Moving On From Supportive Housing (MOSH): Development and evaluation of a transitional skill-building curriculum for providers helping residents exit homeless services

This article describes the development and evaluation of MOSH (Moving On From Supportive Housing), a transitional skill-building curriculum for providers helping residents exit homeless services to mainstream housing without embedded supports. In this evaluation, we assess the feasibility, acceptability, fit, and potential efficacy of the MOSH curriculum to improve proximal provider-level outcomes, including self-efficacy to provide MOSH-related independent living skills and supports. Homeless-services providers (N = 49) from a range of programs and settings participated in the training. Findings from focus groups and pre- and posttest surveys indicate high levels of overall satisfaction with the training. The majority of trainees perceived the training to be useful to their work and potentially useful for service recipients, felt the training would fit well within their existing day-to-day work, and said they were very likely to use MOSH skills in such work. Statistically significant improvements in self-efficacy regarding all skills but one were also found. MOSH holds promise as an intervention that can enhance provider practice and promotion of independent living skills in homeless services. Although these initial findings on MOSH are encouraging, further research will be needed to evaluate provider knowledge gains and effective use of these skills in practice.     

Integrated Program Development: A Model for Meeting the Complex Needs of Homeless Persons

Homelessness is caused both by structural and personal factors. Thus, comprehensive services are required to meet the complex needs of homeless persons. This article reviews case management and group work practice with homeless persons and argues that effective social work practice must incorporate both intervention methods. Integrated Program Development (IPD), a program framework for shelter services, is presented. A pilot project at the Salvation Army Family Haven in St. Louis, Missouri illustrates the costs and benefits of empowerment-oriented group work with homeless persons. Three approaches for establishing group work for homeless people are suggested. Each approach requires that group workers, with community organizing skills, be employed by social service administrators.     

Living Room Assessment

Abstract

Community living room programs, initially developed as part of the settlement house movement, strive to maintain a safe and welcoming atmosphere for clients with basic needs who can then be linked to concrete services. These rare programs do not generally include formal intake and termination criteria and are thus difficult to assess by quantitative means. In this project, the authors used the Community Oriented Programs Environment Scale (COPES) to perform a social climate assessment of a living room program at an urban homeless shelter. The agency board and staff were concerned that expanding numbers of clientele might deter potential and current members from participation and thus defeat the program's major purpose. This paper reports the social climate perceptions of staff and members and recommends agency program adjustments. This type of evaluation has implications for macro practice in determining whether nontraditional programs can be shown to meet certain human needs that complement those addressed by the broader social service system.     

Resident Perspectives on Life in a Transitional Living Program for Homeless Young Adults

Safe and affordable housing is critical for any young person’s well-being, and yet many youth are without a reliable place to live. Knowledge of the perceptions of housing programs and shelter among homeless young adults ages 18–24 is very limited. Using qualitative methodology, the present study explores the perceptions of homeless young adults on their experiences as residents of a transitional living program (TLP) by asking the following research questions: (1) What are TLP residents’ expectations of themselves and others in the program? and (2) How do residents perceive the rules and structure of the TLP? Sixteen interviews were conducted with residents at a TLP for homeless young adults, with participants ranging in age from 18 to 22. Findings illuminated residents’ strong emphasis on the values of hard work, self-discipline and a good attitude. Results revealed that residents felt that they are overly monitored within the program, particularly around daily living in the residence and felt a lack of flexibility in the rules and regulations. It is important that the structure of a TLP housing program so that rules are not disruptive to healthy development and successful transition from adolescence to adulthood. Further implications for practice are discussed.     

Houston Homeless Street Outreach

Abstract

Several cities in the nation have developed innovative programs to assist the homeless who are “living on their streets.” This paper describes one such program developed in Houston, Texas. The Homeless Street Outreach was a collaborative project of several service agencies in the greater Houston area. The outcome of this outreach project indicates that a coordinated effort can bring about delivery of more comprehensive services to the homeless population. The principles that emerge from the outreach include involvement of the homeless in planning and development, service agencies taking “ownership” of the project, and agency flexibility in delivering services to the homeless.     

Chapter 10: Issues in HIV/AIDS Service Delivery to High Risk Youth

Homeless and runaway youth engage in behavior that puts them at risk for infection with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. Prevalence of HIV disease in homeless and runaway youth is higher than it is among other adolescents. In addition, homeless and runaway youth are often forced to engage in sex as a means of survival. Although they engage in high risk behavior, AIDS education programs have neglected them as a target group for education. To some extent, they have been included in other more general categories of persons with AIDS risk behaviors, such as men who have sex with men or intravenous drug users. However, the number of adolescents receiving age-specific HIV/AIDS information is far below the number infected (Hein et al., 1992). Often high risk youth are disenfranchised, having been forced from home by their families after disclosing their gay or lesbian identities. Lacking a political voice and having no spokesperson, they represent a group with complex unmet needs. These youth typically have immediate needs for food, shelter, and clothing. In addition, they often need medical management, mental health and drug counseling, crisis management, and HIV/AIDS information. These needs are often overwhelming to the agencies that serve youth. This article examines the barriers and issues that exist in providing services to high risk youth. Then, suggsetions for removing those barriers by empowering both service providers and youth are offered. Some of the suggestions are based upon the authors' own experience in providing HIV/AIDS in-service training to service providers to high risk youth. The article makes recommendations for policy on youth and HIV/AIDS.     

Culture as a barrier to rural women's entrepreneurship: experience from Zimbabwe

This article identifies the important issues addressed by programs and projects that are aimed at promoting women's equality through entrepreneurship and suggests several actions for future focus of gender programs and training. Culture was seen as a barrier to the self-confident and autonomous economic activities of women in Zimbabwe. Likewise, structural barriers such as lack of marketable skills, time and ability to travel, land and assets, education, and position as primary family providers all compounded to the problem of entrepreneurship among women. Establishment of policy approaches for women like vocational skills training augmented by training in business skills and marketing, however, are insufficient since it failed to discuss and transfer behavioral skills necessary to make one an entrepreneur. To conclude, programs must be designed to empower personal skills and self-awareness, as well as address the constraints to entrepreneurship, and macroeconomic policy change.     

Program evaluation of services for the homeless : Challenges and strategies

The rapid growth of the homeless population in North America has given rise to a sharp increase in the number of task forces and studies aimed at setting up either programs for the homeless, or policies for controlling the phenomenon. Whenever there is a need for program evaluations in this process, numerous methodological and strategic challenges have to be faced. Due to the characteristics of the clientele, evaluation studies of services for the homeless call for innovative approaches. This paper reviews the research strategies (types of evaluations, designs, and indicators) that have been developed to assess programs for chronic inebriates and mentally ill homeless. The findings from previous evaluations are then summarized and their consequences for evaluation practice are considered.     

退役士兵职业技能培训期间的管理探索

退役士兵职业技能培训,是社会教育的重要组成部分,也是稳定与构建和谐社会的重要举措。在过去几年的培训中,各个承训学校就退役士兵职业技能培训期间的学员管理,开展了一些积极的探索和实践。由于退役士兵职业技能培训不同于全日制学生教育,许多方面还有待进一步完善和提高。     

From vocational to knowledge-based education - an account of Swedish social work education

This article outlines the historical trajectory of Swedish social work education. Important stages and developmental changes in educational programs are described. As well overall structure of Swedish social work education and training is presented. A number of important issues not only specific to Swedish circumstances but also pertinent to social work education around the world are described and their role is analysed. More specifically, the author focuses on issues of social work as a research discipline, identity of the social work discipline, cleavage and relationship between social work research and social work practice. Social work education, social work practice and social work research are seen in a holistic perspective. The author describes and argues that Swedish social work education has gone from being a non-academic vocational training program to a knowledge-based package of academic discipline.     

‘I hope one more flower will bloom in my life’: retelling the stories of being homeless in Japan through narrative inquiry

Once becoming homeless, people confront various challenges. Despite hardships in their lives, the voices of people who are homeless are often silenced in society and the multiplicity of their experiences are undermined. To recognize the impact of homelessness from their understandings of life, the study reports in-depth conversations with people who are homeless in Japan. Through the qualitative research methodology of narrative inquiry, I engaged in a close relationship with three men who are/were homeless and inquired into their experiences of being homeless. From our conversations, four narrative threads emerged; (1) living with memories of loss, (2) feeling of being without control, (3) feeling discouraged from weaving forward-looking stories, and (4) nourishing generosity amidst unexpected life circumstances. Considering these narrative threads, we highlight the diversity in the experiences of becoming/being homeless in Japan embodied by the stories of three men. We put forward recommendations for future practice and knowledge development to support people who are homeless.     

Challenges in evaluating programs serving homeless families

Homeless families, usually headed by single mothers, are the fastest growing segment of the homeless population. Although families with children make up a large percentage of those experiencing homelessness, there have been few studies on the effectiveness of services for homeless families offered by shelters transitional housing programs, and other agencies. This article summarizes the research that has been conducted on families that are homeless and the limitations of this research for program evaluation. Challenges to program evaluation are identified: the lack of published studies in the area; the fact that program evaluation is rarely built into programs or funded; the methodological issues in tracking families; the difficulty in assessing the impact on families; implementation issues; the range of barriers to housing stability faced by homeless families; and changes in society at large that influence the results of evaluation. Six recommendations are made for meeting these challenges: evaluation from a coherent theory of change; setting reasonable and differential expectations for clients; strengthening linkages with other agencies that serve the same client population; increasing the emphasis on follow-up; utilizing prevention efforts to reduce the number of families that become homeless; and working for expanded low-income housing and expanded subsidies.     

Horizons for Homeless Children: A comprehensive service model for homeless families

Horizons for Homeless Children is a not-for-profit organization that provides services to homeless children and their families. The organization has two primary programs: the Playspace programs, which are children's recreation and informal education places set up in shelters, and Community Children's Centers, which provide full-time early childhood education for preschool homeless children and on-site job training and GED classes for their parents. This article summarizes the operational experiences of the organization and examines the efficacy of the services it delivers.     

Interview: Sukaynah Salameh,director of the Vocational Development Association (VDSA), Lebanon

In this interview, Sukaynah Salameh, director of the nongovernmental Vocational Development Association (VDA) of Lebanon, states that the VDA was created to provide Palestinian and Lebanese youth with employment skills appropriate for local market conditions. The young men and women served by the VDA have had their education curtailed by 15 years of civil war and deteriorating economic conditions in their country. The situation is particularly difficult for Palestinian refugee women who face employment opportunities limited by scarce jobs, laws regulating the employment of refugees, competition by cheaper migrant labor, and women's unequal status. Most training programs provide refugee women with skills that do little but enhance their housekeeping skills. The VDA offers 6-9 month training courses using its own curricula. In addition, the VDA keeps a roster of its graduates to evaluate the usefulness of its training. This record-keeping allowed the VDA to determine that the market was being saturated with the skills they were offering. Therefore, the VDA conducted a market analysis that focused on the socioeconomic status of refugee women. This research revealed that the number of refugee girls enrolled in primary and intermediate school has gradually declined, although most young women 15-25 years old want to learn skills in order to find jobs. In order to increase the level of female enrollment in its vocational courses, the VDA decided to provide women who already have basic education skills with additional training in subjects the market is demanding, like architecture and design and computer studies. In addition, the VDA has begun an individual outreach program to promote the idea of female education and employment and has developed a network to help women find jobs.     

When considering vocational rehabilitation: describing and comparing the Swedish and American systems and professions

Rehabilitation of functionally impaired in Sweden and the United States is compared and contrasted. Found is that there are fundamental differences in strategies. The Swedish system most often uses a medically oriented multidisciplinary team approach. The US system most often uses a single individual, the vocational rehabilitation counselor, to work with functionally impaired in helping them return to work. Emphasized is that a vocational rehabilitation counselor uses a unique array of skills that is not duplicated in Sweden by a single profession. Suggested is that a single person with a range of skills can more economically provide vocational rehabilitation services to those with functional impairments; whether this is practical for Sweden is yet to be determined. In contrasting the two systems it was evident that the US system has been in operation for a much longer time and that the Swedish system is maturing. Noted is that the governments of both countries are feeling pressure regarding funding of vocational rehabilitation. This is affecting the level and quality of services. The authors advocate wider contact between Swedish and US university-level training programs in rehabilitation. Felt is that each system has strengths and knowledge that can be used to benefit the other.     

Life skills training and the politics of personal effectiveness

In recent years social and life skills curriculum has emerged to occupy an important place in new training initiatives, particularly those associated with YTS and pre-vocational courses such as TVEI, CPVE and City and Guids 365.* one level the attraction of‘life skills’training is that it is relevant and address, in ways that traditional Liberal and General Studies could not, the practical problems likely to affect young people as adults, as parents and as employees. another, ambiguity surrounds the criteria upon which such skills for living are constructed and appraised, not least because of their close behavioural connection with altering young peoples’attitudes toward authority, industry and society. Despite recent concern about the dangers of bias and indoctrination elsewhere in mainstream education, this controversial aspect of government intervention in vocational training (DEP 1981; MSC 1981; DEP 1984) has escaped the critical attention of those who currently express concern about standards in education (Scrution et al 1985). For this reason the paper seeks to examine the kind of‘official’thinking which lies behind life skills training, and the skills which are thought necessary to enhance the‘personal effectiveness’of young people. This would seem all the more important in view of the government's contention that technical and vocational education (14-18) now constitutes a viable alternative for those who fail to succeed in mainstream education. (DEP 1981, 1984; MSC 1981, 1982a).     

An Assertiveness Training Program for Indecisive Students Attending an Italian University

Indecisive students often present with social skills problems, which may make academic and vocational decision‐making tasks difficult and complex for them. Moreover, choices regarding one's future require the ability to gather information, to search for help and support, to stave off intrusiveness and pressures, and to communicate one's decisions. Social competencies, particularly, play a significant role in vocational guidance activities. This article presents a training program devised to augment assertive competencies in indecisive students choosing a university course of study. Intended aims and the analyses to assess the efficacy of the intervention through self‐evaluation and role‐play assessment are described.