The E.S.S.E. Group Model

Social work practitioners today are having to deal with ever-increasing numbers of families falling into the at risk category. At the same time, the issues and problems facing these family units are often overwhelming and challenging to resolve. The E.S.S.E. Group Model, outlined in this article, is a new research based approach that was designed to address the most relevant concerns facing families today. It is a unique program that combines family life education within a support group framework. Initially, the model was developed for several school districts in the midwest. Counseling personnel had identified a need for a parent training program that would elicit higher levels of participation. The E.S.S.E. Model accomplishes that goal through its structured yet individualized curriculum along with its parallel and conjoint group set-up. The specific content and process guidelines of this new approach make it easy for clinicians to duplicate in a wide variety of settings. One of the model's curriculums is outlined in detail in this article. Readers will find that the E.S.S.E. program serves as an excellent example of the type of group intervention needed today to help revitalize at-risk families.     

Elder Abuse Detection and Intervention: A Collaborative Approach by B. Brandl,C. B. Dyer,C. J. Heisler,M. J. Otto,L. A. Stiegel,and R. W. Thomas

Mediation has recently been developed in America to help seniors deal with their disputes. Some Long Term Care Ombudsmen and their volunteers have also been trained in mediation for use in institutional conflicts. This paper suggests that elder mediation, through its voluntary, non-coercive process, has the potential for enhancing elder rights, providing an acceptable form of minimal social intervention, and contributing to the prevention of elder abuse at early stages of relational conflicts between elders and their carers.     

Helping the Battered Child and His Family. C. Henry Kempe,M.D. and Ray E. Helfer,M.D. Philadelphia and Toronto: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1972. 313 Pages. $8.50. Hardbound

The purposes of this article address the efficacy of computer applications, and encourage social work educators and practitioners to use available technology. A preliminary analysis of curricula and other factors suggests that the profession may not be preparing students to take advantage of existing computer technology. A brief overview of contemporary issues, technological developments, and areas of application is provided, and recommendations are made supporting the integration of computers in social work.     

Anti-R.O.T.C. Sit-in: a Sociological Analysis*

This study compares social characteristics, political and protest activities, and the impact of social control violence on participants and nonparticipants in a sit-in ending in arrest at Kent State University. The findings show that participants are different from the nonparticipants on several variables including college major, religious preference, personal political position and parents' political position. Participants and nonparticipants were similar to one another in grade point average, financial dependence on parents, parents' total income and parents' education levels. Participants report more political and protest activities and indicate that social control violence did not “pacify” or reduce the level of their activism.     

Models for theory-based M.A. and Ph.D. programs

In response to growing demand for advanced public relations education, this article suggests integrated models of outcomes, curriculum, pedagogy and assessment for theory-based M.A. and Ph.D. programs. Because public relations has commonly been approached as a professional rather than theoretical subject, this article begins with a short explanation of why theoretical education is becoming an increasingly important part of public relations education. It then reports the integration team's recommendations for a flexible educational framework allowing for practical constraints and providing for institutional individuality at both the M.A. and Ph.D. levels. Assumptions underlying efforts of the team are outlined and specifics that might be included in M.A. and Ph.D. programs are presented with rationales for each.     

In memoriam: L. H. M. Ling

In the early phase of its rule in Turkey (2002–4), the pro-Islamic government of the AKP (Justice and Development party) and various branches of the state collaborated in a series of political and economic reforms. The democratization process has gradually moderated and integrated Islamic actors into the secular Turkish Republic. However, it has also had polarizing effects on social groups. Among many, the polarization of two groups of women, ‘pious’ and ‘secularist’, deserves particular attention. Instead of bringing Turkish women together, gender reforms, particularly the lifting of the headscarf ban in universities, have divided women and created disarray and confrontation in society. This article reveals and compares the two dramatically different patterns of political engagement by pious and secularist women in leadership positions in contemporary Turkey. On the one hand, it reveals the increasingly radical backlash of secularist women against the increasing visibility in public spaces of pious women who veil. On the other hand, it examines how pious women, who see the tumult their religious observance in the public space is creating, are increasingly turning to a non-confrontational mode of non-response. What is the prognosis for the future of a democratic Turkey?     

Law Consumers Association N.S.W.

Despite recent trends away from the traditional medical model of service delivery, there appears to be a continuing reluctance among some rehabilitation professionals to fully enable people with disabilities to co-manage their own rehabilitation programmes. These same professionals may remain unaware that their behaviour discourages their clients from taking greater responsibility for solving problems and achieving goals of living. Contradictions in the beliefs and behaviour of service providers is, at grass roots level, perhaps exemplified by their adherence to formal case-team meetings which exclude service recipients. The need to re-define and alter the format of these conferences is the focus of this paper.