Resisting neoliberalism in social work education: learning, teaching, and performing human rights and social justice in England and Spain

In an increasingly complex, globalized world, many of the problems confronting social workers are rooted in structural inequalities created or deepened by uncontrolled neoliberal market mechanisms. Yet neoliberal political agendas dominating the global order encourage individualistic models of social work intervention, characterized by managerialism and deprofessionalization. Critiquing the impact of neoliberalism, those aligned with critical and radical social work traditions have highlighted the use of narrow technicist interventions to disguise the root social causes of people´s suffering and contradicting values of human rights (HR) and social justice (SJ) that lie at the heart of social work as a profession. For social work students to locate themselves confidently within HR and SJ frameworks, they must experience HR and SJ as central to their education. This article draws on doctoral research exploring how HR and SJ are operationalized in social work education in England and Spain. A web survey of social work educators and students was complemented by interviews with educators in both countries. Findings revealed key opportunities for learning, teaching and performing HR and SJ in social work education. We discuss each in turn, reflecting briefly on the implications for enhancing the profile of HR and SJ in social work education

Resisting neoliberalism in social work education: learning, teaching and performing human rights and social justice in England and Spain

In an increasingly complex, globalized world, many of the problems confronting social workers are rooted in structural inequalities created or deepened by uncontrolled neoliberal market mechanisms. Yet neoliberal political agendas dominating the global order encourage individualistic models of social work intervention, characterized by managerialism and deprofessionalisation. Critiquing the impact of neoliberalism, those aligned with critical and radical social work traditions have highlighted the use of narrow technicist interventions to disguise the root social causes of people´s suffering and contradicting values of human rights (HR) and social justice (SJ) that lie at the heart of social work as a profession. For social work students to locate themselves confidently within HR and SJ frameworks, they must experience HR and SJ as central to their education. This article draws on doctoral research exploring how HR and SJ are operationalized in social work education in England and Spain. A web survey of social work educators and students was complemented by interviews with educators in both countries. Findings revealed key opportunities for learning, teaching and performing HR and SJ in social work education. We discuss each in turn, reflecting briefly on the implications for enhancing the profile of HR and SJ in social work education

The Role of Tobacco-Derived Carcinogens in Pancreas Cancer

The extremely poor outcome from pancreas cancer is well known. However, its aetiology less well appreciated, and the molecular mechanisms underlying this are poorly understood. Tobacco usage is one of the strongest risk factors for this disease, and this is a completely avoidable hazard. In addition, there are well described hereditary diseases which predispose, and familial pancreas cancer. We have sought here to summarise the role of tobacco-derived carcinogens and the mode of their tumorigenic action on the pancreas. There is compelling evidence from animal and human studies (laboratory including cell line studies and epidemiologic) that tobacco derived carcinogens cause pancreas cancer. However, the manner in which they do so is not entirely apparent. There is also compelling evidence that synergism with genetic and other life-style factors—like diet obesity—results in a multifactorial causation of the disease. Ascertaining the role of tobacco carcinogens in the development of this cancer and their interaction with other risk factors will enable novel therapeutic and preventative strategies to improve outcome from this appalling malignancy

The Sustainability of Substitute Family Care for Children Separated from Their Families by War: Evidence from Mozambique

This article presents the findings of an empirical study exploring the sustainability of the substitute family in supporting children separated from their families during Mozambique's 16-year civil conflict. It describes shifts in the boundaries that have defined arrangements for the care of children separated from their normative family care givers and shows that, contrary to received wisdom based on traditional forms of child care, children and substitute families have achieved lasting relationships through new forms of mutual support that typify indigenous coping mechanisms in times of stress

Moving beyond contemporary discourses: children, prostitution, modern slavery and human trafficking

The relationship between prostitution, modern slavery and human trafficking is much debated in the academic literature. By contrast, discussion of children’s involvement in prostitution as a form of modern slavery and human trafficking constitutes a silent consensus. Drawing on the findings of a participatory study with girls and young women in Malawi, we prize open that consensus, illuminating the poverty of contemporary discourses that link children’s involvement in prostitution with modern slavery and human trafficking, and identifying a series of tensions that confound the development of conceptual clarity. We develop our argument by exploring the potential of the capability approach, rooted in principles of social justice and human rights, to offer an alternative understanding of children’s engagement and ongoing involvement in prostitution, and a critical lens through which to reframe the relationship between children, prostitution, modern slavery and human trafficking