Life Model of Social Work Practice

Alex Gitterman is professor of social work at the University of Connecticut. His Columbia University Press books include Mutual Aid Groups, Vulnerable and Resilient Populations, and the Life Cycle, third edition (2005) and Handbook of Social Work Practice with Vulnerable Populations, third edition (2014). He is also the coeditor of The Encyclopedia of Social Work with Groups (2009) and Mental Health and Social Problems: A Social Work Perspective (2010).Carolyn Knight is professor emerita of social work at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. She is coeditor of Trauma-Informed Supervision in a Global Context (2019) and Group Work with Populations at Risk, fourth edition (2016) and the author of Introduction to Working with Adult Survivors of Childhood Trauma (2009).Carel B. Germain (1916–1995) was professor emerita of social work at the University of Connecticut. Her books include Human Behavior in the Social Environment: An Ecological View, second edition (Columbia, 1999).

• PrefaceNote to InstructorsAcknowledgmentsPart I. Overview1. Social Work Practice and Its Historical Traditions2. The Ecological Perspective3. The Life Model of Social Work Practice: An Overview4. Culturally Competent and Diversity-Sensitive Practice and Cultural Humility5. Assessment, Evidence-Guided Practice, and Practice EvaluationPart II. The Helping Process in Life-Modeled PracticeInitial Phase6. Preparation: Settings, Modalities, Methods, and Skills7. Beginnings: Settings, Modalities, Methods, and SkillsOngoing Phase8. Helping Individuals, Families, and Groups with Stressful Life Transitions and Traumatic Events9. Helping Individuals, Families, and Groups with Environmental Stressors10. Helping Family Members with Maladaptive Communication and Relationship Patterns11. Helping Group Members with Maladaptive Communication and Relationship Patterns12. Helping with Maladaptive Relationship and Communication Patterns between Social Workers and ClientsEnding Phase13. Endings: Settings, Modalities, Methods, and SkillsPart III. Life-Modeled Practice at the Community, Organizational, and Political Levels14. Influencing Community and Neighborhood Life15. Influencing the Practitioner’s Organization16. Influencing Legislation, Regulations, and Electoral PoliticsAppendix A: Individual, Family, and Group AssessmentsAppendix B: Practice Monitoring—Records of ServiceAppendix C: Practice Monitoring—Critical IncidentsAppendix D: Force Field AnalysisNotesReferencesIndex

Although a lengthy effort with 756 pages, [this fourth edition of The Life Model of Social Work Practice] is an enjoyable book made possible through the authors' treatment practicality and use of many practice vignettes and practical case examples. Social workers in general will find this book useful with an array of client examples, and the social group workers will equally find the book helpful along with the identification of some impediments that the latter practitioners uniquely face.