Showing papers in "International Social Work in 1996"

Professionalization in social work: the challenge of diversity

Abstract: Social work as a formalized occupation is global. Its origins are to be found in the industrializing western nations (especially Europe and North America) but over time it has developed in many other contexts around the world. As an occupation its boundaries have never been rigidly defined, and it has variously encompassed approaches ranging from highly individualized casework, through interventions in families, small groups and local neighbourhoods, to community development (Coulshed, 1991). The development of social work has also been marked by crises of identity, as it springs from the social circumstances in which it is practised, being formed by and in response to social policy. Recent major shifts in the pattern of social welfare in many parts of the world have created yet another set of demands on the current shape and future direction of professional social work (Bamford, 1990; Cnaan, 1994). Within this situation is the sense that the capacity of social work to define its methods and undertake analyses of the causes of the needs which it is charged with resolving is being called more and more into question. In many parts of the world social workers are being required to implement policies which confront their sense of their own skills and values, either in new forms of practice or else towards the resolution of-new areas of need. Furthermore, social workers are frequently confronted by societies which are increasingly diverse as a consequence of modernization and its aftermath (Hewitt, 1993). This can be seen in the demands of ’minority’ groups for more relevant responses to their needs, provided in ways which recognize their identity. Ethnic minorities, women, disabled people, lesbians and gay men, environmentalists and members of religious traditions, all may assert

Micro-enterprise as an approach for promoting economic development in social work: lessons from the Self-Employment Investment Demonstration

Abstract: Historically, the profession of social work has been concerned with promoting human capital formation through building interpersonal skills and enhancing family and community strengths. However, this has not been a dominant activity in social work. Generally, the profession has fostered a remedial and maintenance-oriented approach to social welfare. Although social work has campaigned to maintain traditional social welfare policies and programmes, it is being increasingly recognized that governments will not restore bugetary reductions and that consumption-based social services will face greater pressure in the future. In view of this trend, new ideas which transcend traditional approaches are urgently needed. The writings of Sherraden (1991) and Midgley (1995) offer opportunities

Involving Social Work in Economic Development

Abstract: Social work is established as a profession in many countries today. Although social work originated in the western industrial nations, it also emerged in the so-called developing countries of the Third World in the middle decades of this century. In these countries, schools of social work were often created by religious organizations and social workers found employment in non-governmental agencies. However, after the Second World War, many newly independent Third World governments began to employ social workers to staff their public welfare programmes. With the encouragement of the international development agencies, many developing countries created social work training schools. By the 1980s, social work education was well established in both the industrial and developing nations. As Healy (1995) reported, professional social work schools affiliated with the International Association of Schools of Social

Social work and traditional healing rituals among the Bedouin of the Negev, Israel

Abstract: encounter with psychotherapy. The session abruptly ended when she terminated the treatment, refused to contract for further appointments, and disdained the social worker and what he was attempting to do, dismissing the entire process as ’nothing more than talking’. On one level such an experience may be interpreted as client resistance, a common aspect of the helping process. But more than this, it typifies two culturally-specific realities which bear upon many Bedouins’ experiences of western forms of helping. The first is the frame of reference through which many in this community perceive mental health interventions. It must be emphasized that psychiatric treatment is new and in many ways foreign to this traditional population, having been initiated only in the last 30 years in predominantly pharmacological treatment by psychiatrists, most of whom are Jewish and thus of a different cultural back-

International activity in undergraduate social work education in the United States

Abstract: Internationalizing programs of social work education includes (1) initiating special courses on this topic, (2) integrating this content into other courses in the curriculum, (3) offering field placements in cross-national or overseas settings, (4) enrolling students from other countries in the program, (5) utilizing faculty members who are from other nations, and (6) sending American students/practitioners/educators to other countries. Boehm (1984) argued for the inclusion of international content in social work at both the baccalaureate and graduate levels and Brown (1984) proposed goals and strategies for both. Yet, it appears that most of the academic efforts to foster an international

Revival of social work education in China

Abstract: forms have given rise to the demand for a wide variety of social work services, social workers with professional qualifications, and, by extension, social work education. Traditionally, with its unique cultural, political, social and economic background, China has been far behind other developed countries in social work education as well as social work practice. Under the Chinese socialist system, the philosophy and goals of social work programmes; curriculum content ; the training of teachers; social work service organizations such as the Ministry of Civil Affairs, the All-China Federation of Women, the All-China Federation of Trades Unions and the Chi-

The challenge of economic development in an African developing country: social work in Zimbabwe:

Abstract: Since independence in 1980, Zimbabwe has sought to consolidate its sovereignty and provide a basis for genuine economic and social development (Auret, 1990). In the process, attempts have been made to dismantle inherent inequalities which are a legacy of the colonial past. However, the struggle to achieve these goals has not been easy. In the face of an oppressive colonial history, the destruction of a long civil war, severe economic problems and continued climatic adversity, a great deal of progress has been made. Development has been a pre-eminent theme in the country’s post-colonial experience. Development offers the prospect of overcoming economic stagnation, enhancing standards of living and fostering the well-being of the whole population. Given the importance accorded to development in Zimbabwe today, the social work profession has recognized that it has a critical role to play. Social work cannot perpetuate outmoded and inappropriate forms of intervention that detract from the country’s development effort. As will be shown in this article, social work in Zimbabwe has endeavoured to modify its traditional approach to professional education by promoting a social development orientation. The profession’s involvement in development may have relevance for colleagues in other countries who are seeking to increase their involvement in development and enhance their relevance to local conditions.

The qualitative approach to social work: an epistemological basis

Abstract: Social work is in the early stages of building an empirically based holistic practice theory. Such a theory must address the special mission of social workers: it must be method-focused, incorporate psychological and social theories of understanding, and provide the middle-range theoretical connections to a social worker's day-today reality. This argument is advanced despite the enrichment provided by empirically derived theory based on frameworks developed in related disciplines. Some practice theories are specific to social work ; however, they are articulated without the middle-range theory that connects them to the realities of practitioners. Goldstein has developed a practice theory unique to social work (the "cognitive, cross-cultural approach") ; however, this effort is not yet empirically grounded.

Poverty and the environment: an international perspective for social work:

Abstract: Approximately 1.1 billion individuals, or just under a quarter of the world’s people, live in absolute poverty (Buvinic and Yudelman, 1989). Of the total population in Asia, 675 million (25 percent) live in absolute poverty at income levels below minimum standards of nutrition, shelter, and personal amenities. There are 325 million (62 percent) absolute poor in Sub-Saharan Africa, 150 million (35 percent) in Latin America and 75 million (28 percent) in North Africa and the Middle East below the lowest standards of decency (Durning, 1989a). Living in poverty increases susceptibility to dis-

The decline of the North American model of social work education

Abstract: Social work grew from a number of parallel traditions. It is a commonplace in industrial countries to identify the field as a response to the social injustices related to industrial and urban development and growth. But social work practices actually extend back to the time when people first accepted basic moral imperatives grounded in the idea of their responsibility for others, and their relationships to society and to their Creator. The oldest social work traditions are based upon precepts that seem to be common to all religions, such as tsedakah among Jews, ’charity’ among Christians (Handel, 1982; Morris, 1986; Johnson, 1987) or the zakah that is one of the Five Pillars of Islam (Glasse, 1989; Brockelmann, 1960). It would seem that provision for the most vulnerable members in any society forms a key element in all religions, great and small. Individuals and organizations have been performing social work tasks since time immemorial, but the present professional form of social work appeared about the same time as modern medicine: the latter half of the 19th century (Lubove, 1965; Lasch, 1965). Religious obligation combined with moral philosophy’s belief in the perfectibility of humans and human societies. Groups were formed, largely comprising volunteers, and became our founders and predecessors. By the turn of the century, there was widespread agreement that formal education was needed to prepare workers to give competent service (Richmond, 1897; Pumphrey and Pumphrey, 1961) and the first program to provide that preparation opened in Amsterdam, followed soon by Berlin, London and New York. In the United States, social work activity included management of large philanthropic organizations, direct policy development, and individual intervention (Winocur and Reisch, 1989). During the Great Depression of the 1930s, social workers entered the

Clinical practice: treating the non-voluntary client:

Abstract: Clinicians generally treat clients who request their services, but they also intervene with those who did not ask to be changed. It is hard to estimate what percentage of clients are non-voluntary because different definitions for such clients are possible. However, even if we consider only those who select therapy to avoid legal sanctions, it seems that their proportion among the practitioner’s clientele is substantial. For example, Schottenfeld (1989) notes that legal judgments currently account for between 40 and 70 percent of all referrals to community alcohol and drug treatment programs. He further suggests that ’changes in criminal statutes ... and in

Partnerships in international social development: evolution in practice and concept

Abstract: Partnership arrangements among the major actors involved in international social development have been shifting in significant ways since the early 1960s. At that time, the writer, on a four-year assignment to Columbia, was first introduced to the world of international co-operation involving the so-called ’developed’ industrial nations of the North and the ’under-developed’ nations of the South, now generally referred to as the Third World. These shifts in partnership need to be understood by placing them in proper context, acknowledging the rapidly changing political and socioeconomic world order, and the new reality of poverty in Canada as well as in the Third World.

The determinants of social security in developing countries: a comparative analysis

Abstract: The debate over the determinants of social welfare in comparative social policy research has been intensely controversial and a plethora of theories has emerged to explain the phenomenon of the welfare state. On balance, they have advanced a host of factors as crucial to social welfare development, including economic development, aged population, the state and its structure, class conflicts, mobilization of labour, modernization, diffusion and an open economy (Cutright, 1965; Wilensky, 1975; Miller, 1976; Cameron, 1978; Castles, 1978; Stephens, 1979; Flora, 1985; Skocpol and Amenta, 1986; O’Connor, 1988; Weir et al., 1988; Schmidt, 1989; EspingAndersen, 1990). Of particular significance is the industrial society perspective (or convergence theory). Backed by a series of early but sophisticated research findings, the industrial society perspective, which posits that the welfare state is a product of the needs generated by industrialization and economic development, is by far the leading explanation in this field. Wilensky (1975), an active proponent of this perspective, states unambiguously: ’With economic growth, all countries develop similar social security programs’ (p.86). Obviously, the industrial society perspective is seen by its supporters as a grand theory to explain and predict social welfare development, applicable and relevant to all parts of the world.

Political activity in social work: a theoretical model of motivation:

Abstract: The nature and scope of social work political activity is a perennial theme within the profession. While the rhetoric about the importance of political involvement has surfaced throughout social work history, only in the last 25 years has the extent of social work political activity been documented through quantitative and qualitative research (Abo El Nasr, 1991; Mok, 1988; Ezell, 1993; Parker and Sherraden, 1993; Reeser and Epstein, 1990; Wolk, 1981). Moreover, while this increasing body of knowledge on social work and political activity recognizes that history, ethics and priorities differ between nations, there is evidence that suggests considerable similarities among social workers cross-nationally regarding political behavior, attitudes and thinking (Wolk, 1993). Despite the expansion of information on social workers and political involvement, the impetus behind social workers’ political participation has been essentially ignored. What motivates social workers to become politically active? Why are a significant percentage of social workers politically inert? What prompts the preponderance of social workers in the politically involved middle to, in Milbrath’s (1965) terms, either stay on the sidelines and remain cheerleaders or jump into the political arena? This paper attempts to go beyond the rhetoric to explore theoretical constructs and develop a model of motivation and social work political participation that transcends national boundaries and parochial politics.

An electronic social work knowledge base: a strategy for global information sharing

Abstract: Paper-based transmission of information is no longer adequate to meet the demands of the rapidly changing international environments in which social work is practiced. If the social work profession is to be a viable participant in addressing global social challenges in the twilight of this millennium, it is essential that a strategy for electrical information sharing be set forth. The establishment of an international electronic social work knowledge base linking social work educators and professionals would allow for the rapid dissemination of vital information and the formation of global partnerships. It would also be a means to break down the walls that often isolate both academic and professional practice in remote locations. This electronic repository would allow for the creation of an international electronic social work journal, immediate retrieval of recent scholarly papers, sharing of electronic courseware, archiving of research databases, and would provide a forum for international discussion and consultation on emerging social problems. The purpose of this paper is to present a rationale and conceptual design for the creation of this social work international informational resource linkage (SWIIRL) and describe its functions. Currently, global communication and collaboration among academics and professionals is limited to international journals, mail, electronic mail, conferences, phone contacts, and visitations. While these media are important avenues for the exchange of information, they each have limitations when temporal and audience size and breadth factors are considered. For instance, while a telephone call between a scholar in Argentina and a researcher in Britain may allow for the near instantaneous conveyance of information, the

Special Issue: Social Work and Economic Development Introduction

Abstract: Development has been a dominant theme of the 20th century. Unlike in any other period of history, the idea that economic development can raise standards of living and promote social progress is generally accepted. This idea has also been widely implemented. Through diverse economic policies, governments throughout the modern world have fostered the modernization of their economies, accelerated economic growth and expanded employment opportunities for citizens. The results of the drive for development have been spectacular. Many economists believe that rates of economic growth during this century have been unprecedented. Many accept that economic modernization has significantly increased the productive capacity of traditional economies, fostered the application of new technologies, generated wage employment on a significant scale and enhanced prosperity. The symbols of economic success are to be seen in both the industrial and developing countries. Throughout the world, modern industries have expanded, cities have grown and many more people have access to goods and services which were previously available only to the most wealthy sections of the population. However, economic development has not been a panacea for the problems of poverty and deprivation. While most economists believe that growth is a prerequisite for raising standards of living, it is clear that economic growth of itself does not eradicate poverty. In many countries, respectable rates of economic growth and a significant degree of economic modernization have not been accompanied by improvements in welfare for all. Indeed, in many parts of

The nature of social services in Hong Kong

Abstract: ern countries, they have maintained their economic success in the 1980s and the 1990s. According to Chowdhury and Islam (1993), the per capita GNP of Hong Kong and Singapore is close to that of West European developed countries whereas Korea and Taiwan’s per capita GNP is three to four times the average GNP of the upper middle-income developing countries in the early 1990s. These success stories have been used by some economists as examples of the superiority of private market-led economic development. Friedman and Friedman (1980) argued that those Asian economies which put emphasis on the private market erijoy economic success while those which put emphasis on central planning have stagnated. When depicting the economic situations of Japan and the four newly industrializing economies, Chen (1979: 83-4) argued that ’State intervention is largely absent. What the state has provided is a suitable environment for entrepreneurs to perform their functions.’ However, this analysis is challenged by other social scientists. Vogel (1991) showed that the Taiwanese government involves itself heavily in high-tech development and heavy industries such as nuclear power plant, steel-making and shipbuilding. Fong (1990) recorded that Singapore has nearly 500

Social work and economic development in Papua New Guinea

Abstract: As Michael Cernea notes in his influential book Putting People First (1991), any intervention that does not recognize the centrality of the social actors in development is bound to clash, rather than to fit with the natural dynamic of socioeconomic processes. This statement certainly applies to Papua New Guinea, a Pacific nation which has experienced significant economic development in recent years but which has not dealt adequately with the problems of poverty and social distress experienced by its people. Papua New Guinea is the eastern half of the island of New Guinea, in the South Pacific. The population is just under 4 million, with over 80 percent in rural areas. In 1990, of around 90,000 urban households, about one-third lived in the capital, Port Moresby. Since independence in 1975, economic growth has been slow and per capita incomes have fallen in real terms. There has been a gradual broadening of a small fragmented economy, based mainly on natural resource production. Broadly-distributed access to the natural resource base has provided general availability of minimum basic needs without overall real growth per person. Real economic growth has been less than population growth, and state expenditure has been approximately one-third of the total product. Papua New Guinea has experienced some serious economic difficulties, but the country has mineral developments of gold, copper, and most recently oil. Today, the country is poised at the threshold of a mineral boom.

Toward a new definition of refugee economic integration

Abstract: The way in which a social problem is defined is the driving force in the development of policies and programs to address that problem (Chambers, 1986). In the area of refugee resettlement, the problem that is of greatest concern to policy makers is that of economic integration. Although numerous studies have investigated what is variously referred to as refugee economic ’integration’, ’adaptation’ or ’adjustment’, few concrete definitions of these broad terms have actually been proposed. The official US government definition which drives resettlement policy (P.L. 96-212, Refugee Act of 1980) focuses on economic ’self-sufficiency’. A refugee is defined as being economically integrated, or self-sufficient, if he or she is not receiving welfare benefits. This narrow definition does not take into account economic indicators other than welfare utilization, such as employment, total household income or living conditions. In contrast to this narrow definition, a broader view was offered by Kuhlman (1991), who conceptualized integration as a process and an outcome which affects and is affected by both the refugees and the host society. According to Kuhlman (p. 16), refugee economic integration is characterized by the following features:

Social work or working for change? Action for grassroots sustainable development in Amazonia

Abstract: approach based on temporary, welfare interventions to relieve immediate poverty and suffering. The colonial origins of this remedial model were most clearly evident up to the 1930s, when poverty was treated in Brazil as a social pathology, its more problematic manifestations to be dealt with either by punitive, police action against errant individuals or through church institutions. Church hospitals, for example, catered for the destitute, treating their poverty as a medical-social condition (Sposati et al., 1986). In Brazil, the legacy of slavery, abolished only in 1888, has left a strong mark on public and official attitudes towards the masses, which have typically been perceived as subservient and dependent for their advancement upon the paternal benevolence of authority, whether in the form of the individual patron or the state.

Foster parents for persons with mental retardation in Israel: motivation, role perception and their view of the foster person

Abstract: an alternative solution for the exceptional child, adolescent or adult, based on the assumption that it offers physical, emotional and social support, assuming the likelihood of a normal development of the foster child (Adams, 1970). In the modern welfare state, foster homes carry important social values. On the one hand, they provide protection and supervision for children and adolescents who have been rejected by their natural parents, while on the other, they enhance stability in families that are unable to cope with the role of parenthood. Despite the benefit of foster homes, they are limited in scope and lack professional appreciation (Rimmerman et al.,1985). There are several reasons for the limited use, such as public image as less rewarding (Lakin et al., 1993), parental refusal to place the child in

Economic and social development in Hong Kong and Southern China: implications for social work:

Abstract: What are the objectives of development? Although many policy makers and politicians believe that development promotes the wellbeing of all citizens, in reality development means economic growth. In practice, development is closely linked with economics. Indeed, economists are primarily responsible for the implementation of development strategies in many parts of the world (Hall and Midgley, 1988). However, experience shows that economic growth does not solve social problems. In Hong Kong, for example, rapid economic growth brought about by unrestricted capitalist development has fostered the concentration of wealth and inequality. Instead of poverty being abolished, as the proponents of economic development have predicted, poverty continues to be a serious problem and inequality has become more marked (Ngan and Li, 1994). Following a series of economic reforms since 1979, a socialist market economy has been established in China (Cheng, 1993). The introduction of market elements into China’s development strategies has fostered rapid economic growth in many parts of the country and improvements in income levels have been recorded. However, income inequality between urban workers and rural farmers has become more marked. Reviewing development trends in the Guangdong province in Southern China, MacPherson (1995) observed that economic development has been highly uneven. While there has been rapid economic growth in the Pearl River Delta and the Special Economic Zones, in the hilly and mountainous areas of the province mass poverty persists.

Introducing a biopsychosocial approach in an oncology institute: a case study

Abstract: In the past, the approach to cancer taken by this oncological institute in northern Israel was predominantly medical. The perception of cancer was that, the achievements of modern medicine notwithstanding, the illness is incurable in a large number of cases and the chances of prolonging the patient’s life slim. This negative perception generated a sense of helplessness in the staff, who unconsciously passed on this mindset of despair to the patients. The staff proposed psychological help to patients and families only when they perceived extreme emotional reactions, such as crying or refusing medical treatment, or when economic problems arose. Inasmuch as 80 new cancer patients are treated at the clinic monthly, the staff of social workers cannot intake all the new patients. Over the years, research on the psychological variable has explored a possible link between psychological factors and the occurrence of cancer (Shekelle et al., 1981; Wirsching et al., 1982; Moorey and Greer, 1989; Zonderman et al., 1989). Research has also focused on the relationship between psychological factors and the survival of cancer patients (Grossarth-Maticer et al., 1985; Temshok et al., 1985; Hislop et al., 1987). Cognitive-behavioral intervention with cancer patients also carries greater weight in medical treatment now than previously. The patient and the family learn coping skills in order to be better equipped to cope with the illness, which may also contribute to the survival of the patient (Taylor, 1986; Moorey and Greer, 1989). Even researchers or physicians who contend that there is no correlation between length of survival and the patient’s psychological state of mind (Jamison et al., 1987), or those who doubt the

'The company of neighbours': building social support through the use of ethnography

Abstract: A reconfiguration of community social work is emerging as we approach the 21st century. In addressing social deficits and intervening to ameliorate incapacities of people, we as social workers traditionally saw ourselves as entering communities with programmes of prescribed solution. Now, increasingly we approach communities with knowledge of processes that tap community strengths and facilitate local social change. The problem for many of us has been that there has been no clear way to start a community intervention without an imported agenda. All too often we find community interventions grounded in assumptions about needs that reflect the expertise of a particular planning body or professional. In this article we introduce a project that addresses an alternative approach featuring local perceptions of need. These, then, are needs that are interpreted and acted on by experienced local people with the assistance of professional experts, when invited.

Personal ethics in social work with older people

Abstract: It has long since become a truism that the death, decline and disability of older people remain hidden from most people in western society, at once denying the individual the most powerful clues to mortality and ensuring a shocked difficulty in affirming reality when awareness does come to the individual (Clements, 1979). Yet these facts form the daily experience of social workers with older people, as of course they do for other workers in this field. What, it may be reasonably asked, is the social worker to do with this experience? Is it, or can it be, somehow fed back into the work in order to improve the social worker’s sensitivity and responsiveness to the older person? If, as will be argued below, this is the case, how does the resulting personal ethics square with professional ethics and with other role requirements? These concerns will be considered in turn below. First, however, it is necessary to examine the relation of a range of experiences with older people to personal ethics. The giving and receiving of the news of death may be a frequent event, but of course it can never be commonplace as long as the correspondent can restore the lost person to mind, since personal acquaintance gives news of death special significance. Such a hearer must be affected by the news; the presence of a living elderly client may take on a sudden preciousness, for example, since this may be

Preparing for sudden death or organ donation: an ethical dilemma in social work:

Abstract: Loss of a close family member, such as a spouse or child, is perceived as a most stressful life event (Holmes and Rahe, 1967), possibly resulting in years of grief (Weiss, 1988). Shock, numbness and disbelief are the first and normal responses to bereavement (Raphael, 1984). The more the loss is untimely and unexpected, the more traumatic the response of the bereaved may be. Individuals possessing an external locus of control who experience an unexpected loss constitute a risk group who suffer most and recover last (Stroebe et al., 1988). Sudden untimely deaths, including suicide, murder, catastrophic circumstances and stigmatized deaths have been identified as seriously debilitating (Sanders, 1988). Guilt was found to be a common emotional response among bereaved parents. The bereaved who experience the death of a family member by suicide are particularly prone to guilt (Miles and Demi, 1991-2). Although death is perceived as an inevitable event, the acknowledgement of the need for bereavement counselling to family members, in general, and in the emergency room in hospitals, in particular, has led to the growing role of social workers in this process (Wells, 1993). Advances in medical technology nowadays enable life saving by use of organ transplantations. These procedures have to take place immediately after the patient’s clinical death is confirmed. The consequence is that the bereaved must be approached for organ donation within an extremely short period of time after they are informed about their loss. Since most of the appropriate donors are

The care of AIDS patients in rural Zambia: a case study in the North Western Province:

Abstract: In 1992 the Ministry of Health estimated that there were 250000 persons infected with HIV in Zambia. The AIDS epidemic has now taken hold in Zambias rural areas. In the North Western Province one-third of prenatal patients at government hospitals are HIV-infected. A number of factors enhance the risk of HIV transmission in Zambias rural areas: a tendency for tuberculosis patients to discontinue treatment once they leave the hospital a failure to diagnose AIDS in many tuberculosis patients high rates of polygamy cultural practices such as ritual intercourse and scarification untreated sexually transmitted diseases and a general lack of medical knowledge. Hospitals in rural Zambia have resources to test only blood donors high-risk pregnant women and high-risk surgical cases leaving many HIV cases undetected. In Zambia as in other African countries mission hospitals are playing a pioneering role in the care of AIDS patients. In the North Western Province there are 6 mission hospitals and only 3 government hospitals. Mission hospitals tap into the rural tradition of reciprocal responsibility are trusted by villagers and have more direct access to outside funding. A program being introduced to the North Western Province with funding from the Canadian International Development Agency will train counselors to work with AIDS patients. Concerns remain however that steadily increasing numbers of AIDS cases and AIDS orphans will overwhelm the traditional reciprocal care arrangement between relatives. Coordination between providers and the community will be essential to make the most effective use of dwindling resources.

International Social Work: reflections on the Journal and its future

Abstract: Editor-in-Chief protested that the sponsors, with more pressing issues to settle, had let International Social Work remain a low priority. The policy-making body met rarely and the editorial committee even less so, but ’drifting’ was ’better than halting and floating better than sinking’ (Dave, 1985). A second review of the Journal resulted, in 1986, in fresh editorial arrangements, and the Journal took on its present format, with the publishing in the hands of Sage Publications. It remained a quarterly, and the book review section was expanded. A significant new feature was the translation into French and Spanish of the abstracts of the articles, which was at least a move in the direction of

Book reviews : Norris, Donald F. and Lyle Thompson (eds) (1994) The Politics of Welfare Reform. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. 255 pp

Abstract: The research core of this book is based on six case studies of the politicization of welfare in selected states of the USA, introduced by and analysed in a concluding chapter by the editors. Early on, Norris and Thompson lay their cards squarely on the table through the assertion that they ’ ... conceive of welfare reform primarily as redistnbutive politics. Welfare shifts money from the relatively well-to-do to some of the poor. Conversely, reforms may involve taking resources away from one group and giving them to others’ (p.l l ). Throughout, they leave the reader in no doubt that politicians have seized upon a societal belief that welfare connotes the latter, that it is about rationalizing welfare between the deserving and the undeserving. Building welfare reform into one’s campaign manifesto and legislative docket is such a great vote catcher that few politicians can ignore it. It took a long time after the hysteria of ’un-American activities’ in the 1950s and 1960s for USA scholars to feel safe to venture analyses of the remedies which welfare might offer to the plight of the poor and the dispossessed. The general suspicion, firmly rooted in fundamental American values of independence and selfreliance, that collective provisions in welfare and health care smacked of communistic leanings, was a strong deterrent to scholarly debate on welfare philosophy and interventions. The offerings of the hardy few who persisted with the vexed issue of ’welfare reform’ have now become classics (Marris and Rein, 1967; Piven and Cloward,1971 ) which provide invaluable anchor points when reflecting on the thrust

An evolving event: changes in coping strategies

Abstract: 275 When individuals cope with a stressful event, they actively and consciously assess, select and engage in particular behaviors (Billings and Moos, 1981; 1984; Coyne et al., 1981; Endler and Parker, 1989, 1990; Lazarus and Folkman, 1984). Assuming that a stressful event evolves, and that individual perceptions of the event change accordingly, it is likely that the coping strategies of individuals will change as well. Indeed, relevant research on evolving stressful events has pointed to changes in emotions and coping behavior at different stages of the event (Folkman and Lazarus, 1985). However, these changes have been described in quantitative terms, as increase or decrease in the occurrence of the same configuration of behavior, reflected in the use of the same factors over different stages of an event. While this type of study has made a noteworthy contribution to