Lived Challenges to Ethical Social Work Practice in Criminal Justice Settings
Main Article Content
Abstract
Ethical social work practice within criminal justice settings is fraught with challenges. Through individual interviews in a qualitative study exploring social work practice in diverse criminal justice settings in the northwestern United States, a subsample of 9 social workers described the difficulties they experience adhering to social work’s professional code of ethics. They identify 2 primary areas of divergence, conflicting responsibilities and opposing interests, and identify the ways they respond to these challenges and the rationale behind their decisions. The discussion section explores avenues for strengthening social workers’ abilities to be a vital and ethical presence in criminal justice settings.
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
-
Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
-
NonCommercial — You may not use the material for commercial purposes.
-
NoDerivatives — If you remix, transform, or build upon the material, you may not distribute the modified material.
- No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.
References
Abramovitz, M. (1998). Social work and social reform: An arena of struggle. Social Work, 43(6), 512-526. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/sw/43.6.512
Alexander, M. (2012). The new Jim Crow: Mass incarceration in the age of colorblindness. New York, NY: The New Press.
Burman, S. (2004). Revisiting the agent of social control role: Implications for substance abuse treatment. Journal of Social Work Practice, 18(2), 197-210. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/0265053042000231016
Burton, V. S., Jr., Fisher, C. M., Jonson, C. L., & Cullen, F. T. (2014). Confronting the collateral consequences of a criminal conviction: A special challenge for social work with offenders. Journal of Forensic Social Work, 4(2), 80-103. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/1936928X.2014.940565
Butters, R. P., & Vaughan-Eden, V. (2011). The ethics of practicing forensic social work. Journal of Forensic Social Work, 1(1), 61-72. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/1936928X.2011.541202
Crawford, M. (1999). A hard day's night: Working with assaultive men in prison. In L. M. Grobman (Ed.), Days in the lives of social workers, (pp. 205-209). Harrisburg, PA: White Hat Communications.
Cullen, F. T., & Gilbert, K. E. (2013). Reaffirming rehabilitation. Boston, MA: Elsevier. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315721361
Cullen, F. T., & Jonson, C. L. (2011). Rehabilitation and treatment programs. In J. Q. Wilson & J. Petersilia (Eds.), Crime and public policy, (pp. 293-344). New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
Cullen, F. T., Skovron, S. E., Scott, J. E., & Burton, V. S., Jr. (1990). Public support for correctional treatment. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 17(1), 6-18. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0093854890017001003
Dane, B. O., & Simon, B. L. (1991). Resident guests: Social workers in host settings. Social Work, 36(3), 208-213.
Durose, M. R., Cooper, A. D., & Snyder, H. N. (2014, April). Recidivism of prisoners released in 30 states in 2005: Patterns from 2005 to 2010 (NCJ 244205). Washington, DC: Office of Justice Programs.
Fenton, J. (2012). Bringing together messages from the literature on Criminal Justice Social Work and 'disjuncture': The importance of 'helping.' British Journal of Social Work, 42, 941-956. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/bjsw/bcr136
Gibelman, M. (1995). What social workers do. Washington, DC: National Association of Social Workers.
Gregory, M. (2010). Reflection and resistance: Probation practice and the ethic of care. British Journal of Social Work, 40, 2274-2290. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/bjsw/bcq028
Gumz, E. J. (2004). American social work, corrections and restorative justice: An appraisal. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, 48(4), 449-460. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0306624X03262516
Jansson, B. S., & Simmons, J. (1986). The survival of social work units in host organizations. Social Work, 31(5), 339-343. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/sw/31.5.339
Lappi-Seppa¨la¨, T. (2012). Penal policies in the Nordic Countries 1960-2010. Journal of Scandinavian Studies in Criminology and Crime Prevention, 13(Supp 1), 85-111. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/14043858.2012.740858
Lowe, L. A., & Bohon, S. A. (2008). Specialized social work education: The case for social work with offenders. Families in Society: The Journal of Contemporary Social Services, 89(2), 293-301. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1606/1044-3894.3745
Martinson, R. (1974). What works? Questions and answers about prison reform. The Public Interest, 35(Spring), 22-54.
Maschi, T., & Killian, M. L. (2011). The evolution of forensic social work in the United States: Implications for 21st century practice. Journal of Forensic Social Work, 1(1), 8-36. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/1936928X.2011.541198
National Association of Social Workers. (2008). Code of Ethics. Washington, DC: Author.
Padgett, D. K. (2008). Qualitative methods in social work research. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Park, Y. (2008, September). Facilitating injustice: Tracing the role of social workers in the World War II internment of Japanese Americans. Social Service Review, 447-483. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1086/592361
Reamer, F. G. (1998). The evolution of social work ethics. Social Work, 43(6), 488-500. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/sw/43.6.488
Rooney, R. (2009). Strategies for work with involuntary clients. New York, NY: Columbia Press.
Severson, M. M. (1994). Adapting social work values to the corrections environment. Social Work, 39(4), 451-456.
The Policy, Ethics and Human Rights Committee. (2012, January). The code of ethics for social work: Statement of principles. Birmingham, UK: British Association of Social Workers.
Tutty, L. M., Rothery, M. A., & Grinnell, R. M., Jr. (1996). Qualitative research for social workers: Phases, steps, & tasks. Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon.
Van Winkle, M. (1924). The policewomen. Proceedings of the 51st annual session of the National Conference of Social Work. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.
Whitaker, T., & Arrington, P. (2008). Social workers at work: National Association of Social Workers Membership Workforce Study. Washington, DC: National Association of Social Workers.
Wilson, M. (2010). Criminal justice social work in the United States: Adapting to new challenges. Washington, DC: NASW Center for Workforce Studies.
Young, D. S. (2014). Social workers' perspectives on effective practice in criminal justice settings. Journal of Forensic Social Work, 4(2), 104-122. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/1936928X.2014.948250