Framework for Empowerment-in-Practice

Abstract

We saw in the last chapter that although the concept of empowerment is rooted in a mixture of traditions of mutual aid and self-help as well as more recent liberation, rights and social activist movements, it offers social work the prospect of a different paradigm, rather than the adaptation or extension of an existing one. This chapter recognises that the contesting interpretations of empowerment create a variety of possible frameworks for developing practice. It takes account of the contextual factors shaping policies and practices with an empowerment dimension, including those factors which particularly affect the relationship between professionals and service users. The framework used here charts the level of empowerment against the degree of reflectiveness in practice. But its use in the remainder of this book is subject to the caution that there is no simple linear progression between the different levels of implementing empowerment. Also, the development of a reflective empowering practice involves recognising, specifying and addressing problematic features of situations, rather than adopting a quick-fix, technical problem-solving approach.