1 / 10

Exploring Professionalism in Social Work: Two Perspectives on Listening

This research examines different models of professionalism in social work, focusing on how social workers perceive themselves as professionals. The study identifies two styles of thought and representation, and explores the relationship between theory and practice. The data was collected through interviews and analysis of critical incidents. The findings highlight two ways of conceiving listening, as fitting ideas in an accepted perspective and as trying to understand multiple perspectives.

rkirby
Download Presentation

Exploring Professionalism in Social Work: Two Perspectives on Listening

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. The space of listening within different models of professionalism in social work, Silvia Fargion University of Trento Italy

  2. How social workers think themselves as professionals I have conducted a research on social work practices Fargion, S., 2002, I linguaggi del servizio sociale, Carocci Roma ; Fargion, S 2006, Thinking professional social work, in Journal of social work, 6(3), 255-273. Starting from the idea of studying the relation between theory and practice, my research ended up identifying two styles of thought and two ways of representing social work

  3. The subjects of my research 22 social workers practicing in Milan and Turin local authorities within services for families and children support There were nineteen females and three males. Two of the interviewees were younger than thirty years, ten between thirty and forty, eight between forty and fifty, and two were above fifty. As one can see the group of subject is not balanced, but it approximately reflects the universe from which the sample is derived

  4. The data were collected mainly through interviews and analysis of critical incidents. The interviews were organised as semi-structured conversations over contract. The areas explored within the conversation have been

  5. THE ARGUMENT THE STORY Work organised by a predefined structure Work as a trial and error process Actions connected in a logical sequence by external principles Actions connected in temporal sequences

  6. THE ARGUMENT THE STORY Understanding as dynamic process, which evolves with the interaction Understanding as assessment and classification of problems

  7. THE ARGUMENT THE STORY Problems defined through negotiation Problems described as objective entities Subjective views perceived as an interference Subjective views perceived as relevant

  8. THE ARGUMENT THE STORY Work process strategies for minimizing risks and mistakes Work connected to undertaking risks Emotion and anxieties are elements of social work to be dealt with Emotion and anxiety under control

  9. THE ARGUMENT THE STORY Client-practitioner relation described in asymmetrical terms Client/practitioner relation described in terms of qualitative differences

  10. TWO WAYS OF CONCEIVING LISTENING (Sclavi, 2000, Arte di ascoltare i mondi possibili, Listening as fitting ideas in a perspective which is accepted as absolute Listening as trying to understand a plurality of perspective

More Related