Activities And Action In Groupwork

This helpful and practical book examines the uses of innovative activities in social groupwork with a number of different populations, such as adolescents, school-age parents and their children, the elderly, and Hispanics.

This helpful and practical book examines the uses of innovative activities in social groupwork with a number of different populations, such as adolescents, school-age parents and their children, the elderly, and Hispanics.

One of the most effective ways of dealing with social problems is getting rid of the cause of the problem, not just finding a remedy for the result. Social Action in Group Work provides a useful overview of the history, philosophy, theory, and practice of social group work and action in the promotion of societal change. It shows practitioners how to use their skills effectively to achieve social change. This helpful book incorporates ideas developed in social movements, identifies their contributions to social group work practice, and illustrates effective practice in case experience with specific examples. It provides a much-needed understanding of the need for and process of social action, along with new ideas for theory building, teaching, and practice in group work. Numerous case examples from a variety of different settings become models that will be extremely useful for social work students, educators, professionals, and those who work directly with groups. This invigorating book is divided into three sections, each with a unique focus, and tied together by overlapping concepts, theories, and models. The first section, Ideas of Social Action, examines the history of social action in group work and proposes an integrated global framework for social work organization, education and practice. Advocacy and Empowerment, the middle section, is replete with case examples. The third section, Principles and Practice, explores the application of social group work in a variety of situations, including inter-ethnic conflict and a group of homeless men and women. Together, the sections make a strong stand for a more sensitive, empowerment oriented practice and for more advocacy by the worker and group. Everyone involved or interested in the process of social change through social action with groups will find Social Action in Group Work a wealth of practical information.

One of the most effective ways of dealing with social problems is getting rid of the cause of the problem, not just finding a remedy for the result. Social Action in Group Work provides a useful overview of the history, philosophy, theory, and practice of social group work and action in the promotion of societal change. It shows practitioners how to use their skills effectively to achieve social change. This helpful book incorporates ideas developed in social movements, identifies their contributions to social group work practice, and illustrates effective practice in case experience with specific examples. It provides a much-needed understanding of the need for and process of social action, along with new ideas for theory building, teaching, and practice in group work. Numerous case examples from a variety of different settings become models that will be extremely useful for social work students, educators, professionals, and those who work directly with groups. This invigorating book is divided into three sections, each with a unique focus, and tied together by overlapping concepts, theories, and models. The first section, Ideas of Social Action, examines the history of social action in group work and proposes an integrated global framework for social work organization, education and practice. Advocacy and Empowerment, the middle section, is replete with case examples. The third section, Principles and Practice, explores the application of social group work in a variety of situations, including inter-ethnic conflict and a group of homeless men and women. Together, the sections make a strong stand for a more sensitive, empowerment oriented practice and for more advocacy by the worker and group. Everyone involved or interested in the process of social change through social action with groups will find Social Action in Group Work a wealth of practical information.

Supplies the educational or vocational teacher with advice on the effective and successful running of a training group. The author uses a number of anecdotes from his own experience as a trainer to illustrate group work sessions and structured group activities of various kinds.

Stories Celebrating Group Work: It's Not Always Easy to Sit on Your Mouth celebrates the 25th anniversary of the esteemed journal Social Work with Groups with a collection of 21 narratives from group work practitioners and educators. These highly personal stories from a range of social workers—young and old, “famous” and not so famous—reflect each author's development and experience, serving as both instruction and inspiration for practitioners and educators. This unique collection—by turns humorous, moving, profound, and down-to-earth—gets to the heart of what it means to be a member of the social work community. Each chapter of Stories Celebrating Group Work draws on its contributor's area of expertise and interest in a specific topic, chronicling the development of the author's understanding, appreciation, and skill. Authors address the everyday concerns of social work professionals, such as maximizing mutual aid, promoting positive norms, maintaining authority in group work, managing conflict, dealing with taboo subjects, building a group work culture in a human services organization, working with a co-leader, tapping the strengths of group members, and addressing social change. The individual stories of working with men, women, and children suffering through abuse, homelessness, addiction, and teenage pregnancy, in places as diverse as East Harlem, Maine, Canada, Nebraska, Long Island, Haiti, Uruguay, help form a collegial spirit as group workers gain insight from the theory and practice of those who went before. The personal stories you'll find in Stories Celebrating Group Work include: “How I Became a Social Worker” “The Power of Group Work with Kids” “How the Relational Model of Group Work Developed” “My Love Affair with Stages of Group Development” “But I Want to Do a Real Group” “Racial Difference and Human Commonality: The Worker-Client Relationship” and many more! Stories Celebrating Group Work: It's Not Always Easy to Sit on Your Mouth is a one-of-a-kind collection of stories, at once entertaining and educational. It's an essential read for beginning and seasoned human services practitioners, and educators involved with, or interested in, working with groups.

Social work degree students must be confident in working with groups of service users as well as other professionals. This revised new edition introduces the practicalities of planning, establishing, facilitating and evaluating social work projects including small helping groups as well as interprofessional working parties. The authors examine the best methods in setting up a group, the issues around power and anti-oppressive practice, and how to cope with unexpected or unhelpful outcomes. This second edition features new material on sociodrama and psychodrama action methods, with more examples from actual groupwork projects.

What do you have to know, today, to be an effective group worker and what are the different group work approaches? With 110 articles and entries, this book provides a comprehensive overview of social work with groups from its initial development to its astounding range of diverse practice today with many populations in different places. The articles have been written by social workers trained in the group approach from the United States, Canada, England, Australia, Spain and Japan, and all involved are well known group workers, acknowledged as experts in the area. The book covers all aspects of social work with groups: including its history, values, major models, approaches and methods, education, research, journals, phases of development, working with specific populations and ages, plus many more. Each article includes references which can be a major resource for future exploration in the particular subject area. Both editors have many years of productive work in group work practice and other areas and are board members of The Association for the Advancement of Social Work with Groups. The Encyclopedia of Social Work with Groups will be of interest to students, practitioners, social work faculty, novice and experienced group workers.