Consolidating the responsibilities of social workers in social services departments, 1974–1989

2020 ◽  
pp. 210-239
Author(s):  
Mike Burt
Keyword(s):  
Social Workers ◽  
Social Services

Modes of Relational Agency among Welfare-reliant Mothers

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hagit Sinai-Glazer ◽  
Boris H J M Brummans
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Present Article ◽  
Social Services ◽  
Human Agency ◽  
Relational Agency ◽  
Research Participants ◽  
Seeking Help ◽  
Depth Interviews

Abstract How do welfare-reliant mothers enact their agency in relationships with social workers and social services? The present article addresses this question by investigating how twenty Israeli welfare-reliant mothers expressed different modes of human agency in in-depth interviews. Results show how research participants enact agency through (i) expressing anger, (ii) seeking help, (iii) resisting and (iv) engaging in non-action. By highlighting the multidimensional and situational nature of agency, this article offers a new relational lens for conceptualising and empirically studying human agency in social work.

Parenting in migration: Critical aspects and challenges of “doing family” of refugee families and social workers

2021 ◽  
pp. 146801732110146
Author(s):  
Nadia Rania ◽  
Laura Pinna ◽  
Ilaria Coppola
Keyword(s):  
Social Workers ◽  
Social Services ◽  
Host Community ◽  
Cultural Barriers ◽  
Family Identity ◽  
Helping Relationship ◽  
Refugee Families ◽  
Job Opportunities ◽  
Migrant Families ◽  
Italian Context

Summary Although migrant families comprise a small number of immigrants, they present a significant challenge for the host community. In the Italian context, social services support migrant families through paths to autonomy and integration in the community. The purpose of this study was to investigate perceptions that families and social workers have of “parenting” and “doing family” (training and management of family identity, roles and daily practices) in the complexity of migration. The study involved 15 immigrant parental couples, using family interview techniques and 12 social workers in 3 mini-focus groups. The collected materials were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using grounded theory. Findings The main results are identified and discussed as strengths, critical points and challenges. Some of the themes such as “willingness to work” or “lack of job opportunities” are common to both family members and social workers. Other themes are relevant to one group only. Among these, “availability and support of social workers” only emerged among families, whereas “education and respecting the rules” only emerged among social workers. Applications The results indicate that it is necessary for social workers to engage in a meaningful helping relationship with families, build networks of inclusion services, and also with the support of mediators overcome linguistic and cultural barriers. Social workers should involve families throughout he integration process. Furthermore, social services must also consider how families experience the difficulty of relating to social workers, which represents an obstacle to support for social integration.

scholarly journals “When we talk about intimate partner violence we talk in an adult way” – Social workers’ descriptions of intimate partner violence between teenagers

2021 ◽  
pp. 147332502110028
Author(s):  
Emmy Högström Tagesson ◽  
Carina Gallo
Keyword(s):  
Intimate Partner Violence ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Social Services ◽  
Partner Violence ◽  
Qualitative Interviews ◽  
Intimate Partner ◽  
Treatment Quality ◽  
Age And Gender ◽  
The Social ◽  
And Gender

This article examines how seven social workers within the Swedish social services describe intimate partner violence between teenagers (IPV-BT). The article adds to the literature by examining IPV-BT outside a U.S. context, where most studies have been conducted. Based on semistructured qualitative interviews, the authors analyze descriptions of IPV-BT in relation to Charles Tilly’s notion of category making through transfer, encounter, negotiation, and imposition. They also analyze how the social workers’ descriptions of IPV-BT relate to the intersection between age and gender. The results show that the social workers mostly described IPV-BT by referring to encounters with teenagers and by transferring knowledge and theoretical definitions from their specialized working areas, primarily intimate partner violence between adults (IPV-BA) and troubled youth. More rarely, the social workers based their definitions of IPV-BT upon negotiating dialogues with teenagers. Also, those who worked in teams specialized on IPV had the mandate to impose their definitions of IPV-BT to other professionals and teenagers. When taking age and gender hierarchies in consideration, the results show IPV-BT risks being subordinate IPV-BA on a theoretical level, a practical level and in terms of treatment quality. The study suggests that social work with IPV-BT needs to be sensitive to the double subordinations of the teenage girl and of the teenagers who do not follow gender expectations.

scholarly journals Exploring the experiences of social workers in working with children suspected to have fetal alcohol spectrum disorders

2021 ◽  
Vol 45 (2) ◽  
pp. 155-172
Author(s):  
David J Gilbert ◽  
Raja AS Mukherjee ◽  
Nisha Kassam ◽  
Penny A Cook
Keyword(s):  
Social Workers ◽  
Social Services ◽  
Child Protection ◽  
Prenatal Alcohol Exposure ◽  
Alcohol Exposure ◽  
Fetal Alcohol ◽  
The Social ◽  
Prenatal Alcohol ◽  
Fetal Alcohol Spectrum ◽  
Lack Of Knowledge

Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) is one outcome from prenatal alcohol exposure. Social workers are likely to encounter children with the condition, due to the greater likelihood of prenatal alcohol exposure among children in social services settings. This study explores the experiences of social workers in working with children suspected of having FASD and the support offered to social workers, the children and their families. Semi-structured interviews followed by qualitative framework analysis were conducted with seven child and family social workers along with one child protection solicitor who had experience of handling FASD cases. The two main themes that emerged from the data were a lack of knowledge about FASD and the paucity of diagnosis. Lack of knowledge among the social workers was linked to difficulty in managing children suspected to have the condition, feelings of frustration and normalisation of challenging behaviours. The paucity of diagnosis led to an under-emphasis of FASD in assessments, a dearth of specialist services and confusion about its specific effects in contexts of multiple substance misuse and harmful socio-environmental factors. The need for increased FASD awareness within social services and the development of FASD-targeted support for children and families is highlighted. Social workers would benefit from the inclusion of FASD-focused training in their curricula and professional development plans. Improving the diagnostic capacities of health institutions would address the paucity of diagnosis and raise the profile of FASD, especially in the social services setting.

Service user violence against social workers in Italy: Prevalence and characteristics of the phenomenon

2021 ◽  
pp. 146801732110091
Author(s):  
Alessandro Sicora ◽  
Urban Nothdurfter ◽  
Barbara Rosina ◽  
Mara Sanfelici
Keyword(s):  
Social Workers ◽  
Social Services ◽  
Child Protection ◽  
Service User ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Professional Relationship ◽  
Effective Prevention ◽  
Client Violence ◽  
Prevention Programmes ◽  
Victims Of Violence

Summary Client violence in social services is perceived as constantly increasing in Italy, raising deep concern. This article presents the results of the first online survey on the phenomenon. Involving 20,112 social workers, the aim was to determine the prevalence and forms of client violence towards social workers and to identify key factors associated with such events. Findings The results suggest that the vast majority of Italian social workers experience client violence during their careers. Verbal aggression and threats were most common forms of violence, followed by physical attacks and property damage. Young and less experienced social workers appeared more likely to be victims of violence, as well as those who more frequently work in isolation or without their colleagues’ support. Social workers in child protection services, services for adults and municipality services accessible to the entire population were found to be at higher risk of client violence. The social workers considered the quality of the client/professional relationship and communication skills to be critical in preventing and dealing with aggression by users. Unfulfilled clients’ expectation was considered to be one of the main factors contributing to frustration and the consequent hostile behaviour. Applications Violence against social workers is a ‘wake-up call’ that makes the weakening of welfare services, and therefore of professional social work, more visible. The first nationwide study on service user violence reported by this paper may significantly contribute to raising awareness about the phenomenon in Italy and to the devising of effective prevention programmes.

Zvereva, Iryna

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tetyana Semigina ◽  
Tetiana Basiuk
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Social Services ◽  
International Organizations ◽  
Code Of Ethics ◽  
Work Organization ◽  
Professional Community ◽  
International Standards ◽  
Social Pedagogy ◽  
National University

Dr. Iryna Zvereva (1952–2013) was one of the prominent founders of social work and social pedagogy in Ukraine. From 1992 through to 1998 she worked at the State Center of Social Services for Youth, the first professional public social work organization in Ukraine. She became a professor at the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv and the Borys Grinchenko University of Kyiv. She led the development and international recognition of the Ukrainian professional community: under her leadership the Ukrainian Association of Social Educators and Social Work Specialists had joined the International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW) in 1994. She initiated the elaboration of the National Code of Ethics for Social Workers in accordance with international standards. She worked for the Ukrainian and international organizations that had introduced innovative, pioneer social work practices in Ukraine, and she authored over 200 publications on social work and social pedagogy.

Team Managers in Local Social Service Departments in Israel as Bottom-Up Social Policy-Makers

2021 ◽  
pp. 324-345
Keyword(s):  
Social Workers ◽  
Social Services ◽  
Social Service ◽  
Public Discourse ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Psychosocial Services ◽  
Service Departments ◽  
New Policies

Following on Felice Perlmutter's work on the managerial role of social workers in social services, this article contributes to the still limited knowledge on the role of social workers in middle-management positions in formulating new policies `on the ground`. The study expands knowledge about policies determined by team managers in local social service departments in Israel. It occurs in the nexus between street-level bureaucracy, professionalism and managerial positions. Semi-structured interviews with 28 team managers revealed that they formulated `new` policies with regard to the provision of psychosocial services and material assistance (who gets what, when and how). This occurs when they resist official policy, when it is vague or non-existent. Most of their policy decisions are not documented and draw upon consultations with colleagues and superiors though not with clients. The team managers perceive these policies as a means for achieving balance between clients' well-being and budgetary constraints. Yet their decisions lack transparency, are decided upon without public discourse and may lead to greater inequity between clients

Can complexity in welfare professionals’ work be handled with standardised professional knowledge?

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lars Evertsson ◽  
Björn Blom ◽  
Marek Perlinski ◽  
Devin Rexvid
Keyword(s):  
Social Workers ◽  
Social Services ◽  
Expert Knowledge ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Professional Knowledge ◽  
Welfare States ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Professional Body ◽  
Problematic Situations ◽  
Use Of Knowledge

Complexity in professional work is often discussed in relation to the professional body of knowledge. There is a tendency to relate professional success, problems and shortcomings to flaws and limitations in the professions’ expert knowledge or use of knowledge. To reduce complexity, overcome problematic situations and achieve best practice, welfare states invest considerable resources in raising professional groups’ level of knowledge and use of evidence-based knowledge. Non-medical professions such as social workers are expected to adopt and implement the principles that underpin evidence-based medicine. However, based on two empirical studies of social workers within Swedish social services, this chapter argues that problematic situations and complexity in social work can have sources other than lack of knowledge or insufficient use of knowledge. The chapter argues that these complex and problematic situations cannot be solved by standardised professional knowledge about interventions and results.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document