scholarly journals The Future of Social Work in Aging: “Everything Old is New Again”

10.18060/85 ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 121-131 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nancy P. Kropf ◽  
Margaret Adamek
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Baby Boom ◽  
Cutting Edge ◽  
Older Adulthood ◽  
Research Education ◽  
Baby Boom Generation ◽  
The Us ◽  
Work Knowledge

With the aging of the baby boom generation, the number of older adults in the US will increase substantially. Using a biopsychosocial framework, this article presents cutting-edge of older adulthood and considers emerging roles of social workers with older adults and their families. Research, education, and policy perspectives that will advance social work knowledge, skills and resources in aging are proposed. Social work as a profession is challenged to lead the way in making “everything old new again.”

Political Social Work: An Essential Component of the Profession

2021 ◽  
pp. 359-381
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Knowledge And Skills ◽  
Social Work Faculty ◽  
Field Placements ◽  
High Level ◽  
Work Education ◽  
Work Knowledge ◽  
Initial Results

Social workers have played a key role in political settings from the profession’s historic roots to present day. Their knowledge, skills and values position social workers to practice in political settings. Social work faculty and students were interviewed to assess a) how field placements in legislative offices and participation in Campaign School and NASW-sponsored Legislative Education and Advocacy Day (LEAD) impacted students’ professional development and perspectives on political social work, and b) social work faculties’ perception of these activities in students’ social work education and necessary political social work knowledge and skills. Initial results demonstrate a high level of support for these activities among faculty and students with opportunities to further include them in the explicit and implicit social work curriculum.

The Development and Initial Validation of the Empathy Scale for Social Workers

2011 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 174-185 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steve King ◽  
Michael J. Holosko
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Empirical Evaluation ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Master Of Social Work ◽  
Initial Validation ◽  
Social Work Practitioners ◽  
Student Training ◽  
Empathy Scale ◽  
Work Knowledge

Empathy is a core principle essential to social work. Despite this emphasis, minimal empirical research of empathy has been undertaken by social work researchers. The purpose of this study was to develop and initially validate the Empathy Scale for Social Workers (ESSW). The ESSW is a 41-item self-report inventory designed to assess empathy in social work practitioners. The sample ( N = 271) consisted of social workers who had attained the Master of Social Work (MSW) degree. Findings revealed promising psychometric properties for the ESSW, and exploratory factor analysis (EFA) demonstrated content, construct, and factorial validity. Results were encouraging and they lay the ground work for the continued development of the ESSW. This scale addresses a gap in social work knowledge regarding the empirical evaluation of empathy. Results have implications for social work as the scale may be used to assess student training needs and/or as a screening tool for social work supervisors and practitioners.

scholarly journals Practising social work

Social Work ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 97-114
Author(s):  
Guy Shennan
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Social Policy ◽  
Social Science ◽  
Human Development ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Social Science Knowledge ◽  
The Social ◽  
Research Interviews ◽  
Work Education ◽  
Work Knowledge

The chapter considers changes and developments in the content of social work education under the three headings of social science disciplines, understanding human development and relationships, and theories, approaches and methods for practice. At the start of the period under review, social science knowledge (primarily from sociology and social policy) and human development theories predominated, but as their research base and published literature have expanded, theories and methods for practice have become more prominent. The contribution to knowledge from research conducted by social workers themselves is acknowledged, as is the contribution made by experts by experience, both directly and through research interviews. The prominence of sequences on law for social workers is noted. The chapter concludes by asserting that the broad partnership of interests which should determine the content of the social work knowledge base is threatened by Government's much-expanded role, but that most social work programmes continue to ensure a balanced curriculum.

The nature of practice wisdom in social work revisited

2008 ◽  
Vol 51 (1) ◽  
pp. 47-54 ◽  
Author(s):  
William C.K. Chu ◽  
Ming-sum Tsui
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Knowledge Acquisition ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Travail Social ◽  
Trabajo Social ◽  
Work Knowledge ◽  
Forms Of Knowledge

English Social work knowledge cannot be adequately articulated by the positivistic epistemology. It arises from the judgements rather than the techniques. Forms of knowledge acquisition and utilization must be reinvented so that there is a close and equal partnership among the profession, practitioners and students. This will enable social workers to discover, articulate and use their knowledge most effectively. French L'épistémologie positiviste ne permet d'articuler adéquatement le savoir en travail social. Celle-ci découle davantage des préjugés que des techniques. Les façons d'acquérir et d'utiliser le savoir demandent à être repensées de manière à établir un partenariat serré, sur une base d'égalité entre la profession, les practiciens et les étudiants. Les travailleurs sociaux pourront ainsi découvrir, articuler et exploiter le savoir de façon plus efficace. Spanish El conocimiento de trabajo social no puede ser adecuadamente articulado por la epistemología positivista. Ya que este conocimiento surge de opiniones, criterios más que técnicas. Formas de adquisición y utilización de conocimiento debe ser reinventada de tal manera que exista una colaboración igualitaria entre la profesión, practicantes y estudiantes. Esta colaboración ayudara trabajadores sociales a descubrir, articular y usar nuestro conocimiento más efectivamente.

scholarly journals Conceptualization of Culture and Ethnicity within Social Work in Two Indigenous Communities

2018 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 4-30
Author(s):  
Reidunn Håøy Nygård ◽  
Merete Saus ◽  
Shanley Swanson Nicolai
Keyword(s):  
Native American ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Family Life ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Indigenous Communities ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Us

This qualitative study compares social work in Sami communities within Norway and Native American communities in Montana in the US. A total of 39 social workers were interviewed. We investigated the conceptualization of culture and ethnicity, as well as the implications of these constructions for a culturally adequate social work practice. We find that social workers in Sápmi conceptualize culture and ethnicity as hybrid and fluid, while the social workers in Native American communities have a more fixed and static conceptualization. When working in Native American communities, social workers’ theme of inequality among groups, and the continuing effect of assimilation on family life. Among social workers in Sami communities in Norway, little attention is given to power relations among ethnic groups. These differences in construction affect both the framing and the legitimacy of culturally adequate social work within these two contexts.

scholarly journals Risk Assessment and Strengths Based Case Management in Elderly Care– Scope of Social Work Practice

2016 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 121
Author(s):  
K Minimol
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Risk Assessment ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Case Management ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Independent Living ◽  
Elderly Care ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Helping Process

Social workers have a significant role in ensuring the wellbeing of older people. Social work brings a range of specialized skills and methods of interventions in improving the quality of life of older adults. Conducting proper assessment is an important task of social workers while engaging in the provision of support services. In contrast to the ubiquitous deficit-based assessments, strengths-based assessments provide social work practitioners with methods to assess strengths and abilities and thereby develop strengths-based interventions. Though risk-assessment is necessary to prevent problems occurring, understanding clients’ strengths is an integral resource in the helping process. Assessments giving equal importance to risks and strengths are inevitable in formulating and implementing specific activities to facilitate their independent living in the community. This paper highlights the significance of biopsychosocial assessment, risks/strengths assessment and strengths-based case management of older adults. This paper also presents an inventory of risks and strengths reported by older adults who attended case work and counselling sessions with the author during her role as a social worker in a multidisciplinary community health care setting in Australia.

scholarly journals The Cultivation of Social Work Knowledge: Towards a More Robust System of Peer Review

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel J. Dunleavy
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Peer Review ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Open Science ◽  
Recent Issue ◽  
Double Blind ◽  
Recent Trends ◽  
Robust System ◽  
Work Knowledge ◽  
Science Movement

In a recent issue of Families in Society, Caputo (2019) argues for the "centrality" of peer review in the cultivation of social work knowledge. Specifically, he favors the double-blind model of peer review. In this paper, I argue that social work should adopt a more dynamic set of reviewing practices. First, I define some terminology and discuss the limitations of the current double-blind model. Then, I describe recent trends in peer review, which I argue foster a more robust and open system. I frame this discussion within the context of the wider open science movement and urge social workers to engage with these scholarly practices. In line with these practices and values, a freely accessible preprint is available at: xxxxxxxx.

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