Social Process In Organized Groups

One of the most effective ways of dealing with social problems is getting rid of the cause of the problem, not just finding a remedy for the result. Social Action in Group Work provides a useful overview of the history, philosophy, theory, and practice of social group work and action in the promotion of societal change. It shows practitioners how to use their skills effectively to achieve social change. This helpful book incorporates ideas developed in social movements, identifies their contributions to social group work practice, and illustrates effective practice in case experience with specific examples. It provides a much-needed understanding of the need for and process of social action, along with new ideas for theory building, teaching, and practice in group work. Numerous case examples from a variety of different settings become models that will be extremely useful for social work students, educators, professionals, and those who work directly with groups.This invigorating book is divided into three sections, each with a unique focus, and tied together by overlapping concepts, theories, and models. The first section, Ideas of Social Action, examines the history of social action in group work and proposes an integrated global framework for social work organization, education and practice. Advocacy and Empowerment, the middle section, is replete with case examples. The third section, Principles and Practice, explores the application of social group work in a variety of situations, including inter-ethnic conflict and a group of homeless men and women. Together, the sections make a strong stand for a more sensitive, empowerment oriented practice and for more advocacy by the worker and group. Everyone involved or interested in the process of social change through social action with groups will find Social Action in Group Work a wealth of practical information.

The essays gathered in this volume contain analyses based on the general action perspective of Chicago sociology and, in particular, on the contributions of Anselm L. Strauss, whose lengthy achievement this volume honors.

This handbook provides an authoritative, up-to-date overview of the social psychology of group processes. The topics covered include group decisions, juries, group remembering, roles, status, leadership, social identity and group membership, socialization, group performance, negotiation and bargaining, emotion and mood, computer-mediated communication, organizations and mental health. Provides an authoritative, up-to-date overview of the social psychology of group processes. Written by leading researchers from around the world to provide a classic and current overview of research as well as providing a description of future trends within the area. Includes coverage of group decisions, juries, group remembering, roles, status, leadership, social identity and group membership, socialization, group performance, negotiation and bargaining, emotion and mood, computer-mediated communication, organizations and mental health. Essential reading for any serious scholar of group behavior. Now available in full text online via xreferplus, the award-winning reference library on the web from xrefer. For more information, visit www.xreferplus.com

What do you have to know, today, to be an effective group worker and what are the different group work approaches? With 110 articles and entries, this book provides a comprehensive overview of social work with groups from its initial development to its astounding range of diverse practice today with many populations in different places. The articles have been written by social workers trained in the group approach from the United States, Canada, England, Australia, Spain and Japan, and all involved are well known group workers, acknowledged as experts in the area. The book covers all aspects of social work with groups: including its history, values, major models, approaches and methods, education, research, journals, phases of development, working with specific populations and ages, plus many more. Each article includes references which can be a major resource for future exploration in the particular subject area. Both editors have many years of productive work in group work practice and other areas and are board members of The Association for the Advancement of Social Work with Groups. The Encyclopedia of Social Work with Groups will be of interest to students, practitioners, social work faculty, novice and experienced group workers.

Available for the first time in English, this is the definitive account of the practice of sexual slavery the Japanese military perpetrated during World War II by the researcher principally responsible for exposing the Japanese government's responsibility for these atrocities. The large scale imprisonment and rape of thousands of women, who were euphemistically called "comfort women" by the Japanese military, first seized public attention in 1991 when three Korean women filed suit in a Toyko District Court stating that they had been forced into sexual servitude and demanding compensation. Since then the comfort stations and their significance have been the subject of ongoing debate and intense activism in Japan, much if it inspired by Yoshimi's investigations. How large a role did the military, and by extension the government, play in setting up and administering these camps? What type of compensation, if any, are the victimized women due? These issues figure prominently in the current Japanese focus on public memory and arguments about the teaching and writing of history and are central to efforts to transform Japanese ways of remembering the war. Yoshimi Yoshiaki provides a wealth of documentation and testimony to prove the existence of some 2,000 centers where as many as 200,000 Korean, Filipina, Taiwanese, Indonesian, Burmese, Dutch, Australian, and some Japanese women were restrained for months and forced to engage in sexual activity with Japanese military personnel. Many of the women were teenagers, some as young as fourteen. To date, the Japanese government has neither admitted responsibility for creating the comfort station system nor given compensation directly to former comfort women. This English edition updates the Japanese edition originally published in 1995 and includes introductions by both the author and the translator placing the story in context for American readers.

First published in 1985. This book presents a new way to ask an old question. Many fields have considered the nature of the influence that members of a group exert on the course of social events. Social science provides another way to examine this issue. Moreover, social science has a particular strength: It helps us to phrase questions more precisely than before, it encourages us to follow a line of rea­soning systematically, and it requires us to evaluate our ideas in light of a par­ticular kind of evidence. The authors want to use these strengths to explore systematically the ways that factors in the person and in the environment to­gether may shape the emergence of social behavior.

Innovation and Social Process: A National Experiment in Implementing Social Technology discusses concerns, design, and methodologies of an experiment that deals with society's perception of innovation. Comprised of 11 chapters, the book first provides an overview of innovation, change, and problems of implementation; social process; and social innovation. The third chapter covers the methods of designing an experiment in organizational innovation, while the fourth chapter tackles participative decision making and innovation, and the fifth chapter tackles organization development and the implementation of an innovation. Chapter 6 deals with indigenous introduction and innovation; Chapter 7 on the other hand discusses promoting innovation communication through print. Chapter 8 talks about a case study of bureaucratic entrepreneurship, while Chapter 9 tackles site visits and innovation processes. The tenth chapter discusses perils of change agent training, and the last chapter provides an overview of the previous chapters. The book will be of great interest to researchers in the fields of psychology and sociology, since it provides a behavioral overview of society's reaction to innovation.

Small social groups are fundamental for achieving personal growth, social development, socialization, and the skills of sustaining relevance, relationships, and connections to society. Unfortunately, those who would benefit most from small groups often find themselves unable to achieve membership. Lacking the necessary skills for entry, these individuals may never enjoy the advantages of group membership. Advancing a practice methodology that specifically targets the socially unskilled, Norma C. Lang provides much-needed guidance to practitioners helping individuals become part of group life. Grounded in extensive practice, Lang's methodology addresses the special needs and anomalous functioning of individuals who lack the skills to form and use groups. She outlines the unique pregroup processes of socially unskilled populations and provides a methodology for advancing social competence. She also identifies the professional and agency requirements for working with presocial processes. Widely applicable to practice with social work groups, Lang's method greatly expands the literature on social work theory and practice with individuals and groups.