Stressors Daily Hassles Life Transitions AmbientChronic Stressors Vicious

Stressors – – Daily Hassles Life Transitions Ambient/Chronic Stressors Vicious Spirals – Stressors in Community Psych. Research – Homelessness – School Transitions – Natural Disasters

Appraisal • • Primary Appraisal-estimation of strength or intensity of stressor Secondary-estimation of resources and coping options for responding – BOTH are affected by personality factors • • Locus of control Reappraisal – Reframing • Appraisal – Matters more when resources are ample and threats are moderate – Matters less when major stressor, and similarly appraised by man

Coping Responses • Problem focused – More adaptive when stressor is controllable • Emotion Focused – More adaptive when uncontrollable – Sometimes avoidant

Social Support • • Generalized--ongoing support Specific Support – Encouragement – Informational – Tangible • Optimal Matching – Emotional--uncontrollable – Encouragement--job loss, work stress – Trangible--financial strain • Some require multiple types

Social Support • • • We had another bad week with David. Yesterday was a horrible day. He could hardly talk, swallow or walk. He was drooling heavily. He couldn't be left alone, even for a second. Of course, Doug was away in Europe all week, but my family was here and at the hospital with us, keeping us company and helping me cope. Again, thank you all for your thoughts and prayers. We definitely could not be getting through this without all of you!

Social Support • Sources of support • Support through Media – Computer mediated • Relationships as stressors • Social Networks – Dimensionality – Density – Reciprocity

Competencies • Personal – Social and emotional awareness – Self and emotional regulation – Problem solving • Social – Empathy – Collaboration--networking

Spirituality and Religion • Perhaps most useful at limits of resources and ability to cope • Can help make sense of the “incomprehensible, unfathomable, uncontrollable” (Pargament) • Personal – Meaning, coping • Social – Membership and support within a congregation/community

Prevention: Key Concepts • Primary Prevention • Secondary Prevention • Tertiary Prevention

5 concepts • Risk – Additive/multiplicative • Protection • Resilience • Strengths – Assets • Thriving-survival, recovery, thriving, transforming one’s priorities, sense of self, and life roles

Albee Equation • Stress + physical vulnerability • -------------------- • Coping skills + support + self-esteem

Elias Equation • Stress + env. Risk factors • -------------------- • Pos. socialization practices + support + + opportunities for positive relatedeness

Prevention programs: do they work? • Durlak and Wells (1977) used meta-analysis to examine 177 primary prevention programs – Primary P: 59 to 82% of paricipants surpass the average perf. of control group – Secondary P: 70% better • Cog. Beh. Approaches most effecitve • Most effects for children 3 -7

Prevention policy • • Serving as congressional staff member or with legislative or excecutive branches of government Research, writing, and giving testimoney regarding effective prevention/promotion interventions Consulting with human service agencies Staff positions in Advocacy organizations

Implementation • • Very little consistency Action research: – putting theories and methods into practice, – evaluating their impact – using the results to refine future theory, method, and practice • • Involves ongoing cycles of program analysis, innovation (intervention) design, field trials, and dissemination The central question: How does the program operate when carried out by agents other than the developers. 4 Stages – – Experimental Technological Diffusional Widespread implementation

Characteristics of Prevention Innovations • • • Operator dependant Context Dependent Fragile, difficult to specify Core (crucial) vs. adaptive components Challenging (small wins-Weick) – build a record of low-cost,  opportunistic successes, which keep the activists motivated and do not alarm any opposition.   "Big Win" strategies are very, very dangerous, because they consume too many resources, mobilize an opposition, and when they fail, they completely demoralize the activists. • Longitudinal – Must become part of that history and culture, not dependent on a charismatic leader

Enduring implementation • • • Carry out environmental reconnaissance Ensure strong agreement among stakeholders Ensure connection to core mission of host setting Consider a coalition with related local settings Develop strong, clear leadership Describe in simple terms Identify core elements and implement faithfull Measure program implementation and goal attainment Search for unintended effects Plan for institutionalization Establish external linkages with similar programs in other settings

Case Study: Growth of Mentoring • Sufficiently promising • Championed by powerful constituencies • Aggressive growth goals • Impatience • Volunteer recruitment • Less intensive approaches

Lessons learned • Modest findings – Helped galvanize movement – Stimulated aggressive growth goals • Goals necessitated – Improved efficiency – reduced fidelity

More Recommendations • Promote • evidence-based innovation • rigorous evaluation • measured replication and dissemination • Reward sustainability and quality • Accreditation • Involvement of researchers in all phases of interventions • Export best practices to youth settings

Across Ages Effective Program Practices • Monthly in-service meetings for mentors for supervision, training and support (Including use of 6 step Social Problem-Solving model with mentors) • Weekly phone calls to mentors/Weekly meetings with youth • Mentors and youth engage in structured activities and goal setting (based on Social Problem-Solving Model) • Shared goal setting with caregivers • Monthly activities for families

Lessons Learned from Replications • Programs must be adequately funded • Programs must be realistic with regard to numbers of youth served • Programs must adhere to fidelity guidelines • Practitioners need to understand theoretical and empirical framework • Programs that seek out technical assistance are more effective

Organizing for community and Social Change • Empowering vs. Empowered organizations – Empowering provide experiences for members that promote participation in planning and implementing the activities ofhte group. – Empowered org. are able to influence the wider community • Three Instruments of Social Power (Gaventa) – Control of the resources that can be used to bargain, reward, punish – � Control of channels for civic participation • Hearings, petitions, voting, agendas, legal requirements – Ability to shae the definition of a public issue or conflict (spin) • Dynamic forces that ebb and flow

Social Power/Change INST. OF POWER CHANGE APPROACH Use of resources to bargain, Social Action reward, or punish Controling forms of citizen part. Community development, social action Shaping definition/understanding of Public issue Consciousness raising, policy advocacy

Social Action • Alinsky– Social power comes in 2 forms: • Organized money • Organized people – Citizens using social action must • IDENTIFY THEIR CAPACTIIES • Find a situation (Shop-in) – Effective Action • • Clear goal Reasonable actions required Cause disruption Credible threat

Community Development • Building consensus • Broaden opportunities for participation and influence in com decision making

Consciousness Raising • Increasing critical awareness • Connected t actions for change • Creates change in the whole person, involving attitudes, behaviors, and relationships • Usually bottom-up approach

Policy research/advocacy • Speaking out in some form to influence decisions, policies or laws – – – Expert testimony Giving interveiws to the media Contacts with lawmakers, govt. Testimony Serving as elected official • Not neutral – Sometimes involves unethical distortions – Sometimes persuasion over pressure

Program Evaluation – Can create anxiety – Staff untrained – Can interfere with activities or compete for resources – Can be misused and misinterpreted

How do we know a program works? – Trust us – We see lot’s of clients – Show specific achievements • Why do programs fail – Theory failure – Implementation failure

Stages of program eval • Identify goals • Process evaluation • Outcome evaluation – Self-repot – Key informants – Observation • Impact evaluation

Empowerment Evaluation • • • Improvement Community ownership Inclusion Democratic participation Social justice Community knowledge Evidence-based strategies Capacity building Organizational learning Accountability