A poetics of social work : personal agency and social transformation in Canada, 1920-1939

In A Poetics Of Social Work Ken Moffatt Considers The Epistemological Influences In The Field Of Canadian Social Work And Social Welfare From 1920 To 1939. Here Modernist Constructs Of Knowledge Are Explored Through The Analysis Of The Thought Of Leading Social Welfare Practitioners, Namely Dorothy Livesay, Carl Dawson, Charlotte Whitton, And E.j. Urwick. These Four Figures Represent A Wide Cross-section Of Anglo-canadian Social Thought At Two Of Canada's Most Influential Universities (mcgill And Toronto), And Moffatt's Study Of Their Thinking Reveals The Presence Of A Diversity Of Approaches To Social Work And Social Change During This Period. By Challenging The Notion That Human Values And Humanitarian Concerns Were Abandoned In Favour Of Science, Empirical Findings, And Technical Interpretation Of Authoritative Knowledge, The Author Attempts To Expand The Concept Of The Social Work Knowledge Base And Explores How Social Work Emerged As A Profession In Canada. Moffatt's Study Presents A Broad Context For Analysis, And Provides Fascinating Reading And Source Material For Those Interested In History, Philosophy, Literature, And Biography, As Well As Social Work And The Social Sciences.--jacket. 1. The Contested Concepts Of Social Service And Social Change -- 2. Social Work Practice Informed By Philosophy: The Social Thought Of Edward Johns Urwick -- 3. Dorothy Livesay's Politics Of Engagement -- 4. Social Science In A Secular Society: The Thought Of Carl Addington Dawson -- 5. A Scientific And Philanthropic Christian Community: The Philosophy Of Charlotte Whitton. Ken Moffatt. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. "In A Poetics of Social Work Ken Moffatt considers the epistemological influences in the field of Canadian social work and social welfare from 1920 to 1939. Here modernist constructs of knowledge are explored through the analysis of the thought of leading social welfare practitioners, namely Dorothy Livesay, Carl Dawson, Charlotte Whitton, and E.J. Urwick. These four figures represent a wide cross-section of Anglo-Canadian social thought at two of Canada's most influential universities (McGill and Toronto), and Moffatt's study of their thinking reveals the presence of a diversity of approaches to social work and social change during this period.". "By challenging the notion that human values and humanitarian concerns were abandoned in favour of science, empirical findings, and technical interpretation of authoritative knowledge, the author attempts to expand the concept of the social work knowledge base and explores how social work emerged as a profession in Canada. Moffatt's study presents a broad context for analysis, and provides fascinating reading and source material for those interested in history, philosophy, literature, and biography, as well as social work and the social sciences."--BOOK JACKET. MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict CONTENTS 8 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 10 INTRODUCTION 14 1 The Contested Concepts of Social Service and Social Change 23 2 Social Work Practice Informed by Philosophy: The Social Thought of Edward Johns Urwick 41 3 Dorothy Livesay's Politics of Engagement 57 4 Social Science in a Secular Society: The Thought of Carl Addington Dawson 80 5 A Scientific and Philanthropic Christian Community: The Philosophy of Charlotte Whitton 97 Conclusion 112 NOTES 128 BIBLIOGRAPHY 152 INDEX 162