"International Community Practice"
Authors: Sousa, Cindy; Moss, Tamarah
Source: Encyclopedia of Social Work, NASW Press and Oxford University Press, May 2022, DOI: 10.1093/acrefore/9780199975839.013.1419
Type of Publication: Article
Abstract: As social work continues the ongoing work of developing frameworks for community practice, globalization and the increase in multicultural societies make urgent the need to consult international models. Community practice must center attention on building and sustaining relationships; determining who defines need and who controls the practices within the social work cycle of engagement, assessment, intervention, and evaluation; and maintaining community-centered practices that grapple with power dynamics in terms of status, resources, and culture. A learning approach is needed within international social work collaborations, characterized by an ethics of respect for sovereignty, cultural integrity, and the ways historical, political, cultural, and sociocultural contexts inform practice. Solidarity, authentic collaboration, and a respect for individual and collective autonomy and grassroots power are key features of community practice in international settings. The goal of the comparative perspective is for social workers to be better able to apply an international perspective to the building of theory and practice modalities within community practice.
Cindy Sousa is an associate professor of social work and Tamarah Moss is an assistant professor of social work and social research on the Alexandra Grange Hawkins Lectureship in Social Work.