In college and in recovery: Reasons for joining a Collegiate Recovery Program

ABSTRACT

Objective: Collegiate Recovery Programs (CRPs), a campus-based peer support model for students recovering from substance abuse problems, grew exponentially in the past decade, yet remain unexplored. Methods: This mixed-methods study examines students' reasons for CRP enrollment to guide academic institutions and referral sources. Students (N = 486) from the 29 CRPs nationwide operating in 2012 completed an online survey in 2013. Results: Students were somewhat older than traditional age (mean age = 26). Now sober for 3 years (mean), they had experienced severe dependence on multiple substances. One third reported they would not be in college were it not for a CRP, and 20% would not be at their current institution. Top reasons for joining a CRP were the need for same-age peer recovery support and wanting to “do college sober,” recognizing that college life challenges sobriety. Conclusions: CRPs appear to meet their mission of allowing recovering students to pursue educational goals in “an abstinence hostile environment.” Findings emphasize the need for more institutions to address the support needs of students in recovery.     

Impediments to Health Care for the Foreign Student

Abstract

Today's college students occupy a “window” between older adults, whose need for hepatitis B vaccination is minimal, and younger people who receive the vaccine as part of their childhood immunization series. However, because of the high-risk activities that are often part of student behavior, college students are among the individuals who are at the highest risk for this disease; 75% of all reported hepatitis B cases occur in persons between the ages of 15 and 39 years. It is therefore imperative that college health professionals take seriously their responsibility to educate students about issues related to hepatitis B and make available programs that enable the students to receive immunizations. This article briefly describes a successful hepatitis B education and immunization program at an institution that has no mandatory prematriculation immunization requirements.     

What “likes” have got to do with it: Exposure to peers' alcohol-related posts and perceptions of injunctive drinking norms

Objective: Examine 1) whether observed social reinforcements (i.e., “likes”) received by peers' alcohol-related social media posts are related to first-year college students' perceptions of peer approval for risky drinking behaviors; and 2) whether associations are moderated by students' alcohol use status. Participants: First-year university students (N = 296) completed an online survey in September, 2014. Method: Participants reported their own alcohol use, friends' alcohol use, perceptions of the typical student's approval for risky drinking, and ranked 10 types of social media posts in terms of the relative numbers of “likes” received when posted by peers. Results: Observed social reinforcement (i.e., “likes”) for peers' alcohol-related posts predicted perceptions of peer approval for risky drinking behaviors among non-drinking students, but not drinking students. Conclusions: For first-year college students who have not yet initiated drinking, observing peers' alcohol-related posts to receive abundant “likes” may increase perceptions of peer approval for risky drinking.     

Healing the Hidden Injuries of Class? Redemption Narratives,Aspirational Proxies,and Parents of Low‐Income,First‐Generation College Students

Existing scholarship has examined how low‐income individuals conceptualize their socioeconomically constrained positions in relation to the meritocratic ideologies and stratified mobility structures of the United States, but little is specifically known about how these individuals' ideas regarding their own status may be impacted by raising children who surpass their educational and occupational achievement levels. Drawing on interview data from both low‐income first‐generation (LIFG) college students and the parents of those students, this article examines how parents framed the achievements of their upwardly mobile, college‐going children in relation to their own experiences of socioeconomic, educational, and occupational constraint. Engaging qualitative understandings of the “hidden injuries of class,” the analysis demonstrates how parents of LIFG college students reconciled their own experiences of limited mobility despite hard work with their steadfast beliefs in meritocratic ideals by (1) invoking narratives of personal “redemption” from past “mistakes” or “failures” in relation to their children's educational accomplishments, and (2) conceptualizing their upwardly mobile children as “aspirational proxies” through whose accomplishments they measured their own success.     

School Discipline,Race, and the Discursive Construction of the “Deficient” Student

Abstract

Research has demonstrated how, in the current era of mass incarceration, the punitive arm of the state now extends beyond traditional criminal justice structures into institutions typically associated with providing care or a social good. The negative effects of this shift have disproportionately impacted marginalized populations, particularly low-income black and Latino communities. This article examines one way that this extension has manifested in the realm of public education. Based on ethnographic data from a public Grade 6–12 Disciplinary Alternative Education Program (DAEP) in Texas, this article scrutinizes the program’s behavioral rules and disciplinary procedures. The analysis focuses on students’ introductory experience to the DAEP as a “strategic research site” to illuminate the program’s formal objectives, methods to achieve their institutional goals, and their intended effects on students. I find that the practices and procedures in place at the DAEP operate through racializing surveillance to constitute “disciplinary technologies” devoted to the transformation of “culturally deficient” students—a racialized and gendered classification—into docile bodies. Students are disciplined through punitive and rehabilitative methods premised on the discursive construction of “deficient” students and families.     

The College Student Psychiatric Emergency: II Diagnosis and Disposition

Abstract

Student psychiatric emergencies are a cause of great concern on college campuses, and they merit further study. The authors elucidate some of the characteristics of 1,156 visits to a hospital psychiatric emergency department made by 933 students over an eight-year period. The diagnoses given to students in emergencies were found to be equally divided among psychosis, neurosis, personality disorder, and “other.” Only about 30% of the students' visits to the psychiatric emergency department resulted in admission to the hospital; the implications, for college mental health programs, of having 70% of psychiatric emergencies returned to campus is discussed.

“Prevention of Acute Mountain Sickness by Dexamethasone,” T. Scott Johnson, et al. Acute mountain sickness is a syndrome that occurs when unacclimatized persons ascend rapidly to high altitudes. It is postulated that cerebral edema causes its symptoms. Since dexamethasone is useful in treating some forms of cerebral edema, we investigated its role in the prevention of acute mountain sickness. Using a double-blind crossover design, we exposed eight young men to a simulated altitude of 4570 m (15,000 ft) on two occasions. By random assignment, each subject received dexamethasone (4 mg every 6 hours) or placebo for 48 hours before and throughout the 42-hour exposure. The presence of symptoms of acute mountain sickness was established by two methods: a questionnaire and an interview by a physician. Dexamethasone significantly reduced the symptoms of acute mountain sickness. During dexamethasone treatment, the cerebral-symptom score (mean ± S.E.) decreased from 1.09 ± 0.18 to 0.26 ± 0.08, and the respiratory-symptom score decreased from 0.64 ± 0.09 to 0.31 ± 0.06 (both, P < 0.05). As judged by the interviewing physician, the symptom score decreased from 1.10 ± 0.11 to 0.28 ± 0.07 (P = 0.01). We conclude that dexamethasone may be effective in preventing the symptoms of acute mountain sickness. (New England Journal of Medicine 1984;310:683–6.)     

Academic Civic Mindedness and Model Citizenship in the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme

This study uses interview and survey methods to describe the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Programme's (DP) development of students' “academic civic mindedness” and “model citizenship” at four public schools in California. Results indicate that the DP pedagogy enables students to develop many of the skills that are necessary for civic advocacy and that the DP places a strong emphasis on students' knowledge of issues related to public policy. The DP develops students' citizenship through promoting their awareness of political and social issues and required active engagement with a local or global issue. Most IB students and teachers feel that the DP develops students' academic civic mindedness and model citizenship to a considerably greater extent than other curricular alternatives. Finally, teachers feel that the strongest limitation to their prioritization of students' citizenship development is their lack of clarity on how to frame the civic implications of what they teach.     

A Teaching Framework for Transformative Multicultural Social Work Education

Abstract

A major challenge in multicultural social work education is fostering meaningful learning experiences for students by matching educational methods and content to students' individual learning needs and characteristics. Building upon transformative learning theory developed by Jack Mezirow, this paper proposes a teaching framework for transformative multicultural social work education that addresses students' individual learning needs and characteristics. This framework uses the dimensions of cultural knowledge and cultural sensitivity to represent four potential stances of cross-cultural learning in students. The paper provides a detail discussion regarding the learning needs and learning foci of students at each stance, and useful teaching strategies and activities that enhance students' transformative learning process so that they develop integrative knowledge about self and others in a dynamic multicultural society from multiple perspectives.     

Do “Clicker” Educational Sessions Enhance the Effectiveness of a Social Norms Marketing Campaign?

Abstract

Objective: Social norms campaigns are a cost-effective way to reduce high-risk drinking on college campuses. This study compares effectiveness of a “standard” social norms media (SNM) campaign for those with and without exposure to additional educational sessions using audience response technology (“clickers”). Methods: American College Health Association's National College Health Assessment questions are used to evaluate actual and perceived use. Additional survey questions assess individual exposure to the interventions. Results: The authors find “clicker” technology to be more effective than social norms poster media alone in reducing misperceptions of normative alcohol use for those students who attended clicker sessions. Conclusion: Poster SNM campaigns may be most effective when supported by group “clicker” heath-related sessions.     

Rural-urban differences in college students’ cardiovascular risk perceptions

Abstract

Objective: To examine rural-urban differences in college students’ cardiovascular risk perceptions. Participants: College students in rural (n?=?61) and urban (n?=?57) Kentucky counties were recruited from November 2012 to May 2014. Methods: This was a secondary data analysis of a cross-sectional study examining rural-urban differences in cardiovascular risk factors. Students rated their risk for developing high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol, heart disease, having a stroke, and gaining excess weight. Chi-square and logistic regression were used for data analysis. Results: Rural students had lower odds of perceived high risk for developing high blood pressure compared to urban students (odds ratio (OR): 0.32, 95% CI: 0.11–0.96) after adjusting for race, sex, and body mass index. This association was not observed after adjusting for healthcare access variables. No other significant differences were observed. Conclusions: Efforts to raise perceived risk for developing hypertension among rural college students may be warranted.     

Waterpipe Smoking Among College Students in the United States: A Review of the Literature

Abstract

Objective: To review the literature on college student waterpipe use with a focus on undergraduates in the United States. Participants: Undergraduate students. Methods: Studies were accessed using the databases PubMed, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, and Academic Search Premier. Searches included combinations of the following keywords: “waterpipe,” “hookah,” “shisha,” “nargila,” “argileh,” “hubble bubble,” “college,” “university,” and “student.” Results: Results demonstrate that approximately 1 in 5 American college students report past-year waterpipe use. Results also suggest that there are a number of established correlates of waterpipe smoking, including male gender, Arab ethnicity, cigarette smoking, and the belief that waterpipe smoking is less harmful than cigarette smoking. Conclusions: Despite its harmful health effects, waterpipe smoking is quite common among college students. Future research with better methodologies and theoretical frameworks are needed to advance the field.     

Legal-Age Students' Provision of Alcohol to Underage College Students: An Exploratory Study

Objective: The authors investigated the magnitude and cultural context of legal-age university students' provision of alcohol to underage students and how such alcohol provision might be deterred.

Participants: 130 legal-age students at a midwestern university in the United States were randomly selected.

Methods: The authors assessed 16 focus groups and a thematic analysis.

Results: Most participants reported frequent alcohol provision. Most denied moral responsibility for any negative consequences that recipients might suffer. Small numbers of participants, chiefly women, would decrease alcohol provision after education on the sexual risks to underage females. Larger numbers would decrease provision in response to consistent law enforcement, severe legal and disciplinary penalties, and education on severe penalties.

Conclusions: Legal-age students' provision of alcohol to underage students is an integral part of college students' drinking culture. As a deterrent, an enforcement-based campaign may be more effective than an educational campaign on the possible negative consequences of alcohol for underage students.     

Etherapy: A Training Program for Development of Clinical Skills in Distance Psychotherapy

ABSTRACT

This article describes a project by the Virtual Teaching and Cyberpsychology Laboratory of the National Autonomous University of Mexico developed to (1) implement a teaching program for clinical psychology students to learn therapeutic skills in providing online psychological services; (2) evaluate the students' acquisition of knowledge and skills in diagnosis via the Internet, case formulation of treatment, and adherence to treatment protocols; and (3) incorporate technologies for creating training settings and online professional services in order to develop the students' clinical competency in this treatment modality. A pilot study was conducted with 17 clinical psychology students in the first phase of the teaching program and 6 students during the second phase. Preliminary results indicate that students increased knowledge of Internet-based clinical interventions and improved in clinical skills. It is necessary to continue the evaluation of the teaching program with larger samples, and further research is suggested.     

The Black Community's Challenge to Social Work

This paper is a report of an experience at Saint Louis University in the development of testing procedures that allow students to receive advanced standing in Practicum I. The procedures assess the students' readiness for Practicum II through an examination of previous social work experience using written, oral, and skill presentations. Through the examination process, it is possible to recognize and utilize prior social work experience and incorporate it in a sound educational program.     

Japanese Contributions to Theory and Practice in Developmental Psychology

ABSTRACT

Despite the potential of digitally enhanced learning environments for supporting twenty-first-century learning and educational change, there is a dearth of research knowledge on students’ transformative agency in their use of digital technologies and media within these contexts. Transformative agency accounts for young people’s initiative and commitment to transform their activity and its context(s) for personal and/or academic ends. This paper reports an investigation of students’ transformative agency in a novel, student-centered design and learning environment, referred to as a makerspace. We present our empirical findings as a narrative, illustrating how transformative agency emerged and developed via three intertwined discursive and action-level manifestations of such agency, namely “deviating”, “switching”, and “transfiguring”, in the social activity of a group of four 5th grade students participating in the makerspace environment over one school semester. Our study makes an original contribution to the research on students’ transformative agency and its temporal unfolding in a novel digitally enhanced learning environment.     

The Emergency Dental Service at Southern Illinois University/Carbondale

Abstract

The Student Emergency Dental Service (SEDS), a program of Allied Health and Public Services, Southern Illinois University at Carbondale (SIUC), began treating patients in January 1978. The purpose of the program is twofold. The main emphasis of SEDS is to treat patients with dental-related disorders of an emergency nature. The other purpose of SEDS is to help raise the level of dental knowledge among the student population so as to prevent the emergency situations from occurring.

The Student Emergency Dental Service is essentially an “emergency only” service, even though prevention is highlighted. Such an emergency service cannot compete with a comprehensive service in terms of providing total patient dental care. Hence, the SEDS program has some innate limitations a comprehensive service does not. It must work from certain guidelines. It cannot treat everyone, and the mode of treatment must be altered to aid the emergency patient. This creates dilemmas that will be addressed in this paper. The organization, accomplishments, and advantages and disadvantages of the SEDS program at Southern Illinois University are also discussed.     

The Absurd Healer: Perspectives of a Community Psychiatrist,Matthew P. Dumont,M.D. New York,Science House, 1968. 196 pp. $7.95 Hardbound

The program described in this paper was designed to provide educational opportunity for minority group students who wished to pursue a professional career in social work, but were hampered by lack of information, limitations in preparation, and need for financial assistance. It had a dual focus: remediation of gaps in students' academic preparation and development of a sense of alternatives by raising their level of educational and career aspirations.

The program was conducted for three summers—1970, 1971, and 1972. It was considered extremely successful in view of the large number of students who returned to Smith or enrolled in other MSW programs. It was discontinued after 1972 because of lack of funds.     

“问题解决”在高校计算机公共课中应用的思考

立足于当前高校计算机基础教学的现状，综合分析了“问题解决”的教学模式，结合实例探讨了其实践应用，以提高教学质量，培养学生信息素养和综合能力。     

Response to Nettie Scott and Spencer Zeiger

This study of 285 BSW students over a 4-year period examines the students' initial attitudes toward learning research and identifies associated characteristics. In contrast to social work students' reputation of being “research reluctant,” findings reveal considerable variation, with a large portion of students reporting overall positive attitudes. Ordinary least squares regressions revealed that women and students with less statistical knowledge are more fearful of research courses, while older students and those with greater levels of social work empowerment find research courses to be more appealing. The study findings suggest 3 pedagogical principles upon which various teaching strategies may be based.