Researching Muslim Prisoners

This article is prompted by fieldwork undertaken on the ‘Muslims in Prison’ (MIP) project from July 2001 to July 2002. In addition to a discussion of general methodological considerations for prison research, the article evaluates key challenges and sensitivities encountered during the project. The points for discussion include issues of access, confidentiality, security, health and ethics. In particular, the article discusses the significance of the researcher’s biography—himself a British Muslim—and how these impacted on the qualitative research methods. The fieldwork straddles the events of 9/11, and the article includes a discussion of the impact of this event on the research. The observations will be of interest to researchers of Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) prison populations and the changing and developing role of the researcher in secure settings.     

‘I am not your nutter’: a personal reflection on commodification and comradeship in service user and survivor research

Abstract

This article offers some personal reflections from a mental health service user/survivor researcher working in English academia. It is a critical examination of what mainstream clinical mental health researchers and funders appear to need us to be, and what some in the service user and survivor movement perceive us to be. The discussion examines questions about commodification and public and patient involvement and contemporary challenges for service user and survivor research as a separate discipline operating within and beyond academia in England. The article concludes by exploring potential strategies for collaborative activism for service user and survivor researchers in academia based on the concepts of social capital and situated solidarity.     

A model-guided process evaluation: Office-based prescribing and pharmacy dispensing of methadone

This article presents an exemplar of a model-guided process evaluation that specifies the treatment model, assesses its implementation, monitors the fidelity of the model throughout the project, assesses model exposure and absorption, and helps understand the program's intermediate effects (proximal outcomes) as well as final effects (distal outcomes). The New Mexico study on office-based prescribing and community pharmacy dispensing of methadone is a research demonstration project that phases a small group of female methadone maintenance patients out of methadone clinics and into a program where they will obtain their scheduled doses of methadone at pharmacies that work in collaboration with physicians and a social worker.The patient's methadone treatment will in this way become part of their overall health care. Early detection of problems of implementation (e.g., the omission of program content or the delivery of inaccurate information) enables the researcher to make adjustments before the problems become unmanageable and the integrity of the original research design is compromised. A model-guided process evaluation can critically inform health services research demonstrations designed for enabling continuous, ongoing feedback and improvement of client-related services.     

Participatory action research and researcher’s responsibilities: an experience with an Indigenous community

This paper seeks to explore the relational participatory action research (PAR) frameworks that have been developed to allow non-Indigenous researchers, along with Indigenous co-researcher participants, to learn and honour Indigenous stories. Specifically, in the context of PAR research in the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh, we outline: (a) potential challenges between Indigenous research paradigms and Western research paradigms, (b) the situation of the non-Indigenous researcher in relation to the Indigenous community, (c) challenges associated with the non-Indigenous researcher’s selection of a research site, (d) collaboration throughout the research process and (e) the processes of developing and maintaining responsibilities. The aim is not to offer simple answers to such challenges, but to highlight the manner in which such processes can be addressed. This research may provide practical insight for future non-Indigenous researchers working with Indigenous communities through a participatory sharing process with Indigenous co-researcher participants, Elders, leaders, knowledge-holders and youths.     

Better Futures: A validated model for increasing postsecondary preparation and participation of youth in foster care with mental health challenges

Higher education participation rates of young people in foster care are dramatically lower than their level of postsecondary education aspiration. Increasing attention to this disparity has stimulated policy and practice enhancements, however rigorously validated models for promoting postsecondary preparation and participation have not existed for young people in foster care, including those with mental health conditions. This article describes Better Futures, which is the first such model to be experimentally validated as effective for increasing the higher education participation and other related outcomes of young people in foster care with mental health challenges. Better Futures features a four day on-campus Summer Institute, coaching provided to youth by older peers who are in college and have shared experiences around foster care and/or mental health, and workshops that bring together youth, coaches and guest speakers for information sharing and mutual support. This article includes the theoretical and component features of the Better Futures model, findings related to intervention fidelity, participants' evaluation of the program, and discussion of implications for future model refinement and research.     

生态养老:养老服务中场所性的健康促进策略

老年人口占总人口比例以及提供健康服务成本的财政需求增加,正日益威胁着全球的稳定性。同时,这样的人口发展趋势也给传统的老年人健康服务供给带来挑战。本文以澳大利亚的案例为背景,论证在养老服务中运用场所性的健康促进能够给老年人创造更大的福利,缩短通常与年龄增长有关的慢性病患病率时间。提倡生态养老意味着无需像以前那样对老年人实行隔离管理,而是将他们视为整个社会生活、工作和娱乐不可缺少的一部分。文章比对了健康促进学校与养老产业等场所性的健康促进的特征,认为涵盖各种养老服务的场所是建立一个新的健康促进场所的最佳选择。场所性的健康促进策略的核心就在于为老年人的生活创造有利的环境。更广义地说,生态养老指导我们将环境与健康联系在一起,减少这一日益庞大的人口群体对环境的影响。因此,在老龄事业中应用场所性的健康促进策略有助于降低待赡养的老年人口对全球稳定性的威胁。     

Integrating creative art into a community-based mental health program for Asian American transition age youth

This paper advocates for the use of creative art as an adjunct in the delivery of mental health care for Asian American transition age youth in the United States. A case study of a participant in a community-based mental health program called Project FOCUS in Orange County, California details how art was used to assist a young woman to identify and achieve her personal goals, mitigate her emotional and behavioral problems, and reach a sense of overall well-being. The findings in this paper lay the groundwork for future research into how art can be systematically incorporated into community-based mental health programs to facilitate service utilization. Further, this study demonstrates that Asian American transition age youth face mental health challenges typical of their cohorts, despite being putative members of a “model minority.” The use of creative art transcends cultural and language barriers, and empowers Asian American transition age youth to explore their identity and express their emotions, which ultimately promotes their mental well-being.     

Ethical uneasiness and the need for open-ended reflexivity: the case of research into older people with a wish to die

This article focuses on research ethics in highly intimate research with possible impact on life and death. In order to stimulate an open-ended dialogue about research ethics, we reflect on four ethical challenges that came up during our research into older people with a wish to die. Drawing on our experiences, we discuss (1) the possibly confirming influence of our research on the death wish (moral experience of whether or not to disregard responsibility); (2) the suggested duty to intervene (moral experience of whether or not to compromise the person’s autonomy); (3) the researcher’s authority and power over the data (moral experience of threatening a person’s self-narrative) and (4) the dilemma of intimacy (moral experience of encountering the tragic). For guidance in addressing these challenges, we draw upon work on research ethics from phenomenological and care ethics scholars, as well as from those writing about relational ethics in health research. We suggest that being open about ethical uneasiness is important, because in most cases of a grey area, there are only open-ended answers needing an enquiring mind, rather than clear and fixed guidelines. Acknowledgement of ethical uneasiness and open-ended reflexivity are indispensable to constitute a morally good research practice.     

Outcomes Measurement

SUMMARY

Outcomes measurement in health and mental health should be of vital concern to social workers since public support and financing will follow evidence of effectiveness. Social work in health and mental health requires a framework for conceptualizing outcomes measurement so that the profession can focus clearly on the work to be done in outcomes measurement. This framework should distinguish among the various ways that outcomes measurement can be used to advance policy, program and practice. This article discusses two applications of outcomes measurement, namely for improving policies and programs, and, second, for conducting outcomes research. Other dimensions that could be included in an outcomes measurement framework for social work in health and mental health are identified but not elaborated. The author's objective is to make a strong case for the role that outcomes measurement can play in both the improvement of social work policies and programs in health care, through performance measurement, as well as in advancing the healthcare knowledge base, through outcomes research.     

PEGASE Program: Identification of babies in the child protection system at risk of developmental delays or disorders and the implementation of a ‘supra-optimal’ care pathway

The importance of the first three years of life for children's development and the consequences for their general health in adulthood have been widely documented in the international literature, including the benefits of early identification and intervention programs. Additionally, convergent research has highlighted wide-ranging negative trajectories attributable to both the short and long-term consequences of abuse and neglect and their neurobiological impact on health and development. However, formal identification processes and the use of standardised screening tools in child protection remain relatively rare despite the potential societal impact of child maltreatment in terms of public and economic health. Moreover, delays between the initial identification of mental health problems and health and developmental disorders, and the introduction of appropriate interventions persist. Abused and neglected infants risk an exacerbation of the consequences of early maltreatment due to insufficient access to prompt assessment and treatment, including appropriate responses to their health needs. The aim of this article is to present the PEGASE program, an innovative French program for very young children in care, which is modelled on the care of premature babies. By setting up an early care pathway, it aims to ensure adequate medical follow-up – both somatic and psychiatric – through standardised examination and tailored interventions in order to limit the adverse health and developmental consequences of abuse. The presentation of the PEGASE program is supplemented by a case study.     

On the edge: Balancing health, participation, and autonomy to maintain active independent living in two retirement facilities

This study examines how independent living residents in Continuing Care Retirement Communities (CCRCs) work to maintain a healthy, active community. Specifically, this paper elucidates how independent living residents, who have high status in CCRCs but also face transitions to more advanced care, manage their daily lives to build a positive sense of community against the backdrop of potential health and social declines. The researcher supplemented four years of observation in one CCRC and two years of observation in another with qualitative interviews with thirty residents from both facilities. Results indicated that shared sentiments contrasting the active social world in independent living with other living units, norms of mutual support balanced with autonomy, social participation as a source of belonging (or isolation), and definitions of deviance surrounding functional health and manners framed residents' understandings of daily life by reaffirming independent living residents' privileged status in each facility.     

Getting close by staying distant: Fieldwork with proselytizing groups

Field research with proselytizing groups presents difficult problems for field researchers. Such groups usually expect commitment from those who are knowledgeable about their point of view. Should the field researcher fail to make this commitment there is the possibility that further access to the group will be ended. Even if access to the group is not denied, continuous proselytizing directed at the researcher can create emotional responses that adversely affect field relationships. In this article, methods for dealing with these problems are discussed in the context of a study of two Jesus People groups. The article concludes that open, honest,disagreement with the groups' beliefs as well as avisible role as a researcher result in increased rapport and acceptance by the groups and reduced psychological stress on the researcher. The processes of role taking and role playing in the relation between the researcher and group members suggest that distancing strategies are useful when proselytizing groups are studied by nonbelievers.This is a revised version of a paper presented at the 1986 Meetings of the American Sociological Association. I wish to thank Shulamit Reinharz and three anonymous reviewers for their excellent and helpful comments on this paper.     

Using community-based research within regeneration. The role of the researcher within community-based approaches – exploring experiences within Objective 1 South Yorkshire

Much attention has been given in recent years to involving community members in research within a number of fields including community development. Indeed, there is a large amount of literature outlining what this process involves and describes the benefits and problems of doing such research across a range of contexts. There has also been some discussion of the different approaches that can be applied under the umbrella of community-based research and their relationship to the outcomes associated with both successful and positive community development. Yet very little attention has been paid to the actual experiences of these lay researchers involved in community-based research in relation to their roles. The nature of the researcher's role as work thus requires critical consideration. This article examines the role of lay researchers within four different approaches to community-based research used for the development of community action plans within the Objective 1, South Yorkshire context. This article reports upon differential roles and types of work in relation to both experiences and outcomes. The article, therefore, addresses what these different researcher roles tell us about community-based research and outlines the implications in relation to community development.     

The Life Course: A Sociological Introduction

Abstract

Recognition of the deleterious effects of domestic violence on women's mental health has highlighted the potential benefits for women of collaboration between mental health and domestic violence services. Yet the different histories, knowledge bases, and organisational cultures of the mental health and domestic violence sectors present formidable challenges to the development of effective collaborative work. This article draws on a large research enquiry, involving four separate but related studies, which explored aspects of collaboration between these two service sectors. It focuses particularly on data collected in interviews with practitioners from mental health and domestic violence services who were participants in an action research study (one of the four studies), which was aimed at discovering the factors that contributed to enhanced collaboration and the benefits of this for women who experience both domestic violence and mental health issues.     

Teaching Note—Asserting Social Work’s Role in Developing an Interprofessional Education Project

ABSTRACT

Interprofessional (IP) education is an essential component of today’s health care education. IP education has been recognized and supported for its potential to educate workforce-ready health care clinicians with the knowledge and skills, necessary to collaboratively deliver high-quality, client-centered care. While social work’s reflective, patient-centered, and holistic approach to care is invaluable in addressing healthcare challenges at all levels, social work’s lack of involvement in IP health care team practice is evident in the development of IP education curriculum with other health care disciplines. This article describes how one School of Social Work at a regional public university became part of a longitudinal IP education project in collaboration with a large R-1 research university, creating an IP opportunity for Master’s in Social Work (MSW) students. It also discusses the process taken for social work inclusion in the IP project, an experiential elective course designed to supplement the project, as well as Transformative Learning Theory, the conceptual framework used.     

Researching Health Communication Technology Intervention Projects: The Challenge of Achieving Utilization Levels Sufficient for Evaluation

ABSTRACT

The deployment of interactive communication technologies to deliver health services and education has grown significantly over the past decade. Telemedicine, the use of telecommunication technologies for health care, is one specific application that has enjoyed significant public and private funding for research projects. However, telemedicine project evaluators have run into a serious barrier in their research efforts, namely, the deployment of telemedicine is often tremendously time-consuming and often yields utilization levels inadequate for research purposes. This article seeks to overview this problem through a case analysis of a multidimensional telemedicine project in Michigan that enjoyed both success and failure. The article concludes with a discussion of five universal challenges that must be addressed for project evaluators to achieve utilization levels to allow for reliable research conclusions.     

What is the role of e-technology in mental health services and psychiatric research?

In this article, the role of e-technology is explored, with an emphasis on the advantages and disadvantages of its use for health care and mental health research. E-technology is broadly understood to include the Internet and related information technologies, and in recent years, its use has grown rapidly. The Internet is a major source of health information, and there is potential to deliver enhanced services through this medium. In addition, e-technology's role in future mental health service delivery and research will continue to expand as increased numbers of consumers, caregivers, health professionals, and the general population go online, particularly as the technology is refined and made even more user friendly.     

人文都市里的社会生态学

人文都市是概括和推进当代城市嵌合体中环境质量与社会质量的大标题。作为覆盖广泛、相互联系的社会生态体系,城市、郊区以及城市远郊的繁华地区凸显出不少负面特征。因此,人文都市发现了一个战略,可以对抗这些城市病并向城市系统逐步灌输更多积极的、可持续的特征。由于人文都市这个项目主要是在社会力量的推动下出现的,因此我们可以更清楚具体地表达科学在解决人文都市项目的问题以及评估其成就中的作用。人文都市可归纳为1）保护与保存城市与郊区的生态服务,2）提升居民的身体素质、心理健康与安全水平,3）保护能源、物质、水资源与时间以提高效率,4）以包容性促进公平以及社会和环境的公正性、合理性,5）保留社区感与场所感。我们将科学视为社会项目的促成因素,指出了推动科学的社会价值以及科学知识和科学隐喻在联系人文都市与社会项目中所扮演的角色。我们进一步指出社会生态研究在实现人文都市目标方面所扮演的角色,运用了环保历史、河涌的功能与复原、环境公平性、巴尔的摩生态系统和长期生态研究项目等行动案例。作为一个社会项目,人文都市得益于科学的投入：1）揭示城市体系中隐含的生态进程,2）创造知识,将普通人和一般机构与生物物理环境联系起来,3）为公民对话做出贡献,4）将科学价值观引入优化与平衡人文都市的目标当中。     

Social-ecological science in the humane metropolis

The Humane metropolis is a rubric to summarize and promote environmental and social quality in contemporary urban mosaics. Because cities, suburbs, and exurbs, as spatially extensive and connected socio-ecological systems, exhibit many negative features, the humane metropolis identifies a strategy to combat the ills and instill more positive and sustainable features and processes in urban systems. Because the humane metropolis as a program has arisen primarily from social motivations, there is the opportunity to articulate more explicitly the role that science can play in addressing the humane metropolis program and evaluating its success. A humane metropolis can be summarized as one that 1) protects and restores ecological services in cities and suburbs, 2) promotes physical and mental health and safety of residents, 3) enhances efficiency by conserving energy, matter, water, and time, 4) facilitates equity by being inclusive, as well as socially and environmentally just, and 5) maintains a sense of community and a sense of place. We clarify the nature of science as a contributor to the social program, pointing out the social values motivating science, and the role that scientific knowledge and metaphor play in linking science with the social program of the humane metropolis. We further identify roles that socio-ecological research can play in meeting the goals of the humane metropolis. We use examples of environmental history, watershed function and restoration, and environmental justice research and action from the Baltimore Ecosystem Study, Long-Term Ecological Research program. The humane metropolis as a social program benefits from scientific contributions that 1) expose hidden ecological processes in urban systems, 2) generate knowledge connecting people and institutions to the biophysical environment, 3) contribute to the civic dialog, and 4) bring scientific values to the prioritization and balancing of the goals of the humane metropolis.