Transition to a Clubhouse Model: An Approach to Mental Health Recovery

The purpose of this research was to examine the shift in the mental health service delivery from the medical model to the Clubhouse model, using a psychosocial rehabilitative approach. Twenty-four articles were included in the systematic review to collect the data for this study. The use of Clubhouses and drop-in centers were a primary focus when looking at the shift from the medical model of mental health recovery, and clubhouses are important to those in communities who live with serious and persistent mental illnesses (SPMI). A thematic analysis was completed after reviewing the articles, in an effort to examine the benefits a clubhouse provides to communities, as well as the difficulties faced when opening a clubhouse. Definitions and key words were extracted from articles relating to key identifiers and member identifiers. Other themes include barriers, resources and the general theory of the article. The importance of peer relationships was identified throughout the research as well. Clubhouses provide a place for individuals to go, to hang out without judgment, and to be set up with service and supports if they are in need. There is an endless opportunity for further growth on this topic of research, exploring the benefits of Clubhouses and/or drop-in center in collaboration with peer support, and informing Social Work practice for those with SPMI

I Laughed Until I Cried: The Tragicomedy of Harold Pinter\u27s \u3ci\u3e The Homecoming \u3c/i\u3e

There appears to be a disconnect between the actual events of Harold Pinter\u27s The Homecoming and the scholarly work devoted to the play--while each of the main characters are morally problematic, it is only the play\u27s sole female character, Ruth, whose morality is questioned. This schism in which Ruth is questioned but others are not stems primarily from the time in which most of this criticism occurred: before post-structuralist understandings of gender undermined our presuppositions about the sexes. The Homecoming was written on the cusp of second-wave feminism, the movement focusing mainly on the legal and social equality of women, and it seems as though Pinter sensed a shift in paradigm in which feminist theorists called into question the phallogocentric language with which they were attempting to describe their subjects. A post-structuralist feminist reading of the play recognizes the problematic ways in which men are considered to have essential qualities, too. Pinter\u27s The Homecoming encourages its audience to reconsider their conditioned perception of gender in society because the play induces the audience, in our real-life roles as conditioned observers, to misread the play; through undermining the false binary of humor and tragedy, Pinter asks the audience to reassess the supposed binary of male/female as it occurs in the play

Initiating a Childhood Obesity Screening Process in an Urban Pediatric Office

Background: The benefit of identifying a pediatric patient with obesity is to prevent many chronic health conditions that can occur from diabetes. Pediatric patients can be at risk for prediabetes, low self-esteem, and musculoskeletal issues. The patients that are at higher risk for childhood obesity are African American and Hispanics. Purpose: The Doctor of Nursing Practice project aims to identify a pediatric patient that is obese to make sure that the patient is assessed appropriately and to discuss an appropriate intervention for the patient. To make sure all pediatrics have an accurate height, weight, and A1C during their well-child visit. Methods: The quality improvement project involves the 5-4-3-2-1-0 healthy habits for obese pediatric patients. The intervention used for the DNP project was (1) making sure the pediatric patient gets at least one hour of physical activity or active play every day (Brown et. al., 2018). The triage staff made sure that every child who had a well-child annual visit was weighed, and had their height recorded. If the patient’s BMI was greater than 95% then the provider educated the parent about the results and encouraged the patient and parent to incorporate more exercise or active play into the patient’s lifestyle. Results: After the DNP project was completed the results were not significantly increased. The result concluded one patient showed up once and lost three pounds. This patient did not follow thru the whole six weeks of the project. Conclusion: The project did show a significant number of patients that follow up for weight and A1C checks

Social Influence on Risky Decision Making

Are people’s risk preferences influenced by the preferences of others they interact with or observe? Traditionally, decision preferences were conceptualized as a stable, dispositional trait. However, recent research has demonstrated that there is a degree of malleability in preferences, with social influence having a particularly potent impact. To better understand the extent of social influence on risky decision-making, a mixed-study design was carried out that involved participants making a series of hypothetical monetary choices between smaller-certain and larger-risky rewards. Participants completed three blocks of the risky-choice task: (1) the pre- exposure block where choices were made without any social information, (2) the exposure block where participants observed the choice of a social other after each trial, and (3) the post-exposure block where participants once again made choices without any social information. Moreover, the preferences of the social other during the exposure block were experimentally manipulated to be the choices of either a risk-averse decision-maker or a risk-tolerant decision-maker. Two individual difference measures (social comparison orientation, decisional conflict) were also completed prior to the social exposure to investigate if some people are more susceptible to social influence than others. The results indicated that exposure to social information did impact participants’ risk preferences. Specifically, whereas the two experimental conditions did not differ during the pre-exposure block, participants in the risk-tolerant social condition exhibited a significantly higher preference for risky rewards during the post-exposure block compared to the risk-averse social condition. Post-hoc analyses indicated that this difference between the two experimental conditions was driven by participants in the risk-tolerant condition significantly increasing their risky choices following the social exposure. For participants in the risk-averse social condition, although risky choices were reduced following the exposure block, this change did not reach statistical significance. The individual difference analyses found that those who scored higher for decisional conflict were more likely to adjust their risk preferences following the social exposure. In contrast, there was no significant relationship between general social comparison tendencies and changes in risk preference. These findings support the idea that decision-making preferences are informed by the observed preferences of others and have implications for interventions that target risky behaviors in group settings

Transition to a Clubhouse Model: An Approach to Mental Health Recovery

The purpose of this research was to examine the shift in the mental health service delivery from the medical model to the Clubhouse model, using a psychosocial rehabilitative approach. Twenty-four articles were included in the systematic review to collect the data for this study. The use of Clubhouses and drop-in centers were a primary focus when looking at the shift from the medical model of mental health recovery, and clubhouses are important to those in communities who live with serious and persistent mental illnesses (SPMI). A thematic analysis was completed after reviewing the articles, in an effort to examine the benefits a clubhouse provides to communities, as well as the difficulties faced when opening a clubhouse. Definitions and key words were extracted from articles relating to key identifiers and member identifiers. Other themes include barriers, resources and the general theory of the article. The importance of peer relationships was identified throughout the research as well. Clubhouses provide a place for individuals to go, to hang out without judgment, and to be set up with service and supports if they are in need. There is an endless opportunity for further growth on this topic of research, exploring the benefits of Clubhouses and/or drop-in center in collaboration with peer support, and informing Social Work practice for those with SPMI

From Rwanda to the stage: a production thesis in acting

The role of Juliette Niyirabeza in I Have Before Me A Remarkable Document Given To Me By A Young Lady From Rwanda by Sonja Linden was selected and performed as a thesis project in the spring of 2006. This thesis, From Rwanda To The Stage, is a written record of the actor\u27s process in developing the character in the form of a journal. It also includes an Introduction, Character Analysis, Research Notes, Reviews, and a Conclusion

Barriers to Membership in a Professional Organization for Advanced Practice Nurses

Professional organizations offer nurses services and resources for professional growth throughout their careers; yet, membership has declined over the past 10 years. Accordingly, this study was to understand the barriers in membership and identify positive changes that will increase membership and retain members. A quantitative descriptive design was employed within a convenience sample of 150 advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) who were past or nonmembers of a professional organization. Exchange theory was applied and the Professional Association Membership Questionnaire (PAMQ) was administered to assess the barriers to APRNs participating in a specific professional organization. Statistical analysis included mean scores for each of the PAMQ\u27s 34 questions with groupings by benefits and barriers using a 7-point Likert-type scale. Study results indicated 71% (n = 106) of 150 participants ranked continuing education as the most important benefit when considering joining a professional organization. Although prior literature frequently reported cost as a barrier to membership in professional organizations, fewer than 50% (n = 56) of participants in this study ranked cost as a barrier to membership. Professional organizations can bring about positive social change by providing accessible continuing education to membership. To do so will improve the quality of nursing services through evidence-based practice, education, and leadership. Membership in a professional organization allows the nurse to maintain current awareness of health care changes and policies. Significant membership is necessary in order for the organization to have a major impact in the profession

The Influence of Emotions on Our Shopping Habits

Different emotions affect people in various ways, and along with that come multiple coping methods. A common coping method is often referred to as retail therapy. This research study aims to discover how emotions impact our shopping habits. Do more people shop when exhibiting a negative emotion, such as stress or sadness, or a positive emotion, like happy and excited? Is there a difference in attitude about shopping and the use of retail therapy among males and females? To answer these questions, participants are asked to complete a survey detailing their most recent purchases, and the emotions they were experiencing at the time of purchase

School as a Context for Development: Examining First-Graders' Strategy Use across Domains

Data from four cohorts of first-grade teachers and students were used to (1) describe students’ strategy use on memory and mathematics tasks across the first-grade, (2) consider differences in teachers’ use of Cognitive Processing Language (CPL), or instruction that encourages deep levels of processing and metacognition over time and across subject matter, and (3) examine the effects of teachers’ CPL on students’ strategy use on memory and mathematics tasks. Minimal change was observed in students’ recall, accuracy, and strategy use on memory and mathematics tasks over the course of the year, which contributed to the failure to establish linkages between teachers’ use of CPL and students’ performance. The results highlight the need for additional research that carefully considers whether the tasks being used are developmentally appropriate and sensitive enough to capture change over the course of an academic year. In addition, efforts to further understand the association between strategy use and performance across domains should also include measures of metacognition and self-regulated learning.Doctor of Philosoph