Although the Special Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) and the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP) have operated for years, little is known about utilization of program foods by participants. Using ethnographic interviews, this study examined food use, factors affecting use, and satisfaction among WIC and CSFP clients. WIC foods were consumed by most participants, but frequently not in the total amount. Four of seven WIC foods were found to be substitutions for foods previously consumed. CSFP foods were consumed less frequently, and in smaller amounts, than WIC foods. Intra-household sharing, but not substitution, was prevalent. Major factors affecting food use were taste preference, food habit, convenience, amount and knowledge. Clients expressed greater satisfaction with WIC versus CSFP foods. The results indicate that provision of supplemental foods does not guarantee use, and that significant barriers to use exist. Nutrition education is recommended as a means of increasing food use.

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This study was conducted to assess the impact of SEDNET, the Multiagency Network for Severely Emotionally Disturbed Students, established by the Florida Legislature in 1982, and designed to increase collaboration among agencies enabling them to offer a comprehensive continuum of educational, mental health, and residential services for severely emotionally disturbed children. / This study focused on this question: Has SEDNET accomplished these goals designed by the Florida Legislature? / Goal 1. Provision of a complete array of education, mental health treatment, and residential services for severely emotionally disturbed students; / Goal 2. Improvement of the quality of existing education, mental health treatment, and residential services for severely emotionally disturbed students; / Goal 3. Continuous multiagency planning, implementation, and evaluation of education, mental health treatment, and residential services for severely emotionally disturbed students; / Goal 4. Diffusion of exemplary policies and procedures developed by the pilot projects. / Data for this policy were drawn from the 1989 SEDNET Annual Reports submitted by the fifteen SEDNET Project Directors to the Florida Department of Education, from examination of State Department records, and from interviews with selected Key Informants. These data were examined to evaluate the effectiveness of the SEDNET projects according to the criteria established by the Legislature. The investigation focused on SEDNET's impact on the personnel within the collaborating agencies which provided education, mental health, or residential services for severely emotionally disturbed students, and on the effectiveness of the collaborative process in expanding and improving the array of services. Findings of this study showed that in most Florida districts, SEDNET acted as a catalyst for change and provided a community forum for emotionally disturbed children's issues. SEDNET had a positive influence in developing interagency relationships and increasing understanding. It was determined that while progress had been made in all areas, the Legislative goals for SEDNET had not been accomplished statewide. / Ten recommendations were offered which included renewal of SEDNET Legislation with increased funding, increased planning for future needs, and more in-depth evaluation of SEDNET projects. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 51-12, Section: A, page: 4089. / Major Professor: John H. Hansen. / Thesis (Ed.D.)--The Florida State University, 1990.

This was a study of the effect of contact with persons with disabilities on attitudes toward persons with disabilities by persons without disabilities. The study was based on Allport's (1954) contact theory for reducing tensions between races. The investigator examined equal-status contact between an individual with a disability and subjects without disabilities over a two-hour time period. / Subjects for the study were 102 students enrolled in the F.S.U. College of Education's undergraduate Communication and Human Relations classes. Subjects were assigned to one of four treatment groups or a comparison group. In two of the treatment groups, subjects and the confederate with a disability were given a task to perform; in two of the treatment groups the confederate with a disability volunteered information about her disability and invited disability-related questions. The comparison group had neither a confederate with a disability nor a task to perform. / All subjects completed the Issues in Disability attitudinal assessment (Makas, Finnerty-Fried, Sigafoos and Reiss, 1986) and a demographic questionnaire which included information about their age, gender, academic major and previous contact with individuals with disabilities. / No significant difference was found in attitude scale scores either between subjects in treatment groups and the comparison group or between task and information groups. Overall scores on the attitudinal instrument were higher than expected, and there was a wide range of scores by academic majors. Also, only 11 of the 102 subjects reported no previous contact with persons with disabilities. Most of the subjects (64) had had previous contact on a medium or high level, possibly explaining the lack of effect of the experimental procedure on the attitudinal measure. Scores by subjects who reported high previous contact level were higher than those of subjects who reported no previous contact. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 52-01, Section: A, page: 0081. / Major Professor: E. Jane Burkhead. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1990.

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