Social Justice Theory And Practice For Social Work

This book offers a much-needed critical overview of the concept of social justice and its application in professional social work practice. Social justice has a rich conceptual genealogy in critical theory and political philosophy. For students, teachers and social workers concerned with empowerment, social change and human rights, this book provides a guide to the key ideas and thinkers, crucial historical developments and contemporary debates about social justice. It synthesises interdisciplinary knowledge and offers a new framework for practice, including a clear and practical exposition of four domains of skills and knowledge important for social justice informed social work. The book also contributes to social work pedagogy by offering a comprehensive set of learning outcomes that can be used to design curriculum, teaching and learning, and further research into social justice praxis. This book provides a range of philosophical and critical perspectives to support and inform social work professional knowledge and skills. In its tight knitting together of theory and practice this book links philosophical and moral principles with an understanding of how to engage with social justice in a way that is relevant to social work.

Social work theory and ethics places social justice at its core and recognises that many clients from oppressed and marginalized communities frequently suffer greater forms and degrees of physical and mental illness. However, social justice work has all too often been conceptualized as a macro intervention, separate and distinct from clinical practice. This practical text is designed to help social workers intervene around the impact of socio-political factors with their clients and integrate social justice into their clinical work. Based on past radical traditions, it introduces and applies a liberation health framework which merges clinical and macro work into a singular, unified way of working with individuals, families, and communities. Opening with a chapter on the theory and historical roots of liberation social work practice, each subsequent chapter goes on to look at a particular population group or individual case study, including: LGBT communities Mental health illness Violence Addiction Working with ethnic minorities Health Written by a team of experienced lecturers and practitioners, Social Justice in Clinical Practice provides a clear, focussed, practice-oriented model of clinical social work for both social work practitioners and students.

This second edition includes material on mind, body and spirit social work, mindfulness, and enhanced content on Indigenous social work.

This unique and timely book, edited by Michael J. Austin, introduces and connects social justice to the core values of social work across the curriculum. It presents the history and philosophy that supports social justice and ties it to ethical concepts that will help readers understand social justice as a core social work value. The book further conveys the importance of amplifying client voice; explores organization-based advocacy; and describes how an understanding of social justice can inform practice and outlines implications for education and practice.

Buy this book. Make it required reading for every incoming social work student. The best resource I ve ever found to help with the challenging task of radiating social justice theory into the heart of social work practice. Accessible, real, and encouraging, Doing Anti-Oppressive Practice shines the way forward for our entire profession. "

Social Work and Social Justice transcends discussions of abstract social justice concepts and goals by focusing on how these concepts can be used as guides for socially just practice at the interpersonal, organizational, community, and societal levels. In addition to emphasizing the importance of social justice work through compelling examples, case studies, and exercises, this book vividly illustrates its complexity and discusses how social workers can negotiate the practical and ethical challenges involved. Unlike many books on the subject, the text integrates diverse and often conflicting approaches to social justice to promote critical thinking and underscore the value of incorporating various perspectives into one's practice. Other distinguishing features include: its emphasis on the complementary nature of socially just goals and processes; its use of well-developed case examples, often drawn from the authors' experience; and the authors' reflection on the implications of these examples from both "micro" and "macro" perspectives, along with a discussion of how practitioners with diverse understandings of social justice might interpret the case. Social Work and Social Justice is based on the authors' extensive teaching and practice experience in a wide variety of fields, both in the U.S. and internationally, and on their research on such varied topics as welfare reform, mental health, social work practice theory, social work values and ethics, and the history and philosophy of social welfare and social work. It is undeniably a must-have resource for students and faculty in undergraduate and graduate social work programs, as well as practitioners in social work and the human services.

"Colleen Lundy has created a wonderful synthesis of social work practice in a social justice context." - Lawrence Shulman, University at Buffalo School of Social Work