<p> After years of research and efforts to enhance mental health treatment, transition-age youth (TAY) with a history of child welfare involvement continue to make the transition to adulthood with high rates of mental illness. Consequently, there is significant risk of adverse life experiences including homelessness, substance abuse, criminal activity, and poverty. Existing literature indicates TAY often disengage from services due to stigma associated with traditional mental health services. Growing research supports use of yoga and mindfulness therapy as a complementary alternative treatment to improve mental and emotional well-being. The purpose of this project was to write a grant application to fund the creation and implementation of an evidence-based yoga and mindfulness therapy program to enhance positive mental and emotional well-being by increasing ability to self-regulate emotions, strengthen coping mechanisms, support resilience, and positively reengage TAY in services. Submission for funding was not required to successfully complete this project.</p>

<p> The purpose of this project was to locate a potential funding source and write a grant for early mental health services for children 0 to 5 years old exposed to interpersonal violence. An extensive literature review was conducted to understand the impact of interpersonal violence on young children, as well as evidence-based therapies for this population.</p><p> The goals of the proposed program are to strengthen the parent-child bond and thus minimize the child&rsquo;s emotional, psychological, and behavioral issues caused by interpersonal violence. Parent-child therapy would be provided in the home so that the child is in a familiar environment and the parent can witness positive parenting skills, as taught by the therapist in a real world scenario.</p><p> The John and Lisa Pritzker family fund was chosen to support the program. The actual submission of the grant was not a requirement of the thesis project.</p>

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of cognitive behavioral coping skills procedures on an African American male, with a history of alcohol consumption on a daily basis, diagnosed with end stage renal disease. A single system research design was used. It was found that a 12 week session of cognitive behavioral coping skills reduced the alcohol consumption of the client.

<p>The purpose of this project was to locate a potential funding source and write a grant to create a training program for foster parents who care for and supervise foster children at-risk of becoming Commercially Sexually Exploited Children (CSEC). The program?s objectives were to bring awareness to foster parents about the risks and challenges surrounding CSEC, prepare foster parents in identifying foster children at-risk of becoming CSEC, and provide foster parents with the resources and support to address the needs of foster children at-risk of becoming CSEC. The Ralph M. Parsons Foundation was selected due to its focus on social impact. The proposed program matched the foundation?s focus on providing services to an underserved and disadvantaged population by preparing foster parents in identifying and addressing the needs of foster children at-risk of becoming CSEC. Actual submission of this grant was not a requirement for this project.

Individuals with Alzheimers disease (AD) and dementia commonly referred to as persons with dementia (PWD), often experience behavioral and psychological symptoms as a result of the disease process. With no cure for AD and no way to prevent the onset of this disease, studies are analyzing methods to manage the symptoms of this disease. Previous literature on the effect of social adult day models is limited, especially pertaining to particular symptoms linked to this disease. This study explored three presenting symptoms associated with AD: anxiety, problem behaviors, and social engagement. Using a secondary data analysis, a sample of 30 participants from Charlies Place were observed and analyzed to determine if this adult day center would have an impact on the PWDs levels of anxiety, problem behaviors, and social engagement.

The purpose of this study was to re-evaluate the psychometric properties of the Memory for Names (Mem4Names) test among a sample of older adults without cognitive impairment. Mem4Names is a test of famous face recognition that was shown to be a reliable and valid measure of semantic memory in older adults both with and without cognitive impairment (Brouillette et al., 2011). The current study re-examined the psychometric properties of the Mem4Names test among 133 volunteers at Pennington Biomedical Research Centers Institute for Dementia Research and Prevention. The study confirmed previously reported calculations of the tests reliability by calculating Cronbachs alpha and Guttmans split-half coefficient. Convergent validity for the Mem4Names test was established through its correlation with a theoretically similar measure of memory, the Wechsler Memory Scale Logical Memory Delayed subtest. Confirmatory factor analysis identified a one-factor solution for the Mem4Names test. The results concluded that the Mem4Names test is a reliable and valid measure of semantic memory for cognitively intact older adults.

<p> In the United States, an estimated 24.6 million people aged 12 or older use illicit drugs. In 2013, 4.1 million people were treated for alcohol and other substance use disorders yet there continues to be gaps in the research on the factors that sustain recovery from chronic substance use disorders. This research aimed to explore the characteristics of individuals who sustained their recovery from mind or mood altering substances and understand the common experiences and events that initiated and facilitated their recovery process. An online survey was completed by 80 participants who self-reported a minimum of 24 months in recovery. Findings from this mixed method design suggested that spirituality,12-Step fellowships and accepting help were the main factors which caused them to get in to recovery. The most common factor for maintaining long-term recovery was found to be fellowship and being connected with others. Implications for practice and further research are discussed. </p>

The overall objective of this study was to examine burnout and job satisfaction from the perspective of the social workers at Grady Memorial Hospital. To obtain this objective, the following areas on burnout and job satisfaction were addressed by the researcher: (a) characteristics of burnout and job satisfaction, (b) how burnout occurs, and (c) strategies for reduction of burnout and improving job satisfaction. This study was an attempt to provide a clear understanding of what burnout is, how it affects the social workers, and suggest ways to reduce burnout and increase job satisfaction among the social workers. The results showed that burnout was not prevalent among the social workers and they were satisfied with their jobs.

This exploratory study seeks to inform the social work profession about contributing factors influencing retention of public child welfare staff, and relates the research to Maslow’s Hierarchy of Need. The dependent variable, retention of child welfare staff, will be correlated to the independent variable, employee turnover rate. This study examines whether or not salary and caseload plays a significant role in a high turnover rate of social service staff who are an important part of the agency. This study did not seek to examine public child welfare staff who are employed in other states. This study was conducted with Georgia public child welfare staff. The setting for data collection was any public child welfare agency that was willing to participate in the research. The participants were self-selected. The identified site is selected due to the large number and variety of public child welfare staff. In addition, several surveys will be given out during case staffing, consultations and team meetings. These sites were selected by the willingness of the participants. The data collection took place November 1-30, 2006.

Intraracial discrimination (the color complex), is a process by which members of a race discriminate against one another. This study examined whether perceived views about skin tone impacted body image satisfaction among African-American college students. A descriptive research design was used in the study. Forty African-American students, from a historically Black university in the southeast United States completed self administered questionnaires to assess various perceptual dimensions of skin color- their own as well as opposite sex preferences, and body image self relations. The results of the study indicated that there was a statistically significant relationship between skin color and body image of the sample population as it related to their overall body image; r.=.04, p.<.05. There were also significant relationships found among skin color in reference to specific body areas, and dieting habits. Finally, females tended to prefer mates who are lighter than they, while males preferred mates who are their same complexion or darker.