Teresa Kilbane

A three-generational study of transmission of risk for sexual abuse.

This intergenerational study investigates histories of both attachment relationships and abusive experiences and domains of current functioning that distinguish families of sexually abused children from families of nonabused children. The participants included (a) 199 nonoffending African American mothers of whom approximately half had children with documented sexual abuse histories and half had children with no documented abuse histories and (b) 106 maternal grandmothers of these children; approximately half had sexually abused grandchildren and half had grandchildren with no documented abuse. The children were 4 to 12 years old. Histories of abuse and attachment experiences and current functioning of the grandmother and mother were evaluated. Logistic regression analyses revealed that sexual abuse in a child was best predicted by 3 factors: maternal problems in adult functioning, a currently negative relationship between the grandmother and mother, and a disrupted pattern of caregiving during the mothers childhood. The findings underscore that troubled intergenerational attachment relationships in families can significantly heighten the risk of a child being sexually abused.

Vulnerability or Resilience to Intergenerational Sexual Abuse: The Role of Maternal Factors

This study examined vulnerability or resilience to intergenerational sexual abuse. The sample included 196 African American mothers and their children of which 96 were sexually abused and 100 had no reported incidents of abuse. Four groups were formed based on maternal report of a history of childhood sexual abuse and the child’s abuse status: (a) sexually abused mothers of children who were not sexually abused, (b) sexually abused mothers whose child was sexually abused, (c) mothers with no history of sexual abuse whose children had no history of sexual abuse, and (d) mothers with no history of sexual abuse who had a sexually abused child. The findings indicate that mothers who break the cycle of abuse were functioning as well as the nonsexually abused mothers in the study. Furthermore, sexually abused mothers with abused children evidenced significantly more disturbed functioning than the other three groups of mothers, particularly in their attachment relationships.

Relationships between maternal adult attachment security, child perceptions of maternal support, and maternal perceptions of child responses to sexual abuse.

ABSTRACT This study assessed the relationships between maternal adult attachment style, childrens perceptions of maternal support following disclosure of sexual abuse, and maternal perceptions of childrens behavioral and emotional responses to sexual abuse among African-American child sexual abuse victims aged 4 to 12 (n = 96) and a comparison group of nonabused subjects (n = 100). Mothers with insecure attachment styles reported significantly higher rates of internalizing behaviors in their sexually abused children than did securely attached mothers. Among mothers of nonabused children, those with insecure adult attachment styles reported significantly higher rates of externalizing behaviors shown by their children in comparison with mothers with a secure adult attachment style. Mothers with insecure adult attachment styles also reported higher rates of overall behavior problems in their nonabused children that approached statistical significance. Sexually abused childrens perceptions of maternal support were not related to maternal attachment style nor to child functioning. Contrary to our prediction, mothers of sexually abused children did not show lower rates of secure attachments when compared to mothers of nonsexually abused children. Our findings indicate that fostering parent-child attachment is important in order to decrease the risk for behavior problems and symptomatology in sexually abused children.

The Current State of Group Work Education in U.S. Graduate Schools of Social Work

Social work has historically recognized group work as a core practice methodology; however, group work’s prominence within the graduate curriculum has diminished over the years. This article reports the results of a national survey of accredited U.S. MSW programs’ curricular offerings in group work. The survey replicates and builds upon a 1994 Birnbaum and Auerbach study to identify changes and trends over this 20-year period. Overall, a further decline in group work curricular offerings was found. Strategies to renew and bolster commitment to group work education are offered.

Domestic Violence or Elder Abuse? Why it Matters for Older Women:

Law enforcement and legal services are 2 systems that respond to reports of abuse against women through programs such as adult protective services (APS) and domestic violence (DV). APS and DV systems operate independently and define the cause of the abuse differently. The designation of a woman as having suffered domestic violence or having been abused often depends on which system she enters. This designation can lead to different options for women to obtain services. Aging may further complicate access and usability of these systems to respond to the needs of abused elderly. Using vignettes, this article explores the definitions of abuse and highlights specific concerns of aging that impact usefulness of services.

Advocacy Week: A Model to Prepare Clinical Social Workers for Lobby Day.

Legislative advocacy is an important and long-standing skill in social work. However, this role cannot be left solely to social workers who specialize in macro and policy practice. Rather, clinical social workers who assist clients as they face “private” troubles (Mills, 1959) also need to face the structural barriers that contribute to these concerns. The effect of proposed bills on the practice and welfare of clients is another reason for clinical social workers to advocate within the legislative process. This article proposes the Advocacy Week model, which prepares clinical students for the National Association of Social Workers-sponsored Advocacy Day, an event that represents a statewide collaboration of policy and clinical faculty members and National Association of Social Workers-Illinois staff members.

A Case-based Collaborative Learning Model for Teaching Advocacy

Social work graduate school programs focusing on clinical practice have traditionally attended less to the professions advocacy role. Masters-level clinical social work students, therefore, may not receive adequate training to understand their roles in advocating for or against policies that directly impact their practice. This article proposes a collaborative learning model called ‘Advocacy Week’, which prepares students for a statewide NASW-sponsored Advocacy Day. Using case presentations prepared in collaboration with clinical and policy social work faculty, aspiring clinical social work practitioners are exposed to the relevance of advocacy. Preliminary findings suggest that graduate students exposed to this model become aware of their advocate role as part of their clinical practice, a knowledge which has implications for social work education.

Underexplored Aspects of Group-work Education in MSW Programs

ABSTRACT Warnings about social group work’s diminished place within social work education date back to 1978. This article reports the findings of a national study exploring the state of group-work education in Council on Social Work Education accredited programs. Our 2014 publication compared study results with those of the 1994 Birnbaum and Auerbach publication. This article highlights additional findings regarding underexplored aspects of group-work education including concentrations/specializations in group work, social work faculty expertise and involvement in group-work associations, efforts to link students with professional group-work associations, continuing education opportunities in group work for field supervisors, online/hybrid group-work course offerings, links between institutional characteristics and group-work offerings, and faculty members’ perceptions of the state of group-work education.