Invisible students: experiences of lesbian and gay students in social work education in Greece

This article explores through semi-structured interviews the experiences of four lesbian and two gay students from the Social Work Department in the Technological Educational Institute of Crete, Greece. The complete absence of openly out lesbian or gay students or faculty members in the Department was considered reflective of the particular social and cultural context of Greece. Participants reported that lesbian and gay issues were marginalised in the curriculum and that heteronormativity often prevailed in the classroom. Consequently, same-sex sexuality was generally invisible and, when discussed, certain faculty members and peers often appeared to be uncomfortable. Within this context, participants stressed the importance of the professors’ role regarding the climate and content in the classroom. None of the participants considered that their sexual orientation had affected negatively their academic attainment; the lesbian or gay identities sometimes had a positive effect on participants’ academic attainment level exactly because of the negative impact these identities had on their social life. Most participants felt that their studies had not prepared them adequately for gay affirmative practice. Implications for social work education are considered.     

‘Even if Martians exist,they’re far from our everyday life’: faculty perspectives regarding gay and lesbian students in social work education

Following a study on gay and lesbian students’ experiences in a Social Work Department in Greece, this qualitative study explores faculty perspectives regarding lesbian and gay students in social work education. Perceptions of gay and lesbian students’ invisibility and low level of comfort were held in common by participants, although some faculty members referred to the more inclusive and accepting climate of the Social Work Department compared to other higher education Departments and Greek society in general. Most participants reported that same-sex sexuality issues are inadequately covered in the curriculum. Displays of heterosexist behaviour by students were reported by most participants and so were conflicts among students when same-sex sexuality issues were discussed in class. The lack of official anti-discrimination policies that include sexual orientation was highlighted. In the absence of a common strategy regarding the teaching of same-sex sexuality content, faculty determined on an individual level how and to what extent to discuss such issues in the classroom. At times the faculty appeared willing but not adequately prepared to approach gay and lesbian issues. Implications for social work education are discussed.     

Job satisfaction in social services in Crete,Greece: social workers’ views

This research-based article presents the results of a study examining job satisfaction among social workers in public social services in Crete, Greece. It focuses on their overall job satisfaction, as well as on their satisfaction or dissatisfaction with intrinsic, extrinsic and organisational work aspects. The results of this study suggest that while respondents experienced a quite high level of overall satisfaction with their job, other indicators of job satisfaction showed that the level of job satisfaction was not so high. The main sources of respondents’ satisfaction were intrinsic work aspects while the main sources of dissatisfaction were organisational and extrinsic work aspects. Respondents’ job satisfaction was found to be significantly correlated with: the years of unemployment before respondents first worked as social workers, the number of social workers working in the organisation, and their intention to leave or change their present job.

     

Factors affecting the development of social work and its professionalisation process: the case of Greece

This article discusses some of the factors that have shaped the development of social work in Greece and analyses its present level of professionalisation. There were four main factors: (i) the familialist-statist social care model in which social work operates in Greece; (ii) reluctant state support related to a complex set of specific political, social and economic conditions; (iii) the pressure of new needs in recent years as a result of the aging population, family changes and increasing numbers of immigrants; and (iv) the European Union's financial support and regulatory role in various social policy sectors. The present status of the profession indicates a satisfactory protection of professional rights, a slow but steady improvement in the educational process, but also limited occupational control.     

‘How Do You Feel About Studying Social Work?’—Social Work Students in Greece: Demands,Support, Feelings About Their Studies and Attitudes Towards Themselves

This paper presents the results of a study exploring the nature and extent of the demands placed upon social work students during their studies, the support available to them inside and outside the course, their feelings about their work and their attitudes towards themselves. Demands from the course were rated higher than demands from financial, family and part-time work responsibilities. Important support was obtained from friends, relatives and fellow students while, except for practice teachers, the lack of support from the course was emphasized. A large number of students often felt exhausted, not due to the actual work with users but mostly due to obligations to the course such as essays. On the whole, however, students felt good about what they had accomplished so far and held positive attitudes towards themselves. The need for structured support resources offered within the educational institution was evident and recognized by more than half of the students, who stated they would be willing to use them had they been available. Students expressed no intention to quit their studies despite the demands placed upon them; the prospect of unemployment was an additional source of worry for more than half of them.     

The Use of the Arts and the Strengths Perspective: The Example of a Course Assignment

This article reports the findings of a study that explored factors affecting the choice to graduate from social work made by active students in one of the three social work departments in Greece. Research focused mainly on structural factors (students' socio-economic background and demographic characteristics, the educational system and the system of admission to higher education). It also touched briefly upon students' prevailing work values. Findings indicate that students' socio-economic background and the educational system's structure play a significant role in their choice to graduate from social work. These structural factors seem to have caused their educational/ occupational choice to be a rather limited one, since approximately 30% of the students decided to graduate as a form of compromise. Students rated intrinsic work values highly, which is consistent with prior research findings.     

A Comparison of Attitudes Toward Lesbians and Gay Men Among Students of Helping Professions in Crete,Greece: The Cases of Social Work,Psychology, Medicine,and Nursing

This study investigated the attitudes toward lesbians and gay men among social work, psychology, medical, and nursing students in Crete, Greece, using Herek’s ATLG scale. No respondents held completely heterosexist attitudes; only 1.6% held completely non-heterosexist attitudes. The 44.96 total ATLG score indicates a slightly positive attitude toward lesbians and gay men. Psychology students scored higher than all others on positive attitudes, followed by social work students, medical students, and nursing students. Gender, having lesbian or gay acquaintances or friends, and religiosity were significant factors influencing students’ attitudes, while no impact on attitudes due to the effects of higher education could be discerned. Implications for curriculum design and teaching methods are discussed.     

Support for gay and lesbian rights among social work students in Greece

This study explores social work students’ level of support for gay and lesbian rights. Respondents were all the students (N?=?460) attending classes in a Social Work Department in Greece. While students were generally supportive of gay and lesbian rights, a significant percentage believed that social workers should support gay and lesbian rights only when lesbians and gay men do not offend or upset others and their rights do not contradict the prevalent religion and societal values. Religiosity was an important correlate of students’ level of support for gay and lesbian rights. Findings are discussed in relation with social work education.     

Self-reported ageism in students and academic staff—the case of the Social Work Department in Crete,Greece

This study focuses on self-reported ageism among social work students and academic staff in the Social Work Department of Crete, Greece; the 20-item questionnaire Relating to Older People Evaluation (ROPE) was used to measure negative and positive ageist behaviours that respondents engage in during everyday life. Positive ways of relating to old people were reported much more often than the negative ways; no significant differences in mean endorsement scores between academic staff and undergraduate students in either the positive or the negative dimensions were found. Women endorsed positive ageism items more often than men did, but the two genders did not differ in their endorsement of negative ageism items. This association was observed both for the students and academic staff. For students, no relationship between how many years they had spent studying and endorsement score was observed for either the positive or the negative behaviour items. Social work students and academic staff should be aware that positive ageism may turn into paternalism; it is important that social work education prepares students in order to approach clients with a non-prejudiced attitude and to provide them with quality services.     

‘I'll Carry This Experience With Me Throughout My Studies and Future Career’: Practice Tutorials and Students' Views on Social Work in Iraklio,Greece

Active use of postmodern theory, with its lexicon of words like deconstruction, meaning, sign and code, can transform the social work classroom into an extraordinary intellectual center for critical thinking and clinical debate. Perhaps paradoxically, this new classroom also needs guidelines. Guidelines can be organized into a typology, and what is presented in this article is a typology to help social work educators and students clarify how to use postmodern devices. These devices allow for an especially intensive exploration of representations of culture and language, self and other, individual and community, power and marginalization. Developed as a series of tables, this typology contrasts three classroom models: the generic, the traditional and the postmodern view of key segments of the social work curriculum.