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The Title IV-E program is crucial for the public child welfare (PCW) system as it supports the training and retention of skilled workers. However, there is a lack of information about how PCW agencies support employees in MSW Title IV-E programs. This study examined how six counties in Northern California support their MSW Title IV-E student-employees. The findings uncovered themes related to strong county social work internship programs, additional support for student-employees, and challenges in program implementation. Sharing information about PCW agency internship programs can benefit agencies by improving access to higher education and attracting skilled child welfare workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although individual susceptibility to burnout within a similar structural context is well-documented in other helping professions, little is known about the relationship between personal attributes and burnout in social work. Furthermore, despite a large number of entering MSW students with prior work experience, there is a paucity of research documenting the burnout phenomenon among them. By using a sample of MSW students with prior work experience (N=60), the current study examined the effect of personal attributes on burnout (i.e., overidentification tendency, trait anxiety, and emotional contagion). Findings imply that burnout depends on personal attributes, rooted in cognitive role-taking levels, and that emotional contagion has a significant role in burnout. Implications for social work education and practice are discussed. (Contains 3 tables.)

In this study, the attitudes toward and beliefs about serious mental illness (SMI) held by a group of graduate social work students in the northwestern United States were examined. Mental health stigma was examined with relation to the following factors: participants' level of social contact with SMI populations, adherence to stereotypes about SMI populations, belief in the ability to recover from SMI, and the belief that SMI defines an individual's identity. Measures used to identify mental health stigma included the desire for social distance and restrictions with relation to the SMI population. Survey results from 71 graduate social work students found that a significant number of participants who engaged in friendships with SMI-diagnosed individuals had less desire for social distance from and restrictions toward SMI populations. Participants who indicated that they believed in stereotypes of dangerousness and believed that SMI defines an individual's identity were more likely to express desire for both social distance and restrictions. Implications for social work and further research on the matter are discussed.

The study examined variation in the prediction of adjustment in Taiwanese students by ethnic density. A total of 155 Taiwanese students were assessed via survey pre-departure and three times post-arrival in the United States. Hierarchical regression analysis showed students on campuses with fewer other Taiwanese peers formed more friendships with Americans and developed greater English competence by the second semester than those on campuses with more Taiwanese students. Furthermore, homesickness, affiliation with Americans, and English competence in the second semester predicted functional adjustment in the third semester among students at moderate ethnic density schools, while baseline English competence alone predicted adjustment in students on high ethnic density campuses. Implications for facilitating cross-cultural adjustment are discussed. (Contains 2 tables.)

The study assessed variation in cultural orientation among Asian American adolescents by age and ethnic density in the community. A total of 128 students at a public high school in Oakland, California, participated in the study. Of these early and middle adolescents, 86 were Chinese American and 42 were Southeast Asian American. They completed the General Ethnicity Questionnaire-Ethnic and American versions, which assessed cultural orientation in the domains of cultural pride, language, social affiliation, food, and recreation. Middle adolescents reported a stronger ethnic orientation in the domains of social affiliation and recreation and weaker American orientation in the domains of food and language use (English) than early adolescents. Furthermore, Chinese Americans, residing in an ethnically dense community, reported a stronger ethnic orientation in the domains of language and food and a weaker American orientation in language than their Southeast Asian American peers with less access to their ethnic community. (Contains 5 tables.)

Informed by acculturation, ecological, and social capital theories, the study examined the contribution of parental acculturation, parental involvement, and intergenerational relationship to well-being in Southeast Asian American adolescents. Using data from the Children of Immigrants Longitudinal Study, 491 Southeast Asian American adolescents and their parents comprised the sample. Path analysis showed that parental involvement fully mediated the effect of parental acculturation on intergenerational relationship, whereas intergenerational relationship mediated the effect of parental involvement on child outcomes. Service implications are discussed. (Contains 2 figures and 2 tables.)

A common challenge facing immigrant families is intergenerational-intercultural conflict. Social workers are in need of an easy-to-use but psychometrically sound measure to assess this phenomenon and evaluate treatment effectiveness. The Intergenerational Congruence in Immigrant Families (ICIF) Scale was created for this purpose. The ICIF has two parallel versions, one to assess the perspective of the parent (ICIF-Parent Scale) and the other to assess the perspective of the adolescent or young adult children of immigrants (ICIF-Child Scale, or ICIF-CS) of the intergenerational relationship. As Southeast Asian American refugee families are at increased risk of intergenerational-intercultural conflict, the current study assesses the psychometric properties of the ICIF-CS in 188 Southeast Asian American college students with refugee parents. The ICIF-CS was found to be a unidimensional measure with high internal reliability. Its construct validity was supported by its positive association with parental attachment and self-esteem and negative association with family conflict and depressive symptom level.

There are nearly 2 million Southeast Asians (SEAs) currently living in the United States. The overwhelming majority are refugees from the Southeast Asian wars and political turmoil in the latter half of the 20th century. While an abundance of literature has documented the significant war-related traumas that SEA refugees have suffered, very little is known about the transmission of trauma in these families. This phenomenon deserves our attention because children of SEA refugees may suffer negative mental health consequences through the intergenerational transmission of trauma. This paper empirically examined the effect of parental trauma on SEA American late adolescents' sense of coherence, as mediated by parent-child attachment. The findings demonstrated the deleterious effect of parental trauma on attachment and their offsprings' sense of coherence. Further, attachment mediated the effect of parental trauma on adolescent's sense of coherence. The findings demonstrate the reality that what happened in one generation will affect what happens in the following generation and emphasize the importance of working with SEA populations using a family system approach. (Contains 2 tables and 1 figure.)

This longitudinal study examined the intergenerational gap in acculturation, subsequent conflict, and their mental health consequences in Southeast Asian American adolescents. It was hypothesized that perceived intergenerational discrepancy in acculturation during early adolescence would predict intergenerational conflict in late adolescence, which, in turn, would increase depressive symptomatology in late adolescence. Using data from the Children of Immigrants Longitudinal Study (A. Portes & R. G. Rumbaut, 2001; R. G. Rumbaut, 1994), 490 Southeast Asian American adolescents in 8th and 9th grades completed surveys and again 3 years later. The results supported the hypothesis and showed that intergenerational/intercultural conflict fully mediated the longitudinal effect of perceived intergenerational discrepancy in acculturation on depressive symptomatology. Recommendations for community-based interventions for both parents and youth are offered. Keywords: acculturation, intergenerational conflict, depressive symptomatology, Southeast Asian American family, Southeast Asian adolescents

Family caregivers (FCs) of persons with mental illness (PMI) often experience caregiving burdens that contribute to poor mental health. As compared to European-American FCs, Asian-American FCs may experience greater caregiving burden due to an increased likelihood of cohabiting with PMIs. Yet, limited research exists on the caregiving experience of Asian-American FCs and on how self-care practice and social support mediate caregiver burden among FCs of PMIs. Using a cross-sectional mixed-method design this study explored the impact of caregiving burden on mental health outcomes among Chinese-American and European-American FCs. The quantitative data showed similar caregiving burden between the two groups and a partial mediation role for self-care practice on FCs' mental health. The qualitative data showed that FCs from the two groups utilized different types of social support. Findings suggest the need for mental health professionals to develop intervention programs to enhance self-care practices and social support for FCs when working with PMIs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Relatively limited information about the relationship between family violence in childhood, attachment, and mental health problems in later life exits in mainland China. Given the growing demand for recognition of the international aspects of social work, this study examines the relationship between witnessing interparental violence, the experience of childhood abuse and mental health problems among college students in mainland China, and the role of attachment in this relationship. By utilizing a retrospective exploratory quantitative research design, 236 college students were recruited from one university in Beijing, China. Participants completed a series of questionnaires inquiring about their past experiences with childhood maltreatment and witnessing interparental violence measured by the Conflict Tactics Scale (Couple and Parent–Child Forms), adult attachment in current close relationships measured by the Experiences in Close Relationships Scale, and internalizing and externalizing mental health problems measured by Achenbach's Adult Behavior Checklist. Results show that family violence, especially witnessing interparental psychological violence, has a significant relationship to mental health problems in later life, and insecure attachment works as a mediator in this relationship. The findings suggest strong global attention and action to build and nourish a violence-free and healthy family environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Postpartum, depression (PPD) affects one in seven women in the United States. Korean Americans are one of the six largest Asian American (AA) subgroups, representing 9% of the AA population in the United States. Women of Asian descent have not always been represented in studies of PPD. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to understand postpartum experiences, perceptions of PPD, and mental health help-seeking among Korean women living in the United States. Methods: Individual, face-to-face, semistructured interviews of Korean immigrant women, over age 18, who were able to read, write, and speak English or Korean, and who had given birth to a live infant within the past 12 months, were conducted using a qualitative exploratory design. Thematic analysis approach was used to analyze qualitative data The Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Screening Scale (EPDS) was used to assess frequency of depressive symptoms over the past week. Results: Eleven women participated. Total EPDS scores ranged from 2 to 17 (mean 6.5, SD = 3.2); three women had scores indicating a high risk for developing PPD. Two overall themes, postpartum experiences and perceptions of PPD and professional help-seeking, along with several subthemes were identified. They included postpartum challenges, importance of keeping Korean postpartum traditions, desire for professional Korean postpartum care, "Sanhoo-Joeri" postpartum support and social networking, normalization of PPD symptoms, family first for health seeking attitude and behavior, and stigma attached to mental health care. Clinical Implications: Nurses working with Korean women during postpartum can provide culturally competent care by assessing postpartum care needs, respecting cultural practices, ana providing resources such as Korean postpartum care centers Sanhoo-Joeriwon, which can be found in major U.S. cities with large Korean communities (e.g., Los Angeles), and in-home postpartum care providers, Sanhoo-Joerisa. Nurses should be comfortable educating women about normal signs and symptoms of PPD and those requiring immediate medical follow-up. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study is intended to improve understanding of the development of ethnic identity among young adult Filipino Americans aged 18–24, a stage typically marked by independence and autonomy. There is a great need to expand research on the young adult Filipino population, which is part of the second largest Asian immigrant population in the United States. The purpose of this qualitative study with individual interviews is to explore the process of ethnic identity development in this group. The study sample recruited through convenience and snowball sampling methods consisted of 13 young adult Filipino Americans living in the San Francisco Bay area. The key findings emphasize that the participants' ethnic identity formed through a continuous, nonlinear process influenced by various environmental factors, such as family, peers, and social groups. Through family values and dynamics, the participants have learned the values of respect and collectivity, which positively influenced the process of ethnic identity development. Through involvement in peer and social groups, the participants developed pride and a sense of community, which affirmed their ethnic identity. The study findings contribute to and expand research on the ethnic identity of young adult Filipino Americans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studies show the tremendous negative impact of child abuse, including physical and emotional abuse in childhood on externalizing mental health problems in later life (e.g. young adulthood). However, limited information about this relationship is available in Asian countries like Hong Kong. The current study sought to address this gap by utilizing an exploratory retrospective design. Findings with 118 college students in Hong Kong suggest that there are statistically significant associations between experience of physical and emotional abuse in childhood and behavior problems in later life, and that there is a significant moderation effect of social support on that relationship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Socialist Republic of Vietnam (hereafter Vietnam) has made extraordinary strides in terms of economic progress during the past two decades. Such rapid economic change has also created many social problems such as poverty, family abuse, substance abuse, HIV/AIDS, and mental health problems. Vietnam has taken steps to develop workforce capacity to ameliorate such challenges by investing in social work educational programs, including participation in an international collaborative initiative, the Social Work Education Enhancement Program (SWEEP). This article describes the procedures and process of the initial stage of the development of a competency-based social work curriculum in Vietnam through SWEEP. More specifically, this paper presents the following collaborative strategies between partners in Vietnam and the SWEEP team in the United States: conducting a needs assessment; providing trainings on competency-based education (CBE) to the partners in Vietnam; and receiving feedback from the partners to grasp the challenges at the early stage of development of CBE in Vietnam. While this article focuses on Vietnam, the SWEEP project can be a reference from which to develop social work education in other countries in regard to global collaboration for development of social work curriculum based on the CBE model. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]