Religion and Spirituality in Social Work Education and Direct Practice at the Millennium: A Survey of UK Social Workers

Correspondence to Dr Leola Furman, 1201 Yale Place, Minneapolis, Minnesota, 55403, USA. E-mail: furmanlfurman{at}aol.com Summary In recent years, an expanding body of social work publicationsand professional conference presentations has materialized inthe United States due to a resurgence of interest in spiritualityand religion. In order to explore the level of interest in theUnited Kingdom, a random sample of 5,500 practising social workersfrom the British Association of Social Workers (BASW) membershipwere mailed a questionnaire that examined religious and spiritualbeliefs, practices and affiliations. A total of 789 BASW membersin direct practice from England, Scotland Wales, and NorthernIreland returned questionnaires, a response rate of 20 per cent.The majority of respondents believed that spirituality was afundamental aspect of being human. More than three-quartersof the sample reported little or no content on religion andspirituality in their training programme. Respondents stronglyapproved of raising the topic of religion and spirituality withclients who are experiencing terminal illness or bereavement.This also held true in matters of adoption and foster parenting.Approximately 47 per cent of all respondents believed that includingreligion and spirituality in direct practice was compatiblewith social work’s mission. This sample may representthose social workers with a stronger interest in religion andspirituality than a random sample of the general populationof UK social workers. These findings, nevertheless, raise concernabout the availability of practice models and training curriculafor social work practitioners and students.