Practical Social Work Ethics

Dr Malcolm Carey and Dr Lorraine Green, both at the University of Manchester, UK.

This is the first text of its kind to deal exclusively with applied social work ethics. It focuses on an eclectic mix of difficult moral questions or issues encountered in much modern day practice. It is therefore not theoretically driven with some practical elements attached, but is instead is a practice-based book, where any theory introduced is linked to tangible practice situations. It is also thought-provoking, controversial in parts and always engaging. With a focussed and clear writing style, this book will be of interest to all social work students and practitioners interested in the practical yet complex moral ramifications of their applied role.

Contents: Introduction: practical social work ethics, professionalism and ethical space, Malcolm Carey and Lorraine Green; Part I Past and Present: Moral Practices with Children and Families: Beyond the community of persons to be accorded 'respect'? Messages from the past for social work in the Republic of Ireland, Paul Michael Garrett; Secrets and lies: the ethical implications of family estrangement, Kylie Agllias and Mel Gray; Is cultural sensitivity always a good thing? Arguments for a universalist social work, Gurnam Singh and Stephen Cowden; To touch or not to touch? Exploring the dilemmas and ambiguities associated with touch in social work and social care settings, Lorraine Green and Ros Day. Part II Ethical Tensions? Ambivalent Ethics and Adult Social Work: Doing what's best, but best for whom? Ethics and the mental health social worker, Kenneth McLaughlin and Sean Cordell; Ethical contradictions in critiques of psychiatry, John Hopton; An ethics journey: ethical governance of social research with vulnerable adults and the implications for practice, Richard Ward and Sarah Campbell. Part III Contesting Modernisation: Where did we go wrong? An analysis of economic conflicts of interest, perverse financial incentives and NOMBism, Lynn Wrennall; More than this? Some ethical doubts (and possibilities) regarding service user and carer participation within social work, Malcolm Carey; Resistance in and outside the workplace: ethical practice and managerialism in the voluntary sector, Donna Baines; Index.