International Social Work

Issues, Strategies, and Programs

David R. Cox, Manohar Pawar

• Publisher: SAGE Publications, Inc
• Year: 2012
• ISBN:
  9781483321387
• Edition: 2
• Topic: Social Sciences
• Subtopic: Social Work
• Index: Social Sciences

International Social Work: Issues, Strategies, and Programs, Second Edition draws together the practice wisdom emerging within the broad scope of international social work practice and its role in contributing to the international community?s efforts in combating the major global social problems of poverty, conflict and postconflict reconstruction, the development of countries and disadvantaged populations, migration and displacement, and the needs of specific populations such as child soldiers and AIDS orphans.

Utilizing an integrated perspectives approach incorporating global, human rights, ecological and social development perspectives, the International Social Work, 2e is designed to prepare social workers, human services professionals, development practitioners who desire to play significant roles in responding to modern global challenges that are critical to the well-being of people, communities, nations and ultimately of us all.

Chapter 1 International Social Work

In this chapter, we introduce the concept of social work, especially from the global perspective. A general understanding of how social work has evolved, and continues to evolve, and has spread globally is central to assessing the current and future roles of social work as a global profession. We then introduce our definition and understanding of international social work, for it is that aspect of social work, and the international field within which it operates, that is the topic of this text.

Social Work

The topic of social work will require no introduction to the majority of readers, but before moving to consider social work as a global profession and our definition of international social work, it may be useful to say a few things about social work generally in this context. We are concerned when colleagues in a developing country seriously contemplate dispensing with the term social work because locally it is widely misunderstood. Sometimes it is said that social work is viewed in a specific context as virtually synonymous with, to give a few examples, charitable work, one-to-one intervention by highly qualified professionals using a therapeutic approach, the welfare state, and emerging urban concerns. Clearly these views are erroneous, given the nature and scope of social work throughout its history; however, the apparent prevalence in some contexts of such views suggests that the social work profession has not been as successful as it might have been in projecting an acceptable image across the developing world. A perceived tendency to distinguish social work from, for example, policy concerns, community and social development, and community-based responses to welfare needs suggests that a very narrow understanding of social work is more prevalent than we would like to see. Furthermore, we should perhaps acknowledge that, while many of us would regard the breadth of social work as one of its strengths, it is very likely that that same breadth makes it difficult for many outside observers to, as Hartman (1994, p. 14) puts it, distinguish a common thread that typifies the core of social work. Hartman (p. 13) writes,

Social work includes a broad and varied array of activities and is practiced with different size systems and in a variety of arenas. There is scant agreement in the field on the world-view, epistemology, or even on the principles or shape of practice. Volumes have been published on the different models (Turner 1986; Dorfman, 1988) and some have concluded that the only common thread that runs through all of social work is a shared value stance. (NASW, 1981)

Learning Objectives

The main objective of this chapter is to provide a broad introduction to social work and to discuss the concept of international social work. After studying this chapter, readers should be able to reflect on

• widely agreed definitions of social work, unique features of social work in some countries, origin of professional social work in the West and its expansion through colonization, and indigenous social work in developing countries;
• some recent trends and critical issues in social work that are of relevance to international social work;
• global social work organizations; and
• the definition and scope of international social work.

The 1990s saw the publication of several texts that provided an overview of social work around the world by presenting chapters on social work in various specific countries. (See, e.g., Hokenstad, Khinduka, & Midgley, 1992; Mayadas, Watts, & Elliott, 1997.) These texts make very interesting reading, highlighting major differences in, to use D. Elliott's analysis (1997, p. 441), the ways in which social work is “socially constructed” in various parts of the world. As one reflects on the reported differences in the predominant forms that social work has adopted in various regions and countries, one may well wonder whether this diversity can meaningfully be seen as different expressions of one and the same profession. It is said, for example, that “the individual paradigm is strongly represented in American social work” (p. 441); that in China, the focus is on the mobilization of the masses to address social problems (Chow, 1997); that in Latin America, social work presents a strong emphasis on social justice and social action (Kendall, 2000, pp. 107–108); and that in Africa, there is an increasing emphasis on social development as defined by, for example, the UNDP (United Nations Development Programme) (Healy, 2001, p. 102). In contrast, the rebirth of social work in Eastern Europe since 1990 has seen a strong emphasis on social reconstruction or the building of civil society (Constable & Mehta, 1994). In this century, however, there is some evidence suggesting that these regional differences in social work are at least modifying to some degree. This is partly because social work is slowly becoming a more global profession rather than one dominated by social work's roots in the West (see Lyons, Hokenstadt, Pawar, Huegler, & Hall, 2012; Lyons, Manion, & Carlsen, 2006; Weiss & Welbourne, 2007).

While it has been common in the literature to highlight some dominant forms adopted by social work in specific countries, a closer analysis reveals that, in virtually all countries, there exists a range of sometimes competing and sometimes complementary forms of social work—a range that is commonly expanding as social work agencies and practitioners venture into new fields of practice as an ever-widening range of social problems is recognized. All such developments, however, add to the difficulty, even for social workers, of defining social work and of non–social workers perceiving a common thread running through the diverse approaches that constitute contemporary social work globally.

At the international level, social work has striven, since at least the 1970s, to define itself as a global profession and to agree internationally on a common code of ethics. The foreword to the international code developed by the IFSW (International Federation of Social Workers) and adopted at its general meeting in Puerto Rico in 1976 states,

Social work originates variously from humanitarian, religious, and democratic ideals and philosophies and has universal application to meet human needs arising from personal-societal interactions and to develop human potential. Professional social workers are dedicated to service for the welfare and self-fulfillment of human beings; to the development and disciplined use of scientific knowledge regarding human and societal behavior; to the development of resources to meet individual, group, national and international needs and aspirations; and to the achievement of social justice. (quoted in Alexander, 1982, p. 47)

At its general meeting in 2004, the IFSW and IASSW (International Association of Schools of Social Work) approved the following definition of social work:

The social work profession promotes social change, problem solving in human relationships and the empowerment and liberation of people to enhance well-being. Utilizing theories of human behaviour and social systems, social work intervenes at the points where people interact with their environments. Principles of human rights and social justice are fundamental to social work. (IFSW & IASSW, 2004)

Given that professional social work has been guided by developments in the United States more than anywhere else, it is appropriate to consider here a definition of social work in the United States: “Social work is the applied science of helping people achieve an effective level of psychosocial functioning and effecting societal changes to enhance the well-being of all people” (Barker, 1999, p. 433). However, we should recognize that while the profession needs to have, and has, a definition accepted globally, social work must be everywhere culturally relevant, thereby reflecting various faces or emphases.

At the same time, it is important that the profession be able to present to the outside world an understanding of its core nature, and of the relevance of that core nature to the fields of work on which the international community is focused and with which the developing countries are concerned. However, it is also important that the profession remain flexible and be able to adapt itself to changing conditions and needs either as the world changes or as the profession moves into new environments. It would indeed be amazing, and reflect poorly on the profession, if social work did not present many different faces globally, given the wide range of national and local conditions to which it is called on to respond. Nor does the presenting diversity represent a source of division within the profession. The only concern is that the diverse nature of social work sometimes results in non–social workers failing to appreciate the full nature of social work, and perceiving social work, whether positively or negatively, in terms of only one of its many faces. Given the diversity found within social work globally, it is important that the profession avoid any imperialist tendencies, exemplified by, for example, Western countries seeking to provide leadership or guidance to other countries or to the global profession without taking the local context into account and operating through partnerships. We are now at the stage in social work's development where all regions have much to learn from each other.

The Global Spread and Organization of Social Work

The history of social work reveals its links with social welfare and social development, with other professions such as medicine, and with the charitable movement that emerged in the nineteenth century. This history has been explored by a range of writers (e.g., Kendall, 2000; Payne, 2005) and requires in this context little more than a summary of the major points. However, it should be appreciated that at least as important as past history are the recent developments in social work. The IASSW reported in 2010 a 20 percent increase in the number of schools since 2000, to a total of 2,500, with most of the increase being in Asia and Central Europe (Barretta-Herman, Parada, & Leung, 2010). Social work's continuing expansion in developing countries, emerging economies, and transitional economies is likely to breathe new life into the profession, if it is not already doing so.

Professional Social Work's Western Origins

It is generally agreed that social work grew out of the urban destitution that characterized post–Industrial Revolution England and the government's response to this situation through relief for the poor. As Midgley (1981, p. 17) puts it,

As the rural poor were drawn into and concentrated in the industrialising cities during the nineteenth century, the problem of urban destitution became more acute and conventional public poor relief provisions were strained; social work attempted to provide an alternative which would lessen the burden of public assistance borne by taxpayers, be more humane and seek to rehabilitate the destitute.

A large number of charitable organizations emerged in the United Kingdom and continental Europe, and subsequently in the United States and elsewhere (e.g., Australia), and these had an enormous influence on the profession's development. Their emergence led in particular to the profession's focus on social casework.

The conditions in the newly emerging cities gave rise also to the settlement movement, designed to bring the middle classes into contact with those in poor urban areas and, through the cross-class contacts that occurred and the recreational and educational activities that were arranged, to “inculcate moral values and reform the habits of slum dwellers,” as Midgley (1981, p. 22) describes the goals. This settlement work can be seen as one important set of roots for the profession's embrace of community work, for it advocated community-based responses to social problems and social reforms. Leighninger and Midgley (1997, p. 10) describe this settlement movement as it emerged in the United States, showing how it led the emerging profession to focus on the causes of social problems and explore responses to them at both a government policy and a community level.

Leighninger and Midgley (1997, p. 11) provide a succinct summary of the impact of this early history on the social work profession:

Individualist approaches, social reform movements, and the growth of public social services have all played a role in social work's development. The profession's leaders were able to amalgamate individually focused treatment, organized group pursuits, community activism, social reform, and other activities into a loosely defined practice methodology which formed the basis of social work's professional identity.

This shows why casework, community work, and group work were all important to this early development.

In the following decades, the fledgling profession was to broaden considerably in response to other developments in its environment, especially in the United Kingdom and United States. For example, developments in the field of law and order resulted in a focus on young offenders and the establishment of a probation service in which social work would play a leading role. Similarly, developments in the health field led to the emergence of hospital social work and later a strong emphasis on psychiatric social work. Indeed, the medical model had a significant impact on social work in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, and psychiatric social work, according to Midgley (1981, p. 29), was boosted by the frequent use of social workers in work with shell-shocked patients during World War I.

The development of social work education closely reflected the above historical roots. It began usually with in-service training for various areas of work, established initially by either private societies or government departments, depending on where the majority of workers were employed. Then over the years, these training courses were moved into the educational institutions, particularly universities. The curricula taught initially reflected the prevailing practice contexts; however, eventually, they came to incorporate the breadth of social work activities that emerged, including new bodies of knowledge and new practice methodologies.

We have referred so far mainly to developments in the United Kingdom and United States, and these two countries certainly led in the emergence of professional social work. The situation on the European continent, as Rowlings (1997) points out, was and is highly varied and often in marked contrast to that of the United Kingdom and United States. Rowlings (p. 114) comments,

Europe incorporates multiple and varied structures through which social work and social welfare services are delivered. These reflect very different views on the role of the state in the direct or indirect provision of welfare and on the responsibility of the family, and more particularly of women, for the survival and well-being of dependent family members.

The writer goes on to contrast north and south Europe, there being a long-established tradition of state delivery of welfare services in the north, mostly through local government structures, whereas in much of southern Europe, there was no tradition of active state involvement in welfare. However, whatever the local tradition historically, a mixed welfare system has now emerged or is emerging in most of Europe, influenced most recently by the social policies of the European Union and its efforts to unify social work to allow mobility of workers across the region, although in places this policy is controversial.

These differing welfare structures across Europe have resulted in significant differences in social work, including in its definition. Rowlings explains that in France, for example, social work is a collective term covering eight or nine occupational groups usually regarded elsewhere as paraprofessional groupings. By contrast, in Germany, the term “has the narrower meaning of individualized casework by workers operating from local community-based offices, hospitals, clinics, or voluntary organizations” (p. 116). This author thus points out that the parameters of social work vary across Europe. For example, in Sweden, it does not include work with older people, but in many other countries it does. Similarly, she notes that in the United Kingdom, “income support (or social assistance) is provided by civil servants employed in a national social security system,” whereas in continental Western Europe, “qualified social workers assess and administer the benefits system” (p. 117).

Social work in Europe, while varied, does contain indigenous roots that reflect the peculiar culture and social structure of each state. By contrast, the new industrialized countries, founded by European states as colonies, tended to inherit their social work structures along with the colonial social welfare system. For example, the United Kingdom exported its welfare system and its charitable organizations to Australia, and training courses were established to provide in-service training for the staff of these departments and...