Evidence-based practice (EBP) has emerged as an alternative to traditional social work practice and has ignited a new round in the decades-old debate about the relationship between knowledge and practice in the field. This article identifies several limitations inherent in the EBP perspective and argues that it would be unfortunate if EBP were to…

Extensive research documents powerful relationships between humans and companion animals, and 62 percent of U. S. households report having a companion animal. Social workers are likely to work with individuals and families with companion animals; thus, the inclusion of such animals in both practice and research as a natural extension of social…

This study was designed to establish a caseload standard for child welfare workers. Understanding reasonable workload expectations for child welfare workers is a cornerstone of quality service provision and the recruitment and retention of qualified workers. Because of the analytic complexity of this question, qualitative and quantitative methods…

Often faced with ethical challenges that may appear extraordinary, military social workers comprise a distinctive subgroup of the social work profession. From the unique paradigms in which they practice their craft, obvious questions about how military social workers address the ethical challenges inherent to their wartime mission arise. Using a…

An estimated one in four women experiences a pregnancy loss during her lifetime. Despite the pervasiveness of fetal mortality reflected by these numbers, social workers rarely initiate dialogues regarding reproductive loss history. Reproductive loss experiences are interwoven with typical themes emerging in everyday social work practice, including…

This article introduces social workers to the beliefs and practices associated with Paganism, Witchcraft, and Wicca and describes how social workers can help to create a welcoming environment for children and youths belonging to these religious minority groups. Drawing on social science research, social work literature, and a case example, the…

For social work practitioners to engage fully in efforts designed to improve the quality of social services, they need to understand what is meant by quality of care, grapple with its complexity, and know how to identify and leverage the key factors most likely to influence it. This article introduces a conceptual model that articulates numerous…

Although many in the social work profession have written about empowerment, few have offered a description of the empowerment process from the perspective of clients and workers in high-risk communities. This qualitative study presents a model of empowerment practice from the perspective of frontline workers, the challenges they faced, and the…

Gay affirmative practice models provide guidelines for behaviors and beliefs in social work practice with gay and lesbian individuals. The aim of this study was to develop a valid rapid assessment instrument to assess the extent to which social work practitioners engage in principles consistent with gay affirmative practice. The Gay Affirmative…