HARRIS LIBRARY

The following Pathfinder is intended to step you through the basic library research process for identifying resources relating to the topic of International Social Work.

Consult the Steps to Research and Writing a Paper for more detailed information.

References to book and journal titles and their call numbers and locations are specific to items owned by the MSASS Harris Library and Case Western Reserve University libraries (although in most cases the resources can be found in other academic and public libraries). The websites that are included at the end of the Pathfinder are intended as a starting point for research on the Internet and are not meant to be inclusive.

1. Start by locating resources that provide an overview of your topic.

This will help you define terms in that discipline and provide background information in your subject area. Encyclopedias , handbooks and subject specific dictionaries offer good places to start.

Some titles specifically related to international social work are:

Borrmann, S., Klassen, M., & Spatscheck, C. (Eds.). (2007).  International social work: Social problems, cultural issues and social work education.  Opladen [Germany]: Barbara Budrich.

Campanini, A., & Frost, E. (Eds.). (2004). European social work: Commonalities and differences. Roma: Carocci.

Cox, D. R., & Pawar, M. S. (2006). International social work: Issues, strategies, and programs. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Freitas, M. J. (2005). Children, young people and families: Examining social work practice in Europe. Roma: Carocci.

Healy, L. M., Asamoah, Y., & Hokenstad, M. C. (Eds.). (2003).  Models of international collaboration in social work education.  Alexandria, VA: Council on Social Work Education.

Hokenstad, M. C., & Midgley, J. (Eds.). (1997). Issues in international social work: Global challenges for a new century. Washington, DC: NASW Press.

Hokenstad, M. C., & Midgley, J. (Eds.). (2004). Lessons from abroad: Adapting international social welfare innovations.  Washington, DC: NASW Press.

Human development report (2004). New York: Oxford University Press. Available online thru EuclidPLUS

Levinson, D. (1998). Ethnic groups worldwide: A ready reference handbook. Phoenix, AZ: Oryx Press.

Lyons, K. H. (1999). International social work: Themes and perspectives. Aldershot, England: Ashgate.

Mayadas, N. S., Watts, T. D., & Elliott, D. (Eds.). (1997). International handbook on social work theory and practice. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.

Ponterotto, J. G. (Ed.). (2001). Handbook of multicultural counseling (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Ramanathan, C. S., & Link, R. J. (1999). All our futures: Principles and resources for social work practice in a global era. Pacific Grove: Brooks/Cole.

Tripodi, T., & Potocky-Tripodi, M. (2007).  International social work research: Issues and prospects.  Oxford [UK], New York: Oxford University Press.

United States. Social Security Administration. Office of Research and Statistics. (1969-). Social security programs throughout the world. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare.    Also Available online 
      Note: Publisher changed format to 4 country volumes every two years. Latest volumes (as of 6/24/08) : 2005, The Americas; 2007, Africa; 2006 Europe; 2006 Asia & the Pacific.

Back to Top

2. Search the online catalog for additional books that will give you the history, context, definitions and theories.

Define the terms that you want to use when you are doing a search for materials. If you do a subject search in the online catalog, the system limits you to using predefined Library of Congress Subject Headings. Click here for more information on doing a subject search.

Some subject headings for international social work (in alphabetical order):

     International agencies
     Public welfare - cross-cultural studies
     Social policy - cross-cultural studies
     Social policy - (name of place, as in Social policy - Sweden)
     Social service - international cooperation
     Social work administration - (name of place, as in Social work administration - Germany)
     Social work education - (name of place)
     Social work with children - (name of place)
     Social work with juvenile delinquents - (name of place)
     Social work with the aged - (name of place)
     Social work with women - (name of place)
     Social work with youth - (name of place)

Doing a keyword search will give you many more titles than a subject search and may help you focus the results. When you do a keyword search the system looks in the title, subject and table of contents fields. Click here for more information on doing a keyword search.

To do effective keyword searching, you will need to think of concepts and terms related to your topic. Consulting a thesaurus will help you find synonyms for concepts. Click here for a list of thesauri owned by the Harris Library.

In addition to the subject headings above, here are some general terms (in alphabetical order) to use when searching for information on international social work . When you narrow your search you will make an additional list specific to your topic.

NOTE: Using a system's truncating symbol (in this example, the asterisk "*") at the end of the root word will provide you with records using variations of that word.

     Cross cultural studies
     International adoption
     International community
     International develop*
     International organiz*
     International social policy
     International social service
     International social welfare
     International social work
     International social work education
     Multicultural social work
     Social Security
     Welfare state international

Search the Library Catalog for: KEYWORD SUBJECT

Back to Top

3. Find some general articles on your topic.

After you have located books on your topic, you will want to look for general journal articles in your subject area. Case and OhioLINK offer several general databases. These include: Expanded Academic ASAP, Lexis-Nexis Academic Universe, Periodical Abstracts, SIRS Researcher, and Social Sciences Index. These databases provide a mix of popular magazine articles and scholarly research articles. You can get to these databases by choosing the Research Databases option in the Library Catalog.   Note: Access is limited to authorized users.

TIP: When you search in general databases, you will sometimes retrieve citations to book reviews related to your topic. These book reviews may be helpful in leading you to book titles and/or authors in your area of interest.

Back to Top

4. Search subject specific databases for more scholarly journal articles.

Once you have assembled general journal articles on your topic, you can begin focusing on scholarly research articles. Citations, abstracts and, sometimes, the full-text of journal articles are found in a variety of databases available through Case Western Reserve University and OhioLINK to authorized users.

Case and OhioLINK databases are available by clicking on Research Databases in the Library Catalog.

The World Wide Web also makes available a range of databases. Some of these require a subscription fee to be paid; others are free. Click here to view a list of selected databases available on the Web that are related to social work and the social sciences.

Literature on international social work is found in many disciplines. Some of the databases that will have articles on this topic include:

AGELINE is available electronically through the Case Research Databases list and as afree database on the Web. It provides bibliographic coverage on aging in a social, psychological, health related and economic context and is published by the American Association of Retired Persons. It has selected coverage from 1966-1977, and inclusive coverage from 1978 to the present. [Listed January 18, 2002. Last updated November 7, 2005.]

Chicano Database is available electronically through the OhioLINK Research Databases. It is produced by the Chicano Studies collection at the University of California at Berkeley, and includes citations for journals, newsletters, papers, and reports related to Mexican-American and Chicano issues. This is a specialized database and many of the documents that are cited may be difficult to locate. Coverage is from 1967 forward. [Listed January 18, 2002.]

Child Abuse, Child Welfare, and Adoption is available electronically through the Case Research Databases list. It is produced by the National Clearinghouse on Child Abuse and Neglect and is the world's largest collection of bibliographic databases on the maltreatment of children. It contains over 32,000 citations and abstracts from journals, books and conference reports. Coverage is from 1965 forward. [Listed August 22, 2005.]

Contemporary Women's Issues is available electronically through the OhioLINK Research Databases. The database provides full-text access to information on women in over 190 countries. Citations for journals, newsletters, and research reports from non-profit groups, government and international agencies are all included in this database. Coverage is from 1992 forward.    [Listed July 15, 2003.]

Ethnic Newswatch is available electronically through the Case Research Databases list and through the Library Catalog. It indexes and provides the full-text of over 260 leading periodicals and newspapers published by the ethnic and minority press in the Americas. The database has search options in both English or Spanish with over 1 million articles (over 200,000 in Spanish). Coverage is from 1990 forward. [Listed November 4, 2005. Last updated November 11, 2005.]

Handbook of Latin American Studies is available electronically through the OhioLINK Research Databases and the Case Research Databases. It includes evaluations of books, chapters, articles, and conference papers published in the field of Latin American studies. Coverage is from 1990 forward. The database is updated annually. [Listed January 18, 2002.]

Historical Abstracts is available electronically through the OhioLINK Research Databases. This database selectively indexes articles from over 2100 journals published in 50 languages. It includes some books and dissertations. It covers all areas of world history: political, diplomatic, military, economic, social, cultural, religious and intellectual. This database corresponds to the printed publication of the same name. Coverage is from 1955 to present. [Listed January 18, 2002. Last updated July 15, 2003.]

PAIS (Public Affairs Information Service) International is available electronically through the OhioLINK Research Databases. The subject categories include the areas of public policy, social policy and the social sciences. It includes citations for books as well as journal articles and covers a wide range of planning and public administration journals and books, including government publications. The coverage is from 1972 to the present. [Listed November 7, 2005. Last updated November 11, 2005.]

PsycINFO is available electronically through the OhioLINK Research Databases. The database indexes the world's literature in psychology and related disciplines. It covers over 1500 journals as well as books, and individual book chapters. The coverage is from 1967 forward. This index corresponds to the printed publication Psychological Abstracts . PsycINFO Historical - Need some historical information from 1887-1966?   [Listed May 10, 2002.]

Social Work Abstracts is available electronically through the Case Research Databases list. It contains more than 45,000 records from 1700 social work related journals. Topics covered include service delivery, social work practice, homelessness, aging, child and family welfare, community organization, and substance abuse. The coverage is from 1977 to the present. This database corresponds with the printed publication Social Work Abstracts .    [Listed November 7, 2005. Last updated November 11, 2005.]

Sociological Abstracts is a database available electronically through the OhioLINK Research Databases. It indexes 2600 journals in sociology and related disciplines from over 55 countries. It also contains citations to many relevant dissertations and conference proceedings. Sociological Abstracts is an excellent source for information related to general community practice issues. The coverage is from 1963 through June 2005. This index corresponds to the formerly printed publication Sociological Abstracts. OhioLINK stopped subscribing to updates from this database effective June 2005, as a result nothing after that date will be present in the database. Check SocINDEX for current information. [Listed November 7, 2005. Last updated November 11, 2005.]

CAUTION: The setup will vary for different databases. In many databases if you type in a phrase the system will look for the exact phrase. It does not add an " and" between words. So if you type "urban poverty homeless" you will get zero results because it will look for those words in that exact order. It is often clearer to enter one term at a time and combine the end results.

TIP: Look in the descriptor field and/or use the online thesaurus to lead you to additional terms.

NOTE: Online databases are distributed nationally and are not specific to Case Western Reserve University. The University will not own all the journals that are cited in the databases. Click here for information on finding journal titles in the online catalog.

Back to Top

5. Browse current issues of journals that contain literature on your topic.

Click here for a list of journals to which the MSASS Harris Library subscribes.

Journals that are most likely to contain information on the topic of international social work include:

Ageing International   online at: OhioLINK, EBSCOhost.  (Public catalog)

Australian Social Work   online at: OhioLINK.  (Public catalog)

British Journal of Social Work   online at: OhioLINK.   (Public catalog)

Canadian Social Work Review    (Public catalog)

Caribbean Journal of Social Work    online at:  EBSCOhost Research Databases. (Public catalog)

European Journal of Social Work   online at: Taylor & Francis, EBSCOhost.   (Public catalog)

Indian Journal of Social Work    online at:  EBSCOhost Research Databases.  (Public catalog)

International Journal of Aging & Human Development   online at:MetaPress.  (Public catalog)

International Journal of Child & Family Welfare    (Public catalog)

International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry   online at: OhioLINK.  (Public catalog)

International Journal of Group Psychotherapy    online at:  Guilford.  (Public catalog)

International Journal of Social Psychiatry   online at: OhioLINK, EBSCOhost.   (Public catalog)

International Journal of Social Welfare   online at: OhioLINK.   (Public catalog)

International Social Work   online at: OhioLINK, EBSCOhost.  (Public catalog)

New Global Development    (Public catalog) [Ceased]

Professional Development   online at:  EBSCOhost Research Databases. (Public catalog)

Social Development Issues    online at:   EBSCOhost Research Databases.  (Public catalog)

Voluntas   online at: OhioLINK.   (Public catalog)

Additional journals that cover general topics in Sociology and social studies are available in the Electronic Journal Center.

Back to Top

6. Do a Web search on the Internet for additional information.

Information located through the Internet can provide supplemental material to scholarly research articles. Material retrieved from websites should always be evaluated for currency, authorship, bias and accuracy.

Following are selected websites that might be helpful when looking for information on international social work:

Australian Association of Social Workers
The AASW site includes the Code of Ethics, abstracts from the journal Australian Social Work, the full text of a discussion paper on welfare dependency in the 21st century, and other links relating to membership issues of the ASW.  [Listed April 1, 2001. Last updated March 17, 2002.] (AASWau)

Background Notes
The U.S. Department of State publishes Background Notes on approximately 170 countries worldwide. These are brief, factual online pamphlets with information on each country's culture, history, geography, economy, government and current political situation. Some print copies are also available for in-library use in the Government Documents Dept. of Kelvin Smith Library. [Listed December 27, 2002.] (BackGNote)

The Clearinghouse on International Developments in Child, Youth and Family Policies
Columbia University's Institute of Child and Family Policy created this website to act as a single course for information and data about other countries' child, youth, and family policies. The clearinghouse's website provides cross-national, comparative information on policies, programs, benefits, and services in 23 advanced industrialized countries to address child, youth, and family needs. Scope of the site includes laws, regulations, policies, programs, benefits, services designed to achieve specific objectives with or for individuals in their family roles, or the family as a whole unit.  [Listed April 17, 2002. Last updated July 18, 2003.] (ChildPolIntl)

Human Development Report
This publication of the United Nations Development Programme provides comparative data for 174 countries in such areas as demographics, crime, gender gaps in employment and education, nutrition and many other topics. The report is in PDF format.  [Listed May 12, 2006.] (HDRO)

InterAction
InterAction is a coalition of over 160 relief, development and refugee agencies. The site provides links to the home pages of many of the organizations, as well as information on worldwide relief efforts, the work of the Commission on the Advancement of Women, jobs and volunteer opportunities, and press releases. [Listed April 1, 2001.] (Interaction)

International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)
The ICRC directs and coordinates international relief efforts relating to its humanitarian mission. The ICRC Worldwide section provides ICRC data on over 60 countries which permanently host the ICRC and the 80 countries where they conduct their operations. The Humanitarian Law section includes information on landmines, children and war, and refugees. The site is available in English, French, Spanish and Arabic as well as pages in Russian and Portuguese. [Listed April 23, 2001. Last updated July 21, 2003.] (ICRC)

International Council on Social Welfare
Founded in 1928, this non-governmental organization represents a range of grassroots national and international groups seeking to advance social welfare, social justice and social development. The Related Links section connects to intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations. The Publications section provides full-text access to the ICSW journal, Social Development Review. [Listed April 23, 2001.] (ICSW)

International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW)
The International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW) is a global organization striving for social justice, human rights and social development. IFSW works towards this end through the development of work, best practices and international cooperation between social workers and their professional organizations. It is one of the three sponsors of the quarterly journal, International Social Work. The site offers direct links to member agencies, and their associated Web sites. [Listed April 1, 2001.] (IFSW)

Management of Social Transformations Programme Clearing House (MOST)
MOST is a research programme of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Its objective is to establish links between researchers and policy makers in the area of social science research. The Clearinghouse offers up-to-date information on the projects, publications and activities of the MOST Programme. It features Best Practices in the fields of poverty eradication, social exclusion, and indigenous knowledge. The site has a global focus. [Listed April 23, 2001. Last updated October 19, 2005.] (MOST)

Praxis
Produced by Richard J. Estes of the University of Pennsylvania School of Social Work, this site provides access to a vast array of web resources on international and comparative social development. "PRAXIS has been designed to meet the informational needs of two audiences: 1. social work and social policy educators and students with international interests; 2. other educators and students who require assistance in locating useful national and international resources on social and economic development."--From website. [Listed April 1, 2001. Last updated April 15, 2008.] (PRAXIS)

ProPoor
ProPoor's mission is to disseminate information relating to several thousand non-governmental organizations (NGOs) throughout South Asia. The site allows you to get a list of NGOs in individual countries in South Asia, as well as to search its database by individual and organizational name or project focus. [Listed April 1, 2001.] (ProPoor)

Social Science Research Council
Founded in 1923, the Social Science Research Council (SSRC) is an independent, non-governmental, not-for-profit, international association devoted to the advancement of interdisciplinary research in the social sciences. This site is designed to inform social scientists and students about the activities of the SSRC. Scholars interested in applying for an SSRC grant will find descriptions of fellowship programs in these pages, as well as information about and literature from SSRC publications. [Listed April 1, 2001.] (SSRC)

Social Security Programs Throughout the World
This page links you to the PDF version of Social Security Programs Throughout the World published by the Office of Policy of the U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare's Social Security Administration. The report summarizes the features of social security systems in 172 countries and territories. [Listed September 21, 2001. Last updated July 11, 2003.] (SSAprogs)

Statistics Canada
This is the site of Canada's national statistical agency. The agency collects information in three broad subject areas: demographic and social, socio-economic and economic. The site allows you to search by keyword or under a number of main themes. It also includes links to other canadian information resources. [Listed April 1, 2001.] (StatCan)

Statistics Sweden: Other Statistical Sources
This web page, which is part of the "Statistics Sweden" site, provides links to government statistics for Africa, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, North and South America, and Australia and Oceania. It also connects to websites of various international organizations. [Listed April 1, 2001. Last updated April 15, 2008.] (StatSwed)

Student's Guide to Planning a Career in International Social Work
Ann Glusker of the University of Pennsylvania wrote the chapter presented in this site to help students find their way through the process of finding international social work employment.  [Listed April 1, 2001.  Last updated April 11, 2007.]  (UPennISW_Chap52)

United Nations
The United Nations is a key source for information for all issues relating to international social work. Social work visitors of this vast and comprehensive site may find its Economic and Social Development link especially useful. [Listed April 1, 2001.] (UN)

University of Michigan Documents Center
This section of the Documents Center site links to information from the statistical agencies of a large number of foreign governments. [Listed November 30, 2001. Last updated December 7, 2001.] (UMichStforeig)

The World Bank Group
The mission of this organization is to fight poverty worldwide. The Poverty in Focus section of the site is a rich source of information on global poverty issues, including the full text of the World Development Report. The Topics and Sectors section provides information on subject areas such as AIDS, gender, social development and health & nutrition. [Listed April 1, 2001.] (WorldBank)

Back to Top

7. Evaluate the information you have collected from books and articles.

Consult the bibliographies of the books and articles you have selected. This will lead you to additional references and authors to investigate. Make notes of the gaps in your literature so that you can use this information when you do additional searches. Click here for more information on evaluating the information you have collected.