Authority and Social Work: Concept and Use

Social workers tend to regard the exercise of authority as inimical to the values and ethnics of their profession, yet authority is inherent in every social work relationship. This collection of readings brings together the best, published articles bearing on this basic problem which continues to concern social scientists. It contains twenty-six articles and essays examining in depth, and from different points of view, the concept and use of authority. The articles were carefully selected from the voluminous literature on the topic, and are presented here in a form that will be meaningful and interesting to student and field worker alike. The readings are organized into two parts: in the first, an analysis of the concept of authority is made with the help of social and behavioural science literature; in the second, the conceptual understanding is related to social work practice. Among the authors represented are Erich Fromm, Carl J. Friedrich, Chester I. Barnard, Max Weber, Elliot Study, Kurt and Elizabeth de Schweinitz, and Fritz Redl.

The collection was designed as a text for students of social work, but it will be of equal benefit to practising social workers, and to others in the humanitarian professions.