scholarly journals Activating the person in the changing situation

2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 61-84
Author(s):  
Helle Cathrine Hansen ◽  
Erika Gubrium
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Life Course ◽  
Meaning Making ◽  
Activation Process ◽  
Service Users ◽  
Research And Practice ◽  
Social Work Research ◽  
Accurate Picture ◽  
Personal Histories ◽  
Over Time

For several decades, the turn towards labour activation has dominated European social work and social work institutions. While social work research and practice focused on labour activation have long considered “the person in the situation”, exploring the service users’ experiences at specific moments and contexts in time, we argue that labour activation is an ongoing process involving a complex interplay of factors (structural, social, personal), and that these are shaped by changes and ruptures throughout a person’s life course. Furthermore, the changing situation is not an objective fact, though its meaning is actively constructed by the service user. Asking how participants in a labour activation programme subjectively make meaning of their activation experiences, with reference to changing personal histories and institutional encounters over time, we shift the focus from social work’s emphasis on “the person in the situation”, and we open the concept to include “the person in the changing situation” to help enable a more dynamic analysis of the activation process. The concept accounts for the interaction between subjective meaning making and institutional structures and offers, as these change over time. The study is based on fieldwork in the Norwegian labour and welfare services (NAV). We present three participants in the Norwegian Qualification Programme as illustrative cases, each with distinct profiles, to illustrate how service users actively refer to changing situations – as these are shaped by time, biography and institutional movement – when making meaning of their labour activation experiences. The findings have implications for social work research and practice, as matters of biography, timing and life course trajectories must be accounted for to gain a more accurate picture of the labour activation experience. A consideration of institutional and life course change also offers a better professional understanding of the complexity of lived experiences when working with service users, potentially enabling a more effective practice.

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.

scholarly journals What do social work students think social work research is?

2016 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 19-26
Author(s):  
Anita Gibbs
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Social Work ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Work Values ◽  
Research Training ◽  
Social Work Students ◽  
Service Users ◽  
Research Project ◽  
Social Work Research ◽  
Social Work Values

In New Zealand, social work students often undertake social work research training as part of their first qualification in social work. The focus of this article is to consider what social work students think social work research is and whether they think social work research should be part of normal, everyday practice or not. Forty-three social work students from Otago University participated in a small research project during 2009 aimed at exploring their constructions of social work research. They emphasised that social work research should be compatible with social work values like empowerment and social justice, and bring about positive change of benefit of service users. 

The Science of Social Work Roundtables

2019 ◽  
pp. 3-21 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan Stone ◽  
Jerry Floersch
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Social Work Education ◽  
Knowledge Development ◽  
Social Work Research ◽  
General Frame ◽  
Work Education ◽  
Over Time

This chapter has three aims. The first is to familiarize readers with the general tenor, proceedings, and discussions at the five “Science in Social Work” roundtables that took place between 2012 and 2016. A key role of these roundtables was to engage in further dialogue that was, in part, sparked by John Brekke’s provocative Aaron Rosen lecture and initial responses to his lecture that were formally presented at the International Invitational Conference on Social Work Education. This summary draws on both published manuscripts and unpublished presentations associated with roundtable activities. It also provides a synthesis of key convergence points that emerged from these discussions. Finally, it situates the roundtable discussions within long-standing debates that have evolved over time concerning the role and status of social work research and knowledge development. This summary and synthesis provides a general frame to structure the chapters included in this volume.

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.

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.

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