This paper questions whether the development of Sámi social work could benefit from a greater emphasis on communities in research ethics. Using experience from a comparative research project carried out in indigenous communities in Norway and the USA, we discuss: 1) The advantages and challenges associated with the institutionalization of research ethics, and 2) The consequences for our research design resulting from dialogue with the ethical committees. We conclude that Sámi social work would benefit from more emphasis on external ethical validation. We call for a debate among social workers and researchers on community involvement in social work research.
Summary This study investigates family involvement and culturally informed social work in Native American communities. The study was conducted in Native American communities in Montana, USA. Twenty-three Native American social work professionals participated in qualitative interviews. Analyses draw on theory of historical trauma and family involvement in indigenous social. Throughout the study, indigenous methodology has been a central principle. Findings Among social workers, there is a common understanding that social work should involve family and community if it is to be culturally informed. Social work professionals talk of family involvement in indigenous social work as “common sense.” For the Native American social work professionals interviewed, the following tenets are all “common sense”: (1) family and community belonging are important aspects of Native American culture; 2) oppression and colonization had a negative impact on family, community, and tribal relations; and (3) social work has an obligation to restore family, community, and tribal relations. Application Social work has a responsibility to connect culture, trauma, and the resolution of trauma. Furthermore, family and community involvement plays a core part in restoration and resilience processes, healing historical trauma caused by the colonization. Hence, in order to provide culturally competent care, social work practices serving Native American clients should involve family and community. Mainstream social work does not sufficiently build on family involvement as an ideological foundation for qualitatively good social work. We argue that social work curricula impacting Native clients could benefit from the experience and knowledge of these Native American social workers.
This qualitative study compares social work in Sami communities within Norway and Native American communities in Montana in the US. A total of 39 social workers were interviewed. We investigated the conceptualization of culture and ethnicity, as well as the implications of these constructions for a culturally adequate social work practice. We find that social workers in Sápmi conceptualize culture and ethnicity as hybrid and fluid, while the social workers in Native American communities have a more fixed and static conceptualization. When working in Native American communities, social workers’ theme of inequality among groups, and the continuing effect of assimilation on family life. Among social workers in Sami communities in Norway, little attention is given to power relations among ethnic groups. These differences in construction affect both the framing and the legitimacy of culturally adequate social work within these two contexts.
It is generally assumed that Family Group Conference (FGC) is a culturally adequate method for social work in indigenous communities. In this meta-synthesis, we question this assumption. Through systematic and strategic searches, we explored the existing trends of FGC research in indigenous contexts. We have included 26 articles are included in the literature review. Our analyses reveal that there is a tendency towards taking the cultural adequacy of FGC for granted. A few researchers question these assumptions, and debate tokenism and colonialism in social work. We argue that implementing FGC in new communities requires foundation in local, cultural context.
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