Social workers inter-agency stereotypes

Abstract

Social Work in New Zealand is practised to a large degree by individuals employed within Hospital Boards and government departments. This thesis attempts to determine how this bureaucratization of social work is reflected through the perceptions Social Workers in such agencies have of personnel in other agencies in similar settings. A review of the literature on theoretical and practical research sets the framework for the research that is set in Wellington and Porirua where a variety of government departments and Hospital Board agencies are engaged in Social Work. Interagency stereotypes are determined and their content, direction and uniformity is established. The degree to which these stereotypes affect work preferences in Social Work and their bearing on why Social Workers prefer particular agencies to work in is examined. Results uncovered suggest that groups of Social Workers do not regard themselves as equals to other groups. One's esteem of particular groups of Social Workers and of their jobs is influenced by the agency they work in. Findings suggest that, in the Wellington and Porirua areas at least, there is a fairly certain hierarchy based on the agency Social Workers work in. The extreme positions on this hierarchy are somewhat fixed and understood, especially by those agencies holding extreme positions. Social Workers’ stereotypes were found to have a predictive capacity when a group's perception of itself was more favourable than its view of any other group. The agency most preferred to work in and the favourable/unfavourable direction of practical factors determining one's work preference were those areas subject to this predictability. Overall there is an indication from this research that Social Workers in the statutory agencies do not always share goals and that many do not work together to achieve commonly held aims. Social Workers in agencies that are not administratively linked to other agencies and that do not share their goals or work towards them in a co-operative fashion with other agencies are personnel who have professional estimations of them undermined. If Social Workers are to be united and to feel united to a common profession results from this thesis clearly indicate that certain agencies are at risk of losing professional respect. Inter-organizational modifications in Social Work in the Wellington and Porirua areas appear warranted if clients are to continue to benefit and if the job of Social Work is to continue to develop along constructive lines.