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1 International perspectives on social work and political conflict
Jim Campbell
Introduction
As we discussed in the Introduction to this book, the relationships between social work policy, practice and education, and political conflict have become of interest to academic and practice communities in the last few decades. The following chapter summarises key themes that have emerged from selected literature on this topic, largely drawn from searches of peer review journal articles. The chapter begins with a discussion about challenges in carrying out such a review, particularly in terms of agreed definitions and problems associated with the Eurocentric nature of publishing in this field. Four themes emerge from this review: theoretical perspectives; types of intervention; the impact upon practitioners; and approaches to education.
Challenges in reviewing the literature
It is important to highlight some of the difficulties in establishing the knowledge base in this area. First, most of the literature searched for the purpose of this chapter is drawn from English-speaking sources. Inevitably this implies a skewing and bias of the literature reported, mirroring what are often Eurocentric assumptions about the nature of the knowledge base. For this reason, it is less likely that accounts of social work and political conflict are heard from Latin America, sub-Saharan Africa and Asia. In addition, given what we know about the contested nature of international social work (Hugman, 2010), and the International Association of Social Workersâ intention to broaden our understanding of what social work means (IFSW, 2014), it is often difficult to arrive at an agreed definition about what are the characteristics of the profession in situations of political conflict. What is interesting about the definition, however, is the way in which it focuses on rights-based practice and is flexible enough to allow for a breadth of interpretation in local contexts:
Social work is a practice-based profession and an academic discipline that promotes social change and development, social cohesion, and the empowerment and liberation of people. Principles of social justice, human rights, collective responsibility and respect for diversities are central to social work. Underpinned by theories of social work, social sciences, humanities and indigenous knowledge, social work engages people and structures to address life challenges and enhance wellbeing. The above definition may be amplified at national and/or regional levels.
(http://ifsw.org/get-involved/global-definition-of-social-work/)
An even more problematic issue is in understanding what is meant by political conflict. As will be apparent from the discussion below, there are a range of often contested ideas associated with the concept and a variety of different settings and effects which characterise these situations. There are long-standing political conflicts which have their origins in centuries-old divisions, often associated with shifting patterns of politics, power and socio-economic interests. Numerous examples can be used to illustrate this point. The Northern Irish conflict, which is discussed widely in this book, has its origins from at least the plantation of Ireland by the English, around 600 years ago. The breakup of the Habsburg Empire in 1918 created the conditions for many ethnic conflicts, and some of which remain until this day. The chapter in this book on Bosnia and Herzegovina illustrates this sense of division and separation. In the case of the Israel/Palestine conflict, there seems little doubt that violence and sectarianism was partly fomented by decisions made by powerful political and economic interests following the two world wars of the twentieth century. An argument that has been made elsewhere (Campbell et al., 2018) is that analyses of such conflicts is enhanced by the application of critical ideas on neo-colonialism and the involvement of supranational powers, in these cases as well as others (Cyprus, South Africa, Hong Kong).
These conflicts are, it can be argued, relatively well described, although the causes and solutions are often contested. In recent years, however, the catastrophic, global nature of the conflagrations in Syria, Iraq and North Africa, for example, and their impact upon European politics and society, are of particular interest and concern to policy makers and social workers. The Eurocentric bias in the literature, however, is less likely to recognise and discuss how social workers are involved in the many large- and small-scale conflicts that exist in Africa (for example in Somalia, Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Nigeria) and Asia (for example in Indonesia, Nepal and Myanmar). It also is important to acknowledge âone offâ events, such as the attack and consequences of the attack on the World Trade Center in 2001, to have a discrete characteristic, but crucially, not dislocated from wider world conflicts. Finally, amongst the many catastrophic consequences of political conflict, the mass movement of thousands and millions of people creates many social, economic and cultural problems for migrants and asylum seekers and dilemmas for social workers in fulfilling their professional duty to these populations.
Emergent themes
A number of themes emerged from this review of the literature. A range of methodologies were used by the authors to explore the relationship between social work and political conflict. In terms of empirical studies, qualitative, quantitative and mixed methods were sometimes used to test ideas. Other authors sought to clarify concepts and theorise causes and effects, others used commentary styles to understand the role of social work in these contexts. These themes are now discussed.
Theorising the social work role
A range of theoretical perspectives have been used to explain how social workers deal with clients who have experienced political conflict, in a range of international contexts. Some authors have developed explanatory theories on historical and contemporary features of political conflict and explored how these are manifested in organisational, practice and educational contexts (Campbell et al., 2018). Another approach is to locate social work âwithin and betweenâ the state and civil society, a space that is at once risky and dangerous at times of political conflict, but also potentially dynamic and liberating for the social worker and those they seek to help. Thus, Pinkerton and Campbell (2002) and Houston (2008), using different theoretical perspectives, argue that social work needed to rediscover or create novel ideas about social justice to challenge discrimination in Northern Ireland. Two journal articles, in particular, seek to explore a number of theories on social justice which may help social workers understand the impact of political conflict caused by xenophobia in South Africa (Hölscher and Bozalek, 2012; Hölscher, 2014). Lacroix (2006) argues for a social justice approach for social workers in interventions with people seeking asylum. Masocha and Simpson (2011) critically analyse the concept of âxenoracismâ to critique the way in which social workers in the UK tend to be unable to change traditional, outdated discourses in working with asylum seekers.
As in Northern Ireland (Smyth and Campbell, 1996), concepts of religious and cultural difference are sometimes used to hypothesise how social workers intervene in the lives of clients in the Israeli context (Shamai and Boehm, 2001; Nutman-Swartz and Dekel, 2009; Grodofsky, 2011). There are a few examples where authors have tentatively carried out comparisons, for example between Northern Ireland, Israel and Palestine (Ramon et al., 2006) and Northern Ireland, Cyprus and Herzegovina (Campbell et al., 2018). Hugman et al. (2011) argue for a reconsideration of social work ethics of research on practice with refugee and other vulnerable populations.
Challenging existing paradigms
The literature also indicates how some authors have challenged existing social work paradigms and explored innovative ways of dealing with citizens who have experienced the effects of political conflict. Stubbs and MaglajliÄ (2012), for example, critically analyse the approaches of international social work agencies that were introduced to Bosnia and Herzegovina following the conflict in Yugoslavia and appeal for approaches which enable social workers to build alliances with communities who suffered most from the conflict. Al-Makhamreh et al. (2012) highlight the importance of the development of political competence for social workers involved with Iraqi refugees in Jordan. Healy (2004) argues for increased cross-national collaboration in meeting the needs of migrant communities. Guru (2008, 2012) critiqued the anti-terror laws and political conflict that followed the London and Glasgow bombings of 2006. In a related argument, Fell and Fell (2013) express concerns about how easily some social workers accept draconian immigration laws in the UK when working with refugees and asylum seekers. Christie (2002, 2003) challenges social workers to rediscover more radical roles, and to think internationally, to ensure that the needs of these populations are being met.
Some authors have questioned the role of social workers using colonial and neo-colonial ideas (MaglajliÄ and Stubbs, 2017; Harrop and Ioakimidis, 2018). A number of African case studies have been used to explain how radical approaches involving principles of political action (Kreitzer, 2012; Androff, 2012), and social development (Mupedziswa, 1996) can enhance the role of social workers. Community based interventions have also been discussed in conflicts in Palestine, Israel, Lebanon and Africa (Lindsay, 2007; Grodofsky, 2011; Doucet and Denov, 2012; Ochen, 2012). The need for social workers to consider religion and spirituality when working with refugee clients has been highlighted by NĂ Raghallaigh (2011) in her work in relation to unaccompanied refugee children and George (2012) discusses how group-based interventions grounded in cultural competency, spirituality and strengths can enhance social work practice with refugees.
The impact upon practitioners
There are often negative consequences for social workers in practising in these contexts. For example, in Northern Ireland, an early commentary (Smyth and Campbell, 1996) discussed the malign impact of sectarianism on social work education and practice and Campbell and Healey (1999) used a narrative approach to explore the experiences of political conflict on personal and professional identities. Campbell and McCrystal (2005) surveyed mental health social workersâ experiences of the Troubles, indicating, as in the more recent study described late in Chapter 4 of this book, considerable effects of violence on practice and management systems. A survey of 1,064 health and social care staff in Northern Ireland, which included social workers, also found elevated levels of PTSD (Luce et al., 2002). Dekel et al. (2007), in their study of hospital social workers in Israel, reported high degrees of stress and post-traumatic stress. It is important to also recognise that, where support and protective factors are in place, post-traumatic growth is also possible (Baum and Ramon, 2010). Social workers involved in helping victims of the 9/11 attacks in New York also appeared to experience aspects of trauma (Tosone et al., 2014). Shier and Graham (2013) also explored aspects of the happiness, well-being and stress experienced by social workers in the midst of political conflict.
Approaches to social work education
Approaches to social work education in training in situations of political conflict largely reflect the issues to be found in practice. An early exploration of the impact of sectarianism in the classroom in Northern Ireland was discussed by Smyth and Campbell (1996) who found an environment of fear and silence in the classroom and a failure by agencies to address divisions in the workplace. Nearly two decades later relative progress was achieved through a European funded programme which engaged practitioners, service users and agencies (Coulter et al., 2013; Campbell et al., 2013). Duffy (2012) explains how social work students meet to discuss their complex identities and biographies, and work with victims and survivors to create opportunities for new forms of social work practice and social change. Other projects, this time in Israel, revealed the complexities and concerns in raising such issues in universities. For example, Baum (2007) found that Jewish and Arab students expressed fear when working together, perhaps reflecting wider concerns between qualified social workers from these communities. Dekel and Nuttman-Shwartz (2009) reported on a training programme that was used to explore how approaches to theory and knowledge capture the notion of âshared realitiesâ between Jewish and Arab students. Baum (2013) used a qualitative approach to explore relationships between Jewish Israeli social work field supervisors and Arab Israeli social work trainees, making a number of recommendations about how this form of education can be improved. Baum (2004) explored studentsâ experiences of the Second Intifada and its impact on their personal and professional identities; a t...
