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Critical social work encourages emancipatory personal and social change. This text focuses on the challenge of incorporating critical theory into the practice of social workers and provides case studies and insights from a range of fields to illustrate how to work with tensions and challenges.
Beginning with an outline of the theoretical basis of critical social work and its different perspectives, the authors go on to introduce key features of working in this tradition including critical reflection. Part II explores critical practices in confronting privilege and promoting social justice in social work, examining such issues as human rights, gender, poverty and class. Part III considers the development of critical practices within the organisational context of social work including the fields of mental health, child and family services, within Centrelink and prison settings. Part IV is focused on doing anti- discriminatory and anti-oppressive practice in social work with particular populations including asylum seekers, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, domestic violence survivors, older people and lesbian, gay and transgender groups. Finally, Part V outlines collectivist and transformative practices in social work and beyond, looking at environmental issues, social activism, the disability movement and globalisation.
'A highly valuable addition to social work education and practice literature in Australia and beyond its shores.' Ruth Phillips, Associate Professor, Faculty of Education and Social Work, University of Sydney
List of contents
Contents
Foreword
Donna BainesList of contributors
Acknowledgments of contributors
Part I Addressing the Tensions in Critical Social Work
1 Doing critical social work in the neoliberal context: Working on the contradictions
Bob Pease and Sharlene Nipperess2 Critical reflection and critical social work
Christine Morley3 Towards critical social work supervision
Carolyn Noble4 Making sense of different theoretically informed approaches in doing critical social work
Norah Hosken and Sophie GoldingayPart II Critical Practices in Confronting Privilege and Promoting Social Justice
5 Towards a critical human rights-based approach to social work practice
Sharlene Nipperess6 Interrogating privilege and complicity in the oppression of others
Bob Pease7 Social work, class and the structural violence of poverty
Norah HoskenPart III Developing Critical Practices within the Organisational Context of Social Work
8 Beyond the dominant approach to mental health practice
Noel Renouf9 Embedding critical social work in child protection practice
Robyn Miller10 Critical social work in Centrelink: an oxymoron or an opportunity?
Peter Humphries11 Building relationships and effecting change: critical social work practice in prison settings
Sophie Goldingay12 Professional practice standards and critical practices: addressing the tensions in social work field education settings
Norah Hosken, Lesley Ervin and Jody LaughtonPart IV Doing Anti-discriminatory and Anti-oppressive Practice in Social Work
13 Anti-oppressive practice with people seeking asylum in Australia: reflections from the field
Sharlene Nipperess and Sherrine Clark14 Challenges for Indigenous and non-Indigenous practitioners in the neoliberal context
Stephanie Gilbert15 Feminism under siege: critical reflections on the impact of neoliberalism and managerialism on feminist practice
Ann Carrington16 Developing anti-ageist practice in social work
Tina Kosteciki17 Working for equality and difference: (de)constructing heteronormativity
Jude IrwinPart V Towards Collectivist and Transformative Practices in Social Work
18 Environmental social work as critical, decolonising practice
Mel Gray and John Coates19 Taking it to the streets: critical social work's relationship with activism
Jessica Morrison20 Social work, disability and social change: a critical participatory approach
Russell Shuttleworth21 The structural, the post-structural and the commons: new practices for creating change in a complex world
Jose Ramos22 Education for critical social work: being true to a worthy project
Selma Macfarlane
About the author
BOB PEASE is Professor of Social Work at the University of Tasmania. SOPHIE GOLDINGAY is a senior lecturer in the School of Health and Social Development at Deakin University. NORAH HOSKEN is a senior lecturer in the School of Health and Social Development at Deakin University. SHARLENE NIPPERESS is a lecturer in Social Work at RMIT University.
Summary
An undergraduate text showing how critical social work theory can be put into practice in a range of contexts from mental health to child and family services and with diverse population groups.
