Down Syndrome and Alzheimer’s Disease: Issues and Implications for Social Work Practice

Owing to recent medical advancements, people with Down Syndrome (DS) are now able to live considerably longer lives and thus experience a variety of complex issues as they age. Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) frequently occurs in older adults who have DS, but few practice guidelines exist to inform social work practice with older adults who have this dual diagnosis. This commentary will highlight the connection between these two conditions within a neurobiological framework and discuss implications for practice based on the available literature on this intersection of ability status, cognitive status, and age.     

Leadership in physical activity groups for older adults: a qualitative analysis

The purpose of this study was to determine whether a theory-based framework could be used to deductively identify and understand the characteristics of motivational leaders of physical activity groups for older adults. Participants were 23 older adults (mean age = 78.5 +/- 8.0 years, 65% women). An interview-guide approach was employed to elicit older adults' thoughts on important characteristics of physical activity group leaders. The data suggested that effective leaders are those whom the participants feel are properly qualified, are able to develop a personal bond with participants, and can use their knowledge and the group to demonstrate collective accomplishments. It was concluded that the findings could be used to extend the leadership activities beyond the traditional technical performance and individual feedback to include activities of social integration. Furthermore, the conceptual framework identified can serve as a valuable tool in guiding future researchers in their examination of leadership in physical activity groups for older adults.     

Are abused women mentally ill?

A secondary data analysis study was conducted on Derogatis Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI) data derived from a larger intervention study of community-based abused women (N = 50). The purpose was to improve understanding of the effect domestic violence has on mental health, given the symptomatology observed in this population. A psychological distress symptom profile was developed and compared with BSI normative data. Findings were unexpected and suggest the necessity to re-examine the assumptions harbored about interpersonal violence in research and practice.     

Superhero,Instructor, Optimist: FEMA and the Frames of Disaster in Hurricanes Katrina and Rita

Using framing theory to examine hundreds of press releases posted to the Web by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), this study asserts that FEMA provided useful information on survival and assistance, but that the organization emphasized good deeds and optimism while essentially ignoring social, political, and cultural issues that publicly defined the hurricanes and damaged FEMA's image.     

Use of Mixed Methods in a Study of Residence and Contact Disputes between Divorced and Separated Parents

This article discusses a study of residence and contact disputes in court which utilised a mixture of quantitative and qualitative methods in order to gain a multidimensional picture of these disputes. It is argued that in a study such as this, the different datasets are best viewed as complementary, rather than as a means of validating each other. The data from each stage address a different aspect of these court disputes, thus offering a better understanding of the complexity of what goes on at court. I examine the ways in which the mixed methods approach improved the research team’s ability to interpret the findings. I conclude that the study has highlighted that because there is not just one view of how well the courts work, a variety of criteria needs to be used in evaluating this: when, for whom, for which problems and on which measures.     

A technique for measuring preferences for spending reductions

A question format for assessing people's preferences for spending reductions which can be used as part of telephone-administered surveys is discussed. Experiences with two field tests of the format are promising in that the response rates to question series as well as the validities of measures obtained from using the format compare favorably with similar assessments of rank-order formats. While cautionary use of the cutback technique is recommended, the findings reported here are encouraging enough to warrant further experimentation with it.