John Solas
Biographic Data
| ID | 3426581 |
|---|---|
| NAME | John Solas |
| GIVEN NAMES | John |
| FAMILY NAME | Solas |
| SIGNATURE | SOLAS J |
| AFFILIATIONS | Queensland University of Technology |
| VERIFIED | No |
| TOTAL WORKS | 13 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 29 |
| WORKS AS AUTHOR | 13 |
| WORKS AS EDITOR | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 1991 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2018 |
| H-INDEX | 3 |
Is It Just Enough
Since its inception, social work has professed an abiding commitment to social justice. Indeed, it is perhaps one of the few professions to have maintained such an obligation. This pledge is officially inscribed in the Code of Ethics of the National Association of Social Workers (NASW). This document affirms the pursuit of social justice as a core value, not just for members of the Association, but also for social workers in general. However, wha…
Is Equity Just Enough for Social Work? A Response to Those Who Think it is
Before offering a response to what I take to be a central question posed in my paper and the responses to it, I would like to express my sincere thanks to Richard Hugman and Jim Ife for their insightful and penetrating comments and the Editor for the opportunity to extend the discussion of my paper. Nevertheless, it seems that the latter's views are more in keeping with my own than those of the former. Although I do not wish to minimise the point…
What kind of social justice does social work seek
English One of social work's most important practice values is social justice, as cited in the IFSW Code of Ethics. This article deconstructs what the term 'social justice' represents, since it is essential for social work - and the IFSW Code - to be clear about the type of social justice it seeks to uphold. French L'une des plus importantes valeurs du travail social est la justice sociale, telle que citée dans le Code d'éthique et de Déontologie…
Social Work and Social Justice
A cardinal value of social work practice is social justice. Social justice ranks as the second of five values that underpin the Code of Ethics of the Australian Association of Social Workers (AASW. However, although social work's commitment to promoting social justice is laudable and, indeed, may even be a distinguishing feature of the profession, precisely what kind of social justice does social work espouse? The answer to this question remains …
The poverty of postmodern human services
Postmodernism cannot or will not tell the difference between truth and falsehood, reality and simulacra, principle and dogma, or right and wrong. As a corollary, it is unable or unwilling to make any ‘veritable‘ difference to the nature or order of things. Indeed, there is no escape from, nor anything outside of, the ’panopticon of language’. Accordingly, there is no significant probative difference between the practice and experience of genocide…
The poverty of postmodern human services
Postmodernism cannot or will not tell the difference between truth and falsehood, reality and simulacra, principle and dogma, or right and wrong. As a corollary, it is unable or unwilling to make any ‘veritable‘ difference to the nature or order of things. Indeed, there is no escape from, nor anything outside of, the ’panopticon of language’. Accordingly, there is no significant probative difference between the practice and experience of genocide…
The Tyranny of Therapeutic Dialogue
Ever since Freud ventured the notion that psycho-pathology could be analysed, worked through and possibly even cured by 'talk', members of the therapeutic community, psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, and other so-called 'helping professionals', have invested considerable time and effort researching, and have placed an inordinate amount of faith in, the healing power of dialogue in therapy. Every school of therapy bases 'treatment' on …
Can a radical social worker believe in human rights
Although claims for what are now called human rights have been central to emancipatory politics throughout this century, many on the left of the political divide have expressed deep reservations about the individualising discourses and divisive practices which unquestioned belief in such rights allow to flourish. The left's reservations over human rights can be traced to Marx. Marx (1966; 1975) considered the concept of rights and moral justifica…
Why choose psychology as a career
While psychology students expend a great deal of effort scrutinising the motives of individuals, the effort is not nearly so often extended to themselves. This constitutes the loss of a vital dimension of experience both for the profession and its training schools. In this article, the entry motives of a cohort of first-year undergraduate students for choosing psychology as a career are recovered, acknowledged, and aired
The Limits of Empowerment in Human Service Work
This paper critiques the notion of empowerment and the concept of power upon which it is based Specifically, it argues that the concept of empowerment, as generally represented in human service work, has developed along a highly abstract and Utopian line which does not necessarily result in the kind of the practice its supporters preach. The discourse of empowerment is based on rationalist assumptions which if left unexamined will continue to per…
Recovering and reconstructing the client's story in social work
This paper argues that clients construct the meaning of their lives in the stories they tell. These stories need to be told, acknowledged and appreciated, They supply an essential perspective which must be of central concern to social workers. Drawing on recent work in narrative theory and practice, this paper shows how the social work interview can be used to arouse the client's awareness of those aspects of submerged consciousness which are con…
A pilot study in the application of repertory grid technology for constructing and construing personal models of social work supervision
This paper shows how Kelly's repertory grid technique may be used to elucidate supervisors' and supervisees' personal models of supervision. Supervisors and supervisees can learn to elicit and construe their personal constructs of supervision. They can compare the computer analysed results of their grids and discover for themselves and from each other what constitutes good, effective supervision. Comparison between the grids elicited from the sup…
Adult Learners and their Educators
Teaching and learning form a process which, although fundamental to education, has not received the attention it deserves either in social work education or in higher education generally. This process has traditionally been studied using methods, such as experimental observation, developed originally for the study of physical phenomena. Such investigations record only the obvious, external behaviour of the teachers/learners observed; the conclusi…
What kind of social justice does social work seek
English One of social work's most important practice values is social justice, as cited in the IFSW Code of Ethics. This article deconstructs what the term 'social justice' represents, since it is essential for social work - and the IFSW Code - to be clear about the type of social justice it seeks to uphold. French L'une des plus importantes valeurs du travail social est la justice sociale, telle que citée dans le Code d'éthique et de Déontologie…
Social Work and Social Justice
A cardinal value of social work practice is social justice. Social justice ranks as the second of five values that underpin the Code of Ethics of the Australian Association of Social Workers (AASW. However, although social work's commitment to promoting social justice is laudable and, indeed, may even be a distinguishing feature of the profession, precisely what kind of social justice does social work espouse? The answer to this question remains …
The Limits of Empowerment in Human Service Work
This paper critiques the notion of empowerment and the concept of power upon which it is based Specifically, it argues that the concept of empowerment, as generally represented in human service work, has developed along a highly abstract and Utopian line which does not necessarily result in the kind of the practice its supporters preach. The discourse of empowerment is based on rationalist assumptions which if left unexamined will continue to per…
Can a radical social worker believe in human rights
Although claims for what are now called human rights have been central to emancipatory politics throughout this century, many on the left of the political divide have expressed deep reservations about the individualising discourses and divisive practices which unquestioned belief in such rights allow to flourish. The left's reservations over human rights can be traced to Marx. Marx (1966; 1975) considered the concept of rights and moral justifica…
A pilot study in the application of repertory grid technology for constructing and construing personal models of social work supervision
This paper shows how Kelly's repertory grid technique may be used to elucidate supervisors' and supervisees' personal models of supervision. Supervisors and supervisees can learn to elicit and construe their personal constructs of supervision. They can compare the computer analysed results of their grids and discover for themselves and from each other what constitutes good, effective supervision. Comparison between the grids elicited from the sup…
Is It Just Enough
Since its inception, social work has professed an abiding commitment to social justice. Indeed, it is perhaps one of the few professions to have maintained such an obligation. This pledge is officially inscribed in the Code of Ethics of the National Association of Social Workers (NASW). This document affirms the pursuit of social justice as a core value, not just for members of the Association, but also for social workers in general. However, wha…
The poverty of postmodern human services
Postmodernism cannot or will not tell the difference between truth and falsehood, reality and simulacra, principle and dogma, or right and wrong. As a corollary, it is unable or unwilling to make any ‘veritable‘ difference to the nature or order of things. Indeed, there is no escape from, nor anything outside of, the ’panopticon of language’. Accordingly, there is no significant probative difference between the practice and experience of genocide…
Recovering and reconstructing the client's story in social work
This paper argues that clients construct the meaning of their lives in the stories they tell. These stories need to be told, acknowledged and appreciated, They supply an essential perspective which must be of central concern to social workers. Drawing on recent work in narrative theory and practice, this paper shows how the social work interview can be used to arouse the client's awareness of those aspects of submerged consciousness which are con…
Adult Learners and their Educators
Teaching and learning form a process which, although fundamental to education, has not received the attention it deserves either in social work education or in higher education generally. This process has traditionally been studied using methods, such as experimental observation, developed originally for the study of physical phenomena. Such investigations record only the obvious, external behaviour of the teachers/learners observed; the conclusi…
A pilot study in the application of repertory grid technology for constructing and construing personal models of social work supervision
This paper shows how Kelly's repertory grid technique may be used to elucidate supervisors' and supervisees' personal models of supervision. Supervisors and supervisees can learn to elicit and construe their personal constructs of supervision. They can compare the computer analysed results of their grids and discover for themselves and from each other what constitutes good, effective supervision. Comparison between the grids elicited from the sup…
Recovering and reconstructing the client's story in social work
This paper argues that clients construct the meaning of their lives in the stories they tell. These stories need to be told, acknowledged and appreciated, They supply an essential perspective which must be of central concern to social workers. Drawing on recent work in narrative theory and practice, this paper shows how the social work interview can be used to arouse the client's awareness of those aspects of submerged consciousness which are con…
Why choose psychology as a career
While psychology students expend a great deal of effort scrutinising the motives of individuals, the effort is not nearly so often extended to themselves. This constitutes the loss of a vital dimension of experience both for the profession and its training schools. In this article, the entry motives of a cohort of first-year undergraduate students for choosing psychology as a career are recovered, acknowledged, and aired
The Limits of Empowerment in Human Service Work
This paper critiques the notion of empowerment and the concept of power upon which it is based Specifically, it argues that the concept of empowerment, as generally represented in human service work, has developed along a highly abstract and Utopian line which does not necessarily result in the kind of the practice its supporters preach. The discourse of empowerment is based on rationalist assumptions which if left unexamined will continue to per…
The Tyranny of Therapeutic Dialogue
Ever since Freud ventured the notion that psycho-pathology could be analysed, worked through and possibly even cured by 'talk', members of the therapeutic community, psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, and other so-called 'helping professionals', have invested considerable time and effort researching, and have placed an inordinate amount of faith in, the healing power of dialogue in therapy. Every school of therapy bases 'treatment' on …
Can a radical social worker believe in human rights
Although claims for what are now called human rights have been central to emancipatory politics throughout this century, many on the left of the political divide have expressed deep reservations about the individualising discourses and divisive practices which unquestioned belief in such rights allow to flourish. The left's reservations over human rights can be traced to Marx. Marx (1966; 1975) considered the concept of rights and moral justifica…
The poverty of postmodern human services
Postmodernism cannot or will not tell the difference between truth and falsehood, reality and simulacra, principle and dogma, or right and wrong. As a corollary, it is unable or unwilling to make any ‘veritable‘ difference to the nature or order of things. Indeed, there is no escape from, nor anything outside of, the ’panopticon of language’. Accordingly, there is no significant probative difference between the practice and experience of genocide…
The poverty of postmodern human services
Postmodernism cannot or will not tell the difference between truth and falsehood, reality and simulacra, principle and dogma, or right and wrong. As a corollary, it is unable or unwilling to make any ‘veritable‘ difference to the nature or order of things. Indeed, there is no escape from, nor anything outside of, the ’panopticon of language’. Accordingly, there is no significant probative difference between the practice and experience of genocide…
Is Equity Just Enough for Social Work? A Response to Those Who Think it is
Before offering a response to what I take to be a central question posed in my paper and the responses to it, I would like to express my sincere thanks to Richard Hugman and Jim Ife for their insightful and penetrating comments and the Editor for the opportunity to extend the discussion of my paper. Nevertheless, it seems that the latter's views are more in keeping with my own than those of the former. Although I do not wish to minimise the point…
What kind of social justice does social work seek
English One of social work's most important practice values is social justice, as cited in the IFSW Code of Ethics. This article deconstructs what the term 'social justice' represents, since it is essential for social work - and the IFSW Code - to be clear about the type of social justice it seeks to uphold. French L'une des plus importantes valeurs du travail social est la justice sociale, telle que citée dans le Code d'éthique et de Déontologie…
Social Work and Social Justice
A cardinal value of social work practice is social justice. Social justice ranks as the second of five values that underpin the Code of Ethics of the Australian Association of Social Workers (AASW. However, although social work's commitment to promoting social justice is laudable and, indeed, may even be a distinguishing feature of the profession, precisely what kind of social justice does social work espouse? The answer to this question remains …
Is It Just Enough
Since its inception, social work has professed an abiding commitment to social justice. Indeed, it is perhaps one of the few professions to have maintained such an obligation. This pledge is officially inscribed in the Code of Ethics of the National Association of Social Workers (NASW). This document affirms the pursuit of social justice as a core value, not just for members of the Association, but also for social workers in general. However, wha…
Political science (9 works) · Social Work Education and Practice (9 works) · Sociology (9 works) · Law (8 works) · Law (8 works) · Philosophy (7 works) · Philosophy (7 works) · Social Work (7 works) · Psychology (6 works) · Epistemology (5 works)