Community and Human Services: Concepts for Practice offers an introduction to the key concepts, theories and perspectives of community and human services in Australia. It outlines the more challenging and emerging fields of practice to prepare students for practice in a range of helping professions and illustrate the real-life situations they may encounter with clients.

The book emphasises the importance of self-reflective practice and teaches students the practical skills they will need to become an effective human services worker. The history of the industry is explored to provide a background to expand student understanding of social policy, legislation and human service organisations.

KEY FEATURES

• Includes coverage of self and self-care (Ch. 5) within potentially traumatic and violent workplaces
• Edited by experts across the human services sector, it provides a solid background to the different fields of practice in the Australian human services industry.
• Provides a history of the industry to expand student understanding of social policy, legislation and human service organisations.
• Key terms and definitions draw attention to terminology and definitions used in human services material.
• Implications for Practice activities demonstrate the reflective practice requirements tied to case examples.

Foreword (Sha Cordingly, ACWA President)

Preface

Acknowledgements

Abbreviations

SECTION 1: Concepts and Change

1. Choice, Challenge and Change
Karen Crinall & Lynda Berends

2. Community and Human Services: Past and Presnt
Jane Miller, Jenny Martin & Linette Hawkins

3. Clients and Workers
Christina Sadowski & Stacey Ratcliffe

SECTION 2: Identities and Relationships

4. Key Actors and Stakeholders
Margaret Pack

5. Self and Others
Debra Manning & Karen Crinall

6. Families and Communities
Joanie Smith

SECTION 3: Practices and Settings

7. Engaging and Changing
MyFanwy Maple & Linda Turner

8. Organisations and Locations
Lynda Berends & Karen Crinall

9. Fields of Practice
Lynda Berends & Karen Crinall

SECTION 4: Knowledge, Culture and Action

10. Cultures and Beliefs
Tracie Mafile'o

11. Exploring, Explaining and Knowing
Karen Crinall & Lynda Berends

12. Acting and Responding
Jane Cowie

13. Concepts in Practice
Karen Crinall & Lynda Berends

Karen Crinall is Associate Dean at the Faculty of Education and Arts at Federation University

Lynda Berends is Director of TRACE, President of the Australasian Professional Society on Alcohol and other Drugs and Visiting Fellow at UNSW