Social Work Practice: A Critical Thinker's Guide

Social Work Practice offers step-by-step guidelines and useful examples for each phase of practice, including assessment, intervention, and evaluation. It emphasizes the importance of critical thinking in arriving at sound decisions in all phases of social work, and encourages students to consider the context in which problems are defined and solutions are sought. Literature concerning problem solving and decision making is integrated throughout. Gambrill also offers a contextual framework in which both clients and their problems are viewed in relation to their environments. This text is organized around the decisions social workers make in their daily work with clients, including decisions about the nature of the problems clients confront, what information to gather, how to combine different sources of information, what criteria to rely on to select intervention methods, and how to evaluate practice. Content is illustrated and summarized throughout by case examples, study questions, and check lists. Controversial issues are highlighted and students are encouraged to consider how broader economic, social, and political issues contribute to personal problems. Ideal for students in social work, this text integrates theory, empirical data, and practice. It offers clear, accessible guidelines for developing practice skills and putting this knowledge to use in everyday practice.

Eileen Gambrill is Professor of Social Welfare at the University of California at Berkeley. She is the author of many articles and chapters in professional sources. Recent books include Critical Thinking in Clinical Practice, Critical Thinking for Social Workers: A Workbook (with Len Gibbs), Controversial Issues in Values, Ethics and Obligations (with Robert Pruger), and Controversial Issues in Child Welfare (with T.J. Stein).