An Ecological Approach for Social Work Practice

The ecological approach offers a comprehensive theoretical base that social practitioners can draw upon for effective social treatment. The critical concepts of the ecological approach are presented. It is suggested that the ecological perspective can be a useful treatment strategy for improving the social functioning of the client system

A Critical Analysis of the Impact of Day Care on the Pre-School Child and the Family

Maternal employment has increased dramatically over the last two decades. The result of this increase in the number of working mothers is the expanded use of day care programs for children. Examined in this paper are research findings on the impact of day-care on the child and the family. The implications of these findings for policy development are discussed. Currently in the United States, over 50 percent of mothers work outside the home; this figure is expected to rise to 75 percent by 1990. The fastest growing segment of the working mother population is among those with children under two (Zigler and Gordon, 1982). This increasing rate of maternal employment of the last two decades has created the need for alternative arrangements for infants and young children. There is some concern among child development specialists that these alternative arrangements of care may have detrimental effects on a child\u27s social and psychological development. Much of the concern about substitute care is based on the theory and research related to the negative effects of institutionalization on young children, (Bowlby, 1951; Spitz, 1945). This body of literature, however, tells one little about the typical forms of substitute care experienced by most children, Obviously, children generally do not experience the extreme physical and social deprivation reported on in the institutional literature (Advisory Committee on Child Development, 1976:117). Consequently, the quality of substitute care received by the majority of children is not comparable to the type of care studied in the institutional literature. Still, the possibility remains that even with high quality care, differences may be found in the behavior and development of children as a function of the type of substitute care received. The literature reports numerous studies on the impact of various forms of substitute care; however, most of these studies are not well designed (Advisory Committee on Child Development, 1976:118). The typical form of substitute care focused on in the literature has been high quality, university based day-care settings, a form of substitute care most children do not have access to (Santrock, 1983:159). Even though the majority of these studies have weak methodological designs and are based on day-care settings not experienced by most children, some meaningful findings have emerged in the literature. This paper will focus on those relevant studies reporting on the impact of one very common form of substitute care, day-care for the pre-school child. The major emphasis of the review will be on how day-care impacts the pre-school child\u27s intellectual development, emotional development, social development, and the child\u27s family system. The authors will draw from these findings several major policy implications

Planning for a National Social Policy for the Family

The American family performs two important functions for family members - providing physical care and socialization, and meeting psychological needs. Current family trends suggest that the American family may be having difficulty in carrying out these basic functions. Since the United States lacks a comprehensive family policy, it is argued that a national social policy should be created to better support the American family. A social policy is presented which would assist the American family in performing its basic functions. A suggested strategy for implementation of this family social policy has also been developed

A Comparison of Child Welfare Curriculum in Undergraduate and Graduate Programs of Social Work

This paper analyzes the differences in child welfare curriculum content of social work programs at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. The findings report little discernible difference in curriculum content in the area of child welfare at either level. These results add to the continuing debate focusing on defining the differences between undergraduate and graduate social work education. A important question resulting from this study is -- what can the consumer of child welfare services or hiring agency expect from the social worker trained in the area of child welfare at either the undergraduate or graduate levels? The answer to this question is far from clear

Technology in Clinical Practice and the Technological Ethic

Computers are being introduced into practically every area of clinical practice. The use of this technology by practitioners has not gone unchallenged. Specifically, new ethical problems are thought to be associated with using computers to make clinical assessments. Logistical and procedural difficulties, however, have been the primary focus of concern. In this paper the critique of computerized evaluation is expanded, with attention directed to the computer micro-world. Because the computer micro-world consists of several unwarranted assumptions about the nature of social reality, clinical practice may be affected in many undesireable ways. The theoretical underside of computer use is illustrated to show how it shapes therapeutic (or diagnostic) discourse

Introduction to Thematic Special Issue

Currently technology is proliferating at a rate never before imagined. As a result, every facet of society has changed because of technological developments, including the delivery of social services. Although there is much debate over whether or not these changes are good or bad, they cannot be denied (Murphy and Pardeck, forthcoming). In fact, Jacques Ellul ( 1964: 127) has referred to modern society as a technological civilization. What he means by this designation is not only that society is dependent upon technology for its survival, but, more importantly, technological rationality has come to determine how persons view themselves and their environment. Due to the ubiquitous nature of this style of thinking, definitions of reality, sickness, and social competence have assumed a technological hue. Accordingly, those who are involved with the delivery of social services must understand how technology focuses their attention on techniques, thereby possibly obscuring the social nature of a client\u27s problem. And if his type of insight is not fostered, no-one may benefit from the introduction of technology Into social service programs

Analysis of an Exploration for Training Materials in Child Welfare

Currently there is a serious gap in the child welfare system in the area of in-service training. As the child welfare system begins to fill this gap, information on what materials are available for training becomes critical. This article reports on an extensive exploration of what is currently available for training in the child welfare field. Several important findings emerged concerning the sources of materials and the lack of training materials for specialized groups

Degreed and Nondegreed Licensed Clinical Social Workers: An Exploratory Study

This exploratory study focuses on 155 randomly selected respondents who obtained a clinical license in social work with or without the Master of Social Work (MSW) degree. Ninety-seven of the respondents obtained a license with an MSW degree;fifty-eight obtained a license without the MSW degree. The two groups of respondents completed a survey instrument that explored their basic demographic characteristics, their attitudes and behaviors related to practice, and their philosophical and political attitudes toward practice. The researchers found few statistically significant differences between the two groups of respondents. The article offers implications of these findings for the profession of social work

Symbolic Violence and Social Control in the Post-Total Institution Era

Subsequent to the passage of the Community Mental Health Act in 1963, the Total Institutions described by Goffman have for the most part disappeared. Nonetheless, many writers charge that social control is still the primary function of mental health programs, even those that are identified as community-based. The new methods of control have not received widespread attention. In community-based programs control is operationalized in the form of symbolic violence. This paper examines the various factors that contribute to this style of violence