Political Social Work

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Suzanne Pritzker ◽  
Shannon Lane
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Political Participation ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Practice Research ◽  
Power Dynamics ◽  
Full Time ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
Work Education

Political social work is social work practice, research, and theory involving explicit attention to power dynamics in policymaking and political mechanisms for eliciting social change. It is an ethical responsibility for social workers. Political social work takes place in a variety of fields and settings and includes influencing candidates and their agendas, working on campaigns, expanding political participation, working in full-time political positions, and holding elected office. Political participation among social workers is higher than in the general public, although much variety exists within groups of social workers, and the activities that social workers engage in tend to be more passive than active. This article discusses the role of social work education in preparing generalist and specialist political social workers, and the presence of both challenges and opportunities for political social work in the context of current practice.

scholarly journals The Information Behaviour of Social Workers: Needs, Seeking, Acquiring and Using Information in Practice

2019 ◽  
Vol 50 (5) ◽  
pp. 1588-1610
Author(s):  
Niamh Flanagan
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Information Needs ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Practice Research ◽  
Information Behaviour ◽  
Traditional Research ◽  
Search For Information ◽  
Information Landscape

Abstract In the debate about what informs social work practice, research remains the dominant discourse. However, the relationship between research and social work practice has always been an uneasy one, arguably passed from other clinical disciplines without resizing to fit social work. Even as social work research matures as a discipline it represents one element in a much broader composite which informs practice. This article takes a unique step back from the traditional research-practice discourse and examines the broader information landscape of social work practice, asking how practitioners inform their practice, rather than how research informs practice. This study explores the information needs that prompt practitioners to search for information, the strategies they employ, their acquisition of information and the uses to which the information is put. This study aims to elucidate the information behaviour with a view to improving dissemination and use. Findings demonstrate that the social work information base is substantially broader than has been suggested. Practitioners employ a pragmatic palette of strategies to navigate the breadth of information that supports practice, from research through to knowledge sharing. This article proposes that a pragmatic framework of information behaviour is required to accurately reflect the information behaviour of social workers.

scholarly journals Incorporating community development into social work practice within the neoliberal environment

2016 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 38-49 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jenny Aimers ◽  
Peter Walker
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Community Development ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Bottom Up ◽  
Community Work ◽  
Core Subject ◽  
Work Education

Community development is a core subject in social work education, yet social work discourse often places community development at its margins (Mendes, 2009). This article considers the location of community development and community work within the current neoliberal environment in New Zealand and how such practice can be sustained by social workers in the community and voluntary sector. Community development is a way of working with communities that has a ‘bottom up’ approach as an alternative to State (top down) development. Over recent years, however, successive New Zealand governments have embraced neoliberal social policies that have marginalised community development. In addition the term ‘community work’ has been used to describe activities that have little to do with a bottom up approach thereby making it difficult to define both community development and community work. By applying a ‘knowledge intersections’ schema to two New Zealand community and voluntary organi- sations we identify where community development and social work intersect. From this basis we challenge social workers to consider ways in which community development can be embedded within their practice. 

Positioning Social Justice: Reclaiming Social Work’s Organising Value

2019 ◽  
Vol 50 (6) ◽  
pp. 1652-1668
Author(s):  
Dassi Postan-Aizik ◽  
Corey S Shdaimah ◽  
Roni Strier
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Visual Analysis ◽  
Social Work Students ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Power Dynamics ◽  
Positive Contribution ◽  
Core Value

Abstract This article explores the value of social justice as a shared ethical ground for social workers worldwide. Constructions and interpretations of social justice are deeply affected by different perspectives, contested positions and unequal power dynamics. As societies become ever more diversified, these may hinder the centrality of social justice as a core value. Drawing on data collected from participants in a binational interprofessional seminar on social justice in multi-cultural societies, this qualitative study is based on interviews and visual analysis with 16 American and 15 Israeli social workers and social work students. Findings suggest that social justice remains a core value although it is both an organising and disorganising, unifying and dividing concept. The study explores the positive contribution of positionality to help gain a broader understanding of social justice and navigate challenges in implementation, practice and education in diverse and conflicted settings. Practical implications for social work practice and education are discussed.

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

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.

Time and change: UK social work and comparative European welfare policies since 1990

2020 ◽  
pp. 21-42
Author(s):  
Linda Bell
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Welfare Regimes ◽  
Welfare Policies ◽  
Time Period ◽  
Background History ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Work Education

This chapter gives a brief contextual background history to ‘social work’. It emphasises the years after 1990. This period encompasses many policy and political changes and theoretical developments in the UK and internationally, which affect social work practice and education. This is the time period encapsulating the author's involvement with social workers and social work education. The chapter presents some comparative geographical locations partly to reflect aspects of this involvement with social work and contacts with social work and social workers in those places, as well as to reflect different kinds of welfare regimes and to indicate some different kinds of welfare professionals.

Social Media

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Rodriguez ◽  
Jama Shelton
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Practice Research ◽  
Work Organizations ◽  
Media Usage ◽  
Ethical Concerns ◽  
Research And Education

Social media are defined as applications and websites that allow users to share content, usually of their own making. Social media users include individuals and organizations across a broad range of social strata. Key social work organizations, such as the National Association of Social Workers and the Association of Social Work Boards, have begun noting the proliferation of social media usage in education and practice and have begun developing guidelines to govern their use. The American Academy of Social Work and Social Welfare, in their Grand Challenges of Social Work initiative, highlighted social media as an important area of growth for research and education. Despite the field’s nascent enthusiasm, practical and ethical concerns persist. This article defines social media; discusses its usage in social work practice, research, and education; and discusses the ethical and practical considerations in each domain.

scholarly journals Importance of play therapy in social work practice with children

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (4) ◽  
pp. 1137-1148
Author(s):  
Esra Kılıç Ceyhan
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Play Therapy ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
English Summary ◽  
Professional Lives ◽  
Verbal Abilities ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Work Education

If we can find ways to hear and understand children, they have a lot to say, tell and teach us, adults. Children who do not have extensive verbal abilities like adults can express themselves through playing. It has been proven by research that the best method by which they can convey their feelings, thoughts and problems is play therapy. At this point, it is important that professionals working with children are equipped with the knowledge of play therapy. Social workers who frequently come into contact with children in their professional lives should be involved in the field as play therapy practitioners. However, when the literature is examined, it is seen that there are very few practices and studies on the subject in Turkey. This study presents the place and importance of play therapy in social work practice with children in the light of the researches and applications in the literature, and highlights the importance of the use of play therapy as a method by social workers working with children. It has been observed that play therapy needs a wider coverage in social work practice and research. Suggestions have been made for popularizing play therapy in the relevant social work education, research and practices. ​Extended English summary is in the end of Full Text PDF (TURKISH) file.   Özet   Çocukları duymaya, anlamaya ilişkin yollar bulanabilirse, onların yetişkinlere söyleyecekleri, anlatacakları, öğretecekleri çok şey vardır. Yetişkinler gibi geniş sözel yeteneklere sahip olmayan çocuklar kendilerini oyun yoluyla ifade edebilmektedirler. Onların duygularını, düşüncelerini, sorunlarını aktarabilecekleri en iyi yöntemin oyun terapisi olduğu araştırmalarla kanıtlanmıştır. Bu noktada çocuklarla çalışan profesyonellerin oyun terapisiyle ilgili bir donanıma sahip olması önem arz etmektedir. Mesleki yaşamlarında sıkça çocuklara temas eden sosyal hizmet uzmanları, oyun terapisi uygulayıcısı olarak alanda yer almalıdır. Ancak alan yazın incelendiğinde konuyla ilgili ülkemizdeki uygulama ve çalışmaların çok az sayıda olduğu görülmüştür. Çocuklarla sosyal hizmet uygulamasında oyun terapisinin yeri ve öneminin literatürdeki araştırmalar ve uygulamalar ışığında sunulduğu bu çalışmada, çocuklarla çalışan sosyal hizmet uzmanlarının oyun terapisini bir yöntem olarak kullanmalarının önemine dikkat çekilmiştir. Oyun terapisinin sosyal hizmet uygulama ve araştırmalarında daha geniş yer almaya ihtiyacı olduğu görülmüştür. Konuyla ilgili sosyal hizmet eğitim, araştırma ve uygulamalarında oyun terapisinin yaygınlaştırılması için önerilerde bulunulmuştur.   

Looking back to look forward: a collaborative autoethnographic study of the effects of neoliberalism on social work practice, education and research

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Catherine S. Kramer ◽  
Darren Cosgrove ◽  
Jonah DeChants
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Academic Experiences ◽  
Practice Research ◽  
Use Of Self ◽  
Social Work Values ◽  
Research And Education ◽  
Work Education ◽  
Practice Education

Neoliberalism emerged as a powerful force across the globe, adding market-based pressures to social work practice, education and research. Using a collaborative autoethnographic approach, we reflected on neoliberalism’s impact on our professional and academic experiences in US-based social work. Disconnection characterised our collective experiences of neoliberal social work across practice, research and education. The effects of this collective disconnecting emerged in three themes: (1) commodification; (2) compliance; and (3) disillusionment. We offer recommendations on how the field of social work can resist neoliberalism’s effects and encourage: (1) recentring social work practice, education and research around social work values; (2) a strategic use of self to form connections between the personal and the professional; and (3) the adoption of collective impact as the model for social work education and research.

Infusion of Gerontology Content: An Ethical Imperative

2007 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 129-140 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jane Roberts ◽  
Rosemary Blieszner
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Social Work Education ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Ethical Practice ◽  
Age Bias ◽  
Work Area ◽  
The Social ◽  
Work Education

The infusion of aging content into the social work curriculum has been the subject of recent discussion by social work researchers. Aging content is needed for ethical social work practice because demographic trends demonstrate that social workers will treat older people regardless of work area preference. Age bias precludes ethical social work practice. However, the infusion of gerontological subject matter may decrease age bias and may thereby promote ethical practice. The authors' research demonstrates that age bias exists among social workers despite attention to the phenomenon, lending support to recommendations for infusion of aging content into baccalaureate social work education. Baccalaureate social work education is an opportune venue in which to introduce work with elders.

Emotional Support Animals: An Overview of Practical and Legal Issues for Social Workers

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sur Ah Hahn ◽  
Jennifer Hinton ◽  
Ann Hallyburton
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Emotional Support ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Intrinsic Nature ◽  
Ethical Implications ◽  
Work Education ◽  
Client Assessment

Abstract Limited literature exists to guide social workers in the effective and ethical use of emotional support animals (ESAs) in practice. This article deals with practical issues these professionals face in dealing with requests for ESA authorization. The article provides an overview of relevant U.S. regulations (as of mid-2019) governing housing, travel, workplaces, and higher education; examines the uses, efficacy, and special concerns regarding ESAs; and presents recommendations for the use of ESAs in social work practice. Ethical implications for social workers dealing with client assessment and ESA authorization are discussed. The authors also address the intrinsic nature of human and ESA well-being and its relevance to client-centered social work practice. In addition, the authors discuss opportunities for incorporating ESAs into social work education.

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