A Comparative Survey of Aotearoa New Zealand and UK Social Workers on the Role of Religion and Spirituality in Practice

Posted: 15 Mar 2010

See all articles by Blair Stirling

Blair Stirling

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Leola Dyrud Furman

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Perry W. Benson

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Edward R. Canda

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Cordelia Grimwood

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Date Written: March 2010

Abstract

Increasingly, social work is being challenged to consider the role of spirituality and religion in practice and education as the profession has witnessed an expanding interest in the integration of spirituality, motivated by the recognition of spiritual diversity as an important component of human experience, cultural competency and anti-racist social work practice. In response to the lack of international empirical research in general, and relating to spirituality in particular, cross-national survey research was conducted in Aotearoa New Zealand (ANZ) and the UK as part of a larger multi-national study of social workers' attitudes about the role of spirituality in their practice. Although the two countries share some cultural similarities due to the impact of secularization, British settlement and colonization in ANZ, there are also significant differences related to the unique multicultural make-up of ANZ, emphasizing the indigenous Maori and the centrality of spirituality within a Maori worldview.

Keywords: Spirituality, religion, social work education, social work practice

Suggested Citation

Stirling, Blair and Furman, Leola Dyrud and Benson, Perry W. and Canda, Edward R. and Grimwood, Cordelia, A Comparative Survey of Aotearoa New Zealand and UK Social Workers on the Role of Religion and Spirituality in Practice (March 2010). British Journal of Social Work, Vol. 40, Issue 2, pp. 602-621, 2010, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1569249 or http://dx.doi.org/bcp008

Blair Stirling (Contact Author)

affiliation not provided to SSRN

No Address Available

Leola Dyrud Furman

affiliation not provided to SSRN

No Address Available

Perry W. Benson

affiliation not provided to SSRN

No Address Available

Edward R. Canda

affiliation not provided to SSRN

No Address Available

Cordelia Grimwood

affiliation not provided to SSRN

No Address Available

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