Patrick Dattalo

Parent Involvement in Treatment for ADHD: A Meta-Analysis of the Published Studies:

Given high rates of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) diagnosed in children, knowledge of effective treatment is crucial. To this end, a meta-analysis of parent-involved psychosocial treatment was undertaken to determine its effect on a number of outcomes salient to children with ADHD. Sixteen studies met the criteria for the meta-analysis. Findings indicated that the impact of treatment on ADHD was low compared to comparison and/or control conditions, whereas child-internalizing symptoms and academic problems were better affected by family involvement. Teachers reported the highest effect sizes followed by parents themselves. Although parent involvement might be important for affecting the internalizing symptoms and academic problems that plague children with ADHD, ADHD and externalizing symptoms might be better targeted by other interventions.

Reorganizing Child Protective Services: Protecting Children and Providing Family Support.

Abstract Thirty years after the 1960s child protection movement, the United States is said to face a “child protection emergency.” Separation of child protection investigation from family services, and assignment of the investigation function to police, is recommended by some child welfare scholars as partial solution to the emergency. This paper explores the historical context and current ingredients of the child welfare crisis. After reviewing our national experience with the separation of income maintenance and social services in public welfare, the authors advise caution in the separation of investigative and service functions in child protection.

A review of software for sample size determination.

The size of a sample is an important element in determining the statistical precision with which population values can be estimated. This article identifies and describes free and commercial programs for sample size determination. Programs are categorized as follows: (a) multiple procedure for sample size determination; (b) single procedure for sample size determination; and (c) Web-based. Programs are described in terms of (a) cost; (b) ease of use, including interface, operating system and hardware requirements, and availability of documentation and technical support; (c) file management, including input and output formats; and (d) analytical and graphical capabilities.

WIDENING THE RANGE OF SERVICES FOR THE HOMELESS MENTALLY ILL

The rapid emergence of homelessness as a social problem has resulted in the growth of a shelter-based service system. Although capable of providing basic support, this system appears unable to serve a diverse population of homeless mentally ill people. A strategy for reducing the gap between this populations needs and available assistance involves removing access barriers and strengthening service coordination at both the organization and client levels.The rapid emergence of homelessness as a social problem has resulted in the growth of a shelter-based service system. Although capable of providing basic support, this system appears unable to serve a diverse population of homeless mentally ill people. A strategy for reducing the gap between this populations needs and available assistance involves removing access barriers and strengthening service coordination at both the organization and client levels.

Interventions to Increase Mammography Rates Among U.S. Latinas: A Systematic Review

BACKGROUND In the United States, health disparities exist in mammography rates for Latinas compared with other ethnic groups. Additionally, breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer and the leading cause of cancer deaths among Latina women. Increased mammography rates and earlier breast cancer diagnosis can decrease breast cancer fatality rates among Latina women. METHODS The purpose of this systematic review was to contribute to the knowledge basis on breast cancer prevention for U.S. Latinas by determining the effectiveness of interventions designed to increase mammography rates among this population. Both experimental and quasi-experimental studies were included in the systematic review, and nine were located that met inclusion criteria. RESULTS Odds ratios were calculated, and the overall effect indicated a low level of effectiveness. CONCLUSIONS Implications of findings for practice and research are discussed.

Perceived Continuing Education Needs of Licensed Clinical Social Workers.

Abstract Although recent studies have explored various aspects of licensed practice in social work, there is little information about the current continuing education activities and needs of professionals involved in such practice. This paper describes a 1992 survey of a random sample of 421 licensed clinical social workers in Virginia to assess their perceived educational needs. Overall, practice theories and practitioner roles were most often identified as areas in which training is needed. Private practitioners wished for training in object relations theory more often—and training in supervision and cognitive theory less often—than their agency-based colleagues. The implications of these findings for continuing social work education and for the profession are discussed.

Estimating the costs of short-term grants

Fifteen years have elapsed since Ewalt and Cohen (1975) warned mental health administrators about the hidden costs of securing short-term grants. Scattered throughout the literature are more recent attempts to caution social service agencies about the risks associated with acquiring external funding (Kramer & Grossman, 1987; Patti, 1983). However, these admonitions have been more than offset by proponents of government-funded grants and purchase of service contractual arrangements as essential ways of weathering fiscal crises. One observer has gone so far as to suggest that agencies consciously adapt their programs to whatever causes are politically fashionable at the time (Salancik, 1981). A more common-bu t still t roubling--reaction has been to indiscriminately pursue external funding without appropriate consideration of attendant consequences to clients, staff, and the community (Stern & Gibelman, 1990).

Minimizing Social Desirability Bias in Measuring Sensitive Topics: The Use of Forgiving Language in Item Development

Abstract Social science research has long been concerned with attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors that are potentially objectionable, immoral, or illegal. These types of topics include, for example, racism, ableism, cheating, and stealing, among others. Referred to as “sensitive topics,” their investigation usually involves questions that require respondents to admit to attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors that violate social norms, making their assessment susceptible to error due to social desirability bias. This article describes an empirical investigation of an approach to minimize this bias, the use of “forgiving language” in survey item development and the effect on item variability. Using secondary data initially collected as part of a measurement development study of mental health providers’ stigmatization of service users, 15 pairs of similar, thematically targeted items, varying with respect to wording approach were tested using a purposive sample of mental health providers (N = 220). Findings indicate that items crafted in a forgiving manner were not significantly influenced by social desirability bias, in contrast to items developed in more traditional language. Additionally, forgiving language-items produced higher levels of agreement, on average, when compared to those written in more traditional language. More research is indicated, including systematic variation of wording approaches, but these results seem promising.

Determining Sample Size Using Fast and Slow Thinking

ABSTRACT Using SPSSs bootstrapping procedures, this article demonstrates an approach to determining sample size that combines fast (heuristics or rules-of-thumb) and slow (statistical power analysis) thinking to balance statistical power, precision, and practicality. Sample size is determined for six commonly used statistical procedures: independent groups t-test, one-way ANOVA, one-way MANOVA, Pearsons r correlation, linear regression, and logistic regression. Overall, findings suggest that both approaches may under or over-estimate sample size. Both approaches yielded similar parameter and confidence interval estimates, but varied, sometimes by a factor of two, in their sample size requirements. It is hoped that this studys procedure and results will provide beginning reference points for sample size determination, and encourage researchers continue to search for resolutions for often difficult sample-size decisions.

Structural Equation Modeling

The chapters demonstrate two SEM programs with distinct user interfaces and capabilities (Amos and Mplus) with enough specificity that readers can conduct their own analyses without consulting additional resources. Examples from social work literature highlight best practices for the specification, estimation, interpretation, and modification of structural equation models. Oftentimes, confirmatory factor analysis and general structure modeling are the most flexible, powerful, and appropriate choices for social work data.