Australian Social Work: Looking Back and Looking Ahead

This October 2022 issue of Australian Social Work marks both endings and beginnings. What unites the nine papers in this Issue is their clear focus on social work education, practice, and policy, and the value of looking backwards, and then critically evaluating the present in order to remain future-focused. Tilbury et al. (2022) review of the history of child protection policy and practice in Queensland in the 1960s and 1970s demonstrates the value in analytically appraising the social policy field during a time of considerable change and upheaval. Their historical gaze invites us to learn from past events in order to understand as best we might, the rapidly evolving and turbulent context of the present. The articles by Harris (2022), and by Jefferies et al. (2022) are both future-focused, using their research into current deficits in social workers’ knowledge of technology and the use of technology and simulation modelling, emphasising the need for social work education in technology. These articles suggest that we thoughtfully consider how both a better understanding and “curating” of technology for social work has become essential if we are to adequately prepare students for contemporary practice, as well as to explore ways in which technology might be developed to benefit service users.

Nouman and Azaiza (2022) and Cordoba and Bando (2022) remind us in different ways, that social workers are already active players in an interconnected world, a location that is only likely to increase and become of greater significance. While Nouman and Azaiza (2022) have reported on their research in Israel with Arab-Palestinian social workers, their message about the importance of recognising the status of minority ethnic groups resonates in countries such as Australia, in a world characterised by ongoing (sometimes forced) migration, population dispersal, and diverse populations. These authors have highlighted the importance of support, resources, and training in ensuring that such minority groups have the opportunity to contribute to policy development and thereby to practice and service delivery. Social work engagement with the United Nation’s sustainable development goals (SDGs) was the focus of the article by Cordoba and Bando (2022), who reported on their innovative student placement project, during which students engaged with the SDGs, encouraging them to learn about advocacy, social justice, equality, and climate change within a global context. Such an opportunity will prove indispensable to their current and future practice.

Four articles take us “back to basics”, reminding us that at the heart of social work practice and direct service is a human relationship. Morley (2022) has stressed the centrality of relationship building, noting that in a context characterised by economic and technical rationality, recognition of the time and emotional energy required to build and sustain relationships may become compromised and under threat. In such a climate, practitioners require the capacity to “hold onto” this focus, and the support and reinforcement of supervisors and mentors to do so. In this vein, Szeintuch (2022) expanded on the notion of “social love”, arguing that, far from it being at odds with practice identified as professional, it is, in essence, the expression of a vital constituent of relationships in social work practice. Sampson et al. (2022) focused on the factors that may place social workers’ relationships under stress, noting that so much of social work engagement is with service users and communities that have endured trauma and assault. Social workers’ exposure to secondary traumatic stress has been found to manifest itself in psychological impact for workers, particularly with regard to repetitive thoughts. These authors have demonstrated in their research, that social workers are in need of strategies for dealing with the intrusion of repetitive thoughts if they are to manage and continue to work effectively. Given what we are witnessing in today’s world, arising from the pandemic and the ongoing wars and conflicts, the future suggests that social workers are going to need considerable education, input, and support to enable them to continue to work with resilience and to thrive in the volatile and unpredictable days ahead. The article by Stewart and Fielding (2022) takes up this theme of unexpected challenges, focusing attention on social workers in their first year of practice in health settings, where practitioners may be unsettled by uncertainty of employment tenure and lack of organisational support. Their conclusions regarding the need for greater support and informed supervision will resonate with social workers in many settings, including those who may no longer be new to the job but for whom their first exposure to practice is frequently a seminal experience with longer-term ramifications for subsequent practice effectiveness. The article by Papadopoulos (2022a) invites us to reflect on the impact of the framing of social work as a discipline and the ways in which framing by government can impact the funding and resourcing of social work education. This important issue alerts us to be vigilant about social work's place in the world. Indeed, the importance of different perspectives on this issue and recognition of the work already undertaken by key players such as the Australian Council of Heads of Schools of Social Work are debated by both the author (2022b) and Crisp (2022), as demonstrated in their Letters to the Editor.

This editorial, like the articles it brings together, is a chance to look back and to look ahead. It is also both a farewell and a welcome. After four and a half years, I have decided that the time has come to hand over to a new editor and I am delighted to introduce Associate Professor Susan Gair, who has been appointed to this role. Susan brings a wealth of experience, having been an Associate Editor on this journal for some time and having already undertaken editorial roles on other journals. Her knowledge, skills as an educator, researcher, writer, and editor, and her strong commitment to the development and progression of social work as a profession are exemplary. I have no doubt that she will work with care, interest, integrity, and dedication to the further advancement of Australian Social Work. We are also farewelling Liz Morrison, who has worked with the journal as Publications Officer and Assistant Editor for more than 15 years. While often the “behind the scenes” person, her commitment and work with the journal has been without compare. The journal would just never have “made it” to publication each quarter without Liz’s broad ranging knowledge, understanding of the journal publication process, commitment to the values and ethics of social work, and care for authors. During her time with the journal, Liz has supported the work of at least five Editors, all with their different quirks and each “starting out” just as an experienced Editor left. She has unfailingly offered patience, guidance, and continuous assistance, often going well beyond what might have been expected. I, as the “last” Editor during her tenure, offer my sincere and grateful thanks for Liz’s expertise, foresight, and “holding together” of the complicated and complex process of delivering each issue of Australian Social Work. We could not have done it without her. We are also welcoming Josepha Smith to the position of Assistant Editor. Jo comes with many skills and much expertise, which she has been learning how best to contribute to the ongoing publication of the journal. This is a very demanding and essential role and Jo has already demonstrated her capacity to shape it and to sustain the Editorial Team, authors, and reviewers as we go forward.

In coming to the end of my tenure as Editor, I can reflect on my journey over these past four years. It has been an exciting and demanding adventure during which I have learned a great deal—about the preoccupations of social work researchers and authors, their wide-ranging interests, and the varied questions and topics they have focused on: about social work education, especially field work; about social work fields of practice—health, mental health, child welfare, child protection, ageing, disability, and more; about the many different populations who have been the subject of research, such as international students, refugees, new practitioners, experienced practitioners; about social work scholarship—grant acquisition, theoretical perspectives, publication activity. Especially pleasing has been the increase in articles from First Nations/Indigenous researchers, evident in the collection of articles in the July 2022 issue and even more so, in the proposed Special Issue in 2023.

I have also learned much about the excellence of peer reviewers and their reviews, without whom the international standing of this journal and the quality of articles published would be compromised. Reviewers spend (unremunerated) time, intellect, and effort in reading and responding to articles with care and insightful critique. Peer reviews are in themselves a great barometer of the first-rate state of scholarship shared by social work colleagues, both in practice and in academia. In 2017, when I took on the editor role, the journal’s impact factor (IF) was 0.867. In 2021, the IF increased to 2.579. IFs matter because they tell us how important a journal is in relation to its peers by measuring the number of times during recent years particular articles have been cited. The IF is thus a measure of the influence of a journal and, in the case of Australian Social Work, this influence is growing as it becomes increasingly competitive. I am most confident that Australian Social Work will continue on its upward trajectory. During these difficult and often unnerving contemporary times, we have great need for the capacity this journal gives us to explain ourselves to ourselves, to reflect on how social work might progress in order to remain a persuasive voice in advocating for social justice, humane treatment for everyone, and to be able to sound the alarm where minorities and people hidden from public gaze are threatened or worse. Social workers witness and observe a great deal, reflect, and think a great deal, and we collectively need to read, understand, and act on what it is they witness, observe, and think about: this is the role of the Journal.