Social Welfare Policy for a Sustainable Future: The U.S. in Global Context

by Katherine S. van Wormer, Rosemary J. Link

Overview

Unique in its use of a sustainability framework, Social Welfare Policy for a Sustainable Future by Katherine S. van Wormer and Rosemary J. Link goes beyond U.S. borders to examine U.S. government policies—including child welfare, social services, health care, and criminal justice—within a global context. Guided by the belief that forces from the global market and globalization affect all social workers in their practice, the book addresses a wide range of relevant topics, including the refugee journey, the impact of new technologies, war trauma, global policy instruments, and restorative justice. A sustainability policy analysis model and an ecosystems framework for trauma-informed care are also presented in this timely text.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781452240312
Publisher:	SAGE Publications
Publication date:	03/18/2015
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	448
Product dimensions:	7.30(w) x 9.00(h) x 3.40(d)

About the Author

Katherine S. van Wormer, MSSW, Ph D, is professor of social work at the University of Northern Iowa. Her Ph D is in sociology from the University of Georgia. Uniquely in the 1960s, van Wormer participated in two civil rights movements—one in North Carolina and one in Northern Ireland, where she taught English for several years. In the late 1980s, she moved to Norway for two years to practice alcoholism counseling. Dr. van Wormer has authored or co-authored over 20 books and 60 articles. Among the recent books she has authored or co-authored are Death by Domestic Violence: Preventing the Murders and the Murder-Suicides (2009, Praeger); Working with Female Offenders: A Gender-Sensitive Approach, (2010, Wiley & Sons); two volumes of Human Behavior and the Social Environment, Micro and Macro Levels, Second Edition (2011, Oxford University Press); and Addiction Treatment: A Strengths Perspective, Third Edition (2012, Cengage). Her most recent books are Restorative Justice Today (2012, SAGE) and Women and the Criminal Justice System, Fourth Edition (2014, Pearson). Dr. van Wormer and her co-author have done numerous speaking engagements related to their 2012 book, The Maid Narratives: African American Domestic Workers and their Employers in the Jim Crow South (LSU Press).

Rosemary J. Link, Ph D, LISW received her undergraduate honors degree in modern history and politics with sociology from the University of Southampton and her postgraduate diploma in applied social studies from the University of London. After ten years as a school social worker then educational administrator, Dr. Link attended the University of Minnesota for her Ph D in social work with a special interest in children’s rights and social policy. Dr. Link served as a professor of social work and dean of graduate studies at Augsburg College where she assisted in building the MA in leadership and gaining the accreditation of the MSW and nursing programs. Dr. Link is currently associate vice president for Academic Affairs at Simpson College, Iowa where she is primarily responsible for building undergraduate and graduate programs for adult learners. In addition to administration, Dr. Link has chaired the Board of Southside Family Nurturing Center for six years (2003-2009) and she has ongoing research interest in children’s wellbeing and human rights. She has served as external examiner to the University of the West Indies at Mona, Jamaica and the University of Bharathair, Coimbatore. Dr Link has published numerous articles related to child poverty, human rights and social development, plus five books, including: a study of child poverty together with Dr. Anthony Bibus, titled “When Children Pay”; a textbook in human behavior together with co-author Dr Chathapuram Ramanathan, titled All Our Futures; a curriculum design text together with Dr. Lynne Healy, Models of International Curriculum in Social Work; and co-editor of the Handbook for International Social Work and Human Rights. In 2005-2006, Dr. Link received a state department grant to serve as an educational ambassador in Slovenia, India, and Singapore.

Table of Contents

Preface
Acknowledgments
Part I. Foundations of Social Welfare Policy
1. Social Work and Social Policy: A Sustainability Framework
Definitions and Standards
The Welfare State in the Face of Challenges
Challenges to Social Welfare: Power, Exploitation, and Unintended Consequences
Social Welfare Policy and Social Work
2. Historical Foundations of Social Welfare Policy
Feudalism and the Rise of Capitalism
The American Experience: “Exceptionalism” and Its Discontents
The Civil War and Its Aftermath
The Progressive Era (1900 to World War I)
The Mid-20th Century: The Great Depression, the New Deal, and Beyond
The Backlash: Late 20th Century and the Modern Era
3. Purpose and Structure of Social Welfare Policy
The Religious Underpinnings of Social Welfare
The Practical Application of Values
American Exceptionalism and the Corporation
4. Environmental Sustainability and the Social Work Profession
A Brief Eco History
The Planet in Crisis: The Scope of Environmental Loss and Damage
Food, Water, and Population Growth
Modern Agriculture and the Loss of Biodiversity
The Promise of Social Work
Social Welfare Policy Considerations
5. Poverty and Inequality by Suzanne Mc Devitt
Poverty and Inequality in the 21st Century
Defining and Measuring Poverty
6. Minority Groups and the Impact of Oppression
Oppression
Systemic Examples of Oppression
Progress and Backlash
Culturally Competent Social Work Practice
Part II. Policies to Meet Human Needs
7. Child Welfare
The Convention on the Rights of the Child
The CRC in Practice
8. Sustainable Health Care Policies
History of U.S. Health Care Reform
The Affordable Care Act
Disability Policy
Global Perspectives on Health Policy
9. Mental Health Care Policy
Mental Health Issues: Definitions and Challenges
Historical Views of Mental Health and Illness
Social Aspects of Mental Illness
Social Programs for Better Mental Health
Trauma and the Social Work Response
10. Sustainable Policy for Older Adults by Christina L. Erickson
Aging Worldwide: An Overview
The Development of Programs for Older Americans
Older Adults in Society
Housing and Long-Term Care
Sustainable Policy for Older Adults: An Intergenerational Approach
11. Human Rights
Immediate Threats to Human Rights: War and Guns
The United Nations and Universal Human Rights
The Role of Social Work in Human Rights
12. Sustainability Policy Analysis and Policy Practice
Defining Policy Analysis
How Are Social Policies Made?
Sustainability and Policy
Progressive Policy Analysis for a Sustainable Future
From Policy Analysis to Policy Practice
Ethical Issues Relevant to Social Change Efforts
Drawing on Our Social Work Imagination
Appendix A: Universal Declaration of Human Rights
Appendix B: Relevant Internet Sites
Index
About the Authors
About the Contributors

Editorial Reviews

This excellent book is very relevant to twenty-first century social welfare policy. I highly recommend it.

John Graham

A text with both critical thinking and sustainability focus.

Stephanie Warnecke Adams

[Van Wormer and Link] provide a timely examination of the impact of globalization on the social welfare state and conclude with a powerful section linking policy analysis to practice. I highly recommend this book for BSW and MSW programs seeking to significantly integrate sustainability content into their policy courses.

W. Jay Gabbard

Dr. van Wormer and Dr. Link have written the book those of us concerned with sustainable global policy have been longing to find. They present an inspiration, challenging the social work imagination to find creative solutions for sustainable future policymaking.

Dr. Marta Vides Saade