Non-Professionals in the Human Services,Edited by Charles Grosser,William E. Henry,and James G. Kelly. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass,Inc. Publishers, 1969.288 Pages, $8.50 Hardbound

As social work deals with human deprivation that is often a direct result of racism, social work educators need to be aware that Black students may approach the field with different insights and objectives than white students. Without understanding and appreciation for Black culture, social work educators may perpetuate racist policies and stereotypes of Blacks as clients. University and departmental policies that violate a student's right to grow and to assert a positive Black identity must be challenged. Social work educators should demonstrate a commitment to the development of future Black professionals.     

I’m not playing: gamification,mental illness,and neoliberal subjectivity

ABSTRACT

For many researchers, medical professionals, and politicians, the gamification of mental health treatment is a possibly innovative and efficient means to utilise the popularity of gaming in order to help combat the ever-growing global rates of mental illness. Despite this optimism, critics of gamification point to this trend as an extension of neoliberal governance, warning that gamification only encourages the further quantification and control of life under metrics of utility, productivity, and competitiveness. Accordingly, this article critically examines the politics of gamifying mental healthcare, and the broader question of the link between play and mental health. By engaging with the works of Donald W. Winnicott, and a host of contemporary critical and cultural theorists, this article attempts to open up a space for considering the value of play and games for sufferers of mental illness, that resist the strictures of the neoliberal governance of play.     

Conditional vs marginal estimation of the predictive loss of hierarchical models using WAIC and cross-validation

The predictive loss of Bayesian models can be estimated using a sample from the full-data posterior by evaluating the Watanabe-Akaike information criterion (WAIC) or using an importance sampling (ISCVL) approximation to leave-one-out cross-validation loss. With hierarchical models the loss can be specified at different levels of the hierarchy, and in the published literature, it is routine for these estimators to use the conditional likelihood provided by the lowest level of model hierarchy. However, the regularity conditions underlying these estimators may not hold at this level, and the behaviour of conditional-level WAIC as an estimator of conditional-level predictive loss must be determined on a case-by-case basis. Conditional-level ISCVL does not target conditional-level predictive loss and instead is an estimator of marginal-level predictive loss. Using examples for analysis of over-dispersed count data, it is shown that conditional-level WAIC does not provide a reliable estimator of its target loss, and simulations show that it can favour the incorrect model. Moreover, conditional-level ISCVL is numerically unstable compared to marginal-level ISCVL. It is recommended that WAIC and ISCVL be evaluated using the marginalized likelihood where practicable and that the reliability of these estimators always be checked using appropriate diagnostics.     

Comparisons of marriage and family therapists, psychologists, psychiatrists, and social workers on job-related measures and reactions to managed care in Iowa

This study compares marriage and family therapists (MFTs) to psychologists, psychiatrists, and social workers on job-related measures, such as job autonomy, job satisfaction, burnout, and intention to stay in their present position, as well as on reactions to a managed care initiative in the state of Iowa. Findings indicate that MFTs scored significantly lower than other practitioners on job autonomy and intention to stay in their present position, but there were no differences in job satisfaction or burnout. Marital and family therapists also reported less dissatisfaction with the managed care initiative than psychiatrists, although virtually all practitioners were dissatisfied with the managed-care program. These findings indicate some dissatisfaction within the MFT profession and may be relevant to practitioners seeking to change or expand their practice, as well as to the needs of MFTs in their training programs.     

Conducting medical offset research in a health maintenance organization: challenges, opportunities, and insights

The paper summarizes the experience of a 4-year research project conducted in a large Health Maintenance Organization. Obstacles and solutions related to doing research in this type of system are presented. Suggestions for those seeking to conduct research programs in similar settings are provided.     

The scientist-practitioner model in marriage and family therapy doctoral programs: current status

We discuss the status of the scientist-practitioner model in marriage and family therapy (MFT) doctoral programs. Issues discussed include a lack of faculty research role models in doctoral programs, "farming out" the majority of research courses to other disciplines, problems with curriculum, and how the culture of MFT does not support research. We also present suggestions for improving doctoral research training. The goal is to improve the quality of research training in doctoral programs. We hope that this will help change the culture of MFT to include research as one of its primary goals and greatest assets.     

Wheelchair coasting downhill is a reliable work task

OBJECTIVE: To measure test-retest reliability of physiological responses during submaximal wheelchair downhill and horizontal treadmill ergometry. DESIGN: A test-retest design was used on a convenience sample. Four male and three female non-wheelchair users, (22-43 years of age) propelled or coasted in a wheelchair under steady-state conditions. Four minute work bouts were performed at 1, 2, 3, and 4 km/hr. (0.62, 1.24, 1.86 and 2.5 mph, respectively) at 0 degrees, -2 degrees, and -4 degrees. Subjects were studied twice under each of the 12 conditions. Six tests were performed daily, with testing occurring over four days. Dependent variables included oxygen consumption, minute ventilation and heart. Intraclass correlation coefficients were determined for each set of paired tests. RESULTS: Intraclass correlation coefficients were high for absolute VO_{2}(R=0.84-0.99), V_{E} (R=0.86-0.98) and HR (R=0.95-1.0) over the range of 4 speeds and 3 inclinations studied. On average, % differences from test 1 to test 2 were less than 3%. CONCLUSION: At the treadmill speeds and inclinations (positive and negative) studied in this investigation, untrained wheelchair users responded in a physiologically reliable manner.