Reclaiming and Reimagining Macro Social Work Education: A Collective Biography

The authors focus on a collective biography of 12 women social work educators, all either tenured or in tenure lines, from five different universities at the time of the study. The participants represent several aspects of macro practice including administration, planning, community practice, and policy. Beginning with reflections about coming into macro practice, we highlight memories about first teaching experiences and examine cultural shifts discovered in our academic journeys. We feature students who inspired us and perceptions of challenges in curricular development affecting the preparation of students. This article includes comments that emphasize the themes and focus of our collective reflections. Finally, we place what we learned in the context of a report from the Association for Community Organization and Social Administration calling for the visibility of and advocacy for macro social work education.     

Effects of Duration on Perceptions of Teacher Sexual Misconduct

This study explored how respondent gender, gender dyad (male teacher–female student versus female teacher–male student) and duration/frequency (weekly sexual contact over 4 months versus a single incident) affected perceptions of teacher–adolescent student sexual involvement. Respondents were 224 undergraduates (104 men, 120 women) recruited from a psychology research pool. Most (87%) were 18–21 years old, and 59% were Caucasian. Each respondent read one of four scenarios (varied by gender dyad and duration/frequency) depicting a teacher–adolescent student sexual interaction and then completed a series of questions about his or her perceptions. Results indicated that men perceived these experiences less negatively than did women, and the female teacher–male student dyad was viewed less negatively than the male teacher–female student dyad. Relatively few significant interactions emerged, and the only main effect for duration/frequency was for commitment. Results are discussed in terms of the need for more research and education.     

Enabling social support and resilience: outcomes of Family Group Conferencing in public mental health care

Family Group Conferencing (FGC) is a decision-making model where clients with their social network formulate their own plan. There is little experience with FGC in mental health care. We studied the outcomes of 41 conferences in a public mental health setting in the north of the Netherlands. We interviewed 312 respondents out of a total of 473 conference participants. In 33 cases, it was possible to obtain scores from 245 respondents on scales ranging from 0 to 10 about the situation prior and after the conference on three outcome measures, namely the quality of: (1) social support, (2) resilience and (3) living conditions. In the 33 cases, t-tests and multilevel analyses indicate on all of the three outcomes measures significant positive changes after the conferences. On average, the scores on the quality of social support (5.04–6.73), resilience (4.09–6.32) and the living conditions (3.73–6.64) had been increased since the conferences were organised. The results are modest but remarkable. That the impact of FGC is not more substantial can be explained. The clients referred to a conference in this particular study, mostly had a limited network and few recourses from whom little support could be expected.     

Oral Sex,Young People,and Gendered Narratives of Reciprocity

Young people in many countries report gender differences in giving and receiving oral sex, yet examination of young people’s own perspectives on gender dynamics in oral heterosex are relatively rare. We explored the constructs and discourses 16- to 18-year-old men and women in England used in their accounts of oral sex during in-depth interviews. Two contrasting constructs were in circulation in the accounts: on one hand, oral sex on men and women was narrated as equivalent, while on the other, oral sex on women was seen as “a bigger deal” than oral sex on men. Young men and women used a “give and take” discourse, which constructed the mutual exchange of oral sex as “fair.” Appeals to an ethic of reciprocity in oral sex enabled women to present themselves as demanding equality in their sexual interactions, and men as supporting mutuality. However, we show how these ostensibly positive discourses about equality also worked in narratives to obscure women’s constrained agency and work with respect to giving oral sex.     

Citizenship in action: the lived experiences of citizens with dementia who campaign for social change

This article examines the experiences of citizens with dementia who campaign for social change, with a particular focus on the effects of campaigning on citizenry identity and psycho-emotional well-being. In diary-interviews, 16 people with dementia recorded and described their experiences of campaigning. Findings revealed that although campaigning can be energising and reaffirming of citizen identity, because it (re)located a person within the realm of work, individuals may experience dementia-related fatigue and oppression linked to normative expectations about what someone with dementia ‘should’ be like. The discussion is linked to critical debates within disability studies about the psycho-emotional aspects of impairment and disability, and concludes that the struggle for citizenship has only just begun for people with dementia.     

Is Corporate Engagement an Advocacy Strategy for NGOs?: The Community Aid Abroad Experience

This article focuses on the question of whether corporate engagement can be used as an advocacy strategy for international nongovernmental organizations (NGOs). The article will explore some of the characteristics of corporate engagement by studying the corporate engagement experience of the Australian NGO Community Aid Abroad (CAA) in its program, the Mining Campaign. The risks that emerged for CAA from policy decisions and processes within the development of the campaign are of central concern.     

Suicide and suicide risk in lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender populations: review and recommendations

Despite strong indications of elevated risk of suicidal behavior in lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people, limited attention has been given to research, interventions or suicide prevention programs targeting these populations. This article is a culmination of a three-year effort by an expert panel to address the need for better understanding of suicidal behavior and suicide risk in sexual minority populations, and stimulate the development of needed prevention strategies, interventions and policy changes. This article summarizes existing research findings, and makes recommendations for addressing knowledge gaps and applying current knowledge to relevant areas of suicide prevention practice.