Summer Research Internship for students: poverty and adolescent behavior

Posted by on March 18, 2005

The Institute for Social Science Research (ISSR) at the University of Alabama is offering a summer research internship for students interested in studying neighborhood poverty and its impact on adolescent behavior. Students who participate in the internship, which is in its 8th year, will conduct a survey of adolescents living in public housing and other very low-income neighborhoods in Mobile and Prichard, Alabama. This longitudinal survey, which has been administered annually since 1998 and has been funded by the National Institute for Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), the National Institute for Drug Abuse (NIDA), and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), addresses challenges that young people face as they grow up in impoverished neighborhoods, including violence, alcohol and drug use, sexual behavior, the development of self-esteem and a sense of the future, and family dynamics.

We are soliciting applications from students who would like to participate in this unique learning experience. Interns, who may be either undergraduate or graduate students, will be required to live in Mobile between May 16, 2005 and August 5, 2005. The first week, they will receive rigorous training for the project, including how to recruit research participants, interviewing, and the general conduct of field research. Following training, they will go out in the field; their work will involve door-to-door recruitment of survey participants (to obtain parental permission and informed consent and to schedule a survey time), documentation of the recruitment efforts, and data collection (through administration of the survey in both group and individual settings).

Each student who participates will receive a stipend ($6.50 per hour) to cover living expenses, and three course credits. General work hours are between 9:00 AM and 6:00 PM, with some limited weekend work required. We will accept 15-20 student interns into the program. In the past, we have accepted students from a variety of social science and related disciplines, including Criminal Justice, Psychology, Sociology, Social Work, Political Science, Human Development, African American Studies, Women’s Studies, and Education. All interns will have access to data that are generated for academic purposes. Three students have completed masters theses using these data, and one other used the data for a doctoral dissertation. Internship applicants should have good communication skills, be able to work well in a team setting, and be sensitive to issues of race and poverty.

We would also like to recruit faculty in the social sciences and related fields to participate in this program. Each participating faculty will work with students and participate in the data collection process. Faculty will also have access to the data for the purpose of writing manuscripts (with appropriate coauthorship opportunities for ISSR staff) and grant proposals. Participating faculty during previous years have been affiliated with Political Science, Social Work, Public Health, Psychology, Nursing, Anthropology, English, and Education.

For more information, please contact John Bolland (telephone number, e-mail address, and address is listed below). Interested students should send a note indicating their interest and a resume (with names of three references) by April 1, 2005. Interested faculty should contact me at your earliest convenience.

John M. Bolland
Institute for Social Science Research
Box 870216
University of Alabama
Tuscaloosa, AL 35487-0216
(205) 348-3821
jbolland@bama.ua.edu