This paper presents the findings from an innovative project in which people with mental illness were incorporated in the classroom setting of social work students in Israel. This project was based on a model that was defined as "Structured Dialogue." Its objective was to create opportunities for students to relate to persons with mental illness in a less stigmatic and more hopeful way. One hundred and eighty five students participated in this evaluation that was conducted in fifteen social work classes. The findings indicate the potential of the Structured Dialogue model to eliminate the one-dimensional representation of people with mental illness and change preexisting stereotypes and stigma with which the students came to the meetings. Implications for training future mental health professionals are discussed.

Aims and objectives To examine professional stigma and attitudes of parenthood towards postpartum women with severe mental illness and the association between postpartum nurses’ attitudes and nursing interventions that promote motherhood. Background Stigma and attitudes towards parenthood of women with severe mental illness may influence nurses’ clinical practices. Design Cross‐sectional, mixed methods. Methods The Stigma among Health Professionals towards People with Severe Mental Illness, Attitudes towards Parenthood among People with Severe Mental Illness and Nursing Interventions that Promote Becoming a Mother Questionnaires were used in the study, as well as qualitative analysis. Results Sixty‐one postpartum nurses participated in the study. Increased stigma was associated with an increase in negative attitudes towards parenthood among people with severe mental illness, in general, and towards their parenthood skills, in particular. Postpartum nurses reported a decrease in nursing interventions and a therapeutic nurse–client relationship that fosters mother's empowerment. Themes that emerged from the qualitative analysis were postpartum nurse's perceptions of inadequacy, difficulty of postpartum nurses taking responsibility for managing women with severe mental illness and a paternalistic approach to these women, rather than empowerment, regarding infant care. Conclusion Nurses providing care to postpartum women with severe mental illness and their infants may provide fewer routine postpartum interventions due to professional stigma and negative attitudes concerning parenting skills. Nurses should provide individualised, tailored care that allows women with severe mental illness to become a mother to the best of her ability. Relevance to clinical practice Not all women with severe mental illness are capable of caring for themselves and/or their baby. Nurses should provide individualised, tailored care that allows the women with severe mental illness to become a mother to the best of her ability.

The role of cultural dynamics and norms within families of persons with mental illness has been an underexplored subject, although the familial context has been recognized as influential. This subject was studied with 24 ultra-Orthodox Jewish mothers of persons with mental illness who live in a relatively closed religious community. While participating in the Keshet educational program designed for family caregivers in mental health, they wrote Meaningful Interactional Life Episodes that involved a dialogue exchange in their lives. Qualitative analysis of 50 episodes illuminates the significant role that religious and cultural norms have in the perceptions of what are considered stressors and the dynamics in these families surrounding these stressors. The necessity and value of incorporating cultural competence into family educational programs and interventions is emphasized, as this may contribute to the potential use and success of mental health service models within a population that essentially underutilizes these services.

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Religion is a dimension that can have a significant effect on child-rearing beliefs and parenting behaviors, and consequently on parents' approach toward child maltreatment. This potential effect can be explained by Kohn's (1963) hypothesis about the relationship between values, a significant component of religion, and child-rearing practices. This subject has been examined in a study that was the first of its kind on ultra-orthodox Jewish families in Israel. The findings provide preliminary knowledge on the major influence that the religious dimension and its related collectivist norms have in this area. A semi-structured questionnaire, which included fourteen vignettes of abuse and neglect situations, was utilized to interview fifty families. The findings indicate that the rationale given by parents for their expectations from children and their perceptions of which child-rearing practices are acceptable and which are not were based mainly on religious values and norms. Religion also has an effect on whom the families are willing to involve and to what extent. These results emphasize the necessity for cultural sensitivity when working with families in their own social context when child maltreatment has occurred.

Within closed communities there can be scarcity of resources to deal with severe individual or family difficulties when they arise. In addition, the communities' closed boundaries may create barriers that prevent social services in the broader society from providing needed help. A model that attempts to overcome such barriers was examined in a qualitative study of 21 informal helpers known as askanim in ultra-Orthodox Jewish communities in Canada and Israel. The findings highlight that askanim can play a key role in attempting to resolve problems internally within the community; should this fail, they can then serve as a bridge to the social services in the broader society. In both countries, professionals may approach them if they lack credibility, legitimacy, or information needed to assist families and children within a closed community. This model of collaboration that recognizes the limitations of professionals and the complementary role that resources from the community may have can potentially be applied to work with families and children in other closed communities as well.

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