NCJ Number
197979
Journal
Journal of Offender Rehabilitation Volume: 35 Issue: 2 Dated: 2002 Pages: 1-17
Date Published
2002
Length
17 pages
Annotation
This article discusses the past and present of social work policies and practices in the criminal justice system.
Abstract
Forensic social work is defined as focusing on the law and educating law professionals about social welfare issues and social workers about the legal aspects of their objectives. Today’s forensic social workers practice under pressure and in a harsh policy environment. Agency accountability, personal responsibility, and the worthiness vs. the unworthiness of poor people on welfare are themes that pervade social welfare policy today. Another major issue is whether or not convicted felons are capable of long lasting behavior change. Social workers’ skills are not well understood or valued in the contemporary criminal justice system. However, social work has come a long way since the opening of the first juvenile court in 1899, and the first organization to assist abused women was established in 1885. It is not widely acknowledged that many in the social work profession are engaged in forensic social work. Pre-professional social work was identified with corrections when the National Conference of Charities and Corrections was formed in 1879. The current status of forensic social work is that opportunities exist for work in family court with abused and neglected children, victim service programs, specialized courts, and counseling and advocacy. Forensic work is complex and involves an understanding of intrapsychic, interpersonal, familial, and societal systems. Case management is an important model in correctional work, which social workers excel in. The most neglected and devalued groups have been crime victims and offenders. Professional social workers have made remarkable progress during the past century in advocating and obtaining needed social services for juvenile offenders, adult offenders, and victims of violent crimes. 94 references