This innovative textbook provides a comprehensive guide to social work practice across a range of organisational contexts, presenting social work as a diverse activity that is profoundly shaped by public policies, service missions, and practice locations. The book tackles the most current and topical theories and perspectives in a clear and accessible way, using an integrated and flexible framework which links context, theory, and practice approaches. Its international breadth and supportive pedagogical features will ensure the book's value to students of social work all over the world.

Table of Contents

Dedication Acknowledgements Preface Practising Social Work: Why Context Matters Dominant Discourses in Health and Welfare: Biomedicine, Economics, and Law Service Discourses: 'Psy' and Sociological Ideas in Social Work Alternative Service Discourses: Consumer Rights, and Religion and Spirituality Theories of Professional Practice: Approaches to Knowledge Development and Use Problem-Solving Approaches: Focusing Task-Centred Work Three Waves of Systems Theory The Strengths Perspective Modern Critical Social Work: From Radical to Anti-Oppressive Practice Postmodern Approaches to Practice Creating Frameworks for Practice Bibliography Figures

About the Author

KAREN HEALY is Associate Professor in the School of Social Work and Applied Human Sciences at The University of Queensland, Australia. She has practised as a social worker in health, youth, and child protection services. She is the author of Social Work Practices: Contemporary Perspectives on Change,(Sage 2000), and has written extensively on social work and policy studies.

Reviews

'...[Healy] provides a very usable, easily readable guide to the application of theories to pracitce, and incorporates some thoughtful consideration of service users' rights and perspective that are very relevant to advocacy efforts.' - Margarete Parrish, The Higher Education Academy (Social Policy and Social Work)