New Studies Focus on Mindfulness Therapies, Work-Life Balance, and Trauma Outcomes in Women

Feb. 1, 2011 - PRLog -- Families in Society: The Journal of Contemporary Social Services, a top-ranked professional social work journal published by the Alliance for Children and Families, announces the publication of its January-March 2011 issue (Volume 92, Number 1).  

The new issue, published in print and on the companion website, Families in Society Online, features interdisciplinary content relevant to social service clinicians, behavioral therapists, CPS workers, and social work educators. For the complete table of contents, visit http://www.familiesinsociety.org/new/E-Alerts/92-1_TOC.html

Mindfulness-based therapies are increasingly found in the evidence-based practice realm of clinical social work, and “React or Respond: A Guide to Apply Mindfulness for Families and Therapists” provides step-by-step activities for both families and the therapists working with them.

“Resilient Workplaces: An Initial Conceptualization” takes the concept of resilience—which has been well applied to individuals and families—and posits it in the workplace, a social system that is central to the lives of employed people and their families. Another article in this issue also explores the work–life continuum in “The Juggling Act: Managing Work–Life Conflict and Work–Life Balance.”

Research in "Sibling Incest: Adjustment in Adult Women Survivors" confirms that for at least a subset of survivors of sibling incest, there are serious and enduring adult consequences including distorted beliefs; mental health symptoms; lowered self-esteem; and subsequent victimizations of a physical, sexual, and/or emotional nature—all of which challenge the assumptions of some that sexual abuse by another child, a peer, is not damaging.

Additionally, articles in the Family Functioning and Interrelationships section include topics such as familial capital in Latino families, social support and caregiving burden, and end-of-life matters in estranged families.

Founded in 1920, Families in Society is the oldest social work journal in the United States and continues to serve as an important source of expert, interdisciplinary information for professionals in social work and related fields such as psychology, nursing, and behavioral health. The journal’s articles are informative, instructive, reflective, and, periodically, controversial. Typically, they examine a broad range of human service activities, such as advocacy; family-life education; public policy; agency administration; professional training and education; and group, family, and individual counseling.

Families in Society scholarship is routinely distributed via national and international partners to supplement research compilations on a variety of topics. Recent examples include the Administration on Aging and the Children’s Bureau within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Veterans Health Administration in the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Foster Family-Based Treatment Association, International Foster Care Organisation, Better Care Network (UNICEF/Child Protection Sect.), Integrated Policy & Legislation Team (Canadian Ministry of Children and Family Development), Australian Association of Social Workers, Center for Victims of Torture, Pennsylvania Child Welfare Training Program, Protective Services Training Institute of Texas, and Milwaukee Public Schools.

The Alliance for Children and Families, headquartered in Milwaukee, provides an in-house editorial and support staff which publishes the quarterly print journal and its companion website, Families in Society Online. The Alliance is the United States’ largest association of private, nonprofit human service agencies and organizations. Its mission is to build the capacity of its members to serve and advocate for children, families, and communities. Its members annually serve more than 3.4 million people with a wide array of programs and services.

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Now in its 92nd year, Families in Society focuses on the art, science, and practice of social work and is one of the most respected professional journals in North America on social and human services.