Timothy A. Rehner

Mississippi Social Workers' Attitudes Toward Poverty and the Poor.

The study reported here was a March 1995 investigation of the attitudes of 186 Mississippi social workers toward poverty and the poor. The survey instrument gathered demographic data from respondents and asked them to characterize their agreement/disagreement with 37 statements about poverty and the poor. Demographic data are discussed and scores are analyzed on four variables: type of practice, education, licensure, and political orientation. Implications for social work education are discussed.

Five years later: resiliency among older adult survivors of hurricane katrina

The purpose of this study was to examine the resilience of older adult survivors of Hurricane Katrina in light of their traumatic experiences and multiple losses. Ten Mississippi Gulf Coast residents who have survived Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath were interviewed. The participants were 65 years old or older. Their responses were audiotaped and transcribed. The transcripts were analyzed using phenomenological methodology and NVivo 2.5 software. Three major themes emerged. Participants described finding personal gratification, realizing their ability to cope, and developing a new interest in life through their novel experiences.

Adapting to Life after Hurricane Katrina and the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill: An Examination of Psychological Resilience and Depression on the Mississippi Gulf Coast

The purpose of this study was to examine relationships among depression, psychological resilience, and other sociodemographic factors of individuals who were highly exposed to Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill in 2010. A spatially stratified random sample of 294 Mississippi Gulf Coast residents living in close proximity to the Gulf of Mexico were surveyed. Findings indicated that low education attainment, financial hardship, and disaster-related damages increased the likelihood of depression, whereas psychological resilience and having health insurance reduced the odds of depression. Implications for enhancing psychological resilience and increasing access to health insurance are discussed.

Community Resilience, Psychological Resilience, and Depressive Symptoms: An Examination of the Mississippi Gulf Coast 10 Years After Hurricane Katrina and 5 Years After the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill

OBJECTIVE This study examined the role of community resilience and psychological resilience on depressive symptoms in areas on the Mississippi Gulf Coast that have experienced multiple disasters. METHODS Survey administration took place in the spring of 2015 to a spatially stratified, random sample of households. This analysis included a total of 294 subjects who lived in 1 of the 3 counties of the Mississippi Gulf Coast at the time of both Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in 2010. The survey included the Communities Advancing Resilience Toolkit (CART) scale, the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC 10), and the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D). RESULTS There was a significant inverse relationship between psychological resilience and depressive symptoms and a significant positive relationship between community resilience and psychological resilience. The results also revealed that community resilience was indirectly related to depressive symptoms through the mediating variable of psychological resilience. CONCLUSIONS These findings highlight the importance of psychological resilience in long-term disaster recovery and imply that long-term recovery efforts should address factors associated with both psychological and community resilience to improve mental health outcomes. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2018;12:241-248).

Delinquency prevention in poor and at-risk African-American youth : A social work practice innovation

Summary Juvenile delinquency is a major social issue today which threatens to become more acute with anticipated demographic shifts and reductions in public support for the poor. Effective strategies for the prevention and reduction of delinquency among poor and at‐risk youth are much needed. The Family Network Partnership is a small community‐based delinquency prevention program in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. The program joins the city housing authority, the community policing team, the youth court, and the local state university in efforts to address delinquency in a local public housing project. The program uses three primary strategies: (1) intervention with youth already involved with the juvenile justice system; (2) skill‐building among youth prior to court involvement; and (3) community capacity building. This paper describes the Partnerships background, principles and program, and outcomes to date. With qualification, the Partnership is offered as a model for replication in similar communities.