What Is Professional Social Work? 2nd Ed.

Description:
'What is Professional Social Work?' is a now classic analysis of social work as a discourse between three aspects of practice: social order, therapeutic and transformational perspectives. It enables social workers to analyse and value the role of social work in present-day multi-professional social care. This completely re-written second edition explores social work's struggle to meet its claim to achieve social progress through interpersonal practice. The important features of this new edition include: practical ways of analysing personal professional identity; understanding how social workers embody their profession in their practice with other professionals; detailed analysis of current and historical documents defining social work and social care analysis of values, agencies and global social work. This new edition will stimulate social workers, students and policy-makers in social care to think again about the valuable role social work plays in society.

Review:
Review of first edition: 'This book is the best available general description of the increasingly complex environments the modern social worker operates in, and the roles that have to be taken on. The analysis will be extremely useful for students and indeed for practitioners who feel adrift from a value base.' Community Care Review of first edition: 'Of great interest both for professionals, for educators in social work and for scientists who want to develop knowledge in, about and for social work. I recommend this book to all interested in a better understanding of social work, both as an academic activity and as a profession.' Scandinavian Journal of Social Welfare Review of the first edition: 'The book presents an overview which should be useful particularly for students on post-qualifying social work courses.' Professional Social Work

Table of Contents:
Introduction: the social work discourse; The identity of social work; Social work as a practice; Social work values; Social work, management and the agency; Social work, power and society; Social work: profession among professions; Social works: global and local; Social work: (inter)personal, political and professional.

Author Biography:
Malcolm Payne is Director, Psycho-social and Spiritual Care, St Christopher's Hospice, London, Emeritus Professor, Manchester Metropolitan University and Honorary Professor, Kingston University/St George's Medical School.