Welfare Reform on the Web (March 2007): Social care - overseas

International perspectives on social work: global conditions and local practice

K. Lyons, K. Manion and M Carlsen

Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2006

The process of globalization and its effects have meant that social professionals need to review their services in the light of international events and perspectives. For some, this involves working in international settings, but for many, it means incorporating international perspectives into local practice. The book offers a comprehensive introduction to these new ways of thinking about the purpose and scope of social work. The first part examines three broad theoretical concepts – globalization, inequality and loss. Part II illustrates different forms of interconnectedness between the global and the local, including:

• Conflicts within and between communities
• Natural and forced migration (including trafficking)
• The exploitation of children
• The global spread of disease

and shows how these play out in social work settings around the world.