Perceptions of frontline social workers on their contributions to the global agenda for social work and social development

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW), the International Association of Schools of Social Work (IASSW), and the International Council on Social Welfare (ICSW), recognised how the past and current social issues influence communities at local, national and global levels. This resulted in the development of the Global Agenda for Social Work and Social Development. Considering that the initiative is aimed at strengthening social work as a profession, this calls for the need to assess how social workers are contributing to the identified pillars of the Global Agenda.Recognising that not much have been done in Africa at large, it became apparent that there is need to engage with social workers at a local level to acknowledge the significance of the Global Agenda for Social Work and Social Development. Therefore, the study intended to gain an understanding on the perceptions of frontline social workers in the South African context on their contributions towards the Global Agenda for Social Work and Social Development.This study employed a qualitative research method. A snowball sampling design was used to select participants. The data was qualitatively collected from 17 frontline social workers using in-depth interviews. Data was analysed using thematic analysis. The findings of the empirical investigation show that, although frontline social workers were able to identify some of the practical examples of what they actually do (linking people to resources, working together with other social professionals etc.), most of the participants were not aware of the Global Agenda and its focus at all. Hence, a gap was identified in terms of frontline social workers' involvement at a macro level of intervention. Participants identified their non-involvement in policy formulation (macro) as an obstacle to service delivery as they only become involved at ground (micro) and organisational (mezzo) levels.Recommendations resulting from the study indicate that it is vital that social workers continue to strengthen their working relationships with individuals and families at a micro level. Moreover, it requires the management of social welfare organisations to engage with intervention processes at a mezzo level, so that the working relationships with the frontline social workers are strengthened, in order to keep each other updatedon current initiatives. Finally, there is a great need for frontline social workers to become more involved at a macro level in order to have an influence on policy formulation. This could enable frontline social workers to gain an understanding of macro contexts and to encourage change at the highest level. This will have a positive impact on the lowest level (micro), as social workers experience the real issues encountered by individuals in their daily interventions.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University