Preparing BSW Social Work Students for Social Justice Advocacy

Second Annual University of Arkansas Teaching and Learning Symposium: Sharing Teaching Ideas Dr. Long is a Visiting Assistant Professor in Social Work here at the University of Arkansas, while Dr. Patton is at Our Lady of the Lake University in San Antonio, TX and Dr. Ward is at East Central University in Ada, OK. There is no denying that the social work profession has a long history of social justice advocacy. However, advocacy and political action were not necessarily a focus in social work education, leaving social work graduates feeling inadequate to advocate on a broader, macro level (Haynes & Mikelson, 2000). Current pedagogical practices in advocacy highlighted in the literature focus on increasing critical consciousness (Pitner & Sakamoto, 2016), constructing critical conversations (Kang & O’Neill, 2018), and developing moral courage (Fenton, 2019). What is unclear is how effective these pedagogical practices have been in increasing students’ confidence in participating in advocacy activities. The purpose of this study was twofold: (1) explore BSW student perceptions of confidence in participating in advocacy activities and (2) observe if students chose social work advocacy responses in certain social justice situations. This exploratory study examined BSW students\u27 confidence in participating in advocacy activities and observed their responses to social justice situations. The majority (77%) of students reported lack of confidence in participating in advocacy activities and fewer than half chose advocacy approaches. A conclusion from this study could be that social work students lack hands-on advocacy experiences in their educational programs that could bolster confidence. Having a lack of experience interacting and engaging with those outside their own background or identity, students may not be able to fully understand, empathize with, or have a sense of social justice for those from other identities, races/ethnicities, or cultures. A final conclusion could be perceived dangers in advocacy activities

Preparing BSW Social Work Students for Social Justice Advocacy

Second Annual University of Arkansas Teaching and Learning Symposium: Sharing Teaching Ideas Dr. Long is a Visiting Assistant Professor in Social Work here at the University of Arkansas, while Dr. Patton is at Our Lady of the Lake University in San Antonio, TX and Dr. Ward is at East Central University in Ada, OK. There is no denying that the social work profession has a long history of social justice advocacy. However, advocacy and political action were not necessarily a focus in social work education, leaving social work graduates feeling inadequate to advocate on a broader, macro level (Haynes & Mikelson, 2000). Current pedagogical practices in advocacy highlighted in the literature focus on increasing critical consciousness (Pitner & Sakamoto, 2016), constructing critical conversations (Kang & O’Neill, 2018), and developing moral courage (Fenton, 2019). What is unclear is how effective these pedagogical practices have been in increasing students’ confidence in participating in advocacy activities. The purpose of this study was twofold: (1) explore BSW student perceptions of confidence in participating in advocacy activities and (2) observe if students chose social work advocacy responses in certain social justice situations. This exploratory study examined BSW students\u27 confidence in participating in advocacy activities and observed their responses to social justice situations. The majority (77%) of students reported lack of confidence in participating in advocacy activities and fewer than half chose advocacy approaches. A conclusion from this study could be that social work students lack hands-on advocacy experiences in their educational programs that could bolster confidence. Having a lack of experience interacting and engaging with those outside their own background or identity, students may not be able to fully understand, empathize with, or have a sense of social justice for those from other identities, races/ethnicities, or cultures. A final conclusion could be perceived dangers in advocacy activities

Walking dynamics are symmetric (enough)

Many biological phenomena such as locomotion, circadian cycles, and breathing are rhythmic in nature and can be modeled as rhythmic dynamical systems. Dynamical systems modeling often involves neglecting certain characteristics of a physical system as a modeling convenience. For example, human locomotion is frequently treated as symmetric about the sagittal plane. In this work, we test this assumption by examining human walking dynamics around the steady-state (limit-cycle). Here we adapt statistical cross validation in order to examine whether there are statistically significant asymmetries, and even if so, test the consequences of assuming bilateral symmetry anyway. Indeed, we identify significant asymmetries in the dynamics of human walking, but nevertheless show that ignoring these asymmetries results in a more consistent and predictive model. In general, neglecting evident characteristics of a system can be more than a modeling convenience---it can produce a better model.Comment: Draft submitted to Journal of the Royal Society Interfac

The Impact of Pharmacogenomics on Chemotherapeutic Drug Development and Use

Cancer therapy is largely dependent on general treatment guidelines, and patients undergoing chemotherapy often experience treatment failure with standard drugs. The development of individualized drug therapy through pharmacogenomics has the potential to enhance chemotherapy regimen selection and improve patient outcomes. Antineoplastic agents such as cetuximab and trastuzumab are effective in treating cancers possessing specific genetic biomarker characteristics. Patients need to undergo genetic testing before these agents are administered to ensure appropriate use. Cetuximab has been shown to improve outcomes in metastatic colorectal cancers and head and neck squamous cell carcinomas positive for EGFR. Trastuzumab has shown benefit in human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) overexpressing cancers affecting the breast tissue and gastrointestinal tract. High costs associated with the development of targeted drugs and a lack of clinical studies exploring the effects genetic variations can have on drug therapy limit implementation of pharmacogenomics into routine practice. As drug therapy experts, pharmacists need to be aware of advances in the field of pharmacogenomics and facilitate the use of this new class of personalized drugs

The sociology of police criminality and ill-discipline in Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality, South Africa

Policing as a global concept, involves an exchange of trust between the public and a given police service, with the underlying basis of this exchange being an understanding that the police exist to protect citizens and their property, and to ensure that order is maintained in societies. The police services, by virtue of the nature of their role in society, can therefore be regarded as ‘protectors’. The South African Police Service are guided by the same philosophies as policing services globally. Recently in South Africa though, there has been an increase in reports accusing policemen of becoming involved in criminal activities themselves. With a focus on the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality policing district, this study presents and analyses incidences of undocumented police crimes; the causes thereof; and the role of disciplinary procedures (both internally and legally) in preventing such incidences of crime. This study utilised a qualitative methodology to gather and analyse data. A total of 60 serving police officers and 10 key informants were selected using purposive and snowball sampling. In-depth semi-structured interviews conducted with these police officers and key informants, reveal that police men and women are involved in violent and economic crimes in the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality policing district. Most violent crimes include assault, and torture; whilst economic crimes include corruption and theft. Underlying reasons for such crimes include inadequate remuneration, frustration in respect of the efficacy of the criminal justice system, vigilantism within the policing services, and socially learned violence. Internal (within SAPS and IPID) and legal disciplinary measures (through the criminal and civil justice system) were established to be ineffective in managing and eradicating incidences of both violent and economic crimes. The consequences of incidences of police criminality are reduced legitimacy of the policing services to deliver on its mandate to protect and serve the people of the Republic of South Africa

The sociology of police criminality and ill-discipline in Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality, South Africa

Policing as a global concept, involves an exchange of trust between the public and a given police service, with the underlying basis of this exchange being an understanding that the police exist to protect citizens and their property, and to ensure that order is maintained in societies. The police services, by virtue of the nature of their role in society, can therefore be regarded as ‘protectors’. The South African Police Service are guided by the same philosophies as policing services globally. Recently in South Africa though, there has been an increase in reports accusing policemen of becoming involved in criminal activities themselves. With a focus on the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality policing district, this study presents and analyses incidences of undocumented police crimes; the causes thereof; and the role of disciplinary procedures (both internally and legally) in preventing such incidences of crime. This study utilised a qualitative methodology to gather and analyse data. A total of 60 serving police officers and 10 key informants were selected using purposive and snowball sampling. In-depth semi-structured interviews conducted with these police officers and key informants, reveal that police men and women are involved in violent and economic crimes in the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality policing district. Most violent crimes include assault, and torture; whilst economic crimes include corruption and theft. Underlying reasons for such crimes include inadequate remuneration, frustration in respect of the efficacy of the criminal justice system, vigilantism within the policing services, and socially learned violence. Internal (within SAPS and IPID) and legal disciplinary measures (through the criminal and civil justice system) were established to be ineffective in managing and eradicating incidences of both violent and economic crimes. The consequences of incidences of police criminality are reduced legitimacy of the policing services to deliver on its mandate to protect and serve the people of the Republic of South Africa

The impact of rising energy prices on the poor over time in the United States.

Policy makers and households are concerned about the impact of rising energy prices on low-income households. In a trend starting in the 1970s, low-income households are spending an increasingly disproportionate share of their income on home energy. The burden on a household imposed by energy prices can be analyzed through four factors: energy price, energy consumption, income level, and level of assistance provided to help with the costs of energy. The combination of these factors indicates that the energy burden is continuing to be disproportionately large for the nation's poor. Therefore, policy makers make further efforts to alleviate this burden by modifying energy pricing regulation

Shared Identity, Trustworthiness, and Social Distance in Online Training

This research examines shared identity in the context of online training. Specifically, we examine the impact of perceived shared identity on social distance, operationalized as one's willingness to work with another person and their willingness to recommend that person for a job. We conduct two studies of simulated online training and find that increased shared identity plays an important role in the online training process and that perceptions of trustworthiness mediate the relationship between shared identity and social distance. This research explores the impact social exchange has in online training when specifically examining social exchange between the trainer and trainee

Job Club: A program to assist occupational therapy students\u27 transition to practice

Transition to practice can be identified as the change from the role of student to the role of practitioner. This period of transition is a time of intense professional and personal development. Typically, it can take anywhere between six months to two years before an entry-level therapist feels competent in the workplace. A number of factors affect the transition process, including role uncertainty, inadequate supervision, and an overall lack of confidence in clinical skills. This paper discusses a case example of a Job Club, provided by a Western Australian Occupational Therapy university program. The concept was initially set up to support students through the process of seeking and gaining employment. Over time, the club developed a broader scope based on the needs of attendees. This example illustrates the needs of students for greater support in this important transition, and lays the groundwork for formal research in future

A systematic review of thrust manipulation for non-surgical shoulder conditions

PURPOSE: Although many conservative management options are available for patients with non-surgical shoulder conditions, there is little evidence of their effectiveness. This review investigated one manual therapy approach, thrust manipulation, as a treatment option. METHODS: A systematic search was conducted of the electronic databases from inception to March 2016: PubMed, PEDro, ICL, CINAHL, and AMED. Two independent reviewers conducted the screening process to determine article eligibility. Inclusion criteria were manuscripts published in peer-reviewed journals with human participants of any age. The intervention included was thrust, or high-velocity low-amplitude, manipulative therapy directed to the shoulder and/or the regions of the cervical or thoracic spine. Studies investigating secondary shoulder pain or lacking diagnostic confirmation procedures were excluded. Methodological quality was assessed using the PEDro scale and the Cochrane risk-of-bias tool. RESULTS: The initial search rendered 5041 articles. After screening titles and abstracts, 36 articles remained for full-text review. Six articles studying subacromial impingement syndrome met inclusion criteria. Four studies were randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and 2 were uncontrolled clinical studies. Five studies included 1 application of a thoracic spine thrust manipulation and 1 applied 8 treatments incorporating a shoulder joint thrust manipulation. Statistically significant improvements in pain scores were reported in all studies. Three of 4 RCTs compared a thrust manipulation to a sham, and statistical significance in pain reduction was found within the groups but not between them. Clinically meaningful changes in pain were inconsistent; 3 studies reported that scores met minimum clinically important difference, 1 reported scores did not, and 2 were unclear. Four studies found statistically significant improvements in disability; however, 2 were RCTs and did not find statistical significance between the active and sham groups. CONCLUSIONS: No clinical trials of thrust manipulation for non-surgical shoulder conditions other than subacromial impingement syndrome were found. There is limited evidence to support or refute thrust manipulation as a solitary treatment for this condition. Studies consistently reported pain reduction, but active treatments were comparable to shams. High-quality studies of thrust manipulation with safety data, longer treatment periods and follow-up outcomes are needed. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12998-016-0133-8) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users