Unleashing and Combining the Wisdom: Rapid,Whole-Systems Change in Public Organizations

This article describes an approach called Whole-Scale Change, a large group process that appears to have helped others achieve dramatic, sustainable results in their organization or communities. It describes the possibilities for applying the predictable processes and the critical elements of Whole-Scale Change to achieve rapid, whole-system solutions in todays complex environment of public organizations.     

Countertransference and its potential for abuse

The definition of countertransference ranges from pathological and inappropriate responses of the psychotherapist/psychoanalyst based on inner issues and conflicts (hence an obstacle to cure) to a position that countertransference feelings and reactions provide useful information in understanding the patient and contribute constructively to the curative process. This later definition can enhance and expand the analytic inquiry. However, with this expanded conceptualization, abuses of countertransference can have damaging impact on the patient. This presentation will undertake to explore one aspect of such abuse and speak to the specific influences that contribute to the misuse of countertransference in the therapeutic situation.     

Sex Role Stereotyping and Marriage Counseling*

Evidence that sex role stereotyping (SRS) reflects a strong negative valuation of women and is a factor in clinical evaluation raises the question of its affects upon evaluation and treatment in marriage counseling. The counseling literature was reviewed and although data on SRS was found, it seldom was related specifically to marriage counseling. The purpose of this paper is to consider the implications of SRS for marriage counselors in the light of current research findings on this issue. Suggestions for assisting counselors to deal with SRS in themselves and as professionals in the field of marriage counseling are presented.     

Effects of a Poverty Intervention Policy Demonstration on Parenting and Child Behavior: A Test of the Direction of Effects*

Objectives. This study compares two explanations for the effects of an employment‐based anti‐poverty intervention, the New Hope project, on parenting and child behavior. (1) Did the New Hope intervention directly affect child behavior and, if it did, is this the result of New Hope effects on earlier parenting practices? (2) Did the New Hope intervention directly affect parenting practices and, if it did, is this the result of New Hope effects on earlier child behavior? Methods. Assessments were collected two and five years after parents were randomly assigned to participate in New Hope or in a control group. The two models were tested using Baron and Kenny's (1986) recommendations for regression to test mediation. Results. The results support the second research question, but only for boys; neither model was supported for girls. New Hope led to increased positive behavior and reduced behavior problems for boys after two years; children's behavior accounted for experimental effects on parents' reports of their parenting behaviors after five years. Conclusions. Employment‐based interventions designed for low‐income parents can affect children directly; expanding such programs may help improve children's life chances.     

Do Pathways Matter? Linking Early Immigrant Employment Sequences and Later Economic Outcomes: Evidence from Canada

Employment mobility is a critical feature of immigrants’ settlement experiences and longer‐term life chances. While current research typically treats mobility as a singular outcome, becoming established in a new labor market is a complex process that can entail multiple transitions in and out of employment and between different types of jobs over time. This article advances understanding of the process of immigrant labor market incorporation by engaging with its potentially multidimensional, cumulative, and path‐dependent aspects. Using data from the Longitudinal Survey of Immigrants to Canada, I test the impact of an empirically derived typology of month‐by‐month immigrant employment trajectories on the odds of occupational degradation and on weekly wages. I find that the pathways immigrants take through the labor market in their first four years constitute a distinct and important mechanism shaping later employment outcomes.