This book describes how social work teams can respond to social problems in a way that both deals with immediate need and helps build community capacity. The authors recognise the need to respond appropriately to crisis where vulnerable children and adults are at risk, but argue that an inappropriate response can compound and perpetuate people's problems. They suggest that social care organisations need to go beyond operating as aid agencies focusing on the needs of individuals, and should...

Developing mental health team effectiveness requires that we explore both how people work together and the context of the team itself. This text, by an acknowledged authority in the field, examines the historical, social policy, political and organisational context alongside the design and the management of team processes. Recognising the central importance both of the relationship between users and staff, and the mental health of team members, the author considers teams as part of a conti...

This clear, student-friendly text offers a step-by-step introduction to the use of SPSS - easily the most widely used data analysis computer package in the social sciences. Supported by four datasets taken from the well-known British Social Attitudes Survey on the topics crime, health, politics and poverty, it offers an eminently practical approach to its subject, while still setting its explanation of statistical procedures within the wider social research context.

Students of social work need to understand the contribution of research, as part of this evidence base, to effective practice. This textbook introduces students to a range of research methods at a practical level and sensitises them to the political dimension of research.

Social Work and Social Work Perspectives introduces readers to a range of important sociological concepts, showing how these can feed critical practice and illustrate social work's complex relationship with the welfare state. Adopting a unique social policy framework, this distinctive text is illuminating reading.

Are there differences in the way that men and women care? Are the care needs of women and men perceived as being different? What do we mean by community? Is being cared for always a positive experience? How can social workers and social care workers work positively with individual differences?Much has been written about both the formal and informal provision of community care, and women's role within this. However, less attention has been paid to the users of community care service...

This new textbook examines the knowledge, skills and values that underpin and inform current social work practice and processes. With a clear focus on skills, social work processes and the suitability of different methods, Watson offers students a toolkit for applying theoretical frameworks to actual practice situations.

This book is aimed at beginners. If you are totally confused and dismayed at the prospect of undertaking a research project, read on. If you are an expert in research, this is not the book for you unless you merely wish to revise your existing knowledge. Above all this book is intended as an outline and a guide. It does not provide a definitive recipe on how to conduct a research project. You will learn by your own studies which methods and techniques suit you best and how to modify ideas ...

This book seeks to counter the recent trend of speculation about the impact of globalization upon welfare states. It begins by asking two related questions:'What exactly is globalization?''How, if at all, has globalization been implicated in recent changes to European welfare states?'The book combines both theoretical and empirical analysis to provide a critical account of the relationship between globalization and change in European welfare states.Firstly the ...

In this important text, Malcolm Payne shows how team members in care services can use networking and teambuilding to strengthen their practice by being open to work with wider networks of agencies, professionals and service users. He brings traditional team development up-to-date, including perspectives from research, from management ideas and from professional writings. Each chapter contains a concise account of new ideas in teamwork, practical guidance on teambuilding and teambuilding ac...

This text sets residential life and work in the context of wider social systems, focusing on the function homes serve in looking after young people and adults who would struggle to live elsewhere. Roger Clough highlights what residential workers need to know and do in order that, together with residents, they organise systems and lifestyle to provide the best service. Good residential practice develops from theory and understanding: of people, structures, residential practice, research met...

Presenting a model for interdisciplinary working, this book offers an overview of practice and policy across a range of mental health settings. It explores how to combine skills, theories and expertise from a range of disciplines in response to the diverse needs of service users, from children to older people, and those with complex needs.