Increases in the number of enlisted veterans transitioning from active duty to the civilian world have drawn attention to a need for research in terms of unemployment to examine how separated service members experience transition from their perspective. Fifteen separated enlisted veterans from four of the five military branches were selected and interviewed in this study. The focus was to understand better the complexities of reintegrating into the civilian workforce, as experienced by veterans from the enlisted military population. By using qualitative methodologies including exploratory interviews and a focus group, the findings revealed four major themes on how service members described their transition experience: (a) perception that military leadership does not provide adequate support when transitioning and the need to become more self-directed in one’s own learning; (b) belief that the military TAP class is helpful but needs major changes to truly be effective; (c) description of a battle buddy or a family member as a positive influence in helping with the transition process; and (d) experiencing significant challenges with civilian employers when transitioning out of the military. An analysis of the findings led the researcher to conclude that transitioning veterans must become self-directed in their learning in order to transition successfully. Moreover, because they are at varying levels of being self-directed when they transition, additional guidance is needed from military leadership, family, and other veterans for the purpose of their development. The analysis also yielded a principal recommendation for military leadership to advocate for quality training programs that are specified from the separated enlisted population for what resources they need to assist with transition to the civilian sector. Additional recommendations were presented to transitioning service members on the importance of managing their own success and believing in their abilities to be resilient, valuable members of the civilian community.

The purpose of this study was to explore HIV/AIDS client experiences with supportive services. The consumption of social services for individuals living with HIV/AIDS has assumed increasing importance. This is a crucial population that requires a multifaceted approach to treatment in order to remain active and productive for longer periods of time.

Thesis (M.Dev) --University of Limpopo, 2011

In this research the prevalence, experiences and nature of child-to-mother violence from a high-risk geographical area were investigated. The aims of the study were to identify these factors within contemporary communities and develop validated recommendations for interventions to support affected mothers, children and families. This form of family pathology has been positioned within juvenile justice and medical models rather than family violence literature. It appears to be poorly understood, underreported and hidden from public view. Thus, it was difficult for some affected women to recognise what they were experiencing as abuse. In the literature, mothers were reported as the primary targets of violence and sons the predominant perpetrators. Incidence rates varied widely from samples collected 30 to 40 years ago. Other anomalies in the literature revealed power in mother-child relationships to be unclear, and the gender of targets of violence and perpetrators was not made explicit in the literature. In this study a mixed method design was used over four distinct phases: (1) development and validation of an instrument; (2) conducting a pilot study; and (3) population study; and (4) workshop with service providers. Psychometric tests on the instrument indicated a 0.97 correlation coefficient on a test re-test, and Cronbach’s alpha achieved correlation coefficient of 0.91 for the 24 item scale and 0.99 correlation coefficient for the 17 item scale. Results signify prevalence of child-to-mother violence in 50.9% [n = 1024] of the households surveyed. Key findings indicate 50.3% [n=521] of women were afraid in their family of origin, and 39.2% [n=521] of children had been witness to violence in the home previously. In addition, younger mothers experienced greater child-to-mother violence; as women’s level of education increased, their experience of child-to-mother violence decreased; single mothers experienced greater child-to-mother violence; and were more likely to live in households with access to casual employment or were unemployed. Perpetrators were predominantly sons, 58.7% [n = 521]. Half of the women who experienced child-to-mother violence spoke to someone; and experiences for women with a partner present in the home were divided between supportive and unsupportive behaviour from the partner. The most popular suggestions for support were affordable long-term counselling for youth and family, parent workshops, information and education, non-judgemental advocacy for mothers and their families, support groups for mothers, families and youth and peer mentorship programs. Women made salient their experiences related to child-to-mother violence which revealed the seriousness and complexity of this issue for women. As a result five key themes were developed: (1) Living in the red zone: The experience of child-to-mother violence, this theme referred to women’s sense of danger and difficulty in rasing an abusive child; (2) The damage is done: The breakdown of relationships, which described the breakdown and discord within relationships after experiencing child-to-mother violence; (3) Order out of chaos: Successful transition back into the family; identified the re-integration of relationships between the child/ren and mother; (4) Falling through the cracks: Barriers to service provision, drew attention to the difficulties women faced trying to access appropriate services; and, (5) Cry for help: Where to from here?, focused on suggestions by the mothers for support services. A workshop consultation with service providers revealed a number of broad recommendations: (1) Zero tolerance for violence, young people taking responsibility for violence; (2) Awareness of child-to-mother violence campaign; (3) Information and education packages; (4) Case management approach for families utilising services; (5) Co-operation between service providers; (6) 24 hour telephone service for advice; (7) Women centred support groups and group interventions; (8) Respite care; (9) Specialised counselling services; and (10) Mentoring programs. This study supported the view that power is a complex issue, particularly for women experiencing child-to-mother violence. Women developed feelings of ambiguity for their abusive child owing to resentment that built up for the child targeting them with abuse at the same time sympathising with the child for their particular circumstances. Providing support for women must be a priority. Key suggestions for support include: raising awareness through information and education packages, emergency phone support, building relationships, women centred support groups and peer mentoring. / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

This portfolio documents an investigation of both parent and educator perspectives of managing a chronic illness at school with the aim of developing a framework to ensure that students with chronic illness have equitable access to the same educational outcomes as their healthy peers. This study provides an in-depth exploration of a number of facets of the impact of having a chronic illness, including social, emotional, cognitive and physical aspects. The use of both parent and teacher perspectives provides insights into the realities of having a child with chronic illness at school, and offers some understandings of the risks and challenges parents face as they relinquish care of their ill child into the hands of educators. It also examines the role of educators as they assume much of the responsibility for providing educational, social and emotional support for these students, as well as monitoring their medical needs and health status whilst at school. The evidence from research in the field of child chronic illness suggests that students with chronic illness are at risk academically, emotionally and socially. The effectiveness of any strategy that aims to achieve equity in participation and outcomes for this group of students will depend upon understanding the complex factors that impact on students with chronic illness at school such as absenteeism, relationships with peers and individual resilience. This study addresses the research questions: What are the concerns of parents, educators and students with chronic illness in the educational context? What strategies are consistently being identified as effective in supporting students with a chronic illness at school? And what are the barriers to chronically ill students accessing educational services? Two, two part questionnaires were used to elicit responses from parents and educators of students with chronic illness. The parent respondents consisted of 121 parents of students with chronic illness attending Department of Education schools across NSW, Australia. The teacher respondents consisted of 111 teachers of students with chronic illness in Department of Education schools across NSW. The insights that emerged from the research suggest that the needs of this group of students remain unrecognised and under-resourced. Major findings indicate that many students with chronic illness have high levels of absenteeism, are underachieving academically, have difficulties keeping up and catching up with missed school work, are challenged in their relationships with their peers, and their medical needs are not recognised nor resourced adequately. Teachers of students with chronic illness are inadequately trained, and lack the time and resources to meet the individual needs of these students. The results demonstrated that students with chronic illness are not accessing educational services in the same ways as their healthy peers. The findings of this study suggest schools can make a difference to how well a student and a family cope with chronic illness. The provision of appropriate support, resources and the demonstration of positive attitudes by school communities can foster an environment that facilitates the academic and social growth of the student. The study includes recommendations in the areas of: building communication between home, school and medical professionals; maintaining academic achievement; building peer relationships; managing student medical needs; supporting students returning to school; reducing absenteeism; and supporting emotional health of student and family. The findings of this study have raised an awareness of the needs of students with chronic illness at school, and identified strategies for their support and inclusion. The findings also provide a framework for the provision of educational services for students with chronic illness. Hence, this portfolio represents an exploration of the journey much traveled by parents and educators of students with a chronic illness, with the intent of raising awareness of their needs, and providing direction for policy makers in the field of education, to ensure that students with chronic illness have equitable access to the same educational outcomes as their healthy peers. / Doctor of Education (Ed.D.)

For over 25 years organized groups of low-income families in Oregon have been gathering food that would otherwise go to waste and distributing this food among organization members. The purpose of this research study is to explore the potential for these organizations (gleaning groups) to contribute not only to food distribution, but also to the reduction of poverty through the development of human capital (acquiring knowledge and skills) and social capital (building relationships of trust and support) among participants in these organizations. Data was collected through participant observation at a regional food distribution agency and seven gleaning group sites, as well as interviews with 13 key informants working with gleaning organizations, and 19 volunteer members of gleaning organizations. The results of this study indicate that gleaning groups are contributing to the development of human and social capital by providing individuals with opportunities such as working closely with other gleaners, carrying out the administrative tasks of a non-profit organization and distributing food to shut-in or disabled "adoptee" members of these groups. In addition, this study shows that there are significant hindrances to human and social capital development within gleaning organizations including lack of control over the amount of food groups receive through the national food-banking network, deficiencies in volunteer participation and an emphasis on efficiency in carrying out group tasks. The author suggests incorporating social and human capital development into the stated purposes of gleaning organizations in an effort to stated purposes of gleaning organizations in an effort to intentionally remove barriers to, as well as encourage further investments in these forms of capital. / Graduation date: 2004

Evaluating the success or failure of work force training programs is most often accomplished through the reporting of "objective" data. Rarely are the students' views of their own success in such a training program formally solicited or applied in any useful way. But participant perceptions can be a critical barometer of quality and ought to be taken into account in any program which aims for continuous improvement. This research was undertaken to allow people to present their experiences and meanings in ways which can contribute to just such program improvement. The study was guided by the following research questions: 1. How do student participants define success? 2. How did their Skill Center training program meet their definition of success? It was expected that information gathered from the study would provide information that could: (a) provide and clarify student participant perspectives in work force training and employment programs, and (b) help program operators who run this and similar programs make informed decisions based on participants' definitions of success and their perceptions of what successes they experienced from the Skill Center program. The data were collected through in-depth interviews with fifteen graduates self-identified as successful. Grounded theory methodology was followed to develop the findings. Among all informants, the most often cited theme was that of "connecting" with instructors and fellow students. A second component of this central theme was a "cohort" feeling; a perception of warmth, support, and a sense of family that was common to all of the students interviewed. Many students were balancing feelings of anger, frustration, anxiety, and despair, and it was the human connections with the other members of the skill training center that enabled many, if not most, students to persist in training. For all of the interviewees, the affective value of their training was more intrinsic (e.g., helped them build their confidence and self-esteem) than extrinsic (e.g., helped them obtain and retain a job). This contributes to an inherent tension between individuals and agencies, since agency perspectives on success are based almost solely on extrinsic measures. / Graduation date: 1996

A growing number of nonmetropolitan communities have chosen to pursue nontraditional avenues for economic development including the promotion of the nonmetropolitan area to older adults who may choose to migrate after retirement. The purpose of this study was to help community leaders in nonmetropolitan areas make informed decisions if they choose to revitalize their town through the aid of immigration and retention of retirees, by knowing what infrastructure to plan for based on the neighborhood, housing, and support service preferences of future nonmetropolitan retirees. This prospective study compared two populations: preretirees who planned to migrate to nonmetropolitan areas during the first 10 years of retirement and preretirees who planned to age in place in nonmetropolitan areas upon retirement by (1) age integrated/ age segregated neighborhood preference; (2) housing tenure and structure preference; (3) support service preference of a hospital and/or family members; and (4) the socio-demographic variables of marital status, health status, current income level, and number of sources of retirement income. An age stratified random sample of preretirees from two states (N=1,175), Oregon and Utah, was included in the study. Statistical analyses included descriptive statistics and chi-square and one t-test to test nine null hypotheses. Migrant respondents differed in their preference for neighborhoods with older residents (p=.00000), preference to rent (p=.00002), and tendency to feel that family in the community was important (p=.00031). Migrants differed significantly in their marital status (p=.01292), in that more were unmarried. With regard to health status (p=.02752), more age in place reported excellent and fair/poor health as opposed to migrants' very good and good health. Nonmetropolitan community leaders interested in economic revitalization through the attraction of and retention of elderly retirees may want to consider including in their community the following: housing that tends to be more age segregated than age integrated, single family dwellings that can be rented, a hospital, and formal support services that may be needed if the informal support of family and friends is not available. / Graduation date: 1995

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Thesis (doctoral)--University of Kent, 1999. / BLDSC reference no.: DX212172.