Community Practice and Social Development in Social Work PDF
Preview Community Practice and Social Development in Social Work
Social Work Series Editor: Richard Hugman Sarah Todd Julie L. Drolet Editors Community Practice and Social Development in Social Work Social Work SeriesEditor RichardHugman SchoolofSocialSciences UniversityofNewSouthWales Sydney,NSW,Australia The MRW in Social Work enables social work practitioners, policy makers, and academics across the world to access in-depth, authoritative literature and cutting- edge research into professional practice, ethics, practice-based research methods, and policy in the field. Grounding practice and policy in systematic theories and principles,itcoversallspecialtiesinthefieldincludingchildrenandfamilies,older adults, people with disabilities, mental health, domestic and gendered violence, interculturalpractice,sexuality,internationalsocialwork,andcommunitydevelop- ment. Drawing on a strong scientific basis, it offers reviews and analyses of key socialissues,policyframeworks,andpracticemethods,includingcounseling,case- work, family therapy, group work, community work, community development, socialdevelopment,andsocialpolicypractice. Moreinformationaboutthisseriesathttp://www.springer.com/series/15559 (cid:129) Sarah Todd Julie L. Drolet Editors Community Practice and Social Development in Social Work With7Figuresand2Tables Editors SarahTodd JulieL.Drolet SchoolofSocialWork FacultyofSocialWork CarletonUniversity UniversityofCalgary Ottawa,ON,Canada Edmonton,AB,Canada ISBN978-981-13-6968-1 ISBN978-981-13-6969-8(eBook) ISBN978-981-13-6970-4(printandelectronicbundle) https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-6969-8 ©SpringerNatureSingaporePteLtd.2020 Thisworkissubjecttocopyright.AllrightsarereservedbythePublisher,whetherthewholeorpartofthe materialisconcerned,specificallytherightsoftranslation,reprinting,reuseofillustrations,recitation, broadcasting,reproductiononmicrofilmsorinanyotherphysicalway,andtransmissionorinformation storageandretrieval,electronicadaptation,computersoftware,orbysimilarordissimilarmethodology nowknownorhereafterdeveloped Theuseofgeneraldescriptivenames,registerednames,trademarks,servicemarks,etc.inthispublication doesnotimply,evenintheabsenceofaspecificstatement,thatsuchnamesareexemptfromtherelevant protectivelawsandregulationsandthereforefreeforgeneraluse. Thepublisher,theauthors,andtheeditorsaresafetoassumethattheadviceandinformationinthisbook arebelievedtobetrueandaccurateatthedateofpublication.Neitherthepublishernortheauthorsorthe editorsgiveawarranty,expressedorimplied,withrespecttothematerialcontainedhereinorforanyerrors oromissionsthatmayhavebeenmade.Thepublisherremainsneutralwithregardtojurisdictionalclaims inpublishedmapsandinstitutionalaffiliations. ThisSpringerimprintispublishedbytheregisteredcompanySpringerNatureSingaporePteLtd. The registered company address is: 152 Beach Road, #21-01/04 Gateway East, Singapore 189721, Singapore Series Preface Professionalsocialworknowexistsinover90countries.Fromitsearlyoriginsinthe laterpartofthenineteenthcentury,ithassoughttodevelopastrongscientificbasis, groundingpracticeandpolicyinsystematictheoriesandprinciples.Today,associal work grows in all parts of the world, its body of knowledge about social issues, practices to address these, and relevant policy frameworks is expanding rapidly. Consequently,keepingup-to-dateonsuchknowledgeisincreasinglychallengingfor practitioners,policymakers,andacademicsinthefield.Thisseriesmakesresearch- based knowledge available for everyone who has an interest in maintaining their grasp of the discipline by bringing together leading social work scholars, practi- tioners,andpolicymakerstoexaminecontemporaryevidenceonvariousaspectsof the field. In this way, it provides an authoritative range of voices from which everyoneintheprofessionmaygainadeeperunderstandinggroundedinevidence. As ithasexpanded, socialworkhasdevelopedmany areas ofspecialty, eachof which now has its own body of knowledge that constitutes a subfield of the professionasawhole.TheMajorResearch Works inSocial Workseries addresses theneedforup-to-date,authoritative,extensivereviewsandanalysesofknowledge inarangeofareasofsocialwork.Editedbysignificantcontributorsineachaspectof specialty,thesevolumesofferin-depthdiscussionofthespecificpracticesandissues of policy and the organization of relevant services. By taking this approach, it is possible to ensure appropriate coverage of the range of specialties and also at the sametimetoprovidesufficientdepthofanalysisanddiscussionofkeyideas. Asaprofession,socialworkcanbeunderstoodinanumberofways.First,there are fields of practice. These include children and families, older adults, mental health,peoplewithdisabilities,domesticandgenderedviolence,interculturalprac- tice,sexuality,andinternationalsocialwork.Second,methodsofpracticealsodefine areas of knowledge in social work. These include counseling, casework and case management,familytherapy,groupwork,communityworkandcommunitydevel- opment,socialdevelopment,andsocialpolicypractice.Third,thereareoverarching issues that contribute to social work knowledge and theory, including professional ethics, practice-based research methods, and policy studies. These are examples indicativeoftherange,ratherthanformingadefinitivelist,andpointtothewayin whichaseriesmayenablebothbreadthanddepthtobeaddressed.Atthesametime theypointtotheextensivecoveragethatisrelevanttothebroadsocialworkfield. v vi SeriesPreface Although much of the tradition of social work research and analysis came originallyfromthose countries thatexperiencedearlyindustrialization(the“global North”),given theworldwide growth ofsocialworktheeditorialapproach for this seriesalsoaimstobeglobalinitsfocus.Volumeeditorsandcontributorsaredrawn purposefully from around the world and they in turn are expected to take a world- wideviewofensuringthatthecurrentevidenceandanalysisispresented. This series was developed by selecting major themes across fields of practice, methodsofpractice,andoverarchingissues.Futuretitleswillbeaddedtotheinitial five areas, community practice, mental health, family and gendered conflict and violence, children and families, and social work theory and ethics reflecting the breadth of the social work profession. At the same time, because Springer Major ResearchWorksare“living”publications,abletobeupdated,thecontinuingdevel- opmentoftheprofessionwillbereflectedinanalysisanddiscussionthatgrowswith the field through publication of revised chapters as further evidence and analysis becomesavailable. AsEditor-in-Chief,Iacknowledgethecommitmentandinsightsoftheeditorsto eachspecificvolume.Theirexpertiseandhardworkenablethisseriestopursueits overall goal. In this volume Sarah Todd and Julie Drolet have brought together leading researchers, educators, and practitioners in community practice and social developmenttocreateaninsightfulandchallengingviewofthisdimensionofsocial work.IalsothankourPublishingEditoratSpringerNature,MokshikaGaur,forher vision,enthusiasm,andsupport,aswellasothercolleaguesatSpringerNaturewho haveassistedtheprocessofcreatingthesevolumes. ProfessorofSocialWork RichardHugmanPh.D. UniversityofNewSouthWales,Australia SeriesEditor,SpringerNatureMajorResearch WorksSocialWorkSeries Volume Preface Thisvolume,focusingoncommunitypracticesandsocialdevelopment,ispartofa much larger Springer’s Major Research Works series on social work. This series brings together the best in the field of research and evidence-based analysis of the stateoftheartandscienceinsocialwork.Itprovidesanopportunityforthoseofus in the discipline to showcase the multiple ways our research has real-world impli- cations for individuals, families, communities, the design of social policy, and delivery of social programs. It is intended to provide in-depth discussion on these implications and how they shape social work practices in localized settings from aroundtheglobe. There is no singular social work way of knowing or intervening in the world. Social work knowledge and action is highly situated, connected by ever-evolving processesofcaringforthedignityofindividuals,respectinghumanconnections,and understanding that these elements shape and are shaped by broader policies and overarchingsocial,political,andeconomicrelations.Thevastandvariedknowledge and practices that constitute social work are the discipline’s and profession’s strength, even when they appear as vulnerabilities at a historical moment that valorizestheeasilycategorizedand contained. The richnessand diversity ofsocial work’s project to further social, economic, environmental, and political justice is exactlywhatisrequiredforthecomplexityofthetaskathand.Itisthediscipline’s ability to draw on interdisciplinary ways of knowing and to rework them for the context in which people live, which opens up the possibilities for resistance to the variedstructuresofinequalitythatpersist. Inthisvolume,ourfocusisoncommunitypracticesandsocialdevelopmentasa key set of practices within the much broader discipline of social work. They are practicesthatarecentraltothecoreoftheprofessionitself.Atitscore,socialworkis committedtopromotingsocialandeconomicequality,strengtheningthedignityand worthofpeopleandtheirhumanrelationships,andworkingtowardsenvironmental sustainability. These commitments are foregrounded in social development and communitypractices.Itistheircomplexity,abalanceofthepersonal,interpersonal, and the political, that distinguishes social work as a scholarly discipline and a professional practice. Social development and community practices are central frameworks and tools through which the core values of social work are operationalizedintheworld. vii viii VolumePreface As the editors of this volume we bring a passionate belief in the potential of community-basedinterventionsforsupportinghumanwell-beingalongsidebroader strugglesforsocialjustice.Withinthiscollection,communityisnotstatic,buttakes theformmostrelevanttothepeopleandplacesinwhichtheauthorsliveandwork.It is also a contested space, where relations of indigeneity, gender, sex, culture, ethnicity, sexuality, race, disability, and age are deeply structural and personal, experienced through a web of power imbalances. So, the commitment to community-basedchange mustalwaysbeattentivetothelocalandregionalpower imbalancesthatourworkhasequalpotentialtodisruptormaintain.Itisourcritical awareness and reflective practice that increases the possibility of disruption and transformation. And it is this reflection that is evident in the contributions to this volume. Thiscollectionistheresultofcontributionsfromscholarsaroundtheworldwho takeupcommunitypracticeandsocialdevelopmentfromarangeofstandpointsand, at times, considering practices on the ground, at other times, more focused on the ways we make sense of this work from a distance. As a whole, they provide a textured understanding of the complex ways in which community-based interven- tions provide opportunities to shift communities and societies towards greater interpersonal and structural justice. In so doing, the contributions provide insight into how the profession of social work operationalizes its commitment to social, economic, and environmental justice and the roles that social workers take on in differentsettingsoftransformation.Theauthorsaddressmanyofthemostpressing issues of our time: disasters, environmental sustainability, migration, maternal health, and decolonization. They explore what social workers are doing and what theymightcontinuetodotojoinwithpeopleatlocallevelstoensuregreaterjustice. The authors articulate their ideas for change in a manner that is culturally translat- able. They put these ideas in this volume not only to share possibilities for imple- mentationbutalsofortheideasthemselvestobechangedandmaderelevanttoother contexts. This volume is not meant to be a comprehensive review of all community practicesandsocialdevelopmentaroundtheworld.Thereismoreworkleftuntold inthiscollectionthanthereisresearchhighlighted.However,therangeandscopeof perspectives in this volume, the ways in which chapters lead the reader from continenttocontinent,oftenexploringrelatedsocialtransformationsfromdifferent perspectives,isitsdistinguishingfeature.Eachchapterillustratesalocalexampleof howcommunitypracticesareusedtonegotiateaspecifictransformationandputthis in the context of how we have come to understand social development as well alignedwithsocialworkprioritiesofattendingtopeopleintheirenvironmentswith an understanding of how those environments are largely determined by extra-local relationsofpowerandinequality. Thepracticesexploredinthisvolumeattendtocommunitiesandthebroadsocial andpoliticalrelationsthatshapepeople’slives.Indoingso,thecollectionsketchesa social work agenda that is translatable to the local of needs of people facing the enduringchallengesofourtime.Asawhole,theymapthepossibilityforhowsocial VolumePreface ix workcanwalkwithpeopleexperiencingchallengingtransformationsandhowwedo soinamannerthathelpsusimagineandrealizeanew,morejustworld. Ottawa,ON,Canada SarahTodd Edmonton,AB,Canada JulieL.Drolet May2020
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