Suchergebnisse

Cross-cultural competence has become a byword in social work. In a postmodern world in which culture is seen as individually and socially constructed, evolving, emergent, and occurring in language (Laird, 1998), becoming "culturally competent" is a challenging prospect. How do we become competent at something that is continually changing and how do we develop a focus that includes ourselves as having differences, beliefs, and biases that are inevitably active. After considering this and several other contemporary perspectives on cultural competence, the author questions the notion that one can become competent at the culture of another. The author proposes instead a model based on acceptance of one's lack of competence in cross-cultural matters.

Assessment and formulation, the gathering of information about a client, and the conceptualization of the client or situation are the essential elements that mark a thoughtful approach to client care. This process has been shaped over time by changes in orientations to knowledge, new theories, new practices, and political and institutional pressures. Currently, there is an intense debate concerning the nature of social work practice, especially the assessment and formulation process. In this context, we review traditional approaches to formulation in light of contemporary understandings and trends. We present a model for formulation that highlights multiple ways of knowing and includes ecological, cross-cultural, psychodynamic, systemic, biological, and spiritual components. Social justice is the value that is foundational to the process.

This article examines narrative and constructivist approaches to clinical work asking how we decide what makes a "better" story. It explores the educator's role in helping students learn to balance respect for unique and diverse accounts with the profession's commitment to social justice, objectively defined.