The Welfare Poor: Patterns of Association and Interaction in Discretionary Time

The welfare poor in America are classified into a subterranean\u27 strata not solely because of economic inequality but entrenched by racial ethnicity, age disadvantages, physical and psychological impairment, and broken family structures. While the misery and plight of the poor are often recognized in basic terms in which the survival necessity of food, clothing, health care, and shelter are real concerns, seemingly other less important cultural considerations are glossed over as trivia. Leisure participation continues to be neglected by researchers and because of this low priority, little or nothing is known of the leisure life style of the poor. Less still is known about how leisure or the absence of it affects the status of the poor. And of even greater interest are questions about lost autonomy, undifferentiation, and social isolation resulting from leisure patterns. Every one of these issues deserves further treatment but this research will be limited to probing the question of whether the poor have either a restrictive or multiple pattern of association in their leisure. The comparison is solely limited to testing the range of association among the poor and no comparisons are made either implicitly or explicitly on how higher status groups associate against the pattern of the poor. Before that task can be accomplished, it is necessary to determine exactly where the poor rank and the examination in some detail of that position in society may help to reveal how they associate in their leisure

Do Pictures Make a Difference in College Textbooks?

When we compare college social science textbooks popular in the 1960\u27s with those used in the 1980\u27s, the first change that strikes us is the proliferation of pictures. The number of pictures has not merely doubled or tripled in twenty years; in many cases pictures have increased exponentially

Indigenous and Non-Indigenous Paraprofessionals: An Empirical Comparison

This paper provides a comparative description of indigenous and nonindigenous paraprofessionals who were employed in a social service capacity in a large urban setting. Personal interviews were conducted with 88 paraprofessionals employed by the Fulton County Department of Family and Children Servives (Atlanta, Ga.). The primary variables discussed include an assessment of the respondent\u27s background, their present employment situation, experience with and attitudes toward welfare and general attitudinal measures. The results provide a basic demographic profile of the indigenous and non-indigenous paraprofessional and indicate their differing characteristics. Briefly, the indigenous respondents were less anomic, felt more efficacious in terms of helping clients, had a less favorable stance toward welfare, had less training and were considerably more more satisfied with their job than were their non-indigenous counterparts. Additionally, the implications of these findings and considerations which need to be explored in future research are discussed

Recipients\u27 Attitudes Toward Welfare

While the general plight of welfare recipients has long been recognized, little or nothing to date has been ascertained concerning their views toward the system that largely determines their lives. Many recipients find themselves manipulated by a less than personalized bureaucracy but few researchers have sought to examine the experiences and attitudes of these recipients toward that system. Given the recent figures which indicate a welfare explosion (Piven and Cloward, 1971), and the vast expenditures for public assistance programs (Skolnick and Dales, 1969:5), the lack of systematic empirical research in this area is disconcerting. Such information should be of considerable value to the practioner within the social welfare context. Differing policy orientations frequently are implemented without the guidance of relevant baseline information. Further inquiry into the strains inherent in the system would certainly lend itself to a more efficient and workable model. Our purpose here is to carry out such an analysis

Initial Smoking Experiences and Current Smoking Behaviors and Perceptions among Current Smokers

. Purpose. We examine early-onset cigarette smoking and how, if at all, it is related to subsequent smoking practices. Methods. From 2004 to 2007, face-to-face interviews were conducted with 485 adult cigarette smokers residing in the Atlanta metropolitan area. Data analysis involved a multivariate analysis to determine whether age of smoking onset was related to current smoking practices when the effects of gender, age, race, marital/relationship status, income, and educational attainment were taken into account. Results. The mean age for smoking onset was 14.8, and more than one-half of all smokers had their first cigarette between the ages of 12 and 16. Most people reported an interval of less than one month between their first and second time using tobacco. Earlier onset cigarette smoking was related to more cigarette use and worse tobacco-related health outcomes in adulthood. Conclusions. Early prevention and intervention are needed to avoid early-onset smoking behaviors. Intervening after initial experimentation but before patterned smoking practices are established will be challenging, as the interval between initial and subsequent use tends to be short

The moderating effects of religiosity on the relationship between stressful life events and delinquent behavior

Previous research has shown that many forms of strain are positively related to delinquency. Evidence also suggests that religiosity buffers the effects of strain on offending, but this issue requires further research. Using data from a national sample of adolescents, this study examined whether or not religiosity conditioned the relationship between strain and delinquency. This study also looked at the ability of social support, self-esteem, and depression to moderate the influence of strain on delinquent behavior. The findings here lend support to general strain theory in that strain had a direct positive effect on delinquency, yet there was little evidence that the relationship was moderated by religiosity or other conditioning variables. The roles of moderating variables on strain across genders were also considered. Originally published in Journal of Criminal Justice Vol. 36, No. 6 2008

Access to housing subsidies, housing status, drug use and HIV risk among low-income U.S. urban residents

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Much research has shown an association between homelessness and unstable housing and HIV risk but most has relied on relatively narrow definitions of housing status that preclude a deeper understanding of this relationship. Fewer studies have examined access to housing subsidies and supportive housing programs among low-income populations with different personal characteristics. This paper explores personal characteristics associated with access to housing subsidies and supportive housing, the relationship between personal characteristics and housing status, and the relationship between housing status and sexual risk behaviors among low-income urban residents.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Surveys were conducted with 392 low-income residents from Hartford and East Harford, Connecticut through a targeted sampling plan. We measured personal characteristics (income, education, use of crack, heroin, or cocaine in the last 6 months, receipt of welfare benefits, mental illness diagnosis, arrest, criminal conviction, longest prison term served, and self-reported HIV diagnosis); access to housing subsidies or supportive housing programs; current housing status; and sexual risk behaviors. To answer the aims above, we performed univariate analyses using Chi-square or 2-sided ANOVA's. Those with significance levels above (0.10) were included in multivariate analyses. We performed 2 separate multiple regressions to determine the effects of personal characteristics on access to housing subsidies and access to supportive housing respectively. We used multinomial main effects logistic regression to determine the effects of housing status on sexual risk behavior.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Being HIV positive or having a mental illness predicted access to housing subsidies and supportive housing, while having a criminal conviction was not related to access to either housing subsidies or supportive housing. Drug use was associated with poorer housing statuses such as living on the street or in a shelter, or temporarily doubling up with friends, acquaintances or sex partners. Living with friends, acquaintances or sex partners was associated with greater sexual risk than those living on the street or in other stable housing situations.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Results suggest that providing low-income and supportive housing may be an effective structural HIV prevention intervention, but that the availability and accessibility of these programs must be increased.</p

The Relative Role of Perceived Partner Risks in Promoting Condom Use in a Three-City Sample of High-Risk, Low-Income Women

We examined the effect of women’s perceptions of sexual partner risks on condom use. Women from three US cities (n = 1,967) were recruited to provide data on HIV risks. In univariate models, increased odds of condom use were associated with perceiving that partners had concurrent partners and being unaware of partners': (a) HIV status, (b) bisexuality, (c) concurrency; and/or (d) injection drug use. In multivariate models, neither being unaware of the four partner risk factors nor perceiving a partner as being high risk was associated with condom use. Contextual factors associated with decreased odds of condom use were having sex with a main partner, homelessness in the past year, alcohol use during sex, and crack use in the past 30 days. Awareness of a partner’s risks may not be sufficient for increasing condom use. Contextual factors, sex with a main partner in particular, decrease condom use despite awareness of partner risk factors

The relationship among religious affiliation, core values, level of prejudice, and reaction to speakers in Promise Keeper attendees

Includes bibliographical references (pages [184]-193)This dissertation investigated (1) the correlation between frequency of church attendance and number of Promise Keeper (PK) rallies attended by male Caucasians and (a) the level of racial prejudice, (b) Self-Assessment Manikin (SAM) scores for African-American speakers at PK, (c) the amount of social distance, and (d) the level of core values; (2) the correlation between religious affiliation and the same variables; (3) the relationship between core values and (a) the level of prejudice, (b) the level of SAM scores, and (c) the amount of social distance; (4) the relationship between levels of prejudice and (a) the level of SAM scores and (b) the amount of social distance. This study was a single-subject design using survey instruments. There were three independent variables: church attendance, number of PK rallies attended, and religious affiliation. There were four variables that functioned as either independent or dependent variables, including core values and racial-prejudice scales. Two variables always functioned as dependent variables: scores on African-American speakers at PK and the amount of social distance. Participants for the study were drawn from Caucasian attendees at a PK rally. Data were gathered from the 261 attendees who returned their questionnaires. Two measures were used: An ANOVA and a Pearson Correlation. A significant relationship was found between number of PK rallies attended and level of PB scores, and between religious affiliation and social distance. A Pearson correlation was used to determine the relationship between core values and levels of prejudice. A significant relationship was found between PE and AB (r̲ = .26) and between HE and PB (r̲ = .31). The conclusion notes implications for professional counselors and future research.Ed.D. (Doctor of Education