The Psychodynamic Formulation of Marital Discord

ABSTRACT

This paper addresses the contribution of object relations theory to an understanding of marital pairs in conflict. Both insight-oriented and briefer, “here and now” communication skills enhancing approaches are informed by a psychodynamic formulation of marital discord model. Utilized frequently in the treatment of individuals, the relevance of a psychodynamic formulation of conflict in couples is explored in detail for complex assessment, treatment planning, and as a guide in predicting the nature of the therapeutic alliance. This model, utilizing object relations theory, is presented conceptually and clinically with reference to a marital therapy case that required a variety of treatment strategies.     

Engaging MSW Students in Faculty Research: Students’ Perspectives of Involvement in a Program Evaluation

Engaging social work students in research is challenging, in part, because of the way research is taught in the classroom and the need for learners to effectively develop connections between the “abstract world” of research concepts with the “real world” of professional experiences. This article describes the experiences of graduate social work students involved in a process and outcome evaluation of a community-based program. Analysis of student learning outcomes and the team-based model used to engage students in the evaluation are provided to put forth a paradigm of teaching social work research through direct, supervised, and collaborative engagement.     

Fostering Cross‐Cultural Learning and Advocacy for Social Justice through an Immersion Experience in Puerto Rico

Our country's increasing social diversity, the richness and complexity of cultures, diversity of self‐defined individual identities, and complexity of cross‐cultural interactions make effective diversity teaching a challenging but critical need. In addition, for services to be provided in culturally competent manner educators must prepare social work students to understand and address the causes, dynamics and consequences of oppression in the life experiences of diverse populations. This article will describe a graduate travel study social work course designed to provide a cultural immersion experience in Puerto Rico. Anecdotal evidence of the students' transformative learning experiences and commitment to social justice advocacy are offered.     

Teaching Pragmatic Psychodynamic Psychotherapy to Graduate Social Work Students

Evolving developments in psychodynamic theory have strengthened it as an evidence-based approach and have made it concordant with social work’s strengths-based, multicultural perspective. An elective focused on teaching fundamental concepts of psychodynamic psychotherapy was developed for graduate social work students based on Kolb’s theory of experiential learning, applied to Summers and Barber’s pragmatic model of psychodynamic psychotherapy. Data were collected based on students’ experienced self-efficacy with specific competencies in psychodynamic psychotherapy in the first, sixth, and last class. Outcomes were positive, and the data were used to make specific suggestions to strengthen course outcomes.     

Seeking conceptual clarity in the action modalities

This article begins with the presumption that action learning has not made as deep an impact in promoting participatory social change as its supporters may have hoped for, but nor has its cousin action modalities, such as action research and action science. These action strategies have evolved separately along distinct traditions and, rather than focus on their commonalities, their proponents have tended to cite their differences from one another. As a result, they have seldom stood together to advocate for their shared epistemology based on practice as the fundamental unit of analysis. Accordingly, after briefly summarizing the history and differences among these action modalities, this article will focus on their potential confederation. It cites ten unifying elements that may construct an agenda characterized by the value of learners collectively reflecting on planned engagements that can not only expand but can create knowledge while at the same time serving to improve practice.     

“从经验中学习”:涵义、价值与高职教育的操作策略

在职业教育教学中进行从经验中学习,有利于学生掌握工作过程知识,有利于提高学生自主学习的能力,有利于增加学生的就业机会。当前在我国高职院校开展从经验中学习,还存在着将工作过程知识理解为简单的操作性经验,学生所学内容缺乏工作知识含量等方面问题。高职院校应深度挖掘工作过程知识,开发课程与教学内容;开发与设计学习型实训场所与岗位;建立专兼职相结合的教师实践共同体,实现培养学生综合职业能力的目的。     

Teaching Social Workers About Substance Use Problems via Temporary Abstinence from Normal Mood-Altering Behavior

Abstract

Social work students enrolled in a graduate-level course in substance abuse (N = 450, over nine years) assessed their own “mood-altering” behaviors (i.e., stress-reduction strategies and leisure-time activities), abstained from one or more of these activities for one week, then completed a written summary of their personal bio-psycho-social experiences. Student papers indicate significant personal insights were gained regarding alcohol and other drug (AOD) issues, and also provide grounded-theory support for major AOD themes. This paper describes the details of this experientially based teaching strategy, and also summarizes AOD themes that emerged from student experiences, including anticipatory reward, substitution, craving, willpower, impaired control, rationalization, shame, guilt, powerlessness, and the challenges of change.     

“Social Work Is a Profession,Not an Ideology”: A Qualitative Analysis of Student Perceptions of Social Justice Discussions in the Classroom

The purpose of this article is to describe student perceptions of their experiences around social justice discussions in the social work classroom through a qualitative, grounded theory framework. Student responses from a qualitative section of a survey were analyzed and sorted into three categories: perceived discrimination, heightened self-awareness/self-assessment, and future social work practice. Each of these categories was derived from comparable multiple themes stemming from the student responses. A conceptual model resulting from the analysis suggests that students who shared experiences of perceived discrimination during classroom discussions could develop an enhanced self-awareness, which would result in an added empathy for clients in their future social work practice. Suggestions for teaching strategies and directions for future research are also discussed.     

Preservice Interns Implement Service-Learning: Helping Young Children Reach Out to Their Community

Service Learning (S-L) is an integral component of the Early Childhood preservice curriculum at the University of South Carolina. In spite of the fact that our college students had experienced the benefits of S-L first hand during their professional education, they had not become adept at implementing this experiential pedagogy into their own preschool and primary classrooms. This article describes the strategies the authors used to motivate their college students to integrate S-L into the classrooms where they were completing their capstone internship. It recounts these teacher education students' successes in planning and implementing effective S-L projects and identifies the benefits that came to the preservice teachers, their young students, and the schools and communities where they taught.     

Work placement experience: should I stay or should I go?

The opportunity to experience work placements that complement taught and practical courses in higher education has become a central strand of many undergraduate degree programmes. While there is tacit agreement that such placements are a good thing, in recent years the numbers of students opting for work placements has been declining. This paper uses a mixed method research design to probe the learning outcomes, attitudes and perceptions of undergraduate students who choose not to go on a work placement. Findings highlight some areas of concern that could be considered by institutions of higher education working to enhance good practice in students’ work placement experiences.