Natalie Bolzan

Using an interrupted space to explore social resilience with marginalized young people

In this article we discuss the advantages of using an ‘interrupted space’ to explore understandings of Social Resilience with marginalized young people. In researching with communities of youth who live with multiple disadvantage and who may have little experience of social resilience we sought to create an ‘interrupted space’ in their daily lives in order to explore how they may construct or define social resilience given a different life world. Examples are given of how an interrupted space enabled insight into aspects of social resilience which may have remained hidden had there been no ‘circuit breaker’ in these young people’s lives enabling them to contribute. Where new opportunities were provided those who may have previously been excluded from dialogue were enabled to experience and contribute to an understanding of social resilience.

Social Work with a Twist: Interweaving Practice Knowledge, Student Experience and Academic Theory

Abstract Social work has always been characterised by a tension between the theoretical understandings that underpin its knowledge base and the daily practice of social work, which is heavily influenced by the context in which it is situated. The present article examines data gathered through academic visits to social work students on placement to discover the form of this tension as students undertaking their first placement experience it. The present article aims to determine why the nexus between theory and practice is so problematic for social work students and practitioners. Much social work writing sees two parties involved in social work education: the academy and practitioners. We argue for the inclusion of ‘student’ in a dynamic coconstruction of social work. Strategies are proposed by which these three parties in social work education can work together to reduce the tension between theory and practice.

Time to Father

Abstract This paper reports the qualitative findings from 40 couples involved in a study exploring mens post-natal mental health. Interviews were conducted with individuals soon after the birth of their first child. Findings suggest that new fathers want to be more involved in the direct care and nurturing of their children than their fathers were with them. Discourses which construct fathers and inform social structures have not kept pace with mens changed attitudes and role expectations limiting the options available to men as fathers. In particular mens employment circumstances figure in their experience of adjusting to life as a father. Those fathers having least flexibility and autonomy in their work report experiencing, since the birth of their child, more unhappi-ness, anxiety, and generally higher levels of stress. These findings suggest increasing workplace flexibility and provisions such as parental leave are important for mens post-natal mental health.

Defining children's needs in out-of-home care : methods and challenges of a collaborative research project

The ‘future’ orientation of the out-of-home care research literature which has focused on outcomes of care has risked ignoring childrens experiences of care in their ‘present(s)’. In this paper we describe a project, the design of which reflects an alternative to the traditional way of looking at childhood, of which this ‘future’ (adult constructed) orientation is part. We discuss the use of qualitative research methods to identify childrens needs in care. The project has attempted to involve children as co-constructors of knowledge around their needs through participatory research methods. These methods have required us to recognise that children and their needs exist within a context of relational structures; to address the power imbalances between adult researchers and child participants; and to be flexible in responding to the consequences of a participative process. Challenges which have surfaced in the implementation of this research and our responses to them are described.

A Survey of 63 Australian Occupational Therapists Working in Youth Mental Health

The purpose of this study was to describe the demographic and employment characteristics of Australian occupational therapists working in youth mental health and explore the relationship between these characteristics and the occupational therapists role. Sixty-three occupational therapists completed a postal survey during 2006–2007. Numerical data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and qualitative data were analyzed using thematic analysis. The majority (86%) of participants were female, with a mean age of 31.8 years. Over half of the participants were employed as occupational therapists (60%). While most participants reported less than five years experience working with young people (92.5%), thirty-nine participants (61.9%) expressed optimism about the future of occupational therapy in youth mental health. Factors such as funding, staff retention, support, training, and attitudes surrounding professional roles were identified as barriers to role expansion. Occupational therapists work in a range of mental health settings that provide services to young people. Data suggest that occupational therapists are optimistic about working in this field; however, they have limited resources to guide their practice and assist in developing and maintaining professional identity. Study data reveal a need to overcome the funding and professional barriers that currently affect the role of the occupational therapist in youth mental health. Expansion of the occupational therapists role in youth mental health would be advantageous to both the profession of occupational therapy and the multidisciplinary team.

The role of the occupational therapist in adolescent mental health: a critical review of the literature

Abstract There are substantial bodies of literature focusing on mental health and the mental health of young people. There is also a growing body of knowledge relating to the professional role of the occupational therapists in mental health. However, there is a marked gap that brings these areas together. Adolescence is a time of heightened stress, with as many as one in four young people experiencing a mental health problem; appropriate care is required to reduce the impact of mental illness on their transition into adulthood and subsequent adult life. Whilst the effectiveness of the multidisciplinary team in providing interventions has been well demonstrated in this client group, the roles and impact of the individual health professionals are less well understood. A review of the literature was conducted to better understand the current and potential role for occupational therapists working with young people with mental health issues.

Social resilience: Transformation in two Australian communities facing chronic adversity

Resilience has predominantly been investigated as an individual’s response to adversity and, at the level of the collective, how communities respond to a direct threat. The social work literature investigating social resilience as a response to the challenge of subtle, pervasive and divisive social threats is limited. This article presents the findings of research conducted in two Australian communities with young people who experienced marginalisation; it investigated how sustained social resilience could be evoked in response to the disadvantage they experienced. Six themes that reflect the expression of social resilience emerged from the data and provide insights for social workers practising with communities facing chronic adversity.