Involving Service Users in Social Work Management Education: What Makes it Meaningful According to the ‘Experts’?

Course leaders have adopted a relatively cautious approach to involving service users and carers in Post-Qualifying (PQ) social work management education programmes in the UK, looking for opportunities in which it ‘makes sense’ for them to be included. Whilst there is, to a certain extent, the belief that involving service users and carers in PQ social work education is ‘a good thing’, it has proved challenging to implement. This research study sought to explore, through interviews with ‘experts’ in the field, why this process had proved so challenging. A term which emerged during the research was the importance of ‘meaningful involvement’. The research explored what ‘meaningful involvement’ might mean for managers, for academics and also for service users and carers; what it looks like and how might it take forward the understanding of and the preparation for PQ social work management education.     

Claiming a Space for International Social Work: Voices From the Field

Despite the rise in interest in international social work, surprisingly little empirical evidence exists outlining the knowledge, values, and skills required of social workers to succeed in the global arena. This qualitative study conducted from the spring through winter months of 2013 involved 10 semi-structured interviews with experienced international social workers triangulated with a content analysis of 52 international job postings. Findings suggest that social work professional perspectives including eco-systemic thinking, social justice principles, strength-based analyses, and foundational skills, such as developing empowering person-centered relationships, exhibiting cultural humility, implementing participatory approaches to research and practice, and demonstrating reflexivity, are not always valued by international colleagues nor sought in job advertisements. Furthermore, upon graduation, MSW social workers may lack key areas of expertise expected of international workers such as program monitoring and evaluation, grant writing, policy development, and communicating with media and high-level officials. Ultimately, the invisibility of foundational social work skills and lack of other technical expertise may not only challenge social workers' competitiveness on the global market but also threaten their maintenance of a professional social work identity over time. The authors provide guidance for schools of social work and accrediting bodies to improve social workers' readiness for international work and strengthen their presence in the international arena.     

秦宝琦教授著《中国秘密社会新论》评介

中国人民大学秦宝琦教授著《中国秘密社会新论》的主要特色和学术价值体现在:一是学术观点上,始终保持了在本领域的前沿地位;二是研究取向上,弥补了学术取向与政治取向相对立的缺憾;三是研究体系上,恰当地处理了整体分析和具体研究、宏观与微观的关系;四是研究路径上,实现了文本解读与田野调查的有机结合。该书必将有力地推动中国秘密社会史研究领域整体水平的提升。     

传统文论诠释中的视界融合问题

在中国社会百年的现代化进程中,文学乃至整个文化观念似总难摆脱“荣今虐古”与“荣古虐今”之二元对立,这在中国文论研究中表现为一直没有很好地解决“视界融合”问题。古文论研究主要是对传统经典的诠释活动,其中传统经典的历史视界与现在研究者的理论视界之间必须保持必要的张力,这种必要张力的废弛是导致学术视域封闭化进而产生“荣今虐古”与“荣古虐今”二元对立的重要原因之一,而古与今、中与西等不同文化视野之间不断的良性的深度融合,乃是超越这种二元对立、充分展示人类文学思想丰富性的必要途径,同时也是中国文论走向融会贯通、综合创造进而形成一种开放的理论视界的重要途径。     

编辑学理论研究前沿闪亮的思想结晶——论《编辑学新论》之"新"

《编辑学新论》之“新”主要体现为三个不同的创新路向:从编辑学研究的前沿考察问题,且紧密结合当前编辑出版现代化过程中的重大变化,具有立意和命题的双重时新性;根据编辑活动的特点和规律,注入新的思维因子,对既定观念、结论等进行修正和完善,更新编辑学理论体系和观点;站在编辑学理论建设的战略高度考察问题,在研究的切入点和以此为基础的一系列新思想、新看法上具有良好的创新性。     

Reframing Black Social Work Students' Experiences of Teaching and Learning

This article draws on critical race theory (CRT) to foreground the role of race and racism in the ways in which Black students experience social work teaching and learning. It reviews some of the available literature on Black social work students' experiences of teaching and learning. The article reframes understandings of the perceived failures of this group of students to adapt to the world of higher education. It is argued that race and racism are salient determining factors in the experiences of Black students within social work education. Emphasis is placed on understanding the specificity of this group of students taking into cognisance the social, cultural, economic, and political contexts within which they are located. The article uses CRT as critical lens to reflect on peer support groups as potential counter spaces that can disrupt the negative experiences of black social work students.     

Midwife readiness to provide woman-centred weight gain support: Exploring perspectives across models of care

ProblemMore than half of women start pregnancy above a healthy weight and two-thirds gain excess weight during pregnancy, increasing the risk of complications.BackgroundLittle research has examined the influence model of care has on weight-related outcomes in pregnancy.AimTo explore how continuity vs non-continuity models of midwifery care influence perceived readiness to provide woman-centred interventions with women supporting pregnancy weight gain, healthy eating and physical activity.MethodsFocus groups were conducted with midwives working in either continuity or non-continuity models of care at a tertiary hospital in Queensland, Australia. Focus group questions elicited elements around practices, the healthcare environment and woman-centred care skills. Findings were analysed using the Framework Approach to qualitative research.FindingsFour focus groups, involving 15 participants from the continuity of care model and 53 from the non-continuity model, were conducted. Continuity of care participants reported greater readiness to provide woman-centred interventions than those from non-continuity models. Barriers faced by both groups included gaps in communication training, education resources and multidisciplinary support.DiscussionMidwives across models of care require greater support in this area, in particular training in communication and better multidisciplinary service integration to support women.ConclusionThe care model appears to influence capacity to deliver person/woman-centred interventions, highlighting the need for tailored training for the healthcare setting. The roles of other health professionals in delivering weight management interventions during pregnancy also need to be examined.     

Dilemmas between law and ethics in Czech social work

In many situations social workers face the necessity of making a decision. One of the most frequent scenarios of making a choice is the dilemma of whether to intervene or not. The choice itself is conditioned on the one hand by the obligation to comply with the relevant legal requirements and on the other by the necessity of respecting ethical values, rules and principles. One often encounters a situation when the legal requirements and ethical conduct appear in mutual contradiction. This essay will deal with the possible concept of the relationship between law and ethics giving examples of dilemmas between ‘confidentiality’ and the ′informing or reporting obligation′ in the context of Czech social work.     

Developing Entrepreneurship in Social Work Through International Education. Reflections on a European Intensive Programme

This paper addresses the issue of introducing training on entrepreneurial skills in social work education and illustrates the opportunities offered for doing so by international courses. It presents a critical reflection on the concept of entrepreneurship in social work based on the case of a European Intensive Programme within the Erasmus scheme. It explores the potential of using active experiential learning methods in an international environment and of creating a situation where participants are confronted with ‘real world’ problems so that they can develop entrepreneurial skills. The paper argues that experiences of this kind provide new stimuli and contribute substantially to developing an entrepreneurial mentality, by which is meant innovative and proactive attitudes as well as skills to develop the resources with which to face social problems in an adverse context.     

Exploring the Learning Experiences of Students Involved in Community Profiling Projects

This article reports on a collaborative pilot study that aimed to improve final year social work students' capacity to reflect on the learning process through the use of an online journal. The ability to reflect on practice is widely regarded as a key skill in social work and journals are seen as a valuable aid in the process. At the same time, there are legitimate reservations about the authenticity of some learning through reflection, given the difficulties of measurement and the potential for dissimulation. Traditional journaling also has a number of limitations and is open to a superficial approach. Students and the social work teacher in this study found that factors such as immediacy, intimacy and convenience of online access improved both the quality of journaling and its recognition as an authentic learning tool, with life-long applicability. The indications are that reflective practices need to be taught in one academic course only as the processes are highly portable and independent of specific content. Asynchronous online journaling, however, should be accompanied by opportunities for students to engage in interactive activities with their peers in order to consolidate their learning and validate their experiences.