The Impact of Family Functioning on Caregiver Burden among Caregivers of Veterans with Congestive Heart Failure

A cross-sectional study of 76 family caregivers of older veterans with congestive heart failure utilized the McMaster model of family functioning to examine the impact of family functioning variables (problem solving, communication, roles, affective responsiveness, and affective involvement) on caregiver burden dimensions (relationship burden, objective burden, stress burden, and uplifts). Regression analyses indicated that the five dimensions of family functioning were significantly related (p < 0.01) to relationship burden (R ² = .27) and uplifts (R ² = .29). More specifically, increased relationship burden was associated with problems in family roles, and increased uplifts was related to higher levels of affective responsiveness.     

Teaching Note—Description and Preliminary Evaluation of a Modified College Experience for Adults With Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

ABSTRACT

This article describes the implementation and preliminary evaluation of a modified college experience for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) at a small liberal arts college. To increase social work students’ interest in working with this population and access of people with IDD to higher education, Bridges to Skidmore was founded in 2010 as a low-cost method for providing cooperative learning opportunities for students and individuals with IDD. Preliminary evaluation reveals that participation can change students’ attitudes toward those with IDD, which may increase their intention to work with this population in the future. The program has created an enriching experience for the college students, lecturing professors, and adults with IDD, and can be easily replicated on other campuses.     

The Postadoption Needs of Adoptive Parents of Children With Disabilities

Adoptions of children with disabilities are considered special needs, due to the higher level of support needed pre- and postadoption by families and children for adoptions to succeed. Despite this fact, very few studies examine the specific postadoption experiences of families with children with disabilities. Using secondary analysis of a national survey of adoptive parents, as well as interviews and a focus group with adoptive parents in one state, this study examines families’ with adopted children with disabilities challenges and unmet needs after adoption, as well as the postadoption needs and experiences of adoptive families with children with developmental and intellectual disabilities and adoptive families of children with emotional, behavioral, and mental health disabilities. Findings indicate that families with children with disabilities do report higher rates of challenges and barriers to service access, and that this is particularly true in families with adopted children with emotional, behavioral, and mental health disabilities. Implications for research and practice are discussed.     

The photo‐survey research method: capturing life in the city

Recent promotion of city centre living within UK policy has led to a commensurate interest in city centre conditions and the opinions and experiences of the people who live there. An apposite, straightforward method to capture city centre residents' experiences and views is described in this article. We successfully combined a novel, under‐utilized visual technique (self‐directed photography) with qualitative methods (log‐sheets and interviews) in the form of a ‘photo‐survey’. A background to visual methodologies is presented in this article, alongside a critique of using the photo‐survey with 84 city centre residents to investigate environmental conditions and perceptions within three of the UK's major cities. The method provided a rich, detailed set of data, but also brought a number of noticeable benefits to the data collection process. The photo‐survey not only effectively captured and documented life in the city but also acted as an ‘agent for change’, evoking thoughts and feelings which ultimately encouraged participants to reflect on their existing perceptions and urban experiences. The study also raises some important considerations for future work undertaken with this method and with using photographs as a set of data, and proposes techniques for minimising potential problems.     

A Challenge for Social Studies Educators: Teaching about Islam,Jihād,and Shari’ah Law

In this article, the author investigates the controversial curricular and instructional aspects of teaching about Islam in social studies courses. Specifically, the author discusses pedagogically sound approaches to teaching about jihād and Shari’ah law, two of the most important and controversial concepts in Islam that often generate intense debates among scholars, policy-makers, social studies teachers, and the general public. It is crucial that social studies teachers present all of the competing and complex definitions regarding jihād and Shari’ah law; this task is exacerbated by passionate disagreements among Islamic scholars, lawyers, and historians over the true nature of these concepts. Many K–12 textbooks omit or distort the multiple interpretations of jihād and Shari’ah law because of political pressures, space limitations, and efforts to avoid controversies inherent in discussing religion. Thus, many students are confused by competing views and ideological perspectives by experts regarding Islam; this situation is untenable, given the importance of Islam in contemporary American politics and international affairs.     

Social work through collaborative autoethnography

This paper discusses a research project involving five MA Social Work Students and one member of Social Work Academic Staff. Using narrative and taking a collaborative autoethnographical approach, this project highlights some of the feelings that students articulated following a 70-day placement experience. Findings include anxiety, powerlessness and frustration, together with growing confidence, recognition of their skills and a deeper understanding of the role of ‘self’ in social work. Raising issues of preparedness for practice placement, this paper has implications for both social work practice and social work education. Autoethnography (AE) is both a method of carrying out research and a methodology, specifically a qualitative methodology linked to ethnography and narrative inquiry. AE results in highly personalized narrative accounts of the researcher’s engagement with specific sociocultural contexts in the pursuit of knowing more about a phenomenon. Applying such a methodology to explore collaboratively issues of student lived experience of placement is a new and innovative use of this method.     

A National Survey on Depression,Internalized Homophobia,College Religiosity,and Climate of Acceptance on College Campuses for Sexual Minority Adults

ABSTRACT

Sexual minority persons have an increased risk for negative mental health outcomes in adulthood. This seems to largely be due to experiences of stigma in social settings. This study sought to understand the relationship between attending a religiously conservative college, internalized homophobia (a measure of sexual stigma), and depressive symptoms for sexual minority adults. Sexual minority adult participants (n = 384) from across the U.S. were recruited and completed a Web-based, anonymous survey. A mediation model predicting depression through college religious conservatism, college acceptance of sexual minority identities, and internalized homophobia was tested using path analysis. Results revealed an indirect effect of increased religious conservatism of a college predicted higher depression through lower college acceptance and higher internalized homophobia. Implications for the mental health of sexual minority adults and future research are examined.