Complex issues, complex solutions: applying complexity theory in social work practice

Abstract

High-profile service failures in social work have ensured that the demand that practitioner decision-making be both accurate and transparent has never been as vocal or persistent. Such expectations undermine both trust and legitimacy, and how best to respond represents perhaps the most challenging issue facing social work today. Of necessity, practitioners must make judgements in circumstances characterised by uncertainty and ambiguity, while the complexity of this undertaking is routinely cited as a confounding variable in efforts to generate and apply generalisable knowledge in a technical fashion. Here, we aim to utilise developments in complexity theory to elaborate on why this might be the case, but also what, practically, social work might do about it. In particular, we will respond to Eileen Munro suggestion that it is possible to differentiate areas of social work which can be proceduralised from those which should be judgement based. Utilising recent developments in complexity theory, we aim to explore whether this can be undertaken on the basis of a ‘complexity continuum’ which enables classification of roles and tasks on the basis of inherent certainty or uncertainty. In providing a reflexive account of the development and application of the continuum, however, the relationship between theory and practice is to some extent problematised. The findings demonstrate that although complexity theory can provide useful insights, it also has evident practical limitations. In turn, these limitations have implications for discussions regarding the real-world relevance of complexity theory, and for sociological theorising to social work more generally.