Social Work and Social Planning

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    Giving cheek: ecotheologians speaking in a global age
    (International Institute for Public Ethics, 2002) Hallahan, Lorna Elizabeth
    In the second half of the 20th century Christian theology finally came down from heaven. Centuries old submerged traditions linking theologies of immanence and moral imagination have found new openings in new conversations. It is the nature of these conversations, particularly in ethics, that the author explores in this paper.
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    Exploring the ethics of forewarning: social workers, confidentiality and potential child abuse disclosures
    (Taylor and Francis, 2007-03) McLaren, Helen Jaqueline
    This article reports on exploratory research on social workers’ perceptions and actions regarding ‘forewarning’ clients of their child abuse reporting obligations as a limitation of confidentiality at relationship onset. A brief overview of ethical principles and former research relevant to forewarning is given prior to explaining research methods and research outcomes of the current study. Data obtained in the current study, from South Australian social workers engaged in human service work with families, articulates a strong desire to practice in accordance with professional codes of ethics. However, findings suggest proactive forewarning as extremely infrequent, with minimised forewarning accomplished only in response to client initiated inquiry and where prior suspicions of child abuse may exist. Generally, discomfort with forewarning was found to result in its avoidance due to concerns about client retention, working in tense relationships and personal uncertainties about clients' reactions towards participants. Participants’ attention to their own emotive needs more actively than the rights of their clients is correlated with having a private, not a public, model of professionalism when establishing the practice context – a problematic issue for ethical social work.
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    Speaking out on GBT men's health: a critique of the Australian government's Men's Health Policy
    (Elsevier Ireland, 2009-08-08) Filiault, Shaun Michael ; Drummond, Murray John ; Riggs, Damien Wayne
    In its recent position paper regarding men's health, the Australian Commonwealth's Department of Health and Ageing addresses the burden of disease and illness faced by Australian men. This document represents a significant advancement in both a national discussion regarding men's health and the use of a truly gendered perspective when engaging in that dialogue. Within the document, the health of several groups of particularly disadvantaged men is addressed. These groups include Aboriginal/Torres Straight Islander men, men of a low socio-economic status (SES) and rural men, among others. It is obvious that men in those groups experience compromised health as a result of their minority group status and the social, economic and political disadvantages that are engendered through minority identification. The health of these men is important and worthy of increased attention so as to rectify the inequities described in the report. Despite the report's exemplary identification of several groups of minority men, it is surprising that it does not expressly identify gay, bisexual and transgendered (GBT) men as a specific at-risk group. Indeed, GBT men face particularly poor health outcomes, often as a result of social homophobia that renders silent the voices of gay men and serves to impair these men's access to adequate health resources. Transgender men may suffer even worse outcomes, due to their especially hidden and stigmatised place in Westernised culture. Notwithstanding the exclusion of GBT men from the original draft of the Men's HealthPolicy, we are encouraged by the Australian Senate's enquiry into this document and the possibility for future revisions and additions to the text. Therefore, we present the following discussion of GBT men's health both to inform practitioners who may lack knowledge and understanding of this field, and to inform policy makers and other stakeholders as to the relevance of GBT health concerns to any future discussions of Australian men's health.
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    Shame on you: Love, shame and women victim/survivors' experiences of intimate abuse
    (No To Violence, 2010) Fraser, Heather Merle
    Love, shame and intimate abuse are often connected to one another through a web of complex emotions, beliefs, experiences, perceptions and stories. In this article, I consider how love and shame may converge for women victims/survivors of intimate abuse. While the work draws on data produced through 84 qualitative narrative feminist interviews, the central aim is to examine the effects of shame for women victims/survivors of intimate abuse through the stories that are told about it. Essentially, I argue that shame is worth exploring because it has some potent but also specific meanings for this population in intimate love relationships.
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    Tackling knife violence: Young men view things differently
    (BMJ Publishing Group, 2011-05-11) Riggs, Damien Wayne ; Palasinski, Marek
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    Sperm donors’ accounts of lesbian recipients: heterosexualisation as a tool for warranting claims to children’s ‘best interests’
    (Taylor & Francis, 2013-03-14) Scholz, B ; Riggs, Damien Wayne
    Whilst there exists a considerable body of research documenting heterosexual couples’ use of donor sperm, relatively little is known about the experiences of lesbian recipients of donor sperm and the men who donate to them. Moreover, in all aspects of donor conception there is an ongoing debate over what constitutes children’s ‘best interests’, with this being most problematic in the unregulated private sector (of which lesbian use of donor sperm from gay men constitutes the largest portion). This article presents narratives of a sample of 16 gay men and one heterosexual man who had donated or who were in the process of donating sperm to lesbian recipients. Specifically, the article focuses on the ways in which the majority of the men elaborated a narrative in which their relationship to the birth mother was ‘heterosexualised’, a narrative that functioned to attribute to them a considerable role in determining the ‘best interests’ of donor-conceived children. The article concludes by providing suggestions for legislation and policy stemming from the findings, and recommends that greater attention be paid to the voices of donor-conceived children.
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    Duty stations and the regulation of space in mental health wards: a South Australian case study
    (Australian Psychological Society, 2013-06) Riggs, Damien Wayne ; Due, Clemence ; Connellan, Kathleen
    This paper reports on a cross-disciplinary pilot study that examined the relationship between architecture and mental health. Drawing upon ethnographic data collected within a purpose-built mental health ward in South Australia, the paper focuses upon the role and use of the duty station in relation to both staff and clients. The findings indicate that duty stations often functioned in problematic ways in terms of surveillance and administration. Specifically, the findings question whether mental health wards can truly promote psychological wellbeing if duty stations solely serve to reinforce power differentials between clients and staff in ways that contribute to the physical gap between these two groups. As such, the findings pave the way towards a clearer understanding of the design needs of mental health clients and clinicians. The paper concludes with suggestions to address the issues raised by the findings.
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    Anti-Asian sentiment amongst a sample of white Australian men on gaydar
    (Springer Verlag, 2013-06) Riggs, Damien Wayne
    Whilst the homogenizing descriptor 'gay' is often used in a singular sense to refer to 'the gay community,' research has increasingly recognized that individuals within gay communities are as diverse as they are within the broader community. Importantly, recognition of this diversity requires an acknowledgement of the fact that, just as in the broader community, discrimination occurs within gay communities. The present study sought to examine the degree to which racism occurs within gay men's online communities (in the form of anti-Asian sentiment expressed in the profiles of a small number of the 60,082 White Australian gay men living in five major Australian states whose profiles were listed on the website gaydar.com.au during October 2010), the forms that such racism takes, and whether any White gay men resisted such racism. The findings report on a thematic and subsequent rhetorical analysis of the profiles of the sub-sample of 403 White gay men who expressed anti-Asian sentiment. Such sentiment, it was found, was expressed in four distinct ways: 1) the construction of racism as 'personal preference,' 2) the construction of Asian gay men as not 'real men,' 3) the construction of Asian gay men as a 'type,' and 4) the assumption that saying 'sorry' renders anti-Asian sentiment somehow acceptable. Whilst the numbers of White gay men expressing anti-Asian sentiment were relatively small, it is suggested that the potential impact of anti-Asian sentiment upon Asian gay men who view such profiles may be considerable, and thus that this phenomenon requires ongoing examination.
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    ‘They’re all just little bits, aren’t they?’: South Australian lesbian mothers’ experiences of marginalisation in primary schools
    (Taylor and Francis, 2013-08-20) Riggs, Damien Wayne ; Willing, Indigo
    Multiple formations of family have always been a part of Australia’s social and historical landscape, yet social norms typically function to marginalise some family forms whilst according to others a privileged status. Marginalisation on the basis of sexuality, for example, whilst arguably somewhat less prevalent than in previous decades, nonetheless continues for those families positioned outside the heteronorm. Institutions such as schools can play an important role in transforming marginalising practices, yet research such as that presented in this paper suggests that schools often also perpetuate marginalisation, even if unintentionally. Drawing on interviews conducted with 23 lesbian mothers, the findings highlight the often subtle ways in which such mothers with children in South Australian primary schools experience marginalisation by educators. Specifically, we argue that marginalisation occurs in the form of injunctions made upon lesbian mothers to inform educators about their families (and to do so in often highly normative ways), to accept that it is their role to manage discrimination, and to treat as routine the marginalisation of their families. Such findings indicate that changes still remain necessary within Australian educational practices in order to ensure the full inclusion of lesbian mother families on terms of their own making.
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    Transgender men's self-representations of bearing children post-transition
    (Demeter Press, 2013-09) Riggs, Damien Wayne
    Since reports of Thomas Beatie’s pregnancy appeared in the media in 2008, the visibility of transgender men having children post-transition has increased considerably. Whilst this visibility, it may be argued, has attracted negative attention to transgender men who choose to bear a child (and transgender men more broadly), it may also be argued that representations of transgender men bearing children have usefully drawn attention to the complex negotiations that transgender men undertake in having children. At the heart of these negotiations lies what is often framed as a competition between transgender men’s masculinity, and their undertaking of a role historically undertaken by people who identify as women (i.e., child bearing). Yet what is repeatedly demonstrated in transgender men’s own self-representations of their pregnancies post-transition, is that they are very much men, even if their masculinity is placed in question by a society that equates child bearing with women. The present chapter takes transgender men’s self-representations as its starting place in seeking to elaborate how such men reconcile their masculinity with child bearing.
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    Research with children of migrant and refugee backgrounds: a review of child-centered research methods
    (Springer Verlag, 2013-09-13) Due, Clemence ; Riggs, Damien Wayne ; Augoustinos, Martha
    This paper outlines a participatory research methodology we have found to be successful in researching the educational experiences and perceptions of children with migrant or refugee backgrounds in Australia for whom English is a second language, aged between 5 and 7 years. As such, the paper focuses on research methods that are effective in research with (rather than on) young children who have experienced transitions involved with forced or voluntary migration and resettlement. The paper outlines these methods, together with their effectiveness and usefulness in allowing children to express themselves on their own terms and become fully involved in the research process. In particular, the paper is interested in allowing children to have voices in research concerning perceptions of ‘doing well’ at school. Finally, the paper addresses the ethical issues of working with migrant and refugee children, and the common critiques of participatory research with young children.
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    Representations of reproductive citizenship and vulnerability in media reports of offshore surrogacy
    (Taylor and Francis, 2013-12-09) Riggs, Damien Wayne ; Due, Clemence
    In his elaboration of the concept of ‘reproductive citizenship’, Turner (2001) suggested something of a homogeneous accumulation of cultural capital to those who make a reproductive contribution to contemporary western societies. The present paper takes up this suggestion and proposes that whilst reproduction is indeed a hallmark of contemporary citizenship, the cultural capital arising from this is still differentiated by mode of reproduction, with reproductive heterosex remaining the norm against which other modes are compared. This norm, it is suggested, produces what is termed here ‘reproductive vulnerability’, namely vulnerability arising from being located outside of the norm. Through an analysis of media representations of Australian people who have undertaken offshore surrogacy arrangements in India, the present paper demonstrates how reproductive vulnerability is highlighted only to be dismissed through recourse to the construction of those who undertake reproductive travel as agentic citizens. The paper concludes by considering what it would take for an ethics of reproductive travel to exist; one in which multiple, incommensurable vulnerabilities are taken into account, and the representation of which encourages, rather than inhibits, careful thought about the reproductive desires of all people.
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    Healthcare experiences of gender diverse Australians: a mixed-methods, self-report survey
    (BioMed Central, 2014) Riggs, Damien Wayne ; Coleman, K ; Due, Clemence
    Background To date the healthcare experiences of gender diverse Australians have received little attention. Previous international research indicates a range of both negative and positive healthcare experiences amongst this diverse population, with negative experiences being those most frequently reported. Method An online survey was designed to examine the healthcare experiences of gender diverse Australians. The survey included Likert scales asking participants to rate their mental and physical health, and their experiences with psychiatrists, general practitioners and surgeons (in terms of perceived comfort, discrimination and information provision). Open-ended questions provided the opportunity for participants to further elaborate on their experiences. Data were collected between June 2012 and July 2013. Quantitative data analysis was conducted utilising SPSS 17.0, including ANCOVAs and correlations to examine the relationships between variables. Qualitative data were coded by the authors in terms of negative or positive responses and the validity of ratings were assessed utilising Cohen's kappa. Results 110 people assigned male at birth (MAAB) and 78 people assigned female at birth (FAAB) completed two separate surveys. All identified as gender diverse as defined in this paper. 70% of participants had accessed a psychiatrist. Participants MAAB rated their experiences with psychiatrists more highly than participants FAAB. 80% of participants had accessed a general practitioner. Comfort with, and respect from, general practitioners were both positively correlated with mental health, whilst discrimination was negatively correlated with mental health. 42.5% of participants had undertaken sex-affirming surgery. Those who had such surgery reported higher levels of physical and mental health than those who had not undertaken surgery. Participants MAAB reported more positive experiences of surgery than did participants FAAB. Conclusions Findings highlight the need for increased education of medical practitioners in regards to engaging with gender diverse clients.
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    The Politics of Research Ethics in Social Work: Reflections From a First-time Researcher
    (Association of Social Work Boards, 2014) Jarldorn, Michele
    This paper reflects upon the experiences of a novice researcher negotiating ethical concerns that arose while interviewing women survivors of intimate partner violence. I begin with a brief history of research ethics and feminist contributions to social science research. Drawing from my Honours project I reflect on interviewing friends, boundaries, managing distressing disclosures and the personal politics of research. Keywords : research ethics, feminist research, interviewing friends, research politics, boundaries
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    Australian lesbian, gay and/or transgender people and the law
    (Federation Press, 2014-02-11) Riggs, Damien Wayne ; Due, Clemence
    Notionally the law is designed to protect people from harm or stigma (Posner 2002): it can of course do the opposite. While, as this chapter outlines, laws in Australia have increasingly become inclusive of lesbians, gay men and/or transgender people, this is only a relatively recent development in Australian law, and there is a much longer history of the law endorsing the marginalisation of these populations.1 For social workers, this means two things. Firstly, given the relationship between the law and social norms (where laws reflect social norms as much as they shape them), it is likely that historically many in the social work profession may have been complicit with the marginalisation of lesbians, gay men and/or transgender people. This might have been implicitly (i.e., by failing to challenge stereotypes or discrimination against lesbians, gay men and/or transgender people) or explicitly (i.e., by endorsing the marginalisation of lesbians, gay men and/or transgender people including in social work practice). Given the relatively slow and recent change in Australian laws related to lesbians, gay men and/or transgender people, it is possible that some social work practitioners continue to hold uninformed or discriminatory attitudes towards these populations, a fact that this chapter attempts to address through the provision of information about current laws and their impact upon these populations.
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    Relationship status? It's complicated
    (University of Sydney, School of Economics, 2014-03) Brook, Heather Jane
    Not since the radical reforms to divorce enacted in the heady 1970s has there been so much huffing and puffing and anxiety about the whole institution of marriage being blown down. At the centre of this anxiety is the relationship of marriage and sexuality: is marriage (always, necessarily, naturally) heterosexual? Should it be? These questions are being debated not just in Australia, but in many places around the world; including, of course, in the United States, where the Clinton administration’s Defence of Marriage Act of 1996 established similar ends to the Howard Government’s Marriage Act amendments of 2004: namely, to limit marriage to man/woman pairings (King 2007). Marriage has, for the most part, served heterosexuality (and its gendered foundations) in ways that normalise and endorse heterosexuality as ‘natural’. At times marriage has carried heavily gendered weight, and arguably still does. (Does ‘wife’ mean the same thing as ‘husband’, and are both these terms interchangeable with ‘spouse’, or do they all have different connotations?) The issue for many is whether marriage should remain exclusively heterosexual, or whether marriage can and should be expanded to include same-sex as well as different-sex relationships. As a social institution, marriage is entangled in sex, religion and politics, and as such can inspire heated controversy. The three books reviewed here address various questions about marriage, relationships and politics.
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    Young People's Experiences of Receiving Individual Packages of Care in South Australia
    (Cambridge University Press, 2014-03) Ogilvy, Ryan ; Riggs, Damien Wayne
    The aim of this study was to explore the role that professional foster care – and specifically Individual Packages of Care (IPC) in South Australia – plays in providing an alternative care option for young people who are unable to live with their birth parents due to issues of abuse or neglect, but who also, due to behavioural concerns, are not well suited to a traditional foster care placement. Participants in the study were nine young people who had previously lived in an IPC placement. The findings highlight participants’ experiences of living in the context of an IPC placement, experiences that were at times challenging, but which also provided opportunities for growth and positive change that may not have been possible in a traditional foster care placement.
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    Zombie law: conjugality, annulment and the (married) living dead
    (Springer Verlag, 2014-04) Brook, Heather Jane
    This article deploys and extends Ulrich Beck’s critique of ‘zombie categories’ (Beck in J Consum Cult 1 (2):261–277, 2001) to consider how conjugal relationships are brought into being before the law. The argument presented here is that sexual performatives relating to marriage—and especially, in this instance, consummation—continue to produce a kind of social-legal magic, even as the social flesh of their enactment is rotting. Rules concerning annulment relating to wedding ceremonies, consent, disclosure, and consummation demonstrate that certain frameworks of conjugality involve a kind of corporeal magic animating the privileged place of heterosexual marriage. Thus, rules and regulations pertaining to weddings continue to produce and protect heterogendered, sexually dimorphous bodies, even though this privileging is—or at least, is becoming—socially obsolete.
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    Innovative Teaching in Social Work with Diverse Populations: Critical Reflections from South Australia
    (Primrose Hall Publishing Group, 2014-05) Fraser, Heather Merle
    In social work education, the use of self sits alongside other professional hallmarks such as social justice and self-determination. With other processes, self-reflection and peer reviews of practice are crucial parts of critical reflexivity but also innovation. In this article, two social work educators from Flinders University in South Australia critically reflect on the design, delivery and review of a third year Bachelor level topic; SOAD3103 Social Work with Diverse Populations. We reflect on the opportunities but also challenges and constraints as we try to be ‘innovative’ social work educators, committed to social justice oriented praxis.
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    What makes a man? Thomas Beatie, embodiment, and ‘mundane transphobia’
    (SAGE Publications, 2014-05-05) Riggs, Damien Wayne
    Critical scholars have long examined the ways in which identity categories are forcibly written upon bodies through the functioning of social norms. For many marginalised groups, such critiques have been central to challenging pathologising understandings of identity categories, often by uncoupling bodies from identities. Yet despite this, normative accounts of embodiment are still forcibly written upon the bodies of many groups of people, albeit often in mundane ways. Nowhere is this perhaps more evident than in the lives of trans people. This paper explores one instance of this by examining in close detail some of the key discursive strategies deployed by Oprah Winfrey in her first interview with Thomas Beatie. It is argued that Beatie is constantly drawn into a logic of ‘bodily evidence’ that demands of him an aetiological account of himself as a man, and from which, Winfrey concludes, he is always left lacking.