During the 1890s and the first three decades of the 20th century, social work in the United States developed a community-based direct practice approach to family assistance and social reform. The basis for this method was a situational view of social life that emphasized the use of interpersonal and transactional methods to achieve social and…

Asserts income inequality will grow as government spending cutbacks lead to funding cuts for social benefits and services. Notes the shift from federal to local administration of social welfare services suggests greater resource allocation power for local communities. Draws on the literature of multicultural community practice to focus on…

The community, state mental hospitals, and a community mental health center work together to provide an environment conducive to the continued well being of chronic mental patients in an area of West Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The authors describe a program that involves day care centers and the patients' everyday living. (Author)

Discusses the rationale behind the movement to link services to schools through school-linked, family resource centers. Describes several exemplary program, already developed, and outlines the promise this movement holds as a major social work strategy for revitalizing communities. Focuses on parental involvement, skill development, and how to…

Outlines the rationale for promoting comprehensive development in troubled communities. Argues that such approaches employ strategies that address the social, physical, and economic needs and circumstances of community residents. Looks at historical and current approaches and examines the experience of the Ford Foundation's Neighborhood and Family…

Summarizes findings from studies that address the effects of assets on personal well-being, economic security, civic behavior, women's status, and children's well-being. Examines implications of asset-building demonstrations and research, presenting it as a new way of thinking about antipoverty strategies where resources are emphasized more than…

Examines the Phipps Houses Group, a nonprofit housing developer, in its attempt to foster a sense of community and family well-being in housing developments. Discusses the community development program and gives a profile of tenants. Suggests that this model should become more common as direct federal housing development diminishes. (RJM)

Reviews policy approaches to, and legislation for, community revitalization. Discusses how early federal policies contributed to the segregation and isolation of poor neighborhoods and describes how new community-based programs counter the urban disinvestment practices that fostered segregation. Outlines policies that recognize the need for…

Develops a comprehensive approach to meeting the needs of urban, low-income, multicultural communities. Outlines a neighborhood network that focuses on the developmental needs of youth, engages residents, and promotes interdisciplinary services. Examines one school of social work's efforts to help a neighborhood develop such a network. (RJM)

In a treatment program developed at Mendota State Hospital, Madison, Wisconsin, mental patients considered unready for discharge were placed in the community. With intensive help from the social worker and other hospital staff, the community became an effective treatment agent. The results of the program should encourage professionals who work…

Evaluating a federal agency's success in stimulating and broadening the program efforts of community organizations present a challenge to social science researchers. The authors describe a methodology developed and used effectively in one metropolitan area to measure program change. They identify and utilize the findings to show how greater change…

This paper describes a community outreach program that is aimed at mothers of preschool children for the purposes of primary and secondary prevention of mental illness. The goals of the group meetings are to expand the mothers' problem-solving capacities and share child-rearing experiences. The groups are lead by health care professionals. (NG)

This critical review of the 1961 report of the Joint Commission on Mental Illness and Health concludes that the report and its adherents promised more than could be delivered and its claims regarding community mental health could not be supported by the available data. (Author)

The family is once again being asked to assume its major function as care-giver for the long-term mentally ill. Is the family able to support chronic mental patients? Is it willing to assume responsibility for these patients? Addresses and discusses implications of family policy for community care. (Author)

Although many in the social work profession have written about empowerment, few have offered a description of the empowerment process from the perspective of clients and workers in high-risk communities. This qualitative study presents a model of empowerment practice from the perspective of frontline workers, the challenges they faced, and the…