Applying Single-Case Evaluation in Social Work

Summary This article reports on a research project involving the useof single-case designs on an agency-wide basis within KirkleesMetropolitan Education Social Work Service. Following a programmeof training, 21 social workers (69 per cent of the service)applied the methodology in 83 cases. The extent of practitionerinvolvement in this project prompted Bruce Thyer (Professorat the University of Georgia, USA and editor of Research onSocial Work Practice and author of Thyer, 1993) to state ina letter to the authors, ‘Please allow me to offer mycongratulations on a most valuable project. To my knowledge,this is the largest agency-based study of this type which hasever been conducted. Your agency social workers are especiallyto be commended for their implementation of single-case designswith real life clients and families’ (6 May 1994). Theproject's strategy was to concentrate on the prerequisites ofsingle-case methodology which include specifying target problemsand selecting an appropriate measure to monitor progress. Thetype of single-case design used was determined by the courseof natural practice, hence indicating the flexible nature andviability of this methodology in the evaluation of social workpractice. The use of single-case designs encouraged a systematicapproach in the definition of target problems, identificationof goals, selection of intervention procedures and in monitoringoutcomes. The practitioners found that single-case designs enabledcontinuous assessment of outcome data by both the clients andthe practitioners, providing a model of accountability and collaborativeworking. A paper based on this article was presented by MansoorKazi at the ADSS Research Group Conference, Stafford, 17–18November 1994.     

Informal shelter providers: Low income households sheltering the homeless

Despite the important role they play in preventing homelessness, those who shelter people who can not afford housing of their own have been neglected by researchers. This study examines the characteristics of these low income informal shelter providers. While informal shelter providers were similar to a comparison group of low income households that did not shelter others, there were also significant differences between the two groups. Informal shelter providers were more much more likely to live in single family dwellings, they were more likely to be long-term residents of the community, they were more likely to have experienced homelessness themselves, and they devoted a disproportionate share of their incomes to housing.     

THE FAMILY PSYCHE OVER THREE GENERATIONS: THE GENOGRAM REVISITED*

The genogram is a structured method of taking a three-generational family history. This paper describes a variety of ways the clinician can use the genogram in addition to the standard uses described in the literature. It also demonstrates using the genogram as a quasi-projective technique which reveals unarticulated fears, wishes and values of the individuals comprising the family unit. Practical suggestions as to technique in creating genograms are offered, as well as a discussion of when, with whom and under what circumstances genograms should be undertaken.