Clear and accessible text, containing reflective questions and practice examples illustrating the links between research and social work pratice. Essential reading for all social work trainees, and will provide invaluable support for postgraduate students wishing to consolidate their understanding of social work research.
Social work students need to understand the relationship between research, knowledge and practice to be effective practitioners. In the second edition of this highly regarded book, Hugh McLaughlin shows how a research-minded perspective and an appreciation of evidence-based practice can lead students to achieve the highest level of individual and collective social work practice. Topics covered include: - How to assess, appraise and apply research - The philosophy of research - Improving the use of research in practice - Interdisciplinary contributions to social work and social work research Providing reflexive questions, practice examples and suggested reading throughout, this book is essential reading for all undergraduate students of social work. It will also be valuable reading for postgraduates and qualified social workers wishing to consolidate their understanding of social work research.
This new edition of Social Work Research in Practice: Ethical and Political Contexts explores the intrinsic connection between knowledge, research and practice in social work. The authors argue that through a better appreciation of research, the highest standards of social work can be achieved. The second edition investigates contemporary approaches which impact on the discourses of social work research, including: - Evidence-based practice - User-led research - Anti-oppressive practice - Practice-based research Each chapter has been fully updated with a rich range of case examples and references. Further reading is also included, so that readers can expand their knowledge. This book is a valuable resource for both undergraduate and postgraduate students, as well as practitioners working in the field of social work. Heather D′Cruz works as a Consultant: Research and Professional Education. Martyn Jones is Associate Dean at RMIT University.
How do social work students learn to use research to underpin their practice decisions? How do they learn that research is not an activity unconnected to their professional role and responsibilities, but rather acts as a foundation for their knowledge? By using the examples drawn from evidence-based practice (e.g. what is known to work and what we know about social work processes), the authors deliver a text that will help support students to appraise and then integrate research into both their daily practice decisions and their assignments and assessments. It will do this by defining key concepts like ′knowledge′ and ′evidence′ and then look at how these concepts include component parts - from law and legislation to practice knowledge and reflective and critical practice. Case examples are used to illustrate how a clear understanding of these component parts can build to a substantial evidence base from which to draw upon. Identifying relevant research and appraising its quality are core aspects of the book. Later chapters show students how robust knowledge of evidence-based practice can develop into a clear and confident approach to their workloads and their daily practice dilemmas.
Click on the Supplements tab above for further details on the different versions of SPSS programs. The canonical Handbook is completely updated with more student-friendly features The Handbook of Social Work Research Methods is a cutting-edge volume that covers all the major topics that are relevant for Social Work Research methods. Edited by Bruce Thyer and containing contributions by leading authorities, this Handbook covers both qualitative and quantitative approaches as well as a section that delves into more general issues such as evidence based practice, ethics, gender, ethnicity, International Issues, integrating both approaches, and applying for grants. New to this Edition More content on qualitative methods and mixed methods More coverage of evidence-based practice More support to help students effectively use the Internet A companion Web site at www.sagepub.com/thyerhdbk2e containing a test bank and PowerPoint slides for instructors and relevant SAGE journal articles for students. This Handbook serves as a primary text in the methods courses in MSW programs and doctoral level programs. It can also be used as a reference and research design tool for anyone doing scholarly research in social work or human services.
Jennifer Mason and Angela Dale's book seeks to set out cutting-edge developments in the field of social research and to encourage students and researchers to consider ways of learning from different approaches and perspectives in such a way as to make their own research richer, more insightful and more rewarding. Social Researching brings together a wide variety of research methods - both qualitative and quantitative - to help students and researchers to consider the relative benefits of adopting different approaches for their own research work. The authors clearly identify the most appropriate methods for different research questions and also highlight areas where it might be fruitful to compliment different methods with each other or exploit creative tensions between them. The book is therefore a highly practical guide which also seeks to draw readers outside their methodological comfort zones. This book includes: - Critical coverage of issues in research design; - Expert experience in many methodological fields; - An overview of the many different ways to approach similar research problems; - Coverage of the tensions between different methodological approaches; - Examples of excellence in research design and practice; - An examination of how to turn methodological tensions into richer research practice. The methods covered include highly innovative, 'cutting-edge' approaches and they are demonstrated in terms of their transferability between the different social sciences. This inter-disciplinary approach is complimented by a wide range of strategically chosen examples which demonstrate the authors' pragmatic and creative take on research design.
Designed to help students develop skills in evaluating research and conducting studies, this brief version of Rafael J. Engel and Russell K. Schutt’s popular, The Practice of Research in Social Work, makes principles of evidence-based practice come alive through illustrations of actual social work research. With integration of the CSWE Competencies, the text addresses issues and concerns common to the discipline and encourages students to address diversity and ethics when planning and evaluating research studies. The Second Edition includes a focus on qualitative research, a new chapter on research ethics, new sections on mixed methods research and community-based participatory research, and more.
This new and fully updated edition of a hugely popular textbook is a practical and user-friendly guide that lets students know what to expect from their course and will be there every step of the way as a reference tool. Written by experts in the field, the book guides the reader through from their academic study on social work courses to entering the field as a practitioner. The Social Work Companion is the essential survival guide for students on qualifying courses in social work and a helpful resource for experienced practitioners. New to this Edition: - A indispensable wide-ranging yet accessible coverage of the core areas of theory and practice studied on a typical social work degree course - A wealth of guidance on study skills, advice about possible career directions, and extensive signposting to sources of further information
The Social Work Assignments Handbook is the complete guide to preparing for, carrying out and writing up a social work assignment or project. Designed to support students through their assignments from beginning to end, each stage is fully explained through friendly advice and practical guidance so that students can feel confident in their work, whether they’re writing up quantitative research findings or carrying out a literature review.
Malcolm Carey provides social work students, academics and practitioners with a practical guide to completion of a small-scale qualitative research project or dissertation. This clear text takes the reader through the process of beginning and developing a research problem or question, defining their objectives and undertaking empirical or literature-based research that involves data collection, analysis, writing up and dissemination. The book also highlights and details potential obstacles, essential techniques and methods, types of theory and methodology used, and presents case studies and ongoing debates involved in qualitative social work research. It suggests ways by which sometimes difficult processes (such as the literature review, interviews with practitioners, etc.) can be made easier to complete and explores traditional methods such as the focus group or interview alongside less conventional methodologies such as participative, narrative, discourse or ICT-related approaches. Recent investigation has highlighted the lack of research skills held by many social workers in practice. This book overcomes these problems by providing an essential and easily accessible guidebook to qualitative research methods for social work students and practitioners as well as being of interest to tutors who teach research methods to social work students or supervise dissertations.