Cette thèse s'intéresse à l'impact du capital social sur la santé des Canadiens. Elle vise à vérifier si la santé est influencée par une multitude de déterminants sociaux, dont le capital social. Pour ce faire, elle se base sur une méthodologie quantitative qui utilise des données individuelles tirées de l'Enquête nationale sur la santé de la population de 1996--1997, comprenant un échantillon de 82 000 répondants. Dans cette recherche, la santé est mesurée à partir de l'auto-évaluation de l'état de santé des gens. Le capital social est mesuré à partir de l'indice de soutien social perçu. En conclusion, cette thèse permet d'observer un lien entre le capital social, mesure à partir du soutien social, et la perception de la santé, bien que celui-ci soit plutôt faible. Elle permet également de voir que les déterminants sociaux de la santé agissent de façon plurivoque et reliée sur la santé.

Costing studies are necessary to ensure that scarce funds are allocated to services that best meet children's needs and lead to positive changes in their functioning. The Production of Welfare (POW) model for costing social services provides a conceptual framework for examining variations in cost in relation to needs and outcomes. The few studies that have looked at costs of services to children and youth suggest that health needs, emotional/behavioural problems, gender and age may influence cost. Our study questions were: (1) What are the average annual per-child costs of foster care? (2) Do higher health needs predict higher costs? (3) Do higher costs during a 12-month period predict better outcomes? The outcomes included in the study were self-esteem, prosocial behaviour, emotional distress/anxiety, conduct disorder/physical aggression, indirect aggression and ill-health. The total average annual opportunity cost per child was $22,892 (N=119). Greater ill-health at baseline predicted higher costs. Cost did not predict changes on self-esteem, prosocial behaviour and emotional distress/anxiety. Contrary to expectations, higher costs were associated with increases in conduct disorder/physical aggression, indirect aggression and ill-health over the 12 months of the study. Kinship care was less expensive than regular foster care, but the study included only 8 children in kinship care. Our results suggest that higher expenditures are targeted at children with greater health needs. Costs may not have yet been able to predict positive changes in outcomes because the time period of the study was for the interventions to have the impact on behaviour that would bring about positive changes. This means that further research with a longer follow-up period is required. A prospective cost study could provide a more complete description of the total costs required to support a child in foster care. Given the small number of participants in kinship care in our study, the relationship between kinship care and cost can only be viewed as exploratory. A larger sample of children in kinship care could provide more information on the costs of kinship care and the relationship between costs and outcomes in kinship care in comparison to regular foster care.

Homelessness is an important social problem in Canada, and the needs and experiences of women may differ from those of other homeless people. Little research has looked beyond rehousing to examine community integration following homelessness. Predictive models of three distinct facets of community integration for women who have experienced homelessness are presented and tested in this thesis. The first model examines physical integration, which is defined in terms of attaining and retaining stable housing. The second model predicts economic integration, defined in terms of participation in work or education. The third model predicts psychological integration, defined as psychological sense of community in one's neighbourhood. Data for this research comes from a two-year longitudinal study conducted in Ottawa. Participants were women aged 20 and over (N =101) who were homeless at the study's outset. Family status was an important predictor of community integration. Women who were accompanied by dependent children were more likely than those unaccompanied by children to be physically, economically and psychologically integrated in their communities. Having access to subsidized housing predicted becoming rehoused and living in one's current housing for longer. Greater perceived social support predicted living in one's current housing for longer. Past work history and mental health functioning predicted economic integration. Lower levels of education predicted returns to full-time studies. Living in higher quality housing and having more positive contact with neighbours predicted psychological integration, while living in one's current housing for longer predicted lower levels of psychological integration. Overall, participants achieved a moderate level of community integration. The majority had been housed for at least 90 days at follow-up. However, only a minority were participating in the workforce or education at follow-up. Participants achieved only a moderate level of psychological integration. Results are discussed in terms of implications for policy and service provision. Improvements in the availability and quality of affordable housing, as well as employment support are recommended. Special attention needs to be paid to providing adequate and effective services for women who are unaccompanied by dependent children.

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This study was designed to evaluate: (a) teachers' behavior when they are confronted with potential cases of child abuse and (b) the information teachers require to make accurate decisions regarding the reporting of suspected child abuse. Teachers were presented with three vignettes describing cases of varying levels of suspected maltreatment, and different amounts of additional information. They were then asked to indicate how likely they would be to report the case to Child Protective Services (CPS). It was expected that reporting behavior would increase as available information increased. The results generally did not support this hypothesis. No significant impact on reporting behavior was found when teachers were presented with either the symptom list or the legal interpretation; however, there was a trend toward an interaction with the level of abusive indications in the case. These results are discussed in the context of the need for further training.

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