Robert Stempel College of Public Health and Social Work
Ph.D. Program in Social Welfare
RESEARCH TOPICS IN MACRO PRACTICE INTERVENTION
SOW 7238, Spring 2024
Rich Beaulaurier, M.S.W., Ph.D.
Email: beau@fiu.edu
Office telephone and Voicemail (305) 348-5876
This course is designed to acquaint doctoral students with classical and contemporary theories relevant to macro practice in social work. Foci of the course will be on organizational and community practice and theory relevant to human service agencies, as well as to the clients and communities they serve. The primary purpose of the course is to prepare students to formulate problems, develop hypotheses and research questions, and ultimately to prepare and carry out research proposals on social work topics that are well grounded in the literature on macro practice. A secondary goal of the course is to assist students in developing a relatively broad understanding of current and historical issues in macro practice.
It is impossible to include every aspect of community and organizational practice and theory into a single course. This course, therefore, should be considered an introduction to the topic. Commensurate with the level of the course, however, considerable emphasis is placed on the use of the original sources which undergird and support most of texts on macro practice used in undergraduate and masters-level courses. Moreover, there will be more emphasis on understanding models of practice than is generally given at other levels of social work education. These models will serve as a foundation to guide students in developing interventive strategies and research designs that contribute to knowledge of community and organizational social work practice.
COURSE GOAL
By the end of the course students will have sufficient knowledge of macro practice theory to develop a macro practice research proposal in their area of interest.
COURSE OBJECTIVES
Instructional
Strategies
and Methods
This course is designed as a seminar. The primary means of
instruction will be lecture and group discussion, with an emphasis
placed on the latter. The role of the instructor will be that of a
guide and organizer for discussion of material in the readings for
this course, as well as facilitator of group discussion. Since
doctoral classes tend to be small, and student learning will be
highly dependent on class participation and discussion, so the
importance of attendance and adequate preparation before
class cannot be overstated. Students should come to class
ready to raise issues, pose questions and make comments that are
not only valuable to themselves, but also to their colleagues in
the class.
Any student who is unable to attend a class session due to
illness or personal emergency should alert the instructor before
class AND take responsibility for obtaining class notes and any
handouts from a classmate. Students are responsible for all
information given in class regarding assignments readings
discussed in class, whether they are present for the class session
or not. Moreover, class attendance and punctuality will be
important not only to individual students but to their classmates
as well. Therefore, students who must miss a significant portion
of the class should expect low marks in class participation,
regardless of the reason for their absences or tardiness.
Class Assignments and Grading
Students will be evaluated on the basis of two major course
components:
The major assignment is the “intervention area” paper which
will follow the format outlined in the Ph.D. Handbook:
Modes of social intervention for this
assignment are restricted to: administration, advocacy,
community organization, consciousness-raising, organizational
development and change, coalition building and supervision. Many
social service organizations sponsor or deliver clinical
interventions and other kinds of direct services. However,
clinical interventions are not the focus of this class. Thus,
suitable topics for this course do not include interventions
that focus on interventions for individuals or treatment groups.
For example, a student may not elect to develop the a paper on
how CBT with anxious college students. However, a student might
elect to develop a paper on issues or problems managers
encounter when implementing a program on CBT with anxious
college students. Students are expected to develop an
understanding of the distinctions between macro and micro
interventions and the practice models employed to deliver them. Students are also
expected to demonstrate advanced understanding of the research
issues involved in the development, application, and evaluation
of the intervention, program, or method, especially as applied
to a particular group or population.
The intervention paper should include a clear description of the intervention and its basic principles, as well as a critical review of the empirical literature that has developed around efforts to determine the effectiveness of the intervention. Where theory and research in the intervention have been developed largely outside the field of social welfare or the profession of social work, the student should demonstrate an understanding of factors within the field or profession (e.g., values and norms, skills and training, ideological, political or economic constraints, nature of clientele) that may affect how the intervention can be employed or adapted. The relative advantages or disadvantages of the intervention with respect to other interventions or methods should also be discussed, as well as its limits or adverse effects. Finally, gaps in knowledge and future research directions should be outlined.
The instructor uses a “mastery learning” approach for this assignment. Students will complete an initial 1-2 page concept summary of their paper by at least week 3 and an initial draft of the final paper by at least week 7 of the course. Both papers will be turned in to the instructor for ungraded feedback. Students may turn in as many additional drafts of either paper as they like for additional feedback. Only the final paper will be graded. Ungraded feedback is intended to hone ideas and assist the student in the development of the final paper. However, students should understand that this is SELF guided. If you do not turn in drafts to the instructor, you will not get feedback!
Letter grades reflect the following qualitative expectations of
the instructor:
A Outstanding
A- Excellent
B+ Very Good
B Good—Adequate graduate level performance
B- and Below Not adequate for doctoral work.
Readings:
A copy of all required readings will either be made available to students for photocopying or will be made available on the instructor’s website.
Students will also be expected to read beyond the assigned
literature in the course in order to develop bibliographies that
are relevant to organizational and community theories, particular
population groups, intervention strategies and social problems, as
dictated by their specific research interests. The last two weeks
of the course are reserved for discussion of issues and literature
that are especially relevant to students’ topics of interest and
topics which emerge as central to the development of the
bibliography and research proposal assignments.
The course outline is laid out in six modules. The order in which
the class goes through the modules will be determined by the
instructor and students based on the interests present in the
class.
COURSE OUTLINE
Module 1: Laying the Groundwork for Community Practice
2.
Rothman, J. (2001).
Approaches to community intervention. In J. Rothman, J. L. Erlich, & J. E. Tropman
(Eds.), Strategies of community intervention (6th ed., pp.
27-64).
3.
Alinsky,
S. D. (1971) Rules for
radicals. New York. Random House. (Of means and Ends, pp.
24-47.
Ch. 4: Reed: Theorizing in Community Practice
Ch. 6 Weil & Gamble: Evolution of Models and the Changing context of Community Practice
Chapters 6, 8 and 9
Chapter 1
Module 2: Laying the groundwork for Organizational Practice
Organization Theory...the beginning
Classical Rational Technical
Weber, M. (1953). From Max Weber: Essays in sociology. New York: Oxford.
Bureaucracy p. 196-244
Fayol, H. (2005). General principles of Management. In J. M. Shafritz, J. S. Ott & Y. S. Jang (Eds.), Classics of Organization Theory (6th ed., pp. 48-60). Belmont, CA: Thomson Wadsworth.
Taylor, F. W. (1980). The principles of scientific management. In D. Mankin, R. E. Ames, Jr. & M. A. Grodsky (Eds.), Classics of Industrial and Organizational Psychology (pp. 15-28). Oak Park, IL: Moore Publishing.
Blau, P. M. (1956). Bureaucracy in modern society. New York: Random House.
Chapters 5 & 6.
Thompson, J. (2005). Organizations in action. In J. M. Shafritz, J. S. Ott & Y. S. Jang (Eds.), Classics of Organization Theory (6th ed., pp. 491-504). Belmont, CA: Thomson Wadsworth.
Classical Human Relations
Addams, J. (2007). Problems of municipal administration. In J. M. Shafritz & A. C. Hyde (Eds.), Classics of Public Administration (pp. 30-36). Boston, MA: Thompson Wadsworth.
Follett, M. P. (2005). The giving of orders. In J. M. Shafritz, J. S. Ott & Y. S. Jang (Eds.), Classics of Organization Theory (6th ed., pp. 152-157). Belmont, CA: Thomson Wadsworth.
Roethlisberger, F. J. (1980). The Hawthorne Experiments. In D. Mankin, R. E. Ames, Jr. & M. A. Grodsky (Eds.), Classics of Industrial and Organizational Psychology (pp. 29-39). Oak Park, IL: Moore Publishing.
Maslow, A. H. (1982). A theory of human motivation. In B. R. Armandi, J. J. Barbera & H. W. Berkman (Eds.), Organizational Behavior (pp. 77-87). Dubuque, IA: Kendall-Hunt.
Likert, R. (1961). New Patterns of Management. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Chapter 5, the Effect of Measurements on Management Practices.
McGregor, D. M. (1982). The human side of enterprise. In B. R. Armandi, J. J. Barbera & H. W. Berkman (Eds.), Organizational Behavior (pp. 132-136). Dubuque, IA: Kendall-Hunt.
Katz, D., & Kahn, R. L. (2005). Organizations and the systems concept. In J. M. Shafritz, J. S. Ott & Y. S. Jang (Eds.), Classics of Organization Theory (6th ed., pp. 480-490). Belmont, CA: Thomson Wadsworth.
Schein, E. (2005). Defining organizational culture. In J. M. Shafritz, J. S. Ott & Y. S. Jang (Eds.), Classics of Organization Theory (6th ed., pp. 360-367). Belmont, CA: Thomson Wadsworth.
Module 3: Organizational Politics, Power and Diversity
Shafritz, Ott and Jang (unless otherwise noted):
1. Pfeffer: Understanding the Role of Power in Decision Making
2. French and Raven: The Bases of Social Power
3. Mintzberg: The Power Game and the Players
4. Kanter: Power Failure in Management Circuits
5.
Hasenfeld,
Y. (1992). Power in social work practice. In Human Services as
Complex Organizations (pp. 259-275).
6. Cox: Creating the Multicultural Organization
7. Gummer, B. (1998). Current perspectives on diversity in the workforce: How diverse is diverse? Administration in Social Work, 22(1), 83-100.
8.
From Patti, R. J. (Ed.).
(2000). The Handbook of
Social Welfare Management.
1. Iglehart: Managing diversity and empowerment in social services
Module 4: Organizational Practice Theory Frameworks
1.
Edwards, R. L., Yankey,
J. A., & Altpeter, M. A. Managing
effectively in an environment of competing values. In Edwards, R.
L., Yankey, J. A., & Altpeter,
M. A. (Eds.). (1998). Skills for effective management of
nonprofit organizations.
4. Au, C. F. (1994). The Status of Theory in Social Welfare Administration. Administration in Social Work, 9(3), 1-14.
5.
Tichy,
N. M. (1983). Managing Strategic Change: Technical, Political and
Cultural Dynamics .
Module 5: Organizing Practice Theory
2. Mingley & Livermore: Development Theory and Community Practice
3. Gamble and Hoff: Sustainable Community Development
4. Burghardt & Fabricant: Which Side are you On? Social Work, Community Organizing and the Labor Movement.
5. Brilliant: From Community Planning to Changing Communities
6. Cstelloe & Gamble: Paticipatory Methods in Community Practice
7. Reisch: Radical Community Organizing
8. Roberts-DeGennaro & Mizrahi: Coalitions as Social Change Agents
Module 6
From
Patti, R. J. (Ed.). (2000). The
Handbook of Social Welfare Management.
1.
Patti: The Landscape of
Social Work Management
3. Hasenfeld: Social Welfare Administration and Organizational Theory
4. Gibelman: Structural and Fiscal Characteristics of Social Service Agencies
5. Schmid: Agency-Environmental relations: understanding the task environment
6. Gillespie: Organizational Structure and performance
7. Vinokur-Kaplan & Bogin: Motivating Work Performance in Social Services
8. Menefee: What managers do and why they do it.
9. Portner: Managing for Service Outcomes
10. Alter: Interorganizational Collaboration in the Task Environment
11. McCallion: Manager as resource developer
12. Ezell: Financial Management
13. Perlmutter: Initiating and implementing change
14. Chapters from Part IV depending on student interest:
1. Friesen: Mental Health
2. Weil: Families and Children
3. Weissman and Rosenberg: Health care
4. Wilber: Aging
Additional Sources:
Quinn, R. E. (1988). Beyond Rational Management. San
Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Chapters 3-7
Hasenfeld, Y. (1992). Human
Services as Complex Organizations. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
Ch. 1 Nature of Human Services Organizations
Ch. 2 Theoretical Approaches…
Patti, R. J. (1985). In Search of a Purpose for Social Welfare Administration. Administration in Social Work, 9(3), 1-14.
Rapp, C. A., & Poertner, J. (1992). Social
Administration: A Client-Centered Approach. New York:
Longman.
Ch. 1 Client Centered Management
Ch. 7 …The Inverted Hierarchy
Taylor, S. H., & Roberts, R. W. (Eds.). (1985). Theory
and Practice of Community Social Work.
Ch 3: Lappin, B.: Community Development
Ch 4: Kurzman, P. A.: Program Development and
Service Coordination
Ch 5: Rothman, J. & Zald, M. N.: Planning
Theory in…Community Practice
Ch 6: Grosser & Mondros: Pluralism and
Participation
Ch 7: Taylor, S. H.: …The Community Liaison
Approach
Alinski, S. D. (1974). Of means and ends. In F. M. E. Cox, John L.; Rothman, Jack; Tropman, John E. (Ed.), Strategies of community organization (2nd ed., ). Itasca, IL: F. E. Peacock.
Weil, M. (1995). Women, community and organizing. In J. E. Tropman, J. L. Erlich, & J. Rothman (Eds.), Tactics and techniques of community intervention (3rd ed., pp. 118-133). Itasca, IL: F. E. Peacock.
Weil, M. (1996). Model development in community practice: An historical perspective. Journal of Community Pracitce, 3(3/4), 5-68.
Hyde, C. (1996). A feminist response to Rothman's "Interweaving of community intervention approaches". Journal of Community Practice, 3(3-4), 127-146.
Tropman, J. E., Erlich, J. L., & Rothman, J. (Eds.). (2001). Tactics and techniques of community intervention (4th ed.). Itasca, IL: F. E. Peacock.
Rothman, J., Erlich, J. L., & Tropman, J. E. (Eds.). (2001). Strategies of community intervention (6th ed.). Itasca, IL: F. E. Peacock.
Rothman, J. (Ed.). (1999). Reflections on community organizing (5th ed.). Itasca, IL: F. E. Peacock.
Patti, R. J. (Ed.). (2000). The Handbook of Social Welfare Management. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Edwards, R. L., Yankey, J. A., & Altpeter, M. A. (Eds.). (1998). Skills for effective management of nonprofit organizations. Washington, DC: National Association of Social Workers.
Hasenfeld, Y. (1992). Human Services as Complex Organizations.
Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
Austin, M. J., & Lowe, J. I. (Eds.). (1994). Controversial
issues in communities and organizations. Boston: Allyn and
Bacon.
Selections from:
* Journal of Community Practice
* Journal of Administration in Social Work
* Voluntary Sector Quarterly
* Public Administration Review
* Other related journals