The impact of declining resources and purchase of service contracting on private, nonprofit agencies

The increasingly precarious and vulnerable position of the private, nonprofit social service agency in an environment of government contracting and declining funding has been the subject of a number of articles over the past few years. Nonprofit agencies have been characterized as being controlled by powerful government agencies that dictate the terms and conditions of contracts, the types of services to be provided, the methods of delivery, and the price to be paid for services. One would expect to find nonprofits anxious to terminate their relationships with various units of government, and return to a more independent status. That is not happening. If anything, purchase of service contracting (POSC) with nonprofit agencies is increasing. This national study of nonprofit agencies explores the impact of declining funding from all sources (including POSC), and seeks to determine its impact on clients, staff, and organization.     

Performance Management,Caseloads and the Frontline Provision of Social Services

Caseloads and performance management are important working conditions of workers delivering public social services in street‐level organizations. The literature on these working conditions argues that high caseloads and performance management have considerable consequences for workers' performance in terms of the quality of services they provide and the results they realize. This article empirically investigates and compares these consequences, drawing on the results of a quantitative study of frontline workers in 14 local welfare agencies in the Netherlands. These workers are responsible for the delivery of welfare‐to‐work policies to social assistance recipients. The findings show that high caseloads do, indeed, have a detrimental effect on workers' performance, whereas the impact of performance management is more modest, though confirming some of the findings reported in other studies on performance management. The results also show that by focusing service provision on a proportion of their caseload, workers are able to reduce the negative impact of high caseloads somewhat. Overall, the article finds that the negative impact of high caseloads is more pervasive than that of performance management. The article concludes that the recent focus in the literature on performance management and its consequences for public services should not turn scholars' attention away from the ‘traditional’ public administration problem of high caseload sizes.     

Leaving the door open for “tune ups”: Challenging notions of ending working relationships in family work

The working relationship is considered a central feature of direct practice with human services clients. There are many challenges when it comes time to end a working relationship, yet limited guidance for workers on successful relationship ending. This paper aims to increase understanding of the process of the ending phase of the working relationship for parents and workers working with families where child neglect is an issue. The paper draws on data from a small‐scale qualitative Australian study of perceptions of parents, family workers, and supervisors involved in eight parent‐worker relationships. Using semistructured interviews, participants were asked to explore how they experienced the relationship. The findings illuminate important aspects about the ending phase of the relationship; in particular, challenging the idea that parents' returning to services for support is a sign that the service has not provided a successful intervention. The paper challenges social workers to consider recurring parent–worker relationships similar to other professional relationships where there are episodes of service but the relationship is there to be reactivated where needed.     

Reaching Inner-City Children

One of the obstacles faced by community social service agencies is difficulty in attracting adolescents to the services offered them. Adoldscents typically do not walk in or keep appointments at outpatient clinics and can be difficult to engage even for outreach programs. One solution to this dilemma is to go where the children are: the public schools. One of the biggest problems in the Boston public school system is that many students and their families have pressing social, emotional, and physical needs that are not being met outside the school and that adversely affect their education. The schools are educational institutions, not human service agencies, and they are ill prepared to deal with many of the problems and needs of their students' lives. In 1984, an independent board composed of representatives from the Boston Public Schools, state, city, and private social service agencies, parents and students, secured funding and formed the Boston Student Human Services Collaborative. The mission of the Collaborative was to supplement and expand support services to the schools. The hope was that such services would free up both children and teachers to invest in each other, thereby increasing learning. This paper describes the group work component of a Collaborative program at an inner-city school. After a brief look at the inner-city context, the group work program model is presented as a case study, including specific types of groups that have worked well and details of recruitment, composition, goals, activities, and leadership roles. Following this is a discussion of race, color, and ethnicity, and then a list of guiding principles for working with middle school adolescents in groups.     

Citizen‐agency versus state‐agency at the frontline in prisons and probation services: A systematic literature review

Street‐level bureaucrats play a key role in the delivery of public services to the citizens with whom they interact. Using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta‐Analyses approach, we rely on a street‐level perspective to report a systematic review of 46 studies about officer–offender interactions in prisons and probation services. In doing so, we examine how correctional officers articulate state‐agency – whereby they focus on the implementation of rules and policies – and citizen‐agency – whereby their decisions regarding offenders are based on judgements of offenders' worth. Our results provide evidence that frontline work in prisons and probation services stems from a mix of citizen‐ and state‐agencies in which the former is prioritized over the latter: when rule enforcement allows it, correctional officers often make discretionary decisions based on professional judgements rooted in professional norms. In this respect, the managerial and actuarial approach to risk management and public protection involved by contemporary correctional reforms comes with new role expectations that conflict with correctional officers' rehabilitative ideals. At the same time, the literature provides many instances of officers coping with workload in order to meet policy objectives and organizational demands while maintaining satisfactory working conditions. In other words, there is an increasingly elaborate and fragile articulation of state‐ and citizen‐agencies at the frontline, in prisons and probations services. We conclude with some implications and an agenda for future research.     

The effectiveness of services marketing: perceptions of executive directors of gerontological programs

Interest in marketing services, as opposed to products, has gained considerable momentum in recent years. The author conducted a survey of human service executives in six metropolitan areas to gauge the current status and efficacy of marketing efforts in programs for the aged. Findings confirm that the majority of health and social service organizations now employ marketing strategies of some kind, although somewhat insensitive and inadequate. The most common indicator of marketing success has been increments in the number of clients served. Health organizations are significantly more likely to measure the effectiveness of marketing efforts than social service agencies. Agencies commonly employ multiple marketing strategies, with face-to-face approaches proving to be the most effective. Least effective are public service messages and commercials on television/radio. The author suggests recommendations for mounting more efficacious and sensitive marketing programs in the human services.     

Co-Production and Self-Care: New Approaches to Managing Community Care Services for Older People1

A lack of management theory which is relevant to human service agencies, combined with a failure to recognize the very large contribution which older people make to their own care, makes it difficult to deliver supportive services effectively. Self care by elders is divided, in this preliminary classification, into new strategies for everyday living, the reallocation of time and the avoidance of risk. Managers who understand that service users are co-producers of care and recognize the need to manage the users, as well as their own staff and relations with other agencies, are more likely to be able to deliver good services. However the management of co-production is at present only theorized for the private sector where ethical issues are less pressing and users are customers. In future a greater understanding of co-production and the development of theory and practice which will combine the management of co-production with the empowerment of users within the public sector will be essential.     

社会工作督导：有效且必需

社会工作督导是社会工作的一种间接服务方法。社会服务机构的非营利性及其公信力需要社会服务机构对其员工进行行政性督导、教育性督导以及支持性督导，以促进机构目标的实现，服务质量的提高。     

From “what works” to “making it work”: A practice perspective on evidence-based standardization in frontline service organizations

Evidence-based standards are becoming increasingly influential in frontline services connected to labor market inclusion of vulnerable citizens. To increase our understanding of standardization in such public service delivery, this study draws on interviews and ethnographic fieldwork from two frontline offices in the Norwegian Labour and Welfare Administration (2017–2018) that use the evidence-based Individual Placement and Support (IPS) standard. Adopting a theoretical perspective of organizational practices, the study highlights two distinct approaches to practicing IPS in the frontline organizations: as a “practice shift” in one organization (i.e., creating and legitimizing radically new service practices involving closer collaboration with employers) and as a “practice revival” in the other (i.e., reinstating more traditional service practices involving a holistic client orientation). Each approach relates to a specific constellation of recruitment practices, dynamics between frontline supervisors and staff, and team integration. The study contributes to the literature in two ways. First, it shows the underlying flexibility embedded in standardization and how standards may be implemented and adapted in ways that may either promote more radical change or revive traditional practices. Second, it nuances positions in the literature on the impact of standards on professional service work. On this basis, the study suggests broadening the attention in research on evidence-based standards in public service delivery from discussions of “what works” to understanding the broader organizational dynamics involved in “making it work.”     

Implementing child mistreatment risk assessment systems: lessons from theory

Over the past ten years, public child protective services (CPS) agencies have adopted risk assessment systems in an effort to improve the quality of service delivery to children and their families. Various reviews of the impact of these models suggest that they have not lived up to their expectations and have had little or no impact on broad system indicators of service delivery. Foremost among the findings of existing studies is that these models have not been implemented and used as intended. The risk assessment field has not taken advantage of theoretical principles suggested by the organizational change literature. The researcher applies Lewin's Force Field Analysis to identify the forces for and against effective implementation of risk assessment systems in public agencies. The author suggests that lessons from theory could improve the effectiveness of the implementation of change in CPS agencies.     

“We are not weak,we just experience domestic violence”—Immigrant women's experiences of encounters with service providers as a result of domestic violence

Domestic violence continues to be a serious social problem and represents a challenge for those who are exposed to it and those in public services. In Norway, a variety of services are provided to help victims of domestic violence and improve knowledge among professionals who meet with adults and children exposed to domestic violence. Studies in Norway show that families with immigrant backgrounds are overrepresented among social service users as a result of domestic violence. However, contextualized knowledge to provide background information about this overrepresentation is limited. This paper explores women's need for support and their experience with service providers when faced with difficult and unpredictable situations, namely, escaping from violence and leaving home with no financial resources or limited supportive network and turning to service providers for support. Qualitative interviews were conducted with 18 women who were staying in or were in touch with shelters with their children or alone. Five central themes emerged in the analysis of these interviews: (a) help becoming a burden; (b) timely economic measures; (c) economic support and domestic violence; (d) displaced focus; and (e) flexibility and the victim's background.     

The Elderly Blind:

This paper discusses some of the problems faced by the elderly blind in society. It is pointed out that the definition of blindness as well as the development of blind services mainly for the young and employable adults have contributed to public misunderstanding of blindness and the magnitude of visual problems among the elderly. It is also noted that with coordinated efforts between blind service agencies and social service agencies future problems among this group could be minimized.     

Assessing families and other client systems in community-based programmes: development of the CALF

Programmes providing services to children and families often face the challenge of assessing not only the child referred, but also the child’s family system and its individual members. Recognizing that household/family members can cause, contribute to or affect a child’s problems requires that human service agencies utilize assessment tools capable of assessing family members across the lifespan. The literature references many assessment tools used by clinical programmes in mental‐health settings that are not well suited to use in social service agencies with multidisciplinary staff at different skill levels. As a response to this dilemma, the authors have developed the Collaborative Assessment of Life Functioning (CALF), a user‐friendly tool that assesses various areas of life functioning. Based on Maslow’s motivation theory, person‐in‐environment and systems theories, the CALF can be used with various client systems. This paper describes the development of the tool, its purpose and use, the importance of assessment tools in the helping process and considerations for agencies wishing to use an assessment tool like the CALF. The authors also discuss the applicability of the CALF in human services and social service agency settings and with diverse client populations.     

The Policymaker's Dilemma: The Risks and Benefits of a ‘Black Box’ Approach to Commissioning Active Labour Market Programmes

In September 2009, the British Government launched a new employment assistance model called Flexible New Deal. It was soon replaced by Work Programme in 2011. Both prioritized what is often called a ‘black box’ approach to public employment assistance, whereby the government purchaser focuses predominantly on outcomes and does not seek to direct agency operations. Using a study of the orientations and strategies of frontline employment services staff in 2008 and 2012, we seek to enhance understanding of the impact of so‐called ‘black box’ commissioning on key aspects of service delivery. Black box advocates propose that it is a hands‐off approach that allows agencies to be innovative and to improve efficiency. These effects are thought to be due to improved local service quality and greater flexibility to tailor services to individual clients. Critics argue that this increased discretion facilitates under‐servicing of some jobseekers and agency profiteering. These practices are commonly referred to as ‘parking’ and ‘creaming’. In this UK study, we provide evidence of both positive and negative activities associated with black box commissioning. We find some small improvements in flexibility at the frontline, but little to no evidence of increased efficiency as measured by the reported rates of jobseekers moving into work. We also observe an increase in practices associated with creaming and parking. We conclude that improving efficiency and maximizing innovation are not guaranteed by black box commissioning, and that the aim of facilitating increased frontline flexibility, while also minimizing risk, persists as a major policy design tension.     

Opportunities and Risks: Models of Good Practice in Commissioning Foster-Care

Local authorities in Britain have been purchasing foster placementsand related services from independent fostering agencies orproviders (IFPs) for many years. These are often made on anunplanned or ‘spot purchased’ basis and many localauthorities have incurred significant budgetary overspends orbeen criticized for poor child-care practice. In parts of theUSA and Australia, governments have required public authoritiesto ‘outsource’ all or most of their foster-careresponsibilities to private or voluntary agencies. Where thesehave been independently evaluated, a number of deficits havebeen identified. A middle position of local authorities andIFPs entering into service level or contractual agreements hasemerged in Britain where each sector attempts to plan and matchits respective needs and services and to predict and controlcosts. This paper explores how some local authority and IFPmanagers have developed working arrangements with one anotherin order to achieve this position. At a time when the Britishgovernment is providing a strong policy steer towards inter-sectorcommissioning in foster-care, this paper suggests a frameworkfor collaboration.     

Mobilizing Community Services for Adolescents in Trouble

Considering the low self-image of many adoles- cents who are experiencing social, educational and emotional problems, it is suggested that we initiate helping efforts from a wellness perspective. Social agencies often create barriers to troubled adolescents through their administrative structure and emphasis on pathology. Through the collaboration of a family service agency and public recreation department, an outreach program is described that makes use of recreational activity as an entry point for a range of social, educational and mental health services. The use of-community agencies and involve- ment of the adolescents and their parents in setting goals are vital parts of this integrative approach.     

Hoarding cases involving older adults: the transition from a private matter to the public sector

Hoarding interventions with older adults require significant resources from multiple public agencies, yet recidivism occurs frequently. To improve services through better coordination, some communities have formed multiagency hoarding teams (MAHT), which include aging services. MAHTs requested this mixed methods study to understand the progression of cases through the public sector. Quantitative data collected on 52 cases involving adults ages 60+ identified steps in this process. Qualitative data collected from MAHT members were the basis for case studies illustrating the progression of cases through the public sector. Findings have implications for social workers involved in local service coordination, training, and policy.     

Structural Persistence in Proactive Organizations

Data from 36 well-established services and newly formed proactive agencies offering some services to adult rape victims are used to test our arguments that proactive organizations more than other service agencies use volunteers, make use of personal referrals to specific individuals in serving clients, educate the public, and secure more commitment of staff to the task or goals of the agency and less to the specific agency itself. We question life-cycle hypotheses that organizations drift away from such voluntaristic and personal practices as part of maturation. Organizational imprinting in a specific era, and the inadequate supply of resources to substitute for volunteer zeal, make any inexorable unfolding in a life cycle unlikely to hold for proactive organizations.     

Street‐level discretion,emotional labour and welfare frontline staff at the Australian employment service providers

Despite the current controversial debates about discretion in public bureaucracies in general, and in welfare agencies in particular, the current literature on street‐level bureaucracy mainly assumes that discretion is a distinctive feature of the daily work of public servants. Nonetheless, a pertinent question has not specifically been asked in this literature, that is, given the context of privatisation and increased welfare conditionality in the welfare sector that are seriously challenging welfare frontline staff's commitment to social justice and human rights‐based practices, what are forms of street‐level discretion likely to contribute to improving the quality of welfare services? In this study, we attempt to address this question by exploring discretion displayed by welfare frontline staff in four Australian employment service providers. We argue that emotional labour, especially when being informed by critical empathy, is an important and effective form of street‐level discretion that welfare frontline workers can perform to better support welfare recipients and minimise the punitive aspects of welfare policy.