Current practices and the potential for individuals with criminal records to gain qualifications or employment within social work: a scoping review

Purpose: This article presents a scoping review that synthesized empirical studies on simulation in social work (SW) education. The review maps the research examining characteristics of simulation studies in SW education and emerging best practices. Method: Using Arksey and O’Malley’s scoping review framework to develop the methodology and following the PRISMA-ScR checklist, we selected 52 studies for this review. Results: Most studies were published in North America and included quantitative (37%), qualitative (31%), and mixed methods (33%). Simulation was used to teach generalist and specialized practice with interprofessional practice as the highest area of specialization. Simulation was also used for assessment purposes, and the Objective Structured Clinical Examination was a commonly reported method. We identified several facilitators and barriers to using simulation effectively for teaching and assessment. Conclusions: Our analysis permitted us to identify emerging best practices that can be used to guide teaching. Implications for SW research, teaching, and practice are discussed.

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A review of research about the transition from student social worker to practitioner: Exploring diversity

Journal of Social Work ◽

10.1177/1468017319852598 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 20 (6) ◽

pp. 834-857

Author(s):

Lana M Battaglia ◽

Catherine A Flynn

Keyword(s):

Social Work ◽

Social Workers ◽

Scoping Review ◽

Current Knowledge ◽

Student Mobility ◽

Work Practice ◽

Social Work Practice ◽

Early Career ◽

Practice Research ◽

Transition To Practice

Summary With increasing student mobility to and from western host-universities, newly qualified social workers are more likely to enter the field in an unfamiliar context. To examine whether current knowledge appropriately informs education and support for a diversifying cohort of newly qualified social workers in the Australian context, a scoping review was conducted on 53 articles investigating the transition to social work practice. Research conducted over a 45-year period from a broad range of international contexts was included in the review. Findings Findings suggest that current understandings do not reflect the needs or experiences of the present cohort of newly qualified social workers as they transition to social work practice. Rather, study samples, mostly derived from western contexts, are notably homogenous, with most participants described by researchers, as ‘white’. Additionally, there is an assumption that students transition to practice within the same context as their education. Current knowledge therefore does not capture the various ways internationally mobile, newly graduated social workers may transition to practice, or how it is experienced. Applications Findings suggest that further examination is urgently needed on the pathways navigated to practice by diverse and mobile early career social workers. Further consideration of the influences of diversity and mobility on experience is needed, using more inclusive research methods, to capture the variability and complexity of the transition to practice as the profession diversifies and mobilises.

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Working with Restrictions: A Scoping Review of Social Work and Human Service Practice with People Seeking Asylum in the Global North

The British Journal of Social Work ◽

10.1093/bjsw/bcaa006 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Rebecca Soraya Field ◽

Donna Chung ◽

Caroline Fleay

Keyword(s):

Qualitative Research ◽

Social Work ◽

Scoping Review ◽

Human Service ◽

Human Services ◽

Future Research ◽

Refugee Status ◽

Strength Based ◽

Global North ◽

Restrictive Policy

Abstract With a record number of people reported to be forcibly displaced worldwide and an increasingly anti-asylum policy environment in Global North host nations, it is critical to examine social work and human services with people seeking asylum and people with refugee status. This scoping review sought to identify and review the existing qualitative research on such practice from the perspectives of social work and human service practitioners, people seeking asylum and people with refugee status and clients in Global North host nations. The review presents the key findings and trends emerging from twenty publications and identifies areas for future research to further develop knowledge of this field of practice as there is a dearth of research on this topic. Through thematic analysis of very different publications, it was found that Global North host nations have varying forms of restrictive policy and dominant anti-asylum discourses. This and other factors result in many potential areas for improvement of social work and human services. The findings include recommendations for more inclusive and compassionate policy, person-centred and strength-based practice approaches, and further qualitative research with people seeking asylum.

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Building Competence in Practice with the Polyamorous Community: A Scoping Review

Social Work ◽

10.1093/sw/swaa011 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 65 (2) ◽

pp. 188-196

Author(s):

Miriam Israela Laufer Katz ◽

John R Graham

Keyword(s):

Social Work ◽

Scoping Review ◽

Gender And Sexuality ◽

Insecure Attachment ◽

Safe Environment ◽

Social Work Values ◽

Sexual Orientations ◽

Lack Of Commitment ◽

Relationship Styles ◽

Societal Stigma

Abstract The landscape of relationships, gender, and sexuality continues to change rapidly across the world. This includes recognition of relationship styles such as polyamory, in which individuals have multiple romantic relationships with the knowledge and consent of all involved. In the academic literature on polyamory, social work perspectives are noticeably absent. Thus, a scoping review concerning social work, counseling, and polyamory was conducted to assess knowledge from the last decade and to contribute to the field. The themes that arose were the need for clinicians to examine their biases toward monogamy and polyamory, including perceptions of insecure attachment and a lack of commitment in polyamorous relationships. The literature also recognizes that polyamorous individuals often have fluid identities and sexual orientations. Finally, social workers have a duty to create a safe environment for polyamorous clients because of widespread societal stigma. As social work values client self-determination and examination of societal discourses, the field would benefit from further research into polyamory; this article is just the beginning.

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Social work field instruction: a scoping review

Social Work Education ◽

10.1080/02615479.2020.1842868 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 1-34

Author(s):

Marion Bogo ◽

Karen M. Sewell ◽

Faisa Mohamud ◽

Toula Kourgiantakis

Keyword(s):

Social Work ◽

Scoping Review ◽

Field Instruction

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Australian social work research on ageing and aged care: A scoping review

Journal of Social Work ◽

10.1177/1468017316654346 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 18 (4) ◽

pp. 431-450 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Mark Hughes ◽

Christine Bigby ◽

Clare Tilbury

Keyword(s):

Social Work ◽

Older People ◽

Scoping Review ◽

Asset Management ◽

Social Work Practice ◽

Aged Care ◽

Community Services ◽

Residential Aged Care ◽

Bibliographic Databases ◽

Social Work Research

Summary Little is known about the quantity, nature and range of Australian social work research on ageing and aged care. This scoping review involved a comprehensive search of seven online bibliographic databases. The review identified 108 peer-reviewed journal articles, published between January 2007 and June 2014, that reported Australian social work research on ageing and aged care. Findings The average number of authors per paper was 2.10 with most social work researchers co-authoring papers with non-social workers. The main topics of research focus were health and rehabilitation, elder abuse, asset management, community services and caregiving, housing and residential aged care, and ageing with an intellectual disability. The findings highlight the contribution social work researchers make to multidisciplinary gerontological research, and to understanding the lived experiences of older people and the provision of services. However, they also point to the relative paucity of research focusing on direct social work practice with older people, and the little evidence of the participation of older people and carers in the design and delivery of research. Applications The findings indicate the need for capacity-building strategies, such as developing networks of Australian social work researchers on ageing and aged care, to improve research outputs in this area.

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