Context and Scope of Social Work Interventions in Perinatal Mental Health Settings in India

The perinatal period may not be a happy time for all mothers. During this period, some may develop psychiatric complications, which have both biological and psychosocial etiology, and such illness may affect the whole family. Psychosocial aspects may trigger the illness and act as risk and maintaining factors. Social workers need to intervene in this context for optimal functioning of women with perinatal mental health issues and her family. A biopsychosocial framework may be adopted for social work assessment and intervention. Individual, familial, group, and community level intervention is required to address this complex issue, along with other mental health clinicians.     

京津冀社会保障体系一体化的历史借鉴及对策

京津冀协同发展战略为三省市的社会保障一体化提供了难得的机遇,在对三省市的社会保障一体化的历史借鉴基础上,必须重视法律建设、顶层设计和基本公共服务均等化的协同发展。     

On Old-Fashioned Versus Modern Homonegativity Distinction: Evidence From Poland

Psychological research on prejudice against homosexuals distinguishes between old-fashioned (traditional) and modern (contemporary) homonegativity, which differ with regard to their content, correlates, and consequences. The current research offers evidence for the validity of old-fashioned versus modern homonegativity distinction in the post-communist, East European context. In Studies 1 and 2 (Ns = 295 and 327, respectively) the Polish adaptations of the non-gendered and gendered Homonegativity Scale (Morrison, Parriag, & Morrison, 1999) and the Modern Homonegativity Scale (Morrison & Morrison, 2003) were developed. Furthermore, divergent (discriminant) validity of traditional and contemporary anti-homosexual prejudice was demonstrated. Old-fashioned and modern homonegativity exhibited differential relationships with social distance and support for same-sex couples’ relational rights.     

社会保障、代际支持如何影响城镇老年人退而不休?

对城镇老年人退而不休的动因分析,是合理开发和管理老年人力资源的前提.基于代际支持的传导作用,研究发现,具有较高社会保障水平、健康状况较好和学历较高的城镇老年人选择退而不休更倾向于实现自我价值,同时,足够的家庭养老支持对他们积极发挥余热的动机有正向推动作用;而健康状况较差和学历较低的城镇老年人,由于家庭养老支持不足、其付出与获得的家庭资源不对等以及由此产生的社会保障"外溢"等压力,更可能以获得收入为动机选择退而不休,进而导致其发展权利受损.因此,有差别地开发和管理老年人力资源、谨慎制定并实施延迟退休政策,对实现积极、健康的老龄化社会有着重要的意义.     

“This will help your children”: Service providers’ experiences with military families during cycles of deployment

ABSTRACT

Military families face not only the same challenges as other families, but also unique issues due to their military involvement. Parenting programs for civilian families can be helpful, but they do not generally cover the specific issues faced by military families. The purpose of this qualitative study was to gather information from a focus group of eight service providers about the types of issues that affect military families, such that content and delivery of workshops at a social service agency could be formed to specifically cater to military families. This study utilized a phenomenological approach, and analyses revealed areas for social service involvement around the cycle of deployment. Specifically, social services could be helpful by using psychoeducational and normalization techniques around the five major themes that resulted from this study: (1) the issues of servicemembers psychologically withdrawing before deployment, (2) family cohesion and connectedness during and after deployment, (3) family stability during reintegration of the service member, (4) military families experience many of the same challenges that nonmilitary families do (such as domestic violence and financial issues), and (5) utilizing a military culture framework for all military family programs.     

Experiences of adolescent mothers in Costa Rica and the role of parental support

ABSTRACT

Adolescent pregnancy is often thought of as a social problem, one that can cause the adolescent mother hardship, including poverty, low-educational attainment, and housing instability. Although much research has been conducted about adolescent pregnancy in the developed world, less has considered adolescent pregnancy in the developing world. This qualitative study focuses on women who were impoverished in Costa Rica who had been pregnant in adolescence. The goal of the study was to gain a better understanding of the lived experiences of the mothers, as well as the kinds of support they received during and after the pregnancy. The research sample consisted of 22 female participants who were impoverished and had experienced an unintended pregnancy in adolescence. The key finding from this study was that parental support was the most important factor in mitigating adolescent experiences of stress and negative feelings about their choices related to the pregnancy. The study has implications for the understanding of the experiences of women who are vulnerable with respect to adolescent pregnancies in Latin America and for Latina migrants to the United States.     

Applying a social model of disability across the life span

With an estimated 21.3% of persons aged 15 and older experiencing disability in the USA, social workers will see clients present with disabilities across all practice settings and stages of human development. Yet, the training and terminology of social workers—which often closely aligns with medical professionals—may seem to occur in isolating silos or disciplinary theories. Social work education often views the needs of older adults and people with disabilities as two distinct populations, despite the fact that many of these individuals share similar needs for access, resources, and support. Furthermore, when discussing human development, the focus may skew to individual affective, behavioral, and cognitive processes and indicators of abnormal development and frailty. Thus, by clarifying terminology and applying a social model of disability across the life span, we identify how educational efforts related to human behavior and the social environment can promote intersectional and inclusive social work related to aging and disability.     

An empirical assessment of writing and research proficiency in HBCU social work students

ABSTRACT

Lack of proficiency in writing and research among social work students has increasingly concerned social work educators and practitioners. Given the significance of written communication with clients and emphasis on evidence-based practice in the field of social work, it is critical to assess students’ competence in both writing and research. However, deficit-based approaches to assessing writing and research competence have disadvantaged students at historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs). This pilot study aims to assess writing and research proficiency of HBCU master’s of social work (MSW) students through empirical analysis of their capstone papers and surveys from educators to provide implications for developing a writing and research manual for social work programs at HBCUs. Ten capstone papers were randomly selected and qualitatively analyzed; nine faculty and one field supervisor completed the survey, and their respondents were analyzed using cross-case analysis. Analyses of the capstone papers identified two themes for writing and research domains, respectively: (1) weakness in developing statements and lack of knowledge of writing style and (2) plagiarism and lack of understanding of research structure. Moreover, analyses of the surveys revealed four themes regarding assessment of writing and research skills among students struggling with basic writing mechanics, indicating that HBCU MSW students may have potential and capacity for learning, as evidenced by their ideas and critical thinking skills. These findings suggest both teaching- and research-oriented programs could employ the proposed writing and research assessment manual, as well as a writing and research lab/center for improving writing and research skills among their students.     

Emancipatory engagement: An urban womanist social work pedagogy

ABSTRACT

Standing on the hope of the initial social work course from 1914 at Morgan College, this article provides insight into the significant learning outcomes of contemporary students in advanced social work practice with urban African American families. This research introduces the conceptual framework of urban womanist social work pedagogy as an inclusive practice-informed knowledge produced through the rituals, traditions, values, culture, and resilience of historically disenfranchised communities. Urban womanist social work teaching methods honor truth telling from the ones who have lived there. Urban womanist social work affirms transformative-centered research, teaching, and scholarship produced through institutions such as historically black colleges and universities (HBCU’s). The students’ reflective narratives reveal a process of transformation, centered in the freedom standpoint, which includes recognizing the location and context of their individual and collective identity as African Americans in the profession of social work. Urban womanist social work pedagogy cumulatively equips our students with intergenerational knowledge that inform their assessment of critical issues in Baltimore’s African American communities.     

The three governances in social innovation

This paper explores the relationship between governance and social innovation in the area of organizations. In order to understand that relationship, we offer a model that links the absorptive capacity of knowledge [Cohen and Levinthal 1990. “Absorptive Capacity: A new Perspective on Learning and Innovation.” Administrative Science Quarterly 35 (1): 128–152] with open innovation [Chesbrough and Di Minin 2014. “Open Social Innovation.” In New Frontiers in Open Innovation, edited by H. Chesbrough, W. Vanhaverbeke, and J. West, 169–187. Oxford: Oxford University Press]. On the basis of the pilot study Regional Social Innovation Index carried out in the Basque Country (Spain), we empirically explore three types of governance (social, inter-organizational, and sustainable) in social innovation projects propelled by four types of key agents at a regional level: profit and non-profit organizations, universities, and technology centers. The proposed governance Index in Social Innovation contributes to discussions about governance and social innovation at a micro level and, and to the debate about the production of indicators in social innovation.