ABSTRACT
The council on social Work Education, the body that accredits undergraduate and graduate social work programs, requires that programs prepare students to apply knowledge of human behavior and the social environment. The human condition is so complex; social workers need to seek a solid, knowledge-based understanding of human behavior in the context of the social environment. The intersections are those areas in which social workers generally focus their assessments and interventions. Given the deeply human issues that are addressed by social workers, and the profession’s roots in charity societies, “theory” and “empirical knowledge” may sound overly scientific and out of place. Theories can offer social workers contexts from which to approach problems with the confidence that interventions are sound. Social workers confront many other questions about the quality of knowledge and theory as well. The chapter also presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book.
