The Social Work Regulator and Professional Identity: A Narrative of Lord and Bondsman

2020 ◽  
Vol 50 (6) ◽  
pp. 1909-1925
Author(s):  
Murray Simpson ◽  
Maura Daly ◽  
Mark Smith
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Professional Identity ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Power Imbalance ◽  
Professional Identities ◽  
Regulatory Relationship ◽  
External Regulation ◽  
The Social ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Anglophone World

Abstract Since the early 2000s, in a development since mirrored throughout much of the Anglophone world, social work across UK jurisdictions has been subject to external regulation. Whilst a key justification for regulation was to enhance professional identity, there is little evidence that it has done so. Indeed, a growing literature points out conflictual and unproductive relationships between the social work profession and its regulators, within which a marked power imbalance in favour of the regulator is apparent. In this article, we illustrate the nature of this imbalance theoretically by drawing upon the classic philosophical narrative, developed by Georg Willhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770–1831), of the ‘lord and bondsman’. We seek to demonstrate the utility of the Hegelian narrative using data from a study into the views of social workers on how they understand their professional identities, focusing specifically on those aspects of the study that address the place of regulation in this process. Whilst exposing some fundamental problems in the regulatory relationship, the lord and bondsman narrative may also offer some possibility of a way forward through identifying these dialectics as a step towards a more self-conscious professional maturity.

scholarly journals Policy and identity change in youth social work: From social-interventionist to neoliberal policy paradigms

2016 ◽  
Vol 17 (4) ◽  
pp. 470-490 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathrine Vitus
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
The Political ◽  
Identity Change ◽  
Professional Identities ◽  
Political Dimension ◽  
Dominant Ideology ◽  
The Social ◽  
Neoliberal Ideology ◽  
Professional Project

Summary This article analyses – by drawing on ideology critical and psychoanalytical concepts from Slavoj Žižek and Glynos et al. – how political, social and fantasmatic logics interplay and form social workers’ professional identities within two youth social work institutions that operate within different social policy paradigms: a social-interventionist paradigm in 2002 and a neoliberal paradigm in 2010. Findings The article shows how the current neoliberalisation of public policy permeates social work practices through fantasmatic narratives that create professional identities to heal discrepancies in and conceal the political dimension of everyday life. In one institution, within a welfare state-based ideology a compensating-including social professional identity is created in response to the young people’s alleged deficiencies; in the other institution, within a neoliberal ideology a mobilising-motivating identity is created to meet the young people’s alleged excess. In both narratives, however, the young people risk bearing the blame for the failure of the social professional project. Applications Fantasies in both institutions conceal how social workers’ professional identities sustain dominant ideology through dislocating uncertainties, ambiguities and ambivalences implicated in professional social work. Whether rooted in the state-based welfare or market-oriented neoliberal policy paradigms, realisation of these dynamics may expose the basic interdependencies of state, civil society and market actors implicated in the project of professional social work.

scholarly journals A note on ‘image’ methodology for social work qualitative research: Socially inclusive research methods for service users

2015 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 119-127
Author(s):  
Sarah Matthews
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Research ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Research Process ◽  
Power Imbalance ◽  
Service Users ◽  
Social Work Research ◽  
Social Work Values ◽  
Data Collection And Analysis ◽  
The Social

Abstract: This note offers an analysis of the issues of the social contextual impact of research methodology. Here the author discusses the potential of using ‘image based’ data collection and analysis methods in social work research and in particular focuses on one possible method, ‘rich pictures’. Interest in the use of using image based methods is growing. The author considers the literature which underpins this approach, focussing on the challenges this might bring at all stages of the research process and offers a critique of the ethical and practical dilemmas involved. It will be suggested that such methods have the potential to shift the often criticised power imbalance in all research, including social work research. The author will discuss if this supplementary methodology might increase the ability of service users to participate in research. In this respect, it empathizes with service users who might prefer a non-verbal approach to research inquiry, with more of a range of responsiveness to researchers’ question. This note will argue for moving beyond only words in open-ended interviews by social workers to further explore the experiences of service users. As such its use may also be more in accord with the social work values of social justice.

Social Representation of Social Work in the Canadian Healthcare Setting: Negotiating a Professional Identity

2019 ◽  
Vol 49 (8) ◽  
pp. 2245-2265
Author(s):  
Maude Lévesque ◽  
Lilian Negura ◽  
Charles Gaucher ◽  
Marc Molgat
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Professional Identity ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Healthcare Setting ◽  
Daily Practice ◽  
Social Representation ◽  
Institutional Setting ◽  
The Social ◽  
Points Of View ◽  
Canadian Healthcare

AbstractOur article concerns the social representation of social work held by professional social workers in a Canadian healthcare setting. While there have been extensive theoretical debates on the professional identity of social workers, little is known about the representation of social work held by practitioners themselves. To better understand the viewpoints of practitioners, we performed an integrated content analysis of 30 semi-directed interviews focussing on the question of professional identity with clinical social workers practicing in three Canadian cities. The analysis identified four elements organising the social representation of social work: ‘counselling for support’, ‘empowerment and respect’, ‘social justice’ and ‘compassionate vocation’. Each element has implications for the daily practice of the profession, the cultivation of resilience and the core values of social work. This article further discusses the respondents’ perception of outside views of the profession and explores the tensions between the values of social work and its implementation in an institutional setting. This research seeks to open new lines of inquiry about social work based on the experiences and points of view of front-line practitioners. In proposing our representational analysis of the professional identity of social workers, we hope to further the understanding of social work in general.

The challenge of superdiversity for the identity of the social work profession: Experiences of social workers in ‘De Sloep’ in Ghent, Belgium

2016 ◽  
Vol 61 (2) ◽  
pp. 274-288
Author(s):  
Bea Van Robaeys ◽  
Hans van Ewijk ◽  
Danielle Dierckx
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Professional Identity ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Social Vulnerability ◽  
Service Organization ◽  
Self Confidence ◽  
Ethnographic Approach ◽  
The Social ◽  
Professional Self

This article examines the challenges that superdiversity and complexity pose for social workers. Taking an ethnographic approach, we focus on the ‘knowledge-in-action’ of social workers in a small service organization in Belgium in order to access their experiences of being professionals in superdiverse contexts. The reflections of the social workers reveal the prominence of three inter-related issues: the social vulnerability of clients, the tensions that arise in coping with differences between personal and professional frameworks and identities, and the discontinuity that challenges the professional self-confidence of social workers. The findings raise important questions for the professional identity of social work.

scholarly journals Tumbler in Tidal Wave: The Professional Stance of Social Workers under Managerialism

2016 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 8
Author(s):  
Hung Sing Lai
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Social Welfare ◽  
Professional Identity ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Work Values ◽  
Tidal Wave ◽  
Social Work Values ◽  
Social Welfare Services ◽  
The Social

<p>Since the concept of Managerialism has been introduced to the social welfare services in Hong Kong, the ecology of social welfare sector has changed drastically. The operation of most organizations adopts a business inclined practice to run their services under the new competitive environment. Consequently, management that is originally supposed to be an auxiliary servant to facilitate the delivery of services has eventually become the master to be served. Most social workers working under such climate find it difficult to exercise their professional functions as they are demanded to fulfill a great deal of managerial duties. Worse off, some appear to have lost their professional identity. This paper is to reveal the struggles of social workers under Managerialism and explore strategies for social workers to live with Managerialism in a way without losing their professional stance through conducting a qualitative research in Hong Kong. The result of this research identifies eight strategies: “reasserting the professional identity”, “realizing the social work values”, “discerning the first and foremost tasks”, “actualizing professional integrity”, “evoking team solidarity”, “exercising personal influence, “performing collaborative resistance”, and “practicing self-reflection”. Since the core of social work is the social work values and to sustain such values demands social workers having a solid professional stance, the suggested strategies derived from this research can be served as a reference for social workers to withstand the assault from the tidal wave of Managerialism and stand firm again on their professional stance, like a tumbler!</p>

scholarly journals Professional identity of Wuhan and Hong Kong social workers: COVID-19 challenges and implications

2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 297-304
Author(s):  
Yan-zhi Du ◽  
TM Simon Chan
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Professional Identity ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Mainland China ◽  
Best Interests ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Four Levels

This reflexive essay focus on how COVID-19 has impacted the professional identity of social workers in Wuhan and Hong Kong. Exploratory and reflexive in nature, eight Wuhan social workers who comprised three males and five females, and seven Hong Kong social workers who comprised one male and six females were recruited for semi-structured interviews. Their experience in Wuhan and Hong Kong during COVID-19 were highlighted. The challenges to professional identity were analyzed and the reflection is categorized into four levels, namely, individual, community, educational and conceptual level. In sum, Wuhan interviewees were more struggled with educating the public on the difference between community work, volunteering and social work, especially at the hospitals, to protect the integrity of the social work profession which shows their commitment to their professional identity. Moreover, they found it difficult to position themselves in proactive online services, where hundreds of workers from different parts of the Mainland China would be involved. On the other hand, Hong Kong interviewees were more inclined to prioritize professional principles at levels that are even higher than those in standardized guidelines. Their goal is to take the best interests of their clients into consideration, and their self-reflections tend to focus more on professional judgement and development of the social work field, to pave the way for future enhancements. Finally yet importantly, the deficiencies of their education as evidenced by the pandemic have been made alarmingly explicit.

Degree or examination: What is the foundation of the social work workforce in China?

2017 ◽  
Vol 62 (1) ◽  
pp. 447-460 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiao Li ◽  
Xiao Yu ◽  
ShouChui Zeng ◽  
XueSong He
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Professional Identity ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Social Work Education ◽  
Turnover Intention ◽  
Social Education ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social Work Licensure ◽  
Work Education

The current Chinese social work licensure program does not mandatorily require formal social work education. This compromised policy is contradictory to the mission of formal social work education and the trajectory of professionalization in other Western countries. This study examined whether social work graduates differ from those who do not have formal social work education in terms of competency, commitment, and turnover intention. Results described the struggles of social work graduates in their experiences in the field. The diminishing role of formal social education may affect the professional identity of social workers in social work development in China.

Satisfaction with the Social Work Profession: A Ten-Year Analysis of Undergraduate Students' Perceptions

1997 ◽  
Vol 80 (3) ◽  
pp. 835-838 ◽  
Author(s):  
James G. Hanson ◽  
James G. McCullagh
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Career Choice ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Perceived Satisfaction ◽  
High Satisfaction ◽  
The Social

A 10-yr. study of 746 social work undergraduates' perceived satisfaction with seven factors related to their career choice suggested high satisfaction with social work as a career; with the purposes and functions of social work, and the students' initial volunteer experience. There were no significant changes in satisfaction over the 10-yr. period, which findings parallel those of other studies in which similar methods have been used with practicing social workers.

Social workers, critical theory and the political sphere: addressing political misrecognition and marginalisation in the Republic of Ireland

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan Flynn
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Democratic Party ◽  
Political Life ◽  
Critical Commentary ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Republic ◽  
Electoral Representation ◽  
Irish Politics

Despite the traditional social justice mandate of social work, and critical and radical theoretical traditions that pursue egalitarian and just societies, the engagement of the social work academy with Irish politics has been underwhelming at best. While there are abstract analyses that address sociopolitical theory and ideological wrongdoings related to neoliberalist rationality, attention in social work academia to the nuts and bolts of everyday political life in Ireland, such as democratic party politics and electoral representation, leaves much to the imagination. This article therefore pursues a more grounded reading of social justice in Irish politics for social workers. The supporting proposition is that to effectively interject in political misrecognition and marginalisation, social workers must understand the present political state of play. Towards achieving this, Axel Honneth’s theory of recognition aids thematic critical commentary on the literature.

Social work education in action: How studying for the profession facilitates the adaptation of internationally educated social workers in Canada

2018 ◽  
Vol 64 (1) ◽  
pp. 114-127
Author(s):  
Annie Pullen Sansfaçon ◽  
Marion Brown
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Social Work Education ◽  
Educational Background ◽  
Work Skills ◽  
The Social ◽  
Theory Project ◽  
Work Education ◽  
Adaptation Processes ◽  
Depth Interviews

This article presents the results and theorization of a 4-year Grounded Theory project that sought to understand the processes and dynamics involved in the professional adaptation of internationally educated social workers now practicing in Canada. In-depth interviews with 66 participants, who undertook social work education outside of Canada and have subsequently settled to practice in the country, were conducted. Results highlight that the social work educational background of the professionals not only offers key conceptual, theoretical, and analytical foundations needed to adapt knowledge and skills to practice abroad, but also provides tools to navigate and negotiate professional adaptation processes as a whole. We conclude that ultimately, social workers may adapt well to their new work contexts because of the transferability of social work skills, knowledge, and values to new practice settings, thus facilitating interventions with services users and also their own process of professional adaptation.

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