Abused wives who left their abusive relationships help us to understand the factors that enabled them to decide on leaving. This article reports the decision-making phase (as part of a larger study) through the experiences of two ethnic Chinese, one Indian Muslim, and five Malay Muslim women in Singapore. Using an ecological perspective, the study found the urgency of their abusive situation and a change in awareness regarding the impact of the abuse on their children and themselves were the main factors influencing the decision to leave. Feedback from external support networks and religious beliefs contributed to the cognitive shift that a negative person–environment fit existed. Implications of these findings for social work practice and social policy are discussed.
Purpose -This paper aims to study the future of the Singapore association of social workers using causal layered analysis (CLA) and the Futures Triangle. In today's rapidly changing world, professional associations have to re-evaluate their roles to remain relevant. This paper presents an analysis of findings from a study on the level of alliance of social workers with their professional association. By critically examining underlying issues beneath common beliefs held by social workers that impede, promote or sustain change with their professional association, we can gain a deeper understanding into their level of alliance with their association. Insights toward current issues faced by the association as well as its alternative and preferred futures could be illuminated. Design/methodology/approach -Inayatullah's "Futures Triangle" was used to deepen the findings of the study on the level of alliance of social workers with their professional association from the lens of CLA (Inayatullah, 2004). The study employed interviews with 27 social workers in Singapore, selected through purposive sampling. Findings -Alternative scenarios and preferred futures of the Singapore Association of Social Workers (SASW) that were postulated from the interviews reinforce a need for more targeted recruitment campaigns. It also calls for regionalization and globalization of SASW to maximize its potentials. Originality/value -The paper suggests how a social work association might be able to reposition its role in relation to its stakeholders to promote and sustain itself. SASW could do so through positioning itself as the "National Geographic" beacon for social workers in Singapore to reach out to the world.
Cancer tends to have an impact on a person's psychological and social well-being. Group work is one approach that can help manage the psychosocial impact of cancer. Group interventions for people living with cancer have existed for a number of decades with a majority of them adopting the cognitive-behavioral approach. While this approach has been found to be efficacious, it may be limited for people who prefer acts of service and metaphors. This article describes an experiential approach to group intervention, an alternative to cognitive-behavioral groups. The group intervention featured is designed for participants of Enreach Retreat, a retreat for people living with cancer and their caregivers, by the Department of Psychosocial Oncology, National Cancer Centre Singapore.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.