Dr. Mason has over 20 years of experience in the area of HIV/AIDS as a case manager, educator, residential manager, psychotherapist, group facilitator, program consultant, and researcher. Specializing in services to low-income women, children, and families, she has played an active role in the development and evaluation of services for HIV-affected families in Chicago. In addition to HIV/AIDS, she has special interests in kinship care and child welfare. Her program of research includes the impact of HIV on family systems, most recently examining how parents with HIV and their children are affected by and manage stigma.

Representative Publications

Smithgall, C., Mason, S., Michels, L., LiCalsi, C., & Goerge, R. (accepted pending revisions). Intergenerational and interconnected: Mental health and well-being in grandparent caregiver families. Families in Society.

Mason, S. & Vazquez, D. (2007). Making Positive Changes: A psychoeducational group for parents with HIV/AIDS. Social Work with Groups, 30(2), 27-40.

Mason, S. (2007). Custody planning with HIV-affected families. Health & Social Work, 32(2), 143-146.

Mason, S. & Vazquez, D. (2004). "Making it manageable": Custody planning with HIV-affected families. Journal of HIV/AIDS & Social Services 3(3), 51-63.

Smithgall, C. & Mason, S. (2004). Identified problems and service utilization patterns among kinship families accessing mental health services. Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment, 9(3), 41-55.

Linsk, N. & Mason, S. (2004). Stressors for grandparents and other relatives caring for children affected and orphaned by HIV/AIDS. Health & Social Work, 29(2), 127-136.

Mason, S. (2003). The development of a custody planning program for HIV-affected families. Willinger, B. & Rice, A. (Eds.), A history of AIDS social work in hospitals: A daring response to an epidemic. NY: Haworth, 289-304.

Mason, S. & Linsk, N. (2002). Relative foster parents of HIV-affected children. Child Welfare, 81(4), 541-569.

Mason, S. (2002). The role of community in meeting the needs of African-American HIV-affected families. Journal of HIV/AIDS & Social Services, 1(1), 45-62.

Linsk, N., Poindexter, C., & Mason, S. (2002). Policy implications for HIV-affected older relative caregivers. In Joslin, D. (Ed.), Invisible caregivers: Older adults raising children in the wake of HIV/AIDS. NY: Columbia University, 248-277.

Mason, S. J. & Gleeson, J.P. (1999). Adoption and subsidized guardianship as permanency options in kinship foster care: Barriers and facilitating conditions. In Gleeson, J.P. & Hairston, C. F. (Eds.), Kinship care research: The Jane Addams Connection. Washington, D.C.: Child Welfare League of America, 85-114.