New Evolutions of Social Work at the Backdrop of International Development: Professional Organizations' perspectives

The paper will present the preliminary results of a research that focuses on the overall effects of international development on social work as a profession. It aims to identify and describe the ways in which national... [ view full abstract ]

The paper will present the preliminary results of a research that focuses on the overall effects of international development on social work as a profession. It aims to identify and describe the ways in which national professional organizations of social workers understand and position themselves within the growing interconnection between social work and international development activities. These activities are part of the emergent field of international social work. Within the international social work context, social workers’ activities are redefined and reorganized according to internationally-driven goals and objectives as well as international ways of understanding the development taking place at the community level, where social workers have a well established role. Data will be gathered from questionnaires sent to 90 member organizations of the International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW). The organizations are questioned in regard to recent evolutions of their activity at the backdrop of this evolving link between social work practice and international development initiatives. Two of the main dimensions explored by the questionnaire are the organizations’ degree of engagement in development work and their attitudes toward the future of social work in the context of development. Results are contextualized for each geographical region and interpreted within the framework of the Global Agenda for Social Work and Social Development.