Anti-oppressive practice in social work education, and black African mothers' lived experiences of raising children on the autism spectrum in Scotland

Abstract

This doctoral research aims to develop an understanding of social workers’ interactions with Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) families in Scotland. This is achieved through considering the concept of anti-oppressive practices within social work education; within the experiences of social worker to BME community interactions in the field; and the experiences of Black African mothers raising children on the autism spectrum in Scotland. Anti-oppressive practice is a concept used to frame and understand oppression in operation at various levels in society. Proponents of anti-oppressive practice argue that it is advantageous because it bisects various identity markers (Dominelli, 2002). Additionally, BME experiences of social services is sparse within the Scottish context (Valenti, 2017). The ethnic diversity in Scotland is predicted to increase (Walsh, 2017), so investigation into BME experiences is essential. The focus on African mothers is relevant in recognising inter community differences rather than amalgamating their experiences into a homogeneous ‘BME’ experience. This qualitative research is philosophically underpinned by descriptive phenomenology. The lived experiences of 6 social work educators, 10 students, 6 social workers, and 4 Black African mothers raising children on the autism spectrum were captured. The data was collected through interviews, a focus group session, written responses, and documentary evidence. The data was explicated using Hycner’s simplified (1999) process in descriptive phenomenology. The findings reveal the coupling of the workers’ education and training; their lived experiences; and the changes in societal demands shape their understanding of anti-oppressive practice. The findings provide a layer of insight into discord in perceived social work roles, and expectations by Black African mothers of those roles in reality. The research contributes to the sparse research landscape in Scotland through exploring the experiences of Black African mothers as a subgroup of BME communities. Therefore, these findings have wider implications for anti-oppressive social work practice with wider BME communities in Scotland.

Date of Award	16 Dec 2020
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	University Of Strathclyde
Sponsors	ESRC (Economic and Social Research Council)
Supervisor	Gillian MacIntyre (Supervisor) & Bernard Harris (Supervisor)