SOCIAL WORK

Subject Librarian: Janet Dagenais Brown, Assoc. Prof., Education & Social Sciences Librarian
Email: janet.brown@wichita.edu
Phone: 978-5075
Policy created: December 2002  Revised: February 2003

Purpose    Scope   Summary     Subjects Excluded   Related Collections   Related Policies
Related Evaluations    Other Factors   Appendix A   Appendix B   Appendix C   Appendix D    Appendix E

 A. Purpose of Collection

1. Program Information

The School of Social Work offers degrees at both the Bachelor and Master levels.  The Bachelor of Social Work (BSW) program was accredited by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) in 1974, and reaccredited in 1996.  The Master of Social Work (MSW) program received candidacy status for accreditation through the CSWE in 1999, and submitted its Self Study report to that agency in December of 2001.  The School continues to work towards achieving full accreditation for this program in the near future.

Both the Bachelor and Master degree programs require a combination of coursework and field (practicum) work.  In these programs, students acquire basic social work skills and gain an understanding of a broad range of human interactions, from the individual to societal levels.  The goal of the programs is to prepare students for generalist and advanced generalist Social Work practice.  Generalists provide services to individuals, families, small groups, organizations, communities and society as a whole in a wide variety of settings, and with a diverse clientele.

The majority of students graduating from WSU’s Social Work programs remain in the Wichita area to work.  At the completion of these programs, students must sit for the Association of Social Work Boards examinations to obtain licensure to practice in the state of Kansas.  Three exams are offered, including the Baccalaureate Social Worker (BSW), Master Social Worker (MSW) and the Specialist Clinical Social Worker (LSCSW).

The Social Work collection serves the needs of the Social Work faculty, which includes nine permanent faculty, five adjuncts and 2 graduate assistants.  The coIlection also serves nearly 300 students in the undergraduate and graduate programs.
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2. Collection Description

 The Library’s monograph collection currently contains over 7,500 titles in the core Social Work Library of Congress call number areas of HV 1 - HV 5840.  This number does not reflect the thousands of titles held in related disciplines such as psychology, criminal justice, gerontology, minority studies, sociology, education, and women’s studies that are also heavily used by students and faculty in Social Work. 

The library also maintains subscriptions to twenty-nine journals related specifically to Social Work.  Twenty titles owned by the Library are considered to be core Social Work journals (as indicated in the Social Work Abstracts).  Ten to fifteen Social Work journals are also available electronically and in full-text.  The Social Work journal collection is supplemented by substantial holdings in the related subject areas mentioned above.  While Social Work faculty have indicated that the journal collection is basically adequate for their needs, subscriptions to additional titles have been requested.  Of primary interest is the journal Research on Social Work Practice.  Other titles requested include Journal of Gay and Lesbian Social Services, Journal of Ethnic and Cultural Diversity in Social Work, Journal of Teaching in Social Work, and Journal of Technology in Human Services.

Finally, researchers have both on-campus and off-campus access to the primary index to the journal literature in Social Work—the Social Work Abstracts.  Remote access to indexes in related subject areas is also available.  Examples of these indexes include PsycINFO, Sociological Abstracts, ERIC and the Social Sciences Abstracts.

 3. Anticipated Trends

 As the School of Social Work achieves accreditation for its Masters level program, an emphasis will need to be placed upon acquiring research materials in both print and electronic formats to support the program.  It is anticipated that increased access to electronic full-text journals and electronic books will also be desirable.

Faculty in the School of Social Work have identified the following as areas of emerging interest:  school Social Work, technology based Social Work, spirituality in Social Work, empowerment practice, chaos and complexity theory, evidence based practice, equity for women and other women’s issues, groups, privatization of Social Work services, and clinical Social Work/Mental health.
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B. Scope of Coverage

 1.      Chronological Focus

Emphasis is placed on works dealing with contemporary Social Work issues and practice.  However, materials that provide the historical background for the field of Social Work are also of value, and will be collected selectively.

 2.      Geographic Focus

Works related to the practice of Social Work in the United States will be the primary focus of the collection.  Special emphasis will be placed on materials related to the State of Kansas.  Of special interest are materials covering services for the many ethnic groups represented in the state and the Wichita area, including Hispanics, African-Americans, Vietnamese and other Asian groups, and Native Americans.  Materials on Social Work as practiced in other countries may also be of value, and will be collected selectively.

 3.      Formats and Materials Collected

Collecting emphasis is placed on current journals, monographs, reference works (including indexes to periodicals, encyclopedias, handbooks, etc.), government publications, and professional association publications.  Proceedings and conference papers are collected selectively.  Electronic resources will be increasingly important. Video formats are beginning to be requested with some regularity, and will be purchased when requested by faculty if the budget allows.

 4.      Formats and Materials Not Collected

Materials in micro format (microfilm, microfiche) will be collected only when that is the sole format available.  Textbooks are not normally acquired, but may be purchased from time to time to provide broad overviews of some subject areas.

 5.      Publication/Imprint Dates

 An emphasis will be placed on recently published materials; older materials will be added selectively.

 6.      Place of Publication

Primary focus will be placed on materials published in the United States.  Materials published in other countries will be collected selectively.

 7.      Languages Collected

English-language materials will be collected.  Materials in other languages will be collected at the request of faculty.
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 C. Summary of Subjects Collected and Collecting Levels

A broad range of Social Work materials is collected.  Special emphasis is placed on the method and theory, as well as the study and teaching, of Social Work.  Other areas of interest include: social welfare policy and laws; Social Work practice and education; social services administration; Social Work with families, children, adolescents, the elderly, and other special groups of people; poverty; homelessness; substance abuse; child abuse and domestic violence; foster care; mental health; community organizations, involuntary clients; social justice; and Social Work ethics.

     (See Appendix A for Details)

 D. Subjects Excluded

 None

 E. Related Collections and Cooperative Efforts

Other major segments of the Library’s collection that would be of importance to Social Work research include, but are not limited to, Psychology, Sociology, Women’s Studies, Gerontology, Education, Urban Affairs, Minority Studies, Criminal Justice, Public Health, and U.S. and state law.

 F. Related Collection Development Policies

Collection Development policies related to all of the subject areas mentioned above would have an impact on the library’s research collection for Social Work.
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 G. Related Collection Evaluations

Evaluation of the Social Work Monograph Collection -- Please see Appendix C
Evaluation of the Social Work Journal Collection – Please see Appendix D
Summary of the Survey of Social Work Faculty – Please see Appendix E

 H. Other Factors

 None

Appendix A – Specific Subjects Collected (with Collecting Levels)

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Appendix B – Explanation of Collecting Levels and Codes