The Third Way Reconfigured: How and Why Nonprofit Organizations are Shifting Their Human Resource Management

Nonprofit organizations (NPOs) are facing increasing demands to become more efficient and effective, especially given increasing financial cutbacks, the rising demand for services and the push toward performance-related management. Human resource management (HRM) is claimed to play an important role in coping with these challenges. Yet, within the field of nonprofit management, little is known about the configuration of HR architectures in NPOs, let alone their impact on performance. To bridge this gap, we conduct an exploratory multiple case study in ten health and social services NPOs. The case study data indicates a shift toward a dominant strategic orientation in the configuration of HRM. Our article makes a central contribution by uncovering a third way in which NPOs seek a specific configuration of HRM to confront the challenges they face in their internal and external environments.     

The role of social work in the ICU: reducing family distress and facilitating end-of-life decision-making

The costs associated with Intensive Care Units (ICUs) are high and at times invasive ICU care may not be beneficial, particularly for those patients admitted to ICUs who have little hope of recovery. The process of clarifying medical goals for these patients is often facilitated by addressing psychosocial factors. Social workers in the ICU are uniquely qualified to assess and address many of the complex psychosocial circumstances and can clarify potential misperceptions, enhancing communication among patients (if capacitated), their families, and the medical team members. This can not only help improve quality of life for very sick and dying patients in the ICU and their families, but may also reduce the likelihood of decision-making conflicts from arising. Further studies need to be done to investigate the effectiveness of social work interventions in reducing family distress, avoiding care that is unwanted by patients, and demonstrating cost-saving benefits.     

An Evaluation of the Effectiveness of an FE/HE Partnership in the Delivery of a Preparation for Practice Module within an Undergraduate Social Work Degree Programme

The Preparation for Practice module at the University of Ulster is delivered to 170 first year students via a collaborative arrangement between higher and further education institutions. In each of the five sites, students receive large group and small group teaching facilitated by social work training agency workers and academic tutor dyads. An evaluation of the module sought the perceptions of the agency and academic facilitators regarding the overall collaborative arrangement and the model of co-teaching involving social work academics and agency partners. Respondents were asked to complete a semi-structured questionnaire, which generated data from a Likert scale and also invited qualitative commentary. The Likert scale data were analysed via SPSS and the qualitative information was scrutinised using a manual thematic analysis technique. Findings indicated that continuous communication, consistency in programme content and the acknowledgement of the differences in organisation resources were key to a successful collaborative arrangement. It was also noted that a co-teaching model should be viewed as a positive vehicle for achieving module objectives in a safe learning environment.     

Sexual Identity Formation of Women Who Love Women: A Contextual View Point

Nonheterosexuals experience oppression and discrimination that affect personal development on all levels. An increased awareness of sexual identity development could create more inclusive sexual identity models, better understanding for counselor educators, and better training for counselors on issues of sexual identity. The purpose of this study was to identify the life experiences that influence sexual identity in women who love women. This study required that participants attach meaning to sexual identity formation. From the data collected, four themes emerged: I was just different, information seeking, view of self as a woman within the context of culture, and contextual relationships. Findings of this study did not support a stage model of sexual identity development. Instead, this study supported the view that sexual identity is fluid and strongly related to relationships with peer groups.     

Older women and the health care system: a time for change

In spite of women's active involvement in a woman's health care movement, the mainline health care system continues to hold tight to its androcentric focus. If women are to be subjected to a health care system that employs sexist and ageist practices, the quality of life in their later years will continue to be jeopardized. The purpose of this paper is to first, recognize the existing health care practices which limit the health care opportunities and choices of older women; and secondly, to discuss how such basic feminist principles as education, egalitarianism, empowerment, and inclusion can be used to improve an older woman's experience.     

Developing the Fearless School Counselor Ally and Advocate for LGBTQIQ Youth: Strategies for Preparation Programs

To better serve the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and questioning (LGBTQIQ) youth population, counselor educators can assist school counselors-in-training in developing advocacy competencies within their training programs. A focus on advocacy competencies outlined by the American Counseling Association (ACA) and the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) standards, and infusion of techniques throughout the education process, may increase levels of comfort for neophyte school counselors-in-training when working with LGBTQIQ youth. To increase efficacy in this multicultural population, myriad environments representative of the systemic nature of the school environment and culture must be examined and explored through training processes. These authors discuss intervention strategies for counselor educators to develop future school counselor advocacy, which align with the ACA advocacy competency domain areas.     

Working with terminally ill older women: can a feminist perspective add new insight and direction?

While sexism and ageism in the health care system have been systematically documented, nowhere is the treatment of aging women more androcentric than in the care for the terminally ill. In fact, a terminally ill older woman is too often disadvantaged by a health care system which excludes her from decision-making and renders her powerless. In response, we propose a feminist approach to health care for terminally ill older women and argue that it is this approach which will not only put knowledge and power into the hands of women, but will change the fundamental ways in which women approach death.     

Sexual Activity and Weekly Contraceptive Discontinuation and Selection Among Young Adult Women in Michigan

Understanding young women’s contraceptive and pregnancy prevention behaviors is important for helping women and their partners control if and when they have children. Prior research on associations between patterns of sexual activity and contraceptive behaviors is limited. We assessed the influence of recent sexual activity on discontinuation and selection of specific contraceptive methods. We used weekly data from the Relationship Dynamics and Social Life (RDSL) study, a longitudinal 2.5-year population-based project that sampled woman ages 18 and 19 (N = 1,003) in one Michigan county. We estimated logistic and multinomial regression models that accounted for clustering of weekly observations within partnerships and women. Weekly discontinuation of longer-acting methods declined with increasing sexual activity in the past month, as did discontinuation of shorter-acting hormonal methods. Sexual activity was associated with decreased selection of condoms relative to other methods. Future research into life events that lead to changes in the frequency of sexual activity may provide insight into times when women are at risk of contraceptive discontinuation. These findings underscore the importance of anticipatory guidance in contraceptive counseling so that when women change their contraceptive behavior they are equipped in advance with resources to make safe transitions between methods.