ABSTRACT

Social work practice and training in the context of political and ethnic conflict has seen renewed interest among scholars. Recent research has tried to shift focus away from simplistic interpretations of social work as an unshakably ‘benevolent’ profession. A recent emphasis on social work’s colonial legacies and the structural causes of political violence provide us with important new directions on how to rethink and reshape social work education and practice in these contexts. Cyprus presents a very interesting, yet under-explored, case study as it remains an island de facto divided, along ethnic lines. The division has resulted in the physical and political separation of the two most populous ethnic communities (Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots). United Nations (UN)-sponsored peace talks have gained momentum in recent years. This paper offers the first systematic exploration of the views of social work students across both sides of the divide. Through a mixed-method approach, students were able to express their thoughts and beliefs on ‘the other’ and on social work in the post-conflict realities. The study confirms the contradictory nature of social work education in Cyprus challenges the futility of nationalism and argues for the importance of bi-communal social work partnerships.

摘要

政治和种族冲突背景下的社会工作实践和培训引起了学者们的新兴趣。最近的研究试图将焦点从对社会工作的简单解释转移为不可动摇的“仁慈”职业。最近对社会工作的殖民遗产和政治暴力的结构性原因的强调为我们在这些背景下如何重新思考和重塑社会工作教育和实践提供了重要的新方向。塞浦路斯提出了一个非常有趣但尚未充分探索的案例研究，因为它实际上仍然是一个岛屿沿着种族界限划分。这种分裂导致两个人口最多的族裔社区（希族塞人和土族塞人）在物质和政治上的分离。近年来，联合国发起的和平谈判势头强劲。本文首次系统地探讨了社会工作学生跨越鸿沟的观点。通过混合方法，学生能够表达他们对“他者”和冲突后现实中的社会工作的想法和信念。该研究证实了塞浦路斯社会工作教育的矛盾性质，挑战了民族主义的徒劳，并论证了两族社会工作伙伴关系的重要性。