Days in the Lives of Social Workers: 58 Professionals Tell "Real Life" Stories From Social Work Practice - Softcover

Excerpt--Copyright Linda May Grobman. Reprinted with permission. All rights reserved.*Note: This excerpt is from the Introduction to the 4th Edition.

If variety is the "spice" of life, then social work is one of the "hottest" careers around. Variety is one of the things that make social work practice exciting for so many members of the profession. It's also one of the reasons so many people don't fully understand exactly what social workers do....

Indeed, it is sometimes difficult to articulate exactly what one does as a social worker, and the profession is sometimes misunderstood. So, when I set out to publish a book about social work, I wanted to convey a sense of not only what professional social workers do, but what their lives are like on a day-to-day basis.

This book is about real life social workers. It says, "I'm a social worker. Spend a day with me and see what it's like." It takes a firsthand, close-up look at the roles social workers play every day in places from hospitals to prisons to universities. It celebrates the joys and rewards of social work, and it presents a realistic view of the challenges of being a social worker. In it, real life social workers describe their days--not necessarily "typical" days, since most say there is no such thing, but days that are representative of the essence of their work....

Since [the] third edition, the need for social workers has continued to grow into even more diverse areas. We have continued to see social workers involved in the aftermath of such disasters  as Hurricane Katrina, mass shootings at Virginia Tech, the attempted assassination of Congressperson Gabrielle Giffords, and others. Bullying and bullying-related suicide are issues that have been in the forefront, and social workers need to be and ARE in the forefront helping to alleviate and prevent an epidemic from occurring. Cyberbullying and the effects of social media, both positive and negative, are emerging concerns. Military social work is a growing field, as is gerontological social work. Newspapers have reported the use of social work services in department stores and in public libraries. Indeed, social workers can be found just about anywhere.

Technology continues to grow as an integral part of our society. No longer simply an "add-on," knowledge of the latest technology has become an issue of cultural competence for social workers. In response to the enormous and ongoing development of new technologies and their implications for the social work profession, I have added an appendix to this edition to introduce readers to social work-related uses of social media, blogs, and mobile apps....

As you read DAYS IN THE LIVES OF SOCIAL WORKERS, you will discover that the career possibilities in social work are virtually endless. You will read about social workers who are employed by state and federal governments, social workers in private practice, social workers in other countries, social workers working for communities, and on and on. In each chapter, you will find something different, while you will also notice that many of the same core social work skills are used across settings.

My hope is that you will use this book as a starting point--an introduction to the variety of roles social workers play every day. Use it as you would the opportunity to literally follow and observe 58 different social workers for a day. Soak up as much as you can from each experience, decide what you would like to explore further, and then take it from there!

Linda May Grobman, ACSW, LSW, Editor
July 2011

Linda May Grobman, ACSW, LSW, is the founder, publisher, and editor of THE NEW SOCIAL WORKER, the careers magazine for social work students and recent graduates. She has been a social worker in mental health and medical settings, is a former staff member of two state chapters of the National Association of Social Workers, and is co-author of THE SOCIAL WORKER'S INTERNET HANDBOOK, as well as editor or co-editor of other books in the DAYS IN THE LIVES OF SOCIAL WORKERS series. Linda also provides live therapeutic music at the bedside in hospice and nursing home settings.