The Workplace, Social Work, and Social Justice: Framing an Emerging Research and Practice Agenda

Social Work ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 64 (4) ◽  
pp. 293-300
Author(s):  
Erika L Sabbath
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Workplace Issues ◽  
Call To Action ◽  
Research And Practice ◽  
Social Work Research ◽  
The Social ◽  
Multiple Levels ◽  
Health And Well Being

Abstract Protecting the health and well-being of workers naturally aligns with the social work mission to advance human dignity. The workplace can both create and perpetuate health disparities by shaping health and well-being at multiple levels and in socially patterned ways. Yet workplace issues are rarely on social work research and practice agendas. This article serves as a call to action for social work, as a discipline, to engage with the workplace as a means of advancing the field's core values. It first provides evidence for why engagement with workplaces is critical for advancing social justice. It then presents evidence for the ways in which workplace exposures and experiences, at multiple levels, shape worker health and well-being. Finally, it provides concrete steps for how the skills and values of the social work profession can be applied to the workplace through research, practice, education, and policy efforts, and by extension improve population health and well-being.

Rethinking Social Justice: A Contemporary Challenge for Social Good

2019 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 186-195 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lia Levin
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Social Work ◽  
International Institutions ◽  
Special Relationship ◽  
Social Good ◽  
Research And Practice ◽  
Social Work Research ◽  
The Social

Social justice’s special relationship with the social work profession has recently been confirmed by new definitions of social good that identify the promotion of social justice as a primary goal of social work research and practice. This contemporary use of the ideas and ideals of social justice creates an opportunity to reexamine it in the context of modern societies and postmodern knowledge. This article presents four steps for reassessing existing definitions of social justice, as reflected by three cases documented by international institutions that define themselves as promoters of social justice. Through this reassessment, this article seeks to contribute to the regeneration and advancement of interdisciplinary debate over the contents and nature of social justice, under the presumption that any effort toward social good aimed at enhancing social justice should first identify or discuss to what sort of social justice it aspires.

scholarly journals Conflict between Religious Beliefs and Sexuality: An Autoethnography

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carlos Gerena
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Religious Beliefs ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The United States ◽  
Sex Behavior ◽  
Religious Institutions ◽  
Research And Practice ◽  
Social Work Research ◽  
Latino Community ◽  
Beliefs And Values

Despite the shift in attitudes in religious institutions toward homosexuals in the United States, there are some religions that continue to view same-sex behavior as a deviant and damning sin. For many, religious beliefs and values provide meaning and impact personal identity. Using autoethnography, I will explicate my own experiences with religious institutions and the ongoing conflict between religious beliefs and sexuality. I will discuss messages received from the Pentecostal church, family, and Latino community, and how these messages influenced my human development and emotional well-being. I show that internalization of the principles taught by the Pentecostal Church triggered a conflict when I became aware of my homosexuality. In this article, I discuss the mental health challenges I faced, and strategies I used to reconcile conflicting identities. I also discuss the use of autoethnography in social work and its implications in social work research and practice.

Enhancing Response Ability: Dietetics as a Vehicle for Social Justice—A Primer

2021 ◽  
Vol 82 (4) ◽  
pp. 159-166
Author(s):  
Jennifer Brady ◽  
Tanya L’heureux
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Dietetic Education ◽  
Collective Response ◽  
Critical Reflexivity ◽  
The Social ◽  
Health And Well Being ◽  
Do So ◽  
Lack Of Knowledge

Recent world events have shone a spotlight on the social and structural injustices that impact the lives, health, and well-being of individuals and communities under threat. Dietitians should be well positioned to play a role in redressing injustice through their individual and collective “response abilities”, that is, the combination of responsibility for and ability to be responsive to such injustices due to the varying privilege and power that dietitians have. However, recent research shows that dietitians report a lack of knowledge, skill, and confidence to take on such roles, and that dietetic education includes little knowledge- or skill-based learning that might prepare dietitians to do so. This primer aims to introduce readers to concepts that are fundamental to socially just dietetics practice, including privilege, structural competence, critical reflexivity, critical humility, and critical praxis. We assert that when implemented into practice and used to inform advocacy and activism these concepts enhance dietitians’ individual and collective response ability to redress injustice.

Narrative resistance in social work research and practice: Counter-storying in the pursuit of social justice

2017 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 189-205 ◽  
Author(s):  
Suzanne McKenzie-Mohr ◽  
Michelle N Lafrance
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Master Narratives ◽  
Research And Practice ◽  
Social Work Research ◽  
Counter Narratives ◽  
Practical Guidance

In this article, we propose ‘narrative resistance’ as a potent and useful concept for both social work research and practice. A concept that attends to power and oppression, narrative resistance provides a platform for tangible applications to support people’s efforts to resist harmful storyings of their lives. The aim of this article is to provide practical guidance for how social workers can attend to and support people’s acts of narrative resistance. This is achieved by introducing the functions of narrative in people’s lives and its inextricable links to power; discussing ‘master narratives’ and their potential for harm; and exploring narrative resistance by articulating the role of ‘counter narratives’ as a means to ‘talk back’ to injurious master narratives. The remainder of the article outlines considerations, skills and tools required to enhance counter-storying efforts in the service of emancipatory change. We spotlight examples of narrative resistance in the literature to illustrate the pragmatic mobilization of this work.

Making AIMS Explicit: Establishing Intersectionality Criteria for Gender Equity Analyses

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sara Goodkind ◽  
Rachel E Gartner ◽  
Leah A Jacobs ◽  
Dominique Branson ◽  
Jorden King ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Social Justice ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Gender Equity ◽  
Population Level ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The United States ◽  
Social Work Research ◽  
United Nations Convention ◽  
Economic Well Being

Abstract Social work researchers often conduct population-level analyses of equity, sometimes focusing on how social and economic well-being are differently experienced depending on gender. In response to the United States’ refusal to ratify the United Nations’ Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, city-level campaigns began conducting gender equity analyses to highlight and address inequality. To date, these analyses have largely focused on gender alone, affording little attention to other axes of inequality. This article argues that theories of intersectionality offer a conceptual antidote to this narrow focus on gender. Drawing on extant literature, authors developed four criteria to guide intersectional gender equity analyses: (1) analyzes power, (2) interprets population and phenomena in context, (3) mutually constituted and interdependent category use, and (4) strategic and transparent social justice goals (which can be abbreviated as AIMS). Taking a metaevaluation approach, they applied the AIMS criteria to assess existing gender equity analyses. Results indicate ways in which these criteria can be met and the implications of taking intersectional approaches. Ultimately, the AIMS criteria offer guidance to social work research that can systematically and intentionally integrate core intersectionality principles and, in turn, support efforts to promote equity in our systems and institutions.

Does Feminism Convince Us

2016 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 512-514 ◽  
Author(s):  
Clio Belle Weisman
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Scientific Inquiry ◽  
Feminist Perspective ◽  
Human Suffering ◽  
Full Understanding ◽  
Feminist Standpoint ◽  
Research And Practice ◽  
Social Work Research ◽  
Standpoint Epistemology

A response to the critique of where social work research currently stands, as put forth by Garrow and Hasenfeld, and their position that social work research should be undertaken from a feminist perspective. It is important to remember the origins and foundation of feminist thought and to approach research and practice with a full understanding of what both empiricist epistemology and feminist standpoint epistemology actually means. Maintaining a balanced perspective and recognizing the value in varied approaches to scientific inquiry will keep the field of social work moving toward its ultimate goal of reducing the plight of marginalized and oppressed peoples. Social work research and practice has always claimed itself to be committed to furthering social justice and equality and to building a society with a minimum of human suffering. In order to remain focused on these goals, perhaps a shift in perspective is necessary.

scholarly journals Uniting Resilience Research and Practice With an Inequalities Approach

SAGE Open ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 215824401668247 ◽  
Author(s):  
Angie Hart ◽  
Emily Gagnon ◽  
Suna Eryigit-Madzwamuse ◽  
Josh Cameron ◽  
Kay Aranda ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Young People ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Research Practice ◽  
Children And Young People ◽  
Research And Practice ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Health And Well Being ◽  
Research And Policy

The concept of resilience has evolved, from an individual-level characteristic to a wider ecological notion that takes into account broader person–environment interactions, generating an increased interest in health and well-being research, practice and policy. At the same time, the research and policy-based attempts to build resilience are increasingly under attack for responsibilizing individuals and maintaining, rather than challenging, the inequitable structure of society. When adversities faced by children and young people result from embedded inequality and social disadvantage, resilience-based knowledge has the potential to influence the wider adversity context. Therefore, it is vital that conceptualizations of resilience encompass this potential for marginalized people to challenge and transform aspects of their adversity, without holding them responsible for the barriers they face. This article outlines and provides examples from an approach that we are taking in our research and practice, which we have called Boingboing resilience. We argue that it is possible to bring resilience research and practice together with a social justice approach, giving equal and simultaneous attention to individuals and to the wider system. To achieve this goal, we suggest future research should have a co-produced and inclusive research design that overcomes the dilemma of agency and responsibility, contains a socially transformative element, and has the potential to empower children, young people, and families.

The capability approach in social work research: A scoping review of research addressing practical social work

2020 ◽  
pp. 002087281989684
Author(s):  
Inger Kjellberg ◽  
Birgitta Jansson
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Scoping Review ◽  
Capability Approach ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Structural Level ◽  
Social Work Research ◽  
The Capability Approach

This study reports the findings from a scoping review of the use of the capability approach in social work research. We identified 17 peer-reviewed journal articles which actively used the capability approach and addressed social work practice. The purpose was to examine how the use of the capability approach was linked to policies, practices and social justice approaches in social work research. The merits and challenges of the capability approach in social work research are discussed. Four main applications of the capability approach were found: as a tool for social workers in practice, to explore the subjective sense of well-being, to address social inequalities on a structural level, and as a way of evaluating social practices. The capability approach was framed as congruent with the aims of social work, and as a call for action for social workers to promote social justice, human dignity and well-being. Another finding was that empowerment, mostly viewed as a tool for social workers to promote strength in individuals, was closely connected to using a capability approach. The contradictory use of empowerment in social work may carry some lessons for future development of a capability approach in social work. The review indicates that the capability approach is used in a range of different ways and acknowledged as a valuable tool for research in social work.

Stigmatization and Labeling

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandra Edmonds Crewe ◽  
Julie Guyot-Diangone
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Social Process ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Social Psychological ◽  
Social Construct ◽  
Awareness Campaigns ◽  
The Social ◽  
Economically Marginalized ◽  
The Many ◽  
Health And Well Being

This article provides an overview of the phenomenon of labeling and stigma. Research studies are used to illuminate the many ways devalued or discredited identities negatively affect the health and well-being of stigmatized groups and additionally burden the socially and economically marginalized. In addition to conveying an understanding of the social process by which a stigma is developed and the role that culture plays in defining and determining any given stigma, this article offers ways in which social work professionals may counter stigma through education/awareness campaigns and in routine client interactions. Anti-stigma work is presented from social justice and ethical perspectives. Stigma as a social construct is discussed, along with its link to discrimination and prejudice. The article helps to unpack the meaning of stigma, including descriptions of the various forms, levels, and dimensions it may take, affecting all spheres of life, including the social, psychological, spiritual, and physical.

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