The Effect of Social Work Services on a Self-Reported Functional Outcome

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (5) ◽  
pp. 564-575
Author(s):  
Tobias Knoop ◽  
Thorsten Meyer

Social work is a common service in medical rehabilitation in Germany. However, studies show inconsistent effects of social work interventions. This study aims to compare a self-reported rehabilitation outcome, which covered all functioning domains of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health, in patients with and without social work interventions. The analysis is based on administrative data comprising individuals admitted to medical rehabilitation services due to an orthopedic ( n = 54,056) or cardiac ( n = 16,955) diagnosis between 2007 and 2011. The intervention and control groups were matched by propensity scores (PS) controlling for sociodemographic, clinical, and sociomedical characteristics. A sufficient overlap of the PS allowed a successful matching in both samples. Orthopedic and cardiac patients receiving social work interventions had a worse outcome compared to the control group ( d = −.20, p = .000). The results indicate a clear-cut need for in-depth analysis of social work practice in medical rehabilitation and implementation of controlled studies.

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-6
Author(s):  
Dinh Tuan Bui

The goal of higher education is not only to provide academic knowledge but also to form professional competencies in learners. Social work is a profession based on direct practice with people, requiring professional skills to be improved. In order to develop those skills, we conducted an experiment using the ABCD method applied to 66 third-year students majoring in social work. The experiment lasted 45 days of practice in community. A comparison of the results between the experimental group and the control group showed that the skill performance levels of the control group and the experimental group recorded average scores (x=2.53) and (x=2.92) respectively. Hence, the application of the ABCD method in enhancing social work practice skills for students has proved to be effective.


Author(s):  
Susan Tregeagle

Case management systems were designed to open the way for increased participation of young people and their families in child welfare interventions, and, their standardised format provides a valuable opportunity to use ICT in social work practice. Existing research is unclear about how effectively case management affects participation, nor, the impact of ICT on social work interventions. This paper describes the findings of qualitative research with service users about their experiences of case management and how ICT could further their involvement in critical decisions for families. Service users are keen to use ICT and this could help overcome the limitations of paper-based case management systems and exploit the communication potential of the internet and mobile phones. However, before ICT could be used, the complex ‘digital divide’ affecting disadvantaged families would need to be addressed and social workers’ understanding and current use of ICT would need to be explored.


2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 205979911881439 ◽  
Author(s):  
Oscar Cariceo ◽  
Murali Nair ◽  
Jay Lytton

Data science is merging of several techniques that include statistics, computer programming, hacking skills, and a solid expertise in specific fields, among others. This approach represents opportunities for social work research and intervention. Thus, practitioners can take advantage of data science methods and reach new standards for quality performances at different practice levels. This article addresses key terms of data science as a new set of methodologies, tools, and technologies, and discusses machine learning techniques in order to identify new skills and methodologies to support social work interventions and evidence-based practice. The challenge related to data sciences application on social work practice is the shift on the focus of interventions. Data science supports data-driven decisions to predict social issues, rather than providing an understanding of reasons for social problems. This can be both a limitation and an opportunity depending on context and needs of users and professionals.


2019 ◽  
Vol 44 (4) ◽  
pp. 241-248
Author(s):  
Michael C Gearhart ◽  
Kristen A Berg ◽  
Courtney Jones ◽  
Sharon D Johnson

Abstract Firearm-related violence is a significant threat to public health and safety in America. However, research highlights a critical disparity in firearm-related deaths by race. Researchers often cite racial bias as a contributing factor for the racial disparity in firearm-related deaths. To provide a foundation for potential social work interventions, the present article discusses the results of an assessment of whether explicit racial biases toward four racial and ethnic groups (white, black, Asian, Hispanic/Latino), fear of crime, and the quantity and quality of interactions with neighbors of a different race are predictors of gun ownership. Findings suggest that explicit racial bias toward black, Asian, and Hispanic/Latino individuals is a significant predictor of gun ownership. Fear of crime and more frequent interactions with neighbors of a different race are also significant predictors of gun ownership. Taken as a whole, findings suggest that gun owners are more likely to be more vigilant toward people of color because of stereotypical assumptions that racial and ethnic minorities are more likely to be involved with crime. Social work practice and policy implications include developing interventions aimed at reducing implicit bias and identifying policies that are associated with lower levels of implicit bias among gun owners.


2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. 1874 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emel Yeşilkayalı ◽  
Aslı Ofluoğlu

Animal-assisted intervention is an intervention method that is shaped on the basis of human-animal relationships and is defined as the use of animals to solve people's problems. The use of animal support, especially in integrated interventions, is becoming increasingly widespread throughout the world, with the effect of scientific evidence. This method can also be used as a social work intervention in disadvantaged groups such as victims of violence, children at risk, victims of trauma, prisoners, elderly people, and people with disabilities. However, there is no study on the use of this intervention in the field of social work in our country. Therefore, the aim of this study is to present a review of the use of animal-based interventions in social work practice, which has been proven in various studies to have positive effects in improving, developing and maintaining physical, psychological and social well-being. In order to reach this aim, the historical process, definition and benefits of animal-assisted therapy and animal-assisted intervention are emphasized. Later, the theoretical foundations of the animal-assisted interventions, their use in social work interventions and the role of social workers in these team work required interventions are revealed.  ÖzetHayvan destekli müdahale insan-hayvan ilişkisi temelinde şekillenen, insanların problemlerini çözme amacıyla hayvanların kullanımı olarak tanımlanan bir müdahale yöntemidir. Bilimsel kanıtların da etkisi ile özellikle bütüncül müdahalelerde hayvan desteğinden yararlanma, tüm dünyada giderek yaygınlaşmaktadır. Bu yöntem, şiddet mağdurları, risk altındaki çocuklar, travma mağdurları, mahkumlar, yaşlılar, engelliler gibi dezavantajlı gruplarda sosyal çalışma müdahalesi olarak da kullanılmaktadır.  Bununla birlikte ülkemizde sosyal çalışma alanında bu müdahale hakkında herhangi bir çalışma bulunmamaktadır. Bu nedenle bu çalışmanın amacı, fiziksel, psikolojik ve sosyal sağlığın iyileştirilmesi, geliştirilmesi ve korunmasında olumlu etkileri çeşitli araştırmalarla kanıtlanmış olan hayvan destekli müdahalenin sosyal çalışma uygulamalarında kullanımına ilişkin bir derleme sunmaktır. Bu amaca ulaşabilmek için, önce hayvan destekli tedavi ve hayvan destekli müdahalenin tarihsel süreci, tanımı ve yararları üzerinde durulmuştur. Daha sonra hayvan destekli müdahalelerin teorik çerçevesi, sosyal çalışma müdahalelerinde kullanımı ve ekip çalışması gerektiren bu müdahalelerde sosyal çalışmacıların rollerinin ne olduğu ortaya konmuştur.


2021 ◽  
pp. 104973152199681
Author(s):  
Hannah Kia ◽  
Margaret Robinson ◽  
Jenna MacKay ◽  
Lori E. Ross

In this article, we draw on a recent review of the Canadian literature on poverty in lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, two-spirit, and other sexual and gender minority (LGBTQ2S+) communities to conceptualize social work interventions that may be used to address material inequities among these groups. Our literature review, which was based on a total of 39 works, revealed distinctive expressions of poverty among younger and older LGBTQ2S+ groups, as well as racialized, newcomer, and Indigenous sexual and gender minorities. Drawing on these insights, together with theoretical frameworks grounded in intersectionality and relational poverty analysis, we conceptualize these expressions of material inequity as salient sites of social work practice and propose interventions targeting these manifestations of LGBTQ2S+ poverty at various levels. Given the centrality of anti-poverty work as part of the social work profession’s commitment to social justice, and the dearth of social work literature on LGBTQ2S+ poverty, this article promises to make significant contributions to social work scholarship and professional practice.


10.18060/68 ◽  
2004 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 197-210
Author(s):  
Michael Sherr ◽  
Terry Wolfer

This pilot study represents an effort to implement and evaluate use of a curriculum module on Charitable Choice and social work practice in a faith-based organization. Using a nonequivalent control group design, repeated measures MANOVA showed significant differences between the treatment (n=54) and comparison groups (n=53) on knowledge and degree of comfort at posttest. Despite the use of a small sample (n=107) of MSW students at a public university in the Southeast, the findings provide initial support for further use and future evaluations of curriculum modules covering specific content on practice in faith-based settings.


2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin D. Blair

This article presents an overview of traditional sociological approaches to the role of social work in society and offers an alternative perspective that draws upon anthropological concepts of culture and specifically the conceptualization of American culture as a form of dialogue between dominant and non-dominant groups in American society. Traditional approaches to the sociology of social work have focused on the concept of social workers as intermediaries. Intermediaries convey messages between groups and seek to resolve conflicts and reach agreements. Incorporating anthropological concepts of cultural dialogue, transmission, and reproduction enables a more in depth analysis and understanding of how this intermediary function plays out. It offers the ability to analyze the content of the messages and to create a better understanding of the tension between social change and social control that are part of social work practice. The intermediary approach to social work’s relations with society results in viewing social work as contradictory and somewhat ambiguous in its relationship to society. This ambiguity, in both theoretical and practical terms, has been difficult for the profession to resolve. By incorporating the concepts of cultural dialogue, transmission, and reproduction, it is argued that the role of social workers in society can be more clearly viewed as that of cultural agents engaged in the processes of dialogue, transmission, and reproduction. From this anthropological perspective, it may be possible to resolve the ambiguity between social work as a form of social control and social work as social change.


10.18060/87 ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 145-155 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karen Kayser

In this article I briefly describe the changing face of contemporary families in America, and in particular focus on four areas of social work practice in which a family-centered approach is needed. I then present future suggestions for social work research, practice, and education. This is not meant to be an exhaustive review of the literature nor is it an in-depth analysis of one particular area of families.


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