Allison Zippay

Expanding employment skills and social networks among teen mothers: Case study of a mentor program

The use of mentors in social services programs has become an increasingly common intervention, and typically aims to increase education and job skills among at-risk youth. Because of a lack of social services research, most of what is known about the effects of mentoring relationships has been generalized from studies conducted in corporate settings. This article examines assumptions about the potential effects of mentor programs, and presents the results of an exploratory case study of outcomes of low-income teen mothers who were paired with a professionally employed mentor. Drawing on the concepts of social network theory, it is hypothesized that mentors can link at-risk youth with information and resources not readily available from their extant personal networks.

Microfinance Participation and Domestic Violence in Bangladesh Results From a Nationally Representative Survey

This article examines domestic violence among women who participate in microfinance in Bangladesh. Secondary analysis of survey data from nationally representative Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey was used to investigate the association between microfinance participation and domestic violence of 4,163 ever-married women between the ages of 18 and 49 years. Outcome measure is experience of domestic violence as measured by a modified Conflict Tactics Scale (CTS) and predictor variables include microfinance, binary indicator of relatively better economic status, autonomy, decision-making power, and demographic variables. The likelihood of experiencing domestic violence was not found to vary with microfinance participation. However, the interaction effect of microfinance and better economic status was found to be significantly associated with domestic violence (9% increased probability). Experience of domestic violence was negatively associated with older age, higher education of the husband, and autonomy. In Bangladesh, microfinance participation may be associated with a higher probability of experiencing domestic violence for women with relatively better economic status, but not for the poorest of the poor.

Trends in Siting Strategies

The ethics and efficacy of notifying neighbors in advance of the establishment of group housing for the chronically mentally ill has generated much controversy, and recent federal anti-discrimination legislation has supported its discontinuation. In this study, representatives from 72 Massachusetts mental health agencies were interviewed regarding the siting strategies used in their most recent group housing development, and the community responses to that site. A majority of agencies were found to have used advance notification, and there was a significant association between notifying neighbors and community opposition. Agencies using advance notification were also significantly more likely to initiate post-siting community outreach activities.

Peer Victimization Among Young Children With Disabilities Early Risk and Protective Factors

The purpose of this study was to examine the risk and protective factors of peer victimization among young children with disabilities. This study analyzed data from the Pre-Elementary Education Longitudinal Study (n =1,130) to test a path model that included child, family, and school characteristics at Year 1 and peer-relation difficulties and social skills at Year 2 to predict peer victimization among children with disabilities at Year 3. Children’s family and school factors had direct effects on children’s poorer social behaviors and language development, which had direct effects on peer-relation difficulties, which in turn increased peer victimization. Children’s prosocial skill development, facilitated by children’s receptive language ability, protects children with disabilities from peer victimization. Intervention implications are discussed.

Psychiatric housing : Locational patterns and choices

This study investigated locational patterns and choices in recently sited psychiatric housing. It examined the socioeconomic attributes of the neighborhoods of a sample of supervised houses and apartments for persons with severe mental illness in seven states, and the factors associated with the choice of those locations. Using data drawn from the U.S. Census and interviews with mental health administrators and residential staff, the study identified siting patterns that linked housing affordability to development in mixed use, walkable neighborhoods that provided residents with access to community resources in a variety of small towns and metropolitan areas. Although residences were located in neighborhoods with a range of socioeconomic attributes including low and high poverty rates, mean municipal poverty levels were significantly higher than those of the states in which they were located.

Neighbors’ Perceptions of Community‐Based Psychiatric Housing

Neighborhood opposition to the establishment of community‐based housing for individuals with serious mental illness, often called the not in my backyard (or NIMBY) phenomenon, has generated considerable public and professional notice. However, little is known about longer‐term attitudes among neighbors. Interviews with 1,425 neighbors of extant psychiatric housing sites were conducted to examine their perceptions of the effects of the residences on neighborhood life and the associations among current perceptions, initial neighborhood opposition, and agency‐sponsored outreach efforts with neighbors. Results suggest that few of those aware of the sites report negative views and that many express support for concepts of social responsibility and collective care.

The Juggling Act: Managing Work-Life Conflict and Work-Life Balance

Family stressors linked to work–life conflict have intensified in recent years with a rise in dual-earner families, female-headed households, and total hours worked. Tensions associated with managing the demands of employment and home life may have negative effects on mental and physical health, as well as family and job satisfaction. This article reviews the theoretical and research literature on factors associated with work–life conflict, and examines the growing empirical literature regarding the effects of formal and informal public and employer-based policies available to facilitate work–life balance and well-being. Implications for family policy and practice are discussed.

TRACING BEHAVIORAL CHANGES AMONG DISCOURAGED WORKERS: WHAT HAPPENS TO THE WORK ETHIC?

Material from an ethnographic case study of 102 randomly selected blue-collar workers who experienced job loss in the 1980s was examined, with a focus on a subgroup of 11 who became “discouraged” and withdrew from the labor force. Changes in the job-search behavior and attitudes of the discouraged workers are traced, and theoretical explanations for their resignation and withdrawal are explored.

Participatory Decision-Making Among Community Coalitions: An Analysis of Task Group Meetings

ABSTRACT This article examines the decision-making processes in five federally-funded community coalitions through an analysis of recorded minutes at 188 meetings. Specific characteristics examined include the proportion of agenda issues in which the role of staff, officer, or community participant initiated discussion topics and carried out tasks; the degree to which decisions were reached and action tasks delegated; and the substantive focus of the discussions. The study found that many of the basic components of organizational functioning were inconsistently applied, particularly in the areas of task identification and delegation. Less than half of the topics introduced for discussion in all the meetings studied resulted in a decision, and of these decisions, related tasks were specified less than half the time. In two-thirds of the instances when tasks were identified for specific agenda issues, no one was identified for involvement in their implementation.

Job-Training and Relocation Experiences Among Displaced Industrial Workers

This article examines the long-term reemployment, retraining, and relocation experiences of a random sample of displaced steelworkers from a manufacturing community in western Pennsyl vania who lost jobs due to plant closings in the early 1980s. Contrary to a frequently voaced conjecture that many displaced workers lack interest in exploring new employment options, this study found respondents to be active in pursuing retraining and employment in other locales. These efforts, however, were often thwarted by a number of social and economic difficulties that reduced the numbers of persons who actually relocated or enrolled in training. The economic benefits to those who did relocate or participate in training were mixed. Short-term, entry-level training did little to advance hourly wages, although more advanced training was associated with higher incomes. Out-of-state job searches were often unsuccessful, although persons who did find work and relocated had higher wages and employment levels than did those who did not relocate.