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Full-Text Articles in Social Work

A Needs-Based Partial Theory Of Human Injustice: Oppression, Dehumanization, Exploitation, And Systematic Inequality In Opportunities To Address Human Needs, Michael A. Dover Jan 2019

A Needs-Based Partial Theory Of Human Injustice: Oppression, Dehumanization, Exploitation, And Systematic Inequality In Opportunities To Address Human Needs, Michael A. Dover

Social Work Faculty Publications

The article presents an original needs-based partial theory of human injustice and shows its relationship to existing theories of human need and human liberation. The theory is based on an original typology of three social structural sources of human injustice, a partial theorization of the mechanisms of human injustice, and a needs-based theorization of the nature of human injustice, as experienced by individuals. The article makes a sociological contribution to normative social theory by clarifying the relationship of human injustice to human needs, human rights, and human liberation. The theory contends that human injustice is produced when oppression, mechanistic dehumanization, …


Can The Lifeworld Save Us From Neoliberal Governmentality? Social Work, Critical Theory, And Habermas, Stephanie A. Bryson Jan 2019

Can The Lifeworld Save Us From Neoliberal Governmentality? Social Work, Critical Theory, And Habermas, Stephanie A. Bryson

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Two years have passed since the 2016 election of Donald J. Trump, and U.S. social work is revisiting its radical stirrings and grappling with its conservative moorings. In this paper, I will argue that as U.S. social work appraises the adequacy of its intellectual leaders, the cultural relevance of its practice models, and its stance toward the Enlightenment ideals of reason, truth, and justice, it might usefully re-examine its relationship to the critical theory legacy of the Frankfurt School, especially the thinking of Jürgen Habermas. My goal is in this essay is to suggest ways in which Habermasian thinking could …


Durkheim’S Greatest Blunder, Stephen M. Marson, J. Porter Lillis Jan 2019

Durkheim’S Greatest Blunder, Stephen M. Marson, J. Porter Lillis

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

In describing fatalism in Suicide, Durkheim executes two blunders. The first can be categorized in errors of commission while the second should be included in errors of omission. In the error of commission area, he hypothesizes two platforms for existence of fatalistic suicide. Without employing theory-embedded data, he contends that infertility is a catalyst for fatalistic suicidal. Later, he asserts that slavery is fertile soil for fatalistic suicide. Although there is suicidal data in these two arenas, a closer inspection demonstrates that these are not characteristics of fatalistic suicide. For errors of omission, he failed to systematically observe …


Integrating Sociological And Psychological Perspectives On Collective Efficacy, Michael Gearhart Jan 2019

Integrating Sociological And Psychological Perspectives On Collective Efficacy, Michael Gearhart

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Collective efficacy is rooted in both psychology, and sociology. Discussions of the differences between the sociological and psychological conceptualization and operationalization of collective efficacy is limited. In psychology, collective efficacy reflects a group’s belief that collective action can be successful. In sociology, collective efficacy is a theory that describes the process by which social cohesion is activated as informal social control. Mutual efficacy was designed to incorporate the psychological concept of efficacy into collective efficacy theory. In this study, I conduct a multilevel confirmatory factor analysis to study the factor structure of social cohesion, mutual efficacy, and informal social control …