Implications of Recent Research on Eastern European Adoptees for Social Work Practice

Social workers engaged in preparing and supporting families that adopt non-infants and sibling groups from Russia and other Eastern European countries need to be well-versed in: (1) the issues that affect this population of adoptees and adopters; and (2) the recent research on both. They also need to expand the model of adoptive families that drives their work. The authors identify three areas of risk to successful older-child adoptee and adoptive family functioning, explore the consequences of detrimental adoption policies and practices on the micro and macro-levels, and make recommendations for needed changes. The changes the authors identify are framed through an investigation of recent research on international adoptees and their adoptive families. The authors use adoptive parents’ own words to make the issues they discuss more concrete. Implications for social worker training and practice, and expanded roles for social workers, are identified.     

‘I'm Home for the Kids’: Contradictory Implications for Work–Life Balance of Teleworking Mothers

This study explores the experience of time flexibility and its relationship to work–life balance among married female teleworkers with school‐aged children. Drawing from a larger study of teleworkers from a Canadian financial corporation, 18 mothers employed in professional positions discussed work, leisure and their perceptions of work–life balance in in‐depth interviews. Telework was viewed positively because flexible scheduling facilitated optimal time management. A key factor was the pervasiveness of caregiving, which could result in ongoing tensions and contradictions between the ethic of care and their employment responsibilities. The ideology of ‘intensive mothering’ meant that work schedules were closely tied to the rhythms of children's school and leisure activities. The different temporal demands of motherhood and employment resulted in little opportunity for personal leisure. Time ‘saved’ from not having to commute to an office was reallocated to caregiving, housework or paid employment rather than to time for their self. The women also experienced a traditional gendered division of household labour and viewed telework as a helpful tool for combining their dual roles. Time flexibility enhanced their sense of balancing work and life and their perceived quality of life. At the same time, they did not question whether having the primary responsibility for caregiving while engaged in paid employment at home was fair or whether it was a form of exploitation.     

Diverging Demography: Hispanic and Non-Hispanic Contributions to U.S. Population Redistribution and Diversity

The substantial growth and geographic dispersion of Hispanics is among the most important demographic trends in recent U.S. demographic history. Our county-level study examines how widespread Hispanic natural increase and net migration has combined with the demographic change among non-Hispanics to produce an increasingly diverse population. This paper uses U.S. Census Bureau data and special tabulations of race/ethnic specific births and deaths from NCHS to highlight the demographic role of Hispanics as an engine of new county population growth and ethnoracial diversity across the U.S. landscape. It highlights key demographic processes—natural increase and net migration—that accounted for 1990–2010 changes in the absolute and relative sizes of the Hispanic and non-Hispanic populations. Hispanics accounted for the majority of all U.S. population growth between 2000 and 2010. Yet, Hispanics represented only 16 % of the U.S. population in 2010. Most previous research has focused on Hispanic immigration; here, we examine how natural increase and net migration among both the Hispanic and non-Hispanic population contribute to the nation’s growing diversity. Indeed, the demographic impact of rapid Hispanic growth has been reinforced by minimal white population growth due to low fertility, fewer women of reproductive age and growing mortality among the aging white population America’s burgeoning Hispanic population has left a large demographic footprint that is magnified by low and declining fertility and increasing mortality among America’s aging non-Hispanic population.     

Solidarity put to the test. Health and social care in the UK

As welfare states experience challenges from ideological and funding sources, the position of the United Kingdom represents an important case study. Apparently under severe attack for its perceived failures to deliver efficiency, effectiveness and social justice, there remains a continued high level of public support for `nationalised' health and social care. The paper explores the nature of the fissures in the systems and the data which indicates enduring solidarity.     

Societal influences on body image dissatisfaction in younger and older women

Few studies have examined older women's body image. This study compared body image dissatisfaction (BID) and weight control practices; evaluated associations among BID, societal influences and concern for appropriateness (CFA); and identified the most important correlate of BID among younger (19-23) and older women (65-74). Questionnaires obtained information on demographics, weight control practices, societal influences (SATAQ-3), CFA and BID using the Figure Rating Scale. Findings revealed no difference in the prevalence of BID. The number of weight control practices and SATAQ-3 and CFA scores were correlated to BID. Pressure from the media was the most significant correlate of BID.     

An Examination of Discrepancies in Multiple Imputation Procedures Between SAS® and SPSS®

Multiple imputation (MI) has become a feasible method to replace missing data due to the rapid development of computer technology over the past three decades. Nonetheless, a unique issue with MI hinges on the fact that different software packages can give different results. Even when one begins with the same random number seed, conflicting findings can be obtained from the same data under an identical imputation model between SAS® and SPSS®. Consequently, as illustrated in this article, a predictor variable can be claimed both significant and not significant depending on the software being used. Based on the considerations of multiple imputation steps, including result pooling, default selection, and different numbers of imputations, practical suggestions are provided to minimize the discrepancies in the results obtained when using MI. Features of Stata® are briefly reviewed in the Discussion section to broaden the comparison of MI computing across widely used software packages.     

Splitting the Marital Home: Gendered Property Division and Postdivorce Foreclosure

Divorce proceedings often involve splitting the marital home and contested claims over property and other assets. This case study examines the divorce–foreclosure nexus through key informant interviews, analysis of divorce files and foreclosure notices, and a review of court records on debt, remarriage, and criminal offending. We found that property disposition is a gendered process, with men receiving the marital home 1.7 times more often than women, even though they had more court debt, job instability, and criminal offending than their wives. Male defendants who hired an attorney received the house 85% of the time (52% for women defendants with an attorney). In postdivorce, men were more likely than women to remarry, have second mortgages, and to reoffend. We conclude that “equal” rather than “equitable” property division would reduce women’s structural disadvantage in divorce settlements and postdivorce home ownership.     

Research on the treatment of couple distress

This article reviews the research on couple therapy over the last decade. The research shows that couple therapy positively impacts 70% of couples receiving treatment. The effectiveness rates of couple therapy are comparable to the effectiveness rates of individual therapies and vastly superior to control groups not receiving treatment. The relationship between couple distress and individual disorders such as depression and anxiety has become well established over the past decade. Research also indicates that couple therapy clearly has an important role in the treatment of many disorders. Findings over the decade have been especially promising for integrative behavioral couples therapy and emotion-focused therapy, which are two evidence-based treatments for couples. Research has also begun to identify moderators and mediators of change in couple therapy. Finally, a new and exciting line of research has focused on delineating the principles of change in couple therapy that transcends approach.     

Harmonizing databases? Developing a quasi-experimental design to evaluate a public mental health re-entry program

Our study is the first-ever initiative to merge administrative databases in Massachusetts to evaluate an important public mental health program. It examines post-incarceration outcomes of adults with serious mental illness (SMI) enrolled in the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health (DMH) Forensic Transition Team (FTT) program. The program began in 1998 with the goal of transitioning offenders with SMI released from state and local correctional facilities utilizing a core set of transition activities. In this study we evaluate the program's effectiveness using merged administrative data from various state agencies for the years 2007-2011, comparing FTT clients to released prisoners who, despite having serious mental health disorders, did not meet the criterion for DMH services. By systematically describing our original study design and the barriers we encountered, this report will inform future efforts to evaluate public programs using merged administrative databases and electronic health records.     

Hispanic Assimilation and Fertility in New U.S. Destinations

This paper evaluates comparative patterns of fertility in new Hispanic destinations and established gateways using pooled cross‐sectional data from the 2005–2009 microdata files of the American Community Survey. Changing Hispanic fertility provides a useful indicator of cultural incorporation. Analyses show that high fertility among Hispanics has been driven in part by the Mexican origin and other new immigrant populations (e.g., non‐citizens, those with poor English language skills, etc.). However, high fertility rates among Hispanics cannot be explained entirely by sociodemographical characteristics that place them at higher risk of fertility. For 2005–2009, Hispanic fertility rates were 48 percent higher than fertility among whites; they were roughly 25 percent higher after accounting for differences in key social characteristics, such as age, nativity, country of origin, and education. Contrary to most previous findings of spatial assimilation among in‐migrants, fertility rates among Hispanics in new destinations exceeded fertility in established gateways by 18 percent. In the multivariate analyses, Hispanics in new destinations were roughly 10 percent more likely to have had a child in the past year than those living in established gateways. Results are consistent with subcultural explanations of Hispanic fertility and raise new questions about the spatial patterning of assimilation and the formation of ethnic enclaves outside traditional settlement areas.