The Oppression of Women and Nature: Ecofeminism as a Framework for an Expanded Ecological Social Work

2002 ◽  
Vol 83 (3) ◽  
pp. 221-232 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fred H. Besthorn ◽  
Diane Pearson McMillen
Keyword(s):  
Economic Theory ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Ecological Model ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Environmental Philosophy ◽  
Ecological System ◽  
Modern Economic ◽  
Model Of Practice ◽  
The Way

This article broadens and clarifies the way social work conceptualizes its ecological/system constructs and the professional commitments that flow from them. It utilizes important insight from a contemporary, radical environmental philosophy—ecofeminism—to search for language and descriptions that may help the profession begin the process of formulating and depicting an expanded ecological model of practice. This article sketches the essential philosophical premises of a revisioned ecological model and offers suggestions for interpreting and applying this model. Specifically, it gives attention to critiquing the interrelated oppression stemming from modern economic theory and practice, and ways in which social workers may collaborate with communities and individuals to bring about change.

More than Pills and Beds

2014 ◽  
pp. 113-129
Author(s):  
Sebastian Rosenberg ◽  
Fiona McDermott
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Mental Healthcare ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Mental Health Recovery ◽  
Social Work Theory ◽  
Integral Element ◽  
The Way

Contemporary models of mental healthcare emphasise the importance of multi-disciplinary approaches in supporting recovery for consumers. There is growing evidence of the key role to be played by social workers derived from both the principles of recovery and those underpinning social work theory and practice, particularly a focus on person-in-environment. However, pressures on the way mental healthcare is provided in Australia are threatening this confluence. These pressures are much more concerned with the needs of funders than professionals, consumers, and their families. The aim of this chapter is to explore the evidence to support social work as an integral element in mental health recovery and to better understand these emerging challenges. The role of social work in good mental healthcare is too important to become marginalized; yet this prospect is real. Better understanding of the contemporary landscape of social work can help ensure this does not occur.

More than Pills and Beds

2016 ◽  
pp. 1111-1128 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sebastian Rosenberg ◽  
Fiona McDermott
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Mental Healthcare ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Mental Health Recovery ◽  
Social Work Theory ◽  
Integral Element ◽  
The Way

Contemporary models of mental healthcare emphasise the importance of multi-disciplinary approaches in supporting recovery for consumers. There is growing evidence of the key role to be played by social workers derived from both the principles of recovery and those underpinning social work theory and practice, particularly a focus on person-in-environment. However, pressures on the way mental healthcare is provided in Australia are threatening this confluence. These pressures are much more concerned with the needs of funders than professionals, consumers, and their families. The aim of this chapter is to explore the evidence to support social work as an integral element in mental health recovery and to better understand these emerging challenges. The role of social work in good mental healthcare is too important to become marginalized; yet this prospect is real. Better understanding of the contemporary landscape of social work can help ensure this does not occur.

Clients Toward Whom a Social Worker Feels Attraction

2021 ◽  
pp. 149-169
Author(s):  
Joseph Walsh
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Social Worker ◽  
Good Thing ◽  
Working Relationship ◽  
The Social ◽  
Positive Feelings ◽  
The Way

The broad nature of the social work profession offers opportunities for practitioners to work with diverse clients. While committed to the welfare of all clients, social workers tend to be drawn to some clients more than others, due in part to their abilities to connect with them. A social worker’s positive feelings about his or her clients is a good thing, but it is possible that at times he or she will experience a special fondness or attraction for a client that can create biases that get in the way of a constructive working relationship. The purposes of this chapter are to explore the circumstances in which positive feelings about clients develop and to suggest ways for social workers to manage those feelings in a way that keeps their focus on the client’s welfare.

Theoretical pathways to the future: Globalization, ICT and social work theory and practice

2011 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 209-221 ◽  
Author(s):  
Deborah West ◽  
David Heath
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Political Ideology ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
New Managerialism ◽  
Holistic Approaches ◽  
Social Work Theory ◽  
Patterns Of Communication ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Core Issues

• Summary: Society has changed substantially and rapidly with the advent of globalization where technology is both a catalyst for and a response to globalization. Concurrently and connected to these trends has been the advent of neo-liberalism, new managerialism and postmodernism. Globalization, technological change and neo-liberalism underpin and are driven by each other in a continual cycle. This rapidly changing, globally connected and technologically based society is the context for clients and social workers alike. This article explores the connections between globalization, ICT and neo-liberalism. This forms the basis for critical reflection on theories, models and modes of practice in light of the changing context allowing a proactive response to the challenges that face the profession and our clients. • Findings: Irrespective of the agency of employment, social workers are faced with challenges that arise out of an ideology of outsourcing, reductionism, speed of response, accountability and cost effectiveness with a decreased value on practice wisdom and holistic approaches. However, many of our theories and models were developed at a time when social structure, political ideology and economic underpinnings were different. As such workers are left being reactive to situations with limited opportunities to influence the core issues. This has contributed to the decreasing role and value of social workers. • Application: To remain relevant social work needs to continue to influence systems for the benefit of society while reviewing and updating theories and models to reflect current lifestyles, modes and patterns of communication and the impact of globalization.

scholarly journals THEORETICAL AND PRACTICAL ASPECTS OF TRAINING FUTURE SOCIAL WORKERS IN EUROPEAN COUNTRIES

2021 ◽  
pp. 272-279
Author(s):  
Serhii Mykhniuk
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Professional Training ◽  
Social Protection ◽  
Effective Interaction ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
European Countries ◽  
Practical Training ◽  
Training Time ◽  
Wide Range

The article considers the experience of training future social workers in European countries. The role and significance of positive foreign experience of professional training in European countries – Germany, France, Poland, Britain are substantiated; Scandinavian countries – Sweden, Netherlands, Finland. The aim of the article is to analyze the theory and practice of training social workers in European countries. Research methods used: analysis − to study scientific sources on the research topic, comparison − to explain the scientific positions of various authors, interpretation − to make a scientific commentary on scientific sources. It is established that despite the commonality of individual European trends in the training of social workers, each European country has its own, unique experience of this training, and its own specifics of professional activities of social workers, given the priority social problems in society. The main priorities of professional training of social workers in European countries, which contribute to the formation of students' readiness for effective interaction in the professional sphere: variability of curricula, a wide range of specializations, a wide range of forms and methods of practical training, a large amount of training time for internships and etc. It is noted that the practice of pre-professional social work at the level of volunteering, participation in certain social projects, etc. is important for the training of social workers, which is a prerequisite for admission to the specialty «Social Work» in many European countries. It is concluded that in the practice of training future social workers in different countries, students receive the necessary knowledge, skills and abilities to implement interaction in its various organizational and substantive aspects (primarily with different subjects of social protection), instead of the pedagogical content of such interaction not specifically distinguished.

scholarly journals The Digital Exclusion of Vulnerable Children: Challenge for Sustainability Issues in Czech Social Work Practice

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (23) ◽  
pp. 9961
Author(s):  
Soňa Kalenda ◽  
Ivana Kowaliková
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Ecological Model ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Target Group ◽  
Ecological Problem ◽  
Vulnerable Children ◽  
Digital Exclusion

The aims of this study are (1) to draw attention to the digital exclusion of vulnerable children as a systemic (socio-ecological) problem that is gaining momentum during emergencies; (2) to reflect the subjectively perceived readiness of social workers as one of the actors in the system, whose task is to contribute to the mitigation of risks arising from digital exclusion of the target group and to ensure the sustainability development of society; (3) from the position of the target group, to reflect the situation of their digital literacy and thus exclusion; and (4) to make recommendations to public policy makers and social workers to mitigate these risks and to promote sustainability. We draw on the socio-ecological model of social work which views a person in the context of their environment. The aim of the research was to analyze the use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in social work with vulnerable children and their families and to detect system deficits contributing to digital exclusion. Based on a questionnaire survey (N = 105), interviews with representatives of the target group (N = 20), and expert interviews (N = 4), both the main shortcomings in the digital skills of employees and the needs of the target group were identified and systemic measures were proposed.

scholarly journals Social work in health – The way ahead

2016 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
pp. 85-88
Author(s):  
Gregory Winkelmann
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Medical Model ◽  
Holistic Approach ◽  
Physical And Mental Health ◽  
Opinion Piece ◽  
The Way

In this opinion piece the challenges facing social workers working in the physical and mental health fields are outlined. These challenges include the growing emphasis on the more holistic approach to treatment that is gaining emphasis with the waning of the medical model, the application of te Tiriti o Waitangi to how we practise and the integration of bi-culturalism and multiculturalism into practice, and a greater emphasis on recovery and empowerment. The piece goes on to suggest how these challenges can be faced using an evidence-informed practice and interventions in a culturally and Treaty-responsive pathway.

scholarly journals The Poetics of social work – how being artful in our craft takes us elsewhere into mindfulness

2016 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 64-72
Author(s):  
Vaughan Milner
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Knowledge Base ◽  
Common Sense ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Alternative View ◽  
Time And Space ◽  
Helping Relationship ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Way

Poetry is an ageless craft that helps people find meaning and gives hope and courage. The poetics of social work describes an evolving framework in which poetry is located as a knowledge base that draws out mindfulness in the midst of uncertainty. Examples are provided of how the spiritual and artful aspects of the social work craft can be made more purposeful and explained through a poetic frame. Notions of light, time and space contex- tualise the way authentic relationships are at the heart of our work. Many people talk about the art of social work, often in the context of the more mysterious, intangible, and less ‘scientific ‘ aspects of our craft. Usually such references are around the relational intimacies that our work relies on to be effective. In essence this is the connection between people, and the possibilities and hope that emerge from that authentic helping relationship. An alternative view would be that describing social work as an ‘art’ places the work in a romanticised and nonsensical frame from an era before professionalisation, and the framing of practice in theory, defined skills and qualifications. The professionalisation of social work has certainly meant ‘more than common sense’ (Maidment and Egan, 2004) is expected in the application of theory and practice. This begs the question of the artfulness of practice. These notions of the art and craft of social work deserve exploration. 

scholarly journals Theory discussion in social work journals: a preliminary study

10.18060/116 ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-19 ◽  
Author(s):  
James G. Daley ◽  
Jon Peters ◽  
Ron Taylor ◽  
Victoria Hanson ◽  
Delthea Hill
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Primary Source ◽  
Evidence Base ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Link Theory ◽  
Conceptual Explanation ◽  
Preliminary Study ◽  
Practice Knowledge

Social workers are taught to strive to link theory with practice. A primary source for social workers to update theory and practice knowledge is the myriad of social work journals. However, how much discussion of theory occurs in social work journals? The authors developed criteria to evaluate the degree and quality of theory discussion and progression in social work journals. They used the criteria to evaluate 885 articles from 30 journals published in the year 2002. Great variability in theory discussion was found. The majority (71.7%) of articles contained no theory discussion (discussion that mentions a theory superficially but does not provide refinement of the theory). Few (9.5%) of the articles had theory progression (an article which is an empirical study or conceptual explanation that advances a theory in clarity, evidence base, or precision). Those articles that include theory provide a low quality of theory discussion or progression. Implications for practice and education are discussed.

Importance of supervision in professional development of social workers supporting homeless people

2020 ◽  
Vol 35 (1) ◽  
pp. 104-116
Author(s):  
Joanna Szymanowska
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Pilot Study ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Emotional Support ◽  
Homeless People ◽  
Specialist Knowledge ◽  
Institutional Benefits ◽  
The Way

The article presents the definitions and functions of supervision significant in the area of social work as well as its individual and institutional benefits. It also presents the results of a pilot study concerning the importance of the instrument of supervision in professional development of social workers. The study showed that the respondents most often participated in sessions providing emotional support, and less often in the sessions offering specialist knowledge. The way of carrying out the supervision was convergent with the current needs of the respondents; however, participating in supervision did not have much influence on making professional decisions or their quality.

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