The Boulder Model: Lessons From Clinical Psychology for Social Work Training

Abstract

The integration of practice and research concepts into a distinctive social work practice research model has generated considerable interest in our field. The rationale for a practice research model has been well articulated in the social work literature, with an emphasis on the development of methods for practitioners to evaluate their practice, and more recently, the emergence of preliminary guidelines for a model of practice research. This article extends the discussion of a social work practice research model by introducing a preliminary model for training research practitioners in social work. Beginning with a summary of the Boulder Model from clinical psychology, other related practice research models that can contribute to a social work practice research model are highlighted, and applications for the field of social work are outlined.