ABSTRACT
Social work has been and continues generally to be viewed as a 'women's profession', both in Britain, ever since its inception there over 100 years ago (Walton, 1975), and in most of its current manifestations in other countries around the world (Lyons, 1999). This chapter reviews the gender (im)balance in social work, its influence on recent developments, and its implications for the future of UK social work in the field and in the academy. In so-doing we (re-)examine some ideas about the status of social work as a profession and as a discipline, and about knowledge. More specifically, we draw on recent research and scholarship to explore the relationship between gender and the drive towards professionalisation, the development of social work as an academic discipline, and the creation and transmission of knowledge in social work. We argue that the gender dimension has been one factor (among several) that has influenced the development of social work in its struggle to assert professional and academic credibility; and we suggest ways in which some recent changes in external environments might exacerbate or mitigate past and present patterns.
