Connecting Knowledge with Research in Case Studies Tolulope Moses 6200 WEEK 8 Assignment Connecting Knowledge with Research in Case Studies Introduction One of the core elements of social work is the comprehensive assessment of a situation in a case which aids in developing effective interventions. In this regard, the understanding and application of knowledge are imperative in making the most profound decisions. In cases involving adolescents, among the most important knowledge is that on human behavior and social environment which is described as understanding how people relate to their environment including social interactions and relationships. According to Zastrow and Kirst-Ashman (2016), it is important to set realistic goals with the client consistent with the needs and requirements while applying obtained knowledge to implement the developed interventions. This paper entails a case study on Eboni Logan, proposed goals, and relating it with a peer-reviewed article. Eboni Logan Case The case used in this project is that of Eboni Logan, a 16-year-old biracial African American/Caucasian female who is two months pregnant. Eboni lives with her mother Darlene, and grandmother, May. She has been working at a fast food restaurant for 10 hours per week. Eboni has a boyfriend named Darian with whom they have been engaging in sexual activities without contraceptives. Both Eboni and Darian have no criminal records nor do they manifest alcohol or drug abuse although they take these elements occasionally. While Eboni’s mother works as an administrative assistant at a local manufacturing company, her father is a mechanic who supports Ebony through social and financial wellbeing. Eboni has recently learned she is pregnant, an aspect that introduces a number of problems for her and the social environment. Case Problems The case problems involve Eboni’s pregnancy. First, all her social environment including the grandmother and mother are upset with the situation. Her mother in particular hurled insults while calling her a slut. Her father was also upset although he agreed to provide her with a place to stay. The first challenge in this regard entails the broken relationship with her social environment and especially her mother. The second challenge is that Darian, who is the child’s father, states that he is not ready to support the baby and although he has not mentioned it explicitly, he prefers an abortion which Eboni does not want. The issue in this regard is how Eboni will nature her pregnancy and the baby yet she is still an adolescent and at school which might be forced to terminate for the moment. In addition, it may be worrying about how she will live with her father and stepmother considering the situation. Goals The goals, in this case, are informed by the above-identified problems and Eboni as the main client in the situation. The first goal would entail re-establishing the relationship with her social environme ...

1. Connecting Knowledge with Research in Case Studies
Tolulope Moses
6200 WEEK 8 Assignment
Connecting Knowledge with Research in Case Studies
Introduction
One of the core elements of social work is the comprehensive
assessment of a situation in a case which aids in developing
effective interventions. In this regard, the understanding and
application of knowledge are imperative in making the most
profound decisions. In cases involving adolescents, among the
most important knowledge is that on human behavior and social
environment which is described as understanding how people
relate to their environment including social interactions and
relationships. According to Zastrow and Kirst-Ashman (2016),
it is important to set realistic goals with the client consistent
with the needs and requirements while applying obtained
knowledge to implement the developed interventions. This
paper entails a case study on Eboni Logan, proposed goals, and
relating it with a peer-reviewed article.
Eboni Logan Case
The case used in this project is that of Eboni Logan, a 16-year-
old biracial African American/Caucasian female who is two
months pregnant. Eboni lives with her mother Darlene, and
grandmother, May. She has been working at a fast food
restaurant for 10 hours per week. Eboni has a boyfriend named
Darian with whom they have been engaging in sexual activities
without contraceptives. Both Eboni and Darian have no criminal

2. records nor do they manifest alcohol or drug abuse although
they take these elements occasionally. While Eboni’s mother
works as an administrative assistant at a local manufacturing
company, her father is a mechanic who supports Ebony through
social and financial wellbeing. Eboni has recently learned she is
pregnant, an aspect that introduces a number of problems for
her and the social environment.
Case Problems
The case problems involve Eboni’s pregnancy. First, all her
social environment including the grandmother and mother are
upset with the situation. Her mother in particular hurled insults
while calling her a slut. Her father was also upset although he
agreed to provide her with a place to stay. The first challenge in
this regard entails the broken relationship with her social
environment and especially her mother. The second challenge is
that Darian, who is the child’s father, states that he is not ready
to support the baby and although he has not mentioned it
explicitly, he prefers an abortion which Eboni does not want.
The issue in this regard is how Eboni will nature her pregnancy
and the baby yet she is still an adolescent and at school which
might be forced to terminate for the moment. In addition, it may
be worrying about how she will live with her father and
stepmother considering the situation.
Goals
The goals, in this case, are informed by the above-identified
problems and Eboni as the main client in the situation. The first
goal would entail re-establishing the relationship with her social
environment including her mother and grandmother who are
upset by the pregnancy. This would not only give her peace of
mind but also ensure they support her fully throughout the
pregnancy and until she delivers. The second goal would be to
convince Darian on the importance of not terminating the
pregnancy and establishing ways through which they can

3. support the child after being born. This would ensure both
Eboni and Darian work towards the set intervention strategies
on how to deal with the pregnancy and cope with the situation
especially since they are all adolescents (Melchert, 2015).
Among the strategies include getting support from the parents
and grandparents until Eboni and Darian can support
themselves.
Peer Reviewed Article
The article by Asheer, Berger, Mechstroth, Kisker, & Keating
(2014) draws information from current and ongoing approaches
for Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention. This aims at discussing
early implementation experiences of new programs that are
intended to reduce recurrent pregnancy among teenage mothers.
In addition, these programs inform on how to relate with teen
mothers, challenges associated with their participation, and the
overarching service needs which reflect in Eboni’s case.
Notably, the knowledge can be used to assess and engage Eboni
and her social environment. The implications and contribution
to practice from this article involve policymakers, researchers,
and practitioners working in an effort to provide better services
to teenage mothers that are challenging to reach and are at high
risk of challenging health outcomes and living under extreme
conditions. Through understanding these problems as identified
in the article, it would be easy to develop intervention strategies
and goals that relate to Eboni’s case.
Ethnocentrism and Racism
One of the apparent facts in Eboni’s case is that the issues of
culture and race may come to play and affect the case either
positively or negatively. This, however, depends on the
perceptions of the involved individuals. Eboni is biracial, and
while her parents may in the long run cope with the situation,
the relationship with the boyfriend may be challenging as he is
African American (Cristol & Gimbert, 2008). This may

4. especially be the case with the dad who is Caucasian. Besides
the racial aspect, both the African American and Caucasian
cultures may differ in a number of ways which may affect the
relationships between the different stakeholders. As suggested
by Patcher, Szalacha, Bernstein and Garcia Coil (2010),
understanding the different cultures and how they relate to the
situation is essential in developing effective intervention
strategies.
Conclusion
In social work, among the important elements is relating
research with actual practice. This entails the use of theoretical
knowledge regarding a subject and how it relates to a particular
situation. The above case study involves Eboni who is a
pregnant teen. To examine the situation, it is essential to relate
current knowledge with the case such as human behavior and
social environment concepts. With the goals involving re-
establishing the relationship with the parent and working
towards growing the pregnancy and the child, it is essential to
consider the aspects of ethnocentrism and racism as they relate
to the situation.
References
Asheer, S., Berger, A., Meckstroth, A., Kisker, E., & Keating,
B. (2014). Engaging pregnant and parenting teens: Early
challenges and lessons learned from the evaluation of
adolescent pregnancy prevention approaches. Journal of
Adolescent Health, 54(3), S84-S91.
Cristol, D., & Gimbert, B. (2008). Racial perceptions of young
children: A review of literature post-1999. Early Childhood
Education Journal, 36(2), 201–207.
Melchert, T. P. (2015). Treatment planning. In Biopsychosocial
practice: A science-based framework for behavioral health.

5. Washington, District of Columbia: American Psychological
Association.
Patcher, L. M., Szalacha, L. A., Bernstein, B., & Garcia Coil, C.
(2010). Perceptions of racism in children and youth: Properties
as a self-report instrument for research on children’s health and
development. Ethnicity & Health, 15(1), 33–46.
Zastrow, C. H., & Kirst-Ashman, K. K. (2016). Understanding
human behavior and the social environment (10th ed.). Boston,
MA: Cengage Learning. Chapter 5 (pp. 254-294)
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