Shannon R. Lane

Social Workers in Politics: A National Survey of Social Work Candidates and Elected Officials

This research identified 416 social workers who have run for local, state, or federal elected office, the largest number of such social workers identified and surveyed. The Civic Voluntarism Model was used to describe the factors leading to their political engagement. This model examines the resources, recruitment, and expertise of individuals and how those factors play into their public involvement. This model begins to describe the path these social workers took to elected office, and can help determine the opportunities for social work education and professional social work organizations who would like to influence this process. These results can be used to increase the number of social workers who seek elected office.

U.S. Students Study Abroad in the Middle East/North Africa Factors Influencing Growing Numbers

The political events of the last decade and the Arab Spring have made it more important than ever for Americans to understand the language, culture, and history of the Middle East/North Africa (MENA) region. Study abroad is one important method that can significantly increase American students’ understanding of the Arabic language and the culture of MENA. During the past decade, the number of U.S. undergraduate students in the MENA region has increased dramatically, but there is still a great need for growth and understanding in this area. This research analyzes data from a cross-sectional survey and focus groups of U.S. undergraduate study abroad students to investigate the motivations, attitudes, and aspects of human capital that influence study abroad destination choice. These findings provide insight for policy makers, faculty, and international educators who want to expand students’ options for study abroad and for students who are considering whether this avenue is right for them.

Inspiring and Training Students for Social Action: Renewing a Needed Tradition

In social work, it is believed that certain knowledge and skills are learned more effectively through experience than through didactic classroom content. Members of the faculty of a school of social work have developed a Social Action Day to reinforce curriculum and translate into practice material about advocacy and ethical responsibilities for social action; show the breadth of social work practice; and enhance the schools sense of community. The authors share their experience to inspire other social work faculty, so that they are better able to foster student interest and passion for political action that may generate social change.

POLITICAL CONTENT IN SOCIAL WORK EDUCATION AS REPORTED BY ELECTED SOCIAL WORKERS

As a profession, social work has encouraged its members to run for public office to translate the values and ethics of social work into public policy. This study of 416 elected social workers around the country provides insight into the experiences of these elected social workers in their social work education. The classes, skills, activities, field content, and information that can prepare social workers for practice in the political arena are described. Based on these findings, suggestions for political content in social work education that can prepare social workers for this arena of practice and future research in this area are discussed.

Field Note—Integrating Policy and Political Content in BSW and MSW Field Placements

Practice incorporating policy and political social work is a key component of the social work profession and an area in which students would benefit from exposure during social work education. Field education presents a significant opportunity for students to develop policy and political practice skills; however, individual and structural barriers may prevent students from developing practice experience in this area. Based on a survey of bachelor of social work and master of social work field directors in the United States, this field note examines the current state of policy and political practice field opportunities and examines barriers to offering such opportunities more widely. Ideas to facilitate these field opportunities, including curriculum-wide education about policy practice, relationship building, creativity, and identifying diverse placement sites, are presented.

Salary Inequity in Social Work A Review of the Knowledge and Call to Action

Fifty years after the Equal Pay Act of 1963, research continues to find disparities between the salaries of men and women across disciplines. This study examines empirical evidence about salary and gender within the social work profession from the 1960s to present day. All available articles with empirical data regarding salary and gender during the time period were included in this systematic review. Salary disparities were found between men and women in the vast majority of studies. The authors classify contributing factors into three categories (a) characteristics of the employing organizations, (b) characteristics of the position held, and (c) characteristics of the individual, and include a discussion of factors relevant to social workers in academic positions. The researchers recommend legislative policy changes, best practices in organizational policy, and proactive education within social work programs. Social workers have the opportunity to effect change in this area by promoting social justice within our society, practice, and educational institutions.

Collective Power to Create Political Change: Increasing the Political Efficacy and Engagement of Social Workers

ABSTRACT Because social workers are called to challenge social injustices and create systemic change to support the well-being of individuals and communities, it is essential that social workers develop political efficacy: belief that the political system can work and they can influence the system. This study explored the impact of an intensive political social work curriculum on political efficacy and planned political engagement among social work students and practitioners. The findings suggest this model of delivering a political social work curriculum effectively increases internal, external, and overall political efficacy, and that increasing political efficacy has promise for increasing future political engagement.

Gender and Social Workers’ Political Activity

This research compared male and female elected social workers to discover whether they report the same gender differences as other elected officials. Few gender differences were found among respondents. Differing from elected officials as a whole, female and male social workers reported similar levels of recruitment, favorable views of power and the demands of office and family, and interest in and knowledge about a variety of issues, with the exception of the issue of abortion. The potential contribution of anticipatory socialization and implications for social work education, political recruitment, and reproductive rights work are discussed.

‘Politics is social work with power’: training social workers for elected office

Abstract Training social workers for leadership roles in electoral campaigns and political offices increases the profession’s effectiveness in promoting public policy that reflects our professional values and commitment to social justice. This research describes and evaluates an educational experience in the US that prepares social work practitioners and students to run for elected office; to work in leadership positions at the local, state, and federal levels; and serve as effective advocates for social change. Participants’ plans for future political engagement before and after the training were compared. Following the training, participants are more likely to plan to be politically active in general. Their intentions to work on campaigns, run for office, and engage with elected officials increased. These results can inform education in other social work settings.

Planning the Political Intervention: Advocacy Campaigns

This chapter builds from the five-stage process for developing political strategy introduced in Chap. 5, and adapts it specifically to the process of planning an advocacy campaign. An advocacy campaign is a political change effort focused on bringing about a specific policy change or changes. This process is most relevant to domains 1 and 2, specifically to strategies involving advocating for expanded political power, and for influencing policy agendas and policy decision-making.