The experience of sole mothers balancing paid work with care for a child with a disability

There are increasing numbers of families in Australia headed by sole parents, but little is known about the experiences of those who also care for a child with a disability. Additional caring responsibilities have previously been shown to impact on the work participation of parents. This study involved qualitative analyses of interview data conducted with sole mothers with school‐aged children with disability (N = 11). Thematic analysis revealed four themes that enabled and supported participation in the workforce: social support; managing appointments; characteristics of the workplace; and the role of the school. Results suggest the importance of practical help from family and friends in facilitating participation in paid employment. Additionally, the importance of flexible appointment scheduling on the part of service providers was highlighted, as well as the importance of workplace flexibility and supportive workplace cultures. Such factors were important in supporting sole mothers to balance work with care, with important implications for personal and family wellbeing.     

The potential role of social and familial networks in shaping the well-being of children in shelters for women survivors of intimate partner violence

Children living in households where severe intimate partner violence (IPV) exists sometimes move with their mothers to shelters for battered women. Although there is an increased interest in research exploring children's exposure to IPV, little is known about children's subjective experiences during their stay in shelters. The present study examines children's views of their disconnection from their social and familial networks during their stay in a shelter. Using qualitative methods, 32 children, ages 7–12 years, who resided in a shelter were interviewed. Thematic analysis was implemented to develop codes and themes. The following five themes emerged from the data analysis: (a) absence of grandparents, (b) worry about older siblings, (c) disconnection from the neighbourhood, (d) missing their house and (e) disconnection from previous school and classmates. Findings suggest that children's disconnection from previous formal and informal networks significantly affected their well-being. The findings are discussed and interpreted in light of selected key concepts of Bronfenbrenner's bioecological model. The limitations of this study are discussed, along with implications for future research, as well as highlights for future intervention.     

What does empathy sound like in social work communication? A mixed‐methods study of empathy in child protection social work practice

It is widely accepted that empathy is important for social work practice, yet there are multiple dimensions of empathy and comparatively few studies of empathy as a component of social work skill. To date, published studies have been quantitative, and as a result, we know little about how social workers demonstrate empathy in practice or what skilled empathic practice in child and family social work might sound like. This study contributes to the development of understanding of empathy as a social work skill through a mixed‐methods analysis of 110 audio recordings of meetings in a child protection service between workers and parents, applying a coding framework for analysis. Findings indicate that workers who demonstrate higher levels of empathy skill use more open questions and reflections in their communication with parents. Further, they demonstrate curiosity about and make efforts to understand parents' often difficult experiences, including a focus on emotions. That the majority of workers were found not to demonstrate a high level of empathy skill presents concerns to be considered by the social work profession. A deeper understanding of empathy presents an opportunity for an increased focus in organizations to enable workers to demonstrate empathy towards families they work with.     

War Leaves an Enduring Legacy in Combatants’ Lives

The memory of combat experience endures in World War II veterans. As veterans age, traumatic memory that previously may have been suppressed in the busyness of family and everyday life can re-emerge. Combat stress may affect not only the veterans, but also those people closely associated with them. Interviews were conducted with World War II veteran aircrew, wives, children, grandchildren, siblings, and friends to examine the impact of combat experience on the veterans and the family across the life course from the perspectives of the various participants. The combat experience significantly affected the life course of most.     

大陆与台湾失踪儿童青少年协寻工作的比较分析

儿童青少年遭遇诱拐及逃家是中国大陆和台湾热议的社会现象和社会问题之一。笔者通过在台湾实习经历以及对大陆与台湾失踪儿童青少年协寻工作开展状况的深入了解,就两岸失踪儿童青少年协寻工作进行比较研究,提出借鉴台湾经验、提高大陆失踪儿童青少年协寻工作水平的建议。     

A perfect storm: Challenges encountered by family caregivers of persons with Alzheimer’s disease during natural disasters

ABSTRACT

Since Hurricane Katrina there has been a movement across the U.S. to examine best practice for disaster response within the aging population. However, little is known about the experience of natural disasters from the perspective of family caregivers of persons with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia (ADRD). In this exploratory, qualitative study, family caregivers (n=27) were interviewed about their experience with the historic 2015 South Carolina flood. By using thematic analysis, themes were identified to better understand what unique challenges caregivers of person with ADRD experienced. While many caregivers stated they had experienced a natural disaster previously, none had ever done so in their current caregiving role. The caregiving role affected their ability to prepare for the storm and influenced their decision-making regarding evacuation and utilization of recovery resources. Thus, caregivers were confronted by a “perfect storm” of circumstances and uncertainty. Family caregivers need to have actionable emergency plans for disasters that are specific to their role as caregivers of persons with ADRD. Study implications also suggest the role social work professionals can have in educating, advocating, evaluating, and coordinating support to assist caregivers of persons with ADRD as a potentially vulnerable and at-risk population during all phases of disaster.     

Patterns of Social Support in the Middle Childhood to Early Adolescent Transition: Implications for Adjustment

Children's social networks often include close family members, extended family members, and friends, but little is known about interindividual differences in the patterning of support from these sources. In this study, we used person‐oriented analyses to differentiate patterns of support for children undergoing the transition to adolescence. Social network and adjustment data were collected for an ethnically diverse sample of 691 fourth‐ and sixth‐grade children, with a two‐year follow‐up. Cluster analyses identified one pattern of support from both close family members and friends, a second pattern of support from both close and extended family members, and a third pattern of support primarily from close family members alone. Participants receiving support from close family in combination with either extended family or friends were better adjusted than were those without multiple support resources. The results suggest that a meaningful typology of children's social networks can be developed.     

Job‐related stress,social support,and work–family conflict among Mexican workers in a multinational company: A case study of a Korean‐owned,US‐branded former “sweatshop” in Mexico

Due to globalization and outsourcing of commodity production, an estimated 60 million workers are employed in the garment industry by multinational corporations, yet relatively little is known about the work–family tensions experienced by these workers. Building on role stress and job demands–resources theories, this study employed mixed methods to examine job stressors, support, and work–family conflict (WFC) in a sample of 168 Mexican workers in a multinational factory, a rarely studied and underserved population. As hypothesized, results of hierarchical regression analyses indicated that workers experienced high job stress and WFC. Social support from spouses, family, and friends increased the positive association between job stress and WFC, suggesting that culturally relevant obligations increased WFC. This study highlights the need for multinational corporations to implement culturally adaptive, family‐friendly policies. Implications for social workers in multinational work organizations and for future research are discussed.     

Experiences of Women on Public Assistance

Although much has been written regarding the effectiveness and efficiency of the various antipoverty programs, very little information is available on the recipients' perceptions of and experiences with these programs. This article addresses this issue and presents qualitative results of interviews with 8 recipients of both cash assistance (e.g., Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) and in-kind assistance (e.g., Section 8 housing). The average age of the participants was 37.5; all were females with children from 2 to 5 years old. Overall, the major themes that emerged include lack of work programs, difficulties in forming a permanent family life with a partner, feelings of shame and disrespect, an insecure future, and a sadness regarding life's outcome. These findings suggest that antipoverty programs should focus not only on financial concerns but also on the individual's desire to be a contributing member of society.     

‘Not a good person’: family stigma of mental illness from the perspectives of young siblings

The purpose of this paper is to critically examine family stigma as one form of the stigma of mental illness in child and youth mental health. Presented are the outcomes of a thematic content analysis of in‐depth, semi‐structured interviews conducted with seven (n = 7) young siblings, ages 13 to 21 years old, with a brother or sister identified as having a mental‐health issue. The focus of the interviews was on the ways the siblings experienced their other sibling's mental health and how those experiences shaped their sense of self and family. From the analysis, young siblings had predominately negative experiences, struggled with making sense of their brother or sister and the family as ‘flawed’ against the mental illness as ‘bad’ and experienced considerable family stress and overt family stigma. Current practice theories fail to consider the complexity of these factors and, in doing so, fail to adequately explain the nature and extent to which stigmatization occurs for immediate family members. The importance of peer support and understanding stigma in social work practice with children and their families is discussed.     

Adult children of parents with mental illness: navigating stigma

The experiences of children who live with parental mental illness are becoming increasingly recognized. However, there remains a limited body of knowledge in relation to an individual's longer term experiences. This study sought adult children's experiences of childhood parental mental illness. It generated reflections of 13 adult children who had lived with parents with mental illness during their childhood. The narrative design of the study facilitated a voice for participants. The paper presents one main theme of the findings. The findings offer a unique insight into childhood awareness of social stigmas and children's behavioural changes to avoid disclosure of parental mental illness. Participants noted that they were aware of social stigmas associated with mental illness during their childhood. This contributed to their fear of disclosure to others that fuelled a culture of familial secrecy, reinforcing the children's own sense of difference. Further work is required to enhance community understanding about the familial journeys of parental mental illness and the impact of negative‐natured stigmas.     

Voices of recovery: what helps in the recovery of people with lived experiences of mental disorder

Eight participants were recruited from a mental wellness centre run by SRACP in Hong Kong. The participants were interviewed with a focus on the factors they had found helpful in their experience of recovering from mental disorders. Analysed results identified seven themes: (1) receiving support from one or more helping professionals; (2) work; (3) social relationships; (4) treatments; (5) changes in own beliefs and attitudes; (6) self-management, and (7) religion. These themes are explored in this paper, which proposes that the practices of a mental health service can be better oriented towards recovery if there is increased focus on these different aspects of recovery.     

‘The Whole Family Suffered,So the Whole Family Needs to Recover’: Thematic Analysis of Substance-Abusing Mothers’ Family Therapy Sessions

ABSTRACT

Substance-abusing mothers and their children are more likely to experience a range of social, behavioral, and psychological difficulties. Despite the significant challenges faced by these families, little is known about their experiences in treatment. The current study analyzed 12 sessions of family therapy using thematic analysis to identify common themes that arose during discussion between substance-abusing mothers and their children during family therapy. Mothers’ ages ranged from 28 to 35 years old, and the children's ages ranged from 12 to 14 years old. Four therapy sessions from 3 families were coded for a total of 12 therapy sessions. An ecological framework was used to classify themes, in which themes related to each level of the families’ ecological systems were identified. Thematic analysis of the therapy sessions indicated that mothers and their children primarily discussed topics related to their relational and emotional needs. The findings indicated that mothers with substance use disorders and their children have unique treatment needs that should be addressed when the mother seeks treatment. More research is needed to further clarify and confirm the observations in this study. In particular, future research should include a larger sample and quantitative methodology.     

Children living with parental substance misuse: A cross‐sectional profile of children and families referred to children's social care

Parental substance misuse is a significant public health and children's rights issue. In the United Kingdom, social workers frequently work with children and families affected by substance misuse. However, relatively little is known about this population, particularly at point of referral to children's social care. This paper reports on the largest known study of parental substance misuse as a feature of children's social care work in England. The paper provides a cross‐sectional profile of 299 children living with parental substance misuse and referred to children's social care in one local authority in England. Data were collected from social work case files at the point of referral to social care about the child, family, the wider environment, and parental substance misuse. The findings show that children affected by parental substance misuse frequently had other support needs relating to their well‐being and mental health. Children were also likely to be experiencing other parental and environmental risk factors. The significant historical—and in some cases intergenerational—social care involvement for some families indicates potential issues with the capacity of services to meet needs. Recommendations for practice are discussed with a particular focus on the need for early, comprehensive support for children and families.     

NORC Supportive Services Model Implementation and Community Capacity

As community residents age, service delivery systems may not be equipped to meet their changing needs. The Naturally Occurring Retirement Community (NORC) model has emerged as a strategy to utilize existing resources and develop a comprehensive approach to maintaining older adult functional status. However, little has been written about how community capacity influences NORC implementation. A community capacity framework was used to analyze the themes that emerged from participant and service provider interviews at two diverse NORC sites. The findings revealed that perceptions of a sense of community and partnership management influenced the NORC experience for participants and providers.     

Are middle schoolers with diverse friends liked,disliked, or unnoticed - and by whom?

Having cross-ethnic friends in early adolescence is associated with more positive intergroup attitudes, but little is known about the social signaling function of the diversity of friends. The current study examined how the ethnic diversity of students’ friends in seventh grade is related to their social status (e.g., acceptance, rejection, and social impact) by eighth grade in multi-ethnic schools. It is hypothesized that friend diversity is (a) related to higher social status among ethnic out-group peers as it signals inclusiveness, but (b) related to lower in-group social status as diversity of friends may threaten the ethnic in-group. Utilizing a longitudinal sample of ethnically diverse youth (n = 4653) from 26 middle schools, the study capitalizes on outgoing friendship nominations in seventh grade and incoming acceptance and rejection nominations in eighth grade, while controlling for overall social status in grade seven. A novel index was used to calculate the diversity of youth's friend groups, and precise coding was done to retain biracial youth in the analytic sample. Results showed that having diverse friends was related to higher visibility (i.e., social impact) and greater acceptance from ethnic out-group members. In contrast, adolescents with diverse friend groups were less visible and less accepted by their in-group. Diversity of friends was not associated with out-group or in-group rejection. Findings highlight the importance of understanding how the composition of friend groups may signal intergroup attitudes and in-group solidarity in ways that have social status trade-offs among out- and in-group members.     

浅析高校社会工作实验室利用问题

我国高等院校社会工作专业实验室建设的步伐在日益加快,社会工作专业的教师和学生对实验室在教学过程中扮演的重要角色认识的也愈来愈清楚。由于目前实验室的利用仍然处在一个摸索前进的阶段,仍然普遍存在着一些亟待解决的问题.如何充分发挥社会工作实验室的作用,科学合理利用实验室的资源业已成为每一个社会工作专业工作者关心的主要问题。本文针对目前国内高校中社会工作实验室的现状,结合作者本身工作经验,提出了一些改进措施。     

Exploring crisis and its effects on workers in child protective services work

An inquiry into child welfare protective services workers’ perceptions and experiences in the United States was conducted in order to examine their perceptions of crisis and crisis intervention, and the emotional impact of working with children who endured significant maltreatment. As there is presently little research that has explored these issues specifically from the point of view of the workers, a qualitative grounded theory approach was utilized. Four themes emerged from the data: workers perceived crisis as a result of biopsychosocial breakdown; workers routinely triage when faced with crises; workers are subject to vicarious traumatization; and workers’ personal lives are affected by their work. The findings add to an existing body of knowledge about secondary trauma in child welfare by providing information about the investigative workers’ subjective experience of it. This research adds a unique contribution to understanding workers’ subjective experience of crisis on the job, how it manifests, and whether they feel knowledgeable in the area of crisis intervention.     

Social Work Student Interest in Nursing Home Employment: A North American Study

Nursing homes (NHs) are a primary setting for gerontological social work; yet, little is known about social workers' career interest relative to this setting. This article reports the findings of an online survey of social work students (177 US and 91 Canadian) that sought to identify personal characteristics and beliefs that influence NH employment intentions. Students who were enrolled in bachelors programs, lacked previous practice experience, and had already had a NH field placement or wanted this experience were more likely to express employment intent. The implications of these findings for social work education and research are discussed.     

Who Wants to be a Social Worker? Using Routine Published Data to Identify Trends in the Numbers of People Applying for and Completing Social Work Programmes in England

Despite widely reported problems with recruitment and retention,there is surprisingly little published research investigatingthe numbers of people wishing to enter social work and theirdemographic characteristics. This article uses routinely collectedpublished higher education data and reports produced by theGeneral Social Care Council (GSCC) and its predecessor the CentralCouncil Education for Education and Training in Social Work(CCETSW) to look at recent trends in the numbers of people wishingto become social workers. It argues that information on theoverall numbers of people applying each year is less helpfulthan understanding more about which groups are under-representedin social work and why. It also draws attention to some positiveindicators, such as the comparative success of social work inattracting groups who may currently be under-represented inhigher education. In addition to suggesting that we need toknow more about the numbers and types of people applying tobe social workers, it concludes that additional work is requiredin establishing employment patterns among the social work workforceas a whole. For example, a high proportion of newly qualifiedsocial workers take up paid employment in social work, but littleis known about what happens to them at later stages of theircareer.