Series | Privileged Perspectives: Orthodoxy and Self-Censorship in Social Work Education

The Dissidents

In this week's episode Elizabeth and Matt Watson discuss orthodoxy and student disaffection in social work education. A recent survey project revealed that, while most students report a positive social work education experience, the feeling is by no means universal. Some students perceive that their religious beliefs, political ideology, or even their gender identity may be incompatible with social work, Some students reported that they actively self-censor or misrepresent their thoughts and opinions out of fear. Not surprisingly, they also reported that their professors were not open to alternative ideas or perspectives. Matt and Elizabeth discuss the study outcomes in the context of ethical responsibilities in social work education and practice. We express our hopes that recent trends toward narrow definition of diversity pedagogy will expand to include viewpoint diversity that welcomes more students to fully participate in social work education.

We reached out to the author and Dr. C.J. Sorenson joined us for a follow up on his findings. We asked CJ about provisions for protecting religious and political views, and how social work faculty can avoid alienating their less progressive students at a time when the field needs more good candidates. C.J. expressed openness and commitment to viewpoint diversity in social work classrooms and practice. We all agree that these are the kind of difficult conversations we need in the fields of social work and social work education.

Podcast notes

C.J. Sorenson, Tiffanie Jones & Rachel Casey (24 Jan 2024): The In-class experience of social work students based on their political ideology, Social Work Education. https://doi.org/10.1080/02615479.2024.2307527

LCSW Matt Watson cohosts from our ILV partner, ProSocial Workers.

ProSocial Workers is committed to creating a viewpoint inclusive and politically diverse environment for social workers and other helping professionals. Professionals can find support and continuing education at ProSocialWorkers.com.

Get access the full author Q&A here.

Second part of the series: Left Turn in Social Work Education: The Harmful Effects of a Narrow Political Ideology

First part of the series: Critical vs. Classical Social Justice in Social Work