|
We are living in a world overwhelmed by change and with dynamics difficult to be cognitively or emotionally comprehended. Complex factors confront us in a period when social work gets new dimensions, recomposing itself in the world puzzle and adapting to the emergent perspectives.
The proposal of this issue – to discuss about cooperation, communication and conflict in social work – invited researchers and professionals to analyze the new paradigm of communicational space considering the power of words, the importance of efficient conflict solving and collaboration as key factors of social worker intervention (Clark, 2013). It's difficult to find efficient strategies and long-term solutions to the current social problems as long as societies are still burdened by unsolved conflicts and as long as a unitary vision is missing (Nunes, 1995). More actual than ever, the way we communicate becomes either a positive resource or a problem-making factor. The entire world is shaken, forced to change and the communication process should be reevaluated on all society levels. The new global menace (Covid-19) determined each society to change radically, passing through various communication and collaboration stages.
Alina Ştefania Marinescu (Şerban) in the article The role of communication in the context of evaluation, monitoring and assisting the minor who committed crimes proposes a presentation of the communication abilities in the social work practice, with the description of the main communication roles of the social worker who coordinates the monitoring activity of the minor delinquents. The article is an invitation to reflect on a more complex phenomenon, defined by factors such as: the family, the society, education, mass media.
Claudia Bacter, Sorana Săveanu, Raluca Buhaș and Cristiana Marc in their article How to Become a Social Worker. Some Insights About Students` Practical Training invite us to analyze the communication in the process of educating future social workers. The authors analyze the importance of including experiential training in educational programs dedicated to the social sphere. The paper offers recommendations to improve the manner in which students’ practical training is currently organized, responding to the identified needs.
The paper authored by Ionuţ Cioarţă, Dealing with Conflicts in Social Work – A Discussion on Thomas-Kilmann Model Applicability in Social Work invites us to discuss the modalities in which conflicts can be framed as opportunities for change and growth. The author analyses the manners in which conflicts are influencing the work of the social worker and proposes a tool (Thomas-Kilmann Model) which is already successfully applied in other fields, but unexplored yet in the social field.
Continuing the conflict-related discussions, the author Remus Runcan brings the discussion towards a less analyzed path: Conflict Solution in Cyberbullying. The paper describes the phenomenon and makes recommendations concerning prevention and negative effects limitation, while highlighting its prevalence.
Within the next articles, the authors propose various analyses of the cooperation and communication methods in social work. Alina Maria Breaz, in her article Increasing the Quality of Life for the Older in Residential Care by Cultural Programs emphasizes the value of cultural programs and their association with quality increase of elders’ life. The author is proposing a study conducted in a residential care unit for elderly from Arad county (130 elderly) and concludes that the social workers can contribute to increasing the quality of life of the elderly by approaching an intervention based on collaboration with specific institutions. Interdisciplinary collaboration can be a step further in implementing programs which aim at increasing elderly quality of life.
Tiziana Tarsia moves the attention on another interesting topic: The Value of Social Work in the Second Reception of Forced Migrants. The author describes an ongoing study started in 2014; the study analyses the manner in which different stakeholders contribute to the inclusion of migrants. In this paper, the analysis of conflicts is considered to be an appropriate manner to interpret social practices developed in the process of providing care.
Cristina Oprea invites us to reflect on the People Facing Homelessness and Gender Issue. The paper draws attention on the lack of integrated approaches concerning homeless women in the literature, analyzing the low interest on institutions and decision makers concerning the gender approach of the phenomenon.
Patricia Runcan writes about Drepression in adolescence through specialized publications reviews. When we talk about adolescence we can certainly say it is a difficult period, governed by anxieties, depression or depression-like symptoms and, sometimes, by suicide attempts. The study presents a synthesis of the most important papers in the last two decades, approaching gender differences, symptoms and depression causes.
Corina Ilinca and Stephen J. Cutler invite the readers of their article On the Relationship Between Self-Rated Hearing and Memory in Romania to reflect on the relationship between hearing deficiencies and memory. The conclusion of the study shows that the people which perceive a ` hearing loss are more likely to express poorer memory levels, net of other confounding factors`. Learning, working, talking or accessing social and health services can be negatively influenced if hearing or memory are affected. The study invites to reflection and proposes modalities to improve the situation of the elderly in our country.
As a conclusion, the 2nd issue of the 2020 Social Work Review, published in a period of radical changes on various dimensions and levels, proposes to focus our thoughts and our attention towards communication and cooperation, towards positive conflict solving strategies, towards friendship and towards self-care and care for the people around us.
|
|
