Mentoring in social work: key findings from a women's community-based mentoring program

Based on a social intervention research study into mentoring with women from socioeconomically disadvantaged communities, this study considers some of the key differences between traditional workplace and community-based mentoring when used as a social work intervention. The study involved 18 women who participated in a preparation-for-mentoring groupwork program for 12 months. Eleven of these participants were then matched with a mentor and supported in this relationship for a further 12 months. Qualitative analysis points to three key factors likely to enhance the success of community-based mentoring relationships: (i) relational qualities, such as trust, engagement, and authenticity; (ii) mentees' readiness for change and ability to overcome adversity; and (iii) mentors' practical assistance with tasks and overcoming obstacles. Social workers implementing a community-based mentoring program need to be mindful of the importance of these factors in order to ensure that mentees are supported to engage effectively in any mentoring relationship and overcome structural, community, and familial barriers that may adversely affect them.     

美国大学社会服务的“大学社区参与”模式评析

"大学社区参与"是20世纪90年代以来美国兴起的新型大学社会服务模式。这一模式在大学与社区的合作伙伴关系基础上,以社区需求和社会发展为动力,旨在推进大学教学、科研与服务功能的综合发展,具有学术性、综合性、互惠性、公共性等特征。大学领导层、组织机构、教师参与、组织文化以及大学与社区的权力关系等因素共同决定着"大学社区参与"模式的运行状况。"大学社区参与"模式对我国大学社会服务的现代发展具有借鉴意义。     

Adolescents’ perceptions of the ‘substance use-violence nexus’: a South African perspective

The aim of the study was to explore adolescents’ perceptions of substance use as a contributing factor to community violence by employing a conceptual framework proposed by Goldstein. Data were collected from a sample of adolescents between the ages of 15 and 16 years by means of focus group interviews. Theoretical thematic analysis was used to analyse and interpret the findings. The participants’ perceptions indicated that substance use and withdrawal symptoms induce physiological and behavioural modifications resulting in aggression and violence. The findings also suggest that participants believed that substance users frequently commit property and violent interpersonal crimes such as theft, robbery, assault and murder to procure their substances. Further, the adolescents’ perceived violence to be rooted within gang culture as well as the involvement in shared markets for illicit substance trading.     

居委会绩效评估的可行性分析与逻辑架构

随着“单位制”的萎缩和“社区制”的凸显,“能力为本”已然成为社区建设的价值诉求.为增强居委会的能力,发挥社区的作用,探讨以居委会绩效评估作为提升社区能力的路径,论证居委会绩效评估的可行性,并在系统论的视角下设计居委会实施绩效评估的逻辑框架.     

基于长沙市T区社区管理模式现状的思考

以长沙市T区为分析案例,通过对T区进行调查研究,寻找当前长沙市社区管理模式存在的一些问题:管理体制的行政化,政府职能的错位与缺位,居民与社区中介组织参与社区管理程度低,社区工作任务繁重,等等。要解决当前社区管理存在的一系列问题,必须重新考析政府、社区、社区中介组织以及居民之间的关系,理顺社区管理体制,明确政府职能,大力培育社区中介组织,培养居民的参与意识,构建长沙市功能型社区管理模式。     

Building Community Leaders in Underserved Communities: An Exploration of the Role of Seed-Funding for Community Projects by Program Graduates

Investing in community leadership development (CLD) remains a strategy with promise in creating vibrant communities. Although many low-income CLD programs teach effective leadership skills, these often lay fallow due to lacking opportunities for graduates to apply the skills. This study explores how providing competitive minigrants fuels the creation of value-adding community projects. In-depth interviews were conducted with 55 graduates of a low-income CLD program, 19 facilitators, and 12 community members knowledgeable about the program. The study observed that by providing seed money for graduate projects, CLD programs can help translate skills into practice thereby increasing community engagement and socio-economic wellbeing.     

“We’re Not in Oz Anymore”: Shifting Generational Perspectives and Tensions of Gay Community,Identity, and Future

This essay analyzes the writings from a gay male intergenerational project, wherein the process of generating creative prose, poetry, and fiction are used to explore differing understandings of age, aging, and future across gay male cohorts in Chicago. The project suggests one’s age strongly informs one’s perception of power dynamics and one’s perceived access to power. Specifically, youthist logics and lingering cultural myths surrounding the aging gay male shape and constrain intergenerational relations. Furthermore, the study marks and theorizes an emergent generational divide in the conceptualization and articulation of “gay identity” as well as how this identity is understood in relation to “the gay community.” The essay concludes by examining the implications and potential of this research to expand models and logics for meaningful gay male intergenerational exchange, or a queered form of generativity.     

体制化“空转”： 发展悖境中社区工作站运行的组织行为分析——以S市X社区为例

社区工作站作为承接政府社区公共服务职能的新型社会组织，似乎并未真正摒弃行政化积弊及普遍性怠政现象，凸显出事实与价值背离的发展悖境态势。在当前新工作情境下，社区工作站无论是窗口、街头还是社区,其实都呈现出无工作负荷的“空转”状态，并彰显惯习性运作的体制化印记，而体制化“空转”的致因逻辑又在于情境暗示效应下的规章制度软性约束、街道办“示范效应”及社区工作“应付法则”。对此，有必要由情境反思予以解悖，从“干净的石板（clean slate）”出发，在政策原点上破解社区工作站的运行困境，尝试社区工作站的机构撤并及职能删减,以摒除社区公共服务工作中本不该有的体制化“空转”状态，力促基层组织体制改革去行政化的不二取向。