Practice and Policy Focus Newsletter
The current journal supplement focuses on the art of social work practice:

    Social work practice is an informed art, born of balance and
    structured general knowledge gained through the
    client-practitioner relationship. —Clay Graybeal

Past editions of this newsletter highlight articles related to a particular topic of interest for social workers and other social service practitioners and clinicians. Click on the article hyperlinks in the newsletter PDFs to open the article abstracts on the Web. Additionally, subscribers can open the full-text articles from those abstract links.

• Art of Social Work Practice
  (2007, Issue 4) [PDF /517KB]
• Working Poor Families
  (2007, Issue 3) [PDF /800KB]
• Fathering and Fatherhood
  (2007, Issue 2) [PDF /135KB]
• Social Work With At-Risk Youth
  (2007, Issue 1) [PDF /200KB]
• Best Practices in Foster Care and Adoption
  (2006, Issue 2) [PDF /240KB]
• Ethics and Risk Management in Social Work
  (2006, Issue 1) [PDF /155KB]

CSWE 53rd Annual Program Meeting Recap
Thank you again to the Council on Social Work Education conference attendees who visited with FIS editors and staff at our exhibit and open house. While we weren't able to meet all 2,600 attendees, we enjoyed spending time with many of you to answer questions, share news about upcoming projects, discuss the 2008 editorial calendar, and much more.

If you weren't able to attend and pick up a copy of our free informational CD-ROM available at the FIS exhibit booth, please e-mail us to request a copy. We'll see you in January 2008 at the Society for Social Work and Research national conference in Washington, DC, and in November 2008 for the next APM in Philadelphia.
 

2007 Consulting Editors List
Thank you to the many conscientious and informed consulting editors upon which Families in Society has relied during 2007. They have supplied an invaluable service that provides critical feedback to authors and improves the body of available literature. Click here to download the 2007 roster.

If you would like to become a consulting editor for FIS or view the updated consulting editors list, please visit www.familiesinsociety.org/reviewing.asp for more information.
 

Online Continuing Education
CE4Alliance, the online continuing education program provided by Families in Society and its publisher, the Alliance for Children and Families, features over 100 courses arranged in 20 topic categories. Visit the site, or download the course catalog.

Four new courses, developed from articles in the current issue, are now available.

• The Role of Artistry in Social Work Practice
  Course #101273 (2-article course)
  
  Article 1: Evidence for the Art of Social Work
  by Clay T. Graybeal │ Abstract
  Social workers have long endeavored to develop helping relationships that are grounded in a core set of values and derived from a strong empirical foundation. The author notes that much of the quest for evidence of validity has focused on determining which theory, model, or technique will be most effective with a particular problem situation or diagnosis. Yet improved outcomes often are due to additional factors in the client/practitioner relationship. In particular, the art of practice is embedded in the capacity of the individual practitioner to form working alliances with clients, and to abstract from the generalities of accumulated knowledge to the particulars and exigencies of a moment in time. This article summarizes existing literature and research, and concludes that the evidence supports an improvisatory conception of practice.
  
  Article 2: Social Work’s Dialogue with the Arts: Epistemological and Practice Intersections
  by Thecla Damianakis │Abstract
  Historically, the discussion among social work theorists as to how the arts can enhance social work practices has largely remained at a conceptual level. In response, this study focuses on the domain in which the arts may inform social work epistemology and practice. As evidenced by the structured narratives collected from artists’ and social workers’ accounts of key constructs related to the arts—specifically the creative writing process—participants report that the arts’ intersection with social work facilitates integrated, nondual epistemologies for practice. The narratives also expand on the limits and benefits of including the arts in practice, leading to a proposed arts infusion approach that calls upon an enlarged view of human reality for social work within an ongoing ethic of care.
   
• Reaching Isolated New Mothers: Insights From a Home Visiting Program Using Paraprofessionals
  by Ruth Paris, Meagan Gemborys, Peggy H. Kaufman, & Debbie Whitehill
  Course #101275 │Abstract
  This article highlights a program designed to provide direct supportive home-based services to at-risk new mothers and vulnerable families. Aware of the challenges facing new mothers (e.g., mood changes, fears surrounding child rearing, low self esteem, loneliness, and isolation), the Visiting Moms Program uses volunteer paraprofessionals from the local community in the role of “mentor mothers” to connect new mothers with resources, listen without judgment, and strengthen parenting abilities. The paraprofessionals are trained by the agency in basic theoretical and helping skills, familiar to most social workers, that enable the volunteers to provide consistent, supportive relationships tailored to each client. The article also discusses additional training and volunteer recruitment techniques.
   
• Sexual Revictimization: Implications for Social Work Practice
  by Rebecca J. Macy
  Course #101276 │Abstract
  This article addresses recent findings regarding the social, environmental, and contextual understanding of revictimization. Since repeated experiences of violent victimization lead to increased trauma and greater difficulty with emotional disturbance and mental illness, the author stresses an emphasis on prevention along with a general disregard of outdated presumptions that victim behavior leads to repeated victimizations. Recommendations include more thorough assessments of client case histories, increased attention to the client’s environment, and development of proactive strategies to decrease individual risk and enhance self-protection abilities.
   
• Telling Family Stories: The Family Building Projective Technique
  by Donna A. Tonrey
  Course #101274│Abstract
  Sharing family stories has significant meaning for clients in therapy and can be especially difficult for mentally ill clients in an adult partial hospitalization program (PHP). This article presents the Family Building Projective Technique (FBPT), which has been demonstrated as an effective therapeutic tool that assists clients in discussing emotionally charged and intense family issues in a group setting. The technique situates the issues within the context of a story about a fictitious family created by clients and allows for the exploration of challenging family issues in a time-limited session. Specifically, FBPT provides an opportunity for clients to simultaneously tell their own stories; this externalization helps the clients to discuss a problem and how each individual in a family can address it, as well as discussing solutions.
   

Hot Topic Webinars

Families in Society and its publisher, the Alliance for Children and Families, present the Hot Topic Webinar and teleconference series. Interactive presentations with nationally recognized experts focus on topics relating to practice, education, and policy within social services.
 

A Webinar in early 2008 will feature a presentation by Sondra Fogel, guest editor of the recent FIS special issue "Working But Poor: Next Steps for Social Work", on issues surrounding the working poor and community development. Check the FIS Web site for announcements on upcoming Webinars, sign-up and registration forms, and links to archived presentations.

Preview the Next Issue (January-March 2008; Vol. 89, No. 1)
The first issue of next year (January-March 2008, Vol. 89, No. 1) will feature topics of evolving and improving care, mental illness and older adults, youth perspectives on foster care, ethical issues and international social work practice. Read the abstracts for the upcoming articles.
 

Renew Your Subscription for 2008
Don't forget to renew your FIS subscription! Let your librarian, CQI officer, or training manager know FIS is a key knowledge-building tool for your program. Complete the request form and forward it to your library, or find a subscription that best fits your needs. Click here for ordering options.

As a trusted forum for social service practitioners, educators and students to explore ideas and concepts, FIS offers vital information on significant trends and techniques through practice-related articles on research and theory, direct-practice issues, and the delivery and management of services.
 

2007 Annual Index
The complete 2007 journal index (Volume 88; January—December 2007) is available on the FIS Web site for download. In order to assist you in finding articles, this index is in multiple parts: Authors, Subjects, Book Reviews and Letters and Comments. Article digital object identifiers (DOIs) are 10.1606/1044-3894.XXXX, with the four digit suffix numbers provided in parentheses for each article in the index.

As a reminder, all articles, editorials, book reviews and letters published since 1980 are available on the FIS Web site: www.familiesinsociety.org.

Writers at Work Series
Conversations About Writing: The Journey From Practitioner to Writer
by Jane Maidment & Vaughan Milner │ Article PDF (free to registered users)
Authors Maidment and Milner begin a series of e-mails regarding their development in writing from both the academic and practice perspectives. The authors detail their experience during the writing journey and look at how the two perspectives can complement one another. Social work practice lends itself well to creative, artistic activity, yet it is a dimension that gets lost in the hubbub and mayhem of day-to-day practice.

OP-ED Pieces
The Business of Accreditation
by J. Curtis McMillen │ Article PDF (free to registered users)
This op-ed piece by McMillen is intended as purposeful satire and follows in the tradition of such as a mechanism for evoking thought and commentary about important issues. While it uses humor to focus on the marketing of social services and behavioral health care, readers might do well to ponder the benefits and limitations of accreditation and accrediting bodies. Does accreditation truly hold agencies accountable for good and effective services? Would we be better off without them, and if so, who assumes the obligation and mandate to advocate for the social, ethical, and moral care of others? We invite readers to send us your reactions on this op-ed and the many processes and motivations it satirizes.

Commentary and Response
Commentary on “Training, Co-Training, and Cross Training of Domestic Violence
and Child Welfare Agencies” (Vol. 88, No. 1; Nuszkowski et. al)
by John Pfleiderer │ Article PDF (free to registered users)
The article "Training, Co-Training, and Cross Training of Domestic Violence and Child Welfare Agencies" raises many important questions regarding the content and purpose of joint training. According to Pfleiderer, the article authors contend that the joint training of these agencies concerning the behavioral and psychological consequences of intimate partner violence on both women and children would prove beneficial. He relates that this conclusion is at best conceptually biased, at worst normatively irresponsible, and may, in fact, be counter-productive to improved interdisciplinary casework. What is at stake is not the development of an adequate understanding of barriers but rather an ideology of absolution of parental responsibility. 

Response to “Commentary on ‘Training, Co-Training, and Cross Training of Domestic Violence and Child Welfare Agencies’”
by Jeffrey H. Coben │ Article PDF (free to registered users)
The article authors respond that the commentary on their article has only superficially mentioned the primary conclusion, which is that child welfare and domestic violence agencies continue to operate independently and that additional policies to support collaborative training efforts are needed. Such collaborative training activities have been strongly recommended by the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges and, as referenced in the original article, have demonstrated promising initial results. In his response, Coben states that the author of the commentary has chosen instead to focus upon the issues of blame, failure to protect, and re-victimization.

Book Reviews

• Foundations of Evidence-Based Social Work Practice; edited by Albert R. Roberts and Kenneth R. Yeager
  Reviewed by Ngoh Tiong Tan │ Article PDF (free to registered users)
   
• Interventions Following Mass Violence and Disasters: Strategies for Mental Health Practice; edited by Elspeth Cameron Ritchie, Matthew J. Friedman, and Patricia J. Watson
  Reviewed by Sharron M. Singleton │ Article PDF (free to registered users)
   
• Foundation and Future of Feminist Therapy; by Marcia Hill and Mary Ballou
  Reviewed by Linnea Flynn GlenMaye │ Article PDF (free to registered users)
   
• Elder Abuse and Mistreatment: Policy, Practice, and Research; edited by M. Joanna Mellor and Patricia Brownell
  Reviewed by Deana F. Morrow │ Article PDF (free to registered users)
   
• Las Hijas de Juan: Daughters Betrayed; by Josie Mendez-Negrete
  Reviewed by Susan DeLuca │ Article PDF (free to registered users)
   

Current Issue  │ Table of Contents  │  Article Summaries  │ Editorial

Topics in this issue include:

• Art of Social Work Practice
• Social Development Theory
• Grandparents Raising Grandchildren
• Evaluative Issues in Child Welfare
• Empowerment Strategies With Mothers
• Treating Sexual Victimization
• Case Management and Therapeutic Approaches
• Book Reviews
• 2007 Annual Index
• 2007 Consulting Editors List

Online subscribers and registered users can access the full-text article links below. Sign in now, subscribe, or register for a free account.

To view all articles, visit the current issue page. Online subscribers can view the complete issue and non-subscribers can view all abstracts and summaries.

Highlighted Articles:

Tacit and Codified Knowledge in Social Work: A Critique of Standardization in
Education and Practice
Emilia E. Martinez-Brawley & Paz M-B Zorita
Day-to-day social work is uncertain enough that practitioners need to be trained to recognize the unpredictability of life itself and endeavor to achieve creative interventions in the situations they encounter. The authors argue that the complexity of social work is a powerful dimension of the profession which should not be divested of its layers to the point where it loses its identity and usefulness. In particular, they examine the progression of social work education from preparation for a cause or an artistic undertaking (tacit knowledge) to preparation for a technological undertaking or market endeavor (codified knowledge). It is proposed that strict standardization in the field’s education detracts from more creative and imaginative practice—a hallmark of social work.
Abstract │  Article PDF (free to registered users)

A Re-Membering Conversation with Howard Goldstein
Miriam L. Freeman
In this article, the author recounts her learning experiences while a student of Howard Goldstein, the renowned social work educator and scholar, based on a “re-membering conversation” detailed through papers she and Goldstein exchanged. Some of the career-guiding and lifelong values imparted by Goldstein include: relationships are primary to the helping process; ingredients for good practice include caring, commitment, questioning and searching; a delicate balance exists between empathizing with people and effecting change; and passion is a strength, not something about which to be ashamed. Through the re-membering, Goldstein’s teachings are more available to the author now, and can remain continually vital and relevant to social workers in the 21st century, especially in light of the continuing debate on science vs. art in social work practice.
Abstract │  Article PDF (free to registered users)

Theoretical Perspectives for Child Welfare Practice on Kinship Foster Care Families
Hyunah Kang
Reviewing both qualitative and quantitative studies, this article reveals that, while children in kinship care enjoy stronger familial bonds (social capital) and sense of stability, no direct evidence supports the notion that the children receive more overall resources in such care. One example is that kin caregivers are often less well-equipped to cope with the demanding medical issues presented by children exposed prenatally to substance abuse. Other factors show that kin caregivers tend to demonstrate a higher psychological commitment than non-kin caregivers, but this commitment does not ensure a higher level of investment of time or financial capital. Overall, however, more research is needed before any analysis of advantages and disadvantages can be formalized.
Abstract │  Article PDF (free to registered users)

Substance Abuse and Mental Retardation: Balancing Risk Management With the “Dignity of Risk”
Elspeth M. Slayter
Many people with mental retardation or developmental disabilities (MR/DD) prove vulnerable to substance abuse (SA), yet the social service systems of the two conditions do not mesh well together in providing the appropriate, targeted help for those affected. Challenging policy and practice tensions exist in the paradoxical situations in which individuals’ rights regarding choices about alcohol and drugs may conflict with the responsibility held by caregivers, staff, and the state. In response, an attempt is made to assist social workers by presenting a baseline framework for use in planning individualized, self determination-oriented case management approaches. This customized, case-by-case approach—involving a higher level of monitoring and reinforcement—has the potential to be more successful.
Abstract │  Article PDF (free to registered users)

 

Practitioners and educators find value in FIS ...

"The article on languages of empowerment and strengths in clinical social work will be very helpful to our health professionals gain a better understanding of the strategies they can use to improve their client-centred practice." ● Read the article abstract

Louis-François Dallaire
Faculty of Medicine, Université Laval
Interprofessional Education for Collaborative Patient-Centred Practice (IECPCP)
Quebec, Canada

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"Your online series on international foster care has incredibly useful and insightful articles that will directly benefit many in our international "Better Care Network" which seeks to promote positive care options for children globally through policy and practice." ● Browse the special issue articles

Aaron L. Greenberg
Coordinator, Better Care Network
UNICEF / Child Protection Section, New York

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"We at the AoA are very interested in the information contained in your article on helping others understand the benefits of consumer-directed care. This article will be a great help to many of our Alzheimer program grantees and applicants, as well as state and local government agencies."  ● Read the article abstract

Lori Stalbaum (MSW), Project Officer
Alzheimer's Disease Demonstration Grants to States Program (ADDGS)
U.S. Administration on Aging (AoA), Dept of Health and Human Services, Washington, DC

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"My organization provides training to child protective and other protective services staff with the state agency Texas Dept of Family and Protective Services. The article on parents with mental illness provides an excellent summary of issues and recommendations that will be incorporated into our project training."
● Read the article abstract

Jason McCrory (MSSW), Project Coordinator
Protective Services Training Institute of Texas
School of Social Work, Univ of Texas at Austin
 

We want to hear from you...
FIS is a forum for social workers, practitioners, and educators to explore and share new ideas and concepts in the fields of social work and human services.  Let your voice be heard through Letters to the Editor, Field Notes, or Op-Ed pieces.  See www.familiesinsociety.org/writing.asp for more information. 

Is there something missing you’d like featured in an FIS E-Alert? Send an email with your idea: alerts@familiesinsociety.org