Clarifying the concept of the “Social” in risk assessments for human subjects research

International guidelines for the conduct of research with human participants, such as those put forth by the Council for International Organizations of Medical Sciences (CIOMS, 2002), recommend that research review committees account for social risk and benefits to society in their review of proposed research. What do the concepts of the “social” and “society” mean in the context of the review of human participants research? Here we analyze concepts of social and society to define the terms: social harm, social risk, social benefit, and benefits to society. We argue that use of these terms invite more questions than answers and beg for difficult empirical research to determine the nature, likelihood, and magnitude of this category of risk and benefit. Until more research is done and these questions are answered, we advise reviewers to adopt an attitude of provisionalism and caution in their review of specifically “social” risks and benefits and “benefits to society.”     

Emotion Socialization in the Context of Risk and Psychopathology: Maternal Emotion Coaching Predicts Better Treatment Outcomes for Emotionally Labile Children with Oppositional Defiant Disorder

We examined whether maternal emotion coaching at pretreatment predicted children's treatment response following a 12‐week program addressing children's oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) symptoms. A total of 89 mother–child dyads participated. At pretreatment, mothers and children engaged in an emotion talk task. Mothers also reported their beliefs about emotions at pretreatment and their child's disruptive behavior symptoms, emotion regulation, and emotion lability/negativity at pre‐, mid‐, and post‐treatment. Clinicians reported children's symptom severity at pre‐ and post‐treatment. Children's emotion lability/negativity moderated effects of maternal emotion coaching on children's post‐treatment ODD symptoms, with stronger benefits of emotion coaching for children high in emotion lability/negativity. Results suggest that emotion coaching may promote treatment response for children with ODD who are especially at risk due to their emotionality.     

Attitudinal effects associated with an environmental hazard

There has been increasing concern over environmental hazards such as toxic waste disposal, but little research has occurred on those effects related to the stress associated with these hazards. Related research has suggested the presence of both behavioral (e.g., headaches, nausea) and attitudinal effects (demoralization, upset, perceived threat, lack of trust). Mediators to these effects were found to include distance from the stressor, frequency of stimuli, gender, age and presence of small children.Four hundred twenty-one persons were surveyed with adaptations from the Hopkins Life Checklist and instruments used in studies of the Three Mile Island nuclear accident. Effects for the attitudes ofperceived threat, declining qualify of life, anddistrust of authorities were significant for both distance from site and frequency of stimuli. Future anticipation, quality of information and having children significantly affected attitudes, as did age and gender. Implications for policymakers and researchers are also discussed.This study was funded through research grant # 1 RO3 MH39745-01 of the Small Grants Program of the National Institutes of Mental Health, Center for Mental Health Studies of Emergencies.     

Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking: A Social Work Perspective on Misidentification,Victims, Buyers,Traffickers, Treatment,and Reform of Current Practice

Domestic minor sex trafficking (DMST) has been steadily on the rise in the United States, with estimates between 15,000 and 50,000 victims per year. Actual estimates of DMST victims are difficult to determine based on misidentification, conflicts between state and federal laws about age of consent and charges, perceptions of the victim, as well as lack of knowledge regarding the prevalence and dynamics of sex trafficking of minors. Oftentimes, child victims come from multi-problem homes and have already experienced abuse and neglect, which further complicates treatment and services. This article explores the emerging literature and defines the problem and identifies laws, statues, and definitions of the problem. It also reviews the literature on victim, buyer, and trafficker characteristics. Organized crime's role in this growing epidemic is explained as well as treatment options and recommendations for future social work practice at the micro-, mezzo-, and macro-levels.     

Tough Love: Social Work, Social Exclusion and the Third Way

Summary This article argues that New Labour's priorities for socialinclusion through employment, and for strenthening civil society,have relegated public-sector social work to a limited role inassessing and managing risks. However, as failures in the government'stop-down, regulatory approach emerge, there will be new opportunitiesfor a broader-based version of the profession to contributeto a more progressive programme.     

Social Capital,Place Meanings,and Perceived Resilience to Climate Change*

This research analyzes individuals' perceived resilience to changing climatic conditions. Specifically, we suggest individual resilience is composed of an awareness of localized risks created because of climate change, a willingness to learn about, and plan for, the potential impacts of altered environmental conditions, and general appraisals of personal adaptive capacities. We hypothesize that resilience is influenced by the characteristics of individuals' social networks and also by their social-psychological dependence on local environments. Using data collected in three resource-associated communities within the southeastern United States, our analysis suggests bonding ties may limit individuals' willingness to seek new information about the potential impacts of climate change. Conversely, the data suggest the use of a diverse array of bridging ties is positively associated with information-seeking behavior. The data also support our hypothesis that individuals' social psychological dependencies on the local environment influences their perceived resilience to changing climatic conditions. By gaining a clearer understanding of how individuals' social networks and social-psychological dependencies affect their perceived ability to adapt to changing environmental conditions, decision makers can focus on policy solutions that increase adaptive capacities and build social resilience.     

Doctoral Study Programs in Social Work at HBCUs: Origin and Program Development

Fisk University began the genesis of HBCU graduate programs in 1880. During the next fifty years, several other HBCUs established graduate programs. That group included Lincoln, Howard, and Morgan State. However, only Lincoln University established a PhD program. The primary goal of this paper is to provide a historical perspective regarding the development of social work doctoral degree programs in the context of HBCU graduate degree program development. Although HBCU social work doctoral programs have only existed since 1978, they are significant and growing academic enterprises which are expanding the pool of doctoral level social work experts and professors of color. Further, these programs should be viewed contextually as producers of scholars on the larger landscape of the academy.     

Language and libertarianism: the politics of cyberculture and the culture of cyberpolitics

A significant number of theories concerning the nature of cyberspace or virtuality are being constructed with little regard for the empirical realities of online life. This article sets out certain simple empirical factors related to the nature first of politics in cyberspace and second culture in cyberspace. These questions are posed as ‘what is the politics of cyberculture?’ and ‘what is the culture of cyberpolitics?’. The politics of cyberculture revolves around issues of grossly uneven regional distribution of the Internet and a bias toward anglo‐american language and culture that is based on the competitive individual. The culture of cyberpolitics revolves around informational forms of libertarian and anarchist ideologies that posit cyberspace as the realm of individual freedom. These cultures and politics can be related to each other as the structure and action of cyberspace. The assumption that cyberspace is constituted by individuals is revealed as an assumption of both, and connection between, cyberpolitics and cybercultures.     

Implementation of the Family Violence Option 20 Years Later: A Review of State Welfare Rules for Domestic Violence Survivors

The Family Violence Option (FVO) was included in the 1996 welfare reform legislation to ensure that domestic violence survivors are not subject to unfair penalties resulting from compliance with the new requirements. This study presents a comprehensive review of the states’ different approaches to address domestic violence. Our findings identified variation in implementation and practice, from the decision to adopt the FVO to the process of granting waivers. Although not contradictory to the federal legislation, the variation is indicative of the limited research on best practices and lack of national discussions on how state FVO processes relate to one another.