THE SOCIAL GROUP WORK METHOD

No abstract available for this article.     

Redefining Success: A Qualitative Investigation of Therapeutic Outcomes for Noncompleting Drug Court Clients

ABSTRACT

Utilizing a convenience sample from a drug court program, the authors investigated the benefits of treatment for noncompleting drug court clients (n = 30). Using an as-treated design, the qualitative investigation assessed whether noncompleters received any benefit from their drug court experience. In-depth interviews were conducted to determine both benefits gained and reductions in harm that occurred as a result of drug court participation. Data analysis was guided by the grounded theory method. Outcomes of coding indicated that participants' motivation and self-efficacy were enhanced through the intervention. Further, participants reported that their relationships with family, therapists, or peers were improved as a result of their involvement with drug court. Individuals in the study sample reported abstinence or decreased substance use, as well as improvements in employment and/or educational attainment. Participants’ perceptions of barriers to program completion were also noted. Study outcomes suggest that expansion of a harm reduction approach in social service practice may have utility for drug-abusing populations. Limitations of the research, including lack of generalizability, are discussed. Further research of harm reduction effects with a larger, heterogeneous sample size is recommended.     

Harm Reduction and Electronic Gambling Machines: Does this Pair Make a Happy Couple or is Divorce Foreseen?

Recent empirical studies have evaluated if modifying electronic gambling machine (EGM) structural features could encourage safer gambling behaviors and decrease gambling-related problems. Several of these studies refer to Harm Reduction (HR), suggesting that the HR paradigm is useful to design, implement and test the efficacy of various prevention and treatment programs applied to EGM users. After reviewing the origins of HR and specifying its operational definition, this paper discusses the relevance of the HR framework for the study of measures related to EGM use and gambling in general. Examples are given to illustrate the arguments. The results show that HR has been over-inclusive in the field of gambling. A specific and operational definition and application of the HR framework is required for HR to be useful for the advancement of research in the gambling field. Disclosure: At the time of the study, Michael Cantinotti held a scholarship from the Loterie Romande (public-benefit lottery in Switzerland) for his doctoral studies. This study was funded by the Fonds pour la prévention et le traitement du jeu of the Fondation de l’Université Laval. During the study, the Centre québécois d’excellence pour la prévention et le traitement du jeu received financial support from the Ministère de la Santé et des Services Sociaux du Québec, the Fonds Québécois de la Recherche pour la Santé et la Culture, Loto-Québec, the Ontario Problem Gambling Research Center, and Harrah’s Operating Funds.     

Real Limits in the Virtual World: Self-Limiting Behavior of Internet Gamblers

The recent expansion of Internet gambling has stimulated debate, policy, and research on this relatively new phenomenon and its potential consequences. The current study focuses on bettors experiencing problems by sampling Internet gamblers who imposed limits on the amount they were allowed to deposit to a betting site. We analyzed the betting transactions over 18 months of all gamblers who subscribed to an online betting site in February, 2005 (N = 47,134), 567 of whom utilized the site’s self-limit feature. Self-limiting gamblers played a wider variety of games and placed more bets than others prior to imposing limits. After imposing limits, self-limiters reduced their activity, but did not reduce the amount they wagered per bet. Time spent gambling, not just money spent, appears to be an important indicator of gambling problems. Self-limit programs appear to be promising options for Internet gamblers at-risk for gambling problems.

民族宗教问题与社会主义和谐社会

正确处理民族宗教问题,是建设中国特色社会主义的重要内容,是加强党的执政能力建设的重要内容,也是构建社会主义和谐社会的重要内容。要坚持巩固和发展平等、团结、互助、和谐的社会主义民族关系,使各族人民和睦相处、和衷共济、和谐发展。以爱国主义为切入点,积极引导宗教与社会主义社会相适应,为构建社会主义和谐社会作出贡献。     

US Social Work Students' Attitudes Shift Favorably Towards a Harm Reduction Approach to Alcohol and Other Drugs Practice: The Effectiveness of Consequence Analysis

Given the increasing numbers of people in need of treatment for problems associated with Alcohol and Other Drugs (AOD) problems and the concomitant likelihood that social worker caseloads currently reflect this increase, a critical analysis of social work student attitudes towards different approaches to AOD treatment is warranted. Our study examined United States' social work students' (n = 100) attitudes towards treatment approaches to practice with people who misuse/abuse AOD and enlisted a Consequence Analysis (CA) intervention designed to shift attitudes towards considering a harm reduction approach. The Harm Reduction Acceptability Scale (HRAS), as well as a two-item response measure, measured pretest and posttest attitudes. Findings demonstrate that at pretest both intervention and comparison groups were willing to consider a goal of moderation (a proxy for the acceptability of a harm reduction approach and a client-centered perspective), and neutral on the effectiveness of an abstinence-oriented approach. At posttest, the intervention group became more flexible and open to the broader philosophical perspective of a harm reduction approach while the comparison group became less so. Consequence Analysis appears responsible for producing the observed changes in attitude towards harm reduction. Implications for international social work education and training are discussed.     

试论会计信息失真的成因、危害和防范措施

会计信息失真是当前经济社会中一个突出问题。它不仅影响市场经济秩序 ,恶化社会风气 ,而且误导领导者的预测和决策 ,如对此不加强监管 ,则危害极大。本文试从会计信息失真的原因、危害及防范措施等方面进行探讨     

论近代中国社会的民间烟毒问题

烟毒问题是近代中国社会的病态之一.自19世纪中叶以来烟毒泛滥成灾,它像瘟疫、病毒一样吞噬着中华民族的肌体,给个人、家庭、国家、社会带来了沉重的灾难:它摧残身体,崩溃精神;拆散家庭,祸及子孙;加剧了国家贫困化;加深了农村经济危机;败坏了社会风气.烟毒泛滥的主要祸根:外国列强的鸦片侵略政策和走私、贩运;历届政府重税不重禁的误国政策;军队勒种、贩运烟土;黑社会、土匪、烟帮的相互勾结等.烟毒的泛滥,从另一个侧面反映了中国近代社会存在的深刻危机.     

The Pathways Model as Harm Minimization for Youth Gamblers in Educational Settings

Prevalence studies have indicated that a significant percentage of school-age youth exhibit problem or pathological gambling behaviors. However, to date there are few guidelines to assist educators in identifying those at risk and incorporating harm-reduction strategies into school curricula. This paper proposes using the Pathways Model of pathological gambling (Blaszczynski, 1998; Blaszczynski & Nower, 2002) as a harm-minimization strategy to guide social workers and other educators in effectively assessing, discriminating, and managing discrete subgroups of youth problem gamblers in educational settings and referring them to appropriate services. The Pathways Model asserts that a multiple range of specific psychological, biological, and socio-ecological variables interact at differential levels to form three distinct routes leading to the manifestation of superficially similar phenomenological characteristics and symptoms. It is argued that an understanding of the relevance and psychological implications of each separate pathway will greatly assist in the application of early intervention and prevention strategies, designed to effectively minimize the potential harm associated with youth problem gambling behaviors.     

村民自治条件下农村封建迷信沉渣泛起现象透析

在村民自治条件下,一些农村封建迷信大有抬头蔓延的趋势,农村封建迷信泛滥的原因有历史的遗留、农村基层组织权威的下降、经济分散化、精神文明建设滞后、社会大环境的影响.封建迷信泛滥给农村的经济、政治、社会和文化造成严重的危害.治理农村封建迷信现象要强化农村基层组织、壮大农村集体经济、加强对农民的思想政治教育、推进农村精神文明建设.