Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Judging Social Work Expertise in Care Proceedings

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
The Third Wave in Science and Technology Studies

  • 547 Accesses

Abstract

This chapter examines interdisciplinary communication and evaluation of professional expertise, within a legal process. In England, social workers provide evidence to the Family Court as professional witnesses in care proceedings, which determine whether a child should be removed from their family. Recent legal and policy developments restrict the use of independent expert witnesses and encourage the Family Court to rely on social work expertise. This chapter outlines an empirical, socio-legal study, which explored how the judiciary, lawyers and social workers evaluate social work evidence within care proceedings, across and between the disciplines of law and social work. Collins and Evans’ theory of expertises was used in analysis of professional focus groups, interviews and courtroom observations. The chapter concludes with a focus on how the concepts of interactional and meta-expertises can provide a deeper understanding of the range of expertises involved in effective interdisciplinary communication and evaluation.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
eBook
USD 16.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 16.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 129.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Boyatzis, R.E. 1998. Transforming Qualitative Information: Thematic Analysis and Code Development. London: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brophy, J. 2006. Research Review: Child Care Proceedings Under the Children Act 1989, Department for Constitutional Affairs, DCA Researching Series 5/06. Oxford: Oxford Centre for Family Law and Policy, University of Oxford.

    Google Scholar 

  • Care Crisis Review: Options for Change. 2018. London: Family Rights Group. https://www.frg.org.uk/images/Care_Crisis/CCR-FINAL.pdf.

  • Chi, M.T.H. 2006. Two Approaches to the Study of Experts’ Characteristics. In The Cambridge Handbook of Expertise and Expert Performance, ed. K.A. Ericsson, N. Charness, P.J. Feltovich, and R.R. Hoffman. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Collins, H., and R. Evans. 2007. Rethinking Expertise. London: The University of Chicago Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Davidson-Arad, B., and R. Benbenbishty. 2014. Child Welfare Attitudes, Risk Assessments and Intervention Recommendations: The Role of Professional Expertise. British Journal of Social Work Advanced Access Published October 27: 1–18.

    Google Scholar 

  • Department for Education. 2014. Court Orders and Pre-Proceedings for Local Authorities. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/306282/Statutory_guidance_on_court_orders_and_pre-proceedings.pdf.

  • ———. 2018. Working Together to Safeguard Children: A Guide to Inter-agency Working to Safeguard and Promote the Welfare of Children. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/779401/Working_Together_to_Safeguard-Children.pdf.

  • Dickens, J., J. Berrick, T. Pösö, and M. Skivenes. 2017. Social Workers and Independent Experts in Child Protection Decision Making: Messages from an Intercountry Comparative Study. British Journal of Social Work 47: 1024–1042.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dreyfus, H.L., and S.E. Dreyfus. 1986. Mind Over Machine: The Power of Human Intuition and Expertise in the Era of the Computer. New York: Free Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Drury-Hudson, J. 1999. Decision Making in Child Protection: The Use of Theoretical, Empirical and Procedural Knowledge by Novices and Experts and Implications for Fieldwork Placement. British Journal of Social Work 29: 147–169.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ericsson, K.A. 2006. An Introduction to ‘Cambridge Handbook of Expertise and Expert Performance’: Its Development, Organisation and Content. In The Cambridge Handbook of Expertise and Expert Performance, ed. K.A. Ericsson, N. Charness, P.J. Feltovich, and R.R. Hoffman. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Fleming, P., L. Biggart, and C. Beckett. 2014. Effects of Professional Experience on Child Maltreatment Risk Assessments: A Comparison of Students and Qualified Social Workers. British Journal of Social Work, Advance Access Published August 27: 1–19.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fook, J., M. Ryan, and L. Hawkins. 1997. Towards a Theory of Social Work Expertise. British Journal of Social Work 27: 399–417.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • ———. 2000. Professional Expertise: Practice, Theory and Education for Working in Uncertainty. London: Whiting and Birch Ltd.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gillingham, P. 2011. Decision-Making Tools and the Development of Expertise in Child Protection Practitioners: Are We ‘Just Breeding Workers Who Are Good at Ticking Boxes’? Child and Family Social Work 16: 412–421.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • IFSW. 2014. International Federation of Social Workers – Global Definition of the Social Work Profession. http://ifsw.org/get-involved/global-definition-of-social-work/.

  • Masson, J, J. Pearce, and K. Bader, with O. Joyner, J. Marsden, and D. Westlake. 2008. Care Profiling Study. Ministry of Justice Research Series, March. www.justice.gov.uk/publications/docs/care-profiling-study.pdf.

  • Ministry of Justice. 2011a. Family Justice Review Interim Report. London: Ministry of Justice/Department for Education.

    Google Scholar 

  • ———. 2011b. Family Justice Review Final Report. London: Ministry of Justice/Department for Education.

    Google Scholar 

  • Moran-Ellis, J., V.D. Alexander, A. Cronin, M. Dickinson, J. Fielding, J. Sleney, and H. Thomas. 2006. Triangulation and Integration: Processes, Claims and Implications. Qualitative Research 6 (1): 45–59.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Munby, J. 2013. View from the President’s Chambers: The Process of Reform. Family Law, May: 548–552.

    Google Scholar 

  • Parton, N. 2014. The Politics of Child Protection. Hampshire: Palgrave Macmillan.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Taylor, C., and S. White. 2006. Knowledge and Reasoning in Social Work: Educating for Humane Judgement. British Journal of Social Work 36: 937–954.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Turney, D. 2012. A Relationship-Based Approach to Engaging Involuntary Clients: The Contribution of Recognition Theory. Child and Family Social Work 17: 149–159.

    Article  Google Scholar 

List of Statutes

Statutory Instruments

List of Cases

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Manchester Metropolitan University, Manchester, UK

    Ann Potter

Authors
  1. Ann Potter
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ann Potter .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Villanova University, Villanova, PA, USA

    David S. Caudill

  2. James Madison University, Harrisonburg, VA, USA

    Shannon N. Conley

  3. University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA

    Michael E. Gorman

  4. Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK

    Martin Weinel

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2019 The Author(s)

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

Potter, A. (2019). Judging Social Work Expertise in Care Proceedings. In: Caudill, D.S., Conley, S.N., Gorman, M.E., Weinel, M. (eds) The Third Wave in Science and Technology Studies. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-14335-0_5

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-14335-0_5

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-14334-3

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-14335-0

  • eBook Packages: Social SciencesSocial Sciences (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation