Parents' Definition of Effective Child Disability Support Services: Implications for Implementing Family-Centered Practice

The current study examined parents' perspectives of services within a community-based childhood disability program in the process of enhancing the family centeredness of its services. Qualitative interviews were conducted with 39 mothers and 22 fathers approximately 18 months after entering the service delivery system. Parents reported that effective service delivery requires service coordinators with interpersonal and practice skills working within an adequately resourced service system that has policies and procedures that are responsive to family needs. Parent feedback was congruent with the principles of family-centered practice and has important implications for the implementation of family-centered services.     

Cultural integration through shared learning among resettled Bhutanese women

ABSTRACT

The multidimensional needs of recently resettled refugees have been well documented and range from elevated rates of mental illness and health care challenges to difficulties accessing resources due to language and literacy barriers. These factors are largely responsible for the challenges resettled refugees face in acquiring and maintaining stable employment. It is possible that achieving financial stability through steady employment and purposeful money management may alleviate some stressors associated with the resettlement process, though research in this area that is specific to refugees is in its infancy. What is clear, however, is that a traditional approach to mental health treatment (i.e., therapy in a traditional office setting) may lack effectiveness because of the lack of attention to extraneous stressors such as poverty, transportation, and language and literacy challenges that impact resettled refugees. The purpose of this study was to qualitatively assess the impact of a group-based financial education course and social enterprise on the self-reported mental health (i.e., post-traumatic stress symptoms, depression, anxiety, and somatization) of Bhutanese refugee women resettled in the United States. The study also sought to evaluate the acceptability and overall satisfaction with various components of the intervention. This qualitative study was a follow-up to a larger quantitative study that included 65 Bhutanese women who were resettled to the southwestern United States by a large resettlement agency. The results of this study offer insights into the lived experiences of Bhutanese refugees in the United States, particularly related to cultural integration bolstered by group-based education and shared learning opportunities.     

What’s in a name? Exploring use of the word queer as a term of identification within the college-aged LGBT community

ABSTRACT

The language one uses for self-identification can be instrumental in the development and integration of one’s sense of self. This is particularly true regarding gender, gender identity, and sexual orientation. This seems to be particularly marked with use of the term “queer.” This research project explored terms that college-aged people use for self and other reference, especially use of the word queer. The results from this study provide empirical evidence that college-aged people have reclaimed the word queer as acceptable for gender or sexual orientation identification, although it is not the most frequent term used for their own self-identification.     

Student Views on Good Practice in Social Work Education

This article focuses on the delivery of a social work degree programme in England, one of the constituent jurisdictions of the United Kingdom, and explores student perceptions of their learning experience and what constitutes effective teaching. The data are drawn from a larger research project which is ongoing and focuses upon the specific ways in which the BSc Hons Social Work degree at a university in the East Midlands prepares students to meet the demands of employers. Linked to the national evaluation of the new social work degree, social work academics at the university worked with final year social work degree students as co-researchers to evaluate student views on the quality of teaching practices across the teaching team.     

Planning for Aging in Place: Incorporating the Voice of Elders to Promote Quality of Life

Abstract

Aging in place offers emotional and physical benefits; however, challenges associated with advanced age may make aging in place difficult. As communities across the country prepare for forecasted increases in the proportion of older residents, it is important to understand barriers that may prevent aging in place. Perceived barriers voiced by residents of a suburban county who completed an Aging in Place Needs Assessment Survey were categorized into four themes: need to downsize/home modification; need for assistance; family desire to reciprocate care; and isolation. A fifth group with no intent to relocate, but with concerns about having to, was also identified. Included among this group were persons with mental health or developmental disorders, such as anxiety and autism spectrum disorder. Results were examined through a person-centered lens to illustrate that aging in place may be the desired option even among residents who indicate that it is not. It is important that aging-in-place initiatives preserve identity by fostering a sense of autonomy, control, and well-being in older residents.     

Child migration

It is considered important to construct models of social work in particular settings in order to refine practice and to enhance the power position of practitioners in identifying appropriate roles and tasks in relation to other professions. The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the accumulation of data about social work in association with legal aid, leading to the formulation of a model or practice in such a setting. Data is presented here in relation to three groups of personnel participating in the Caxton Street Legal Service in Brisbane: lawyer perceptions of social work roles and types of problems appropriately dealt with by social workers, similar perceptions of a group of social workers forming a roster of volunteers, and the actual roles and activities of three social work students placed at C.S.L.S. during 1980. Of major interest is the predominantly casework conciliatory nature of role perceptions and activities in the agency's declared policy. Analysis suggests that this situation is explicable partly in terms of political expediency in relation to funding aims, and partly in terms of the voluntary, part-time and fragmentary nature of the service. The need for further clarification of a practice model remains, however, if social workers are to extend their role in legal aid.     

Closing pathways: refugee-background students and tertiary education

Abstract

Recent changes to policies and funding for tertiary education are exacerbating an already difficult situation for refugees aiming to earn university degrees. No one intended to create the barriers that the refugee-background community faces; government agencies continue attempts to improve educational outcomes for those who arrive as refugees. The root causes of this situation are the complexity of the refugee situation and a lack of holistic knowledge about this diverse group of New Zealand residents among policy makers and educators. In addition, the complexity of interactions among policy changes and refugee situations has prevented any single agency from predicting outcomes of its policies for refugee-background students. In this paper, I discuss how new policies interact with a range of existing barriers faced by refugees pursuing degrees and how, without urgent attention, this will constrict or close pathways into and through university study. I further suggest that the strongest foundation for an effective program to provide equitable access to university education is including refugee-background students among those groups who receive equity consideration.     

Experiencing menopause in the UK: The interrelated narratives of normality,distress, and transformation

ABSTRACT

We investigated the experience and perspectives of menopause among 48 UK mothers through qualitative in-depth interviews. Interviews were analyzed thematically then explored using social science theories. Three interdependent narratives emerged: menopause as a normal, biological process, distinct from self and social transitions; menopause as struggle, an “idiom of distress” expressing upset, identity loss, shame, and social upheaval; and menopause as transformative and liberating, arising from biopsychic and relational changes. Some women followed a predictable “rite of passage” trajectory with transformation emerging from distress, but not all: Menopause arises from a complex interplay of personal predicament, somatic change, and sociocultural context.     

Hidden Eating Disorders: Attachment and Affect Regulation in the Therapeutic Relationship

From the time I began working at a clinic that specialized in therapy with individuals with eating disorders, I have repeatedly encountered cases of clients hiding these symptoms from their therapists. When they finally do reveal the disorder, their therapists often worry that their clients are more disturbed than they thought and that, they, the therapists, did something wrong in the therapy. Although some therapeutic rupture can be part of the picture, I have found that these disclosures often reflect a client’s growing trust in the therapist’s presence and ability to help with feelings that have been, until now, dealt with through the eating behaviors themselves. In my attempts to understand what happens before and after an individual shares a hidden eating disorder with a therapist, I have found ideas from attachment theory, in particular those that explore links between attachment, affect regulation, and self-reflection, to be very helpful. Many authors have noted that eating disorders are related to problems with attachment, loss and separation, and affect regulation. Difficulties in these areas make it hard for clients to be self-reflective or use insight productively. In this article, I discuss my experience with the integration of these dynamics, which I have found to be key to successful psychotherapy with clients who hide their eating disorders.