The Implicit Curriculum Survey: An Examination of the Psychometric Properties

This study examined the psychometric properties of the Implicit Curriculum Survey (ICS) using an exploratory factor analysis (EFA). Students enrolled in four different MSW programs (N=262) from different geographic locations completed the ICS, which is a Web-based survey. The domains of the ICS include field, academics, community, diversity, faculty advising, and support services. The ICS includes quantitative and qualitative responses. However, for this study only the quantitative results were used. The EFA revealed that for each of the subscales, Cronbach’s alphas ranged from .52 to .90 and validity of the ICS was demonstrated through the good model fits found during the factor analysis. Implications for social work education and future research are discussed.     

Episodic Volunteering at a Religious Megaevent

In preparation for Pope Francis's visit to Philadelphia and the 2015 World Meeting of Families, organizers looked for thousands of volunteers to help carry out these events. This is common for many one‐time and episodic events, such as large sporting events (from marathons to Special Olympics), arts and cultural events (such as festivals and concerts), and fundraising events. After the pope's visit, volunteers were asked to respond to a questionnaire about their experiences and the volunteer management of the event; 2,408 responded (34.4 percent). Data on motivation, who volunteered, recruitment, training, assignment, supervision, communication, satisfaction, and suggestions for improvement were elicited. We focused on episodic volunteering at a religious event and on a broad spectrum of issues pertaining to management of episodic volunteers. Our findings add to the knowledge regarding volunteer management and also add to conceptual understanding of the distinction between ongoing and episodic volunteers.     

Standards of Care in Assessment of Lesbian,Gay, Bisexual,Transgender, Gender Expansive,and Queer/Questioning (LGBTGEQ+) Persons

ABSTRACT

A Joint Task Force comprised of members of the Association for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Issues in Counseling (ALGBTIC) and the Association for Assessment and Research in Counseling (AARC) present standards of care for assessment of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Gender Expansive, and Queer/Questioning (LGBTGEQ+) Persons.     

Proposing an Initiative Research Methodology for LGBTQ+ Youth: Photo-Elicitation and Thematic Analysis

ABSTRACT

A framework for approaching lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer+ (LGBTQ+) youth is presented that honors their voice. This methodology utilizes participant-driven photo elicitation as a qualitative data collection method, and then integrates thematic analysis. A brief review of current literature is provided to outline gaps, which establish the need to expand effective research methods with LGBTQ+ youth. Photo elicitation is explained with discussion specific to use with LGBTQ+ youth. Thematic analysis is identified and explained as an analytic approach. Challenges of implementing this methodology are discussed with attention to ethical concerns.     

A tale of two decades: Relative intra-family earning capacity and changes in family welfare over time

The purpose of this paper is to assess the impact of economic changes in the 1990s and 2000s on the welfare of married households, taking into account the relative earnings structure of husband and wife. Modeling the household members’ joint labor supply, we find that families in which the wife is the higher wage earner experienced as much welfare gain in the 1990s and significantly higher welfare gains in the 2000s as families in which the husband is the higher wage earner.     

The production of racial inequality within and among organizations

This article examines the production of racial inequality. Although most research concerned with racial inequality focuses exclusively on individuals, we argue that higher level actors, namely, organizations, contend with racial inequality in much the same way that people do. Using prior research on race and organizations, this paper illustrates that understanding how organizations produce and experience racial inequality is necessary. We argue that racial inequality regimes have the capacity to operate on people, but also among organizations.     

The sociology of antiracism in Black and White

This paper reviews sociological research on antiracism and suggests new directions for the field. Current research indicates although White antiracism constitutes attempts to negotiate privilege, it fails to divest from the systems of power that maintain the current balance of privilege in favor of White supremacy. In contrast, the antiracism of people of color provides some insight into attempts to secure liberation, a complete break from White supremacist power structures. I argue DuBois, Black Feminist Thought, and postcolonial sociology inform a sociology of antiracism that centers people of color rather than Whiteness. To illustrate the nuance of antiracism by people of color, I centered my study on Black antiracism. From this perspective, antiracism emerges as the set of practices that Blacks enact in everyday life to mitigate and confront hegemonic racialization. I suggest that one construct of hegemonic whiteness meant to uphold dominant racial ideology that produces emphasized blackness that facilitates symbolic and physical violence toward Blacks. Although emphasized blackness produces and reinforces constraints on Black antiracism, oppositional blackness exemplifies an ultimate form of antiracism in which Black bodies act as agents of social change through liberatory projects such as marronage and counterhegemonic knowledge production. I conclude this article with a case study of the Windward Maroons of Jamaica to illustrate oppositional blackness as the dynamics of resistance and empowerment that emerge to confront hegemonic whiteness.     

Social Workers' Perceptions of Training Preparedness and Social Justice Norms on Workplace Empowerment

This study examined the relationship between (a) social workers' perceptions of preparedness to perform in their professional roles and perceived social justice behaviors at work and (b) workers' sense of workplace empowerment. A sample of 152 currently licensed social workers responded to web or mailed surveys. Respondents were more likely to perceive having workplace empowerment related to meaning in their work if they reported their social work program training prepared them for their professional roles. Perceived social justice behaviors at work were associated with workers' experiencing empowerment related to the impact they had at work. Social workers' sense of training preparedness and experiencing social justice at work can positively influence workers' perceived empowerment. Enforcing the importance of engaging in social justice with clients in social work education, both in class and in field placements, has the potential for long-lasting effects on empowerment in students' future workplaces. Agency-level management should ensure continuity in social justice activities to enhance feelings of workplace empowerment, which may help social workers connect with clients. Future research should examine elements of social work programs that promote feelings of empowerment in order to understand how the same approach can be used in models of continuing education and organizational management.     

Open Adoptions of Children From Foster Care in New South Wales Australia: Adoption Process and Post-Adoption Contact

In Australia, adoptions from care are infrequent and mostly conducted in New South Wales (NSW) despite being legislated in other states. This qualitative study explored the experiences of the adoption process and post-adoption contact of eight foster parents adopting children in their care through the public welfare agency in NSW. The interviews were analyzed following a structured approach, by means of thematic networks. The study revealed that adoption processes and maintenance of birth family relationships depend on a number of factors (e.g., the behavior of the professionals, adoptive and birth parents, children's reactions, policy and practice contexts). However, the adoptive parents' experience of the adoption process was largely determined by the system, and in most cases this appeared to subsequently influence post-adoption connection in the families. The findings and the adoptive parents' recommendations are likely to apply beyond specific geographical jurisdictions. In addition, the reported complexities regarding connections through open adoptions at times resemble those tensions faced by children living in other family types such as those referred to in the foster care literature. Further research on some of these commonalities may expand in some countries the debate regarding adoption as an inherently contestable practice.