Feasibility and efficacy of a binge drinking prevention intervention for college students delivered via the Internet versus postal mail

In this study, the authors evaluated the feasibility and efficacy of a binge drinking prevention intervention for college students delivered via the Internet versus a parallel print-based intervention delivered via postal mail. A total of 116 college students completed the baseline survey. The authors then randomized the students into the Web or print group and sent them intervention materials. One hundred and six students completed the posttest survey. The intervention consisted of a series of 4 weekly "newsletters" in electronic or print format. The authors collected data using a standardized online 42-item survey. They found that an Internet-based binge drinking prevention intervention for college students was feasible. Results supported the efficacy of this intervention for those students already binge drinking, regardless of delivery mode. The authors found no significant differences on outcome measures when delivered via the Internet or postal mail. Results lend support to the use of the Internet as a viable alternative to more traditional health intervention delivery methods.     

Physiological stress monitoring of postmen during work

The purpose of the present study was to characterize the physiological demands of postmen during a work day composed of mail sorting (inside work, IW) and cycling distribution (outside work, OW). Two groups of postal workers were constituted according to the geographical profile of their distribution courses: flat profile (FP; n = 7) vs hilly profile (HP; n = 7). Heart rate (HR) was recorded and energy expenditure (EE) was estimated during both IW and OW. EE was, on average, 1795 +/- 497 Kcal per workday. HR was higher (p < 0.001) during OW (104 +/- 14 bpm) than during IW (80 +/- 7 bpm). HR was highest during the cycling part (109 +/- 13 bpm). Average HR was greater (p < 0.001) for HP (112 +/- 9 bpm) than for FP route (95 +/- 8 bpm). On average, the workload of postmen could be considered as moderate. Nevertheless, the physiological demand greatly increased during the cycling part of OW, especially with hilly geographical profile. The greater physiological strains during the cycling should be factored into the improvement of work organization and delivery materials (e.g. bicycle) for postal workers.     

Looking at engagement and outcome from the perspectives of child protection workers and parents

This paper reports a study that sought to understand what facilitates engagement between parents and child protection workers and to ascertain the relationship between such engagement and intervention outcome. Quantitative and qualitative data were gathered through personal interviews with 131 worker-parent dyads (workers and corresponding parents receiving service) from 11 child protection agencies in Ontario, Canada. Measures included scales for engagement, parental well-being (depression and stress), and worker well-being (burnout, job satisfaction, stress). Outcome measures included perception of child safety, changed parenting practices and satisfaction. A relationship was found between workers' perception of parent engagement and parents' perception of their own engagement, as well as between the perceptions that workers and parents had around their own respective engagement. Workers who were satisfied with service outcomes were significantly more engaged than those who were unsatisfied. Parents thinking that their children were safer as a result of intervention were significantly more engaged than parents who thought that their children were less safe. The strongest reason given by parents for positive change was being able to trust their worker (p < .001) and believing that their worker was knowledgeable about parenting (p < .01). Qualitative data suggested that parents valued experienced workers because they thought such workers could better understand their problems and how to deal with them. Correspondingly, workers felt that experience enabled them to better understand clients' problems and provide more effective support. No relationship was found between parent engagement and parental depression or stress, but the mean depression score for parents placed them at risk of clinical depression. There was a negative correlation between worker stress and engagement. The study demonstrates that engagement between clients and workers is related to positive outcomes (as reported by workers and parents) and supports the contention that promoting engagement is integral to a successful child protection intervention.     

Effects of an Expressive Art Intervention with Urban Youth in Low-Income Neighborhoods

Various forms of expressive arts are known to have associations with positive academic, social, and behavioral outcomes in addition to offering important therapeutic benefits for children and adolescents. However, very limited knowledge has been developed regarding specific expressive arts interventions for promoting positive youth development and preventing problematic behaviors in youth from urban, low socioeconomic neighborhoods. Therefore, the purpose of the current study was to expand the nascent research area in arts interventions by evaluating an expressive art intervention offered to youth through a positive youth development program located in several public housing neighborhoods. Quasi-experimental design was applied to test the impact of a poetry-focused art intervention on self-reported perceptions of academics, social competence, and multicultural attitudes of a culturally diverse sample of 40 urban sixth to eighth grade youth. Participants were recruited through a positive youth development program located in the public housing neighborhoods where they reside. Pre and post data were collected. Prior to the arts intervention, there were no statistically significant differences between the youth on self-report measures of academic capacity and social competence. The first group of youth who participated in the intervention reported enhanced capacity on all three measures when compared to peers who had not yet participated in the program. However, the second group of youth to receive the program showed no statistically significant gains when compared to their peers who received the intervention first. The study provides compelling support to further explore the efficacy of expressive arts on influencing attributes of positive youth development among urban adolescents. In addition, the study offers valuable insights into the process and complexities involved in developing agency partnerships and conducting research on after-school programs.     

Confronting the politics of despair: Toward the reconstruction of progressive social work in a global economy and postmodern age

The emancipatory project of progressive social work as it was developed in the 1970s and early 1980s in Anglo-democracies has been brought into question on two fronts. First, the changing nature of capitalism from a post-war centralised form to a global decentralised form has rendered irrelevant much of the earlier analysis of capitalism which had been used by progressive social workers to develop emancipatory theories and practices at both the personal and political levels. Second, postmodern and poststructural thought have discredited many of the concepts (meta-narratives), ideals (universalisms) and discourses that underpinned the modernist development of progressive social work. This paper represents an attempt to contribute to the reformulation or reconstruction of a progressive form of social work that addresses both these challenges. The following elements of a reconstructed form of progressive social work are presented and discussed: bridging what is positive and liberating in the tradition of progressive social work with a postmodernist deconstruction of its problematic elements to the point where reconstruction is possible; identification of human needs that are universal and transcultural; new social movement theory; a revitalised public sector; anti-oppression as the framework for progressive social work; challenging and resisting the dominant order; and the constructive use of anger.     

RESPONSE EFFECTS IN MAIL SURVEYS

A variety of response effects that had been found previouslyin interview surveys were tested in a mail survey of a heterogeneouslocal population. These included experiments on question orderresponse order, no-opinion filters, middle-response alternatives,and acquiescence. The results generally supported earlier findingsbased on student samples which had shown that order efects wereeliminated in self-administered surveys but that question-formeffects occurred as in interview surveys. One question-ordereffect, however, was found in the mail survey, and a type ofresponse-order effect (a primacy effect) that had not been previouslytested also occured. Interactions between education and responseeffects that had sometimes been found in interview surveys werenot present in the mail survey.     

Family characteristics as predictors of intensity in family services

This article investigates factors influencing the number of hours families are involved with family services and uses these factors to develop a predictive model. This research began with focus groups involving family service workers who identified three key domains influencing service intensity: worker/family relationship, family motivation, and family characteristics. The family characteristics domain is the focus of this article. Influencing factors within this domain are examined through analysis of database information from 258 families who had previously accessed family services through a community services organization. Key predictors identified include the gender of main consumer, family size, and presence of issues such as family violence and physical illness. These findings are used to develop a model to predict intervention intensity for families accessing family services. The ability to estimate service intensity provides data to effectively develop innovative programs and enable better balancing of staff workloads and resources. Additionally, the capability to predict intensity helps allocate families to appropriate workers and programs.     

Effect of a workplace design and training intervention on individual performance, group effectiveness and collaboration: the role of environmental control

The effects of a workplace design and training intervention and the relationships between perceived satisfaction of office workplace design factors (layout and storage) and work performance measures (individual performance, group collaboration and effectiveness) were studied with 120 office workers using the Workplace Environment Questionnaire. Further, we examined whether environmental control had a direct effect on work performance, and then explored whether environmental control mediated or moderated the relationship between workplace design factors and work performance. Results showed a significant, positive impact of the intervention on environmental satisfaction for workstation layout. Satisfaction with workstation layout had a significant relationship with individual performance, group collaboration and effectiveness; and satisfaction with workstation storage had a significant relationship with individual performance and group collaboration. Environmental control had a direct impact on individual performance and group collaboration; whereas, the mediating and moderating effects of environmental control on the relationship between workplace design factors and outcome variables were not significant.     

A hierarchical theory of occupational segregation and wage discrimination

Becker's model of discrimination is extended to the case where men exhibit distastes for working under female managers. The distribution of women in the resulting occupational hierarchy depends on the number of women in lower occupations, the wages of male workers in lower occupations, and male distastes for female management. Thus, there exists an occupational sorting function, related to wages, that determines the occupational distribution of women. We integrate this sorting function into a standard wage equation to derive a new decomposition of male-female wage differentials and apply it to a sample of insurance industry workers from the 1988 CPS.     

Do training programs work? An assessment of pharmacists activities in the field of chemical dependency

OBJECTIVES: The primary objective of this study was to determine if a selected sample of pharmacists who had attended a chemical dependency training program were performing more chemical dependency related activities than a group of American Pharmaceutical Association (APhA) members who had not had this training. Additionally, an assessment of the perceived barriers to performing chemical dependencyrelated activities was performed. DESIGN: A confidential mail questionnaire was sent to 305 Utah School participants and 305 APhA members who had not participated in the program (See Appendix). RESULTS: Respondents who had received educational training in chemical dependency were more likely to perform the following activities: lecture to community groups and health care professionals about chemical dependency, participate in a pharmacists' recovery program, provide patients with information about treatment centers, and counsel patients about the alcohol in over-the-counter products. Respondents who had not received chemical dependency training indicated that the following barriers prevented them from taking a more active role in the chemical dependency field: lack of knowledge of chemical dependency resources in the community, unaware of how to get involved with the state recovery program, belief that involvement in the state recovery program would hurt their professional reputation, belief that chemically dependent individuals cannot be rehabilitated, and uncomfortable working with chemically dependent patients. CONCLUSIONS: Pharmacists who have attended substance abuse training programs are performing more chemical dependency activities than pharmacists who have not received training in chemical dependency. In addition, different barriers to performing chemical dependency related activities exist between pharmacists with and without training in this field.     

Evidence-based clinical practice: the effectiveness of music-based intervention for women experiencing forgiveness/grief issues

This study evaluates the effectiveness of individual grief counselling using music-based intervention for women who had unresolved forgiveness/grief issues due to the loss of a loved one. Each individual (N = 21) completed the 12 bi-weekly grief counselling sessions, in which the pretest and posttest data were collected. The results suggest that music-based intervention made a positive impact on the individuals who had current unresolved forgiveness/grief issues and depression symptoms. A strong positive correlation was observed between their perception of unresolved forgiveness/grief issues and their depression levels. Implications for evidence-based social work practice are discussed.     

Demystifying the use of mail survey in developing countries: a case of Nepal

ABSTRACT

The mail survey is a popular data collection tool in developed countries, but little is known about its use and efficacy in developing countries. Grounded on social exchange and diffusion of innovations theories, this study sought to ascertain whether the mail survey works in Nepal – one of the developing countries, by looking at how long respondents take to respond to mail surveys, and what the determinants are of the response time. A mail survey was conducted in June–September 2012 among 863 village animal health workers. Analysis of the data derived from 500 usable surveys shows that if properly planned and executed, the mail survey will perfectly work in developing countries as well. However, response period greatly varied by respondent’s home region, program sponsor, income groups, but not by gender, age, and education. The paper concludes by outlining suggestions to improve the mail survey.     

Internet-Based Interventions for Addictive Behaviours: A Systematic Review

Internet-based interventions have emerged as a new treatment and intervention modality for psychological disorders. Given their features of treatment flexibility, anonymity and confidentiality, this modality may be well suited in the management of addictive behaviours. A systematic literature review of the effectiveness and treatment outcomes of Internet-based interventions for smoking cessation, problematic alcohol use, substance abuse and gambling was performed. Studies were included if they met the following criteria: clients received a structured therapeutic Internet-based intervention for a problematic and addictive behaviour; included more than five clients; effectiveness was based on at least one outcome; outcome variables were measured before and immediately following the interventions; had a follow-up period; and involved at least minimal therapist contact over the course of the program. Sixteen relevant studies were found; nine addressed the effects of Internet-based interventions on smoking cessation, four on gambling, two on alcohol and one on opioid dependence. All studies demonstrated positive treatment outcomes for their respective addictive behaviours. The current review concluded that Internet-based interventions are effective in achieving positive behavioural change through reducing problematic behaviours. This mode of therapy has been found to have the capacity to provide effective and practical services for those who might have remained untreated, subsequently reducing the barriers for help-seekers. This in turn provides imperative information to treatment providers, policy makers, and academic researchers.     

Education and training for direct care workers

Approximately 80% of social care workers have no formal qualifications or training and efforts to encourage the take up of training for qualifications have only had limited success. This paper reports on the training needs and attitudes towards training of residential workers and home care workers who took part in a major study of statutory social services employees by the National Institute for Social Work (NISW). The paper describes a diverse workforce with a high level of interest in training to improve skills and the quality of the service, although not all workers were interested in obtaining qualifications. Factors associated with taking part in training are examined including gender, age, occupation, personal circumstances, information and access to training, and learning needs and preferred ways of learning. Government initiatives to improve levels of training and qualification, including a new regulatory framework for social care workers, make this an opportune time for employers in the statutory and independent sectors to encourage workers to develop their skills by creating a positive learning culture. The paper concludes that to do this training strategies will have to address the diverse training needs of the workers.     

Does the tax system ruin the motivation to seek advancement?

A number of hypotheses related to the effects of taxes and to social comparison processes were tested by means of a mail questionnaire in a study of 338 salaried employees, mostly in middle management positions. The results indicate that the tax system with progressive income taxes and increasing marginal rates of taxation did not serve as a significant inhibitor to the promotion will. Other factors such as the acceptability of the expected net salary raise in connection with a promotion, age level and the degree of social comparison influenced the promotion will and made the picture rather complex. People who wanted to be promoted were young, compared themselves with colleagues, had a relatively low income level and attached low importance to family and leisure activities.     

The Consequences ofLarge Monetary Incentivesin Mail Surveys of Elites

Research concerning incentives and responses to mail questionnairesusually deals with the effects on response rates of paymentsof less than a dollar and with mass respondents. This articlereports the results of an international mail survey of eliterespondents using incentives ranging from 0 to 50 dollars. Thestudy found that larger incentives have a slight positive effecton the response rate and a substantial effect on response quality.The implications of these findings for cost-effective researchare discussed.     

Gender differences in social workers’ assessments and help-giving strategies towards single parents

The study investigates Swedish male and female social workers’ assessments and help-giving strategies towards single parents applying for income support. The study was carried out with the help of a vignette distributed as a mail questionnaire. Results show that social workers tend to conform to assessments and help-giving strategies that are consistent with expectations linked to their own gender role.