Summary: This article reports the results of an exploratory comparative study that investigated errors made by social work practitioners. Two groups of social workers, one in Italy and one in Mainland China, answered questions about the causes and effects of mistakes, professional errors and reactions to errors committed by their colleagues, and the influence of intuition on the decision-making process that generates mistakes and errors of professional judgement. Findings: The most salient differences between the Italian and Chinese respondents related to their willingness to talk about their mistakes and their confidence in the training received. A longer social work tradition in Italy helps practitioners in that country to feel stronger and to engage in a reflective learning process rather than defensive actions. As members of a new and not yet fully recognized profession, social workers in Mainland China are more likely to blame external circumstances for negative outcomes. Both groups shared the same positive consideration of intuition and the risk of losing service users’ trust. Applications: The purpose of the article is to foster better understanding of errors and mistakes in social work, as well as more open discussion and reflection on social work practice and how to prevent negative outcomes.
Exploring mistakes and errors of professional judgement in social work in China and Italy: The impact of culture, organization and education / Sicora, A.; Lu, W.; Lei, J.. - In: JOURNAL OF SOCIAL WORK. - ISSN 1468-0173. - 2021:21(5)(2021), pp. 1065-1083. [10.1177/1468017320919879]
Exploring mistakes and errors of professional judgement in social work in China and Italy: The impact of culture, organization and education
Sicora A.;
2021-01-01
Abstract
Summary: This article reports the results of an exploratory comparative study that investigated errors made by social work practitioners. Two groups of social workers, one in Italy and one in Mainland China, answered questions about the causes and effects of mistakes, professional errors and reactions to errors committed by their colleagues, and the influence of intuition on the decision-making process that generates mistakes and errors of professional judgement. Findings: The most salient differences between the Italian and Chinese respondents related to their willingness to talk about their mistakes and their confidence in the training received. A longer social work tradition in Italy helps practitioners in that country to feel stronger and to engage in a reflective learning process rather than defensive actions. As members of a new and not yet fully recognized profession, social workers in Mainland China are more likely to blame external circumstances for negative outcomes. Both groups shared the same positive consideration of intuition and the risk of losing service users’ trust. Applications: The purpose of the article is to foster better understanding of errors and mistakes in social work, as well as more open discussion and reflection on social work practice and how to prevent negative outcomes.File | Dimensione | Formato | |
---|---|---|---|
1468017320919879.pdf
accesso aperto
Tipologia:
Versione editoriale (Publisher’s layout)
Licenza:
Tutti i diritti riservati (All rights reserved)
Dimensione
388.43 kB
Formato
Adobe PDF
|
388.43 kB | Adobe PDF | Visualizza/Apri |
I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione