The Impact of Parental Incarceration on Children: An Emerging Need for Effective Interventions

The increasing number of children with incarcerated parents constitutes perhaps one of the largest at-risk populations in the United States. Short- and long-term effects of parental incarceration are difficult to quantify; however, the current literature indicates that this population is negatively responding to major shifts in family structure, and is vulnerable to economic stress and adverse interpersonal issues. Service providers are seeking appropriate intervention strategies to address the resultant issues of parental incarceration. Unfortunately, there is a paucity of research on effective practice methods. This paper reviews the literature on the potential implications parental incarceration has on children, and discusses service providers’ concerted efforts to allay the consequences. Recommendations for appropriate data collection and identification of relevant gender, developmental, and cultural interventions are provided.     

Interest,Ideology, and Claims-Making Activity*

Social constructionists have produced a rich theoretical and empirical literature on the rise and fall of public issues. By focusing exclusively on claims-making behavior in a micro interactive context, social constructionists, in the tradition of Spector and Kitsuse, generally have rejected efforts to link claims-making to antecedent variables. Thus they often treat claims-making participants as activities, devoid of motives, meanings, and intentions. In this paper, ideology and interest are offered as antecedent variables to claims-making and as the critical factors which determine why some claims are more marketable than others. Interest and ideology also are examined as both subjective and structural/cultural phenomena.     

Problems and Issues in Social Casework,by Scott Briar and Henry Miller. New York,Columbia University Press, 1971. 274 Pages, $9.00. Hardbound

Abstract

The rapid growth and increasing visibility of ethnic and racial groups has vigorously challenged social work to educate students for ethnic-competent practice in cross-cultural settings. This article examines an approach to teaching effective intervention involving ethnic and racial groups and helping students integrate cultural factors and society's concerns into clinical practice. Pedagogical issues and classroom processes of teaching culturally sensitive and competent interpersonal practice are discussed. Implications are drawn for culturally sensitive education and issues are raised for critical examination.     

Cultural sensitivity treatment and research issues with black adolescent drug users

Adolescent drug abuse is one of the nations' leading social problems. Secondary intervention programs have rarely designed treatments to address specific issues pertinent to the black adolescent drug user. Among these special issues is cultural sensitivity in clinical practice and research. A review of the research literature revealed no empirical work that has been conducted in the area of cultural sensitivity as it relates to black male adolescent substance abusers.The author proposes methodological considerations as applied to four phases of treatment: assessment, planning intervention, implementation, and termination and gives suggestions for how culturally sensitive therapeutic intervention can be conducted with chemically dependent adolescent black males.     

Representing harmony and diversity: media representations of multiculturalism and ethnicity in Singapore

This article investigates multiculturalism and ethnicity in Singapore. The study conducted a qualitative content analysis of articles appearing in the Straits Times newspaper over a three month period in 2010. It was found that multicultural harmony tended to be represented as unnatural, fragile, and requiring government intervention. There also tended to be a focus on distinct and fixed ethnic identities, reflecting an essentialist understanding of ethnicity. These beliefs about the nature of multiculturalism and ethnic identity were reflected in the coverage of three major social issues. These were the perceived needs to maintain the ethnic composition of Singapore’s population, efforts to prevent cultural corruption or neglect, and concerns about the impact of immigration on multicultural harmony.     

News coverage of alcohol and other drugs in U.S. college newspapers

This study investigated the substance use-related content of a sample of student-run college newspapers. Two independent coders examined 157 news stories, features, editorials, commentaries, letters, photographs, and cartoons. Items about alcohol appeared in one out of every two issues, while items about other drugs appeared in one out of every five issues. Basic information about alcohol and other drug (AOD) use was reported in about one-fifth of the items, while three-fourths dealt with social, legal, safety, or health problems associated with AOD use, especially alcohol consumption. Just over half referred to some type of control policy, most often an enforcement action. Around one-fourth mentioned educational efforts to promote AOD prevention. Very few dealt with detection, intervention, or treatment. Most college newspapers are missing good opportunities for more extensive coverage of AOD issues that would better inform their readers, especially about factors contributing to campus AOD problems and specific program and policy options.     

‘Women from the catacombs of the city’: gender notions in Dutch culturist discourse

The current discourse on minorities in the Netherlands has two striking features: (1) it has been narrowed down to Muslim immigrants with Moroccan or Turkish backgrounds; (2) it focuses largely on gender-related issues. In this article, we suggest that there has been a historical switch in the focus of discourse on immigrants from structural factors such as employment and crime rates to cultural factors related mainly to the Islamic background of the immigrants concerned. We argue that currently the focus on gender-issues and integration in practice has the dual effects of excluding the minorities in question and of discursively counteracting the emancipation of Muslim women. Both points become apparent when reviewing the practical effects of the institutionalization of the gendered discourse on integration in policy efforts currently being undertaken. These effects are a negation of the autonomy of Muslim women and a form of ‘new racism’ that bears all the characteristics of Orientalism.     

Multicultural Considerations in the Application of Child Protection Laws

Professionals exercise a great deal ofdiscretion in the application ofmandatory reporting laws and child welfare laws. This paper examines the subjective factors that influence the decisionmaking process from labeling an incident as possible abuse or neglect through the disposition stage. Multicultural issues that affect each stage of the process are discussed. Areas of disparate treatment of minorities are considered. Disparate treatment stems from biased and unequal application of the laws in some cases, or when standards are applied and interventions made that are insensitive to the cultural context of the family. Potential consequences of failing to consider culture in applying child protection laws are biased reporting, errors in assessing perceived risk, ineffective interventions) and increased out-of-home placements. The need for a culturally sensitive approach to assessment and intervention is emphasized.. Areas for future research are recommended.     

Multicultural considerations in the application of child protection laws

Professionals exercise a great deal of discretion in the application of mandatory reporting laws and child welfare laws. This paper examines the subjective factors that influence the decisionmaking process from labeling an incident as possible abuse or neglect through the disposition stage. Multicultural issues that affect each stage of the process are discussed. Areas of disparate treatment of minorities are considered. Disparate treatment stems from biased and unequal application of the laws in some cases, or when standards are applied and interventions made that are insensitive to the cultural context of the family. Potential consequences of failing to consider culture in applying child protection laws are biased reporting, errors in assessing perceived risk, ineffective interventions, and increased out- of- home placements. The need for a culturally sensitive approach to assessment and intervention is emphasized. Areas for future research are recommended.     

Moving away from globalization and the “flattening” of Social Work: Preserving Context in International Efforts

Contextual awareness has been a professional trademark and has differentiated social work intervention from other professions. Context in social work has traditionally included tangible and intangible factors such as an intimate understanding of the cultural milieu, familiarity with local history, languages, traditions, and sensibilities. The current concern is that given the forces of globalization and managerialism, social work practice and education in many countries have distanced themselves from addressing context in curriculum building and have become mechanistic in program design and delivery. This paper contrasts the concepts of internationalization and globalization. The authors concur with the perspective that the movement to globalize society was the result of economic forces and unfortunately spread into culturally embedded fields such as social work. They propose that globalization in social work has changed the direction of former efforts at internationalization, which were designed primarily to develop cross-national perspectives on human experiences. After a review of current trends in globalization, the authors offer cautionary words about well-intended efforts that can easily become educational frameworks imposed from the outside, with the power of disrupting cultures.     

“She was more than a friend”: Clinical intervention strategies for effectively addressing disenfranchised grief issues for same-sex couples

This article focuses on grief experienced by same-sex couples with attention to the distinct factors that influence same-sex grieving partners within all social work system levels. An actual case narrative—the first author's lived experience—guides the reader through a powerful, personal journey to gain a greater perspective and connection on the impact of grief and loss. The concept of disenfranchised grief is applied to same-sex couples focusing on the grieving process. The authors delineate effective strategies for practitioner intervention for those working with individuals experiencing grief due to the loss of their same-sex partner. Particular emphasis is placed on cultural competence and cultural humility for enhanced effectiveness while working with same-sex-partner grief issues.     

Context,Diversity and Engagement: Early Intervention with Australian Aboriginal Families in Urban and Remote Contexts

This article describes challenges met implementing an early intervention programme for Aboriginal parents and their children in the NT (Northern Territory) of Australia in the context of efforts to remediate Aboriginal disadvantage. The intervention is an adaptation of an 8‐ to 10‐week, manualised parenting programme designed for four‐ to six‐year‐old children with behavioural difficulties. It was implemented for both Aboriginal and non‐Aboriginal children in urban Darwin and for Aboriginal children in three communities of the Tiwi Islands, near Darwin. Measured outcomes of the programme were positive overall with different outcomes by gender and Indigenous status. There were marked differences in retention of families from different socio‐cultural backgrounds in the programme, with a significant loss of participants from referral through commencement to six‐month follow‐up. This drop‐out was most marked for urban Aboriginal participants, despite highly flexible strategies of engagement and cultural adaptation of the approach pursued in each setting. The research provides lessons for the contextualisation of preventive interventions in diverse community settings and shows that systematic attention to cultural ‘fit’ of the intervention logic and cultural competence in engagement of disadvantaged families with multiple problems are fundamental to sustainability.     

Sexual agency,risk and vulnerability: a scoping review of young Indigenous Australians’ sexual health

This review of qualitative research examining young Indigenous Australians’ sexual health highlights the profoundly social nature of young people’s sexual lives. Nineteen peer reviewed published papers were identified for inclusion. Findings reveal efforts made by some young Indigenous Australians to control their sexual lives, mitigate risk and maintain their sexual health. The review identified factors which are conducive to sexual health risks and vulnerability, including incomplete knowledge about STIs and safer sexual practices; gossip and ridicule concerning sexual activity and its consequences; damaging expectations about male prerogatives with respect to sexual relationships; limited inter-generational communication about sexual health issues; inadequate school-based sexual health education; and tensions between Indigenous and biomedical explanations of sexual health issues. Future research priorities include a focus on young Indigenous people in cities and towns across Australia, and in regional and remote settings in New South Wales and Victoria; understanding how Indigenous cultural values support young people’s sexual health; young men’s sexual and service-based practices; and the experiences of same-sex attracted and gender diverse youth. This research would inform the design and delivery of culturally safe and acceptable sexual health services and programmes, underpinned by an understanding of factors in young Indigenous Australians’ everyday sexual lives.     

Youth Style: Articulating cultural anxiety

In their everyday efforts to put together how they “look,” adolescents visually capture and articulate complex issues that society finds difficult to express verbally. In this paper we explore these “looks” as one example of youth appearance style and as a reflection of, and an impetus for, cultural anxieties. In doing so we draw on a series of multi‐method field studies conducted over the last ten years. A key feature of these studies has been the involvement of young people themselves as key informants and co‐investigators. Data from these studies can help clarify relationships between youth appearance style and cultural themes of sexuality and violence.     

“We don't want to talk about that”: Overcoming barriers to rural aging research and interventions on sensitive topics

Geographical, economic, social and cultural barriers to accessing services in rural areas are widely reported. Less widely discussed are dilemmas posed by individual and community reluctance to address sensitive health issues. This article, focusing on the highly sensitive area of mental health, and employing a participatory action approach, describes the natural history of a project, the Mental Health and Aging Initiative (MHAI) to enhance awareness of mental health issues in rural Kentucky-Appalachian communities and overcome the reluctance of individuals in these communities to seek assistance. Funded by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), MHAI involved an educational intervention to improve knowledge about mental health and aging in rural Appalachian counties. The need to overcome significant community reluctance to engage in discussion of mental health resulted in significant modification of the protocol. The intervention was grounded in recognition of four key aspects of the local situation: (1) the need to understand the sensitivity of mental health as an element of rural culture; (2) the critical role of local community leaders as points of entry, acceptance, and action; (3) the need to overcome social stigma and reframe the topic of mental health in a more positive light; and (4) the need for methodological innovation in developing an empowering educational action plan oriented toward community-wide long-term impact. The intervention model that emerged from these considerations was based on engaging community leaders, providing educational and technical resources, and nurturing the acceptance by individual rural residents of responsibility for monitoring community mental health. This motif became a central theme in a strategy designed to facilitate culture change and acceptance of mental health as a community concern. It involved active engagement of community representatives in defining and implementing an intervention consistent with participatory action research as a means of empowering rural residents in monitoring and addressing sensitive health care issues. Given that many issues in rural health are difficult to address because of such sensitivity, the approach described is considered to have application in other contexts.     

ADVANCES IN COACHING: FAMILY THERAPY WITH ONE PERSON

This paper describes the process of "coaching" individuals in their efforts to change themselves in the context of their nuclear and parental family systems. Although this approach is regarded as one of the major modes of intervention in family therapy, the actual methods and techniques for intervention are not widely understood. Moreover, we have expanded the Bowen approach to address powerful cultural and family life cycle influences. The goal of coaching is to help clients define themselves proactively in relationship to others in their families without emotionally cutting off or giving in. Coaching begins by training clients to become observers and researchers of their own role in the family and of family patterns of behavior. Coaching then moves to help them bring their behavior more in line with their deepest beliefs, even if this means upsetting family members by disobeying family "rules."     

Urban poverty,ethnicity, and personality development

There are multiple factors which contribute to the development of the individual's personality. Many of these factors have been amply discussed in traditional theories of personality formation. An area that has been neglected in these discussions has been the role that poverty and ethnic and cultural factors may have in this regard. This paper offers a discussion of these issues with special emphasis on cultural, ethnic, and socioeconomic factors which tend to characterize the lives of Latino and Black individuals. Recommendations are made for a re-evaluation of the traditional theories of personality when applied to poor and minority individuals.     

Introduction: Transnational Lesbian Cultures

This special issue examines the transnational shape and shaping of lesbian lives and cultures in and across China, India, the United Kingdom, and the United States. It uses the expression “transnational lesbian cultures” to suggest that despite sometimes radically different sociopolitical and cultural contexts, the lived experiences of same-sex desire and their emotional attachments create particular affinities between women who love women, affinities that reach across the distinct cultural and social contexts that shape them. The articles brought together explore lesbian subcultures, film, graphic novels, music, and online intimacies. They show that as a cultural and political signifier and as an analytical tool, lesbian troubles and complicates contemporary sexual politics, not least by revealing some of the gendered structures that shape debates about sexuality in a range of critical, cultural and political contexts. While the individual pieces cover a wide range of issues and concerns—which are often highly specific to the historical, cultural, and political contexts they discuss—together they tell a story about contemporary transnational lesbian culture: one that is marked by intricate links between norms and their effects and shaped by the efforts to resist denial, discrimination, and sometimes even active persecution.     

Achieving permanency for LGBTQ youth

This article brings together two significant efforts in the child welfare field: achieving permanence for youth in out-of-home care and meeting the needs of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ) youth. During the past several years, a national movement has taken place to assure all children and youth have a permanent family connection before leaving the child welfare system; however, LGBTQ youth are not routinely included in the permanency discussions. At the same time, efforts in addressing the needs of LGBTQ youth have increased, but permanency is rarely mentioned as a need. This article offers models of permanence and practices to facilitate permanence with LGBTQ youth and their families. It also offers a youth-driven, individualized process, using youth development principles to achieve relational, physical, and legal permanence. Reunification efforts are discussed, including services, supports, and education required for youth to return to their family of origin. For those who cannot return home, other family resources are explored. The article also discusses cultural issues as they affect permanence for LGBTQ youth, and, finally, addresses the need for ongoing support services to sustain and support permanency.     

Urban Poverty,Ethnicity, and Personality Development

There are multiple factors which contribute to the development of the individual’s personality. Many of these factors have been amply discussed in traditional theories of personality Jonnation. An area that has been neglected in these discussions has been the role that poverty and ethnic and cultural factors may have in this regard. This paper offers a discussion of these issues with special emphasis on cultural, ethnic, and socioeconomic factors which tend to characterize the lives of Latino and Black individuals. Recommendations are made for a re-evaluation of the traditional theories of personality when applied to poor and minority individuals.