James D Whitworth
Biographic Data
| ID | 181647 |
|---|---|
| NAME | James D Whitworth |
| GIVEN NAMES | James D |
| FAMILY NAME | Whitworth |
| SIGNATURE | WHITWORTH J D |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Central Florida |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-3682-2298 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 18 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 8 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 18 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 1996 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2024 |
| H-INDEX | 2 |
Understanding Strategies for Matching Service Dogs to Military Veterans With PTSD
Using a multiple case study design, we sought to understand existing matching strategies used to pair service dogs with US military veterans dealing with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Three different US-based service dog agencies (one large, one midsize, and one small) participated, allowing the principal investigator to conduct in-depth interviews with agency staff and leaders to understand and observe their matching/pairing practices. P…
Attachment-Based Relationship Satisfaction in Deployed and Non-Deployed Military Veterans with Prevalent PTSD, Anxiety, and Depression
After almost two decades of war, unprecedented operational tempos have remained high for the American military. This has left those on the home front (non-deploying veterans) a little behind since scholarship has mostly focused on veterans who have deployed. This study used a voluntary treatment-seeking sample of veterans who have not deployed (n = 49) and veterans who have deployed (n = 68) to address this gap in the literature. This study exami…
The impact of Covid-19 on first responders' resilience and attachment
COVID-19 continues to have a deleterious impact on vulnerable populations in our society, and unfortunately, first responders are often overlooked in this conversation. To address that gap, we retrospectively compared routinely collected baseline assessment data from 69 treatment-seeking first responders who presented for treatment before COVID-19 to data collected from 75 similar first responders at the same agency during the pandemic. Data asse…
Caregiver perceptions of the benefits of hippotherapy for children with various disorders, disabilities, and medical conditions
This article describes the findings of a qualitative investigation that provide some of the first detailed information from the caregiver’s perspective about utilizing hippotherapy for children with a wide range of needs. In contrast to prior studies that focused primarily on the benefits of hippotherapy for children with cerebral palsy (CP) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD), this study included children with a broader range of congenital disord…
The relationship of spirituality and empathy to attitudes towards addiction
While negative attitudes within the social work community toward clients struggling with addiction may not be ubiquitous, there is evidence that such attitudes remain problematic. Interestingly, there is very little research available concerning factors that may be involved with these adverse attitudes. While extant research suggests social workers demonstrate low empathy toward clients with a Substance Use Disorder (SUD), there is little empiric…
Reconceptualizing the U.S. Military’s Transition Assistance Program
This article describes and proposes the Success in Transition Model as a guiding framework for a reconceptualized Transition Assistance Program (TAP) to support U.S. military members as they leave the service. Key groups of veterans have ongoing difficulties adjusting to civilian settings after their time in the service. Even with recent changes, the current TAP has a narrow focus of primarily aiding members to prepare for finding post-military e…
Outcomes of Participation in a Service Dog Training Program for Veterans with PTSD
Canine-assisted interventions have emerged as an increasingly popular means to engage and assist veterans coping with military-associated trauma responses. The present study evaluates the use of a 14-week service dog training program for these trauma-impacted veterans. The service dog program guides veterans in small group cohorts on how to train their own dog to be their personal service animal. All 71 veterans participating in this investigatio…
Trauma informed care with military populations
Many of the most challenging issues military members and their families are facing are trauma related. Agencies and treatment providers working with military members and their families should be able to recognize and respond to symptoms based on a trauma informed care perspective. This article describes frequent trauma responses found in this population and how to assess these reactions. It explores and endorses a Trauma-informed care treatment f…
Managing the results trap
The results trap happens when social workers believe they are responsible for and/or that they have control over the outcomes of their clients. This article explains the etiology and signs of the results trap along with highlighting how it can impair a social worker’s practice as it fosters stress and burnout. The article explores how a spiritual-based examination of practice perspectives and self-care can help practitioners avoid or limit the im…
Perceptions of a Military Social Work Specialization Certificate Program
Military social work certificates, courses, and specializations have emerged to address the need for competent and culturally aware practitioners to serve military and veteran clients. This study evaluates one of these certificate programs surveying 27 previous graduate students and 11 field supervisors affiliated with this program. The majority of the participants endorsed this certificate as a viable means to prepare for practice with these cli…
Effects of an Equine-Assisted Therapy Program for Military Veterans with Self-Reported PTSD
This study evaluated the use of an 8-week Equine Assisted Activities and Therapy ( EAAT ) program for trauma-impacted veterans. There were 48 participants. EAAT programs have emerged as one alternative intervention for veterans who may have declined or dropped out of more traditional research-supported approaches. The EAAT program examined here incorporates CPT techniques in conjunction with guided interactions with horses. Program completers rep…
A Model for Assessing the Impact of Combat-Related Deployments on U.S. Army Spouses
Cognitive appraisal and coping theory were used to examine parental stress, family stress, and personal stress among wives of deployed soldiers. A random sample of wives of U.S. Army personnel deployed to Iraq provided evidence that length of deployment, rank of deployed soldier, and number of previous deployments, impacted these wives during deployments. Results suggest that rank of deployed soldiers and number of deployments influenced the spou…
Problem-based Learning Strategies for Teaching Military Social Work Practice Behaviors
This article outlines and evaluates a military social work course as it has been taught by three social work faculty members at two universities in the southeastern US. The authors highlight why these courses are needed within social work undergraduate and graduate programs. They report how CSWE-identified military practice behaviors are addressed within the course. They also describe how practice-based learning approaches appear to be ideally su…
Harnessing the senga institution of adolescent sex education for the control of HIV and STDs in rural Uganda
Senga (father's sister) is a traditional channel of communication about sexual behaviour for adolescent females in rural Uganda. We evaluated a modification of this approach as an intervention for HIV and STDs in a pilot study in two intervention villages and one control village over 12 months. Eleven adult women and three adolescent girls were chosen and trained to become sengas. Adolescent girls were encouraged to visit the sengas for sexual he…
Children Caught in the Conflict
Communities throughout the U.S. are increasingly concerned about the negative impact of divorce on children and their families. This article reviews the literature reporting research on the effectiveness of court-endorsed divorce parenting education programs that have arisen as a community-based format to address these concerns. Findings from 19 descriptive and initial explanatory research articles are discussed. Despite their increasing populari…
Traditional sex counselling and STI/HIV prevention among young women in rural Uganda
This study examined the potential of traditional ways of passing on sexual knowledge from adult to younger women (the senga institution) among the Baganda of central Uganda, as a potential tool for STI/HIV prevention today. Traditional and contemporary forms of the institution were studied, and their strengths and weaknesses assessed. Data were collected using qualitative research methods. The senga institution comprises four components: Social r…
Sexual networks in Uganda
A longitudinal study of the sexual behaviour of high-risk men and women living in a trading town on the trans-Africa highway showed that distinct sexual networks operated within the town. Forty-eight prostitutes kept daily records for 6 months of all their sexual contacts including the occupation and place of residence of each client and the price paid. Details of 4573 sexual contacts of the women were recorded. Three classes of women were identi…
Women's groups and individual entrepreneurs
This study is based on interviews conducted among 8 women's income-generating groups and 12 individual women entrepreneurs in 15 villages in Masaka district, Uganda. The Baganda are the main tribe in the study villages. The study evaluates the economic achievement, objectives, and social characteristics of the groups. Groups ranged in size from 9-20 members. All had functioned for 3-5 years. A regular membership fee was paid through the sale of a…
The impact of Covid-19 on first responders' resilience and attachment
COVID-19 continues to have a deleterious impact on vulnerable populations in our society, and unfortunately, first responders are often overlooked in this conversation. To address that gap, we retrospectively compared routinely collected baseline assessment data from 69 treatment-seeking first responders who presented for treatment before COVID-19 to data collected from 75 similar first responders at the same agency during the pandemic. Data asse…
Trauma informed care with military populations
Many of the most challenging issues military members and their families are facing are trauma related. Agencies and treatment providers working with military members and their families should be able to recognize and respond to symptoms based on a trauma informed care perspective. This article describes frequent trauma responses found in this population and how to assess these reactions. It explores and endorses a Trauma-informed care treatment f…
Women's groups and individual entrepreneurs
This study is based on interviews conducted among 8 women's income-generating groups and 12 individual women entrepreneurs in 15 villages in Masaka district, Uganda. The Baganda are the main tribe in the study villages. The study evaluates the economic achievement, objectives, and social characteristics of the groups. Groups ranged in size from 9-20 members. All had functioned for 3-5 years. A regular membership fee was paid through the sale of a…
A Model for Assessing the Impact of Combat-Related Deployments on U.S. Army Spouses
Cognitive appraisal and coping theory were used to examine parental stress, family stress, and personal stress among wives of deployed soldiers. A random sample of wives of U.S. Army personnel deployed to Iraq provided evidence that length of deployment, rank of deployed soldier, and number of previous deployments, impacted these wives during deployments. Results suggest that rank of deployed soldiers and number of deployments influenced the spou…
Problem-based Learning Strategies for Teaching Military Social Work Practice Behaviors
This article outlines and evaluates a military social work course as it has been taught by three social work faculty members at two universities in the southeastern US. The authors highlight why these courses are needed within social work undergraduate and graduate programs. They report how CSWE-identified military practice behaviors are addressed within the course. They also describe how practice-based learning approaches appear to be ideally su…
Women's groups and individual entrepreneurs
This study is based on interviews conducted among 8 women's income-generating groups and 12 individual women entrepreneurs in 15 villages in Masaka district, Uganda. The Baganda are the main tribe in the study villages. The study evaluates the economic achievement, objectives, and social characteristics of the groups. Groups ranged in size from 9-20 members. All had functioned for 3-5 years. A regular membership fee was paid through the sale of a…
Sexual networks in Uganda
A longitudinal study of the sexual behaviour of high-risk men and women living in a trading town on the trans-Africa highway showed that distinct sexual networks operated within the town. Forty-eight prostitutes kept daily records for 6 months of all their sexual contacts including the occupation and place of residence of each client and the price paid. Details of 4573 sexual contacts of the women were recorded. Three classes of women were identi…
Traditional sex counselling and STI/HIV prevention among young women in rural Uganda
This study examined the potential of traditional ways of passing on sexual knowledge from adult to younger women (the senga institution) among the Baganda of central Uganda, as a potential tool for STI/HIV prevention today. Traditional and contemporary forms of the institution were studied, and their strengths and weaknesses assessed. Data were collected using qualitative research methods. The senga institution comprises four components: Social r…
Children Caught in the Conflict
Communities throughout the U.S. are increasingly concerned about the negative impact of divorce on children and their families. This article reviews the literature reporting research on the effectiveness of court-endorsed divorce parenting education programs that have arisen as a community-based format to address these concerns. Findings from 19 descriptive and initial explanatory research articles are discussed. Despite their increasing populari…
Harnessing the senga institution of adolescent sex education for the control of HIV and STDs in rural Uganda
Senga (father's sister) is a traditional channel of communication about sexual behaviour for adolescent females in rural Uganda. We evaluated a modification of this approach as an intervention for HIV and STDs in a pilot study in two intervention villages and one control village over 12 months. Eleven adult women and three adolescent girls were chosen and trained to become sengas. Adolescent girls were encouraged to visit the sengas for sexual he…
Problem-based Learning Strategies for Teaching Military Social Work Practice Behaviors
This article outlines and evaluates a military social work course as it has been taught by three social work faculty members at two universities in the southeastern US. The authors highlight why these courses are needed within social work undergraduate and graduate programs. They report how CSWE-identified military practice behaviors are addressed within the course. They also describe how practice-based learning approaches appear to be ideally su…
A Model for Assessing the Impact of Combat-Related Deployments on U.S. Army Spouses
Cognitive appraisal and coping theory were used to examine parental stress, family stress, and personal stress among wives of deployed soldiers. A random sample of wives of U.S. Army personnel deployed to Iraq provided evidence that length of deployment, rank of deployed soldier, and number of previous deployments, impacted these wives during deployments. Results suggest that rank of deployed soldiers and number of deployments influenced the spou…
Managing the results trap
The results trap happens when social workers believe they are responsible for and/or that they have control over the outcomes of their clients. This article explains the etiology and signs of the results trap along with highlighting how it can impair a social worker’s practice as it fosters stress and burnout. The article explores how a spiritual-based examination of practice perspectives and self-care can help practitioners avoid or limit the im…
Perceptions of a Military Social Work Specialization Certificate Program
Military social work certificates, courses, and specializations have emerged to address the need for competent and culturally aware practitioners to serve military and veteran clients. This study evaluates one of these certificate programs surveying 27 previous graduate students and 11 field supervisors affiliated with this program. The majority of the participants endorsed this certificate as a viable means to prepare for practice with these cli…
Effects of an Equine-Assisted Therapy Program for Military Veterans with Self-Reported PTSD
This study evaluated the use of an 8-week Equine Assisted Activities and Therapy ( EAAT ) program for trauma-impacted veterans. There were 48 participants. EAAT programs have emerged as one alternative intervention for veterans who may have declined or dropped out of more traditional research-supported approaches. The EAAT program examined here incorporates CPT techniques in conjunction with guided interactions with horses. Program completers rep…
Reconceptualizing the U.S. Military’s Transition Assistance Program
This article describes and proposes the Success in Transition Model as a guiding framework for a reconceptualized Transition Assistance Program (TAP) to support U.S. military members as they leave the service. Key groups of veterans have ongoing difficulties adjusting to civilian settings after their time in the service. Even with recent changes, the current TAP has a narrow focus of primarily aiding members to prepare for finding post-military e…
Outcomes of Participation in a Service Dog Training Program for Veterans with PTSD
Canine-assisted interventions have emerged as an increasingly popular means to engage and assist veterans coping with military-associated trauma responses. The present study evaluates the use of a 14-week service dog training program for these trauma-impacted veterans. The service dog program guides veterans in small group cohorts on how to train their own dog to be their personal service animal. All 71 veterans participating in this investigatio…
Trauma informed care with military populations
Many of the most challenging issues military members and their families are facing are trauma related. Agencies and treatment providers working with military members and their families should be able to recognize and respond to symptoms based on a trauma informed care perspective. This article describes frequent trauma responses found in this population and how to assess these reactions. It explores and endorses a Trauma-informed care treatment f…
Caregiver perceptions of the benefits of hippotherapy for children with various disorders, disabilities, and medical conditions
This article describes the findings of a qualitative investigation that provide some of the first detailed information from the caregiver’s perspective about utilizing hippotherapy for children with a wide range of needs. In contrast to prior studies that focused primarily on the benefits of hippotherapy for children with cerebral palsy (CP) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD), this study included children with a broader range of congenital disord…
The relationship of spirituality and empathy to attitudes towards addiction
While negative attitudes within the social work community toward clients struggling with addiction may not be ubiquitous, there is evidence that such attitudes remain problematic. Interestingly, there is very little research available concerning factors that may be involved with these adverse attitudes. While extant research suggests social workers demonstrate low empathy toward clients with a Substance Use Disorder (SUD), there is little empiric…
Attachment-Based Relationship Satisfaction in Deployed and Non-Deployed Military Veterans with Prevalent PTSD, Anxiety, and Depression
After almost two decades of war, unprecedented operational tempos have remained high for the American military. This has left those on the home front (non-deploying veterans) a little behind since scholarship has mostly focused on veterans who have deployed. This study used a voluntary treatment-seeking sample of veterans who have not deployed (n = 49) and veterans who have deployed (n = 68) to address this gap in the literature. This study exami…
The impact of Covid-19 on first responders' resilience and attachment
COVID-19 continues to have a deleterious impact on vulnerable populations in our society, and unfortunately, first responders are often overlooked in this conversation. To address that gap, we retrospectively compared routinely collected baseline assessment data from 69 treatment-seeking first responders who presented for treatment before COVID-19 to data collected from 75 similar first responders at the same agency during the pandemic. Data asse…
Understanding Strategies for Matching Service Dogs to Military Veterans With PTSD
Using a multiple case study design, we sought to understand existing matching strategies used to pair service dogs with US military veterans dealing with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Three different US-based service dog agencies (one large, one midsize, and one small) participated, allowing the principal investigator to conduct in-depth interviews with agency staff and leaders to understand and observe their matching/pairing practices. P…
Psychology (17 works) · Medicine (13 works) · Political science (9 works) · Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Research (8 works) · Psychiatry (6 works) · Social Psychology (6 works) · Clinical Psychology (5 works) · Clinical Psychology (5 works) · Engineering (5 works) · Social Psychology (5 works)