Anne L. Strozier

Treatment of substance-abusing jail inmates Examination of gender differences

Females incarcerated for drug-related offenses represent one of the fastest growing populations within jails and prisons. The few studies of female offenders with substance abuse disorders depict a population with multiple psychosocial problems and treatment needs, and one that is characterized by frequent exposure to sexual abuse and other violence. The current study examined intake assessment results from a sample of 1,655 substance-involved jail inmates referred to a jail treatment program in Tampa, Florida, including 26% female and 74% male inmates. The study was designed to identify gender differences in psychosocial characteristics and substance abuse treatment needs among jail inmates. Results indicate that female inmates more frequently experienced employment problems, had lower incomes, more frequently reported cocaine as the primary drug of choice, and were more likely to report depression, anxiety, suicidal behavior, and a history of physical and sexual abuse. Implications for developing specialized treatment approaches for female offenders are discussed, including use of integrated treatment strategies.

Breaking Through the Bars: Exploring the Experiences of Addicted Incarcerated Parents Whose Children Are Cared for by Relatives

Researchers conducted a series of open-ended semistructured interviews with 25 incarcerated men and women who received substance abuse treatment while their children were being cared for by relatives. Research questions were developed on the basis of the gaps in knowledge identified in the available data on addicted incarcerated parents whose children are in kinship care. Respondents in this study were asked questions designed to explore issues such as parent–child bonding, relationships with caregivers, and the impact of drug abuse and incarceration on the family. Results of this study indicate that there is a need for a multidisciplinary, wraparound approach to designing services for affected parents, children, and caregivers.

The Relevance of Personal Therapy in the Education of MSW Students.

Much controversy exists among social work educators about the effectiveness and relevance of personal therapy during a MSW program. The current study examined this issue by surveying social work faculty at the 12 single-track clinical programs in North America (n = 148) and MSW students (n = 139) at one of these programs. Significantly more of the MSW students surveyed felt that personal therapy was essential or important to their social work education than did the faculty. Students surveyed expressed a desire to increase self-awareness and a willingness to participate in therapy when needed.

Using focus group interviews to identify salient issues concerning college students' alcohol abuse.

Despite extensive efforts to decrease alcohol abuse among college students, prevention approaches have had limited success. This study attempted to clarify reasons for this limited success and to identify directions for future interventions by directly interviewing college students on this topic. Five issues were discussed in the focus group interviews: (1) reasons for drinking alcohol, (2) reasons for not drinking alcohol, (3) circumstances surrounding overconsumption of alcohol, (4) topics and methods for prevention, and (5) gender differences in drinking patterns. The focus group interviews were found to be a valid tool for elucidating sensitive aspects of these issues and the relative importance of these issues to each other. The students revealed how susceptible they are to societal pressures to drink alcohol and how the limitations of their intrapersonal skills affect their alcohol consumption, most notably regarding sexuality issues. The authors contend that improving intrapersonal skills should be a major focus of programs to prevent alcohol abuse.

Coparenting in kinship Families With Incarcerated Mothers: A Qualitative Study

The number of incarcerated mothers has risen steadily in the past 20 years, with a majority of the mothers’ children being cared for by relatives, usually the maternal grandmother (Smith, Krisman, Strozier, & Marley, 2004). This article examines the unique coparenting relationship of grandmothers and mothers through qualitative individual interviews with a sample of 24 incarcerated mothers with children between the ages of 2 and 6, and 24 grandmothers raising their children. The study revealed many different variants of healthy coparenting alliances, achieved against often huge odds. Much variation was also discovered in dyads where coparenting alliances were not as successful. Implications for practice include performing structural family assessments, enhancing jail education programs, and offering extended coparenting treatment after discharge.

Can the actions of child welfare case managers predict case outcomes

This study examined the effect of efforts made by child welfare case managers to involve parents in case processes on two divergent case outcomes: reunification and the termination of parental rights (TPR). The sample was comprised of a cohort of children who received child protection services while in out-of-home care during fiscal year 2009-2010 and were randomly selected by the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) for their case management quality of practice reviews. Findings revealed that when child welfare case managers made efforts to encourage and support parents in participating in child-related decisions and activities, there were increased chances for timely reunification. However, these same efforts were only associated with a lower risk of TPR for mothers and not for fathers. Implications of these findings are discussed.

Learning about leaders: Exploring and measuring leadership qualities in grandparents and other relatives raising children.

The purpose of this study is to describe leadership qualities of grandparents and other relatives raising children and to determine if the Leadership Practices Inventory (LPI) is appropriate for assessing leadership for grandparents and other relatives raising children. This study reports the results of the LPI and a factor analysis to describe leadership qualities and test psychometric properties of the LPI. Subjects are 60 kinship caregivers attending advocacy trips to a state legislature to speak to policymakers about their issues. Results indicate that grandparents and other relatives view themselves as leaders. The principal axis factor analysis with varimax rotation extracted a five factor solution. The solution has good internal consistency and split-half reliability is robust. It appears that the LPI is a promising measure for use with kinship caregivers. More interventions are needed to foster the important quality of leadership among kinship caregivers.The purpose of this study is to describe leadership qualities of grandparents and other relatives raising children and to determine if the Leadership Practices Inventory (LPI) is appropriate for assessing leadership for grandparents and other relatives raising children. This study reports the results of the LPI and a factor analysis to describe leadership qualities and test psychometric properties of the LPI. Subjects are 60 kinship caregivers attending advocacy trips to a state legislature to speak to policymakers about their issues. Results indicate that grandparents and other relatives view themselves as leaders. The principal axis factor analysis with varimax rotation extracted a five factor solution. The solution has good internal consistency and split-half reliability is robust. It appears that the LPI is a promising measure for use with kinship caregivers. More interventions are needed to foster the important quality of leadership among kinship caregivers.The purpose of this study is to describe leadership qualities of grandparents and other relatives raising children and to determine if the Leadership Practices Inventory (LPI) is appropriate for assessing leadership for grandparents and other relatives raising children. This study reports the results of the LPI and a factor analysis to describe leadership qualities and test psychometric properties of the LPI. Subjects are 60 kinship caregivers attending advocacy trips to a state legislature to speak to policymakers about their issues. Results indicate that grandparents and other relatives view themselves as leaders. The principal axis factor analysis with varimax rotation extracted a five factor solution. The solution has good internal consistency and split-half reliability is robust. It appears that the LPI is a promising measure for use with kinship caregivers. More interventions are needed to foster the important quality of leadership among kinship caregivers.