This research explored the fathering experience of 44 divorced and remarried fathers with legal joint custody and at least one child under the age of 16. The fathers filled out a questionnaire and were interviewed about the frequency of their participation in various child care activities, their satisfaction during their participation in these activities, and their perceived influence on their child's growth and development. Three fathering measures were derived from the questionnaire. The father's perception of the relationship with the mother (coparenting relationship) was correlated with the fathering measures to determine if the amount of interaction between coparents and the amount of support or conflict in their relationship was associated with high or low scores on the fathering measures. Results indicate that the sample fathers have maintained an active and involved relationship with their children which did not diminish upon remarriage. They are satisfied with the time spent with their child, and feel influential in their child's growth and development. The quality of the relationship between coparents varied from highly supportive relationships to highly conflictual and antagonistic ones. In general, the amount of support or conflict within the coparental relationship, and the frequency of the coparental interaction, was not associated with any of the indicators of a father's involvement with his child. Fathers were able to sustain an involvement with their children without support from their former wives and within conflictual circumstances. Joint custody was considered to be the context within which fathers were able to negotiate a positive relationship with their child. Most fathers were strongly in favor of using the legal supports that are part of a joint custody agreement as a means of insuring both parents' attachment to their child after divorce. Joint custody appears to be an appropriate and desirable child care alternative in more kinds of divorced families than is currently accepted or encouraged. However, far more support from the legal and social systems is needed to help fathers continue to fulfill their responsibilities and obligations as parents after separation, divorce and remarriage.

Purpose. The purpose of the study was to examine the network of indigenous resources of the Mexican-American community. Further it was the purpose of the study to explore the knowledge of the respondents regarding the issue of concern. The objectives of this study were threefold. The primary objective was to contribute to the body of knowledge on Mexican-Americans and secondly to explore their network of indigenous resources. The final objective of this study was to contribute to theory development and provide recommendations for social work practice and intervention with Mexican-Americans. Method. The study was exploratory-descriptive, and the setting for the research was Tulare County in the Central San Joaquin Valley, California. The host agency for the study was Tulare County Headstart and Child Care Agency. Thirty-six couples, 18 first generation and 18 second generation were randomly selected as the sample of the study. None of the participants were, past or present, a client of Mental Health Services, which was one of the criteria for the sample selection. Respondents participated in interviews that were prearranged. The interviews were facilitated with a research instrument designed to explore the most salient elements of the network of indigenous resources. Analysis of the data collected was performed by qualitative and quantitative methods. Conclusions. Generally the data revealed that a well defined and functioning system of indigenous resources exist among Mexican-Americans. On most aspects of the indigenous resources and utilization, no difference was determined between the first and second generation respondents. It was found that the sample was youthful and involved in the life tasks of child rearing and family development. Their outlook on life is controlled by a well developed system of belief which is guided by belief in God and evil. Their overall family orientation was extended in nature and in some cases friends and compadres were considered as part or extension of the family. Finally, it was found that curanderos and priests/ministers have a significant role for the respondents in regard to provision of assistance/help for life problems. Recommendations. The findings have implications for social work theory development and social work practice. Sensitivity and awareness is necessary in relation to the cultural, social, and environment of Mexican-Americans. This is of critical importance in the provision of intervention and services. Further social work practitioners need to be cognizant that Mexican-American clients within their relationships and beliefs may possess a wealth of indigenous resources. And a concerted effort must be made to engage the indigenous resources as part of the helping system.

The concern in human services as to how to provide skilled manpower of sufficient training and in sufficient numbers to meet public demand has been a source of experimentation and controversy over the past decade. In recent years the rapid growth of social and mental health services has provided a multitude of programs and services for both the poor and non-poor. Traditional services of social welfare -- health care, education, housing and employment -- have been increasingly supplemented by new forms of services (e.g., community organization, youth work, recreation, and personal growth therapy), thus vastly expanding the numbers of actual and potential recipients of such services. The changing nature of social services in recent years has stimulated within the helping professions serious discussion over the proper training and utilization of manpower. The new roles and functions that social workers and other professionals are entering into in order to effectively challenge old and new problems have led many in and out of the professions to call for the development of new levels and types of social service workers. A major response to this call has been the development of a new type of worker, the paraprofessional. Known variously as non-professionals, indigenous workers, subprofessionals and the like, this new breed of worker is meant to fill the gap between low level entry positions in the human services and the more specialized components and job tasks in the field. The development of the paraprofessional movement has sparked considerable controversy and study. Attempts to define and identify the precise elements involved in these new middle level positions -- the skill levels and task expectations of such positions -- and the social and political dynamics involved in their creation, have been primary focuses of such debate and study. Issues such as the relationship between paraprofessionals and professionals, the content and nature of paraprofessional training, the establishment of meaningful career ladders, and the relative effectiveness of these new workers have also invoked close scrutiny in the field. To this point, the examination of such generic issues has suffered from considerable imbalance. In recent years, research into paraprofessionalism has tended to concentrate on the recruitment and training aspects. As such, information concerning where paraprofessionals are employed and what they do once in the field is sadly lacking. This is an exploratory study intended to provide such a profile. It is meant to examine paraprofessional human service workers from three graduating classes of the Human Resources Technology program at Chemeketa Community College in Salem, Oregon. The study is interested in examining the employment status of these workers, what roles and functions they serve in their agencies, the monetary and career mobility opportunities in those agencies, and the educational status and aspirations of the graduates. The study also intends to examine their personal views and experiences concerning issues of paraprofessionalism, professionalism, and their role as new workers in the human services.

This research project critically engages with Maori social workers in order to develop an understanding of their practice methods and to ascertain whether they have changed since the 1980's. This will include a particular focus on the influences of the Puao-te-Ata-tu report (1986) on Maori practice methods and the perspectives of Maori social workers within social service organisations. Kaupapa Maori research and Qualitative methods inform this research project. Eight Maori social workers are interviewed and their discourses are examined in relation to the changing cultural, political and economic enviroment in the 1980's. The findings show that Maori social work methods are underpinned by tikanga Maori and that these have not changed significantly since the 1980's. The Puao-te-Ata-tu report was also found to be highly influential to Maori social work in general, however it did not have a direct effect on the practice methods of Maori social workers. The research project concludes with recommendations from both the participants and the researcher. These recommendations lay emphasis on the importance of educational institutions and social service organisations implementing the Puao-te-Ata-tu report and tikanga as a means of improving services for Maori.

Thesis (M. P. A.)--University of Hong Kong, 2007. / Title proper from title frame. Also available in printed format.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 1982. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 159-164). Available online via OhioLINK's ETD Center.

Thesis (M.S.)--Ohio State University, 1982. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 95-97). Available online via OhioLINK's ETD Center.

Facing the ageing society, this study aimed to understand the needs of middle-aged and elderly people in participating social service work and to further investigate their attitudes, willingness and reasons for participation. The subjects were 585 middle-aged and elderly citizens enrolled in the elderly schools located in the Kaohsiung area. The survey lasted from November 2009 to March, 2010. The subjects were asked to respond to the Attitudes towards Social Service Participation Scale (the ASSPS) which consists of five subscales: the Autonomy in Social Service Participation, the Altruism in Social Service Participation, the Meaningfulness in Social Service Participation, the Motivation in Social service Participation, and the Accomplishments in Social Service Participation. The Cronbach £\ reliability of ASSPS was .95 and the reliabilities of its subscales ranged between .80 and .93. The results showed that the mean score of male subjects was higher than that of females in the ASSP, the Meaningfulness in Social Service Participation Subscale, and the Motivation in Social Service Participation Subscale. In view of willingness in social service participation, subjects with a college or above degree exhibited higher willingness than those subjects of elementary education level or under. Besides, participants retired from farming, labor, business, military, public service, and education sectors expressed higher willingness than those doing housekeeping jobs. The results of this study provided references for utilizing middle-aged and elderly labor force and planning social service programs.

Thesis (M.S.W.)--University of Northern British Columbia (Canada), 2006. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.S.) -- University of Texas at Arlington, 2008.