Journal of Sociology and Social Work

Flexner and the Social Work Profession: Myth versus History
Michael R. Daley, PhD, LMSW-AP, ACSW Peggy Pittman-Munke, PhD

Abstract
Over a century ago Abraham Flexner, well known for his report on medical education, presented an analysis on social work‘s professional status. His conclusion that social work had many admirable qualities but failed to meet the criteria for a profession has reverberated to the present day and continues to influence discussions about social work. This article examines Flexner‘s speech in the context of its time and argues that the importance placed on it today is not justified. Flexner‘s background knowledge of social work, his methods of investigation of social work, and his implicit bias led him to conclusions based on weak data that were off the mark. The views of other presenters at the conference, the influence of world events, and social work education‘s own plans to move forward suggest that Flexner‘s analysis of social work was flawed and that reliance on his model of professions may have led social work to emulate medicine and pursue a unitary model of practice focused on individual deficits, while minimizing societal factors. This led the profession to deemphasize the social environmental aspects of its work.

Full Text: PDF     DOI: 10.15640/jssw.v9n2a1