Spirituality In Social Work

Spirituality is an area of thought and practice that is attracting an increasing amount of attention and interest from social work practitioners, theorists, and instructors. This book explores the history, practice, and diversity of faith traditions with which spirituality and social work are intertwined.

Over the past ten years, the fields of social work and education have grappled separately with definitions of spirituality, ways to integrate spirituality into the classroom, and the rendering of spirituality as a meaningful concept for practitioners, students, and researchers. Social work and education have many commonalities in areas of engagement with children, families, and communities. For the first time, this book brings together these two professional disciplines for interdisciplinary discussions that advance our knowledge in the broad area of “spirituality.” The book’s three sections reflect broad topic areas created to facilitate dialogue between the contributors, all of whom have established expertise in exploring spirituality in education or social work. The first section of the book explores the historical and theoretical underpinnings of spirituality in education and social work. Examination of our respective heritages uncovers the religious roots within our professions and reveals a present understanding of spirituality that calls for active engagement in challenging oppression and working toward social justice. The second section shifts the focus to the pedagogical implications of incorporating spirituality into higher-education classrooms. The varied level of acceptance and the tensions that come from including spirituality, implicitly or explicitly, in the programs and coursework in our respective faculties are illuminated by authors in both professions. The final section explores issues related to practising and teaching in the field from a spiritually sensitive perspective.

Weaving together interdisciplinary theory and research, as well as the results from a national survey of practitioners, the authors describe a spiritually oriented model for practice that places clients' challenges and goals within the context of their deepest meanings and highest aspirations. Using richly detailed case examples and thought-provoking activities, this highly accessible text illustrates the professional values and ethical principles that guide spiritually sensitive practice. It presents definitions and conceptual models of spirituality and religion; draws connections between spiritual diversity and cultural, gender, and sexual orientation diversity; and offers insights from Buddhism, Christianity, Confucianism, Hinduism, Indigenous religions, Islam, Judaism, Existentialism, and Transpersonal theory. Eminently practical, it guides professionals in understanding and assessing spiritual development and related mental health issues and outlines techniques that support transformation and resilience, such as meditation, mindfulness, ritual, forgiveness, and engagement of individual and community-based spiritual support systems.

For much of the twentieth century, professional social work sought to distance itself from its religious origins with the consequence being that the role of spirituality in the lives of service users tended to be sidelined. Yet it is clear that many people begin to explore their spirituality precisely at times when they are trying to make sense of difficult life circumstances or experiences and may come into contact with social workers. In recent years, there has been an increasing understanding that in order to be relevant to the lives of people they work with, social workers need to go beyond their material needs, but there is little understanding of how spirituality can be sensitively incorporated into practice, especially when either practitioners or service users have no religious affiliation or there is no shared religious background. In this pathbreaking volume Beth Crisp offers social workers ideas of beginning conversations in which spiritual values and beliefs may surface, allowing service users to respond from their own framework and to begin to discuss the specific religious or spiritual practices and beliefs which are important to them. She considers spirituality in the context of lived experience, a perspective that she argues breaks down any mystique and suspicion of explicitly religious language by focusing on language and experiences with which most people can identify. Such a framework allows exploration of issues that emerge at different stages in the lifespan, both by persons who are religious and those who do not identify with any formal religion. Most literature on spirituality within social work refers to the elderly, to those who are sick or have been bereaved, yet, as Crisp points out, spirituality is important for people of all ages and not just at seemingly exceptional moments.

This singular reference explores religion and spirituality as a vital, though often misconstrued, lens for building better understanding of and empathy with clients. A diverse palette of faiths and traditions is compared and contrasted (occasionally with secularism), focusing on areas of belief that may inspire, comfort, or trouble clients, including health and illness, mental illness, healing, coping, forgiveness, family, inclusion, and death. From assessment and intervention planning to conducting research, these chapters guide professionals in supporting and assisting clients without minimizing or overstating their beliefs. In addition, the book’s progression of ideas takes readers beyond the well-known concept of cultural competence to model a larger and more meaningful cultural safety. Among the topics included in the Handbook: Integrating religion and spirituality into social work practice. Cultural humility, cultural safety, and beyond: new understandings and implications for social work. Healing traditions, religion/spirituality, and health. Diagnosis: religious/spiritual experience or mental illness? Understandings of dying, death, and mourning. (Re)building bridges in and with family and community. Ethical issues in conducting research on religion and spirituality. The Handbook of Religion and Spirituality in Social Work Practice and Research is a richly-textured resource for social workers and mental health professionals engaged in clinical practice and/or research seeking to gain varied perspectives on how the religion and spirituality of their clients/research participants may inform their work.

Social work in modern society requires practitioners to be culturally and spiritually sensitive. This book explores the often challenging relationships between spirituality, religion and social work. It considers the skills, knowledge and values that are required to incorporate a spiritual awareness into social work practice and in doing so explores in greater depth the social worker/service user relationship. By using case studies, reflective exercises and other learning features, students will begin to appreciate and understand the importance of a spiritually sensitive approach to their social work practice.

Spirituality and Hospice Social Work helps practitioners understand various forms of spiritual assessment for use with their clients. The book teaches practitioners to recognize a client's spiritual needs and resources, as well as signs of spiritual suffering.

Social work in modern society requires practitioners to be culturally and spiritually sensitive. This book explores the often challenging relationships between spirituality, religion and social work. It considers the skills, knowledge and values that are required to incorporate a spiritual awareness into social work practice and in doing so explores in greater depth the social worker/service user relationship. By using case studies, reflective exercises and other learning features, students will begin to appreciate and understand the importance of a spiritually sensitive approach to their social work practice.