101273: The Role of Artistry in Social Work Practice

About the Course:

The course contains two articles. Article 1. Social work depends on relationship building to achieve its goals. This requires knowledge derived from research, as well as the intuitive understanding and interpretive abilities that are refined through experience with clients. The evidence-based practice movement and its forebears have for decades attempted to determine which theory or method of practice is most effective when applied to specific problems or diagnoses. However, extensive meta-analyses have determined that other variables—in particular, the quality of alliance formed between worker and client—matter most in predicting outcomes. This article summarizes the research and concludes that the evidence supports an improvisatory conception of practice, and that improved outcomes will result when there is increased attention to those variables that enhance the working alliance. COURSE SYLLABUS I. Introduction: Art and Science in Social Work II. Ideology and Science: An Enduring Dilemma III. Summary.

Article 2. Despite historical acknowledgements and recent advancements in conceptualizing the arts for social work, the calls for arts inclusion have yet to stimulate a sustained research program. Taking creative writing as exemplary art, this inquiry gathered accounts of key constructs related to the arts. Using M. van Manen’s (1997) phenomenological-hermeneutic methodology, 31 creative writers, teachers of creative writing, “arts inclusive” social workers, and social work researchers completed in-depth interviews. The participants’ accounts illustrated that the arts’ intersection with social work facilitated integrated, nondual epistemologies for practice. The social workers also highlighted the limits and benefits of including the arts in practice. The proposed arts infusion approach calls upon an enlarged view of human reality for social work within an ongoing ethic of care. COURSE SYLLABUS I. Literature Review II. Methodology III. Findings IV. Discussion and Implications for Practice.

Journal/Publisher:

Families in Society (Alliance for Children and Families)

Publication Date:

2007/ Vol. 88, No. 4

Authors

(Article 1) Clay T. Graybeal, PhD, LCSW; (Article 2) Thecla Damianakis, PhD

About the Authors:

(Article 1) Professor, University of New England

(Article 2) Assistant Professor, University of Windsor

Recommended For:

This course is recommended for social workers, counselors, psychologists, and other human services and behavioral health professionals who seek knowledge about social work practice and how it relates to other fields like art and science. It is appropriate for participants with beginning and intermediate levels of knowledge about the topic.

Course Objectives:

1. Compare current evidence-based practice approaches and how they relate to improvisatory techniques and variables that enhance the working alliance.

2. Understand how arts (i.e. creative writing) facilitate integrated, nondual epistemologies for social work practice.