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BJSW Advance Access originally published online on May 4, 2006
British Journal of Social Work 2007 37(4):735-760; doi:10.1093/bjsw/bcl030
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© The Author 2006. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The British Association of Social Workers. All rights reserved.

Well Motivated Reformists or Nascent Radicals: How Do Applicants to the Degree in Social Work See Social Problems, their Origins and Solutions?

Philip Gilligan

Philip Gilligan (MA, BA, CQSW, PTA) is a lecturer in social work at the University of Bradford, where he is also admissions tutor for the BA (Hons) Social Work and the MA Social Work. His research interests include the interface between social work, culture, religion and spirituality, and child sexual abuse and Asian communities. He is white.

Correspondence to Philip Gilligan, Department of Social Sciences and Humanities, University of Bradford, Bradford BD7 1DP, UK. E-mail: p.a.gilligan{at}bradford.ac.uk

This article reports ways in which applicants to the Degree in Social Work see ‘social problems’, their origins and possible solutions to them. What is demonstrated is that whilst applicants are concerned about a range of problems, those which could be broadly classified as ‘anti-social behaviours by individuals or groups’ predominate, in contrast to those which could be defined as ‘aspects of the social structure which have an adverse impact on individuals or groups’. Applicants are much more likely to suggest ‘individual’ rather than ‘social’ causes and are most likely to suggest ‘liberal/reformist’ solutions. It is argued, in the context of frame analysis, that pre-existing views will usually impact strongly on how students respond to the knowledge and challenges offered during training. The article aims to place discussion within consideration of wider issues, particularly whether social work in Britain can maintain its historic commitment to social justice and prevent itself becoming an increasingly uncritical tool of the UK government’s social authoritarianism. Finally, it seeks to raise questions about whether social work education can assist qualifying workers to develop and maintain resiliently radical approaches to practice, which are also effective in bringing positive change to vulnerable and disadvantaged people.

Keywords: social problems, radical social work, frames


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