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ObjectiveTo describe the current literature on functional neurological disorder and functional somatic syndromes among sexual and gender minority people (SGM).MethodsA search string with descriptors of SGM identity and functional disorders was entered into PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, PsycInfo, and CINAHL for articles published before May 24, 2022, yielding 3121 items entered into Covidence, where 835 duplicates were removed. A neurologist and neuropsychiatrist screened titles and abstracts based on predefined criteria, followed by full-text review. A third neurologist adjudicated discrepancies. Eligible publications underwent systematic data extraction and statistical description.ResultsOur search identified 26 articles on functional disorders among SGM people. Most articles were case (13/26, 46%) or cross-sectional (4/26, 15%) studies. Gender minority people were represented in 50% of studies. Reported diagnoses included fibromyalgia (n = 8), functional neurological disorder (n = 8), somatic symptom disorder (n = 5), chronic fatigue syndrome (n = 3), irritable bowel syndrome (n = 2), and other functional conditions (n = 3). Three cohort studies of fibromyalgia or somatic symptom disorder reported an overrepresentation of gender minority people compared to cisgender cohorts or general population measures. Approximately half of case studies reported pediatric or adolescent onset (7/13, 54%), functional neurological disorder diagnosis (7/13, 54%), and symptom improvement coinciding with identity-affirming therapeutic interventions (7/13, 58%).ConclusionDespite a methodologically rigorous literature search, there are limited data on functional neurological disorder and functional somatic syndromes among SGM people. Several studies reported increased prevalence of select conditions among transgender people. More observational studies are needed regarding the epidemiology and clinical course of functional disorders among SGM people.

This study consists of an oral history project that partnered MSW students with community dwelling older adults from diverse backgrounds. It used a comparison group with a pretest and posttest design and a sample of 74 MSW students to evaluate changes in their confidence levels, future plans of working with older adults, and geriatric competencies. Results of MANOVAs revealed that participation in the oral history project was significantly related to future career plans, confidence about working with diverse older adults, and geriatric competencies related to diversity, particularly for the experimental group. Exposing social work students to a broad-based curriculum with aging content has important implications toward fostering students' interests in pursuing social work practice with older adults and in preparing them for culturally competent social work. (Contains 2 tables.)

The number of older adults with dementia in U.S. prisons is rapidly rising. Yet, the vast majority of this marginalized subgroup of the aging population is left neglected behind bars without access to adequate medical and mental health care services. We assert that proactive, interdisciplinary collaborative efforts to improve practice, policy, and research and to develop a high-quality evidence-based continuum of care for this aging population are urgently needed. The overarching goals of this paper are to raise awareness of the life and experiences of persons with dementia in prison and to stimulate discussion, research, and advocacy efforts for this forgotten subgroup of older Americans. We describe the growing number of older adults with dementia in U.S. prisons, high-risk factors for dementia present in the prison population, and the life and experience of persons with dementia in the culture and environment of prison that is primarily not designed for them. We review the current state of services and programs for dementia in prison. We conclude by proposing practice, policy, and research-related priority areas and strategies for interdisciplinary gerontological responses.

This study examines how probation officers' (POs) knowledge of juveniles' trauma influences probation practices. The study was conducted with POs who responded to a Web-based survey ("n" = 308). The POs were directed to randomly select one juvenile from their caseload and to complete the Probation Practices Assessment Survey to assess their knowledge of the youth's lifetime trauma and past-year stressful life experience and their practice approaches. Nineteen percent of youths were reported as having had lifetime exposure to at least one type of trauma (for example, physical assault, sexual assault, witness violent death). The most common traumatic experience was sexual assault, with 11% of POs reporting this experience among the study youths. Structural equation modeling results indicated that POs' knowledge of cumulative exposure to trauma is associated with treatment-oriented probation and counseling approaches. Results of this study signal the importance of careful assessments of exposure to trauma and stressful life events among youths on probation. The use of specialized trauma-informed assessment strategies also are recommended to increase the sensitivity of juvenile justice programs to trauma.

The purpose of this study was to describe licensed clinical social workers' (LCSWs) professional motivation to pursue a social work career and the decision to enter clinical practice. It used a probability sample of 245 New Jersey LCSWs and the Social Work Values Survey as part of an anonymous self-administered mail survey. Descriptive analyses revealed that most LCSWs reported social work values that included the use of a holistic and systems approach and social justice. Inferential analyses revealed that clinical social workers who were women with MSW degrees reported higher mean rank scores on their decision to enter clinical practice compared to clinical social workers who were men with PhDs. The implications for practice and education are delineated. (Contains 5 tables.)

The purpose of this study was to evaluate an experiential learning project with BSW students to see if their perceptions of older adults have changed. The project consisted of an oral history project and presentation that matched BSW students with older adults from diverse ethnic backgrounds to gather their immigration narratives. The study used a single group pretest posttest design with 17 BSW students enrolled in an integrative field seminar class. Using a series of inferential analyses, BSW students' attitudes towards older adults, future career plans, confidence with working with older adults from diverse backgrounds, and geriatric competencies were examined. Overall, a significant increase in BSW students who had varying levels of participation in project perceptions of geriatric social work competencies between pretest and posttest were found. Students who both conducted and presented the oral histories of older adults also were significantly more likely to report future plans to work with older adults compared to students who did not. Exposing BSW students to aging and diversity content has important implications towards fostering student interest in pursuing social work practice with older adults and preparing them for culturally competent social work. (Contains 4 tables.)

Background: The aging prison population in the United States presents a significant public health challenge with high rates of trauma and mental health issues that the correctional system alone is ill-prepared to address. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship of age, objective, and subjective measures of trauma and stressful life events and post-traumatic stress symptoms among older adults in prison. Methods: Data were gathered from 334 prisoners (aged 55+) housed in the New Jersey Department of Corrections, as of September 2010. An anonymous self-report, self-administered survey was mailed to the total population of 1,000 prisoners aged 55 years and older. Objective and subjective trauma was measured using the Life Stressors Checklist-Revised (LSC-R), and post-traumatic stress symptoms were measured using the Civilian Version of the Post-traumatic Stress Scale. Findings: Results of a path analysis revealed that past year subjective impressions of traumatic and stressful life events had a positive and significant relationship to current post-traumatic stress symptoms. Age was found to have a significant and inverse relationship to subjective traumatic and stressful life events. That is, younger participants reported higher levels of cumulative traumatic and stressful life events and past year subjective ratings of being bothered by these past events. Implications: These findings have significance for interdisciplinary/interprofessional practice and appropriate institutional and community care, including reentry planning of older adults in the criminal justice system.

Youthful compliance with juvenile court mandates is a cornerstone of effective probation practice. Despite this, research has not examined probation strategies for encouraging and enforcing youthful compliance with probation conditions. This study describes the use of confrontational tactics and client-centered approaches reported by probation officers in their supervision of delinquent youths. The study was conducted with data from a Web-based survey of probation (N = 308). Results indicate that officers balanced confrontational approaches with client-centered approaches. Officers employed confrontational tactics more frequently than client-centered strategies for youths with substance use problems, with younger youths, and with African American females. Alternatively, officers reported more client-centered approaches with females who had higher histories of prior service utilization and with youths who were perceived by officers to be honest. These findings open new avenues for research on the effectiveness of confrontation and client-centered approaches toward an evidence base for effective probation practice. (Contains 1 figure and 3 tables.)

This study documents patterns of contact between juvenile probation officers and parents and examines factors associated with officer judgments about parental cooperation. Data for the study was derived from a Web-based survey of probation officers (N = 308) who reported their use of probation strategies with specific youths identified from their caseloads. Results showed that parent contacts were predicted by parent and youth drug use, parent and youth cooperation, and officer attitudes favoring punishment. Parental cooperation with probation processes was predicted by youth and parent drug use problems, parent offending history, youth cooperation, and race. Results of this study point to the need for evidence-based strategies to promote parental involvement for high risk and high need families. (Contains 3 tables and 1 figure.)

Every year, juvenile court judges commit large numbers of delinquent youths to institutional placements. Prior research indicates that both legal and extra-legal factors influence this decision-making process. Less frequently examined is the role of treatment needs and prior social services use. This study examined the influence of treatment needs and prior social services use on the dispositions of 187 delinquent juveniles. It found that treatment needs and prior social services use predicted disposition severity when controlling for other legal and extra-legal factors. Moreover, it showed that some of these effects were conditioned by gender. These results suggest the need to create more opportunities to divert delinquent youths into community-based interventions to prevent or delay institutional placements.

The purpose of this secondary data analysis was to explore the mediating influence of internalizing behavior on the link between child maltreatment and externalizing behavior (for example, rule-breaking behavior and aggressive behavior) among children. Using a longitudinal comparison group design and a sample of 300 youths (56 percent maltreated), the relationship among maltreatment and internalizing and externalizing behavior was explored. Structural equation modeling revealed a mediating effect in which initial internalizing symptoms had a longitudinal residual effect on externalizing behavior among maltreated youths. Practice and policy strategies should include early identification, comprehensive assessment, and treatment for child maltreatment that include emotional, psychological, and behavioral issues. A comprehensive social work response may serve to reduce the risk of adverse behavioral outcomes among youths that place them at risk of juvenile delinquency and juvenile justice involvement.

This study examined how the cumulative (additive) versus differential (individual) effects of trauma influenced male delinquency. Using a comprehensive measure of trauma, a secondary data analysis was conducted on a nationally representative sample of male youths between the ages of 12 and 17. Logistic regression analyses revealed that all three types of stressors had an effect on male delinquency, even after controlling for potential confounding factors. These findings underscore the need to adopt a broader view of the types of trauma linked to juvenile delinquency. Implications for social work practice and intervention research are discussed.

Correctional facilities are under increasing pressure to respond to the treatment needs of mentally disordered offenders during their incarceration and to arrange for treatment post release through reentry planning. This paper constructs cost estimates for three different reentry investments using data on the population (n = 2715) of male mentally disordered inmates in New Jersey prisons. Different assumptions are used on the distribution of treatment needs and criminal characteristics within the population, ranging from equal treatment needs and placement difficulties to different treatment needs and difficulties accessing community-based resources as a consequence of their past criminal behaviors. The costs of these investments range from approximately $700,000 to $934,000 per year for roughly 500 released inmates. Reentry planning, as a social investment, protects the outcomes produced by correctional health care during incarceration and protects the public from future crime associated with untreated mental illness. (Contains 5 tables.)