Tanya Rhodes Smith
Biographic Data
| ID | 4175862 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Tanya Rhodes Smith |
| GIVEN NAMES | Tanya Rhodes |
| FAMILY NAME | Smith |
| SIGNATURE | SMITH T R |
| AFFILIATIONS | Nancy A. Humphreys Institute for Political Social Work, and instructor in residence, University of Connecticut School of Social Work, Hartford, CT |
| VERIFIED | No |
| TOTAL WORKS | 9 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 3 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 9 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2018 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 1 |
Moving from manufactured ambivalence to building power
Felony re‐enfranchisement efforts have expanded voting rights of formerly incarcerated people (FIP) across 26 states. Despite progress, research demonstrates low voter turnout and civic participation among this structurally marginalized population. We conducted a community‐based participatory research project, rooted in the framework of critical consciousness, to understand how FIP experience voting. We conducted five semi‐structured focus groups…
Political Social Work’s Role in Competency-Based Social Work Education
Unlike other helping professions, social work was founded to be political, with an explicit call to engage in political action for a more socially just society. However, despite sustained inequitable policy outcomes, most social workers are not politically active, as social work education fails to prepare students to meaningfully engage in politics. Political social work is an approach that builds political engagement into all social work practic…
The Voter Engagement Model
Although voting is a fundamental mechanism through which Americans engage with their democracy, social workers often do not see it as a valid component of practice. Voting is an important source of political power and provides a means to ensure equitable representation. Educating social work students on how they can encourage voter engagement within practice is an important step to rectifying this missed opportunity. This article describes the im…
Political Efficacy in Social Workers Before and After 2016
Since 2016, members of communities traditionally prevented or discouraged from electoral politics have challenged barriers to political power. Social work’s current research base about political action reflects the pre- 2016 political landscape. Survey data collected between 2015 and 2019 examines ways social workers’ political engagement and efficacy reacted to this political environment. We examined political efficacy of social workers and stud…
Training Social Workers for Political Engagement
Social workers are challenged by the profession’s Code of Ethics to engage in social and political action to create social change, and social work education is challenged by our Code and accreditation standards to prepare students for this challenge. Social policy instructors often need to adapt teaching methods in order to account for differences in the political and social context within which they are teaching. This study uses the Civic Partic…
Giving a Voice to Those with Felony Convictions
Felony disenfranchisement, the practice of removing the right to vote from people who have been convicted of a felony, is at odds with the core values of the social work profession and an example of the structural racism built into our democracy. Historically, felony disenfranchisement laws were written into state constitutions and statutes to explicitly limit the political power of African Americans and other marginalized groups. The disproporti…
Creating a Culture of Voting in Direct and Generalist Practice
Social workers have an ethical responsibility to be engaged in policy change, regardless of their practice area or specialization. Voter engagement and the importance of political power through voting is often overlooked in the literature as a valid and important component of social work practice. Creating a culture of nonpartisan voter engagement in practice settings can help empower individuals who have been historically and intentionally disen…
From the Empire State to the North Star State
Voter engagement has the potential to be a fundamental part of social work practice and key to the professional socialization of social work students. This article describes a classroom-based voter engagement project conducted in two undergraduate social work programs in different U.S. states with significantly different voting laws. We describe the rationale, process of implementing the project, evaluation, and review the results in the context …
The Political Participation of First Year Social Work Students
This study identifies the types of political participation engaged in by MSW students (n=214). A self-report survey administered to MSW students at a Northeastern university indicates limited political involvement. MSW students participate in political activities not requiring significant time, energy, or resources. Furthermore, on the scale and its two subscales, micro-oriented students had less political participation than macro-oriented studen…
The Political Participation of First Year Social Work Students
This study identifies the types of political participation engaged in by MSW students (n=214). A self-report survey administered to MSW students at a Northeastern university indicates limited political involvement. MSW students participate in political activities not requiring significant time, energy, or resources. Furthermore, on the scale and its two subscales, micro-oriented students had less political participation than macro-oriented studen…
Training Social Workers for Political Engagement
Social workers are challenged by the profession’s Code of Ethics to engage in social and political action to create social change, and social work education is challenged by our Code and accreditation standards to prepare students for this challenge. Social policy instructors often need to adapt teaching methods in order to account for differences in the political and social context within which they are teaching. This study uses the Civic Partic…
The Political Participation of First Year Social Work Students
This study identifies the types of political participation engaged in by MSW students (n=214). A self-report survey administered to MSW students at a Northeastern university indicates limited political involvement. MSW students participate in political activities not requiring significant time, energy, or resources. Furthermore, on the scale and its two subscales, micro-oriented students had less political participation than macro-oriented studen…
From the Empire State to the North Star State
Voter engagement has the potential to be a fundamental part of social work practice and key to the professional socialization of social work students. This article describes a classroom-based voter engagement project conducted in two undergraduate social work programs in different U.S. states with significantly different voting laws. We describe the rationale, process of implementing the project, evaluation, and review the results in the context …
Training Social Workers for Political Engagement
Social workers are challenged by the profession’s Code of Ethics to engage in social and political action to create social change, and social work education is challenged by our Code and accreditation standards to prepare students for this challenge. Social policy instructors often need to adapt teaching methods in order to account for differences in the political and social context within which they are teaching. This study uses the Civic Partic…
Giving a Voice to Those with Felony Convictions
Felony disenfranchisement, the practice of removing the right to vote from people who have been convicted of a felony, is at odds with the core values of the social work profession and an example of the structural racism built into our democracy. Historically, felony disenfranchisement laws were written into state constitutions and statutes to explicitly limit the political power of African Americans and other marginalized groups. The disproporti…
Creating a Culture of Voting in Direct and Generalist Practice
Social workers have an ethical responsibility to be engaged in policy change, regardless of their practice area or specialization. Voter engagement and the importance of political power through voting is often overlooked in the literature as a valid and important component of social work practice. Creating a culture of nonpartisan voter engagement in practice settings can help empower individuals who have been historically and intentionally disen…
Political Efficacy in Social Workers Before and After 2016
Since 2016, members of communities traditionally prevented or discouraged from electoral politics have challenged barriers to political power. Social work’s current research base about political action reflects the pre- 2016 political landscape. Survey data collected between 2015 and 2019 examines ways social workers’ political engagement and efficacy reacted to this political environment. We examined political efficacy of social workers and stud…
The Voter Engagement Model
Although voting is a fundamental mechanism through which Americans engage with their democracy, social workers often do not see it as a valid component of practice. Voting is an important source of political power and provides a means to ensure equitable representation. Educating social work students on how they can encourage voter engagement within practice is an important step to rectifying this missed opportunity. This article describes the im…
Political Social Work’s Role in Competency-Based Social Work Education
Unlike other helping professions, social work was founded to be political, with an explicit call to engage in political action for a more socially just society. However, despite sustained inequitable policy outcomes, most social workers are not politically active, as social work education fails to prepare students to meaningfully engage in politics. Political social work is an approach that builds political engagement into all social work practic…
Moving from manufactured ambivalence to building power
Felony re‐enfranchisement efforts have expanded voting rights of formerly incarcerated people (FIP) across 26 states. Despite progress, research demonstrates low voter turnout and civic participation among this structurally marginalized population. We conducted a community‐based participatory research project, rooted in the framework of critical consciousness, to understand how FIP experience voting. We conducted five semi‐structured focus groups…
Political science (8 works) · Politics (8 works) · Sociology (8 works) · Social Work Education and Practice (7 works) · Law (6 works) · Nursing Education, Practice, and Leadership (5 works) · Psychology (5 works) · Public relations (5 works) · Social Work (5 works) · Homelessness and Social Issues (4 works)