Capital, collaboration, and identity
A Bourdieusian analysis of social work in multi-disciplinary team practice
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 10897606 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Robert Lomax (0009-0001-5949-3335, University of the West of England, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 56 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 1220-1239 |
| Publication date | 2025-12-24 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | The British Journal of Social Work (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0045-3102 • E-ISSN: 1468-263X |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1093/bjsw/bcaf275 |
| OpenAlex | W7117236484 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 34 |
This article focuses on social workers’ experiences of mental health multi-disciplinary team (MDT) practice in one English National Health Service (NHS) trust. The ongoing policy drive towards the integration of health and social care services, and the consequent challenge to distinct professional knowledge, roles, and skills is considered. Twenty-one social workers participated in semi-structured interviews. Participants worked for or with an NHS trust: some were employed in generic practitioner roles, rather than social work posts. Reflexive thematic data analysis (Braun and Clarke 2006) was undertaken, and Bourdieu’s (1977) concepts of habitus, field, and capital were used to analyse the data themes. Analysis identified three themes: capital—the challenges of MDT practice; collaboration—the positive aspects of MDT practice; and identity—sociological and legal knowledge in MDT practice. The different employment, role, and organizational contexts influenced practitioners’ experiences of MDTs and their ability to make a distinct contribution to their team. Social workers employed directly by a local authority, working in named social work roles, appeared more certain of their professional identity and role. The strength and influence of social work in MDT practice cannot be assumed, and the implications of these findings for practice are discussed
Health care · Identity (music) · Mental health · Reflexivity · Social care · Thematic analysis · Interprofessional Education and Collaboration · Mental Health and Patient Involvement · Social Work Education and Practice · Social Work
Essentials of interpretative phenomenological analysis.
Health social work
Challenges Faced by Social Workers as Members of Interprofessional Collaborative Health Care Teams
Perceptions of the social worker role in adult community mental health teams in England
Outline of a Theory of Practice
The Logic of Practice
A sociologist in the field of social work
Three concepts of power
Making social work more Bourdieusian
The impact of 'statutory duties' on mental health social workers in the UK
Habitus, Symbolic Violence, and Reflexivity
Responding to the ‘Weight of the World’
Casting Light on the Distinctive Contribution of Social Work in Multidisciplinary Teams for Older People
Being Seconded to a Mental Health Trust
The Expected Working Life of a Social Worker
Mapping the Matrix
What Do Service Users Want from Mental Health Social Work? A Best–Worst Scaling Analysis
Maybe a Maverick, Maybe a Parent, but Definitely Not an Honorary Nurse’
The Role of the Mental Health Social Worker
Bourdieu and Social Work
Using thematic analysis in psychology
Towards a Reflexive Sociology
Professionalism as Symbolic Capital
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |