Manufacturing ghost fathers: the paradox of father presence and absence in child welfare

Fathers exist in the lives of women and children involved with child welfare authorities, and yet, they are rarely seen by child welfare. This invisibility exists whether or not fathers are deemed as risks or as assets to their families. Using an analysis of fundamental child welfare policies and practices and relevant literature, the paper examines how 'ghost' fathers are manufactured, and how this phenomenon affects families and professionals in child welfare. An analysis of gender, class, race and culture of child welfare discourses shows how these fathers are seen as deviant, dangerous, irresponsible and irrelevant, and even further, how absence in child welfare is inextricably linked to blaming mothers. In failing to work with fathers, child welfare ignores potential risks and assets for both mothers and children.     

Worthy of Discussion: Collaborative Group Therapy

In this paper the development of a new approach to group therapy is presented. Collaborative group therapy has been successfully used in working with people with schizophrenia. It has provided both participants and therapists with the opportunity to move away from a restrictive view of mental illness toward alternative self knowledge and empowerment. New ethnographic methodology has been used to measure both process and outcome of the group therapy.     

Generic Strategies and Business Performance: an Empirical Study of the Screw Machine Products Industry

Select businesses in industry may attempt to compete through distinct strategies. But some may be successful in adopting distinct strategic profiles while others may not prove successful. In this study it was expected that six different groups of businesses might be present in the empirical exploration – those competing successfully with the low cost strategy and those competing unsuccessfully with this strategy; those competing successfully with the differentiation strategy and those competing unsuccessfully with this strategy; and those competing successfully with low cost and differentiation strategies and those competing unsuccessfully with these strategies. The results of the investigation portray the presence of three strategic profiles. They are unsuccessful low cost businesses with the lowest performance, unsuccessful differentiated businesses with the second lowest performance, and successful businesses with combination strategies with the highest performance.     

Nonprofit management education through distance learning

Course books 1–12 for “Managing Voluntary and Non-Profit Enterprises.” Milton Keynes, U.K.: The Open University, 1991. (For information, contact Open University Enterprises, 12 Coferidge Close, Stony Stratford, Milton Keynes, MK11 1BY, U.K.) Issues in Voluntary and Non-Profit Management: A Reader, edited by Julian Batsleer, Chris Cornforth, and Rob Paton. Workingham, England: Addison-Wesley, in association with The Open University, 1991. 215 pp., paper. Writers on Organizations (4th ed.), by D. S. Pugh and D. J. Hickson. London: Penguin Books, 1989. 201 pp., paper.     

Short-term Residential Therapy for the Family: The Eastling Parentcraft Centre Project

This paper describes a short-term residential family therapy project which has been developed at the Eastling Parentcraft Centre, Christchurch, New Zealand. The Eastling Parentcraft Centre provides a community based residential programme for families who have difficulties in family relationships and child management, and with parental self-esteem. The problems may concern bonding, separation, neglect and risk of abuse, lack of social support, and feelings of isolation. The Centre's project is described together with an evaluation of the work with families during the second year of the project's operation. Some aspects of this type of residential work with families are also discussed.     

Dog catchers: A descriptive study

This ethnographic study examines the dog catcher in regard to work duties and role performances inherent in the occupation. Meanings associated with the occupation are considered in the light of the Sociology of Occupations. Dogcatchers were found to have devised mechanisms to subtly “get back at” an unappreciative public, behaviors which appear similar to those found in other low status or status inconsistent occupations.     

Examination of variable errors of measurement in a survey-based social indicator

The sample survey, involving the use of specially developed questionnaires and instruments, is an important source of data regarding individual experiences and social-psychological characteristics for use in social indicator research. Variable errors of measurement are often given only cursory attention in presentations of survey sampling and social indicator theory and in the analysis of such data. These errors may, however, result in reduced precision of estimates and may affect statistical inferences drawn from the data. Some procedures for assessing the extent of variable measurement error are described and examples of their use in evaluating a survey instrument and data collected are discussed.