Assessment and Social Construction: Conflict or Co-Creation?
Penn collection
Degree type
Discipline
Subject
postmodern
social construction
genogram
ecomap
Social Work
Funder
Grant number
License
Copyright date
Distributor
Related resources
Author
Contributor
Abstract
Assessment procedures in social work emerged within the historical context of modernist empiricism. They are lodged in assumptions of objectivity, measurement accuracy, value neutrality and scientific expertise. Within the context of postmodern constructionism, the grounds for traditional assessment are thrown into question. While such critique may seem to threaten the assessment tradition, such a conclusion is unwarranted. Rather, one may locate within the assessment tradition and constructionist writings converging lines of thought. Through the collaborative extension of two assessment exemplars — the genogram and the ecomap — we suggest new and more promising potentials for assessment practices in social work.