scholarly journals Attachment Theory and the Social Work Curriculum

10.18060/130 ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 30-48
Author(s):  
Timothy Page ◽  
Rhonda Norwood

Attachment theory, as developed by Bowlby and Ainsworth, represented a major departure from the current theories of human development of the time, particularly in its rejection of the major tenets of psychoanalytic theory and its integration of core ideas from evolution theory and cybernetics (Ainsworth & Bowlby, 1991). Attachment theory posits that a foundational human instinct, the desire to achieve safety and protection through proximity to a protective figure, is responsible for the formation of a special class of life-long affectional bonds, referred to as “attachments.” Emotional security is derived to a great extent, according to the theory, from experience with caregivers who are consistently responsive to the developing infant’s expression of attachment behavior toward them. Forty years of empirical research has shown that attachment is a universal characteristic that predicts children’s development of cognitive and social competence, emotional regulation, and positive self-image (Weinfield, Sroufe, Egeland, & Carlson, 1999). Social work educators are currently challenged to better integrate the findings of attachment research into their curricula to reflect more the current state of developmental science.

2000 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 123-140
Author(s):  
Christopher B. Aviles

This article describes how the essential elements of the teaching method called mastery learning can be structured in the social work classroom. Mastery learning is a behavioral teaching method successfully used in social work education. Research studies on teaching rarely describe teaching methods in enough detail for instructors to discern how the teaching methods were implemented or how they may have been implemented differently. This can give social work educators a limited picture of what a teaching method could look like in their classrooms. The essential elements of mastery learning can be implemented in whole or part and can be structured in either simple or complex ways. Ways in which social work educators can implement mastery learning to better fit their classrooms are presented in this article.


Social Work ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 61 (3) ◽  
pp. 217-226 ◽  
Author(s):  
Suzanne Pritzker ◽  
Katie Richards-Schuster

Abstract In the National Association of Social Workers’ Code of Ethics, social workers are called on to promote meaningful involvement in decision making among vulnerable populations. The ethical imperatives and social justice implications associated with unequal participation suggest that the field of social work is uniquely situated to lead research and practice in the area of youth civic engagement. This article examines the current state of the social work literature regarding how young people participate civically. Authors identified 113 articles on this topic published over the past decade in journals with a large presence in social work or by social work authors. They present the findings of their exploratory research, with a focus on describing where this research is being published, the range of research foci, and the terms used to describe this work. Increased attention to promoting youth civic engagement is needed in the profession’s core journals. Based on the analysis of this literature, they recommend moving toward a cohesive body of social work scholarship that includes increased collaboration among scholars, more unified terms and language, increased range of research foci and methodologies, and more rigorous and comparative testing of strategies by which youths participate civically.


10.18060/1174 ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 49-62 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah E. Twill ◽  
Kathy Elpers ◽  
Kathy Lay

Service-learning pedagogy allows social work educators to create meaningful learning opportunities for students and better prepare them for practicum, while at the same time, meeting a community need. This paper outlines the relevance of incorporating service-learning into the social work curriculum, specifically the human behavior and the social environment (HBSE) area. Using Bloom’s taxonomy as a guide, the authors propose how the CSWE competencies and practice behaviors specific to HBSE may be assessed using service-learning pedagogy. An example is reviewed to illustrate how service-learning can assist faculty and students achieve the HBSE competencies and practice behaviors. Finally, implications for service-learning as a pedagogical strategy for social work education are discussed.


10.18060/142 ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 208-218 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dhrubodhi Mukherjee

This paper critically examines the influence of the structural elements of human behavior that are often neglected in social work literature (Robbins et al., 1998). It incorporates a new multi-theoretical framework that critically examines the significance of a network approach in analyzing social, ideological, and economic structures and their influence on individual actors. This paper discusses two interrelated theories: social network theory and social capital theory, and critiques their relevance in explaining human behavior for social work educators and professionals in an increasingly information-driven and electronically-interconnected global society. The author hopes that an expanded theory base will provide a holistic view of individual problems stemming out of inequitable social structure.


1998 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 37-50 ◽  
Author(s):  
Linda S. Moore ◽  
Tracy J. Dietz ◽  
David A. Jenkins

This paper discusses specific gatekeeping issues facing social work educators, both university- and agency-based, and uses case analysis to explain how one undergraduate program handled these issues. The cases highlight procedures used in the gatekeeping process and reflect the difficulty of gatekeeping including many problems that can arise in any educational setting. Focusing on case examples may help educators develop and further refine approaches and strategies for gatekeeping in order to guard the gate to the social work profession.


2011 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 174-190 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kate van Heugten

• Summary: The Social Workers Registration Act (2003) introduced a system of voluntary statutory registration of the social work occupation in Aotearoa New Zealand. This was hailed as a measure that would protect the public from unsafe practices, and enhance the status of the profession. More recently, however, commentators have noted that these positive effects may not necessarily be forthcoming. This article explores the impact of registration on educational programmes, by placing regulation of the occupation in the context of hegemonic neoliberalism. • Findings: Neoliberal approaches to social care not only constrain the delivery of services, but attempt to shape the perspectives of the social care workforce. Education is a potentially powerful tool for achieving that shaping. Where statutory regulation of social work is in force, competency based training threatens to supplant critical analysis, which is a hallmark of higher education. To retain viability as an academic discipline, social work educators must champion social work’s continuing role in analysing and theorizing the distribution of power in social welfare and social care. • Application: Social work educators have a role in supporting practitioners, who struggle to maintain disciplinary integrity whilst employed within 21st-century human services, by continuing to engage in critical debates, and advancing knowledge about the theory—practice nexus. In advancing such knowledge, they also have much to offer other disciplines in institutions of higher education that are looking to explicate their utility in the ‘real world’.


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