Self-Reported Incidence of Physical Violence in College Students

Abstract

A survey of a college student population indicates that physical abuse is prevalent in our society. The self-reported data were found to be similar to that occurring in the literature on parent-reported child abuse, documenting that approximately one-third of college students had a history of moderate abuse and 5 to 10% had a history of a severe abuse during their developmental years. Through an awareness of its high prevalence, the health care provider will question a history of physical violence when evaluating a student with a medical or psychosocial complaint and appropriately plan a management program including therapeutic counseling to decrease the effect of the prior or current physical abuse.     

Comparing Acquisition of Exchange-Based and Signed Mands With Children With Autism

Therapists and educators frequently teach alternative-communication systems, such as picture exchanges or manual signs, to individuals with developmental disabilities who present with expressive language deficits. Michael (1985) recommended a taxonomy for alternative communication systems that differentiated between selection-based systems in which each response is topographically identical (e.g., card selection and exchange systems) and topography-based systems in which each response is topographically distinct (e.g., signed language). We compared the efficiency of training picture exchanges and signs with 3 participants who presented with severe language deficits; all participants acquired the picture-exchange responses more readily.     

The Impact of Elder Abuse Education on Young Adults

The present study examined the effectiveness of educational interventions in altering tolerance for and behavioral intentions of elder abuse among college student young adults. Participants were 225 undergraduates who were assigned to one of four educational groups: Elder Abuse Education, Aging Education, Family Education, and a Pre- and Posttest only condition. While the Elder Abuse Education group reported less tolerance and intentions for elder abuse compared to the other groups at the immediate posttest, a decrement in such positive changes at 1-month follow-up was observed in such persons. These mixed findings suggest that while specific interventions may reduce elder abuse tolerance, supplemental educational efforts over time may be necessary to maintain intervention-specific gains in intentions and behaviors particular to elder abuse.     

Tracing Stigma in Long-Term Care Insurance in Israel: Stakeholders’ Views of Policy Implementation

A rapidly expanding number of baby boomers provide care to aging parents. This study examines associations between caregiver status and outcomes related to awareness and anticipation of future long-term care (LTC) needs using 2007 Connecticut Long-Term Care Needs Assessment survey data. Baby boomers who were adult child caregivers (n = 353) versus baby boomers who were not (n = 1242) were more likely to anticipate some future LTC needs and to have considered certain financing strategies. Although baby boomer adult child caregivers more readily anticipate some future LTC needs, they are not taking specific actions. It is important to address the need for public education directed toward those who are currently (or have recently completed) caring for aging parents.     

Russia

The author clarifies the concept of "historical politics"; compares its practice in Poland, Ukraine, the Baltic states, and (over the last two to three years) Russia; and considers its harmful consequences for both international relations and domestic political pluralism.     

Media Production as Therapy: A Systematic Review

Abstract

The rapidly changing communication environment of the digital age has generated needed discussion regarding implications of media technologies for social work practice. Yet scarce research has considered the therapeutic value of media technologies for social work practice. This systematic review explores how media production is used as a therapeutic intervention in human services to identify the therapeutic value and potential challenges of its application in the field. Media Production as Therapy (MPT) affords a range of therapeutic outcomes, including self- and community-awareness, self-reflection and self-correction practices, self-expression and story-sharing, and processing trauma. Challenges confronted through MPT include time and resource constraints, logistical difficulties, issues of authenticity, and dissemination concerns. Despite limited research, this review provides needed guidance for social workers to harness technology for social good, operating in the digital space to implement MPT interventions that afford a range of therapeutic benefits to clients in an increasingly mediated world.     

The History of 0

When time has erased all details and ambiguities concerning the Iraq war the Abu Ghraib pictures will still be remembered, for two interrelated reasons. First, the pictures may be seen as part of a particularly cruel form of torture, in which the act of exposure multiply the feeling of shame. The significance of the pictures rests not in what they depict but in the fact that they were taken at all. The sexual nature of the torture, the use of the camera to multiply the feeling of shame, and the fact that the soldiers through their inclusions in the frame show no shame constitute their truly shocking nature. Second, the pictures provoked significant debate. They were used as forms of resistance against the “coalition of the willing”, with the Bush government afterwards trying to exercise damage control. The reason that the pictures had such impact was not the event itself — the fact that torture was applied. Most people know that such acts occur in wars. However, the various photographs, especially the hooded man in the “Jesus Christ pose” with wires attached to his limbs, had iconic potential. On a more fundamental level the perverse practices known from the prison worked as a secret and disavowed basis of American power, which was brought to light. Suddenly, American ideals appeared on the same plane as their constitutive exceptions. This left the administration with the choice of either denying the existence of this “downside” or in generalizing the exception (legalizing torture etc.). It was in fact by not choosing one of the strategies, but playing both cards simultaneously, that the Bush government lost so much prestige.     

Family Transitions and Children’s Well-Being During Adolescence

This study used longitudinal prospective data from a representative Canada-wide survey to assess the impact of childhood family experience on well-being during adolescence. First, we constructed family composition profiles to capture the number and type of changes in family structure that occurred in our sample over a 12-year period. Then, we examined links between initial family status, family composition profiles, timing of parental separation, and later behavioral outcomes during adolescence. Marital status at birth, as well as 2 different family transition profiles, were linked to externalized problems during adolescence. Timing of the first family transition suppressed the effect of family transition profiles on adolescent behavioral outcomes.     

Field Note—From MSW to J-O-B: Using Field Seminar to Prepare Students for Employment

ABSTRACT

Social work field education is expected to help students transition from the classroom to the practice setting. Yet, few social work programs adequately provide career development support to increase students’ employability. This Field Note presents practical, relevant and immediate strategies for implementing the MSW to J-O-B curriculum innovation in the field practicum seminar. The purpose is to help students clarify professional goals and successfully obtain employment or career advancement opportunities following graduation. Formative evaluation results for this professional development curriculum are presented.