From the outset, the ultimate goal of Research Methods for Social Workers has been to serve as a research text that students would be able to understand and read in full. This third edition features important additions and changes to the original text (while maintaining its accessible style). The order of chapters is re-arranged to improve the flow of introducing and developing concepts of the research process, and the authors have included some much-needed information to meet the changing and evolving standards of social work education. At its core, this book is designed to bring complex ideas down to a level that can be grasped by someone with little to no knowledge of research methods - it is an invaluable resource for social work students and anyone who wishes to have a comprehensive introduction to research methods.
This comprehensive text contains introductory and intermediate coverage of qualitative and quantitative social work research and evaluation applications for undergraduate and graduate social work students. Features Integrates diversity and strengths/empowerment coverage throughout the text. Includes a complete chapter on ethics in social work research (Chapter 5), which shows students how to integrate research and ethics content. Provides comprehensive coverage on how to do a literary review, write a qualitative and quantitative paper/report, and cite Internet sources. Includes case studies and vignettes throughout the text, which bring a real-world focus to the subject. Includes Statistical Package for the Social Sciences in Appendix F, which illustrates data entry using SPSS with actual screen images to show students how to do tests of the null hypothesis, interpret significance tests, and understand measures of association. What the reviewers are saying . . . This book thoroughly presents all the most important topics for an introductory research text. I really like the balanced presentation of quantitative and qualitative research, the boxed material, and the reasonable price. I think this is a very good book. Thomas Barton, University of North Texas This text does a superb job in covering topics important to social work research students. I can t say enough positive things about how comprehensive I find this book it is clearly a superior text. The coverage of ethics, literature review, and writing research reports places this book head and shoulders above the rest. Janice Matthews Rasheed, Loyola University of Chicago [MyHelpingLabAd]"
A lifespan approach presenting evidence-informed interventions for working with individuals and families Social Work Practice with Individuals and Families covers assessment of and intervention with children, adolescents, adults, the elderly, and families. It offers an array of pedagogical features within each chapter, as well as online resources and review questions at the conclusion of each chapter to help guide critical thinking about topics. Reflecting the current state of evidence-informed social work practice, each chapter's contributors emphasize the incorporation of wider forms of systematically collected data such as case studies, best or promising practices, and consumer-focused data. Reading this book will not only give readers the tools to work effectively with individuals and families, but also develop their skills in evidence informed practice. Comprehensive and insightful, Social Work Practice with Individuals and Families is a student- and practitioner-friendly text identifying the best assessment tools and strategies available for social workers to successfully serve individuals and families facing a broad range of challenges.
This book describes and discusses research methods for four alternative paradigms. These methodologies are organized according to the stages of a generalist model of social work practice. In my first book on Social Work Research Methods (Morris, 2006) I introduced the idea that social workers can carry out research in a more liberated fashion than is usually outlined in most research methods text books. I gave a philosophical, theoretical, historical and practical foundation for implementing research from four alternative perspectives: positivism, post positivism, critical theory, and constructivism. As well as introducing these paradigms, I integrated research methodologies with social work practice by translating the steps of the generalist, social work, practice model (engagement, assessment, planning, implementation, evaluation, termination and follow up) into the research process (research focus, design, data collection, data analysis, data interpretation, and communication and dissemination of findings). I divided that book into four parts according to each paradigm with a fifth part that addressed cross cutting issues such as ethics, diversity, politics, and technology. This book updates and reorganizes these ideas and methods so that the flow of the discussion more closely parallels the flow of the research process. Instead of being organized according to the paradigms, it is organized according to the stages of the research process. Also, to assist with instruction on this new organization, there are additional resources that contain power point slides, full texts of example student studies using these approaches, test questions, and other supplementary materials. These can be accessed by contacting me at [email protected] I have made these changes because, after using my first book for a few years, I realized that starting with positivism and ending with constructivism has left students who are keen to learn about critical theory and constructivism "cooling their heels" for half of the course. Now, when I integrate the four paradigms throughout the course, I offer a continual comparison of those approaches as we learn about each stage of generalist research methods. Having tried this with drafts of this book, I can honestly say that classroom discussion has become more lively....and demanding.
School Social Work: An Evidence-Informed Framework for Practice offers school social work students and veteran practitioners a new framework for choosing their interventions based on the best available evidence. It is the first work that synthesizes the evidence-based practice (EBP) process with recent conceptual frameworks of school social work clinical practice offered by leading scholars and policymakers. Many other books on EBP try to fit empirically validated treatments into practice contexts without considering the multiple barriers to implementing evidence-based practices in places as complicated and multi-faceted as schools. Additionally, there are vital questions in the literature about what the best levels for intervention are in school social work. Responding to the complexity of applying EBP in schools, this volume offers a conceptual framework that addresses the real-world concerns of practitioners as they work to provide the best services to their school clients. For each domain of school social work practice, the authors critically review interventions, presenting the current research with guidelines for addressing such implementation issues as cost, school culture, adaptations for special populations, and negotiating multiple arenas of practice. In addition, the chapters are grounded in the process of evidence-based practice, illustrating how school practitioners can pose useful questions, search for relevant evidence, appraise the evidence, apply it in keeping with client values, and monitor the results. Written by four school social work scholars with over four decades of theoretical, research, and practice experience, this volume will be relevant to both research faculty studying school social work interventions and students learning about school social work practice.
In the twenty-first century, more than ever, everything and everybody seems to be on the move. Global flows of people, goods, food, money, information, services and media images are forming an intensely mobile background to everyday life. Social scientists, too, are on the move, seeking new analytical purchase on these important aspects of the social world by trying to move with, and to be moved by, the fleeting, distributed, multiple, non-causal, sensory, emotional and kinaesthetic. Mobile Methods addresses the challenges and opportunities of researching mobile phenomena. Drawing on extensive interdisciplinary discussion, the book brings together a collection of cutting-edge methodological innovations and original research reports to examine some important implications of the mobilities turn for the processes of ‘research’, and the realm of the empirical. Through analysis that addresses questions such as ‘how are social relationships and social institutions made in and through mobility?’, and ‘how do people experience mobility in twenty-first century world cities?', the authors mobilize sociological analysis, bringing new insights and opening up new opportunities for engagement with contemporary challenges. This book is a key text for undergraduate and postgraduate students of disciplines including Human Geography, Social Policy, Sociology and Research Methods.
Social workers play a crucial part in contemporary society by ensuring that individuals are able to address, overcome, and manage obstacles in their daily lives. In an effort to better serve their clients, many practitioners have turned to evidence-based practice. Evidence Discovery and Assessment in Social Work Practice provides practitioners with the tools necessary to locate, analyze, and apply the latest empirical research findings in the field to their individual practice. This premier reference work provides insights and support to professionals and researchers working in the fields of social work, counseling, psychotherapy, case management, and psychology.
Research Methods in Social Work helps students develop evidence-based practice by involving them in the process of research methodology. An innovative storytelling approach follows two students engaged in internships who go through the steps and tasks required to design a program and evaluate it in their practicum. Readers can see how realistic decisions arise in planning research and the activities necessary to support and conduct a research effort. Students learn the importance of comparison group designs, operationalizing variables, the use of valid and reliable measurements, and how these can affect the obtained results. Specific topics include research ethics, developing questionnaires and instruments, techniques for selecting client and community samples, and evaluating one's practice with single system designs. This edition features a new focus on understanding the statistical procedures, symbols, and findings commonly found in research publications. Instructor and student friendly, it contains self-review questions as well as potential assignments. Research Methods in Social Work prepares students to successfully consume social work research and lays the foundation for those who may want to create research during their academic and professional careers. For a look at the specific features and benefits of Research Methods in Social Work, visit cognella.com/research-methods-in-social-work-features-and-benefits.
KEY FEATURES: A ‵‵learn by doing" approach woven throughout the text helps students apply knowledge to practice. A three-part structure introduces the fundamentals of research methods, the different types of social work research, and the use of data analysis for evaluation of social work practice. Chapter-opening vignettes illustrate the value of chapter content to the practicing social worker. Chapter-ending practice exercises provide opportunities to apply chapter knowledge and gain a better understanding of research competencies. Practical guidelines for data analysis show students how to use the Internet to analyze data with simple step-by-step instructions. Discussion questions provide opportunities to spark class discussions and help students reflect on critical concepts. Chapter tests, lists of key learnings, and glossaries at the end of chapters serve as convenient tools for reviewing key concepts and definitions.
This key textbook explores how good social work practice draws upon relevant and current research to ensure that interventions are as effective as possible. Social workers are increasingly required to demonstrate their knowledge of the research and evidence that underpin the daily decisions they make and actions they take and it is therefore vital that they are not only up to date with the latest research, but that they have the tools and understanding to successfully apply this to their practice. Written by leading experts in the field, this text book provides a step-by-step guide to implementing research in to every day social work practice. This is essential reading for any one taking a research module on Social Work programmes, at undergraduate and postgraduate level, or practitioners wishing to advance their own practise and deliver the best possible service they can.
