Stanley Houston

Reflecting on Habitus, Field and Capital: Towards a Culturally Sensitive Social Work

• Summary: This article argues that the notion of the knowledge base as a central aspect of professional activity is flawed, and that it is more useful to see social work as in a continuous process of constructing and reconstructing professional knowledge. • Findings: Culture is an area that has attracted widespread attention in academia and the social professions. However, there has been little examination of culturally sensitive social work practice from a realist perspective, or one that starts from the view that oppressive structures, as encoded within social class, are essential determinants of cultural experience. Following a critique of postmodern perspectives on culture, the work of Pierre Bourdieu on culture and power is explored. • Applications: Three of Bourdieu’s key constructs - habitus, field and capital - are utilized to develop a model for culturally sensitive social work practice that attends to the interplay of agency and structure in reproducing inequalities within the social world.

Prising Open the Black Box Critical Realism, Action Research and Social Work

There is a growing interest in critical realism and its application to social work. This article makes a case for adopting this philosophical position in qualitative social work research. More specifically, it suggests that there is a concordance between critical realist premises and action research with its cyclical inquiry and advancement of social change. This combination of philosophy and method, it is argued, promotes anti-oppressive social work research and illuminates the processes shaping outcomes in programme evaluations. Overall, the article underscores the importance of ‘depth’ in qualitative inquiry by conceiving the social world in terms of five interlacing, social domains.

Philosophy, Theory and Method in Social Work: Challenging Empiricism’s Claim on Evidence-based Practice

• Summary: For quite some time the evidence-based practice discourse in social work has been influential. While this may be viewed as a positive development, problems arise when some of the proponents of the discourse deride other approaches in social work as unscientific. In particular, it is of concern that those who embrace a psychodynamic perspective have been corralled into a ‘mentalist’ enclosure which, it is argued, lacks scientific rigour. By way of rebuttal, this paper argues that approaches promoting an understanding of ‘deep structure’ have a legitimate place within the evidence-based discourse in social work. Bhaskar’s critical realism is adopted to make the case. • Findings: The retroductive method, as articulated by Bhaskar, can be extrapolated to social workers’ assessments of complex situations. This method provides a way of generating and testing hypotheses and evidence by drawing on realist, explanatory theories to gain understanding of the deep, causal mechanisms at play in social life. • Applications: This paper makes a contribution to the continuing discussion about the nature of evidence, and how it is acquired, in social work. Critically, it argues that the pursuit of evidence is central not only to the intimate, micro-domain of face-to-face interaction but also to the macro-domain of oppressive social structure.

Towards depth and width in Qualitative Social Work: Aligning interpretative phenomenological analysis with the theory of social domains

Queens University Belfast, UK In this article the authors argue that qualitative inquiry in social work can gain a clear-sighted awareness of the social world by aligning a methodological approach, Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis, with a sociological theory of agency and structure, the Theory of Social Domains. The authors contend that this alignment equips the researcher with an understanding of both the psychological and sociological dimensions of existence – its ontological depth and width. A case for this alignment is made, first, by setting out the theoretical and methodological foundations of both approaches and then, second, proffering a conceptual bridge between them through their shared interest in social phenomenology. The remaining part of the article goes on to consider how this alignment provides a theoretical and methodological substratum for qualitative investigations into social work where anti-oppressive research practice is to the fore.

Re-thinking a systemic approach to child welfare: a critical response to the framework for the assessment of children in need and their families.

The Framework for the Assessment of Children in Need was introduced by the Department of Health (England and Wales) in 2000. Offering guidance to social workers in child and family settings, it came as a watershed in three main ways. First, it emphasized the connection between child poverty and developmental delay. Second, it advocated a systemic approach to child welfare by drawing on a number of related theories, including Bronfenbrenners (1979) model of human development. Third, it overturned a restricted preoccupation with child abuse that had dominated much of child and family social work in the past. These developments aside, the systemic basis of the framework is problematic because it fails to explain how power operates within society. Without this understanding, social workers will not be in a position to tackle the inequalities which the framework rightly targets. This paper seeks to remedy these deficits by drawing on the critical systems theory of Jürgen Habermas.

Transcending Ethnoreligious Identities in Northern Ireland: Social Work's Role in the Struggle for Recognition

Abstract It is axiomatic that recognition of the different categories of identity lies at the heart of social and political transmutation. This truism applies to Northern Ireland, where a history of sectarianism has led to an abnormal State and fractured civil society. Yet, sociopolitical structures in this most troubled of regions are now perched on a climactic edge with the reestablishment of a new, devolved political Assembly. At this historic moment, Northern Ireland is witnessing a new optimism as politicians from opposing ends of the political spectrum engage in open debate about local issues. Although progress may be slow, there now seems to be a greater opportunity to engage with the “politics of identity” in a purposeful way. In this new political dispensation, social work is faced with the challenge to move beyond its technocratic mindset to embrace social justice as a master discourse. However, the present paper argues that the starting point for this paradigm shift lies in an understanding of identity formation through the portal of critical social theory. In particular, it will be argued that Honneths critical theory of recognition provides a means for reshaping social work intervention according to three perspectives: object–relations theory, citizenship rights, and communitarianism. Armed with these perspectives, social workers in Northern Ireland can rethink their role as activists committed to the recognition of all the different categories of identity formed by social class, gender, religion, and culture.

Mandated prevention in child welfare: Considerations from a framework shaping ethical inquiry

• Summary: This article outlines a framework for approaching ethical dilemmas arising from the development, evaluation and implementation of child welfare policies. As such, it is relevant to policy-makers, social researchers and social workers. The central tenets of the framework are developed by drawing on ideas from moral philosophy and critical social theory. These ideas are presented as axioms, theorems and corollaries, a format which has been employed in the social sciences to offer a rational justification for a set of claims. • Findings: This process of reasoning leads to four principle axioms that are seen to shape the ethical scrutiny of social policy: 1) problematizing knowledge; 2) utilizing structured forms of inquiry to enhance understanding; 3) engendering enabling communication with those affected by the ethical concern; and 4) enhancing self-awareness. • Applications: The four axioms are then applied, by way of example, to the current and contentious, ‘third way’ policy of mandated prevention in child welfare, where the aim is to obviate deleterious outcomes in later life. It is argued that the framework can be applied beyond this specific concern to other pressing, ethical challenges in child welfare.

Moral Consciousness and Decision-Making in Child and Family Social Work

Child and family social work is beset by value dilemmas. In this paper Stan Houston attempts to find a way out of these entanglements by delving into the moral philosophy of Jurgen Habermas. It is argued that Habermass ideas on moral discourse enable social workers and others involved in a childs life to reach ethical decisions. Towards the end of the paper, the argument is grounded in two case examples centering on child placement decisions. At this juncture it is argued that Habermass position creates certain problems for ethical decision-making involving children, but that these problems can be assuaged by a range of compensatory actions including advocacy and critical reflection.

Using Action Research to Enhance Resilience in a Children's Home: An Exploration of Need, Experience and Role

This paper describes an action research project aimed at enhancing resilience in young people in a residential childrens home. Two core areas were explored, namely: the needs of the young people as captured through a resilience framework; and the experiential and role-related issues arising from the attempts to enhance the young peoples resilience. The findings showed that the young people faced a number of intrapersonal and interpersonal challenges. Yet, despite a number of organisational and role limitations, the residential social workers were able to respond resourcefully to these challenges by engaging in practices that simultaneously met agency imperatives, therapeutic goals and instrumental needs.

Understanding informal kinship care: a critical narrative review of theory and research

Many children are cared for on a full-time basis by relatives or adult friends, rather than their biological parents, and often in response to family crises. These kinship care arrangements have received increasing attention from the social science academy and social care professions. However, more information is needed on informal kinship care that is undertaken without official ratification by welfare agencies and often unsupported by the state. This article presents a comprehensive, narrative review of international, research literature on informal, kinship care to address this gap. Using systematic search and review protocols, it synthesises findings regarding: (i) the way that informal kinship care is defined and conceptualised; (ii) the needs of the carers and children; and (iii) ways of supporting this type of care. A number of prominent themes are highlighted including the lack of definitional clarity; the various adversities experienced by the families; and the requirement to understand the interface between formal and informal supports. Key messages are finally identified to inform the development of family friendly policies, interventions, and future research.