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Families living in urban poverty, enduring chronic and complex traumatic stress, and having difficulty meeting their children's basic needs have significant child maltreatment risk factors. There is a paucity of family focused, trauma-informed evidence-based interventions aimed to alleviate trauma symptomatology, strengthen family functioning, and prevent child abuse and neglect. Trauma Adapted Family Connections (TA-FC) is a manualized trauma-focused practice rooted in the principles of Family Connections (FC), an evidence supported preventive intervention developed to address the glaring gap in services for this specific, growing, and underserved population. This paper describes the science based development of TA-FC, its phases and essential components, which are based on theories of attachment, neglect, trauma, and family interaction within a comprehensive community-based family focused intervention framework. (Contains 2 figures.)

Clinicians who treat children in foster care must continually balance the development and therapeutic needs of the foster child with the expectations of a complex network of caretakers and professionals with whom the child interacts. A model that integrates individual and systemic issues in the assessment and treatment of children in foster care is proposed.

Purpose: This randomized controlled study examines the efficacy of two innovative methods to teach beginning motivational interviewing (MI) skills: live supervision (LS), a small group experiential learning interaction with standardized client actors and in-the-moment guidance from a supervisor, and a coding learning (CL) method, where students in a classroom setting are introduced to MI skill development via learning to code MI practice behaviors. Methods: Seventeen social work students in a child welfare training program were randomized to receive either LS or CL training method. Changes in MI knowledge, attitudes, and MI skill were assessed through self-report and observational measures pretraining, posttraining, and at 5 months follow-up, after a semester of learning-as-usual. Results: Both training groups demonstrated an improvement in MI knowledge and attitudes from pretest to follow-up. MI skill gain within groups varied for specific MI skills. Discussion: Implications for maximally efficient MI training are advanced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is scant research on how the parenting practices of custodial grandmothers affect the psychological adjustment of grandchildren in their care. Yet, the findings from a handful of prior studies suggest the relevance of the Family Stress Model (FSM) to these caregivers. The present study further tested the FSM with baseline data from 343 custodial grandmothers (Mage = 58.5 years) enrolled in a clinical trial of the efficacy of interventions for improving the well-being of their families. Not only was this “help-seeking” sample atypical of prior FSM studies, but also unique to the present study was our addition of multiple parenting practices, self-reported and clinical ratings of grandmothers’ distress, and reports of grandchildren’s internalizing and externalizing difficulties from grandchildren and grandmothers. Mplus 7.31 was used to test a model where the effect of grandmother distress on grandchildren’s internalizing and externalizing difficulties was hypothesized to be indirect through five distinct parenting practices. The findings regarding both the measurement and structural models fit the observed data well, and invariance was largely found across grandchildren’s gender and age (4–7 vs. 8–12). Although grandchildren’s self-reported internalizing and externalizing difficulties were unrelated to grandmothers’ distress and parenting practices, the grandmothers’ reports of these outcomes were generally related to their own distress and parenting practices as hypothesized. However, considerable variation was found across the five parenting practices in terms of their relationships to the other FSM constructs. We conclude that data from multiple informants and measures of assorted parenting practices are essential to future research and practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social work is increasingly embracing evidence-based practice (EBP) as a decision-making process that incorporates the best available evidence about effective treatments given client values and preferences, in addition to social worker expertise. Yet, social work practitioners have typically encountered challenges with the application of manualized evidence-supported treatments. For social work, the path to implementing the delivery of science-informed practice remains at a crossroads. This article describes two emergent strategies that offer a plausible means by which many social workers can integrate an EBP model into their service delivery—common factors and common elements. Each strategy will be presented, and related evidence provided. Tools to implement a common elements approach and to incorporate client feedback consistent with a common factors perspective will also be described. These strategies will be placed in the broader context of the EBP framework to suggest possible advances in social work practice and research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a discussion of the of having grandparents care for their grandchildren in relation to the replication of Family Connections (FC) program. One of the fastest growing phenomenon in child welfare within the U.S. is to have grandparents as the sole primary caregivers. Several challenges faced by this kind of arrangement include increased psychological stress, physical health problems, and social isolation.

Nineteen ( M age = 45, SD = 12.8) group leaders who received extensive leadership training were surveyed regarding their experiences in leading a 10-week program with one of three randomized clinical trial (RCT) conditions (cognitive behavior training, parenting skills training, information-only support). While a high percentage indicated that the intervention led by them was beneficial, leaders nevertheless felt that some participants benefited more so than others. Perceived program benefits were linked to regular attendance and the completion of weekly homework. The major benefits to participants were gaining personal insight, receiving and providing support to others, successfully applying learned skills and knowledge to everyday life, and feeling empowered and hopeful about the future. Peer leaders were viewed positively, as was the provision of food and childcare. Group leaders faced numerous practice challenges in conducting group interventions: ensuring regular attendance, keeping participants focused and on track, and dealing with participants who dominated discussions. These unprecedented findings not only allow us insight into the dynamics of leading group interventions with grandmother caregivers, but they may also have implications for influences on the measured efficacy of such programs.