History Of Social Work Research Articles

School Social Work History: A Scoping Review

School Social Work History: A Scoping Review

Reconciling the past and shaping the future: The importance of social work history in the Grand Challenge to Eliminate Racism

ABSTRACT Social work is a discipline guided by ideologies and aspirations for equity and racial justice; yet, a review of documented history on its founding and founders reveals a narrative that is confoundingly different than its ideas. Social work programs share a ubiquitous narrative that white founders were the cornerstone images of the discipline, describing these individuals as revolutionaries who were ahead of their time. White founders Jane Addams and Mary Richmond have been lauded countless awards and recognition for their progressive works of service, and nearly deified postmortem. Schools of social work and initiatives have been named after them and hosts of scholarly materials and documentaries are created to herald their works. Yet, scholars are now challenging such notions and questioning why they were deemed historical heroes and the current day effect their images have on the discipline moving forward. Such revolutionary thinking questions why social work has only embraced white founders and suggests that BIPOC contributions to social justice are as remarkable and noteworthy in helping establish the discipline. As social work begins to revisit and reconcile with its past, refining how the discipline tells its history is needed to build a future that truly embraces and activates equity and social justice.

Empowerment – theory, history and current situation in social work: literature review

Empowerment – theory, history and current situation in social work: literature review

REVIEW OF A COLLECTIVE MONOGRAPH «PERSONNEL IN THE HISTORY OF PROFESSIONAL SOCIAL WORK»

The collective monograph «Personalities in the history of professional social work: from the 19th century to the present day» highlights the evolution of female and male representation in the history of the institutionalization of social work as a professional activity, as well as the study and generalization of the experiences of outstanding women and men who made a significant contribution to this field, making the first attempts at theoretical approaches to social work and initiating relevant practices in Ukraine.The collective monograph will be useful for students of higher education, teachers, pedagogical workers, social teachers, social workers, practical psychologists, public figures

The ‘Right to an Upbringing’—Contrasting Early German and English Child Welfare Legislation for a Case Study in Comparative Social Work History

The ‘Right to an Upbringing’—Contrasting Early German and English Child Welfare Legislation for a Case Study in Comparative Social Work History

The Human Services: Practitioners’ Experiences of the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s & 1990s

ABSTRACT This article draws on four social work practitioners’ and a sociologist’s reflections on the political environments that influenced Australian social work and the human services from the 1960s–1990s. Utilising collective and mixed autobiographical-ethnography with a purposive sample, we examined the social forces and politico-economic contexts that have shaped social work practice. We focused on the impact of feminism, First Nations activism, and the rise of neoliberalism on policy, legislation and professionalism. The article also traced the evolution of service provision in Australia through key moments in the professional experiences of four of the authors who practiced during these respective periods. It offers unique reflections on the political and human histories that have shaped this sector. The recollection of the racist and sexist attitudes that at times predominated and the associated progressive struggles illustrated the interplay between dominant ideologies and the human services. These reflections highlighted the messiness and dynamism of social work practice within the services and its embeddedness in the social constructs of the time. They remind colleagues of the political nature of their work and the need to embed practice wisdom in the literary record for the benefit of the profession and future workers. IMPLICATIONS Change and advocacy for social justice from the 1960s onwards have moulded, shaped and transformed the nature of social work practice. Recalling the history of social work and the lived experiences of practitioners enriches our understanding of practice during the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s and 1990s and can add to the historical record. It is relevant for all social workers to reflect on how contemporary social work practice has evolved alongside broader social and politico-economic trends.

The Diaconal Work of Sisters Kristína and Mária Royová—An Example of the Link between Christian Anthropology and Social Work

Considering the intermingling of problems in today’s multi-crisis environment, this text explores the possibilities of intertwining social work and pastoral care. In the search for effective approaches, we find dynamic patterns in the activities of the Royová (Roy) sisters. Their diaconal work is an important source for social work history illustrating how social work took the form of diaconal (charity) work with a rich pastoral reach at the time. Their activities represent a natural link between Christian anthropology and social work. This study mainly investigates the Christian (spiritual) basis of the social and charitable activities of the Royová sisters, the beginnings of the institutionalisation of social and charitable work in Slovakia and Serbia through the organisations founded by the Royová sisters, the Christian-social interpersonal contribution of the Roy sisters to the development of Slovak and European social work personified by their cooperation with several personalities of social and charitable work at the international, national, and local levels, and the contribution of the Roy sisters in the creation of women’s, volunteer, and international roots of social and charitable work in Slovakia and Europe. In their responses to the needs of their environment, we find significant stimuli for pastoral theology, which is supposed to respond to the needs of the multi-crisis environment of today.

“Why Don’t We Learn About the Black Social Work Pioneers?” The Erasure of Black Social Workers’ Histories and Contributions—Implications for Social Work Education

ABSTRACTWhile there is mounting research on the well-known white founders of social work, documentation of Black social work pioneers and their contributions is scarce – in both social work education and the broader telling of the profession’s history. Given the systemic exclusion of Black social workers in the dominant narrative of social work history, there is a critical need to understand how social work education perpetuates and centers whiteness in the teaching of historical and contemporary social work. This article uses Critical Race Theory to interrogate the role of racism and white supremacy in maintaining the Eurocentric hegemony undergirding the pedagogical and epistemological canons of social work. Moreover, the authors call for a radical shift from social work’s white-centered discourse and curricula to an equitable praxis, centering Black social work pioneers and their contributions to the profession. Implications for decolonizing pedagogy and anti-racist practice in social work education are also discussed.

Use of Oral History Methods in Social Work: A Scoping Review

ABSTRACT Purpose Oral history as a method of understanding the lived experience spans multiple disciplines including education, women and gender studies, history, and disability studies. Oral histories can be a vehicle for people on the periphery to tell their stories, a method well suited to pursuits related to social justice and social work. The purpose of this manuscript is to report on a scoping review that was conducted to better understand how oral history methods have been used in social work. Material and Methods To answer our review question, we use an established scoping review framework. Based on eligibility criteria, 23 manuscripts were identified – all published in peer-reviewed English language journals between 2005 and 2023 and written by social work-credentialed authors. Results The authors identified three themes that reflect the uses of oral history studies in social work: oral history used as a teaching tool in social work education, oral history used to document the experiences and knowledge of social service trailblazers, and commentaries about using oral history and other biographical methods in social work. Discussion This review highlights how oral history, as a method, has contributed to social work research and scholarship. Conclusion Recommendations are made as to the usefulness of oral history to address social problems and practice issues important to the field of social work.

Precedents to Think About Social Work in Chile in the Current Uncertain Political Scenario: Reflections From Critical Feminisms

In this In Brief, the authors present an argument about the challenges for feminist social work in Chile, given the political transformation process occurring since 2019 in the country. Through an approach that addresses the history of social work in dialogue with important political events for Chile and their consequences for the feminist and social movements, the authors argue that—despite the progress achieved—the main challenge for feminist social work today continues to be a male privilege. This is exemplified by a critical view of two main social work development fields: social services and academia. Finally, referring to critical and feminist perspectives, the authors reflect on possibilities for change in social work practice and education, given the political uncertainty that Chile is facing, particularly after the failure of the first constitutional election.

Troubling White Women’s Desire for Innocence in Community-Based Social Work Practice: A Foucauldian Discourse Analysis

Understanding the effects of White femininity on social work practice is a worthy endeavour provided the disproportionate numbers of White women that have built and occupied the professional role of social worker from the origins of colonization to present. Mainstream accounts of social work history narrate the profession to be a pursuit of well-intentioned middle- and upper-class White women, concealing the colonial operations that underpin the formation of social work as a White feminine project. While Whiteness and its effects within social work have been a subject of study, the intersection of gender and Whiteness has been minimally addressed, disregarding significant nuances that inform the relationship between the project of colonization and social work. This paper provides a detailed analysis of semi-structured interviews with eight White, woman-identified social workers who have practiced community-based social work for a minimum of two years in Alberta, Canada. Foucauldian discourse analysis is used to trace the ways the participants perform the dominant discourse of White femininity. The findings illuminate the social work profession's ongoing complicity with its colonial origins, which collude with White femininity and ultimately foster practices steeped in racism. A vital need to disentangle social work from its colonial and racist scripts is emphasized.

The Social Solidarity Economy and the Hull-House Tradition of Social Work: Keys for Unlocking the Potential of Social Work for Sustainable Social Development

Social work (SW) is criticized for its (i) inconsistent ontology, epistemology, and methodology and (ii) co-dependency with the capitalist hegemony, which is the main cause of multiple crises that primarily affect the most vulnerable. Addressing these issues is of paramount importance if SW is to achieve its core mandate of promoting social change, social development, social cohesion, and the empowerment and liberation of people. The purpose of this paper is to assert that SW can address these issues by learning from the (i) Settlement House Movement (SHM), especially the Hull-House tradition of SW; and (ii) current endeavors of the Social Solidarity Economy (SSE). We were led to this assertion because we noticed in our research, in the area of SSE of vulnerable groups and SW, remarkable similarities and potentials of these two approaches to help transform SW. Our argument is based on data and insight gained from (i) a narrative literature review on the history of SW and the nature of SSE; and (ii) a systematic scoping review of the SSE of People of African Descent (PAD) in Europe. In this paper, we elaborate on our key arguments and provide examples and recommendations.

Development and Psychometric Properties of Self-Reported Job Interview Skills and Job Interview Anxiety for Autistic Transition-Age Youth.

The study of job interview training is an emerging area among transition-age autistic youth who face significant challenges when navigating job interviews. The autism field has limited measures that have undergone rigorous psychometric evaluation. We sought to evaluate the psychometric properties of adapted self-report measures assessing job interview skills and job interview anxiety. As part of two parent randomized controlled trials, eighty-five transition-age autistic youth completed measures related to the strength of their job interview skills and their level of job interview anxiety. We conducted classical test theory analyses, exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses, and Rasch model analytic and calibration analyses. Pearson correlations were used to establish concurrent, divergent, and criterion validity by correlating these scales with measures of social differences, depressive symptoms, behaviors, neuropsychological functioning, and work history. Our analyses yielded two brief and reliable scales: Measure of Job Interview Skills (MOJO-iSkills) and Measure of Job Interview Anxiety (MOJO-iAnxiety), which demonstrated initial concurrent, divergent, and criterion validities when correlated with measures of depressive symptoms, social differences, internalizing and externalizing behavior, and work history. This study presents initial evidence that MOJO-iSkills and MOJO-iAnxiety have acceptable psychometric properties supporting they can be used to reliably and validly assess job interview skills and interview anxiety.

Understanding Ubuntu and its contribution to social work education in Africa and other regions of the world

ABSTRACT The overarching philosophy of Black people of Africa is known by different names but Ubuntu is the most popular name. Ubuntu’s origin is attributable to Black Africans in all regions of the continent—North, West, Central, East and South. Different communities may emphasize its different aspects but they are common knowledges, values and practices. The article begins with a discussion of the philosophy of Ubuntu and its application at the micro (individual and family), meso (communal), macro (societal, environmental and spiritual) levels. The roles of Ubuntu in social work education are then discussed with a focus on Africa. These roles are offering a philosophical foundation; being a source of ethics and values; being a source of knowledge including theories; offering a history of African social work; shaping social work methods; building the confidence of educators, learners and communities; shaping research; being a pedagogical approach; enriching fieldwork education; and indigenizing and decolonizing. However, there are several impediments to the full use of Ubuntu, including the colonial history of the profession, changes to African society and lack of Ubuntu-inspired educational resources. The authors recommend continuous development and use of educational resources that are created with Ubuntu philosophy as a guiding principle.

Jewish Social Work Biographies between Germany and Mandatory Palestine

When social work emerged as a profession, it played a crucial role in the establishment of national welfare systems. Social movements and transnational agents – mainly women – promoted these processes. This article examines the history of social work between Germany and the Jewish community in Palestine. The focus is on the biographies of 100 Jewish social workers who emigrated from Germany to Palestine from the 1920s to the 1940s and helped establish social work in the new state.

THE MULTIDISCIPLINARY HISTORIES OF ACTIVE AGING IN POLAND

Abstract In contemporary Poland, Universities of the Third Age are the most visible institutional forms of active aging. These lifelong-learning institutions that are specifically for retirees often cultivate ideals of independence through workshops and classes that teach new, and potentially transformative, skills and hobbies (Kobylarek, 2018). Universities of the Third Age in Poland emerged out of the fields of andragogy, pedagogy, and social work, fields that have regional intellectual roots in the late 19th/early 20th-century presocialist era, and are based on radically different ideals of personhood, relationality, and care than those of the contemporary postsocialist neoliberal era (Robbins, 2021). This paper analyzes 1) historical data from institutional archives of two Universities of the Third Age in Poland, and 2) secondary sources on histories of andragogy, pedagogy, and social work, to create a locally grounded intellectual history of active aging in central and eastern Europe. The Polish case offers an opportunity to think across divergent political-economic eras, in which assumptions about the value of a person to society have shifted. By tracing how the fields of andragogy, pedagogy, and social work have shaped active aging in Poland, this paper finds that 1) dichotomies of East/West, socialist/capitalist, and individual/collective are insufficient to explain the history of contemporary practices of active aging, and 2) intellectual history can reveal complex relations between political-economic change, and ideals and practices of aging. These findings have implications for advancing gerontological theories of 1) active aging in cross-cultural contexts, and 2) how active aging relates to sociopolitical change.

Just Research: Advancing Antiracist and Antioppressive Social Work Research.

The Society for Social Work and Research (SSWR) created its Research Capacity and Development Committee in 2017 to build research capacity across the careers of social work scholars. The committee has initiated multiple conferences and webinar sessions that have increasingly focused on antiracist and antioppressive (ARAO) research, including "Mentorship for Antiracist and Inclusive Research" and "Strategies for Supporting Antiracist Pedagogy & Scholarship: Reimagining Institutional Systems & Structures." This commentary integrates themes from these sessions and other discussions among committee members about strategies to advance ARAO research. Although SSWR board members reviewed and approved this submission, it is not an official statement of SSWR or its board of directors.

Book Review: A new history of social work: Values and practice in the struggle for social justice by John H. Pierson

Book Review: <i>A new history of social work: Values and practice in the struggle for social justice</i> by John H. Pierson

The teaching of social work history and the inclusion of African American contributors: implications for social work educators

ABSTRACT Research suggest that the perspectives of African Americans have been excluded from discussions of the historical development of social work. The purpose of this study was to analyze the extent to which the teaching of social work history was inclusive of African American contributions to the profession. Results of this summative content analysis are consistent with previous research determining that diverse, specifically African American, social work history is underrepresented in social work education. It is imperative for social work curricula to employ an anti-racist approach, which is inherently multiperspective, to teaching how historical forces have shaped the profession.

Historical Development of Education and Social Work in Kosovo

&lt;p style="text-align: justify;"&gt;The aim of this article is to highlight the history of social work in Kosovo, regarding the major political climate from 1945 to the present. Unfavorable political developments that have existed in Kosovo for a long historical period have made it impossible to develop the social work profession compared to the countries of the region. Although the Former Yugoslav Federation claimed to be a socialist country, the social differences between states and provinces within this were large. The findings of the paper show that social work did not develop in Kosovo as a profession until specific structures, such as the emergence of the University of Pristina as a legal structure of education for Kosovo Albanians, which has been offering a degree program in social work for almost a decade now. The political orientation and organizational infrastructure are highly relevant for the execution and education of social work. Literature review is the methodological framework of this paper. Education and social work have been shown to be an extraordinary opportunity for the transformation of society.&lt;/p&gt;