Admitted: A Novella

Daniel becomes the new resident manager of First Step, a center for men with alcoholism or drug addiction. A fictional account of the experiences of the men in treatment and of Daniel as he works at First Step, attends school, and deals with his own addictions.https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/books/1019/thumbnail.jp

The Neighborhood

The Neighborhood is a story of two friends, Tyee and Sig, trying to survive in a poverty stricken community on the verge of collapse. Tyee, a young Native American, tries to remain true to his heritage and grandfather’s wishes while also remaining connected to his friend. Sig, meanwhile, is driven by his troubled past. Their friendship is a refuge, but can it endure its greatest challenge—the neighborhood?https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/books/1013/thumbnail.jp

Impact of the Academic-Social Context on American Indian/Alaska Native Students’ Academic Performance

Impact of the Academic-Social Context on American Indian/Alaska Native Students’ Academic Performanc

What are the ideal characteristics of empirically supported treatment adopters?

There has been a clear and consistent shift in social work practice from offering treatment as usual to implementing empirically supported treatments (ESTs). As social work researchers and practitioners continue to evaluate the effectiveness of ESTs, their impact on clinical outcomes, and the various obstacles to their adoption, a developing literature could offer some guidance on characteristics of EST adopters. This paper provides a beginning discussion of the ideal characteristics of EST adopters both at the organizational and individual-levels. While this is a developing area of study, there are some important findings that could better serve community-based organizations, its work force, and the communities they serve

Factors influencing the implementation of a brief alcohol screening and educational intervention in social settings not specializing in addiction services

Although alcohol use continues to be a major problem, when high-risk users enter social services, they are not provided with empirically supported treatments (ESTs). This study investigates predictors of successful implementation in agencies not specializing in addiction services. Fifty-four frontline workers in six organizations were enrolled in the study. After completing self-administered surveys of organizational culture and climate and attitudes toward ESTs, workers were trained to implement a brief intervention. The results indicate that organizational factors and attitudes may not be related to implementation. Although high implementers had similar traits, further research is needed to characterize successful EST implementers

Motivational Interviewing: Does it Increase Clients’ Retention in Intensive Outpatient Treatment?

Motivational Interviewing (MI) is a clinical technique that has received considerable attention in the addictions arena over the past decade. In the present pilot study, the impact of providing up to five MI sessions during the first two weeks of intensive outpatient treatment (IOP), relative to the treatment as usual was addressed. The participants were 106 IOP patients, and a post-test design was utilized. Results showed that adding MI sessions during the first two weeks of IOP did not increase the number of days in treatment nor was there an increase in treatment completion. It is possible that the MI sessions by themselves were not sufficient to offset factors that were contributing to less than optimal treatment involvement

Impact of Stranger Violence and Intimate Partner Violence on the Grades of American Indian/Alaska Native Undergraduate College Students

Stranger and intimate partner violence are pervasive public health problems that have a range of negative effects, with exceptionally high prevalence among ethno–racial minority youth. This study assesses the prevalence of these types of violence among American Indian/Alaska (AI/AN) students and examines the impact of victimization on academic performance AI/AN and non-AI/AN student populations using self-reported college health survey data. Results found that students who identified fully or partially as AI/AN reported markedly higher rates of all types of violence/abuse than did other students, and students who had experienced violence/abuse had lower GPAs those who had not. The interaction effect of female and violence type on GPA was significant for AI/AN students. Recommendations for future research and direct practice with AI/AN students are discussed

Impact of the Academic-Social Context on American Indian/Alaska Native Student’s Academic Performance

American Indian/Alaska Native students have the highest dropout rates of any racial-ethnic group. This study posits that a poor Academic-Social Context contributes to low grade point average (GPA), which in turn negatively affects AI/AN students’ persistence to graduation. The present study compares the self-reported academic performance of AI/AN undergraduate students with that of students from other ethnic backgrounds, in order to evaluate whether variation in students’ ASC and any identified medical conditions differentially affected AI/AN students. Findings suggest that AI/AN students enter college with poorer ASC and have lower GPA scores. This study points to further investigations into the effects of social contexts on AI/AN students’ academic achievement and retention in college, especially social belongingness

American Indian/Alaskan Native College Dropout: Recommendations for Increasing Retention and Graduation

Throughout the United States, the college dropout rate among American Indian/Alaskan Native (AI/AN) students in public universities is the highest compared to any other student group. Researchers have identified this problem and offered reasons for it, but few have made specific efforts to disrupt the continued dropout rates. This article identifies and discusses three recommendations to address the dropout problem from a systems, rather than individual, perspective: (1) living and learning communities, (2) social belonging intervention, and (3) self-regulated learning activities. Studied with minority students, these endeavors show promise for retaining underrepresented students, specifically AI/AN students. To disrupt the long-term problem of dropouts among the AI/AN population, adjustments within public university systems must be part of the effort