Social Work Commons^™

Investigating The Impact Of Sibling Foster Care On Placement Stability, Jeffrey David Waid

Dissertations and Theses

Sibling relationships are an important, yet under investigated aspect of foster care research. Despite the fact that between 65-85% of children in care have brothers and sisters, only recently have child welfare researchers begun to explore the complex and dynamic nature of sibling relationships in substitute care settings. Although cross-sectional and longitudinal studies suggest differences in placement stability and permanency outcomes for siblings placed together versus those placed separately, the conditions under which sibling relationships influence placement stability, permanency, and well-being in foster care settings remain unknown.

This dissertation investigated how family dynamics and home setting characteristics influenced the likelihood …

Targets Are Not Believed, Jan Kircher

Social and Behavioral Sciences Faculty Research

The interpersonal challenges that workplace bullying introduce are discussed in terms of reducing the reputation of the target within the workplace and the veracity of their claims. Strategies for understanding the organization and developing a successful report are presented.

Evaluation Of The Kindergarten Readiness Partnership & Innovation Grants, Beth L. Green, Lindsey Brianna Patterson, Mackenzie Morris, Lindsey Anne Cochran, Callie H. Lambarth

Early Childhood

In July 2014, Oregon’s Early Learning Division provided first-time funding for sixteen communities across the state to implement Kindergarten Readiness Partnership & Innovation (KRPI) projects. The KRPI projects share the common goal of improving children’s school readiness and, ultimately, improving school success and reducing the achievement gap. To achieve these goals, grantees were given considerable local flexibility to implement innovative approaches in one or more of the following areas:

1. Supporting kindergarten readiness skills and smooth transitions to kindergarten;

2. Increasing family engagement in children’s learning and connecting families and schools;

3. Providing professional development to early learning and/or elementary …

Resident Services In Mixed-Income Developments Phase 1: Survey Findings And Analysis, Taryn Gress, Mark L. Joseph, Alexandra Curley

Faculty Scholarship

In one of our roles as a central resource for research and information on mixed-income developments and communities, the National Initiative on Mixed-Income Communities conducts periodic scans of the mixed-income field on specific topics of pressing interest. The mixed-income approach has successfully transformed deteriorating public housing complexes into safer and more attractive developments for residents from a range of income levels. However, the emerging literature on mixed-income development suggests that improvements in social and economic well-being for low-income families are far more difficult to achieve. This current scan of the field provides an initial picture of how mixed-income developments across …

Predictors Of Father Involvement : The Role Of Early Life Events And Stressors., Qiuli Hao

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study utilized the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 (NLSY97) dataset to examine the effect of men’s early life stressful events and their father involvement with their new biological child(ren). The problems associated with low level of father involvement or even father absence in the country followed by the dearth of studying men who experienced stressful events during childhood were first discussed. A series of factors in the literature that can affect the level of father involvement and various of childhood stressful events were also presented. Following this, the characteristics of study subjects’ demographics, household information, men’s crime history, …

Paramedicine And Social Work: Case Studies In Authentic Student Recruitment, Nathalie Collins, Lynelle Watts, Renee Strauss, David Hodgson

eCULTURE

Selling the course experience to future students has been corporatised across the Higher Education sector. At many universities marketing and sales specialists, such as ECU’s Student Recruitment Team, rather than academic staff, field prospective student enquiries. Representing courses authentically is crucial to matching future students with an appropriate course experience and career, as well is managing future students’ expectations. A challenge for academics is communicating the course/career experience to university sales agents (recruiters). A challenge for recruiters is conveying an authentic course experience to future students when they have not taken a course themselves. This paper selects two ECU courses, …

It’S Not As Simple As It Sounds: Problems And Solutions In Accessing And Using Administrative Child Welfare Data For Evaluating The Impact Of Early Childhood Interventions, Beth L. Green, Catherine Ayoub, Jessica Dym Bartlett, Carrie Jeanne Furrer, Adam Von Ende, Rachel Chazen-Cohen, Joanne Klevens, Peggy Nygren

Center for Improvement of Child and Family Services Publications

In recent years, there has been increasing interest in using administrative data collected by state child welfare agencies as a source of information for research and evaluation. The challenges of obtaining access to and using these data, however, have not been well documented. This study describes the processes used to access child welfare records in six different states and the approach to combining and using the information gathered to evaluate the impact of the Early Head Start program on children’s involvement with the child welfare system from birth through age eleven. We provide “lessons learned” for researchers who are attempting …

Do Eitc Recipients Use Their Tax Refunds To Get Ahead? Evidence From The Refund To Savings Initiative, Mathieu R. Despard, Dana C. Parantie, Jane Oliphant, Michal Grinstein-Weiss

Center for Social Development Research

Many U.S. households lack savings for unexpected expenses and financial shocks, but tax refunds and the Earned Income Tax Credit offer opportunities to set aside resources for use in emergencies. Understanding what EITC recipients do with their tax refunds is important for guiding federal policy to promote financial stability. This brief summarizes findings on the use of tax refunds by EITC recipients in the Refund to Savings (R2S) initiative. It also examines the use of financial services for saving refunds and the financial shocks experienced by EITC recipients during the 6 months after tax filing.

Social And Emotional Learning And Social Work In Middle School: A Case Study In Community Partnership, Anne S. Robertson, Amanda Moore Mcbride, Saras Chung, Allison Williams, Victoria May

Center for Social Development Research

Social and emotional learning is increasingly being recognized for its role in urban school reform despite current school improvement efforts focused on academic outcomes. This paper presents a case study in community partnership between a middle school, a community-based organization, and a research university, to implement a social and emotional program in seventh grade social studies. Highlighted is the importance of trust and communication among all partners—including administrators, researchers, front-line staff, teachers, and students. It also suggests a framework to expand school partnerships to include schools of social work, especially when the focus is on social and emotional learning.

Adopting A Financial Capability And Asset Building Curriculum At Historically Black Colleges And Universities, Michael Rochelle, Gena Mcclendon, Melody Brackett, Michael Wright, Margaret Sherraden

Center for Social Development Research

Social workers currently engage in financial capability practice with low-income and financially vulnerable individuals and families in diverse practice settings but typically lack professional preparation for this work. In response, several schools of social work have begun developing curriculum. Using an in-depth interview methodology, this study explores the experiences of faculty and administrators (N=19) at four Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) that adopted a curriculum in financial capability and asset building. Findings show that key reasons for adopting are the relevance of the content to student and community needs, faculty interest, and alignment with program, institutional, and professional goals. …

Becoming "Smart" About Relationship Building: Foster Care Youth And The Use Of Technology, Ramona Denby Brinson, Efren Gomez, Keith A. Alford

Lincy Institute Reports and Briefs

Key Findings:

Youth participants reported satisfaction with services and positive feelings about the smartphone.

The youth participants felt that the smartphone gave them a “voice” and control over the people with whom they wanted to talk.

Certain phone restrictions developed by project leadership were unenforceable.

Youth had certain expectations about the phone and its use but when the phone did not work or was “locked” (e.g., for data overuse) it created friction between the youth and their service provider.

Service-providers report that the phones help to create a sense of normalcy for the youth. Youth “were able to be normal …

Coconstructing Community: A Conceptual Map For Reuniting Aging People With Their Families And Communities, Tina M. Maschi, Lindsay Koskinen

Social Service Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Focal Point, Volume 29, Portland State University. Regional Research Institute

Research and Training Center - Focal Point

This issue of Focal Point focuses on trauma–informed care and its growing relevance in research, official policy, practice methods, and organizational structure.

The Development Of A Faith Community Nursing Intervention To Promote Health Across The Life Span, Donna M. Callaghan

International Journal of Faith Community Nursing

Purpose: To report the development of a faith community nursing intervention to promote health across the life span. Studies by Callaghan (2003, 2005, 2006), that investigated the relationships among self-care agency, self-care self-efficacy, and health-promoting self-care behaviors, support the importance of spiritual growth on older adults’, adults’, and adolescents’ initiative and responsibility for self-care. This report will focus on applying these results and the research evidence that supports the integration of these concepts in the development of a health promotion intervention.

Procedures: Data was merged from Callaghan’s studies (2003, 2005, 2006) in order to investigate to what extent do self-care …

Practice Matters: Screening And Monitoring Hyperlipidemia, M. Laurie Branstetter Dnp, Maria E. Main, Tonya Bragg-Underwood Dnp

International Journal of Faith Community Nursing

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to provide Faith Community Nurses with current information on hyperlipidemia, a chronic disease responsible for the leading cause of death worldwide. Current guidelines for cholesterol screening and a risk calculator resource for estimating cardiovascular risk are provided. Myths and truths are presented for review with patients. Suggestions and resources for lifestyle modifications and patient education are included. Faith Community Nurses are at the center of community health and actively involved with improving health outcomes related to chronic disease.

Understanding The Experiences Of African-American Relatives Who Serve As Care Providers To Custodial Children In Arkansas: An Intersectional Case Study, Carmen Johnson-Hardin

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

An increase in the provision of long-term care by relative caregivers to custodial children has brought attention to the physical, emotional, and Social challenges of this complex caregiving experience. Prior studies have examined separate structural identities that focus on comparing the quality of life, educational status, Social status, and income of grandparent custodial caregivers. To extend this research, it is important to explore the gaps in service provisions to relative caregivers; comparative viewpoints of relative caregivers and service providers regarding policies and practices; and heterogeneity among Black relative caregivers utilizing an intersectional framework. Face-to-face or telephone interviews were conducted with …

Risk And Resilience Factors Associated With Posttraumatic Stress In Ethno-Racially Diverse National Guard Members In Hawaii, Dawna D. Nelson, Julia M. Whealin, Rebecca Stotzer, Anthony Guerrero, Megan Carpenter, Robert Pietrzak

CLASS Faculty Research

This study examined risk and resilience factors associated with posttraumatic stress symptomatology (PTSS) in an ethno-racially diverse sample of Hawai׳i National Guard members comprised of Native Hawaiians, Filipino Americans, Japanese Americans, and European Americans. In the full sample, identifying as Japanese American and higher scores on measures of perceived social support and psychological resilience were negatively associated with PTSS, while Army Guard (vs. Air Guard) status and stronger family norms against disclosing mental health problems were positively associated with PTSS. Exploratory analyses of ethno-racial subgroups identified different patterns of within and between-group correlates of PTSS. For example, when controlling for …

Working With Passion, Effecting Change In A Context Of Uncertainty, Sandra M. Moore

Center for Social Development Research

This CSD Perspective has been adapted from a commencement address given by Sandra M. Moore on May 14, 2015, before the Brown School of Social Work at Washington University.

Youth Savings Patterns And Performance In Ghana: A Supplementary Report, Lissa Johnson, Yungsoo Lee, David Ansong, Gina Chowa, Michael Sherraden, Isaac Osei-Akoto

Center for Social Development Research

This report provides findings on youth savings patterns and performance of youth who opened formal savings accounts through Ghana’s HFC Bank. This report supplements a larger study on youth savings patterns and performance in Ghana, Kenya, Nepal, and Colombia through the YouthSave project.

Assessment Of Clinical Information: Comparison Of The Validity Of A Structured Clinical Interview (The Scid) And The Clinical Diagnostic Interview, Rebecca Drill, Ora Nakash, Jared A. Defife, Drew Westen

School for Social Work: Faculty Publications

Adaptive functioning is a key aspect of psychiatric diagnosis and assessment in research and practice. This study compared adaptive functioning validity ratings from Structured Clinical Interviews (SCIDs, symptom-focused structured diagnostic interviews), and Clinical Diagnostic Interviews (CDIs, systematic diagnostic interviews modeling naturalistic clinical interactions focusing on relational narratives). Two hundred forty-five patients (interviewed by two independent interviewers) and their interviewers completed the Clinical Data Form which assesses adaptive functioning and clinical information. Both interviews converged strongly with patient-reports, with no significant differences in validity of the interviews in measuring global and specific domains of adaptive functioning variables. Findings suggest that CDIs …