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Statement of the problem: Burnout is a phenomenon of nowadays societies. It involves high levels of physical, mental and emotional exhaustion, and it endorses negative attitudes towards work. Giving the scarce empirical research on this topic, the current study aims at identifying the main features and types of burnout experienced by a sample of Romanian helping professionals. Method: 400 professionals delivering social, medical or educational services filled the Burnout measure, split into four groups: social workers, psychologists, medical staff and educators. Results: Males were significantly different from females in burnout, with males displaying higher levels of professional exhaustion. Social workers proved to be the professional category with the highest degree of burnout (both general and sub-types), but the differences are significant only if compared to educators. Psychologists also declare emotional exhaustion, and medical staff mental exhaustion. Educators seem to be the category with the lowest scores, which points out that they do not experience work burnout as often as other professional categories. Discussion: Burnout is a social problem that has serious consequences. Institutions delivering social services should invest more in the work environment that may help employees deal with their growing job demands.
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The growing cultural diversity in Israel makes it imperative for health care providers to communicate efficiently with culturally diverse patients and their families. Trans-cultural nursing theories offer an efficient tool in the provision of cultural congruent nursing care. Since nurses have the most intimate connection with patients it is essential for them to know about their cultural background in order to provide individualized and holistic care based on the patient's cultural needs. Hence, this paper discuses trans-cultural issues and theories with the aim to increase nurses' awareness of cultural differences and become knowledgeable about the cultural preferences of their patients.
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Every year in Romania, a significant number of children fall victim to different forms of exploitation – of which labor exploitation is not excluded. Not all work performed by children may be considered labor exploitation. Children’s work can be defined using criteria such as age, duration and type of economic activity. Light work is globally recognized as an activity suitable to be performed by children, while heavy work – and especially forced labor – is part of human trafficking. Child selling and forced labors are regarded as human trafficking, regardless of the location where the exploitation takes place.
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Within development practice, there is quite a consistent attention towards the empowerment of excluded or marginalised categories, and the concept has known an ascending trend among practitioners of social work. However, oftentimes there seems to be a certain taken-for-grantedness of the concept. How to operationalise empowerment? How do we measure the degree of empowerment of a group, and at what level? When do the “powerless” become truly empowered? When can we say that an intervention has succeeded in empowering a group? The arguments of the paper draw on a case study: the project “Empowering Roma communities in influencing and monitoring local agendas in Romania”, implemented in 2008-2010 by Impreuna Agency for Community Development in about 100 of the most marginalised Roma communities in Romania, and will try to propose answers to the previous questions. After a brief description of the project and its context, we will present the methodology of the intervention within the framework of community development practice, stressing a few of the elements which helped foster empowerment and focusing on the case of the Roma in Romania. In the second part, we will present the framework for measuring empowerment at the grassroots level, alongside several axes: (self-) perception, capacity of mobilisation, type of interest pursued, group vision, achievements. Finally, we will present the results of the measuring framework put to use in the case of the aforementioned project, and use them to draw attention to the possible pitfalls and difficulties of measurement which can arise.
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Transition to adulthood is a continuous process grounded in the daily choices youth make regarding the focusing of their energies across the multiple social contexts of family, peers, school, work or romance. This current examines future family-related plans adolescents might have on the verge of exiting high school and its relation to their self-confidence, family, peer group and teacher support. An online survey was administrated to 3524 XIIth graders. Results suggest that adolescents with high levels of support from their peers are more likely to plan moving with the partner, getting married or having a child in the near future. The level of family support is related to the likelihood of plan moving with the partner or getting married, while self confidence is a significant discriminant for having a child. These preliminary findings suggest that there are areas of concern that should be addressed through programs to prepare youth for specific adult transitions and roles. Follow up and longitudinal studies are suggested.
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This article aims to analyze, in a concise manner, some developments in the field of probation in terms of assisting and controlling persons in conflict with the criminal law. Our approach is mainly focused on the analysis of above mentioned phenomena mainly in Anglo-Saxon countries such as Canada, USA and the UK, countries with a relevant tradition in community treatment of offenders. Starting initially as an activity carried out on a voluntary basis, with a strong moral and religious foundation, focused primarily on assisting offenders, probation would be integrated into the criminal justice system. Subsequently with this transition we noticed a phenomenon of professionalization of staff, an abandonment of old missionary practices and integration in probation practice of some developments of disciplines in the fields of Humanities: sociology, psychology and social work. Also another phenomenon that can be observed is the strengthening of the control role of criminals carried out by probation services, and even a lesser importance placed on its rehabilitation activities, particularly as a result of some factors in relation to political decisions. Despite these developments, the practice and research still are focused on identifying effective ways to rehabilitate the persons supervised by probation services.
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This study focuses on the closed community of prisoners and the relationship those who are imprisoned have with their families and other significant individuals. In this analysis, we have aimed at highlighting the factors that influence the relationship between convicts and their families, as well as legislation aspects which facilitate or, on the contrary, hinder this relationship. The first part is focused on theoretical aspects concerning families and the world of the incarcerated persons, whereas the second part presents certain statistical data providing fact-recording support to the information presented and good practice examples. Finally, the analysis identifies the factors influencing the relationship between imprisoned individuals and their families. The entire undertaking gives the topic a new nuance, due to the fact that, as a rule, research in the domain is hindered by the rigid nature of the institutions the convicts go through from sentencing to release.
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This paper presents the results of a qualitative study that illustrates how social workers experience stress and burnout at the workplace. The participants in this study were 18 social workers employed in state institutions and NGOs in Oradea. The results show that, according to respondents, the main factors that explain burnout are: heavy caseloads, time constraints, the categories of clients with whom they work, limitations of social work interventions, lack of appreciation and reward for their work, lack of support from supervisors and colleagues, the lack of involvement in family life. The symptoms most commonly present in the case of social workers who experience burnout were: emotional and physical exhaustion, feeling overwhelmed, sleep disorders, impatience, giving up leisure activities, diminished motivation and job satisfaction. In order to prevent burnout, the solutions given by participants in the study aimed in particular at reducing workload, better time management, team cohesion support, an adequate reward for one's work, good organizational communication, supervision, opportunities for professional development. The paper concludes with a discussion of the practical implications of the results, presenting the study limitations and directions for future research.
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This article is a review of the main research and studies on human-animal bond (in particular, on pets) and is focused on three levels: 1) the importance of companionship, 2) pet loss and grief, and 3) some concluding remarks regarding the cruelty against companion animals. Also implications of pet loss counseling from the social work perspective are discussed.
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Studies in general populations of children bring strong evidence that attachment patterns in the absence of major changes in life are relatively stable over time (Waters et al, 2000). Also, other research, like Iwaniec and Sneddon (2001), Melhuish (1993) points out that for many maltreated children removal from biological families and placement in family foster care (change of parental care) contribute to changes in attachment patern (from insecure attachment® secure attachment). Children entering foster care system face the difficult task of forming new attachments to foster parents and when they are placed much later after birth, the risk of developing insecure attachments is high, on the one hand as a result of previous experiences of bad care and, on the other hand, because of the characteristics of the current placement. Method: investigation of attachment in children/youth in placement foster care was made with a specific instrument, through semi-tructured interview Friends and Family Interview (FFI, Steele, Steele, 2009). This interview (FFI), provides categories of attachment representations in childhood/adolescence, focusing on aspects of coherence in children's relationships with others. There were evaluated with this instrument a sample of 92 children in foster care, 48 boys and 44 girls aged 6 to 18 years. Results: results of the present research demonstrates that many of these children and youth reflects history of insecure attachment patterns in relationship with foster parents. Conclusions: celerity is required both in the adoption process and in the distribution of children in foster families to ensure them the opportunity to develop secure attachments, to enjoy the benefits of family environment and thus to prevent the social and emotional risks associated with insecure attachments.
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On 7 February, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán spoke before the European Parliament in Strasbourg – at his own request – to explain his government’s policies and face MEPs’ questions. This followed a previous appearance in January 2011, during which he came under sustained attack. This time, he and his supporters from the European People’s Party were better prepared.
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In Hungary, for many years after 1948, it was not possible to write or speak about Raoul Wallenberg in public. In November 1984, I broke the taboo for the first time with an article entitled “The politics of saving lives”, published in the Hungarian cultural weekly Élet és Irodalom. Naturally, the legendary Swedish diplomat and his activities in 1944 were widely known in Hungary, primarily due to Jenô Lévai’s book. Thanks to Radio Free Europe and other Western radio stations, Hungarians also knew what happened to Wallenberg after members of the Soviet secret police kidnapped him in Budapest on 17 January 1945, and transported him to Moscow.
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The 43rd Hungarian Film Week almost did not happen. After it was made clear that no state funding had been set aside for the event, filmmakers resigned themselves to the fact that it would be the first year since 1991 that they would not be able to debut their films before a home audience. The Hungarian film industry, after all, has been in financial and political disarray for the past two years.
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Does a Roma philosophy exist? Many would not hesitate to answer “no”. Others declare that such a philosophy probably does exist, and would want to know more about it, but find it impossible to get access to it. I often receive requests in this sense, but until now I have not produced an acceptable definition. Advancements in knowledge are fueled by natural human curiosity. The ancient Greeks began the study which we call philosophy. According to Spengler (The Decline of the West, Perspectives of World History, Introduction), the ancient Greeks also possessed some knowledge in natural sciences and astronomy, yet were unable to situate it, because they did not have that large scale world view that is given in the “higher culture” that underlies Western civilization. The beginnings of knowledge in the natural sciences are connected to Copernicus and Galileo, whose achievements were followed by a growing specialization. Even today, new, hitherto unexplored branches of knowledge are emerging, drawing our attention to ever newer mysteries of the natural world.
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Today is the beginning of a series of events in Hungary and Sweden accompanying the commemorative year, organized by the two countries to honour a person whose memory constitutes one of the most important symbolic links between our two nations. We remember the Swedish diplomat who saved tens of thousands of our Hungarian Jewish compatriots during the times of the terrible tragedy of the Holocaust. Therefore allow me first to greet among us Mr Carl Bildt, the head of Swedish diplomacy.
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