The Changing Nature and Context of Social Work Research

Abstract

Social work research is constantly diversifying and expanding and this article explores its changing nature; including changes to epistemology and practice; and the critical influence of the wider economic, political, theoretical and practice changes occurring to social work itself. The author discusses a number of issues facing social work research: the enduring conflicts of ways of knowing, doing and valuing social work research; the role of practitioners as researchers; and the challenge to empower service users as self‐determining researchers.