Understanding Factors of Retention and Turnover Among Social Workersby Rebecca Coleman (Undergraduate) The social work field has had high vacancy rates and turnover among its employees for several years, and yet there is an extreme lack of data on reasons as to why. The need for social workers has increased in recent years and is projected to continue to increase (BLS, 2023). In turn, the shortage between the number of available social workers and the demand is projected to continue to grow. One of the largest contributing factors to this gap is high turnover rates (Kossivi, 2016). In several regions financial incentives and individual interventions have been implemented, but the impact has insufficient. Many studies point to burnout as a primary reason for turnover, yet these studies have been limited due to small sample sizes, lack of standardized data collection methods, and a lack of a clear definition of burnout (Sonderfeldt, 1995). The lack of data is a large limitation as to why interventions have not proven effective. This study will utilize surveys during social workers exit interviews from their agencies. Anticipated findings are that there will be a significant positive correlation between support from supervisors and social worker retention, and that organizational factors will overall have the largest impact on retention, turnover. The goal of this research is to help agencies identify factors related to vacancy and turnover so that they may utilize regular data collection and be proactive in addressing these factors. |
Comparing Grief Levels Between Married and Unmarried Men Experiencing Pregnancy Lossby Mikkayla Lasnick (Undergraduate), Lindsey Lankford (Undergraduate) Much attention has been given to the study of the physical, emotional, social, and mental effects of miscarriage on women. While research and efforts have been made to understand the vast impact that pregnancy loss has on women, there appears to only be observational studies on the spouse or partner’s experience of grief during pregnancy loss. In addition, research is lacking on the effect of the man’s relationship status while grieving. This study will examine the grief levels between married and unmarried men who experience pregnancy loss. Pregnancy loss will be defined as stillbirths, miscarriages, and emergency abortions. Using an exploratory cross-sectional study, we will collect data through a survey completed by a convenience sample of married and unmarried men. The survey will be advertised through social media outlets and in OBGYN medical offices, and participation will be voluntary. Data will be inputted and assessed through IBM SPSS. Through this study, we aim to answer the following question: How do the grief levels differ between married and unmarried men who suffered pregnancy loss? We hypothesize that married men will have greater levels of grief following a pregnancy loss than unmarried men. |
Effectiveness of Foster Care Alumni Programsby Rachel Nissing (Undergraduate) Foster care alumni are a population that has gone unnoticed in time past. To try to fix this problem there has been an increase in the number of states that allow foster youth to stay in care until they turn twenty-one years old. This study will examine what former foster youth in Ohio see as being the most beneficial aspects of the programs that they were involved in from eighteen to twenty-one years old. This study will use a cross-sectional design. We will collect data from the different counties in Ohio regarding the foster youth who are turning twenty-one years old and exiting the program. From this sample, we will randomly select individuals who have been out of the system for one year to complete a survey. |
Somali Health Care Access in Daytonby Senait Scheie (Undergraduate) Research regarding immigrants in the United States have driven agency practices and political strategies. The politics and attitudes of American discourse have been correlated to the wellbeing and social power of the immigrant population (Allen 2022). While previous research has frequently examined and analyzed the experiences of the Latinx and Chinese population with regards to anti-immigrant political rhetoric (Saasa et. al., 2021), few studies have explored the experiences of African immigrants in local contexts. More specifically, there exists a small body of literature that analyzes the effects of political rhetoric on this specific population. Because there is a unique intersectionality among African immigrants due to discriminatory perceptions of black individuals, of non-natives, and of the African populations (Saasa et. al., 2024), research for this population is highly necessary and found lacking. The unique intersection of social perception as well as the diverse religious context this population represents, requires research focusing on the distinct and unrepresented experiences of African immigrants. Additionally, because American politics and attitudes towards Latinx individuals is drastically different from the biases towards the African population, specified research is required to understand the barriers political rhetoric produces for this population. This research study seeks to address the gap in this literature by exploring the experiences of African immigrant individuals in the context of politics and healthcare access. |
Administrative Intervention and Burnout among Social Workersby Lydia Lancie (Undergraduate) Although research considering burnout levels in social workers is extensive, there is little research discussing the direct effects of positive supervision on burnout levels. Therefore, I will use a cross-sectional design to conduct a qualitative study. Moreover, I will use a general one-on-one interview process to examine the experiences of social workers who perceive to receive adequate supervisory support. Additionally, I will consider research regarding the impact of education surrounding burnout and self-care from administration and its effect in the workplace. The data will be transcribed verbatim and audio-recorded to maintain accuracy of responses during the analyzation process. Data will be analyzed through discussion of collected data and through creating groups for the different answers. Data will be entered into a spreadsheet for organization. I expect to find that individuals who perceive to receive adequate supervisory support will have lower levels of burnout than those who perceive to receive an inadequate amount of support. |
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Factors for Reducing Negative Birth Outcomes in Immigrant Womenby Lauren Mazik (Undergraduate), Madalyn Charles (Undergraduate) This study aims to identify factors that may prevent negative birth outcomes in immigrant women. We will conduct a quantitative study using static-group comparison design to determine if the presence or lack thereof of these factors impacts negative birth outcomes in immigrant mothers. We will look at how factors such as prenatal care, social support, economic factors, and immigration methods impact birth outcomes in immigrant women. We will select Hispanic women that have given birth in the last year and have them complete a survey that examines what factors they experienced that might have impacted their birth outcome. We expect this study will find that the lack of prenatal care, social support, and increased stress will lead to negative birth outcomes for this population. |
Sexual Abuse Treatment Group Effectiveness In Heterogenous and Homogenous Gender Identityby Joshua Huizenga (Undergraduate), Anna Beckloff (Undergraduate) This explanatory quasi-experimental design will assess individuals who have experienced sexual abuse. Specifically, the project will compare two groups receiving treatment for sexual abuse. The non-equivalent control group design will analyze treatment outcomes of one group with homogenous genders and one group with heterogeneous genders. The data will be inputted into SPSS. We anticipate the level of effectiveness of the homogeneous gender identity groups to be higher than the heterogeneous gender identity groups. Further discussion of implications, testing limitations, and suggestions for future research will be included. |
Spiritual Maturity and Mental Health in Youthby Aeris Tuohimaa-Fredrickson (Undergraduate), Emily Wesner (Undergraduate) Problem: There is a lack of addressing the spiritual assessment in mental health when working with youth. It is important to look at the potential correlation between mental health and spiritual maturity because of the crucial stages of youth development. The possible lack of biblically sound mental health resources to support youth might negatively impact their mental health. There is a need to research how addressing spirituality impacts the mental health in youth. This study will address how spiritual engagement is associated with mental health. Design: We will use a Quasi-experimental design to determine if addressing spiritual maturity in youth will have an influence on mental health. Population/Sample: Teenagers between 9th-12th grade at Fairview High School using a fixed sample panel design. Collection/Analysis: We will design a voluntary online survey for the controlled group and treatment group that will assess their spiritual maturity and mental health. The data will be analyzed through SPSS. Expected Findings: We expect to find a statistically significant positive association between spirituality and mental health. We expect to see students at the high school who are actively engaged in their churches and seeking spiritual maturity to have better mental health. |
Perceptions of Former Juvenile Gang Members on the Factors That Make Up Effective Prevention Programsby Madeline Combs (Undergraduate), Esther Fultz (Undergraduate) Gang involvement is a significant predictor for youth justice involvement (Pyrooz, et al., 2016) and risk factor for reoffending once released (Kennedy, et al., 2018). This study will seek to identify specific factors that make up an effective program for previously incarcerated gang-involved youth. Using a qualitative cross-sectional interview design, we will explore factors individuals perceive as helpful in reducing gang involvement and reincarceration. We will be conducting general one-on-one interviews with previously justice and gang involved individuals who have successfully completed programs designed to reduce gang involvement. Our data will be transcribed verbatim using outside researchers and documented through audio recording. Our data will be coded using first level data to identify information categories and second level coding to identify relationships and themes within the information categories. We expect to find that factors contributing to program success include community involvement and positive role models. |
The Religious beliefs of Women in Sex Workby Faith Schultz (Undergraduate) Research on the religious beliefs of women in sex work is heavily understudied. Understanding the beliefs of women in sex work is crucial for providing appropriate support and interventions for clients. The goal of this research is to explore the diverse beliefs of women in sex work and develope a more holistic view of the individual. By using a detailed survey, participants will be interviewed with open-ended questions for data collection. Data will be input into SPSS using a frequency distribution to display quantitative outcomes. Due to the stigmatization and hard to reach nature of this population, incentivized recruiting strategies will be implemented in order to widen our sample. |
The Chronic Brain Disease Model in Action - Impact on Duration of Sobrietyby Madison McKee (Undergraduate) Background: Drug and alcohol addiction heavily impacts American society. Drug and alcohol addiction is associated with rates of homelessness, poverty, crime, mental illness, etc. In America, a lot of time and resources are spent addressing addiction. However, there is a lack of consensus on the etiology of addiction. One competing explanation for drug and alcohol addiction defines addiction as chronic brain disease. Existing literature gives attention to the impact of the brain chronic disease model of addiction (BDMA) on stigma, sense of personal agency, addiction severity, and abstinence. However, not much attention has been given to how the BDMA impacts rate of relapse. Objective: The aim of this study is to find out if treating drug and alcohol addiction as a chronic brain disease will increase duration of sobriety. Method: Participants for this study will include people with moderate to severe substance use disorders starting treatment at McKinley Hall in Springfield, Ohio. Participants will be new clients and will be randomly assigned to either receive treatment from a chronic disease management (CDM) clinic or normal treatment. Upon entry, participants will be assessed on the longest they have maintained sobriety and their frequency of relapse. Once discharged, this study will follow up with clients three months, six months, one year, two years, and five years after discharge to assess length of sobriety and frequency of relapse. Data will be analyzed using descriptive statistics and measures of central tendency and variation. I predict that treating addiction as a chronic brain disease will increase duration of sobriety. |
The Importance of Resources for Aged out Foster Youthby Jessica White (Undergraduate) Research on the effectiveness of resources for youth aging out of the foster care system. This study will seek to analyze and evaluate the perception of aged out foster youth on their interactions with the various resources offered to them after they age of the foster care system. I will interview each aged of foster youth one on one from a purposeful sample of aged out foster youth. I will also evaluate the different resources within the community that are offered to the foster youth to determine the effectiveness and the limitations of the resources. To measure these data I will look for similar patterns with the response of the foster youth. The finding of this research will assist in help the create more effective and targeted resources to help the rate of homelessness and incarceration within the population of aged out foster youth. |
What Factors Contribute to Depression in Grandparents?by Molly Correll (Undergraduate), Sarah Hougentogler (Undergraduate) This study will examine grandparents in the Miami Valley area who have one or more grandchildren. Using a descriptive, non-experimental research design, we will send surveys to churches, senior living centers, and assisted living homes in the Miami Valley. We expect to find that 1) relationships damaged by distance, disease, family conflict, busyness, and lack of desire will correlate with higher levels of depression and 2) relationships damaged by distance or family conflict will yield higher levels of depression in grandparents than disease, busyness or lack of desire. |
Parental Substance Abuse and its Effects on Child Maltreatmentby Caitlyn Cargill (Undergraduate), Alyssa Rappold (Undergraduate) This study will examine parental substance abuse and its effects on child maltreatment. Specifically, this study will look at the differences between child maltreatment where parental substance abuse is present in the home, and child maltreatment where parent substance abuse is not present within the home. Using a descriptive and exploratory quasi-experimental design, we will explore parental substance abuse and its effects on child maltreatment severity through a survey. The data gathered will be entered into SPSS and assessed through the measures of central tendency and frequency distributions. We will run a one-sample t-test to assess the differences between child maltreatment both with and without parental substance abuse. We anticipate the findings will indicate that children who have parents struggling with parental substance abuse will have a higher severity of child maltreatment than those who do not. The goal is to gain a better understanding and knowledge of how parental substance abuse affects children’s well-being in the home. |
Intergenerational Programs and their Effect on Depression in Older Adultsby Jessie Thomas (Undergraduate) This study will examine adults in assisted living facilities and nursing homes who participate in an intergenerational program. Research on intergenerational programs has predominantly looked at immediate effects. This study will use treatment interventions that last one year in duration. We will assess outcomes 1 week, 3 months, 6 months, 9 months, 1 year, 3 years, and 5 years following the intergenerational program’s termination. Depression will be assessed through a developed questionnaire, Geriatric Depression Scale. We anticipate findings will indicate a significant reduction in loneliness immediately following the intervention with a slight increase in loneliness in following months and years. |
Interventions and Models for Improving Mental Health Services for Indvidual's Who Are Previously and Currently Incarceratedby Lexi Parsons (Undergraduate), Britain Musick (Undergraduate) Mental Health amongst individuals who are incarcerated is a social issue that lacks intervention and consideration. In the United States there are limited resources provided to this population. This study aims to explore what mental health interventions and treatments are most beneficial and effective for those in incarceration. Recent research identifies the issue of the growing population of incarcerated individuals suffering from mental illness while incarcerated and after release. In previous studies it has been shown that there is an alternative solution for this population to receive more support and access to treatment. Throughout our study we will identify evidence-based practices and interventions that can address this issue in addition to suggesting further recommendations. By interviewing a focus group of mental health professionals, we will gain a better understanding of what interventions would be most effective for this population. Through this data we will identify effective alternative methods to address this issue and plan for implementation in other prisons and jails. We expect to discover effective models of intervention and more accessible treatments for this population. |
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Gender-Based Violence in East African Refugee Settlementsby Tessa Barteau (Undergraduate), Lacey Richards (Faculty) In East Africa there is a refugee crisis due to prolonged conflicts throughout the region (Phillimore et.al, 2022). Many people are forced to flee from violence and reside in refugee settlements. Research shows that gender-based violence (GBV) exists at all levels of refugees’ journey: conflict, flight, and encampment in settlements (Krause, 2015). Due to the refugee crisis, there is a strong presence of humanitarian agencies specifically in East African refugee settlements (Robles, 2022). This study will examine the paradox of having high rates of GBV in a place of refuge. The research will be conducted in the Bidibidi refugee settlement, the largest one in Uganda. Uganda, a country with open-door refugee policies, is surrounded by nations in conflict (Betts, 2021). It is the refugee hotspot of Africa, with the largest refugee population in Africa (Logie et.al, 2023). There is a plethora of research regarding the causes of GBV in Bidibidi and similar settlements, but there is a gap in evidence highlighting how humanitarian agencies address the issue. As a result of our research, we expect to find factors contributing to humanitarian agencies’ efforts towards reducing GBV. |
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