Values, Beliefs, and Attitudes About Reflective Practice in Australian Social Work Education and Practice

ABSTRACT

Reflective practice and critical reflection are considered crucial to learning and practising social work. Based on qualitative analysis of interviews with Australian social work practitioners, students, and academics this article offers a description of the strong normative role reflective practice plays in contemporary social work practice. The research was conducted as part of a larger interpretive study into how reflective practice is understood in social work education and practice in Australia. The research found that reflective practice is considered as central to the development of practice wisdom, accountability, and the development of self-awareness. The article discusses the normative role reflective practice plays for social worker agency. The article also outlines the formative role social theory plays in the development of critical reflection.

IMPLICATIONS

• Reflective practice and critical reflection can be viewed as important and distinct capabilities in professional social work practice.

• Reflective practice is an important foundation for the emergence of practitioner agency.

• As critical reflection is more likely to develop in social workers who have had the opportunity to learn social theory, it is important to ensure social theory is included in foundational social work curricula.

KEYWORDS:

• Reflective Practice
• Critical Reflection
• Social Work Values
• Social Worker Agency

Acknowledgements

My thanks to the participants who gave their time and shared their experiences for this study. This research was supported by an Australian Postgraduate Research Training Scheme award. My thanks to Dr Rebecca Waters for reading and providing feedback on the manuscript. I also thank Nandini Ray and the Curtin SUAW crew for accompanying me during the preparation of this paper.

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).