An extraordinary number of scholarly works have been produced about community-level power in America. The focus of attention, however, has been primarily upon the Anglo-Saxon community. Virtually all these reports contained serious inaccuracies about black leaders. Where exceptions existed they were based solely upon data gathered during the legally sanctioned biracial system or immediately thereafter. Conclusions about contemporary blacks tend to rely upon these earlier, suspect explanations. The most persistent theme can be stated as "black leadership is chaotic, episodic, non-representative, ineffective and uncontrolled by the black community." This appalling lack of knowledge about contemporary black leadership has provided the framework for the case study of a medium sized southeastern United States city, Chattanooga, Tennessee. Twin (although not identical) hypotheses underlie the study: First, efforts made by black and white communities to designate and control the actions of black leaders resulted in a bifurcated leadership structure. The findings of the study were that the interpenetration between the black and white communities altered and affected the patterns of power and influence in each. Second, these two designated black leadership segments took different positions on issues because they represented the interests of different constituencies. The three operative variables--the years 1970-79, black leadership and designation sources--were measured with a range of data and methodologies. For example, modified-stratified samples of 29 white and 57 black respondents were used. Data extracted from newspapers and organization records were correlated with issues, events, and leaders and their activities. The research data supported the major hypotheses, revealing that whites employed five major strategies which weakened and, at times, defeated blacks' goals. Evidence emerged to substantiate the existence of a decidedly cohesive black leadership which fashioned a set of skillfully designed and executed strategies while simultaneously coping with a counter black leadership structure supported by the white leadership.

This is an exploratory, descriptive study that examines perceptions of the helping experience taking the views of a group of Puerto Rican adolescents from Newark, New Jersey and comparing them with the views of a group of adult helpers also from Newark, New Jersey. The study samples are selected using a purposive, non-random approach. A major purpose of the study is to examine the impact that the ethnic background of a helper might have on congruence or dissonance of perception with a group of Puerto Rican teenagers. With this idea in mind the helper sample is quota selected yielding roughly even numbers of Black, Latino and White helpers. A major assumption of the study is that congruence of views between a helper and client will have a positive impact on the helping experience. The study first describes the demographics and perceptions of its adolescent subjects. It then goes on to describe the demographics and perceptions of its adult helpers employing tests of significance to do inter-group comparisons. Finally the demographics and perceptions of the Puerto Rican adolescent subjects in the study are compared with each of the adult groups. The study hypothesizes that the ethnic background of a helping person will have an impact on congruence or dissonance of views with an adolescent group. More particularly the study hypothesizes that the views of Puerto Rican adolescents will be closer to the views of helpers of their own ethnic background or at least to helpers of a minority background and further away from the views of non-minority helpers. An instrument using both scaled and open-ended items was developed based on an operationalized definition of the helping experience. Data elicited through the instrument is analyzed using frequencies, chi-square and tests of significance. Qualitative material, which is used supportively relative to the central issues of the study, is analyzed using an inspection technique. Outcomes suggest that the Puerto Rican adolescents in the study feel more positively about a helping experience than do any of the adult groups. They tended to be closer to the Latino helpers than to the Black or White helpers in their perceptions, particularly in negative self perceptions and perceptions of their communities. Generally, they were closer to Whites than to Blacks in their perceptions. Beyond these general findings an analysis of congruence and dissonance of views between the adolescents and adult helpers in this study presents a very mixed picture, suggesting that for the population in this study there is not a consistent, overriding pattern. The study does establish that for its subjects the ethnicity of a helper is of importance but not of major importance in a helping experience. Competence and human qualities of warmth and caring are equally important. The study strongly suggests the need for basic research having to do with a significant population at risk - Puerto Rican adolescents - and the development of supportive counseling programs that are capable of reaching this population.

A short-term longitudinal study was undertaken to explore the process of settling-in to foster home care as reflected in the patterned sequences in the behaviors of 29 children. The 16 boys and 13 girls, ranging in age from two to 15 years, were received into the care of six voluntary agencies serving New York City in 1971. The sampling plan included only children who were experiencing their first formal placement and who were received directly into foster care without an interim period in congregate care facilities. Foster mothers, the principal respondents, were considered participant-observers. Data consisted of their detailed descriptions of the way the children behaved in a wide variety of everyday situations during the first 24 hours of placement and thereafter at two-week intervals from the second to the eighth week, and their responses to the child behavior characteristics schedule and to a list of symptoms of physical and behavioral disturbances. In addition, the behaviors of the children were observed in the foster home at the time of the first and the final interviews, and the social workers reported their observations. Background data were gathered from agency case records. Initial and final interviews were conducted by telephone. Initial interviews were made as soon after placement as feasible. In the analysis of the data each child's temperament or behavioral style was identified according to nine formal categories of behavioral reactivity: activity level, approach-withdrawal tendencies, mood, intensity, adaptability, response threshold, distractibility, attention span - persistence, and rhythmicity, The process of adjustment posited by the crisis concept, the prevalence of symptoms of physical and behavioral disturbance, the foster mothers' interpretations of the children's behaviors and their assessments of both the seriousness of the children's problems and the ease or difficulty of rearing the children were examined in relation to temperament. The findings highlight the individuality of the behavioral response patterns of the children and the complexity of the process of adjustment to foster care. All children exhibited behaviors characteristic of some or all of the four phases of adjustment posited by the crisis concept (pre-protest, protest, despair, detachment) and the phases appeared to be sequential, but there was great variation among the children in the duration of each of the phases and in the intensity with which each was expressed. No two children had identical patterns of temperament. Findings suggest that the children at risk of failure of the placement included those who exhibited various combinations of negative mood, intensity of response, irregularity in habits or bodily functions, persistence and non-distractibility, slow adaptation to changes in the environment, and a tendency to withdraw from anything new. There appeared to be a tendency to interpret their behaviors as manifestations of stubbornness and defiance, emotional problems, or learning problems rather than as expression of behavioral style. Findings suggest, also, that the tendency of older children to delay engaging the process of adjustment might place them at risk. When there was a long delay between the event of placement and the appearance of behaviors characteristic of the protest phase of adjustment the behaviors tended to be interpreted as manifestations of breakdown in the relationship between child and foster family rather than as expression of the process of adjustment. Crisis formulations concerning adaptation to environmental change, and temperament or behavioral style appear to be concepts potentially useful to social work practice in child placement. Implications of an ethological approach to the study of the behaviors of foster children were discussed.

This dissertation addresses two issues. One is the means by which particular policy science concepts and technologies inform social workers functioning as analysts of social policy. The second is the caveat of social work regarding the analysis and development of social policy. Because, among social scientists, economists, systems analysts, political scientists, and policy scientists most frequently contribute to the development and analysis of social policy, their disciplines have been chosen for study. The concepts and perspectives unique to each have been described with regard to how they are applied to the development of social policy. The first element of the study design is the introduction of the concepts, techniques and perspectives of economics, systems analysis, political science, and the policy sciences as they are pertinent to the development of social policy. Policy analyses are presented illustratively in order to stress discipline-based differences in methodological and/or conceptual foci. Distinctive underlying decision-rules by which policy choices are made by different analysts are described. The study is also designed to explore means by which the knowledge and skill base of the policy sciences can be useful to a social worker in the role of policy analyst. Concepts, techniques and underlying decision rules are presented as they can be "borrowed" by social workers who analyze policy. Finally, an interpretation of the role of the social worker as policy analyst is presented. The strengths and limitations of each macroscience are recapitulated. The synthesizing of concepts and methods of inquiry that are relevant to the analysis and development of social policy is elucidated.

Much of the relevant literature has indicated that age homogeneity of the neighborhood is beneficial for the elderly in increasing life satisfaction and morale, in fostering contacts with friends and neighbors, and in creating a high level of social activity. However, the dependent variables used in these studies may create distortions in comparing age homogeneous and age heterogeneous neighborhoods. Life satisfaction and morale may be too global as dependent variables and based on too many factors in a person's environment to compare the effects of different neighborhood structures. Contacts with neighbors and friends may not be meaningful in all areas requiring primary group supports. Therefore, in this study of 1423 elderly people in New York and Florida, Litwak's "Theory of Shared Functions" is used to suggest the application of another type of dependent variable (performance of primary group functions) to compare age homogeneous and age heterogeneous areas. The effect of homogeneity would depend on the degree the structure of primary groups available matches the requirements for the function to be performed. Age homogeneity, while increasing the concentration of proximate age peers, may create distance from kin who have the most long term commitment. Therefore, one type of function (participation in leisure), which is based on common or age-related interests, is shown to be strongly facilitated by age homogeneity. Another (watching one's place), which benefits from proximity of neighbors, but not from a loss of speed of reaction by the elderly, is weakly facilitated. Another (help in long illness), which is based on long term commitment, is affected little by age homogeneity. With moderate long term commitment required, neighbors and friends are able to substitute for kin. However, when larger degrees of long term commitment are required, for help with money matters, or help in long illness for those who are disabled, very old, or have low income, there is a significant decrease in the level of primary group aid between age heterogeneous and age homogeneous areas. This is particularly so for the elderly who are handicapped or who have multiple resource deficiencies, and are most affected by lack of kin. The effects of homogeneity are found to be largely independent of state of residence.

In recent years the child welfare system in New York City has come under criticism for placing most of its resources in providing services to the child away from home. Due to the reimbursement agreement between the public sector responsible for these children and the voluntary agencies which provide care, few "in home" or preventive services have been available. In response to this criticism the Preventive Service Demonstration Project was established, in which intensive family services were provided to families of children in jeopardy of being placed. Evaluation of this project showed that such services did, in fact, reduce the number of children entering foster care and the time spent in care of those who entered. This research investigates the impact of preventive service units on the workers' attitudes and perceptions of the need for placement. Five groups of child welfare workers were participants in the study. Two of the groups were primarily concerned with providing preventive services (n=55), while three provided traditional under care services (n=109). The subjects in the research were administered an instrument which collected social/demographic information and measures of six attitudes. In addition, the subjects were presented five case analogues and asked to judge six case elements and whether the child should be placed in an appropriate foster care setting. Results of the analysis showed that workers in preventive units were different in their attitudes than workers in traditional settings -- they were more likely to feel preventive services were useful, to see the continuing importance of biological parents and to feel that foster care was a damaging experience for children. In addition. while all workers saw the elements of the five cases in about the same way, workers in preventive units placed fewer of the five children in the case analogues (a Guttman scale of Placement Proneness) than other workers. The greatest variation in the placement decision occurred in the "mid-range" case, confirming the results in a number of other studies. Several of the social/demographic variables were also related to the workers' attitudes. and these variables as well as the workers' attitudes were related to the judgment of case elements and the decision to place a child. In order to determine the importance of the variables in explaining a workers' placement proneness score a number of regression analyses were performed. The worker's setting was shown to be a strong predictor of the placement proneness score. In addition, the worker's attitude toward preventive services, judgments of a number of case elements, attendance at courses, ethnicity and the client group with which he/she had contact were also found to be predictive of this score. A total of 34% of the variance in the placement proneness score and 48% of the variance in the placement decision on the mid-range case was explained by these variables. The research gave rise to the following recommendations: (1) the creation of educational preventive units which, at least initially, are administratively separate from the under care units of the agency and the establishment of new funding patterns in the foster care system in order to facilitate their creation; (2) the redefinition of jobs within the foster care system so as to encourage contact between all workers and all parties in· the foster care triangle; (3) the education and training of workers in the area of preventive services in order to increase the workers perceptions of their effectiveness; and (4) an increased emphasis in the training of workers on the skills needed to discern strengths in clients.

The overall focus of this study was to investigate the initial adaptation process to college. The adaptation process was viewed as embedded within the ecological transition of leaving home to live at college. The primary psychosocial tasks which provided the process criterion for adaptation were contained in the "divestment-investment" process. The study was divided into 2 phases which used a cross-sectional design. The major hypotheses of Phase I predicted a relationship between perceived adjustment and perceived family characteristics, as well as between perceived adjustment and separation feelings. For Phase II the hypotheses predicted a relationship between perceived adjustment and four adaptation criterion variables: information processing, autonomy, motivation, self-esteem. The Ss for Phase I of the study consisted of 105 male freshmen from Columbia College and the School of Engineering. The Ss were administered the Bell Adjustment Inventory which determined perceived adjustment; the Family Adaptation and Cohesion Evaluation Scale which enabled assessment of perceived family cohesion and perceived family adaptation; a Separation scale which yielded scores on separation affect; and a demographic questionnaire which measured environmental variables. In Phase II, adjustment scores derived from Phase I were compared with the four adaptation criterion variables. The four criterion variables for adaptation were determined by four judges using a content analysis of taped interviews with Ss from a subgroup (N = 30) of the sample population. A multivariate analysis of variance, Eta and Oneway analyses were used to obtain results from the data of Phase I. A univariate analysis of variance, and Eta analysis were used to analyze Phase II data. The major findings of Phase I were that relationships were found to exist between the Perceived Family Cohesion scores and the perceived adjustment scores, as well as between Perceived Family Cohesion scores and the Separation scores. The major findings of Phase II were that relationships were found to exist between the adaptation criterion variables of Motivation, Autonomy, and Self-esteem on the 3 Bell Adjustment groups for the two content areas of separation issues, and academic issues. On the basis of the information which this exploratory study has provided, it seems reasonable to suggest that the individual's perceived level of family cohesion was instrumental in his initial adaptation to college.

In this work we examined a series of hypotheses to test whether social class, mother's stress, mother's ethnicity, child's sex, level of child's impairment and the severity of the patterns of the child's symptoms were related to whether mothers brought their children for help with their problems. Each of the variables were examined to ascertain their contribution and the extent to which they intervene in the social process, leading to referral. Using data obtained in a mid-Manhattan longitudinal study of a randomly selected sample of 1,034 families, we focused on 732 mothers seen at Time 1 and Time 2 (1966-67 and 1971-72). Information was gathered by a comprehensive questionnaire. The topics handled can be summarized as follows: What are the similarities or differences in stress for mothers of different socioeconomic levels and how is this related to mother's behavior regarding pursuit of help for her child. Does the degree of stress experienced influence whether or not they will refer their children for help? Does educational background affect the salience of a child's symptoms in the mother's decision concerning seeking help for her child? To what extent do mothers of different socioeconomic levels use different resources to cope with comparable problems with their children? And to what extent does education through media and other informational sources influence a mother's decision to seek help for her child? The findings of a pattern of highly educated mothers referring at a consistently higher percentage than mothers with medium or low education remained consistent for a majority of the childhood disturbances studied. A child is more likely to be referred if his mother is highly educated for all levels of childhood disorder; whereas children of mothers with medium education have a better chance of receiving help for their problems if they are considered to be in the high category of child disturbances, and much less if they are in the medium or low categories. Mothers of low education seldom refer. Mothers with high education referred twice as frequently as those mothers in the lowest educational category in the earlier time, and almost three times as often at Time 2. We found a greater response to the stress factor by highly educated mothers. Stress was less related to referral at the lowest educational level in contrast to highly educated mothers whose rate of referral increased four-fold as their stress increased from low to medium to high. Ethnic group membership apparently affects help-seeking behavior by mothers of disturbed children. Black mothers and White mothers refer their highly disturbed children at a much higher rate than Spanish mothers (Time 1 and Time 2). There is a relationship between stress levels, referral and ethnicity. Black mothers who refer most when under high stress, also have the highest proportion of their population in the high stress category. All three ethnic groups respond to greater stress by larger percentages of referrals, however Black mothers and White mothers refer at statistically significant levels while Spanish mothers do not. Educational differences in referral vary with the type of problem and this is reflected in the referral patterns of highly educated mothers who referred at statistically significant levels for mentation problems, delinquency and fighting. In contrast to this, class differences were minimal in relation to conflict with parents, where all three groups referred in similar percentages. The findings indicate that the extent to which one is informed by television, reading, discussion groups, and other media in general, seems to have little effect on whether or not mothers will bring their disturbed children for help. Upper socioeconomic mothers utilize psychiatrists and psychologists at much higher levels than middle and lower classes both at Time 1 and Time 2. The upper classes utilize social workers least at both times in contrast to middle and lower classes. As compared to the other two classes, lower class mothers refer proportionately less to doctors, school counselors, psychologists and psychiatrists. Teachers and social workers seem to be utilized by them at rates comparable to the middle classes. The police and courts are rarely utilized by any of the three classes. It is interesting to note that within the category of low education, psychiatrists were sought out by them in both times as the resource of choice for help with their disturbed children, a pattern consistent with that of the middle and upper socioeconomic groups. The aim of the paper was to determine if the mothers referred their children appropriately--and if they were indeed cognizant of the various types and degrees of disturbed behavior. The goals (only suggested in this paper) would be to determine how these patterns might be changed -- as indeed the evidence suggest they should be -- by educators and those in the "helping professions". A major obstacle in attempting to institute viable programs to properly service those in need, has been the relative lack of pertinent information concerning those factors which are central to leading people to seek help. Hopefully these findings can clarify some of these issues.

This study was a comparative, cross-sectional analysis of maternal reactions to separation from their young children at school entrance. The first observation was of mothers who were entering their children in school for the first time. The second observation, made concurrently, was of mothers who entered their children in school at least six months before the observation. These were the "experienced" mothers. The sample population consisted of 177 mothers drawn from nine schools. Data was collected by means of a written questionnaire, distributed to the mothers at the school. The study sought to discover factors which might influence the ease or difficulty which a mother experienced during separation. Six major and seven minor hypotheses were tested. The first hypothesis stated that reactions to separation change over time and will be most intense at the initial separation. It was confirmed. The separation reactions of the "inexperienced" mothers were significantly different from those of the "experienced" mothers, and in the predicted direction. The second hypothesis stated that separation reactions change according to the mothers' view of her relationship with her child and her perception of the degree of independence between her child and herself. It was hypothesized that a mother who was able to recognize her child as a separate individual, with needs different from her own, would have less difficulty at parting than a mother who saw her child as an extension of herself. In the operationalization of the hypothesis, four different content areas were created. In the findings, two of these areas proved to have significant relationships to the mothers' difficulty separating: her early mothering experience and her assessment of the child's current level of independence. The mothers who indicated great satisfaction with the early mothering experience were the ones who had the most difficulty separating. Those who only moderately enjoyed the early mothering experience had a much easier time separating. Second, mothers who saw their children as able to function fairly independently were able to undergo the separation with much less anxiety themselves. The third hypothesis examined the effect of a mother's social network on her difficulty separating. It was predicted that the more isolated a mother was, the more difficulty she would have separating at school entrance. The findings confirmed the hypothesis for the "inexperienced" mothers. The ones receiving the lowest amount of support from their husbands, parents, and relatives were very clearly the ones who had more difficulty separating. The fourth hypothesis stated that mothers who had difficulty separating were less likely to find new activities and also less likely to have an improvement in their relationship with their children. The findings were not significant. The fifth hypothesis stated that differences in the mothers' responses to separation related to their views of the school. Did they see the school as helpful and supportive, indifferent, or even intrusive? It was hypothesized that a mother who feels that the school cares about her child and herself will have an easier time separating. The findings were that there was no relationship between a mother's difficulty separating and her view ·of the school. Hypothesis 6 stated that separation reactions related to the amount of separation experienced prior to school entrance. It was predicted that a mother who has frequently been apart from her child will experience less separation anxiety. Conversely, a mother who has never left her child will experience greater separation anxiety. The hypothesis was confirmed. The mothers who spent more time away from their children before school entrance had an easier time separating from them at school entrance. Hypotheses 7 through 13 explored the relationship of the main dependent variable, "difficulty separating" and seven antecedent variables: "general morale", "age", "social class", "ethnic group", "religion", "length of employment", and "number of children". None were found to relate significantly to "difficulty separating".

This study examines the relative influence of professional education, the conditions of practice and other factors on the social worker's orientation to the welfare of his clients. The hypothesis, that professionally trained social workers are more oriented to the welfare of their clients than are their untrained co-workers, is tested. The relationship between the extent of perceived organizational constraints and the worker's orientation is assessed to determine if functional autonomy is related to practitioner orientation. The study also examines whether professional education generates commitment to the professional norms of social work. When a worker agrees with a standardized prescription for practice, does agreement imply legitimation, or the usefulness, of the prescription--or both? Inter- and intra-positional consensus, on evaluations of the legitimacy and usefulness of practice prescriptions, is examined in order to locate formal and informal organizational sources of influence on practice orientation. One thousand seventy-five respondents from twenty-three geographically distributed state probation and/or parole agency system populations answered a questionnaire which included instruments treating practitioner orientation, functional autonomy, and the legitimacy and utility of a set of professional prescriptions for practice which were standardized on a national sample of "transmitters" of professional norms--casework teachers. As hypothesized, trained practitioners were more client welfare oriented than those who were not trained. When employing organization was held constant, this finding persevered in a majority, but not all, of the employing organizations. These findings held when status, tenure and experience were also held constant. Female practitioners with every type and at every level of education were more client welfare oriented than male practitioners. Sex, or its social concomitants, and professional education emerge as independent sources of client welfare orientation. Regardless of its sources, practitioner orientation was specified by organizational contingencies. Among these, two elements of caseload composition reduced differences between trained and untrained workers: (1) probation caseloads; (2) adult caseloads. In contrast to earlier findings, the practitioner's perception of his freedom to determine case decisions is not related to his practice orientation. Functional autonomy may be a function of the practitioner's visibility, which is related to organizational complexity. Practitioners with rural caseloads perceive themselves as having greater autonomy than those with urban caseloads. Although professional education exerts a powerful influence on the worker's orientation to the welfare of his clients, it isn't the influence which educators are likely to want. Workers who consistently agree with professional prescriptions for practice do not consistently legitimate them when they are required to consider both their legitimacy and their usefulness. When social workers must consider more than one implication of "agreement" at a time, they do not make judgements which are uniformly consistent with professional norms. Some of the evidence suggests that practitioners tend to legitimate what they believe to be useful. There is consensus, within and among organizational positions, on evaluations of legitimacy and utility of practice prescriptions. Workers' perceptions of supervisors' evaluations are accurate. The substantial consensus on punitive case actions includes legitimation of breaches of confidentiality, routinized forms of persecution of homosexuals, and the automatic response to initiate revocation proceedings for physically aggressive children or clients who engage in extended sexual affairs. Although professionally trained workers are differently oriented to these matters than untrained workers, a large proportion of trained practitioners contribute to the consensus on punitive case decisions. Finally, there is a minor trend in the data indicating somewhat greater consensus among workers than between workers and supervisors. Similarly, there is a greater worker-supervisor consensus than worker-top administrator consensus. This suggests that elective relationships among organizational peers may yield more powerful influences on practice orientation than formally defined hierarchically structured organizational relationships.