Michael E. Woolley

Psychometric properties of the Beck Depression Inventory-II in low-income, African American suicide attempters.

Cross-cultural examinations of the validity and reliability of the Beck Depression Inventory–II (Beck, Steer, Ball, & Ranieri, 1996) is essential for its use in assessment and monitoring of the effectiveness of suicide interventions across racial groups. We tested the fit of a second-order, two-factor model and the internal reliability of the BDI–II in a sample of 133 African Americans with a recent history of suicide attempts. Additionally, we examined the convergent validity with the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (Reynolds & Koback, 1995). The results indicate that the BDI–II is a reliable and valid measure of depressive symptoms for African American suicide attempters.

Cognitive Pretesting and the Developmental Validity of Child Self-Report Instruments: Theory and Applications.

In the context of the importance of valid self-report measures to research and evidence-based practice in social work, an argument-based approach to validity is presented and the concept of developmental validity is introduced. Cognitive development theories are applied to the self-report process of children, and cognitive pretesting is reviewed as a methodology to advance the validity of self-report instruments for children. An application of cognitive pretesting is presented in the development of the Elementary School Success Profile. Two phases of cognitive pretesting were completed to gather data about how children read, interpret, and answer self-report items. Cognitive pretesting procedures identified validity problems with numerous items leading to modifications. Cognitive pretesting framed by an argument-based approach to validity holds significant potential to improve the developmental validity of child selfreport instruments.

The Development and Evaluation of Procedures to Assess Child Self-Report Item Validity.

Cognitive pretesting (CP) is an interview methodology for pretesting the validity of items during the development of self-report instruments. This article reports on the development and evaluation of a systematic method to rate self-report item validity performance utilizing CP interview text data. Five raters were trained in the application of that system, resulting in acceptable to substantial levels of interrater agreement. Results from this study suggest that excellent reliability can be achieved in the analysis of CP data. Guidelines for systematically rating the qualitative data collected using CP methods are provided. Future research should focus on empirical demonstrations of how such rating procedures can lead to improvements in the validity of self-report instruments.

Advancing Academic Achievement Through Career Relevance in the Middle Grades A Longitudinal Evaluation of CareerStart

Research and theory suggest that students learn more effectively when they perceive course content as relevant to their futures. The current research assessed the impact of CareerStart, a middle grades instructional strategy designed to advance the occupational relevance of what students are being taught in the core subjects—math, science, language arts, and social studies. CareerStart was introduced randomly in 7 of 14 middle schools in a diverse district with 3,295 students followed for 3 years. The analyses examined impact on end-of-grade test scores on math and reading exams. Findings confirm a significant treatment effect for math performance but no effect for reading performance.

Increasing Teacher Use of Career-Relevant Instruction A Randomized Control Trial of CareerStart

Student engagement is a critical aspect of the learning process and a known predictor of school success. We report on an evaluation of a classroom intervention, CareerStart, designed to promote engagement through the use of career-relevant instruction whereby teachers use examples to tie the lesson material to knowledge and skills students can see as relevant to potential future careers. Evidence from a randomized control trial indicates that among math teachers, CareerStart increases the use of career-relevant instruction. We discuss research and policy implications of these findings. We argue that CareerStart should be investigated further, and that policymakers and educators should consider this program or similar relevance-based efforts when looking to reform teaching practice.

The Social Ecology of Race and Ethnicity School Achievement Gaps: Economic, Neighborhood, School, and Family Factors

This study used a nationally representative sample of middle and high school students to examine the degree to which economic, neighborhood, school, and family factors contributed to three points on a proposed school outcome continuum: (1)avoidance of problem behavior, (2)sense of school coherence, and (3)grades. Multilevel models were employed to account for the clustering of students inside schools. Results suggested that though family and neighborhood social factors contribute to variance in school outcomes, family and neighborhood economic factors revealed the largest potential to explain and therefore present leverage points to reduce race and ethnicity achievement gaps.

Adult Awareness of a Youth-Focused Anti-Tobacco Campaign: Does Having Children Matter?

Data from a survey of tobacco use conducted in 2001 was used to examine if Floridas youth-focused anti-tobacco media campaign, which focused on cigarette smoking, reached adults. The majority of the sample was white (87%), high school or college educated (85%), and over half with children (56%). Differences in awareness and intentions to quit among adult smokers with and without children were examined. About 50% of adults were aware of the campaign and the awareness of the tobacco industry manipulation theme was associated with intentions to quit, independent of having children. These findings provide evidence that youth-targeted anti-tobacco media campaigns can reach adults; however, to change the behavior of adults who smoke, it may not be appropriate to have a “one-size-fits-all” program. The studys limitations are noted.

The Father-in-law’s Relationship with His Son-in-law: A Preliminary Understanding

ABSTRACT Little information is available about fathers-in-law and their relationship with their sons-in-law. The authors draw from a mixed-methods study of 35 fathers-in-law to describe how three fathers-in-law with highly positive son-in-law relationships and three fathers-in-law with difficult son-in-law relationships talk about those relationships. All three fathers-in-law with positive relationships are married, had good relationships with their parents-in-law, treat their sons-in-law like family members, have good relationships with their daughters, and believe their daughter and son-in-law are a good team. Some of these fathers-in-law worked through issues with their sons-in-law to a positive resolution. The three fathers-in-law with difficult relationships had varied relations with their parents-in-laws, are close with their own children but keep their sons-in-law at an emotional distance and often communicate with them through their children (the son-in-law’s spouse). One father-in-law believes his daughter and son-in-law are a good team. These fathers-in-law believe their sons-in-law show unsettling traits and have, as a result, grown more distant from them with time. Clinical implications and suggestions for future research are included.

Patterns in Adult Sibling Relationships After the Death of One or Both Parents

The authors explored how sibling relationships were affected by the death of one or both parents in the context of the dynamics of those sibling relationships prior to the death. Qualitative data obtained from 66 interviews in a mixed-methods study of adults in middle or older age with at least one living sibling were analyzed for the purpose of finding common patterns that emerged after the death. The patterns were: Even closer; Just us now; New roles, responsibilities, and relationships; Unsettled estate; Never close; From bad to worse; Back together, temporarily; and No change. Implications for social work practice include exploring perceptions of family members regarding patterns and using the concept of ambivalence to normalize sibling relationships.