Survivors of Woman Abuse

Abstract

The feminist social work and related literature on abused women has focused on women's processes of empowerment but has overlooked the question of women's movement from individual survival to collective resistance. In this feminist qualitative study, I explore the processes through which survivors of abuse by male partners become involved in collective action for social change. Using story telling as a research method, I interviewed 11 women about the processes, factors, insights, and events that prompted them to act collectively to address violence against women. I found that women's movement from individual survival to collective action entails significant changes in consciousness and subjectivity. Women's processes of conscientization are complex, contradictory and often painful because they involve political and psychic dimensions of subjectivity, protracted struggles with contradictions and conflict, and resistance to knowledge that threatens to unsettle relatively stable notions of identity. I suggest that feminist social work theory and practice must take into account three interrelated elements of women's transformative journeys: the discursive and material conditions that facilitate women's movement to collective action; the social, material and psychic costs of women's growth; and the multifaceted and difficult nature of women's journey in recognizing and naming abuse, making sense of their experiences, and acting on this knowledge to work for change. I recommend that feminist social work practice with survivors recognize that survivors can and do contribute to social change, and develop new, more inclusive liberatory models of working with survivors of abuse.     

Investigating the organizational everyday: a critical feminist approach

ABSTRACT

This article considers the possibilities and limits of applying institutional ethnography, a feminist theoretical and methodological approach that contributes to collective projects of investigating and transforming social life. Elaborating on the approach, the article reports on an ethnographic exploration of visual artists’ experiences and struggles in Canada's art world – a project that started from the standpoint of practising visual artists, examined their work and relations, and explicated practices and logics of art and valued work conditioning their lives. Speaking back to formal or text-based investigations of particular institutions, the article grapples with how to engage in research that more fully reveals the ‘social,’ attending to everyday life, to the ‘life work’ that people do, and to social forms that are threaded through intersecting, localized intimate and institutional spheres.     

Reflective practice in a process for the re-approval of ASWs: An exploration of some inevitable resistance

In this article a mental health trainer and a group facilitator explore the background to developing a new protocol to manage the re-approval of mental health social workers in an inner London borough. The new procedure involved social workers attending a series of small group sessions in which they were invited to present and reflect on their work with clients. The dynamics of these sessions and particularly some of the transferential material between group members and facilitator are explored here. The significance for mental health social work, post-qualifying learning and the possibilities of reflective practice is considered.     

Professional Distance and Social Work: Stretching the Elastic?

Abstract

Professional distance and the parallel concept of models of practice reliant on professional objectivity have been major platforms in professional education. In social work, these ideas are often seen as contentious, unreasonable and, in some cases, unrealistic. Radical, feminist and rural social work approaches, for example, suggest that the expert role is not only inappropriate, but can be counter-productive and disrespectful of the people with whom we work. Postmodern approaches call for a deconstruction of professionalism in favour of context-specific partnerships between worker and client. How can workers ensure good, professional practice within a more flexible approach to professional distance and expertise? What are the issues and how may they be resolved? Are the boundaries of the professional relationship elastic and, if so, what are the consequences for practice and the individual worker? The present article explores the notion of flexible, elastic boundaries using literature and research from radical, postmodern, feminist and rural social work approaches.     

Disciplining “Girl Talk”

ABSTRACT

Although empowerment is frequently invoked in social work discourse, it is nevertheless a complicated and contested practice method. A critical minority of social work theorists and practitioners point to the paradox of empowerment practice that reifies power differences and infringes upon client self-determination (Gruber & Trickett, 1987; Hartman, 1992; Pease, 2002; Simon, 1990). Despite the acuity of this critique, it has neither fully penetrated the discourse of social work practice nor been employed in close analyses of empowerment interventions. In order to address this gap, we conducted an ethnographic study of a feminist empowerment program for young adolescent girls. Our findings suggest that despite some evidence of success, there were also noteworthy instances in which program staff subverted the goal of empowering participants' voices and instead disciplined girls' talk along particular discursive lines. This study explores these practices and discourses and based on this illustration, calls for incorporation of critical reflection into empowerment-based social work practice.     

‘Do you really want to hear about my life?’: doing ‘feminist research’ with women in sex work in Eastern India

ABSTRACT

This article reflects on insights gathered from doing feminist research during my doctoral studies in international development. My research focused on the lives of women formerly and currently in sex work in Eastern India, and their experiences and resistance of everyday violence. I argue that the adoption of a life-history interviewing method created possibilities to move away from standard topics associated with sex work, and allowed women in sex work to discuss the dynamism and fluidity within their lives, within, before, and after sex work. I also explore how this method enabled the theme of koshto (pain) to emerge which challenges the framing of violence in sex work as exceptional. I argue that women in sex work need to feel heard and acknowledged within feminist research, not simply as subjects of knowledge gathering or to inform development discourses and interventions, but as human beings with dynamic personhoods. Finally, I share lessons learnt which can be useful to future feminist researchers researching sex work, within a current environment of ideologically polarised discussions on victimhood and agency in sex work.     

Rethinking Girls “At-Risk”

Abstract

This conceptual article critically analyzes influential theoretical frameworks concerning adolescent female development, including psychosocial identity stage theory, person-in-environment theory, and feminist psychology. Based on the strengths and limitations of these approaches, the author introduces social workers to an emerging framework that addresses the gender, race, and class intersections that contextualize adolescent girls' developmental experiences. This perspective also discusses young women's capacity to resist norms and stereotypes in their search for an authentic identity. This innovative theory complements a strengths-based approach to social work and can be used to guide research andpractice with this population.     

Gendered Perceptions of Community Needs and Concerns

Abstract

Acentral tenet of feminism is that women engage in community practice differently than men. This study explores whether gender differences exist in perceptions of community needs, strengths, problems and responsibilities. Also examined are differences within male and female groups along the dimensions of race, location, years at current address and ownership status. This analysis is based on survey responses from 191 residents in one urban community. Contrary to feminist theory, findings reveal strong agreement between men and women. There were, however, numerous differences within gender groups, especially among women. Implications for feminist scholarship, community practice, and social work education are discussed.     

Incest and women of color: a study of experiences and disclosure

Clinical literature on incest trauma assumes a homogeneity of experience of all incest survivors including women of color. Experiences relating to community, culture, and family need to be acknowledged as salient aspects of the experiences of women of color who are also incest survivors. Twelve participants were interviewed regarding their experiences related to disclosure and coping. Participants described value systems, community mindedness, social attitudes, negative consequences amongst other social and cultural issues as factors affecting incest disclosure. Participants described cognitive reframing, determination and separation from the perpetrator as ways of coping with incest.     

Groups for Incest Survivors; A New Context

This article outlines a new context for group work with young women who have experienced incest. It describes how ideas from the work of White, Epston, Kamsler and de Shazer on the evolution, maintenance and resolution of problems can be applied to enhance the therapeutic effectiveness of group work with teenage survivors of incest. Externalisation, exploration of beliefs and restorying are found to assist the young women greatly to reconnect with their own resourcefulness.     

The implications of radical feminist analysis and practice for the organization of social work

Abstract

Radical feminist theory is centrally concerned with power and its current use in our society. Radical feminists aim to change the current patterns of use of power, and have developed strategies to do so. This paper uses radical feminist theory to analyze the organization of social work in Britain, and describes strategies for creating feminist social work at an organizational level.     

Nonoffending Mothers of Sexually Abused Children: Comparison of Opinions and Research

ABSTRACT

Literature on nonoffending mothers of sexually abused children is reviewed, dichotomized into opinion-based and research-based information, and analyzed. The feminist perspective on gender role dichotomy is applied to the opinion-based literature, and a posttraumatic stress disorder framework is used for interpretation of the research-based literature. The author argues that most information on nonoffending mothers is opinion-based, not research-based, but that opinions have been accorded the same validity as research findings. However, opinions cannot substitute for research. Knowledge of nonoffending mothers should only be based on valid sources of information; their roles into incest dynamics will otherwise be invariably confounded by murky data.     

Patriarchy and incest in William Faulkner's 'Absalom! Absalom!' and Juan Rulfo's 'Pedro Páramo'

Abstract

This article presents a comparative analysis of patriarchy and incest in the work of William Faulkner and Juan Rulfo. Focusing primarily on Absalom! Absalom! and Pedro Páramo, I argue that Rulfo adopts and, at the same time, interrogates Faulkner's patriarchal model of the family: the incestuous relationships that characterize Absalom! Absalom! reappear, under different disguises, in the Mexican writer's novel. My analysis also suggests that both Faulkner and Rulfo were intrigued by the symbolic implications of incest, and exploited these implications in order to talk about the collapse of the patriarchal and cultural order in the post-Civil War South and early 20th century Mexico respectively. The conclusion maintains that, despite Rulfo's reluctance to acknowledge Faulkner's impact on his artistic consciousness, the intertextual dialogue between the two writers should be read both as a form of incest, and as a quest for a new social structure.     

Recovering Process from Child Sexual Abuse During Adulthood from an Integrative Approach to Solution-Focused Therapy: A Case Study

ABSTRACT

In recent times, strengths-based recovery approaches that focus on the present and build strategies that look toward the future have become popular. However, some cases require the consideration of experiences from previous stages of the clients’ development. This single-case study explores the psychotherapeutic process of a middle-aged woman who presented with a history of child sexual abuse (incest) and a long-term adult diagnosis of depression that was treated in public health services. This psychotherapy involved an integrative approach to solution-focused therapy; specifically, the approach proposed by Yvonne Dolan to work with adult survivors of sexual abuse, in conjunction with techniques and strategies from the transtheoretical model. Measures incorporating therapeutic working alliance and outcomes were administered over sessions. Results showed positive outcomes from this therapeutic intervention, which remained at 3-month and 12-month follow-ups. Implications for practitioners’ specialist practice in health services are discussed, given the complexity of comorbid mental health conditions with a history of child sexual abuse.     

From pillar to post: Women and social work studies in the 21st century

Abstract

A decade or so after the acknowledgement and inclusion of women's issues in mainstream social work courses, we find the circumstances in which such education occurs have changed. The 'third wave' of feminism has revisited the feminist agenda of the 1960s and 1970s; there has been a paradigm shift in what tertiary education is perceived to offer; and global theories have been replaced by post modern interpretations. This article discusses the impact of these changes for social work education drawing on the authors' experiences with the 'Women and Social Work' elective subject in the Bachelor of Social Work Degree at the University of New South Wales, Australia. This elective was popular until the mid 1990s when it failed to attract students. The authors reflect on their experience of teaching the subject and their understanding of current feminism to identify a way forward in the attempt to rekindle student enthusiasm for feminist understandings and provide education which will further the emancipatory project of social work.     

Three transvestites under hypnosis 1

Abstract

Interviews with the wives of forcible rapists and incest offenders at Atascadero State Hospital indicated that, among other things, the wives were more highly educated than their husbands. The women appeared to gain considerable satisfaction from the offenses of their husbands, perhaps because it put them in the role of martyrs, a role that may have been originally involved in their marriages to persons “inferior” to themselves. The wives, despite obvious cues, reported being surprised at their husbands' offenses, and not one indicated that her marriage had suffered as a consequence of her husband's behavior. The study concludes that, for this sample, rape and incest by the husbands served as a particular useful lever by which wives can further build positions of moral and social dominance.     

Ethical Dilemmas of Practicing Social Workers Around Psychiatric Medication

Abstract

It is acknowledged that social workers in mental health and other settings routinely experience client-related ethical dilemmas. Further, there is wide recognition of the potential impact of ethical dilemmas on social work practice with clients who use psychotropic medication. Little is know empirically, however, about the experiences of practitioners with these dilemmas. This article describes the results of a national survey of practicing social workers regarding the nature of ethical dilemmas they face related to their work with clients on medication issues. The results make it clear that social workers regularly confront a variety of ethical dilemmas in this type of practice. Many of these dilemmas are related to ambiguities around the knowledge base of practice, appropriate roles of providers, and basic personal and professional values. The authors present implications of these findings for social work practice and further research.     

Attitudes Toward Advanced Licensing for Macro Social Work Practice

ABSTRACT

Trends in clinical licensing and a renewed energy to strengthen macro practice are raising questions about the appropriateness of licensure for macro social work practice. This article presents findings from an online survey of macro social work educators and macro social work practitioners exploring their attitudes toward an advanced-level macro social work license. Faculty and practitioner responders agreed that there is a role for advanced-licensing of macro social work practice; however, the lack of a collectively strong response reflects a current state of ambivalence toward advanced-level licensing for macro practice. Implications from these findings on contemporary social work are discussed.     

Kinship Care and Public Child Welfare: Challenges and Opportunities for Social Work Education

Abstract

The growing practice of arranging and financing “foster placement” of abused and neglected children with relatives provides an opportunity to redefine relationships between extended families and the child welfare system. The dilemmas and possibilities presented by kinship care as a child welfare service challenge schools of social work to provide intellectual leadership and to prepare social workers for changing child welfare practice. The author's ideas concerning responses to this challenge focus on key mandates of the Council on Social Work Education's Curriculum Policy Statement and on five principal curriculum areas in social work education.     

Review of Australian Health Related Social Work Research 1990–2009

Abstract

Social workers form a critical component of the Australian health workforce. While their roles as practitioners are very strategic within the health system, less clear is their contribution to health research. This paper reviews the published record of social work research in Australian health from 1990–2009 in order to discern the patterns of the social work contribution to new knowledge in health. The results of this review indicate a tendency to focus on discursive commentary rather than empirical research as well as a less-than-expected focus on client studies. Given the rise of evidence-based practice, there are potentially serious implications for social work in terms of how it positions itself as a contributor to new knowledge within the health field.