Initially, after learning, reading, and researching about these to methods of approaching research in the social work field, I found myself immediately drawn towards quantitative research. Numbers make sense to me and it seems incredibly logical and convenient in theory for me to be able to reduce the human experience into a data set of numbers which I can then calculate and compute to give me a meaningful answer. However, it’s become clear to me over these past few weeks through studying and reading more qualitative studies, that they can be an incredibly valuable resource to actually understanding with and sympathizing with the material we are researching. I believe that qualitative research gives the researcher as well as the person applying the conclusions reached from the research into practice a good understanding of the human component and nuances that go into implementing interventions. Often, it seems that qualitative research can explore the complexities a little more delicately than quantitative research might be able to because the data is becoming synthesized into numbers. Qualitative research does have it’s downfalls though. While all forms of research is subject to various biases, it would seem that qualitative research has a higher risk because, instead of interpreting numbers and calculations, we must interpret human thoughts, feelings, and experiences, which are much less concrete variables. It also may be harder to reach a definitive, mathematically supported answer to the question being posed. Ultimately, I believe mixed methods approach could take the advantages of both methods and combine them so that the research covers both the concrete evidence presented through quantitative researched with the complex insight of the qualitative research.
Month: October 2016
Foster Care Reflection
It is clear from the articles that I’ve read, along with the supplementary resources, that children do much better when placed in safe, stable environments. This is obviously the ideal, and isn’t always attainable in every case. However, if we as a field could systematically revise the current foster care system so that administrative decisions (case work being shifted between agencies, changes in social workers managing cases, etc.) would not affect the likelihood that a child would be moved out of a stable environment home, than that could significantly reduce the amount of moving and therefore the amount of trauma that can be inflicted on a child due to instability. Also, behavioral issues from children within the foster care system is another reason for constant movement which than inflicts more trauma. This cycle of trauma has the possibility of being stopped if the behavioral issues a child presents is seen under the perspective of trauma informed practice. If the underlying trauma is addressed and dealt with within a child, than the behavioral symptoms of that child will often be worked out as well. Than, with the behavioral issues reduced, ideally they would be able to stay in one home. In summary, I believe the social field is and should continue moving in the direction of trauma informed practice, particularly in the area of child welfare and the foster care system. I also believe the evidence, including many of the articles and resources I’ve posted support this argument.