the lack of knowledge or awareness of mental health, and more importantly, the perceptions of mental health amongst Pakistani-Americans. The topic of mental illness within the Pakistani community is almost taboo and never spoken about with individuals outside of the family. With Islamic laws having a huge a huge influence on the Pakistani culture, people tend …