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Social Work Research: History, Organizational Roles, and the Influence of the National Institutes of Health

Ruth G. McRoy, Jerry P. Flanzer, and Joan Levy Zlotnik

in Building Research Culture and Infrastructure

Chapter Two provides an historical overview of national social work research capacity – building efforts, especially in the context of the roles of national social work organizations and the National ... More

Chapter Two provides an historical overview of national social work research capacity – building efforts, especially in the context of the roles of national social work organizations and the National Institutes of Health (NIH). It provides a brief history of the development of social work research, the widening funding base for social work research and the impact of university research culture on the social work field, particularly as universities have turned their attention to community development and needs. The authors describe the significant impact of the Task Force on Social Work Research, the significant roles of social work professional organizations, and the development of doctoral education programs towards meeting the need for an increasing social work knowledge base to address the demand for evidence based practice.Less

Introduction: School Social Work in the 21st Century—Making Evidence-Based Practice (EBP) Work in School Social Work Practice

Michael S. Kelly

in The Domains and Demands of School Social Work Practice: A Guide to Working Effectively with Students, Families, and Schools

School social work is one of social work’s oldest subspecialties and has just entered its 2nd century. In the United States, school social work has grown from a few “visiting teachers” in 1906 ... More

School social work is one of social work’s oldest subspecialties and has just entered its 2nd century. In the United States, school social work has grown from a few “visiting teachers” in 1906 working in community schools in Boston, New York, Hartford, and Chicago to a profession that now numbers over 20,000, having a national and over thirty state associations. Internationally, recent estimates place school social work in over forty countries, with over 50,000 practitioners. School social work is alive and doing (relatively) well, and in some areas, like the state of Illinois, appears to be growing. But the question to ask is what’s behind these numbers of school social workers? What are school social workers actually doing? And in the spirit of this volume, what kinds of interventions are they using, and what does the best available evidence tell us about what school social workers might do to make their practices even more effective?Less

Introduction: Aging, I Wrote

Ann Burack-Weiss

in The Lioness in Winter: Writing an Old Woman's Life

The introduction tells of the author's development as a gerontological social worker and educator.

Introduction: A 360-Degree View of Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT) in Schools

Michael S. Kelly, Johnny S. Kim, and Cynthia Franklin

in Solution-Focused Brief Therapy in Schools: A 360-Degree View of Research and Practice

Since its creation in the 1980s, solution-focused brief therapy (SFBT) has gradually become a common and accepted treatment option for many mental health professionals. With its emphasis on client ... More

Since its creation in the 1980s, solution-focused brief therapy (SFBT) has gradually become a common and accepted treatment option for many mental health professionals. With its emphasis on client strengths and short-term treatment, SFBT would appear to be well suited to school mental health contexts, given the wide array of problems presenting in school settings and the large caseloads of most school social workers. This book looks at SFBT in school settings from meta-analytic, intervention research, and practice perspectives.Less

Social Workers and Financial Capability in the Profession’s First Half-Century

Paul H. Stuart

in Financial Capability and Asset Development: Research, Education, Policy, and Practice

During the social work profession’s earliest days, workers in the charity organization and settlement house movements emphasized the importance of helping clients improve financial capability: engage ... More

During the social work profession’s earliest days, workers in the charity organization and settlement house movements emphasized the importance of helping clients improve financial capability: engage in productive activity, pay bills, save for the future, and participate as independent members of economic society. Caseworkers as well as community workers engaged in financial education, financial counseling, and interventions designed to increase the financial autonomy of groups of poor people. The efforts of academic social workers were facilitated by early affiliations with the developing discipline of Home Economics. This chapter describes the efforts of social workers to help clients improve their financial capability from the Progressive Era to the New Deal. The chapter also explores why the social work profession has neglected financial capability during the last half century and describes prospects for financial capability as a focus for social workers in the twenty-first century.Less

The Science of Social Work Roundtables: Context, Content, Process

Susan Stone and Jerry Floersch

in Shaping a Science of Social Work: Professional Knowledge and Identity

This chapter has three aims. The first is to familiarize readers with the general tenor, proceedings, and discussions at the five “Science in Social Work” roundtables that took place between 2012 and ... More

This chapter has three aims. The first is to familiarize readers with the general tenor, proceedings, and discussions at the five “Science in Social Work” roundtables that took place between 2012 and 2016. A key role of these roundtables was to engage in further dialogue that was, in part, sparked by John Brekke’s provocative Aaron Rosen lecture and initial responses to his lecture that were formally presented at the International Invitational Conference on Social Work Education. This summary draws on both published manuscripts and unpublished presentations associated with roundtable activities. It also provides a synthesis of key convergence points that emerged from these discussions. Finally, it situates the roundtable discussions within long-standing debates that have evolved over time concerning the role and status of social work research and knowledge development. This summary and synthesis provides a general frame to structure the chapters included in this volume.Less

“Better than a Bank for a Poor Man”: Workers’ Strategies for Home Financing

Elaine Lewinnek

in The Working Man’s Reward: Chicago's Early Suburbs and the Roots of American Sprawl

This chapter analyzes the records of Chicago’s immigrant-led building and loan associations as well as social workers’ critiques of the stringent economies that immigrants practiced in order to ... More

This chapter analyzes the records of Chicago’s immigrant-led building and loan associations as well as social workers’ critiques of the stringent economies that immigrants practiced in order to achieve a precarious domesticity. Buying a home, especially for Chicago’s mostly immigrant working class, meant buying an elusive respectability as well as a potentially productive space and the hope of an investment that they could control.Less