A Question of Values in Social Work Practice: Working with the Strengths of Black Adolescent Females

1998 ◽  
Vol 79 (3) ◽  
pp. 288-296 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joyce West Stevens
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Work Values ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Adolescent Females ◽  
Work Practices ◽  
Research Issues ◽  
Social Work Values ◽  
Black Adolescent ◽  
Practice Models

The author examines the foundational values of social work in current social work practices with inner-city black adolescent females. Case illustrations are presented to demonstrate how social work values are actualized in direct practice and research. Issues regarding the congruence of social work practices and basic ethical values and principles are discussed. Strength and empowerment perspectives in clear accordance with social work values are presented as practice models.

Direct Social Work Practice

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph Walsh
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Work Values ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Psychosocial Problems ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Risk And Resilience ◽  
Direct Practice ◽  
Social Work Values ◽  
Social Work Theory ◽  
Client Strengths

Direct social work practice is the application of social work theory and/or methods to the resolution and prevention of psychosocial problems experienced by individuals, families, and groups. In this article, direct practice is discussed in the context of social work values, empowerment, diversity, and multiculturalism, as well as with attention to client strengths, spirituality, and risk and resilience influences. The challenges of practice evaluation are also considered.

Guidelines for Responding to Clients Spontaneously Presenting Their Poetry in Therapy

2005 ◽  
Vol 86 (4) ◽  
pp. 573-579 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rich Furman ◽  
Kathryn Collins
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Practice Guidelines ◽  
Work Values ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Intervention Strategies ◽  
Poetry Therapy ◽  
Social Work Values

Poetry therapy has become a valuable adjunctive tool in social work practice, as well as an important discipline in its own right. What has not been previously presented in the literature are intervention strategies designed for when clients spontaneously present their poems in treatment without prompting from the clinician. This article provides just such practice guidelines for clinicians, especially clinicians who do not normally use poetry in therapy. First, the article explores the uses of poetry in social work practice. Second, it presents general guidelines for how to handle the introduction of poetry by clients through the lens of essential social work values and principles. Third, a case study is presented to amplify these guidelines.

scholarly journals Pressure drop: Securitising and de-securitising safeguarding

2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
David McKendrick ◽  
Jo Finch
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Pressure Drop ◽  
Child Protection ◽  
Work Values ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Policy And Practice ◽  
Social Work Values ◽  
Critical Consideration

INTRODUCTION: This article explores how securitisation theory is mobilised in contemporary social work discourse, policy and practice. We draw on recent child protection research to support our claim that a new practice issue, described previously as securitised safeguarding, has emerged.APPROACH: We demonstrate its emergence using securitisation theory as a conceptual mode of analysis to describe how a securitised safeguarding response depicts particular families as an existential threat which, in turn, prompts a response characterised by forms of muscular liberalism.CONCLUSIONS: We argue that this emerging practice issue requires critical consideration and suggest it will have a significant impact on social work – one that is unlikely to be beneficial for the profession and, more importantly, families being worked with. By describing a process of de-securitisation, we offer an alternative and more nuanced approach that perceives families holistically, and mobilises a welfare safeguarding model. This more closely resembles traditional social work values of emancipation, liberation and empowerment within social work practice.

scholarly journals Hitting the Ground Running

2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea M. Newberry-Koroluk
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Work Values ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Best Interests ◽  
First Year ◽  
Social Work Values ◽  
The Social

This paper explores how the popular use of the expression “hitting the ground running” in reference to beginning social work practice draws upon military imagery and reflects neo-conservative expectations of first-year social workers.  Discussion of the international and Canadian definitions of social work, key social work values, the neo-conservative paradigm, and the role of language in understanding human experiences provides context to this analysis.  Ultimately, it is argued that it is in the best interests of the social work profession for the phrase hitting the ground running to be abandoned (or used critically) when making reference to first-year social workers, and a new metaphor is suggested that could take its place in the social work lexicon.

scholarly journals Exploring the Spiritual Dimension of Social Work

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael McKernan
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Work Values ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Social Work Values ◽  
Spiritual Dimension ◽  
Professional Interest ◽  
Spiritual Perspective

Social work’s response to the rising levels of public and professional interest in spirituality poses some important questions: i.Why is this important to social work practice? ii.What do we mean by spirituality? iii.What are the obstacles posed by religious and spiritual traditions that must be overcome to honor social work values and wisdom? iv.What research is available to help us understand the value of spirituality to clients? v.How can spirituality help us to serve our clients? Based on research conducted as a Muttart Fellow, the writer uses these questions as a framework for exploring the role and significance of spirituality in social work. The article ends with specific, applied benefits that a credible spiritual perspective brings to social work practice.

Solution-Focused Brief Therapy

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mo Yee Lee
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Brief Therapy ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Practice Model ◽  
Social Work Values ◽  
Building Process ◽  
Solution Focused Brief Therapy ◽  
Solution Focused ◽  
Work Treatment

Building on a strengths perspective and using a time-limited approach, solution-focused brief therapy is a treatment model in social work practice that holds a person accountable for solutions rather than responsible for problems. Solution-focused brief therapy deliberately utilizes the language and symbols of “solution and strengths” in treatment and postulates that positive and long-lasting change can occur in a relatively brief period of time by focusing on the solution-building process instead of focusing on the problems. Currently, this practice model has been adopted in diverse social work practice settings with different client populations, which could be partly accounted by the fact that the assumptions and practice orientation of solution-focused brief therapy are consistent with social work values as well as the strengths-based and empowerment-based practice in social work treatment.

scholarly journals Advancing Social Work Practice Research Education – An Innovative, Experiential Pedagogical Approach

2017 ◽  
Vol 6 (5) ◽  
pp. 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kenny Kwong
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Critical Evaluation ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Course Evaluation ◽  
Practice Research ◽  
Individual Student ◽  
Pedagogical Approach ◽  
Research Issues

Achieving practice research competency is an essential pillar of social work practice.  However, research material is often associated with dry lectures and incomprehensible statistical applications that may not reflect real life issues. Teaching research course is often antithetical to the pedagogical approach commonly used in social work education, which engages students in practical applications of real life situations with case examples. This paper described and evaluated six sets of experiential class and field activities designed to increase graduate level social work students’ competencies of practice research.  These activities included: (1) formulating a practice-based research topic – a case study; (2) using assessment templates for critical evaluation of published research; (3) single-system  research design – a tool for evaluation of clinical practice; (4) agency research and evaluation field assessment; (5) design and implementation of a practice-focused class study project; and (6) class activity on presentation and dissemination of research findings.  An online course evaluation was administered with altogether 63 students in 2 Foundation Research and 2 Advanced Research classes to elicit both their qualitative feedback and quantitative ratings of their attainment of research competencies.  The instructor’s assessment of individual student performance using a grading rubric helped determine their level of attainment of course competences.  Findings suggest several critical elements of this pedagogical approach.  It is a case-based learning and students learn about real-world research issues. It is discussion-centered and a collaborative learning process.  Cases selected for learning and research are context-specific as students see the connection of social work research to day-to-day practice contexts.

scholarly journals The perspective of Gestalt therapy in social work practice

2018 ◽  
Vol 51 ◽  
pp. 03004
Author(s):  
Alina Petrauskiene ◽  
Irena Zemaitaityte ◽  
and Vida Grigaliene
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Social Security ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Phenomenological Approach ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Gestalt Therapy ◽  
Work Practices ◽  
Therapeutic Work ◽  
Expert Model

The paper analyzes social work integrating the principles of Gestalt therapy, such as dialogue and phenomenological approach, internalization, responsibility and creative adaptation. The main perspectives of Gestalt therapy, which are related to the cases of social work, contexts and possibilities of therapeutic work, are highlighted. The article also reveals obstacles (e.g. dominant, patronizing, controlling and expert model of client assistance, isolated and restricted by directives the reality of social work, institutionalized social work practices and bureaucratic dependence of social security) that impede the development of therapeutic social work in Lithuania. It can be argued that the perspective for Gestalt therapies is available to social workers who seek therapeutic social work practice methodologies, help relationships, and empower clients for change.

From resilience to resistance: A reconstruction of the strengths perspective in social work practice

2010 ◽  
Vol 53 (2) ◽  
pp. 233-245 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wei-he Guo ◽  
Ming-sum Tsui
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Reflective Practice ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Strengths Perspective ◽  
Practice Models

Many practice models in social work focus primarily on the concepts associated with resilience. By contrast, resistance and rebellion, important strategies of the disadvantaged, are often neglected by social workers in developed countries. The authors seek to reconstruct and revitalize the strengths perspective by constructing a framework that includes theories of reflective practice.

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