Long-Term Trends in Clinical Social Work

Abstract

In this article, I examine four interrelated trends that have emerged in clinical social work over the past half-century: the increasing variety of interventions used by clinical social workers; the emergence and solidification of short-term modalities; the development of action-oriented methods; and the growing importance of research as a basis for practice. I consider selected developments, issues, and implications relating to these trends, including the emergence of posteclectic, problem-specific intervention models concomitant with the fading importance of the "schools" approach to practice; applications of brief treatment methods in the context of a managed care environment; the struggle to achieve an appropriate balance between actionoriented and reflective-expressive approaches; and the growing evidence for differential intervention effects as part of the increasing role of research as a guide to practice.

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