Social work education in the West Indies

Social Work Education has been offered in the West Indies at a professional certificate level since 1961. Programmes exist within multi-disciplinary Departments of academic institutions in six countries. Given limited staff resources, they benefit from the availability of instruction in related subject areas but lack the autonomy to create fully integrated social work curricula. Graduates are prepared to function in a post-colonial (post slavery) West Indian society characterized by increasingly democratized patterns of social organization and indicators of modernization but with a serious catalogue of contextual, structural and human behavioural problems which impact the economic social and cultural lifestyles of the people. While there have been some positive developments, the major constraining factors for regional social work education are: limited resources which deny programme autonomy, limit staffing and subject offerings; an unsatisfactory dependence on metropolitan social work education models; and an insufficient sensitivity to the challenge to produce indigenous theory and culturally appropriate practice models. Challenges to be addressed are the need for authentic West Indian (Caribbean) social work models, the strengthening of field practice experience for students, more preparation for advocacy and policy development roles and the extension of professional education at the undergraduate level through the distance education mode, and at the post graduate level.     

Competing demands,competing solutions,differing constructions of the problem of recruitment and retention of frontline rural child protection staff

Abstract

This article reports on a study conducted in rural Victoria. It examines the problem of recruitment and retention of frontline staff in the Victorian Child Protection program. The article delineates those factors identified by managers and supervisors as influencing workers to enter, stay and leave the program. Managers and supervisors have collective responsibility for recruiting and retaining staff. It is for this reason that their viewpoints are considered crucial in responding to the problem. What this study found was that, while managers and supervisors recognise that the problem is complex, they differ in the emphasis placed on facets of the problem, thus their approaches to solving it. As solutions are contested the problem is exacerbated. The argument advanced is that any response should recognise the complexity of the problem and solutions be considered in a coordinated way.     

Motivating the Unemployed? Attitudes at the Front Line

Abstract

Underlying employment services policy in many countries is the assumption that the unemployed exhibit a range of deficits. The goal of employment activation programs is to develop self-efficacy. Noting the determinants of self-efficacy, we illustrate how case managers and social workers think about the unemployed and suggest that negative attitudes held by case managers are not conducive to the promotion of self-efficacy, unlike the orientation displayed by social workers. We suggest that employment services, wherever provided, would be significantly improved if social work frameworks informed policy and practices.     

Using Social Work Theory and Values to Investigate the Implementation of Community Treatment Orders

Abstract

This paper establishes the value of a social work investigation of good practice with people on Community Treatment Orders in the context of social work's longstanding interest in the ethical challenges of working with involuntary clients. The emancipatory values of social work were used to guide this research, thereby ensuring the participation of consumers and their families or carers. Critical social work theory provided an important theoretical base. A mixed methods approach was undertaken, including a cluster analysis and case studies. Five principles of good social work practice emerged from the qualitative data: (a) use and develop direct practice skills; (b) take a human rights perspective; (c) focus on goals and desired outcomes; (d) aim for quality of service delivery; and, (e) enhance and enable the role of key stakeholders. These principles are briefly presented along with recommendations for practice and service development.     

The National Social Distance Study: Ten Years Later

The Bogardus social distance scale, which measures the level of acceptance that Americans feel toward members of the most common ethnic and racial groups in the United States, was administered six times nationally between 1920 and 2001. Replicating the most recent study with its revised list of ethnic and racial groups, the authors of this study analyzed a stratified random sample of 3,166 college students, making it the largest national social distance study ever conducted. The findings indicate an increase since 2001 in the mean level of social distance toward all ethnic groups, as well as in the spread between the groups with the highest and lowest levels of social distance. Further, a consistency between studies in group preferences reaffirms the relevance of the similarity‐attraction bond in accepting those who are racially and culturally different. Mean comparisons and analysis of variance tests also showed that gender, birthplace of respondents and/or their parents, race, and year in college are all significant indicators of the level of social distance toward groups.     

人文地理学与社会学空间研究的比较分析:共识、差异与共同问题

人文地理学和社会学的空间研究是社会空间研究的两种路径。两个学科的空间研究都承认空间的社会性,并以社会和空间的辩证关系作为分析的核心。但两个学科的研究又存在差异,人文地理学本身就是一门空间科学,社会学则是把空间视角纳入社会理论的建构中。学科的共识和差异分别成为社会空间研究理论的建构基础和拓展动力。我们需要注意的是,社会空间探讨存在着诸如社会—空间二元分裂倾向、忽视时间等问题,这些问题阻碍了社会空间研究的发展,亦成为人文地理学和社会学面临的共同难题。     

Differences by Race in Social Work Students’ Social Distancing,Treatment Options,and Perceptions of Causes of Mental Illness

ABSTRACT

Research has shown that racial and cultural differences are related to the degree of social distancing associated with mental illness, beliefs about what causes mental illness, and what treatment options are best; however, there is little information on how this may manifest in social workers’ perceptions of these issues. This cross-sectional survey analyzed the differences in perceptions by race of 835 students enrolled in social work classes in the United States. Results indicated that individuals who self-identify as African American/Black expressed the greatest social distance concerning mental illness. Whites were most likely to endorse the use of medication and were least likely to normalize mental illness. The most frequently endorsed mental health provider varied according to racial/ethnic groups. Our findings show that future research may be needed to further investigate the conceptualization of the role of social work among different groups. The need for self-reflection and keeping biases in check are discussed as implications for social work practice and education. Suggestions for working with diverse clients, including religious diversity, are offered as well.     

基于语料的英汉“悲伤”隐喻的对比研究

英汉语中“悲伤”情感的认知均基于人们对该情感的身体体验和对人类身体的认识,同时又受各自文化背景和思维模式的制约,即英汉“悲伤”隐喻具备具身普遍性和文化特异性。从具身认知和体验哲学的角度对二者的认知共性进行阐释,并从理想化认知模式的视角探讨二者差异性的成因可以对英汉语中的“悲伤”隐喻有系统的认知。     

基于GM（1，1）模型的新疆人力资源需求预测分析

根据灰色预测模型,并运用残差检验、关联度检验和均方差检验进行模型检验,以保证预测结论的可靠性,研究表明：新疆未来十年人力资源数量呈现不断增长的趋势,这将为新疆经济社会实现跨越式发展提供强大的人力资源;人力资源受教育年限的不断增加,意味着新疆教育水平的提升,人力资源整体素质的提高,这为新疆的发展提供了智力的支持人力资源结构也发生了很大的变化,男女比例趋于平衡、镇人口比例与乡村人口比例不断趋于平衡。     

Diversity,difference and nation: Indigenous peoples on Mexican screen

This article draws on constructivist theories of identity that regard the self as coming into existence through interaction with the other. It investigates the discursive formation of Indigenous people in the forging of Mexican national identity. The aim of this article is to show how difference has been managed and deployed in the establishment of national Mexican identities from independence until the present. This is done with reference to visual culture and film and illustrated with examples from the ‘Golden Age’ as well as ‘the New Mexican Cinema’.