In this seminal book, Krumer-Nevo introduces the Poverty-Aware Paradigm: a radical new framework for social workers and professionals working with and for people in poverty. The author defines the core components of the Poverty-Aware Paradigm, explicates its embeddedness in key theories in poverty, critical social work and psychoanalysis, and links it to diverse facets of social work practice. Providing a revolutionary new way to think about how social work can address poverty, she draws on the extensive application of the paradigm by social workers in Israel and across diverse poverty contexts to provide evidence for the practical advantages of integrating the Poverty-Aware Paradigm into social work practices across the globe.
First published in 1999, this much-needed volume powerfully re-evaluates attitudes to the ‘deserving and ‘undeserving’ poor and aims to investigate social workers’ attitudes and actions towards poverty issues, social service users who have needed financial help and to question whether learning about poverty is an integrated part of social work students’ training and social workers’ in-service training. Monica Dowling has experience of being a social work student and social worker, as well as a social work teacher and researcher. In an age when increasing numbers of undergraduate and postgraduate students are unemployed and living on benefits, Dowling reveals the true picture of the people who end up on the poverty line, reconnecting social work theory and practice.
What do we mean by the terms "poverty" and "social exclusion" in 21st century Britain? What impact do continuing austerity measures have on low-income families? How can social workers support and empower service users to escape poverty? An understanding of social division, social exclusion, and poverty is fundamental to the ethos of social work. This book relates poverty and social exclusion to social work practice, offering a fresh approach to the challenges social workers face in helping clients out of poverty.The book begins by examining the challenges posed by growing poverty set against cuts in services and tightening eligibility criteria. The book argues that the impact social exclusion and poverty has on service user's lives requires social workers to gain a greater awareness of both concepts and their relationship to social work practice. Chapters consider topical issues such as the role poverty plays in child protection issues, and the dilemmas social workers face in working with asylum seekers. A theme of the book is inequalities in health: that most service users suffer more illness, disability and premature death, because they are poor and excluded. Focused on what social workers can do in their practice to address social exclusion, the book supports students in developing relationship-based and community-oriented approaches that can actively alleviate poverty. Key features of the book include: Numerous quotations and vignettes give insights into social workers' and service users' real experiences. "What Do You Think?" exercises encourage students to actively engage with the issues and think critically about their understanding of poverty. Reflective questions are included to spark lively debate around ethics, beliefs and values. This book is essential reading for undergraduate and postgraduate social work students at all levels. It will also be a key resource for sociology and social policy students seeking an understanding of poverty. "Dave Backwith's new book should be required reading for every social work student, as well as by managers, policy makers and experienced practitioners." Paul Bywaters, Professor of Social Work, Coventry University "Dave Backwith provides social work with a strong values-based argument for politically engaged practice to address poverty and social exclusion. The book is informed by ecological and health inequalities perspectives and with chapters on children and families, older people and mental health, should be essential reading for all social workers." Kate Karban, Senior Lecturer in Social Work, University of Bradford, Co-convenor, Social Work and Health Inequalities Network, 2010-2014 "This book provides a comprehensive review of theory, research and policy on poverty and social exclusion. It identifies the forces which have narrowed social work's responses to poor people, and how practice could become more generous and imaginative." Bill Jordan, Professor of Social Work, Plymouth University, UK "Dave Backwith has successfully argued that social workers need to practice with a full appreciation of the impact of poverty and social exclusion on the people who need their assistance. This is, as he argues, essential for all areas of social work. His book therefore represents essential reading for all connected to the delivery of social work, students, practitioners and managers alike." Mark Lymbery, University of Nottingham, UK
A critical analysis of the domino effect of neoliberalism and austerity on social work. Applying theory including those of Bourdieu and Wacquant to practice, it argues that social work should return to a focus on relational and community approaches.
Social Work and Poverty provides a timely review of the key issues that social workers and service users face when working together to combat poverty. Lester Parrot first situates social work and poverty within a historical context, analyzing various poverty concepts and theories and how then can lead to practices that work against the oppression of service users. Including reference to international practice throughout, he then critically evaluates the United Kingdom's 2012 Welfare Reform Act, highlighting the negative impact that it will have on service users and social workers alike. Ranging from topics such as access to food, obesity, drug use, and the effects of globalization, he provides a fresh understanding of poverty and how we can better overcome it.
Introduction -- Background, inception, and development -- Thresholds, financing, and beneficiaries -- Targeting performance -- Anti-poverty effectiveness -- From welfare to work -- Family expenditures and human capital investment -- Social participation and subjective well-being -- What next? : policy solutions and research directions -- References -- Acknowledgements
Laura Smith argues that if there is any segment of society that should be concerned with the impact of classism and poverty, it is those within the “helping professions”—people who have built their careers around understanding and facilitating human emotional well-being. In this groundbreaking book, Smith charts the ebbs and flows of psychology’s consideration of poor clients, and then points to promising new approaches to serving poor communities that go beyond remediation, sympathy, and charity. Including the author’s own experiences as a psychologist in a poor community, this inspiring book: Shows practitioners and educators how to implement considerations of social class and poverty within mental health theory and practice.Addresses poverty from a true social class perspective, beginning with questions of power and oppression in health settings.Presents a view of poverty that emerges from the words of the poor through their participation in interviews and qualitative research.Offers a message of hope that poor clients and psychologists can reinvent their relationship through working together in ways that are liberating for all parties. Laura Smith is an assistant professor in the department of Counseling and Clinical Psychology at Teachers College, Columbia University. “Gripping, heartbreaking, and ultimately hopeful, [this]is an impassioned charge to mental health professionals to advocate in truly helpful ways for America’s poor and working-class citizens . . . beautifully written and structured in a way that provides solid information with digestible doses of in-your-face depictions of poverty . . . Smith’s appeal to the healing profession is a gift. She envisions a class-inclusive society that shares common resources, opportunities, institutions, and hope. Smith’s book is a beautiful, chilling treatise calling for social change, mapping the road that will ultimately lead to that change. . . . This inspired book . . . is not meant to be purchased, perused, and placed on a shelf. It is meant to be lived. Are you in?” —PsycCRITIQUES magazine “Smith does not invite you to examine the life of the poor; she forces you to do it. And after you do it, you cannot help but question your practice. Whether you are a psychologist, a social worker, a counselor, a nurse, a psychiatrist, a teacher, or a community organizer, you will gain insights about the lives of the people you work with.” —From the Foreword by Isaac Prilleltensky, Dean, School of Education, University of Miami, Florida “This groundbreaking book challenges practitioners and educators to rethink dominant understandings of social class and poverty, and it offers concrete strategies for addressing class-based inequities. Psychology, Poverty, and the End of Social Exclusion should be required reading for anyone interested in economic and social justice.” —Heather Bullock, University of California, Santa Cruz
Thoroughly updated, this new edition shows how social workers can combat the social exclusion experienced by service users and promote inclusion. Each chapter is grounded in up-to-date practice examples and explores through activities, case studies and exercises how the perspective of social exclusion is changing social work today.
Bringing together international case studies, this book offers theoretical and empirical insights into the interaction between social work and social policy. Moving beyond existing studies on policy practice, the book employs the policy cycle as a core analytical frame and focuses on the influence of social work(ers) in the problem definition, agenda setting, policy formulation and implementation of social policy. Twenty-three contributors offer examples of policy making from seven different countries and demonstrate how social work practitioners can become political actors, while also encouraging policy makers to become aware of the potential of social work for the social policy-making process.
Social protection is now considered a development milestone and an important tool in combating poverty. Interventions can include, for example, health insurance, public works programs, guaranteed employment schemes, or cash transfers targeting vulnerable populations groups. This innovative volume is designed to develop understanding about the role and contribution of social protection globally and to share innovative practice and policies from around the world. It explores how to cover an entire population effectively, especially those who are at risk or who are already in a situation of deprivation, and in a sustainable manner. Divided into two parts, the book begins by exploring the theoretical underpinnings of social protection, discussing the social work and social development perspectives and concepts that currently shape it. The second part is comprised of case studies from countries implementing successful social protection initiatives, including Brazil, India, South Africa, Ghana, Nigeria and Indonesia, and reveals how the impact of a successful social protection intervention on poverty, vulnerability and inequality can be dramatic. This volume is an important reference for advanced students and researchers from a range of disciplines including social policy, social work, development studies, geography, planning, economics, sociology, population health and political science.
