TY - JOUR
T1 - Practitioners' perceptions of empowerment
AU - Ackerson, Barry
AU - Harrison, W. David
PY - 2000
Y1 - 2000
N2 - The term "empowerment" has been widely adopted in social work and other areas of contemporary culture, yet its meanings are not clearly agreed upon. This article discusses the various uses of this term in both the social-work and mental-health literature. These conceptualizations are then compared with the results of a small qualitative study, in which practitioners from the Deep South discussed their understandings of the meaning of empowerment. Central to their ideas about empowerment were a set of paradoxes and redundancies with other constructs, especially self-determination. Although the concept of empowerment had heuristic value, it was most relevant for work with individuals, rather than larger social forces. While this is in contrast to the broader use of this term in the theoretical literature, it is consistent with other literature about practitioners' views of this vaguely defined term.
AB - The term "empowerment" has been widely adopted in social work and other areas of contemporary culture, yet its meanings are not clearly agreed upon. This article discusses the various uses of this term in both the social-work and mental-health literature. These conceptualizations are then compared with the results of a small qualitative study, in which practitioners from the Deep South discussed their understandings of the meaning of empowerment. Central to their ideas about empowerment were a set of paradoxes and redundancies with other constructs, especially self-determination. Although the concept of empowerment had heuristic value, it was most relevant for work with individuals, rather than larger social forces. While this is in contrast to the broader use of this term in the theoretical literature, it is consistent with other literature about practitioners' views of this vaguely defined term.
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U2 - 10.1606/1044-3894.1015
DO - 10.1606/1044-3894.1015
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:0034344891
SN - 1044-3894
VL - 81
SP - 238
EP - 244
JO - Journal of social casework
JF - Journal of social casework
IS - 3
ER -