NCJ Number
148931
Journal
Social Work Volume: 2 Issue: 4 Dated: (1957) Pages: 43-50
Date Published
1957
Length
8 pages
Annotation
Based on the experience of two programs that have been operating for more than 3 years, this paper describes the nature and roles of field workers who work with urban street-corner groups or gangs with 25 or more members.
Abstract
The two programs are the Special Youth Program of the Greater Boston Councils for Youth and the Unreached Youth Program of the Cleveland Group Work Council. The essential elements of these programs are that they are professional community services and not membership programs, the individual worker is the central component of this professional service, the work is carried on in the community, the service is not initially requested by the street-corner group, and it serves groups rather than individuals or families. The analysis concludes that the worker must begin by accepting the group as a set of individuals operating within a framework of values that reflects their view of the world and the community around them. The worker's goal is to modify that framework of values, not by attacking their views directly, but by helping create a series of real experiences for the group that may affect their views.