Affirmative Action at the Crossroads: A Social Justice Perspective

This article reviews the basis for the policy of affirmative action within the context of changing social values. Both the aims and unanticipated consequences of affirmative action are explored, the latter of which have resulted in substantial backlash and the real possibility of policy overturn. Within this context, the position of the social welfare community toward and involvement in affirmative action is traced. An agenda for social work in current and future debates about affirmative action is offered which takes into account the original social problem-discrimination-within redefined societal values and political realities. Alternative remedies to affirmative action, it is argued, can be congruent with the mission and values of the social welfare community in its quest to achieve social justice. Such options include targeting specific professions that interface with the inner city African-American underclass; reframing the purpose of affirmative action from that of correcting injustice for the victims of racial discrimination to social engineering; and targeting specific geographical areas which are characterized by economic deprivation

Alternative Service Delivery Strategies: Factors in States\u27 Decision Making

This article focuses on the range of choices and factors affecting state level decision making about how human services are to be delivered. In light of the dual thrusts of decentralization and privatization, the viability of public-private partnerships through contracting for services is explored. Among the significant factors affecting decisions about alternative forms of service delivery are: political and fiscal preferences; the strength of organized labor; the role and availability of the private service sector and history with purchase of service. The advantages and disadvantages attributed to a contracting model for delivering services are unlikely to be argued from an empirical base. Rather, the relative influence of various actors, ideologies and practices will affect states\u27 decisions about the scope and range of contracting and the degree to which there will be reliance on the private sector

How Voluntary Agency Networks Fared in the 1980s

Believing that the least government is the best government, the Reagan Administration favored, in both principle and practice, the transfer of functions to and fiscal independence of the private sector. This article provides a comparative analysis of the financial status of three major types of voluntary agency networks before and near the end of the Reagan era. Focusing on national voluntary health, child welfare league, and family service agencies, proportionate and absolute revenues, sources of income, and new income generating strategies are examined within the context of philanthropic trends and the compensatory role of state and local governments. These agency networks fared well during the Reagan era, in large part due to the coping strategies they employed, the popularity of their programs, and effective constituent advocacy. The interests of the less popular groups and causes in this society, however, have been severely challenged

Advocacy Be Not Forsaken! Retrospective Lessons from Welfare Reform

This article reviews the often uneven and sometimes peripheral role of advocacy as a social work function and explores its current relevancy in regard to agency practices, ethical mandates, and the "person-in-environment" orientation of social work practice. Welfare reform (in which Aid to Families with Dependent Children [AFDC] was abolished in 1996 and replaced with Temporary Assistance for Needy Families [TANF]) is presented as a case example of both a failed opportunity to influence the course of public debate, and a means to provide the potential benefits of advocacy when it is systematically applied and integrated as part of an overall organizational approach to services. Generalized principles are then drawn from the case study as they apply to advocacy practice with vulnerable populations

Differentiated Regulation:the case of charities

The increasing number and influence of charities in the economy, evidence of mismanagement and the need for information for policymaking are all reasons for establishing charity regulators. Public interest and public choice theories explain charity regulation which aims to increase public trust and confidence in charities (and thus increase voluntarism and philanthropy) and to limit tax benefits to specific organisations and donors. Nevertheless, regulation is resource intensive, and growing pressure on government budgets requires efficiencies to be found. This study proposes regulation differentiated according to charities' main resource providers, to reduce costs and focus regulatory effort, and provides a feasible segmentation

Globalisation, accounting and developing countries

Accounting is an instrument and an object in globalisation but its impact and manifestation is not uniform across Northern developed countries and Southern developing countries (DCs). This paper reviews contributions on globalisation and its influence on accounting in DCs, and identifies important research gaps. It examines the role of accounting in changing development policies, from state capitalism through neo-liberal market-based to good-governance policies. It then considers specific accounting issues, namely the diffusion of International Accounting Standards (now International Financial Reporting Standards) and how they promote global neo-liberalism; the development of the accounting profession in DCs in the face of competition from Northern global accounting firms and professional associations; accounting issues in state-owned organisations, and privatised and multinational corporations; government accounting reforms and the resurrection of the state in DCs; social and environmental accounting issues; and the rise of non-governmental organisations and their accounting and accountability. The discussion and conclusions reflect on achievements to date and important areas requiring further development

Navigating Human Service Organizations

Social workers switch jobs frequently at the beginning of their careers. This trend, Gibelman believes, may be partially caused by the gap between what practitioners learn in their professional education and what they experience on the job. The vast majority of social workers are employed in organizations, yet they have not been prepared for the realities of the workplace, for the challenges and frustrations of working within a structured environment. Drawing on her experience as a clinician, supervisor, educator, and manager, the author describes strategies to help practitioners improve their ability to work effectively within human service organizations. Navigating Human Service Organizations provides a whole new dimension to their understanding of their chosen career.https://digitalcommons.tacoma.uw.edu/socialwork_books/1023/thumbnail.jp

Navigating Human Service Organizations: Essential Information for Thriving and Surviving in Agencies

Since its very inception, social work has been considered an organizationally based profession, with the majority of its workforce employed within formal organizations. Whether in nonprofit, forprofit, or governmental agencies, the practical realities of human service organizations are a central element of professional social work. This book explores the climate and culture of these agencies and provides essential information for surviving and thriving in this setting. It prepares students for their future careers so they will feel empowered in their work and be able to fulfill their responsibilities toward organizational, community, and social change. Using reallife examples, the authors examine the internal structures of management, financing, and supervision and discuss common conflicts between agencies and professionals. The book s straightforward tone and practical advice make it an asset to anyone entering human service organizations. This new edition contains updated examples, case studies, and references. It also contains valuable information on the effects of the recent financial crisis on human service organizations. Agencies now face increased caseloads and more complex social problems with fewer resources and less money. Understanding how these events have changed the nature of human service organizations will allow students to be better prepared for the work ahead of them.https://digitalcommons.tacoma.uw.edu/socialwork_books/1009/thumbnail.jp

Print media portrayals of giving: Exploring national 'cultures of philanthropy'

Free to read In their 2010 study drawing on 500 empirical philanthropy studies, Bekkers and Wiepking identified eight consistently significant giving mechanisms. The pilot study reported here extends what is known about one mechanism, values, as a giving driver, in particular considering how national cultural values apply to giving. Personal values are not formed in a vacuum. They are influenced by the wider culture and society: thus values have a socio-cultural dimension. Accordingly, this pilot research draws on media theory and cultural studies work on national ethos to explore how these national cultural values interact with giving. A directed qualitative content analysis has been undertaken to compare US and Australian print media coverage about philanthropy. The two nations share an Anglo–Saxon orientation but differ significantly in national character and philanthropic activity. This study posits that a nation's media coverage about giving will reflect its national cultural ethos. This coverage can also shape personal values, thus implications exist for theory about the antecedents of personal giving values. Wider national values may drive or stifle giving, so this wider view of values as a driver has implications also for philanthropy promotion and fundraising