Catheleen Jordan

Students with Questionable Values or Threatening Behavior: Precedent and Policy from Discipline to Dismissal

Abstract Social work faculty and university administrators confront a significant dilemma when students exhibit inappropriate or unethical behavior. Refusing admission or terminating problem students invokes a legal process that has not been clearly resolved in the courts; however, professional programs receive special privileges to broadly define academic performance. This legal refuge creates significant and unresolved challenges for social work faculty. Ethical issues and legal precedents are reviewed, in order to understand the rights of both the university and social work students. Recommendations include tightening the admissions process, counseling out, and the development of explicit dismissal procedures.

The Effect of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) on Depression: The Role of Problem-Solving Appraisal.

Objective: Many studies have confirmed the efficacy of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) as a treatment for depression. However, the mechanism of CBT for depression reduction is still not well understood. This study explored the mechanism of CBT from the perspective of individuals’ problem-solving appraisal. Method: A one-group pretestposttest design was used. Results were based on the responses of 30 depressed individuals in an intensive outpatient program. Results: Findings supported the research hypothesis that the more individuals improved their problem-solving appraisal, the more their depression decreased. Additionally, it was discovered that the poorer individuals’ problem-solving appraisal before the CBT, the more improvement they had on depression and problem solving appraisal after the CBT. Conclusions: In sum, findings suggested that problem-solving appraisal might play an important part in CBT for depression reduction. Furthermore, CBT seemed to have a ceiling effect on improving individuals’ problem-solving appraisal.

Over the Edge? Women and Tenure in Today's Academic Environment

This article presents an exploratory, descriptive inquiry on the sub jective perceptions of women faculty members of their experiences on the tenure track in schools of social work and the personal demands and impact of being female faculty members. The womens suggestions for improving the tenure process are also presented.

Domestic Violence Perpetrator Programs: A Proposal for Evidence-Based Standards in the United States

In the United States, the judicial system response to violence between intimate partners, or intimate partner violence (IPV), typically mandates that adjudicated perpetrators complete a batterer intervention program (BIP). The social science data has found that these programs, on the whole, are only minimally effective in reducing rates of IPV. The authors examined the social science literature on the characteristics and efficacy of BIPs. More than 400 studies were considered, including a sweeping, recently conducted survey of BIP directors across the United States and Canada. Results of this review indicate that the limitations of BIPs are due, in large part, to the limitations of current state standards regulating these programs and, furthermore, that these standards are not grounded in the body of empirical research evidence or best practices. The authors, all of whom have considerable expertise in the area of domestic violence perpetrator treatment, conducted an exhaustive investigation of the following key intervention areas: overall effectiveness of BIPs; length of treatment/length of group sessions; number of group participants and number of facilitators; group format and curriculum; assessment protocol and instruments; victim contact; modality of treatment; differential treatment; working with female perpetrators; working with perpetrators in racial and ethnic minority groups; working with lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) perpetrators; perpetrator treatment and practitioner–client relationships; and required practitioner education and training. Recommendations for evidence-based national BIP standards were made based on findings from this review.

Missing Links in Evidence-Based Practice for Macro Social Work

ABSTRACT The paradigm of evidence-based practice includes a process for searching, appraising, and synthesizing evidence to answer a question. Two important elements related to macro social work practice must be addressed in this process. One missing link relates to the imperative to foster client self-determination and empowerment by allowing clients to choose among equally salient interventions. The second missing link is to ensure that the intervention is implemented with fidelity to the original model. This article describes the need for incorporating these elements in evidence-based macro practice. Guidelines are provided for implementing the elements and their implications for practice, research, and policy.

Potentially harmful practices: Using the DSM with people of color

This article discusses the potentially harmful practice of utilizing the Diagnostic Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) as the only tool when diagnosing minority clients with a mental illness. Issues addressed include diagnosing, accuracy, cultural information, revision process, clinical judgment, training, and empirical evidence. A brief discussion of what social workers can do to enhance diagnosing is given, as well as looking at the DSM-5. Finally, a brief summary and recommendations for practitioners, schools of social work, and researchers are provided.This article discusses the potentially harmful practice of utilizing the Diagnostic Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) as the only tool when diagnosing minority clients with a mental illness. Issues addressed include diagnosing, accuracy, cultural information, revision process, clinical judgment, training, and empirical evidence. A brief discussion of what social workers can do to enhance diagnosing is given, as well as looking at the DSM-5. Finally, a brief summary and recommendations for practitioners, schools of social work, and researchers are provided.This article discusses the potentially harmful practice of utilizing the Diagnostic Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) as the only tool when diagnosing minority clients with a mental illness. Issues addressed include diagnosing, accuracy, cultural information, revision process, clinical judgment, training, and empirical evidence. A brief discussion of what social workers can do to enhance diagnosing is given, as well as looking at the DSM-5. Finally, a brief summary and recommendations for practitioners, schools of social work, and researchers are provided.

Effects of Goal Commitment and Solution Building on the Completion Rates for a Juvenile Diversion Program

Strengths-based, goal-focused approaches to working with at-risk youth have been successfully used by mentoring programs, therapeutic interventions, prevention programs, and self-help groups. However, few such approaches have been used to inform juvenile diversion programs. This is partially explained by limited empirical research on mechanisms of change used by goal-focused interventions in populations of young offenders. The authors use goal-setting theory to explore the effects of goal commitment and solution building on program completion, in a sample of violent first-time offenders (N = 159). Mediation effects of solution building in the relationship between goal commitment and program completion were tested using both Baron and Kenny’s and Preacher and Hayes’s approaches. Results showed that high goal commitment and solution building were significant predictors of program completion. In addition, solution building fully mediated the impact of goal commitment on program completion. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

The guardian ad litem: Evaluation of citizen reviewers in foster care

Abstract Foster care systems across the country are beginning to consider external input into the system, in the form of periodic review, as one way to initiate system change and facilitate permanency planning. External review is conducted by individuals outside the foster care system. The four most frequently used types of external review are judicial review, court-administered review, guardian ad litem (GAL), and citizen boards.

Self-identified strengths among youth offenders charged with assault against a non-intimate family member

ABSTRACT Youth involved in the criminal justice system are particularly vulnerable to increased risk for continuing offending behaviors since aggressive and/or violent behavior compromise developmental growth. The present study seeks to build on the current literature related to youth offenders by using an exploratory qualitative approach to analyze strength-based asset interviews completed by youth referred to a diversion program. Results revealed four distinctive themes: 1) hardiness, 2) grit, 3) social competence, and 4) empathy. Broadening the scope of research focusing on youth offenders, the present study offers a number of implications for social work practice.

Self-determined goals in a solution-focused batterer intervention program: Application for building client strengths and solutions

ABSTRACT The present study explores the content and characteristics of self-determined goals developed by violent offenders as part of a court-mandated treatment program. Data were collected from 89 domestic violence offenders enrolled in a solution-focused batterer intervention program. The data were analyzed using content analysis, and the emergent themes included (1) emotional regulation, (2) personal growth, (3) improve family relationships, and (4) improve communication. The findings from this study offer preliminary insight into the type of goals, the usefulness and importance of developing goals, and how goals might be helpful in reinforcing the change process while in treatment.