Social Work Research Skills Workbook


Book Description

With an abundance of examples and exercises, this practically oriented workbook presents a step-by-step approach to help social work students develop and implement their research projects in human services organizations.




Qualitative Research Skills for Social Work


Book Description

Malcolm Carey provides social work students, academics and practitioners with a practical guide to completion of a small-scale qualitative research project or dissertation. This clear text takes the reader through the process of beginning and developing a research problem or question, defining their objectives and undertaking empirical or literature-based research that involves data collection, analysis, writing up and dissemination. The book also highlights and details potential obstacles, essential techniques and methods, types of theory and methodology used, and presents case studies and ongoing debates involved in qualitative social work research. It suggests ways by which sometimes difficult processes (such as the literature review, interviews with practitioners, etc.) can be made easier to complete and explores traditional methods such as the focus group or interview alongside less conventional methodologies such as participative, narrative, discourse or ICT-related approaches. Recent investigation has highlighted the lack of research skills held by many social workers in practice. This book overcomes these problems by providing an essential and easily accessible guidebook to qualitative research methods for social work students and practitioners as well as being of interest to tutors who teach research methods to social work students or supervise dissertations.




Research Skills for Social Work


Book Description

Social Work students often find research an intimidating and complex area of study, with many struggling to understand the core concepts and their application to practice. This book presents these concepts in an accessible and user-friendly way. Key skills and methods such as literature reviews, interviews, and questionnaires are explored in detail while the underlying ethical reasons for doing good research underpin the text. For this second edition, new material on ethnography is added.




Studying for your Social Work Degree


Book Description

This fully-revised new edition looks at how students can make the most from their time studying on the social work degree. Focusing on each of the three years of study, the author skilfully unpicks the critical thinking, reflection and study skills essential for the completion of the degree. There are sections on autonomous learning, writing academically, communication skills and developing critical analysis and argument. This second edition has more information on how students learn, what makes for excellence in social work research, and how students can successfully integrate their skills with their practice.




Essential Skills of Social Work Practice


Book Description

"Essential Skills of Social Work Practice: Assessment, Intervention, and Evaluation, third edition, by Thomas O'Hare, PhD, MSW, is written for advanced BSW and beginning MSW students who intend to work primarily in the mental health field. The book consists of three parts. Part I covers foundation concepts, including linkages among assessment, intervention, and evaluation; the relationship between research and practice; and essential ethics in social work practice. Part II addresses essential practice skills used throughout social work practice: supportive and relationship-building skills, cognitive-behavioral skills, and case management skills. Part III describes how these essential skills are combined as evidence-based practices targeting specific problems and disorders, including major mental illnesses, substance abuse and personality disorders, couples in conflict, and both internalizing and externalizing disorders in children and adolescents. The chapters focusing on disorders of children and adolescents emphasize family-based interventions. The final chapter addresses the profession's transition to evidence-based practices and related challenges given that their adoption is now expected in professional mental health practice"--




The Handbook of Social Work Research Methods


Book Description

"In the field of social work, qualitative research is starting to gain more prominence as are mixed methods and various issues regarding race, ethnicity and gender. These changes in the field are reflected and updated in "The Handbook of Social Work Research Methods, Second Edition". This text contains meta analysis, designs to evaluate treatment and provides the support to help students harness the power of the Internet. This handbook brings together leading scholars in research methods in social work." --Book Jacket.




Case Studies in Social Work Practice


Book Description

A practical approach to understanding social work concepts in action that integrates theory and practice In this updated edition of the classic social work text, students and instructors have access to real-world demonstrations of how social work theories and concepts can be applied in practice. The case studies in this book bridge the gap between the classroom and the field by allowing students to discover the when, why, and how of social work principles. Brief but comprehensive topic overviews are brought to life by case studies that apply general theories to the work of social work. Each of the book's nine sections cover an essential area of social work, encompassing the micro, mezzo, and macro levels Highly readable explanations are followed by 3-5 case studies relating theory to the living practice of real social workers Topics include Generalist Practice; Family Therapy, Treatment of Adults; and Diversity Approaching each topic from a variety of different theoretical bases, this essential text allow students to learn by concrete example, experiencing social work concepts as they are applied in the profession today.




Social Work Research Methods


Book Description

KEY FEATURES: A ‵‵learn by doing" approach woven throughout the text helps students apply knowledge to practice. A three-part structure introduces the fundamentals of research methods, the different types of social work research, and the use of data analysis for evaluation of social work practice. Chapter-opening vignettes illustrate the value of chapter content to the practicing social worker. Chapter-ending practice exercises provide opportunities to apply chapter knowledge and gain a better understanding of research competencies. Practical guidelines for data analysis show students how to use the Internet to analyze data with simple step-by-step instructions. Discussion questions provide opportunities to spark class discussions and help students reflect on critical concepts. Chapter tests, lists of key learnings, and glossaries at the end of chapters serve as convenient tools for reviewing key concepts and definitions.




Evidence Discovery and Assessment in Social Work Practice


Book Description

Social workers play a crucial part in contemporary society by ensuring that individuals are able to address, overcome, and manage obstacles in their daily lives. In an effort to better serve their clients, many practitioners have turned to evidence-based practice. Evidence Discovery and Assessment in Social Work Practice provides practitioners with the tools necessary to locate, analyze, and apply the latest empirical research findings in the field to their individual practice. This premier reference work provides insights and support to professionals and researchers working in the fields of social work, counseling, psychotherapy, case management, and psychology.




Making Your Case


Book Description

There is a growing need for research within practice settings. Increasing competition for funding requires organizations to demonstrate that the funding they are seeking is going towards effective programming. Additionally, the evidence-based practice movement is generally pushing organizations towards research activities, both as producers and consumers.There have been many books written about research methodology and data analysis in the helping professions, and many books have been written about using R to analyze and present data; however, this book specifically addresses using R to evaluate programs in organizational settings. This book is divided into three sections. The first section addresses background information that is helpful in conducting practice-based research. The second section of the book provides necessary background to begin working with R. Topics include how to download R and RStudio, navigation, R packages, basic R functions, and importing data. This section also introduces The Clinical Record, a freely available database program to help organizations record and track client information. The remainder of the book uses case studies to illustrate how to use R to conduct program evaluations. Techniques include data description and visualization, bivariate analysis, simple and multiple regression, and logistic regression. The final chapter illustrates a comprehensive summary of the skills demonstrated throughout the book using The Clinical Record as a data repository.