Full Description
Restorative justice and social work share a number of principles and goals, as they both seek to stem violence and to address the pain associated with harm. Many of the processes used by restorative justice practitioners are based on indigenous practices that facilitate peacemaking, victim healing and reparation, and reengagement of offenders. As a method for transforming conflict, restorative justice can be viewed as a theory, a principle, a practice, and a skill set. Each of these components has the ability to inform and strengthen social work practice and restorative practices can be enhanced by the knowledge, practice modes, and interdisciplinary interaction pioneered by social work.
As the first book of its kind, Social Work and Restorative Justice examines the ways that these two disciplines intersect. Each chapter engages readers in an in-depth exploration of the history and contemporary realities of both disciplines, presenting vivid case studies in practice areas such as school settings, communities, domestic violence, homicide, prisons, child welfare, and gerontology. Social workers and restorative justice practitioners collaborate on each chapter, outlining specific intervention approaches and practice principles that integrate the strengths of each approach in cases ranging from the commonplace contradiction of punishing public school students for behavioral problems by depriving them of the opportunity to learn from their mistakes to the role that both social work and restorative processes have played in the rebuilding of Liberia. In a holistic and critical exploration of how these fields can work together more effectively, the book's authors also importantly highlight tensions between their values, skills, and interventions, such as the risks and benefits of employing restorative justice techniques in a prison setting.
Innovative and forward thinking, Social Work and Restorative Justice presents a synergistic practice model that will improve the effectiveness of social workers and restorative justice practitioners who seek to bring about healing and recovery in families and communities.
Contents
Foreword
Mark Umbreit
1. Introduction
Elizabeth Beck
2. Justice, Restoration, and Social Work
Nancy Kropf
3. An Introduction to Restorative Justice
Pamela Blume Leonard
4. Restorative Justice Practice
Elizabeth Beck and Andrea Wood
5. Social Work and Restorative Justice: Implications for School System Practice
Michele V. Hamilton and Lesa Nitcy Hope
6. Restorative Justice in Prisons
Barb Toews and M. Kay Harris
7. Using Conflict to Build Community: Community Conferencing
Lauren Abramson and Elizabeth Beck
8. Restorative Justice and Child Welfare: Engaging Families and Communities in the Care and Protection of Children
David S. Crampton and Patricia L. Rideout
9. Feminist Perspectives on Family Rights: Social Work and Restorative Practices to Stopping Women Abuse
Joan Pennell and Mary P. Koss
10. Coming Together After Violence: Social Work and Restorative Practices
Nancy J. Good and David L. Gustafson
11. Social Work and Restorative Justice in an International Context: The Case of Liberia
Nancy Rothenberg Williams and Thomas K. Crick
12. Restorative Justice and Aging: Promise for Integrated Practice
Alexandra Lee Crampton and Nancy Kropf
13. Concluding Thoughts and Next Steps
Elizabeth Beck, Nancy Kropf & Pamela Blume Leonard
Afterword
Lorraine Stutzman Amstutz and Howard Zehr
Index
