Haluk Soydan

Are Mainstream Programs for Juvenile Delinquency Less Effective With Minority Youth Than Majority Youth? A Meta-Analysis of Outcomes Research

Objective: A meta-analysis was undertaken to synthesize research results about the effectiveness of mainstream service programs for minority juvenile delinquents relative to White delinquents. The analysis addresses the question of whether mainstream interventions that are not culturally tailored for minority youth have positive outcomes on their subsequent antisocial behavior, academic performance, peer relations, behavior problems, and other outcomes. In addition, outcomes were compared with those for White samples receiving the same interventions to identify any differences in the responsiveness of minority and majority youth. Method: 305 studies were selected from a large meta-analytic database in which the participant samples were either predominantly (60% or more) minority or White youth. Effect sizes and more than 150 study descriptors were coded from these studies and analyzed using standard meta-analytic techniques. Results: The results showed positive overall intervention effects with ethnic minority respondents on their delinquent behavior, school participation, peer relations, academic achievement, behavior problems, psychological adjustment, and attitudes. Overall, service programs were equally effective for minority and White delinquents. Although there were slight differences in effectiveness for different service types between minority and majority youth, none of these differences was statistically significant. Conclusions: The use of mainstream service programs for ethnic minority juvenile delinquents without cultural tailoring is supported by these findings.

A framework for mandatory impact evaluation to ensure well informed public policy decisions

Trillions of dollars are invested yearly in programmes to improve health, social welfare, education, and justice (which we will refer to generally as public programmes). Yet we know little about the eff ects of most of these attempts to improve peoples’ lives, and what we do know is often not used to inform decisions. We propose that governments and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) address this failure responsibly by mandating more systematic and transparent use of research evidence to assess the likely eff ects of public programmes before they are launched, and the better use of well designed impact evaluations after they are launched. Resources for public programmes will always be scarce. In low-income and middle-income countries, where there are often particularly severe constraints on resources and many competing priorities, available resources have to be used as effi ciently as possible to address important challenges and goals, such as the Millennium Development Goals. Use of research evidence to inform decisions is crucial. As suggested by Hassan Mshinda, the Director-General of the Commission for Science and Technology in Tanzania: “If you are poor, actually you need more evidence before you invest, rather than if you are rich.” But neither the problem nor the need for solutions is limited either to health or countries of low and middle income. Expenditures and the potential for waste are greatest in high-income countries, which also have restricted resources and unmet needs, particularly during a fi nancial crisis. Having good evidence to inform diffi cult decisions can be politically attractive, as shown, for example, by the US Government’s decision to include US

Improving the Teaching of Evidence-Based Practice: Challenges and Priorities

1·1 billion for comparative research (including systematic reviews and clinical trials) as part of its

Applying Randomized Controlled Trials and Systematic Reviews in Social Work Research

787 billion economic stimulus bill. To paraphrase Billy Beane, Newt Gingrich, and John Kerry, who have argued for a health-care system that is driven by robust comparative clinical evidence by substituting policy makers for doctors: “Evidence-based health care would not strip [policymakers] of their decision-making authority nor replace their expertise. Instead, data and evidence should complement a lifetime of experience, so that [policymakers] can deliver the best quality care at the lowest possible cost.” Lancet 2010; 375: 427–31

From Opinion-Based to Evidence-Based Social Work: The Swedish Case

This article explores some of the main challenges of improving the teaching of evidence-based practice in schools of social work. The priority challenges are the needs for a general professional cultural shift, for adequate curricula, to overcome the controversy of scientific methodology, to better understand the state of the art of the professional knowledge base, to create a professional consensus on what is a reasonable evidence level on which to rely and in what circumstances, and to create genuine and instrumental teaching integrated into the places in which social work is practiced. Furthermore, it is suggested that when affected by exogenous sources of change, schools of social work and social work agencies will have to adopt evidence-based practice to increase their legitimacy and survival capability.

New Horizons of Translational Research and Research Translation in Social Work

This article elaborates on the centrality of interventions for social work practice and the importance of understanding the effects of interventions for a more efficient, harmless, transparent, and ethical social work practice. Low-bias research designs and meta-analyses are important means of generating the best possible evidence on what works in social work practice. An evidence-based practice model is promising in terms of translating and implementing scientific evidence that is uncertain, volatile, and incomplete and might be difficult to access.

Evidence-Based Clearinghouses in Social Work

This article presents an account of Sweden’s Institute for Evidence-Based Social Work Practice (IMS), located in Stockholm, Sweden. The article places IMS in the context of making Swedish social care services less opinion-based and more evidence-based. The institute is an example of how policy-driven processes promote the use of evidence-based practices in this European nation. The article includes presentations of history, organization, and products of IMS, and concludes with comments on future opportunities and challenges.

Understanding Social Work in the History of Ideas.

There has been an increasing focus on the process of translating research into practice in all fields of health and social services. This focus has shed considerable light on the potential for social workers to play a pivotal role in conducting translational research and facilitating research translation. This article examines new opportunities, directions, and methods for engaging in translational research and research translation; provides examples of social worker leadership in specific translational research studies, methods development, training programs, and National Institutes of Health-funded Clinical and Translational Science Institutes; and describes a strategy for research that meets the specific needs and draws upon the specific strengths of our profession.

Evaluation of the CSEC Community Intervention Project (CCIP) in Five U.S. Cities

Objectives: The purpose of this article is to describe several evidence-based clearinghouses focused on social work and related intervention outcomes, placing them in the context of how such clearinghouses can contribute to research dissemination to foster effective, evidence-based practice. Method: The study employed an analysis of data provided in clearinghouse Web sites and internal documentation. Results: The clearinghouses are Web-based portals where quality controlled scientific evidence of what works, what is promising, or what is possibly harmful in professional practice and policy interventions is made available to professionals, decision makers, and the general public in accessible and transparent language and format. Conclusions: Evidence-based clearinghouses in social work are promising vehicles of bringing high-quality evidence to professionals, decision makers, and other end users.

Evidence‐Based Medicine and Knowledge Dissemination, Translation, and Utilization: Challenges of Getting Evidence‐Based Treatments to Patient Care and Service Delivery

Objectives: The purpose of this article is to present a theoretical frame of reference for the study and assessment of social work from the perspective of a history of ideas. Method: The study employed an analysis of primary and secondary historical sources. Results: Social work as a practice and research field is embedded in the genesis of modern social science as developed by the Scottish School of thinking, and organized practice for the betterment of life conditions of individuals, groups, and communities. Conclusion: The history of ideas of social work provides a theoretical frame of reference for identifying the historical roots of social work, defining its core as well as professional and research territory relative to other professions and disciplines, and placing evidence-based social work practice in a historical context.