Journal of Evidence-informed Social Work

Purpose: The purpose of this systematic review is to examine mental, sociocultural, behavioral, and physical risk and protective factors related to cardiovascular disease (CVD) and related outcomes among U.S. Indigenous peoples. Methods: A total of 51 articles met the inclusion criteria of research focusing factors for CVD among U.S. Indigenous peoples (Mental n = 15; Sociocultural, n =17; Behavioral/Physical, n =19). Results: This review reveals clear risks for CVD, which tended to be elevated for females...

This article discusses the role of The Florida Institute for Child Welfare (Institute) in the overall goals of child welfare in the state of Florida. The complexity of child welfare requires thoughtful and innovative methods of training and practice. The Institute was created as a result of a series of child fatalities and negative child and family outcomes. The Institute has been tasked with maintaining a program of research that informs child welfare legislation. By creating the Institute, an objective voice, to focus on building an infrastructure of research, it is clear that state leaders have prioritized the effectiveness of our child welfare system...

The preschool PATHS curriculum was designed as a universal preschool classroom curriculum to improve children's social-emotional learning and reduce problem behaviors. PURPOSE: This review examined the published outcome studies (n = 5) of the preschool PATHS curriculum examining social-emotional and problem behavior outcome measures. METHOD: One randomized control trial, two quasi-experimental designs and two pre-experimental designs met the inclusion criteria and were reviewed...

PURPOSE: Feminism has an agenda to advance equal opportunity, inclusivity and justice for women and to reduce gender-based oppression. Though this reflects social work's grand challenges, it is unclear whether feminist teaching strategies are utilized in social work education. METHODS: We conducted a scoping review to identify and better understand feminist teaching strategies employed in social work classrooms. We reviewed articles between the years 2000 and 2016 in four databases including U...

PURPOSE: Guardianship is a legal process intended to aid incapacitated persons unable to fully care for themselves. Guardianship in the state of Kentucky ranges from total observation (24-hour care) to informal care (such as a group home) and also includes persons who are no longer being supervised but should be. One intent of guardianship includes preventing incapacitated persons from engaging in criminal acts. However, no research has been conducted on incapacitated persons currently in guardianship and the prevalence for committing predatory crimes such as murder, fire starting, or assault...

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to evaluate the 18-month effectiveness of the Parent and Child Enhancement (PACE) program through an 18-month follow-up of the participants. METHODS: Participants included parents and children who participated in the PACE program in 2013-2014, where they were randomized into intervention (n = 76) and control (n = 73) groups. At the 18-month follow-up, participating parents completed questionnaires on their children's learning and behavior, and their own parenting...

Social work practice is an industry based mostly on therapist intuition and gut feelings. There are virtually no real-time, reliable data showing the performance of any patient outcomes or on therapists providing treatment services. In this paper a new system is recommended, performance-based practice. In the future, the New Social Work proposed will not operate as a system in which patients enter community facilities to sit in waiting rooms and interact with a randomly assigned therapist for one hour a few times weekly...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

This study explored both how changes are made and what encourages the maintenance of change after psychotherapy, from the perspective of a sample of former clients, using a mixed methods sequential design. Wampold & Imel's (2015) contextual model was used as a conceptual framework. Using secondary data analysis, quantitative analysis was used to explore the degree to which clients made and maintained progress from pretest to post test and 12 to 18 month follow-up. Fourteen interviews were used to hear from former clients about their impressions of what supported their efforts at change and how they maintained these gains post treatment...

This paper (a) examines the evidence base around rehabilitation of victims of trafficking for commercial sexual exploitation (CSE), (b) identifies the extent that India's proposed 2016 Trafficking of Persons (Prevention, Protection, and Rehabilitation) Bill reflects scientific and experiential evidence, and (c) discusses how gaps in the proposed bill can be informed by evidence. A rapid review of empirical studies on policies and interventions addressing rehabilitation of CSE victims was conducted. Although evidence is lacking, research suggests that cross-sectoral collaboration, training and monitoring law enforcement, psychotherapeutic interventions and care provided by short-term shelters, reintegration, and recognizing victims' rights improve the success of rehabilitative efforts...

OBJECTIVE: The efficacy of heal-change group (HCG) intervention-brief trauma-recovery group intervention applying a gender-specific cognitive behavioral approach-for Chinese-abused women in refuge centers was examined in a pretest-posttest comparison study. METHODS: A total of 100 women at three refuge centers in Hong Kong participated. Among them, 50 women from two centers joined the HCG and 50 women from the remaining center participated in a comparison mutual support group...

PURPOSE: Nonprofit health and human service organizations (NPHSOs) encounter pressure to improve program quality to continue to secure financial resources. Yet, organizations also struggle to innovate, evaluate, and monitor quality absent sufficient resources. This study explores the relationship between NPHSOs' financial health and quality indicators. METHODS: Quality indicators were measured in an online survey with leaders from 32 nonprofit children's behavioral health organizations within a Midwestern urban region...

PURPOSE: This paper describes the development of a new psychoeducational universal prevention resilience program ( https://strong.fsu.edu ) designed to complement existing mental health services at a large public university. The first set of descriptive data (n = 229) from the project's student surveys is discussed. METHODS: A voluntary and anonymous online questionnaire was used to determine student attitudes toward the new program. RESULTS: A large majority of participants (more than 80%) perceived the website to be credible, rating it as believable, trustworthy, and accurate...

This article describes how implementation science and intervention research guided the process of selecting and implementing an evidence-informed intervention (Tuning in to Teens; TINT). TINT was provided as a selective prevention effort offered to families with youth aged 10 to 13 years old, with characteristics that suggest an elevated risk for post-permanency discontinuity. Usability testing findings: Contact was made with 54% of families, and 12% participated in the intervention. Multivariate results found no statistically significant differences between families who responded to outreach efforts and those who did not; families who participated in TINT and those who did not...

PURPOSE: Extreme weather events are increasing with climate change. The physical and mental health of people served by social workers may be especially at risk from these hazards. This exploratory study examines if specific types of human, financial, physical, and social capital are associated with health impacts from excessive summer heat and extreme winter weather. METHOD: Data from resident surveys (N = 424) in low- and moderate-income areas of a Southeastern US city are analyzed with descriptive statistics and logistic regression...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

Evidence suggests parental support mitigates the association between community violence exposure and internalizing symptoms in adolescents. This study investigates this moderation of parental support for emerging adults and compares it with that for adolescents. Data were drawn from the Pathways to Desistence Study using community violence, parental support, and their interaction to predict internalizing symptoms in a series of regression models for adolescents and emerging adults. Results suggest that exposure to community violence during adolescence and emerging adulthood had a significant association with internalizing symptoms...

Cancer is the leading cause of death among American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) women. Although cancer disparities among AI women are alarming, there is littlle research focused on the topic of social support and cancer treatment and outcomes. A community advisory board was used to develop and administer the project, and a qualitative descriptive study methodology was used. This research was conducted in partnership with two community-based hospitals in the Northern Plains. The sample included 43 AI female cancer survivors who were interviewed with a semi-structured interview guide...

PURPOSE: Youth with early onset schizophrenia (EOS) are eligible for an individualized education plan (IEP) in school settings, yet often have declining academic performance over time. This study examines the impact of IEP and comorbid conditions on educational outcomes for youth with EOS. METHOD: We used mixed models and logistic regression to answer the research questions using data from 129 youth with EOS who participated in a longitudinal study from 1998 to 2006...

Despite the emerging literature documenting gains in clinician competence following consultation, little empirical work has examined consultation as an implementation strategy. To this end, the present study examined consultation in the context of implementing motivational interviewing in four community child and youth mental health organizations. We used qualitative methods with a dual goal: to describe the consultation process and to explore trainees' perspectives on consultation. Participants included 22 clinicians and 9 supervisors who received monthly, group, phone-based consultation for seven months following training in motivational interviewing...