Development and Application of a Standards-Based Inventory of Foundation Competencies in Social Work with Groups

The International Association for Social Work with Groups Standards for the Practice of Social Work with Groups is an essential document for advancing practice and teaching about social work with groups. However, surveys have reported that many group workers know little about the Standards or about how to teach or apply group work knowledge and skills. This article summarizes the research on the development of a reliable and valid inventory based on the Standards and an effective teaching strategy to improve learning about the Standards. The inventory and teaching method provide tools for advancing evidence-based practice and teaching.     

Challenges in Rural Social Work Practice: When Support Groups Contain Your Neighbors,Church Members,and the PTA

Rural social work occurs in unique practice environments with challenges and rare opportunities. Strong social ties, commonly found in rural communities and often missing in urban areas, can serve as sources of resilience for group members facing adverse life circumstances. Therapeutic formal and informal support groups, bolstered by this support and led by social workers in rural communities, can face numerous challenges due to locale, lack of transportation, and potential worker burnout. This article highlights ethical considerations rooted in a theme of rural group work while providing helpful hints based on the IASWG Standards for Social Work Practice with Groups.     

History of the Standards for Social Work Practice with Groups: A Partial View

This article provides a historical and first-person narrative about the development of the IASWG Standards for Social Work with Groups by someone intimately involved in their germination and development. Beginning with review of early roots of standards for social work with groups, this article presents a journey through the formation of the Committee for the Advancement of Social Work with Groups in 1979, framing ideas that found their way into the first edition of the AASWG Standards of 1998, and the process of developing the second, current edition. It provides a rare look into how a professional organization struggled to create a seminal document.     

IASWG Standards for Social Work Practice with Groups: Development,Application, and Evolution

This article focuses on the International Association for Social Work with Groups' Standards for Social Work Practice with Groups. It begins with an overview of the Standards and their significance. It reports on three integrated studies conducted by the authors. First is a review of the literature that examines how human service organizations approach the construction of standards. Second is a 2009 study of how the Standards are known, used, and assessed by respondents to an online survey. The findings of this survey inspired the third study, conducted in 2010 utilizing a focus group approach to explore how the Standards could be more applicable in a global context. The article concludes with implications and recommendations for future evolution and dissemination of the Standards.     

The Use of IASWG Standards for Social Work Practice with Groups in Supervision of Group Work Practitioners

This article describes a model for supervision for practicing group leaders. The content and process of the model is participant driven, with the International Association for Social Work with Groups Standards for Social Work Practice with Groups used as a core element to guide development of the model as well as the support offered by the supervisor and participants.     

Group Work Education Today: A Content Analysis of MSW Group Work Course Syllabi

This article presents the results of a content analysis of MSW group work course syllabi in an effort to better understand the extent to which social group work education shows consistency with guidelines articulated in the Standards for Social Work Practice with Groups. This study aims to provide a current depiction and in-depth account of the state of group work education today through the lens of course syllabi.     

IASWG Standards for Social Work Practice with Groups: The Case of Quebec Practices

The International Association for Social Work with Groups (IASWG) proposes Standards of social group work that are intended to act as minimum standards that can be applied internationally. The aim of this article is to examine group work practices in Quebec in the light of IASWG Standards. To address this question, secondary analysis of existing data from a study undertaken in Quebec is presented. Results indicate that group work practices in Quebec tend to be rather structured (e.g., selection criteria, norms). The discussion shows that the IASWG Standards are useful for critically examining Quebec practices but also provides information that could contribute to the improvement of these Standards.     

A comparison of social work education across South Africa and Japan in relation to the Global Standards for Social Work Education and Training

Sakaguchi H, Sewpaul V. A comparison of social work education across South Africa and Japan in relation to the Global Standards for Social Work Education and Training Int J Soc Welfare 2011: 20: 192–202 © 2009 The Author(s), International Journal of Social Welfare © 2009 Blackwell Publishing Ltd and the International Journal of Social Welfare. This article draws on a one‐year study visit to the University of KwaZulu‐Natal, South Africa, interviews with field supervisors and students in Japan and reviews of the national frameworks of education in Japan and in South Africa. In doing so, the authors identify the similarities and differences in social work education across the two countries and they explore some of the historical and socio‐cultural factors that might account for the differences. There are some identifiable peculiarities in social work education in Japan, especially with the coalescing of care work and social work education. The lack of differentiation between care work and social work makes it difficult to narrow the scope of social work education and practice. National social work standards have been approved in South Africa and regulatory frameworks for social work education and practice have been long accepted, thus rendering ‘social work’ a protected title and a profession that is more entrenched compared with social work in Japan. The codes of ethics in Japan and South Africa are discussed with specific reference to their control functions in South Africa. The article concludes by discussing these comparisons in relation to the Global Standards for Social Work Education.     

Exploring Autonomy in Group Work Practice with Persons with Intellectual Disabilities

Preserving the autonomy of individuals with intellectual disabilities in group work is challenging. Group workers often experience inadequate guidance about autonomy—an individual's capability to act independently without influence by others. Group workers can enhance autonomy through group activities that promote self-efficacy, empowerment, and the ability to make decisions. Fostering autonomy requires that the group workers be knowledgeable and aware of personal biases, analyzing their expectations and actions. To promote the autonomy of persons with intellectual disabilities in group work practice, the authors make recommendations to strengthen the IASWG Standards for Social Work Practice with Groups in this area.     

The Portuguese Version of the Hartford Geriatric Social Work Competency Scale II – Assessment Subscale: Factor Structure and Psychometric Properties

The current study aimed to test the fit of the Portuguese version of the Hartford Geriatric Social Work Competency Scale II – Assessment subscale (GSWCS-A) and explore its factor structure and psychometric properties in a sample of 534 social workers working in the gerontology field. Confirmatory factor analysis showed that all items presented good factor loadings and that the single-component model fit the data well. The GSWCS-A showed very good internal consistency. Despite the existence of different theoretical perspectives on Social Work, which frame the required competencies for professional practice, the GSWCS-A Portuguese version revealed similitudes with studies conducted in other countries. Nevertheless, the different factor structures (single-component vs. bi-factorial) may indicate that different competencies are being emphasised in terms of professional training. To sum, the GSWCS-A may be a short and useful self-report instrument for addressing social workers’ assessment competencies in the gerontology setting.     

Retrospective Book Review: Teaching a Methods Course in Social Work with Groups

SUMMARY

Eight years after its publication, Teaching a Methods Course in Social Work with Groups serves as a reminder to social workers of group work's historic roots and its value as a method of practice with diverse populations. The author shares her experiences in utilizing the teaching text in her work with MSW students and students of the arts who facilitate activity-based groups in community settings. Citing examples of students' experiences in group work facilitation, the author touches on the constraints emerging group workers face in translating social work skills and values to practice. The author's retrospective review of the teaching text underscores its continued importance in the field of social group work instruction.     

The Group Values of Educational Encounters: Working with Service Users and Students in a Participatory Classroom Environment

This article examines a participatory educational group approach to involving service users in a social work education programme. In particular it focuses on the skills and values that informed the lecturer's management of this group process and the relevance of the International Association for Social Work with Groups Standards for Social Work Practice with Groups to the purpose of the group as well as to how this group was facilitated.     

Professional Social Work Education in End-of-Life Care

Abstract

Social work education in both BSW and MSW level courses is missing vital content about end-of-life care, palliative care, and bereavement. End-of-life care training opportunities through continuing education programs have also been limited. This deficit is significant because a vast number of social workers are already confronted with end-of-life issues on a daily basis in a variety of practice settings. Through the Project on Death in America, Social Work Leadership Development Awards initiative, many programs and models for professional social work education and training in end-of-life care have been developed and are presented in this article. These include: end-of-life care courses, symposia, training manuals, certificate programs and fellowships. Although the curricula continue to be refined, many of these programs are available to practitioners to advance their knowledge and skills and their curricular models are available to social work educators for possible replication.     

Build the social justice bridge: participatory photography with the international group work community

ABSTRACT

“Build the Social Justice Bridge” was a participatory photography project that engaged international group workers in an assessment of group work as a social justice profession. Inspired by principles of photovoice research, the project invited social work students, educators, and practitioners from around the world to contribute photographs and brief narratives that represented the relationship between group work and social justice. The photographs were exhibited during the opening session of the 2018 Symposium of the International Association for Social Work with Groups (IASWG) in South Africa, where more than 200 participants from ten countries reflected on the meaning of the photos for the group work community. In viewing the photos, symposium participants identified a common vision of social justice as well as culturally-specific approaches to group work. Implications are drawn for the internationalization of professional knowledge.     

The BSW Social Work Curriculum: Teaching Strategies,Case Material,and Assignments for Teaching Group Work

This article is a companion piece to another article appearing in this special edition of Social Work with Groups on group work content for the generalist practice curriculum. In this article, techniques that assist the instructor in presenting the material on group work in the classroom are identified. These techniques, which include case material and classroom exercises, also help students connect their field and classroom learning about group work. The activities discussed in this article derive from the core group work content discussed in the previous article.     

Ethical Dilemmas and Areas of Social Work Intervention in Spain

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to identify the types of ethical dilemmas that Spanish social workers face in their respective areas of intervention. The intervention areas that have been studied are health, children, immigrants, women, family, marginalized persons, ethnic minorities, young people, prisoners, elderly people, refugees and asylum seekers, schools and social and employment-related integration, mental health, disability and drug addictions. A quantitative methodology was chosen using a version of the questionnaire prepared by Eileen J. Ain in a sample of 700 Spanish social workers. The statistical analysis shows the correlation between the different areas of intervention in Social Work and the most significant ethical dilemmas that such professionals have to solve. The most pertinent ethical dilemmas are found in the healthcare sector (confidentiality, disclosure of personal information and patient autonomy). The article is an important contribution for Social Work at the national level that emphasizes the importance of the ethics of Social Work in social interventions. It is proposed to deepen the investigation of each of the areas of intervention for future research, as well as to carry out comparative studies between different countries.     

Group Work and Social Justice: Designing Pedagogy for Social Change

In this article the authors explore the gap between education and action in putting the social work core value of social justice into practice. Describing how their School of Social Work has taken up this challenge, the authors analyze how a new social action course helps bridge this gap and draw on student reflection on their experiences and assignments in the course to show how students concretize and interiorize the meaning of social action and social justice. Learning by doing social action through a case study, group work becomes the vehicle through which students act on social issues and work for social change.     

Setting an Agenda for Social Work in End-of-Life and Palliative Care

Abstract

This article describes leadership efforts within social work to promote, enhance, and shape the future of social work practice, education, and research in end-of-life and palliative care. The background and outcomes of the Project on Death in America, Open Society Institute's Social Work Leadership Development Award Program, and the 2002 Social Work Leadership Summit on End-of-Life and Palliative Care are reviewed.     

Social work is beautiful On the characteristics of social work

Social work is frequently described as a problem-solving activity. Social workers are expected to identify social problems, thoroughly investigate them and take proper measures to solve them. Superficially, this kind of definition is unassailable and harmless (and, of course, partly valid), but in a deeper sense it denies us access to important concepts, perspectives and, hence, possibilities of interpretation, regarding the activity we call social work. Following this line of thought, there is a blind spot in the self-understanding of social work. This article outlines an alternative perspective on social work emphasizing making visible new possibilities of interpretation and action rather than solving problems. In connection with a recently reported research project, Organization and Human Change in Social Work, specific features of social work are suggested and discussed. The aim is to contribute to the development of a theoretical identity of social work, based on its own specific characteristics.