Health,wellness, and workplace experiences of lesbian,gay, and bisexual social workers

Abstract

Using data from an online survey of 6,112 licensed social workers in 13?U.S. states, rates of reported behavioral health problems and service utilization, physical health problems, adverse childhood experiences, workplace stress, and compassion satisfaction were compared between heterosexual male, heterosexual female, gay/bisexual male, and lesbian/bisexual female respondents. Sexual minority workers reported far higher rates of mental health problems and service utilization, higher rates of physical problems, more frequent reporting of adverse childhood experiences, with no differences found between groups regarding workplace stress and compassion satisfaction. Minority stress theory and historical trauma are used as frameworks to conceptualize the findings.     

Identification with the Human Species: A Challenge for the Twenty-First Century

The unanticipated proliferation of ethnicconflicts, after the collapse of the Soviet Union andEastern European satellites, poses a perplexingquestion: Can human beings develop an identificationwith more inclusive social units than ethnic/racialgroupings and nation-states? A concentric circle modelis presented of multiple identities, from the self tothe human species. Achieving an identification with the human species — a substantialchallenge for the twenty-first century — wouldhave profound implications for the incidence andresolution of interethnic and internationalconflicts.     

CONVERSATIONS WITH EDWIN J.G. PITMAN

Edwin Pitman was born on 29th October, 1897, in Melbourne, Victoria. He was Professor of Mathematics at the University of Tasmania from 1926 until his retirement in 1962. His publications on distribution-free methods in Statistics established a sound basis for the development of these methods. His theoretical papers gave a sound mathematical treatment of the concepts of intrinsic accuracy and sufficiency, and a definitive treatment of estimation problems for location and scale parameters. The concept of asymptotic relative efficiency is due to him. He was elected a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science (FAA) in 1954, a Fellow of the Institute of Mathematical Statistics in 1948, President of the Australian Mathematical Society in 1958 and 1959, and Vice-President of the International Statistical Institute in 1960. He was elected an Honorary Life Member of the Statistical Society of Australia in 1966, an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Statistical Society in 1965, and an Honorary Life Member of the Australian Mathematical Society in 1968.
In 1977, in honour of his eightieth birthday, the University of Tasmania conferred on him an Honorary Doctorate of Science, and the Statistical Society of Australia instituted the Pitman Medal (1979), to be awarded to a member of the Society for high distinction in Statistics.
The conversations recorded here took place in May, 1991, at Pitman's home in Hobart, Tasmania.     

Punitive welfare reform and claimant mental health: The impact of benefit sanctions on anxiety and depression

Internationally, policymakers assume that sanctioning claimants of unemployment benefits will engender both improved employment outcomes and wider positive effects. A growing evidence‐base challenges these expectations, though additional insight is needed from large‐scale longitudinal research. This article contributes by conducting a quantitative investigation into the mental health impacts of benefit sanctions. To do so, it focuses on a recent period in UK sanctions policy in which rates of sanctions varied markedly and their length was substantially increased. Using quarterly panel data for local authorities in England (Q3 2010–Q4 2014) and fixed effects models that control for important confounders, the analysis provides robust evidence that Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA) sanctions lead to increases in self‐reported anxiety and depression. Evidence of this adverse impact is particularly clear following the increase in the length of sanctions in October 2012. The results have important implications for contemporary social security policy, which is underpinned by a similarly punitive sanctions regime. Whilst additional individual‐level research is needed to fully consider the causal relationships in operation, the findings support a precautionary approach that should seek to minimise the harm associated with sanctions. This implies taking steps to reduce both the severity and frequency of applied sanctions.     

Education and Occupations: Reexamining the Conventional Wisdom About Later First Births Among American Mothers

Using biannual Current Population Survey data, this paper reexamines the question of how education and occupations led to the postponement of first births among American mothers in the 1970s through 1990s. Analytical methods in earlier investigations predispose researchers to favor an investment model of education's effects, but an alternative method used in this analysis suggests that college attainment's major effect on age at first birth is primarily the result of years spent childless in college. Mothers-to-be in higher prestige occupations did delay motherhood longer than did those in other occupations. This study extends earlier research by examining whether or not conclusions drawn about all women (with and without children) apply to the majority of women—those who become mothers. The expansion of higher education, higher prestige occupations, and their impact on work and family decisions are discussed.