International Social Work

The article examines the role of social security in South Africa based on a review of secondary data. The author argues that the role of social security is to prevent and reduce poverty and to promote reintegration. The social security system needs to be strengthened in order to enhance effectiveness.

This article reports on the importance of context and culture in designing assessment tools. It does so by examining the concept of women’s autonomy in rural India. And, in exploring this issue, the article opens a dialogue on the need for newer and more grounded concepts in working with women in rural India rather than simply applying those developed in other countries or available through the international literature.

An exploratory study was carried out on innovations introduced in schools of social work from 11 countries, based on a content analysis of semi-structured questionnaires. The innovations that emerged from these responses reflect, in part, the emerging requirements of coping with the global changes that affect social work practice today.

This qualitative study explored international students’ views of US social work education and Asian-Pacific indigenous practices. Some students recognized indigenous practices, strongly valued multiculturalism and regretted not having agency-specific knowledge and skills. While some social work knowledge and skills seemed to be universal, others were western-influenced.

This article presents an evaluation of a training workshop on developing social work in Jordan. Literature on transnational collaboration provided a context for the initiative.The evaluation outcomes highlight the transition from informal support to the need for a more structured professional response to social problems.

Many practice models in social work focus primarily on the concepts associated with resilience. By contrast, resistance and rebellion, important strategies of the disadvantaged, are often neglected by social workers in developed countries. The authors seek to reconstruct and revitalize the strengths perspective by constructing a framework that includes theories of reflective practice.

Ethical guidelines for social work generally recommend avoiding dual relationships whenever possible.This study explored perspectives from Canadian social workers in remote communities, where this may not be feasible. Dual relationships in these communities were identified as ubiquitous and inevitable. Formal decision models were often overlooked in favour of an ongoing evaluation of the therapeutic relationship, and self-care related to frequent exposure to dual and multiple relationships was identified as a concern. The role of formal education and training and professional guidelines are discussed.

The unprecedented number of orphans and vulnerable children in Zimbabwe has created an urgent need to create innovative ways to provide for the social protection of these children. Innovative packages consisting of educational, food and psychosocial support are being implemented by non-governmental organizations. However, as the orphan crisis continues to deepen, more needs to be done and, learning from the experiences of other countries, the option of cash transfers for social protection for orphans and vulnerable children offers an attractive option for Zimbabwe. This article explores the possibility of using cash transfers for the support of orphans and vulnerable children and highlights the challenges and strengths of this approach.