The College as a Social System: Student Perceptions of Students,Faculty, and Administration

Abstract

This is a report on a new instrument for institutional research, (Transactional Analysis of Personality and Environment-(TAPE), based on the semantic differential and unique in its potential for analysis of the integration among students, faculty, and administration in a college, A total of 3,016 students from twenty-one colleges rated the following concepts on the 52 scales in Form A or the 52 scales in Form B: “My College,” “My Self,” “Students,” “Faculty,” “Administration,” and “Ideal College.” Ratings of satisfaction with aspects of college life also were made. The data presented indicate that individuals who perceive great discrepancies between themselves and their college tend to be dissatisfied and consider dropping out. Furthermore, those colleges which have large mean Self- College discrepancies also tend to have high mean dissatisfaction scores. Data are also presented to exemplify the intra- and inter-institutional research comparisons possible with TAPE.     

Non-Traditional and Traditional Social Work Students

ABSTRACT

Drawing on a sample of undergraduate social work students from four mid-western social work programs, this study compared perceptions of field instructors regarding non-traditional and traditional students. Field instructors rated their perceptions of the successful fulfillment of the demands of field practicum and the impact of several life characteristics for traditional and non-traditional students.

Non-traditional students were rated significantly higher on a variety of measures as assessed by field instructors. This study has implications for social work education that involves differential recruitment, retention, and support of traditional and non-traditional students.     

Vulnerability and Resilience: A Study of High-Risk Adolescents

Factors that allow children to maintain socially competent behaviors despite stress were examined among 144 inner-city ninth-grade students with a mean age of 15.3 years. Stress was operationalized by scores on a negative life events scale, and definitions of social competence were based on peer ratings, teacher ratings, and school grades. Moderator variables examined included intelligence, internal locus of control, social skills, ego development, and positive life events. Following theoretical models by Garmezy and Rutter, distinctions were made between compensatory factors (which are directly related to competence) and protective/vulnerability factors (which interact with stress in influencing competence). Ego development was found to be compensatory against stress. Internality and social skills proved to be protective factors, while intelligence and positive events were involved in vulnerability processes. This study also revealed that children labeled as resilient were significantly more depressed and anxious than were competent children from low stress backgrounds.     

Relational Mentoring of Doctoral Social Work Students at Historically Black Colleges and Universities

This article explores the distinctive mentoring experiences of social work doctoral students at historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs). With a philosophical emphasis on social justice, self-determination, racial identity and pride, and social integration, social work faculty at HBCUs mentor African American and other students in PhD programs for academic achievement and successful leadership in the professoriate. The mentoring experiences at HBCUs are underpinned by tenets from relational/cultural theory and the Black feminist theory of “other mothering.” Using Howard University as a case study, this article examines relational mentoring experiences of PhD students in preparation for the academy and for leadership in social work education and practice.     

Teaching Clinical Social Work Under Occupation: Listening to the Voices of Palestinian Social Work Students

The authors were invited to teach clinical social work in the Palestinian West Bank. In order to teach, we designed a study exploring how 65 Palestinian social work students described the psychological and social effects of working under occupation. Students described social stressors of poverty, unemployment, lack of infrastructure, violence, imprisonment, separation of families, and severe constraints on travel. They identified depression, suicide, anxiety, and war-related trauma as emerging from these conditions. Many experienced the same psychosocial problems as their clients in coping with harassment and delays at checkpoints. Implications for teaching social work theory and practice are discussed.     

Social Perceptions of Students with Learning Disabilities Who Differ in Social Status

As a group, students with learning disabilities (LD) have social difficulties. One possible explanation for these difficulties is the unique way they process social information. Although students with LD may differ from their nondisabled peers in their social cognition, investigators have suggested the presence of subgroups within the population of students with LD who may differ in their social competence and, thereby, shed light on the source of the difficulties. The present exploratory study examined how two subgroups of students with LD in inclusive settings, students with high and low social status, perceive social situations. Using a sociometric technique, three students with LD receiving high social‐status ratings and three students with LD receiving low social‐status ratings were identified. A qualitative approach was used to gather and evaluate data from the participants and their teachers. Results suggested differences between the two subgroups in their (1) sensitivity to cues in the environment, (2) interpretation of social situations in relation to their own experiences, and (3) levels of self‐control. Implications of these findings for practice and future research are discussed.     

Social Work Values Systems of Chinese Students

ABSTRACT

This paper presents the findings of a study conducted on the social work values systems of social work students in the City University of Hong Kong. A social work values scale composed of six dimensions, namely human worth, potential for change, mutual care, societal responsibility, social participation and freedom to make choice, was constructed. The findings in this study indicated that all batches of students had a common pattern in the ranking of the order of the value dimensions. Not all the value dimensions had an increase in scores with the increase in training and practice experiences. The fieldwork placement was considered by the students as the most important formal channel during trainingin the acquisition of social work values. It is suggested that social work educators need to have a thorough review of the relationship between curriculum design and the inculcation of professional values.     

社会工作视角下的大学生就业指导

分析大学生就业难的现状与存在的问题，提出借鉴社会工作助人自助的价值理念为大学生就业指导服务的思路，包括一切为案主服务；接纳案主的现实状况；尊重案主的尊严、价值、生而平等的权利；正确对待案主基本的、合理的需要，重视差异性；相信案主有自我实现需要的潜能和动力；遵循案主自决原则理念等。并且运用社会工作方法中的个案工作法、小组工作法和社区工作法指导大学生就业。     

Socialization of Doctoral Students: Implications for Social Work Education

Recent discussions on social work education increasingly have drawn attention to doctoral education. The purpose of this article is to consider these discussions that debated some of the ways of improving doctoral student education and professional development, using professional socialization as a conceptual framework. Issues such as research, teaching, and research assistantship, and conferences are considered as key components of the process of preparing doctoral students for knowledge building through teaching and research. Finally, the paper discusses some implications for social work education.     

The Selection and Personality Development of Social Work Students

Summary

The technical training and education of the young is now a major focus of Government concern. A number of European systems (particularly the West German) have been examined by bodies acting on behalf of, or at the behest of, the Government. One of the most interesting methods of industrial training in West Germany is the meistersystem. The meisteror industrial tutor (a position enshrined in German statute and practice) is a senior craftsman responsible throughout German industry for a considerable amount of the regulation of technical training of young skilled workers. The meistersystem might prove to be one ‘model’ for British industrial training and as such the role of the meisteris worthy of sociological consideration. The paper presents an outline of who the meisteris, what he or she does; and some sociological considerations on the historical development and contemporary function of the meisterare put forward. Finally, a brief conclusion on the applicability of the meistersystem to Britain is advanced.     

Perceptions of a Military Social Work Specialization Certificate Program: Implications for Future Programs

Military social work certificates, courses, and specializations have emerged to address the need for competent and culturally aware practitioners to serve military and veteran clients. This study evaluates one of these certificate programs surveying 27 previous graduate students and 11 field supervisors affiliated with this program. The majority of the participants endorsed this certificate as a viable means to prepare for practice with these clients. Findings highlight the importance of participants understanding military culture and common psychiatric conditions. Results point to the benefits of future programs teaching this material using real-life case scenarios and addressing veteran benefits, different periods of service, macro content, and complex ethical challenges.     

Interdisciplinary Role Play Between Social Work and Theater Students

Teaching BSW and MSW students beginning interviewing and relationship-building skills is essential in order to prepare them for practice with clients. In social work methods courses, role plays are commonly-used instructional strategies for helping foundation-level students acquire these initial practice skills. Despite the popularity of this teaching method, the social work literature contains limited studies on the use of role play. In this study, 2 role-play methods are compared, a traditional one in which social work students act out the role of client and social worker and a nontraditional one where the only difference was that theater students role-played the client. Findings revealed that social work students perceived the nontraditional role play as providing a more realistic experience that more closely approximates actual work with clients. Many unanticipated benefits for both sets of students surfaced as a result of this research. Implications for ways to improve this pedagogical tool are discussed along with suggestions for further evaluating role-play methods.     

高校社会工作的介入及学生工作系统的重构

我国目前高等学校学生工作系统承担了很多学生教育的工作,学生工作系统内部存在着分工不明、工作专业性不强等问题.随着社会的发展、大学生的情况变化,原有学生工作的体系已不能适应以学生为本的教育要求,需要学校社会工作的介入.本文从高校社会工作介入的必要性入手,探讨高校社会工作介入的方式,研究学生工作系统的重新构建,以期使学生工作系统更适应其育人要求.     

Ageism and Gender among Social Work and Criminal Justice Students

Undergraduate sociatl work and criminal justice students completed 1 of 4 vignettes that were identical with the exception of the age and gender of the vignette's subject. In each vignette, the subject interacted with an opposite-sex 24-year-old waiter or waitress. Following each vignette, respondents answered 20 items relating to the age, gender, and perceived sexual behavior of the vignette's subject. The multivariate general linear model was significant (F = 174.572, p = .000) by the Wilk's Lambda Criterion. Tests of between-subjects effects yielded 17 significant item variables that focused on perceptions of the age appropriateness of the behaviors, perceptions of the sexual behaviors of the vignette's characters, perceptions of the affability of the vignette's characters, perceptions of characters being lonely, perceptions regarding the waiter's/waitress' financial gain/incentive, and perceptions of social acceptance for the vignette's main character and his/her affiliation with the younger service person. The findings suggest that male characters were perceived as sexually interested more often than female characters. Older characters are more likely to be perceived as nonsexual, particularly older women. Sexual behaviors in older characters were perceived as a gender transgression. While perceptions may be negative surrounding older males who engage in sexual behaviors, judgments appear harsher for older women.     

Perceptions of Financial Aid: Black Students at a Predominantly White Institution

This study provides qualitative context for statistics concerning Black college students and financial aid. Using the financial nexus model as a framework, this research draws upon interviews with 29 Black juniors and seniors at a selective, -private, and predominantly White university. The data suggest that students -generally exhibited high levels of financial aid knowledge, and that financial aid -office savvy is necessary to successfully navigate the financial aid process at the school.     

困境儿童抗逆力提升的社会工作思考与对策

困境儿童抗逆力社会工作发展至今,主要以政府和民间两种方式运作,围绕个案、小组、社区三种工作方法展开,并出现了服务力量地区性失衡、学校与社工合力欠缺、服务效果缺乏评估等问题。该文在上述问题加以思考论证的基础上建议,要加强对贫困农村地区困境儿童社会工作的支持力度,形成社区工作和学校教育的合力,优化对抗逆力提升社会工作的效果评估。     

Teaching Single-Case Evaluation to Graduate Social Work Students: A Replication

A course teaching graduate social work students to use an evidence-based model and to evaluate their own practice was replicated and evaluated. Students conducted a project in which they reviewed published research to achieve a clinical goal, applied quantitative measures for ongoing assessment, implemented evidence-based interventions, and evaluated effects of their interventions with single-case designs. More than half of the students conducted self-improvement projects monitored with self-report measures, with widely varied goals and interventions. Approximately 48% of the projects showed statistically significant improvements, and an additional 10% showed statistically nonsignificant gains, suggesting the benefits of this instructional format.     

Integrating Resilience,Reciprocating Social Relationships,and Christian Formation

Spiritual maturity is the goal of Christian formation and is frequently understood through stages of faith development. Popular stage theories often lack diverse cultural representation and alone are insufficient in promoting spiritual maturity and resilience. Integrating elements of the developmental models of Lev Vygotsky and James Marcia through reciprocal relationships in faith communities allow for the expansion of the capacity of the believer to bounce back from adversity. Mentors can provide direct instruction and promote independent cognitive growth, construction of resilience, and commitment to faith despite crisis experiences. The result is a more durable, mature, adaptable, and stable believer.     

Teaching Social Work Students to Analyze and Apply Organizational Theory

This paper describes an approach to introducing social work students to perspectives on organizations based on two change-related aspects of a theory. The first dimension is a theory's emphasis on change versus stability. The second dimension is whether a theory stresses high or low control over change. To be useful, a theory must be restated into propositions to guide intervention. A focus on these two change-related aspects helps students to develop their ability to recast theories into practice strategies. Class exercises and course assignments are presented.