A praxis and Research Agenda for Multicultural Human Services Organizations

Human services organizations in the United States are currently faced with the problems of a diminishing and shifting resource base coupled with increasing demands for services. In addition, national demographic changes with increasing social diversity, and a rise in racial, ethnic, gender and other group-based tensions have posed special challenges for human service organizations. By tracing the history of social work approaches to working with ethnic minorities, this paper argues that responses to environmental flux have in fact been inadequate in addressing issues of social inequalities and injustices. We articulate a vision of socially just and diverse human services organizations that are both empowering and empowered. We call these Multicultural Human Services Organizations (MHSO). We spell out praxis and research agendas that continue the social justice-social diversity mission that is central to our vision.     

气候变化、生态系统及社会可持续发展

温室效应造成了对人类生存不利的气候变化,引发的各种自然灾害已经严重制约了人类社会的可持续发展,社会经济发展与社会生活的代价越来越高。以包括气候环境在内的自然生态为前提和依据的生态系统化的社会价值意识为指导,自然科学及其技术与社会科学及其技术相互配合、相互支持,形成合力,才可能有效扭转气候变化与生态变化对人类社会生存和发展的不利趋势,这是实现社会可持续发展的关键。     

伊卡路斯式冲动

从2600年以前思考世界构造的爱奥尼亚学派开始,人们就认为人类是自然的一部分,因而自然的共相也适用于我们。威尔逊由此信念出发试图把自然科学和人文科学统一起来。但罗蒂却认为关心社会公正是知识分子的重要任务,而自然科学所宣扬的统一性是一种潜在的为强权进行的辩护。然而,我们看到正是通过逐渐认识自然界的共相,人类才取得了启蒙以来的社会进步,因此自然科学追求统一性的观点是完全正确的。     

Risks and Resources: Social Capital among Social Assistance Recipients in Norway

Based on a nationally representative panel study covering the period 1985–2003, a Norwegian cohort is investigated with regard to the risks of receiving social assistance benefits. Traditionally, welfare dependency, poverty and receipt of social assistance have been explained by beneficiaries’ human capital deficits, the structural or institutional design of the welfare system, or the level of welfare benefits. This article investigates the potentially mediating effects of social capital on the risks of receiving social assistance in youth and young adulthood. In addition, the role of the institutional welfare design on the accumulation of social capital itself is examined. The resulting analyses suggest that even if individuals’ social capital is related to the risks of receiving social assistance, it is rather the respondents’ human capital and welfare recipiency in itself that are the driving force behind paths leading individuals into further social assistance recipiency. The article concludes with an analysis suggesting that the institutional design of the Norwegian social assistance benefits reduces social capital for the beneficiaries.     

维护弱势群体的尊严:社会救助制度的重要伦理关切

社会进步的重要标志之一就是人的尊严不断提升,维护和提升人的尊严是构建社会主义和谐社会应有之义。人的尊严是一种价值,也是一种权利,本质上是人的社会性的价值表达。人的尊严问题特别与弱势群体相关,弱势群体具有贫困性、脆弱性和易受伤害性的特性,使他们更容易受到侮辱,他们有更强烈的尊严诉求。维护弱势群体的尊严是社会救助制度的重要伦理关切。     

A Response to Social Problems in Developing Countries

This paper considers social development as a relatively new concept, and new practice model. Its definition still lacks concreteness. Here it is viewed as a process of planned institutional change to bring about a better fit between human needs and social policies and programmes (Sanders, 1982); it is not satisfactory to measure development in purely economic terms, for this has resulted in the marginalization of the majority of the population in developing countries. The curative and remedial functions adopted by the social work profession in accordance with the dictates of the modernization approach, have rendered social work unable to address itself meaningfully to the problem of marginalization or mass poverty. Social development rests upon social policies that are promotive of human needs and this is only possible in circumstances where such policies are a product of the people's participation.     

Environmental ethics for social work: Social work's responsibility to the non‐human world

Gray M, Coates J. Environmental ethics for social work: Social work's responsibility to the non‐human world This lead article in this Special Issue begins discussion on an environmental ethics for social work and raises arguments as to whether and, if so, why social workers have duties, obligations, responsibilities and commitments to the non‐human world. It provides an overview of the field of environmental ethics in searching for a moral stance to affirm an environmental social work. To what extent should social workers engage in fundamental geopolitical issues concerned with climate change, global warming, environmental degradation, pollution, chemical contamination, sustainable agriculture, disaster management, pet therapy, wilderness protection and so on and, if so, why and how? Are these issues incidental and peripheral and only of concern when they impact upon humans or do social workers have a responsibility beyond human interests? What is the significance of the ‘non‐human’ for social work? The article explores the terrain of the burgeoning field of environmental ethics to determine whether convincing ethical grounds for environmental social work might be found beyond hortatory claims of what the profession ought to be doing to address environmental concerns.     

论社会工作者在促进社会和谐的作用

社会工作的价值理念是助人自助,即尊重人的价值与尊严,追求社会的公平与公正。社会工作者能够为处于困境中的社会群体提供支持与指导,对社会群体恢复与社会的和谐具有重要作用。关爱弱势群体是社会工作者的神圣使命,崇尚专业伦理和敬业、奉献精神将使社会工作者发挥更大作用。     

Social Capital and Economic Performance in the American States*

Objective. This study tests the claim that areas with higher levels of social capital have superior economic performance. Method. The 14‐measure index of social capital created by Robert Putnam is reconstructed for an extended time period and integrated into cross‐sectional regression models including physical capital, human capital, and other factors relevant to state economic performance. Results. The analysis shows that social capital has no discernable influence on aggregate measures of output and employment. However, it does have a positive and significant impact on measures of economic equality and employment stability. Conclusions. This study does not support the claim that social capital is a general prerequisite for prosperity, but it does suggest that it may serve to reinforce a particular mode of communitarian economic development.     

Computerization of social services: a critical appraisal

This article presents an analysis of ethics and computerization of social services. Drawing from the work of Baudrillard, the article suggests that social existence is redefined by the worldview that accompanies computerization. The authors conclude that practitioners have an ethical obligation to protect the human element when social services are computerized. Suggestions are offered for accomplishing this important goal.     

The Three Monotheistic World Religions and International Human Rights

Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, and the human rights movement lay claim to much of the same moral territory, notably concepts of human dignity, equality, and social justice. In practice there are many tensions. This article argues that common standards are necessary to govern relationships among religions and that international human rights standards best play that role. To achieve greater consensus and mutual understanding, the religious and human rights communities must examine how their meaning systems can and have changed over time, and differ across regions. Recognition of these variations and empirical evidence that religiosity is not necessarily inherently linked to prejudice can enable both the religious and human rights meaning systems to evolve toward greater consensus on common social norms.     

Caring and the generation of social capital: Two models for a positive relationship

Johansson S, Leonard R, Noonan K. Caring and the generation of social capital: two models for a positive relationship When caring is linked to social capital, it is generally assumed that the nature of the relationship is that social capital is a resource that can be used for care work. When there is inadequate funding of aged care services by the state, then social capital may be seen as a substitute for economic and human capital. Caring, therefore, is seen as a drain on capital. However, this does not have to be the case. Aged care services, if thoughtfully designed, can not only consume social capital, but also generate it. Two models of elder care, one Swedish and one Australian, have been identified which specifically address the generation of social capital. In each case, the services and facilities have been developed by third‐sector organisations with a strong community development focus, often in the face of resistance from state‐run or medically oriented services.     

The Psychological Subject and Harré's Social Psychology: An Analysis of a Constructionist Case

Taking Rom Harré's social constructionism as a focus we point to and discuss the issue of the a priori psychological subject in social constructionist theory. While Harré indicates that interacting, intending beings are necessary for conversation to occur, he assumes that the primary human reality is conversation and that psychological life emerges from this social domain. Nevertheless, we argue that a fundamental and agentive psychological subject is implicit to his constructionist works. Our critical analyses focus upon Harré's understandings of persons, human development and human agency. Our intention is neither to suggest that this latent entity must be understood in a Cartesian sense nor is it to ask for an explicit accounting of an autonomous agent. Rather, our claim is simply that psychological subjectivity is reflexively entailed in Harré's human psychology. We suggest that this pertains more generally to social constructionist theory.     

Reconstructing the social constructionist view of emotions: from language to culture,including nonhuman culture

The thesis of social constructionism is that emotions are shaped by culture and society. I build on this insight to show that existing social constructionist views of emotions, while providing valid research methods, overly restrict the scope of the social constructionist agenda. The restriction is due to the ontological assumption that social construction is indissociable from language. In the first part, I describe the details of the influential social constructionist views of Averill and Harré. Drawing on recent theorizing in psychology, I suggest that their fixation on language makes these approaches inadequate to the analysis of the social construction of human emotional experience. In the second part, I extend the argument to other species, suggesting that these social constructionist views are incapable of accommodating the fact, ascertained by primatologists, that animals have cultures, and that part of animal culture concerns the social molding of their emotions. I conclude that a reconstructed social constructionism should be regarded not as inimical to, but as part and parcel of, a nonreductive biology of emotions.     

流动儿童的资本禀赋与社会融合研究——基于双向测度数据的多视角分析

利用2013年深圳流动儿童调查数据,从学校性质和生命历程视角分析了流动儿童在资本禀赋与社会融合上的差异性,检验了二者的相关性.结果发现:流动儿童的资本禀赋已出现群体分化,公办学校流动儿童在家庭物质资本和人力资本上占优,但民办学校流动儿童在家庭社会资本和学校社会资本上占优,小学段流动儿童的资本禀赋优于初中段.流动儿童的社会融合状况并不乐观,其城市文化融合水平低下,农村文化纽带坚韧;城市人和本地人身份认同度较低,农村人和外地人身份认同度较高,认同模糊问题突出;与流动儿童的社会距离较小,与本地儿童的社会距离更小.总的来说,流动儿童的资本禀赋与社会融合存在复杂的正向相关,拥有资本禀赋越多,社会融合状况越好.     

中国农民工社会融入的代际比较

本文依据2011年中国社会科学院社会学研究所中国社会状况综合调查数据,描述了老一代农民工和新生代农民工在经济、社会、心理和身份四个层面的社会融入状况,分析了人力资本、社会资本和政策制度等因素对社会融入的影响。研究发现,新生代农民工社会融入状况与老一代农民工相比并没有根本差异;影响社会融入的人力资本因素更显著地体现在农民工的工作技能上;政策制度对农民工社会融入具有重要影响;农民工社会融入的经济-社会-心理-身份四个层次不存在递进关系,经济层次的融入并不必然带来其他层次的融入。     

哲学嫉妒

关于“人的科学”的观念长期以来诱惑着西方的思想家们。自然科学的每一次突破都被用来佐证哲学已经被自然科学所取代。自然科学家们常常对哲学家和文学家们不能达成一致不厌其烦。他们把这种不一致与作为自然科学的经验性的信条的标志的共识和稳步前进进行不公平的比较。最近在对大脑功能的研究方面和进化论生物学领域都取得的一些研究成果,在这种意义上也被认作为对哲学的部分的取代。然而斯蒂夫·平克用这些自然科学信条解决政治和社会问题的企图并没有什么意义。对于政治和社会问题,平克和他的盟友们提供不了任何具体的、实用的建议。他们错误地认为我们需要关于人性的理论作为解决政治和社会问题的原理。但事实并非如此,政治和社会指针只能从对人类历史的研究而不是生物学的研究中产生。西方哲学史的精神在于关于人性的理论应被关于历史的研究所取代,关于非历史的人类本质的理论,不论是哲学的还是生物学的,都不值得我们认真对待。     

Keeping the Faith: The Impact of Human Services Restructuring on Catholic Social Welfare Services

Church related agencies are major providers of community services in Australia (Lyons, 2001:34‐35). While the history of church related welfare service provision is not well known in Australia it is asserted that many have a long tradition of outreach and service provision to marginalised groups regardless of the government social policy of the day (ACSWC, 2000; Mendes, 2003). This paper examines the current environment of human services restructuring and the impact of the shift to contractualism on one church related provider: Catholic social welfare provision in Australia. It explores the significance of the church's social teachings and history on concerns that service innovation, diversity and advocacy are currently under threat. Finally it calls for greater appreciation of the distinctive contribution of church related agencies and what they have to offer in service delivery and as contributors to the social policy discourse.     

理解人类行为的三维框架及其教学应用——《人类行为与社会环境》课程教学思考

《人类行为与社会环境》作为社会工作专业基础课程,其知识体系的构建应基于综合生物、心理、社会视角而成的三维框架。为这一框架引入生物学思想可以丰富其内涵和认知深度。三维框架的具体体现是依据纵横结合和锥形开放式逻辑构建并呈现有关人类行为的知识体系。据此进行教学可兼顾知识性和思想性,从而有助于深化人类行为与社会环境课程教学。