An experimental evaluation of school social work

The main results of the Central Lancashire Family and Community Project are reported. The project extended from 1965 to 1973 and attempted to determine experimentally the value of social work undertaken in secondary schools. Significant reductions in juvenile maladjustment and misbehaviour, both short- and long-term, were achieved. While children sent to court showed some behavioural improvement, this was accompanied by a deterioration in measures of adjustment; whereas treatment of a matched sample by school social workers was associated with sustained improvement both in behaviour and in test measures of social adjustment. The school setting was shown to have impeded the workers in a variety of ways: teachers' judgements of what were suitable cases to refer were biassed towards certain kinds of behaviour, and the teachers expected the social workers to achieve unrealistically rapid behavioural improvement. There was also pressure upon the workers to over-identify with the school, its ethos and its staff, and to become too generously involved in school activities, which interfered with their relationships with the children and the time available for social work — especially home visiting. These handicaps, however, were more than offset by the advantages of the school setting in aiding the identification of needy cases at an early stage in the development of their problems, and in undertaking sustained, beneficial casework Furthermore, there were indications that the presence of the worker in itself tended to change the ethos of the school.     

A review of: “Leaky bodies and boundaries: feminism,postmodernism and (Bio) ethics”

Margaret Shildrick (1997) Leaky Bodies and Boundaries: Feminism, Postmodernism and (Bio) ethics, London: Routledge, $14.99     

Risk Factors for Adolescent Suicide and Suicidal Behavior: Mental and Substance Abuse Disorders,Family Environmental Factors,and Life Stress

This review focuses on psychopathologic risk factors for adolescent suicide and suicidal behavior, namely, affective, disruptive, substance abuse, psychotic, and personality disorders. The interaction of psychopathology with age and gender is discussed. The role of family environmental risk factors and stress events in suicide and suicidal behavior, both alone, and in interaction with psychopathology are reviewed. Research reviewed will include psychological; autopsy studies, longitudinal studies examining predictors of suicide, and epidemiologic studies of suicide attempts.     

Using a Multicultural Framework to Assess Supervisees' Perceptions of Culturally Competent Supervision

Multicultural competency has been identified as essential to effective and ethical practice, particularly in the area of trainee supervision. Yet little is known about how multicultural issues are addressed in the supervision process. Counseling and psychology trainees who indicated a high degree of interest in multicultural issues were interviewed about their supervisory experiences to assess their perceptions of culturally competent supervision. Constant comparative methodology was used to analyze the data. Limitations and implications for research are discussed.