Ecological restoration volunteers: the benefits of participation

There is an international volunteer movement to protect and restore sensitive natural landscapes. In Illinois alone, almost 40,000 acres of rare prairie, oak savanna, wetlands and woodland ecosystems in urban and suburban communities are monitored and managed by volunteers. As natural habitats disappear or become degraded worldwide, it is increasingly important to understand how a personal involvement with nature, in the form of restoration, benefits the individual as well as aiding in species and ecosystem survival. This study examined the satisfactions that volunteers derive from prairie restoration in the Chicago metropolitan area. Questionnaire responses from 263 volunteers indicate that volunteers experience high levels of many different satisfactions. Tenure, frequency and extent of involvement in restoration were used to predict restoration satisfactions, life satisfaction and life functioning. Implications for recruiting and sustaining volunteer involvement in restoration efforts are discussed.     

The Articulation of Theory and Practice: critique and resistance in Aotearoa New Zealand

In his latest book, Understanding Disability: from theory to practice (1996), Michael Oliver (p. 111) notes the 'globalisation' of disability related issues and the absence of any satisfactory comparative studies in disability policy across the globe. This paper can be seen as laying the ground work for such a study by reviewing the theorisation of disability and its practical consequence in the articulation, development and implementation of disability policy in Aotearoa New Zealand. It will describe some current examples of policies for disabled people and provides an analysis of current debates. The paper explores the emancipatory potential of current disability theorising by analysing strategies adopted by disabled people as a response to recent policy developments in the health and disability field in Aotearoa New Zealand.     

Physiological and Emotional Reactivity to Learning and Frustration

This study examined the behavioral (arm, facial) and autonomic (heart rate, respiratory sinus arrhythmia [RSA], and adrenocortical axis) reactivity of 56 4‐month‐old infants in response to contingency learning and extinction‐induced frustration. During learning, infants displayed increases in operant arm response and positive emotional expressions. Changes in average RSA(V_NA) paralleled the observed changes in facial expressions in general and maintained an inverse relation with heart rate throughout most of the session. When frustrated by extinction, infants displayed increases in negative expressions, heart rate, and a brief increase in RSA(V_NA) followed by a significant decrease. No significant changes were observed for Cortisol. These behavioral and facial responses are consistent with earlier work. The physiological changes, along with the facial expressions and instrumental responses, indicate that the autonomic nervous system functions as a coordinated affect system by 4 months of age.     

The power of silence: Ethical dilemmas of informed consent in practice evaluation

This paper critically examines the concepts of minimal risk and informed consent when practitioners use their own case material for practice evaluation and single subject research. Two student research projects conducted as requirements of a second year masters seminar in practice evaluation are used to identify specific ethical dilemmas and practice research implications are discussed.This paper is the product of class discussions in two year long research seminars conducted in 1990–1991 and 1991–1992 as part of the second year masters program at Simmons College School of Social Work. It is important to recognize that the voices of every seminar participant and the discussions generated are represented in this paper. An earlier version of this paper was presented at the 39th Annual Program Meeting of the Council on Social Work Education, New York, March 1, 1993.     

The Role of Local Development Organizations in Rural America*

Abstract Rural communities rely increasingly on local development organizations (LDOs) to promote economic development. The rise of LDOs has been the source of much debate. Using a national data set that links local governments with development organizations, we contrast the economic development activities, and their outcomes, of local governments and development organizations in rural America. We find that LDOs are involved in more economic development activities than are local governments. They are more successful at business recruitment and more effective at retention/expansion, both in number of firms and in jobs. The organizational networks of LDOs and local governments consistently influence their effectiveness. Finally, we examine the effects of an LDO's presence on the outcomes of business recruitment and of retention and expansion activities. The results suggest that the LDOs' success may be due in part to the networks in which they are embedded and to the amount of effort they make to promote growth.     

Social Legislation For The Reproductive Technologies

The reproductive technologies, particularly IVF, have proved a continuing source of community disquiet Despite numerous attempts in many countries to frame appropriate regulations, a community consensus has not been achieved. This failure is due to the medical control of the reproductive technologies, whereas the contentious issues are in fact social. The argument of this paper is that we already have regulatory procedures which are suited to the control of the social aspects of these technologies in the current legislation covering adoption and rights of parenthood.     

Socioenvironmental Threats to Pastoral Livelihoods: Risk Perceptions in the Altay and Tianshan Mountains of Xinjiang,China

Subjective risk perceptions give rise to unique policy implications as they reflect both the expectation of risk exposure and the ability to mitigate or cope with the adverse impacts. Based on data collected from semistructured interviews and iterative ranking exercises with 159 households in the Altay and Tianshan Mountains of Xinjiang, China, this study investigates and explains the risks with respect to a seriously understudied population and location. Using both geostatistical and econometric methods, we show that although fear of environmental crisis is prevalent among our respondents, recently implemented pastoral conservation, sedentarization, and development projects are more likely to be ranked as the top concerns among affected households. In order to reduce these concerns, future pastoral policy must be built on the livestock economy, and intervention priority should be given to the geographic areas identified as risk hot spots. In cases where pastoralists have to give up their pastures, the transition to other comparable livelihood strategies must be enabled by creating new opportunities and training pastoralists to acquire the needed skills.     

Creating space to think and feel in child protection social work; a psychodynamic intervention

Professionals working with families in difficulty require a structured space to consider their work. As organisations and the systems within and across them become more sophisticated it seems that less attention is being paid to the emotional and psychological aspects of working with families than to the paperwork and processes that surround the work. Systems psychodynamic theory and the methodical reflective practices it underpins offers a suitable framework in which to consider practicing and researching in this emotionally complex field. This paper describes one aspect of a small doctoral study designed to provide a sustained reflective space (Work Discussion Group) to Irish child protection social workers in order to closely explore the reality of their practice experience. This paper explores one worker’s experience of bringing a written account of her work with a family to the WDG. Findings suggest that her work was undertaken in a climate concerned with efficiency, certainty and the reduction of risk. This climate evoked anxiety and reduced opportunities for reflective and considered practice. The work discussion group provided containment for this worker’s anxiety and allowed her to make sense of this anxiety and its accompanying defences and to move closer to working with this family.     

Becoming Visible in the Public Sphere: Mobile Home Park Residents’ Political Engagement in City Council Hearings

Qualitative Sociology - In the United States, mobile homes provide the country’s largest source of unsubsidized affordable housing. Yet, state planning policies have relegated mobile home...