The Faculty Meeting: Practicing Social Justice-Oriented Group Work

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“…Swenson identifies various factors of clinical social work that promote social justice, factors that include having a focus on client strengths and empowerment, developing an appreciation for resources and context that define the client's social reality, planning and advocating for services, and addressing social action to change social institutions so that social justice becomes available to all. Other authors have suggested that social justice at the micro level is served when such practice addresses issues of power, privilege, and oppression (Jacobson, 2009;Parker, 2003). We argue that CBT-grounded in a nonjudgmental, strength-based, and empowering philosophy, and placing its focus on promoting unconditional acceptance and respect of self and others-is a good fit with the social justice mission of social work.…”

“…This sense of social interest compels the individual to protect the rights of others and to work toward the well-being of one's community. A number of authors have argued that the social justice mission of social work can be carried out at the micro or clinical level of practice (Jacobson, 2009;Parker;Salas et al, 2010;Swenson, 1998;Wakefield, 1988aWakefield, , 1988b).…”

Promoting the Social Justice Orientation of Students: The Role of the Educator

“…This may be especially problematic considering the challenges educators face when teaching social justice-related content (e.g., Abrams & Gibson, 2007;Bell et al, 1997;Garcia & Van Soest, 2000;Gutiérrez et al, 1999;Hong & Hodge, 2009;Jacobson, 2009), the difficulties students experience when exposed to this content (e.g., Bell et al, 1997;Deal & Hyde, 2004;Fleck-Henderson & Melendez, 2009;Garcia & Van Soest, 2006;Sciame-Giesecke et al, 2009;Tummala-Narra, 2009), and recent charges of ideological bias leveled against social work education (e.g., NAS, 2007;Will, 2007). Given these challenges, it may be problematic that no significant support or guidance regarding how to attend to this standard effectively in their teaching was reported by these interviewees.…”

Group Work and Social Justice: Designing Pedagogy for Social Change

“…Although social workers are familiar with the dynamics and phases of small groups, often in the context of therapy, rarely do they extend that knowledge to large social groups or movements. In fact, Jacobson (2009), drawing on Andrews (2001) historical analysis of group work in social work, states that "social group work was a movement well before it became a field of practice and one of social work's core generic methods" (p. 179). Although group work in the context of therapy/support has been privileged in social work since the 1950s, there is a rich social group work tradition of social change oriented groups encompassing political activism, social action, community change, and participatory research (Andrews, 2001;Andrews & Reisch, 1997;Breton, 2006;Jacobson, 2009;Jacobson & Rugeley, 2007;Paquet-Deehy, Hopmeyer, Home, & Kislowiez, 1985).…”