The short life of the Government Public Relations Association in the US, 1949–1958

The historical literature on US public relations has paid modest attention to the professionalization of the practice in the public sector. This is an historical summary of the Government Public Relations Association, which existed between 1949 and 1958. It attempted to organize a professional association of, largely, public relations officers at the municipal level of government. Its failure to become institutionalized likely reflects the tenuous status of the overt practice of public relations in the US public sector.     

Systemic Barriers to the Employment of Social Workers in Alcohol and Other Drug Treatment Agencies

Abstract

Literature suggests a low number of social workers employed in the field of alcohol and other drug (AOD) treatment. This study shows that social workers with undergraduate degrees (BSWs) have higher rates of employment in AOD than bachelor's degree holders from other disciplines. Master's level social workers (MSWs), however, have a much lower involvement than their counterparts with counseling degrees. Six factors are inferred to partially explain MSWs' low involvement in the field: (1) low education requirements; (2) low pay; (3) absence of “social worker” positions; (4) competition among different disciplines; (5) lack of MSW interns; and (6) state certification requirement. Suggestions to increase the employment of social workers in the AOD field are offered.     

Mens Sana: The Growth of Mental Health in the American College Health Association

Abstract

In 1910, the first college mental health service sought to help college students with personality development and building a healthy mind. In 1920, the meeting that founded the American College Health Association (ACHA) identified “mental hygiene” as important, although a separate Mental Health Section was not established in ACHA until 1957. Between 1920 and 1960, a series of national meetings helped define the role and functioning of college mental health and counseling services. Most colleges employed a multidisciplinary staff of psychologists, psychiatric social workers, and psychiatrists to provide clinical services for students and consultation and education for faculty and staff. Mental health services on college campuses grew rapidly in the 1960s and 1970s, leading to discussions in the late 20th century of the use of brief psychotherapies, prevention and treatment of drug and alcohol abuse, prevention of suicide and homicide, the use of psychotropic medications, and effective campus interventions.     

The Attitudes of Social Work Students and Practicing Psychiatric Social Workers Toward the Inclusion in the Community of People with Mental Illness

Abstract

This study measured and compared the attitudes of social work students and practicing psychiatric social workers to the inclusion in the community of people with mental illness. The Community Living Attitude Scale Mental Illness (comprising the four subscales of Empowerment, Exclusion, Sheltering, and Similarity) was administered to a random sample of 68 Israeli BA social work students (first year: n = 35; third year: n = 33) and 28 practicing psychiatric social workers. Overall, the participants endorsed Empowerment and perceived the Similarity of persons with mental illness to themselves more than they agreed with the Exclusion attitude of segregating those persons from community life. First-year students rated Empowerment and Similarity significantly lower than did the third-year students and rated Sheltering significantly higher than did psychiatric social workers. Psychiatric social workers did not differ from third-year students and did not have stronger attitudinal commitment to the inclusion paradigm. They differed from first-year students only in the sheltering attitude; they showed lower support for sheltering people with mental illness.     

世界特大城市社会风险防范研究和启示

随着经济全球化和互联网时代的到来,人类社会已进入了高风险社会时期,各种社会风险活动将会更加频繁,给地球生态和人类社会的和谐发展带来巨大威胁,特别是世界一些特大城市,由于人口的复杂化和规模的巨型化,往往成为社会风险的重灾区。世界特大城市在防范社会风险方面积累了许多成功的经验和做法,并在法律层面上得到保障,列入了国家的防御制度之一,这对快速城市化发展的中国在加强特大城市的社会管理和社会风险防范具有重要的启示和借鉴意义。     

学缘网络维度下留学人员社团组织形态的变迁

根据学缘网络理论建构分析在英、法、德三国的中国留学人员社团组织发展情况发现,与以往历史时期的留学人员社团组织相比较,新的社团组织受时代发展的影响,在组织形式、基本性质、组织目标等诸多方面都发生了巨大的变化。这就要求我国以全球化的视野和全新的方式方法处理留学人员社团组织问题,妥善加以引导,使其在留学人员权益保障、人才引进等方面充分发挥作用。     

Urban and Indigenous: The Challenges of being a Native American in the City

The United States is home to more than 4 million Native Americans, the majority of whom live in urban areas. Urban Native Americans often experience significant social, health, and economic problems while having access to substantially fewer Native-specific resources than their reservation-based counterparts. They also face challenges with access to tribal services and political processes, as well as identity-sustaining cultural resources. This article describes the urban nature of many contemporary Native American communities. Examples from various urban Native American communities highlight the challenges faced by urban Native people, as well as creative initiatives developed to serve this population. This paper draws on and synthesizes the literature on contemporary urban Native communities, thus providing needed information for service providers and researchers working in these communities.     

The role of social work field education programmes in the transmission of developmental social work knowledge in Southern and East Africa

This paper reports on the findings of a study on the role of social work field education programmes in the transmission of developmental social work knowledge in Southern and East Africa. It highlights the challenges in locating developmental social work placements and the creativity shown by social work educators in addressing these challenges and improving learning opportunities for social work students. Both academics and students were found to be committed to developmental social work, within a willing practice environment hampered by knowledge, capacity and resource constraints. Social work education was found to be playing a transformative role through the teaching of a developmental social work curriculum and the creation of collaborative developmental social work learning experiences. Social work educators trained and supported agency supervisors in developmental social work, while students served as conduits, modelling developmental social work practice. What has yet to be determined in future research is the students’ perspective of this developmental educational environment.     

Readers' response: The place of social work in the Contemporary University: Meeting the challenges of the profession and the Academy

Abstract

The pressure to attract funds and produce research, to spend more time on scholarship rather than on teaching and practice links challenges the nature of social work education. This paper outlines the impact of both funding cuts and the managerial and business culture of contemporary Australian Universities on the teaching of social work. It addresses social work practitioners concerns' about these changes, and outlines attempts made by social work schools to respond to these challenges.