International trends in Russian social work

Abstract

Social work in Russia has been undergoing a process of reform nationally and with regard to the international context. The present paper outlines the international trends in three main social work spheres: social work education, social services policy and social work practice. In the introduction background information on the social and economic situation in Russia is provided. The first section of paper is devoted to the main features of development of social work in Russia. In the next section, some of the key issues of development of social work education in Russia are discussed. The system of social work higher education is being reformed in accordance with the principles of the Bologna process. Therefore, the importance of cooperation with European universities is increasing. In the next section, attention turns to the broad policy context of social services and to government attempts to reform social services. New legislation for the Russian system of social services is being developed in line with neoliberal trends that characterize many European countries. Then the paper focuses on social work practice in Russia. The theoretical perspectives of current Russian social work practice are primarily concerned with prevention and empowerment. Finally, an example is given of the Russian-Finnish project ‘Empowerment of families with children’, which contributed to improving the effectiveness of family and child welfare services in the border regions.