This article examines to what extent a social norm to work moderates the relationship between employment status and subjective well-being. It was expected that the detrimental impact of non-employment on subjective well-being would be larger in countries with a stronger social norm. Using a direct measure of the social norm to work and employing data from 45 European countries, this study assessed subjective well-being levels of five employment status groups for men and women separately. Results showed that subjective well-being of unemployed men and women is unaffected by the social norm to work. However, non-working disabled men are worse off in countries with a stronger norm. Living in such a country also decreases the well-being gap between employed and retired men, whereas retired women are worse off in these countries. This effect for retirees disappears when a country’s GDP is taken into account, suggesting that norms matter less than affluence.
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Vergelijkende Europese studie in opdracht van Kees van Aken, toenmalig directeur van de opleiding Social Work i.o. van de Hogeschool Zuyd, naar welke verschillende varianten er mogelijk zijn als er gesproken wordt over een Internationale Bachelor Social Work - Maastricht. Op welke manieren zijn er in Europa reeds internationale bachelors zijn ontwikkeld. Het onderzoek moet een overzicht van enkele blauwdrukken van een Internationale Bachelor Social Work opleveren, om mede op basis daarvan een keuze te maken voor een (eventueel meerdere) voor Hogeschool Zuyd wenselijke variant(en) daarvan in Maastricht. Er is vergelijkend Europees onderzoek gedaan naar de verschillende filosofieën en organisatievormen van curricula International Social Work zoals die op verschillende Hogescholen en Universiteiten in Europa functioneren. Met name zijn “good practice” ervaringen onderzocht en met elkaar vergeleken, om op basis daarvan een aantal varianten helder te krijgen voor de opdrachtgever.
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Diversity implies variety. Diversity refers to the differences between people. Visible aspects – such as age, skin colour, gender, disability – and less or non-visible aspects such as cultural and social background, skills and competencies, and style of working. If you can handle diversity, you will be able to handle different kinds of people. The concept of ‘equality’ can be seen as opposite from the concept of ‘diversity’. Dutch society can be characterized as a culture of equality. Due to increasing diversity it is argued this culture of equality will eventually turn out to be unfavourable. A culture of diversity is reasoned to be an inevitable alternative. A first exploration of the characteristics of such a culture and its significance for the work of the Social Worker is being done at present.
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In maart 2011 dreigde Muammer Gaddafi van Libya duizenden onschuldige burgers van de stad Benghazi uit hun huizen te halen om hen te vermoorden. De Veiligheidsraad van de Verenigde Naties verwees de situatie door naar het Internationaal Strafhof in Den Haag, dwong een no-flyzone af en gaf de NAVO een mandaat om burgers te beschermen with all necessary means, met de uitzondering van grondtroepen. Deze operatie was snel, robuust en effectief. Het principe van The Responsibility to Protect (R2P) -de verantwoordelijkheid van de internationale gemeenschap om genocide, misdaden tegen de menselijkheid, etnische zuivering en oorlogsmisdaden te voorkomen en te stoppen- werd voor het eerst volledig toegepast. Is R2P daarmee een norm geworden? Dit onderzoek plaatst de casus Libië in het model van de "Norm Life Cycle" (de levenscyclus van een norm) van de Constructivistische theoretici Finnemore en Sikkink (1998). Libië toont aan dat R2P nu een tipping point (omslagpunt) heeft bereikt, en zich van de fase norm emergence (opkomende norm) naar de fase norm cascade heeft verplaatst. Er is echter een spanning ontstaan: de terughoudendheid van de Veiligheidsraad om R2P toe te passen in Syrië (2012) wijst de andere kant uit. Er is dus nog een lange weg te gaan, voordat R2P als een internalised norm (vanzelfsprekende norm) kan worden beschouwd. ABSTRACT In March 2011, Muammar Gaddafi of Libya threatened to pull thousands of civilian protesters in the city of Benghazi out of their homes and kill them. The Security Council of the United Nations referred the crisis to the International Criminal Court, imposed a no-fly zone and provided NATO with a mandate to protect civilians by all necessary means, with the exception of ground troops. This operation was fast, robust and effective. It also marked the first time that the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) principle was fully implemented, being the responsibility of the international community to prevent and respond to genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes if the state in question is not able or not willing to protect its citizens itself. Has R2P become a new norm? This study situates the case of Libya in the 'Norm Life Cycle' model of Constructivist theorists Finnemore and Sikkink (1998). It suggests that R2P has reached a tipping point and has moved from the stage of norm emergence to the stage of norm cascade. However, a certain tension still exists: the reluctance of the Security Council to implement R2P again in the crisis in Syria (2012)points in the opposite direction. This suggests there is still a long way to go before R2P becomes an internalised norm in the international community.
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Social work in the Netherlands is attracting an increasing number of Turkish and Moroccan Dutch professionals, mostly second-generation migrant women from a Muslim background. Inspired by Amartya Sen’s capability approach, this article presents the findings of a qualitative content analysis of 40 interviews with professionals by peers from the same background. The question is, what kind of professionals do these newly started social workers desire to be and what hindrances do they encounter? The professionals challenge the dominance of Western beliefs and values. This becomes tangible in their desires and constraints and especially in the process of choice.
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A definition of the concepts ‘multidisciplinairy and transdisciplinary work’ and the different types of reaction of social work towards the emergence of multidisciplinary and transdisciplinary approaches.
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The realization of human rights standards depends in part on the commitment of local actors. It can be argued that local public service professionals such as social workers can also be regarded as key players. The possible role of social workers becomes imperative if these professionals are working in a policy context that is not congruent with human rights. If existing laws or policies cause or maintain disrespect for human rights, social workers are in a position to observe that this is having an adverse impact on clients. When social workers are regarded as human rights actors, the question arises how they can or should respond to law and policy that impedes them in carrying out their work with respect for human rights. This article adds to existing theories on social workers as human rights actors by examining the practices of social professionals working in such a challenging policy context. The research took place among professionals in social district teams in the city of Utrecht, the Netherlands. Following a series of decentralizations and austerity measures the social care landscape in the Netherlands has changed drastically over the last few years. As a result, social workers may find themselves on the one hand trying to realize the best possible care for their clients while on the other hand dealing with new laws and policy expectations focused on self-reliance and diminished access to specialist care. The article explores how social professionals’ responses to barriers in access to care affect human rights requirements. In doing so, this socio-legal study provides insight into the ways in which everyday social work relates to the realization of human rights at the local level.
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This article draws on findings of an international study of social workers’ ethical challenges during COVID-19, based on 607 responses to a qualitative survey. Ethical challenges included the following: maintaining trust, privacy, dignity and service user autonomy in remote relationships; allocating limited resources; balancing rights and needs of different parties; deciding whether to break or bend policies in the interests of service users; and handling emotions and ensuring care of self and colleagues. The article considers regional contrasts, the ‘ethical logistics’ of complex decision-making, the impact of societal inequities, and lessons for social workers and professional practice around the globe.
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As a practitioner, a manager and a scientist in social work for 40 years, I am still intrigued by the social work positioning and legitimating processes. Its recognition by users and financiers is often diffuse and its fragmentation sometimes hinders effective interventions. In social work itself, we see a range of positioning processes, most of them either legitimating social work as a promoter of social justice, a supporter of emancipation and anti-oppressive practice, or positioning social work as a therapeutic approach, treating people with socio-psychological and psychiatric disorders. Social work is often promoted as a ‘real’ profession, in need of formal recognition and in need of a precise profile. In this article it will be argued that the core of social work is about supporting people in their social functioning and should position itself in the centre of the post-modern quest: the social-psychological disorientation, the lack of meaning, and the problems of isolation and exclusion. Modern professionalism is not about demarcating and regulating but much more about ‘Entgrenzung’ and openness.
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