Introduction to Social Work

A comprehensive and historical introduction to social work.

This book is part of the Connecting Core Competencies Series. This series helps students understand and master CSWE’s core competencies with a variety of pedagogy highlighted competency content and critical thinking questions for the competencies throughout.

With its balanced presentation of social work and social welfare, this text answers students' questions about social work and their social work education.

Introduction to Social Work, 12/e, helps students understand the importance of history and how it has shaped the social work profession. Cases help students apply theory to practice and provide a glimpse of what social workers do and the versatility of the profession.

Teaching & Learning Experience

• Personalize Learning – MySocialWorkLab delivers proven results in helping students succeed, provides engaging experiences that personalize learning, and comes from a trusted partner with educational expertise and a deep commitment to helping students and instructors achieve their goals.
• Improve Critical Thinking – Includes critical thinking questions in margins.
• Engage Students – Extensive case studies help students apply theory to practice. MySocialWorkLab engages students with videos, cases, and licensing-type core competency questions.
• Explore Current Issues – Updated statistics include current data. Major areas updated throughout including school violence, mental illness, and other challenging issues.
• Apply CSWE Core Competencies – Integrates the 2008 CSWE EPAS throughout – highlights competencies and practice behaviors and includes expensive pedagogy. MySocialWorkLab adds value with core competency videos and hundreds of competency-based questions.
• Support Instructors – An Instructor’s Manual and Test Bank, Computerized Test Bank (MyTest), BlackBoard Test Item File, MySocialWorkLab with Pearson eText, and PowerPoint presentations are included in the outstanding supplements package.

Note: MySocialWorkLab does not come automatically packaged with this text. To purchase MySocialWorkLab, please visit: www.mysocialworklab.com or you can purchase a valuepack of the text + MySocialWorkLab (at no additional cost). VP: 0205042546

What Colleagues are Saying:

“The text offers a nice balance of the coverage of the material regarding social work and social welfare.” -- Barrett Michelle Horton, University of Tennessee at Martin

“The cases are helpful in allowing the students to understand the application piece of practice.  The cases are at the beginning of each of the chapters dealing with an area of practice in Social Work and it gives the student a glimpse of what social workers do and the versatility of the profession.” -- Barrett Michelle Horton, University of Tennessee at Martin

“I quite liked the first section “Introduction” because it really introduces a beginning level student to the profession of social work. The “distinguishing characteristics” summarize almost all components of the social work profession.  I also like the fact that a variety of fields of practice are discussed in the third section titled “Social Work Services”.” – Anita Sharma, University of Louisiana

“I like the design and formatting of the text.  I also like the fact that relevant information is highlighted, the examples stand out, and the formatting is easy to follow.” – Anita Sharma, University of Louisiana

“The textbook provides good historical as well as contemporary perspectives on social work which helps students to have a clear understanding of the profession. It emphasizes in the current generalist practice perspectives and answers students' questions about social work and their social work education.” – Saman Yaghmaee, San Diego Community College