ABSTRACT

This article presents findings of a Victorian social work graduate survey from social work programs offered in an urban university located in Australia. The survey is part of a broader study exploring how changes in the institutional context of social work shape contemporary practice, as reflected in graduates’ positions and perceptions of their roles. This article presents descriptive information about graduates’ locations in fields of practice. The job titles and duties reported by graduates present a picture of predominantly individualised direct practice and targeted service provision. The findings support the claim that decades of institutional change have limited the scope of social work practice.

• IMPLICATIONS

• There is no census of Australian social workers, and existing research offers only limited information about the state of the profession in its fields of practice.

• Decades of institutional change have complicated both the idea of a “sector” and of “social work” as a distinct occupation.

• Social work risks becoming invisible in the broader field of human services.

摘要

本文介绍了澳大利亚一所城市大学提供的社会工作课程的维多利亚社会工作研究生调查结果。该调查是一项更广泛研究的一部分，该研究探索社会工作制度背景的变化如何塑造当代实践，这反映在毕业生的职位和对其角色的看法上。本文提供了有关毕业生在实践领域中的位置的描述性信息。毕业生报告的职位和职责展示了主要是个性化的直接实践和有针对性的服务提供。调查结果支持这样的说法，即数十年的制度变迁限制了社会工作实践的范围。

• 影响

• 没有澳大利亚社会工作者的人口普查，现有研究仅提供有关其实践领域专业状况的有限信息。

• 数十年的制度变迁使“部门”和“社会工作”作为一种独特的职业的概念变得复杂。

• 社会工作有可能在更广泛的人类服务领域中被忽视。