What is the role of science in social work? Ian Shaw considers social work inventions, evidence-based practice, the history of scientific claims in social work practice, technology, and social work research methodology to demonstrate the significant role that scientific language and practice play in the complex world of social work.
By treating science as a social action marked by the interplay of choice, activity, and constraints, Shaw links scientific and social work knowledge through the core themes of the nature of evidence, critical learning and understanding, justice, and the skilled evaluation of the subject. He shows specifically how to connect science, research, and the practical and speaks to the novel topics this integration introduces into the discipline, including experience, expertise, faith, tacit knowledge, judgment, interests, scientific controversies, and understanding.
Industry Reviews
This thoughtful book succinctly analyzes the longstanding tensions between science and art, science and action, and science and values that have influenced social work scholarship, practice, and education for over a century. Shaw illuminates contemporary debates over the nature and purpose of social work research by placing them in their historical, ideological, and political contexts.
