The art of writing up a completed research project in a format suitable for submission to a social work journal is an ability separate from one's skills as a research methodologist. It is also an ability that, despite its importance, is often overlooked by research courses and senior-level mentors. This straightforward pocket guide to Preparing Research Articles steps into the void as an insider's guide to getting published. Drawing on nearly 20 years of experience editing a social work research journal, Bruce A. Thyer has crafted a candid companion to the journal publishing process, unraveling the mysteries that students - as well as many established researchers - might otherwise stumble over, and as a result their prospectus for future success improve. Thyer's frank advice on selecting an appropriate journal, handling rejections and revisions, understanding confusing concepts like impact factors and electronic publishing, and avoiding common methodological and formatting pitfalls, constitute a gold mine for the fledging researcher-writer.
Social work research often focuses on qualitative designs and many students believe that the quantitative research pathway is either too complicated or is beyond their grasp. This book outlines how social work students can undertake a research project from either a qualitative, quantitative or mixed methodological approach. The authors introduce key concepts in an accessible and structured manner and go on to demonstrate each of the approaches from inception of research idea, to realisation of methodological approach, to research process, to data analysis and conclusion. More than just another research text, this book remains grounded in social work practice and has clear links to the Professional Capabilities Framework for Social Work.
This book is written to help social work practitioners and students on CPD courses make professional decisions with clients; from exercising statutory powers and duties to protect children from abuse, to making decisions about risk. This revised second edition has more of a focus on risk within social work practice as many social workers face daily pressure to make sound decisions in very difficult circumstances. In this complex arena of conflicting demands and considerations - from the public, the client, the family, the organisation - the professional needs a robust and yet flexible framework to inform practice decisions. Featuring illustrations from practice as well as case studies and practical activities to aid learning, this book provides a holistic view of decision making and risk as a core aspect of effective social work practice.
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.
With the constant exchange of international information now a permanent condition in the world, social work scholars and students must be sensitive to the need for knowledge sharing between countries as well as to issues involved in obtaining and utilizing international knowledge. Yet until now, no book has juxtaposed these two growing streams of emphasis. In this clearly written volume, Tony Tripodi and Miriam Potocky-Tripodi fill that gap, presenting readers with the many prospects and great potential for international social work research. The authors establish three discrete varieties of research supra-national, intra-national, and trans-national and explore a wealth of issues and examples within each. The easy-to-follow format helps readers learn how to define and distinguish each kind of research, then provides actual applications of all three. Examples draw on research from the world over, and range from microcredit programs in India to migrant aid in Nicaragua to adoptees in Romania. These unique features make it an ideal sequel to basic research texts in social work and supplement to texts on international social work, but also an attractive addition to any faculty researchers bookshelf.
The ‘Memoir of Professional Social Workers’ is the second volume of the book ‘Work and Life of the Professional Social Worker’ published by the Indian Society of Professional Work (ISPSW) in the year 2022. We hope this will motivate other professional social workers to write about their own life experiences by themselves or someone else whom they know. Their in-depth experience and enriched knowledge will be advantageous for other professional social workers to learn from their life. The current volume two has fifteen scholarly articles from eminent social work professionals (both educators and practitioners) across the country.
Social work professionals must demonstrate their effectiveness to legislators and governments, not to mention clients and incoming practitioners. A thorough evaluation of the activities, ethics, and outcomes of social work practice is critical to maintaining investment and interest in the profession and improving the lives of underserved populations. Incorporating the concerns of a new century into a consideration of models for practice research, this volume builds on the visionary work of William J. Reid (1928-2003) who transformed social work research through empirically based and task-centered approaches-and, more recently, synthesized intervention knowledge for framing future study. This collection reviews the task-centered model and other contemporary Evidence-Based Practice models for working with individuals, families, groups, communities, and organizations. Essays demonstrate the value of these pragmatic approaches in the United States and international settings. Contributors summarize state-of-the-art methods in several key fields of service, including children and families, aging, substance abuse, and mental health. They also evaluate the research movement itself, outlining an agenda for today's sociopolitical landscape and the profession. This volume inspires practice research to prioritize evidence as a base for the profession.
Part 1: AN INTRODUCTION TO INQUIRY. 1. Scientific Inquiry and Social Work. 2. Philosophy and Theory in Science and Research. 3. The Ethics and Politics of Social Work Research. Part 2: PROBLEM FORMULATION AND MEASUREMENT. 4. Problem Formulation. 5. Conceptualization and Operationalization. 6 . Measurement. 7. Constructing Measurement Instruments. Part 3: SAMPLING AND SURVEYS. 8. Sampling. 9. Survey Research. Part 4: DESIGNS FOR EVALUATING PROGRAMS AND PRACTICE. 10. Group Experiments for Evaluating Programs and Practice. 11. Quasi-Experimental Designs For Evaluating Programs and Practice. 12. Single-Case Evaluation Designs. 13. Issues in Program Evaluation. Part 5: QUALITATIVE, UNOBTRUSIVE AND CULTURALLY COMPETENT RESEARCH METHODS. 14. Qualitative Research Methods. 15. Analyzing Available Records: Qualitative and Quantitative Methods. 16. Culturally Competent Research. Part 6: ANALYSIS OF DATA. 17. Qualitative Data Analysis. 18. Quantitative Data Analysis. 19. Constructing and Interpreting Bivariate and Multivariate Tables. 20. Inferential Data Analysis: Part 1. 21. Inferential Data Analysis: Part 2. Part 7: WRITING RESEARCH PROPOSALS AND REPORTS. 22. Writing Research Proposals And Reports. Appendixes: A. Using the Library. B. Random Numbers. C. Inferential Statistics and Single-Case Designs. D. Proportion Under Normal Curve Exceeded by Effect Size (ES) Values. E. A Guide to SPSS 11.0. Glossary. Bibliography. Index.
Get the experts’ perspective on the top journals of the 20th century! The Journals of the Century project gathered some of America’s top subject expert librarians to determine the most influential journals in their respective fields. Thirty-two contributing authors—led by Editor Tony Stankus—reviewed journals from over 20 countries that have successfully shaped the evolution of their individual specialties worldwide. Their choices reflect the history of each discipline or profession, taking into account rivalries between universities, professional societies, for-profit and not-for-profit publishers, and even nation-states and international ideologies, in each journal’s quest for reputational dominance. Each journal was judged using criteria such as longevity of publication, foresight in carving out its niche, ability to attract & sustain professional or academic affiliations, opinion leadership or agenda-setting power, and ongoing criticality to the study or practice of their field. Journals of the Century presents wholly independent reviewers; none are in the employ of any publisher, but each is fully credentialed and well published, and many are award-winners. The authors guide college and professional school librarians on limited budgets via an exposition of their analytical and critical winnowing process in determining the classic resources for their faculty, students, and working professional clientele. The chapters are logically grouped together in six clusters that reflect the commonly shared interests of library liaisons and the range of like-minded academic departments they typically serve. These clusters include: The Helping Professionals (chapters on social work, education, psychology, sociology, and library and information sciences) Music, Museums, and Methodists (chapters on visual arts, anthropology, archaeology, philosophy, and the American religious experience) Business and Law (chapters on business and economics, plus legal literature) War and Peace (chapters on modern history, political science and international relations, and military affairs) Physical Sciences and Engineering (chapters on mathematics and the physical sciences as well as engineering and computer science) Life, Health, and Agriculture (chapters on medicine and surgery, pharmacy, physical therapy and nutrition, agriculture, and veterinary medicine) Journals of the Century answers questions such as: Which university press leads in high-ranking titles in the helping professions? In what crime-fighting journal, ironically mentioned within the Music, Museums, and Methodists cluster, do anthropologists routinely publish? What two journals cover the biggest yearly expense of most working Americans and rankly highly within both chapters of the Business and Law cluster? What family of British publications has remained indispensable reading for political and military readers for over a century in the War and Peace Cluster? What society in the Physical Sciences and Engineering cluster publishes more journals than any other publisher in this book, covering topics from light bulbs and computers to MRIs and windmills? What one-word-titled journal has joined the venerable pair of Nature and Science as the most important reporters of world-class breakthroughs in basic biomedical science? and many, many more! Journals of the Century includes extensive commentaries on each cluster by the editor, with graphical representations by world regions and publishing sectors contributing to each chapter. ISSN numbers for print editions, and URL addresses for online editions are provided in a comprehensive title index. This unique book is an essential resource for serials librarians in academia, new reference librarians familiarizing themselves with classic titles, and collection evaluators and college accreditation examiners.
Social work and social development in the Asia-Pacific region continue to grow in new and exciting ways. Social work educators are an essential part of shaping social work and development. In this second edition we hear four new voices, from Cambodia, Fiji, Japan and Vietnam, together with revised and updated chapters from social work educators in Australia, China, Hong Kong, India, Korea, Nepal, and New Zealand. Summaries of each chapter are included in Chinese, Japanese and Korean, as well as in the first language of the author. Despite the astonishing diversity of languages, cultures, philosophies, religions, economic systems and ways that social work is taught and practised in the region, social work in the Asia-Pacific is becoming more internationally cohesive. At the same time it maintains strong foundations in its local contexts. In an increasingly globalised world, international social work belongs in every 21st-century social work curriculum. While this book does not provide all the answers, it will help educators and practitioners ask better questions.
