Social work with Chinese characteristics: A study of the indigenization of social work education in China from a perspective of chaos theory.

摘要

Social work, a profession of Western origin, was first introduced to China in 1921. After the Communist Party's take-over in 1949, China shut its doors to the world and attempted to create an ideal socialist system which promoted collective ownership, a planned economy, and an egalitarian ideology. It was also assumed that under the new system social problems would no longer exist; therefore the profession of social work would no longer be relevant. Thus, following the lead of the Soviet Union, social work education was abolished in 1952.;This qualitative research attempts to explore how social work education is being reinstated, and also to look at the nature of its Chinese characteristics. The national guidelines of the social work curriculum in China were examined and compared with the global standards for social work education adopted by the International Association of Schools of Social Work (IASSW) and International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW). In addition, interviews were carried out with ten professors of social work who had been actively involved in the development of contemporary social work in China.;This study adopts chaos theory as theoretical framework through which to interpret the complexity of the process. The study's findings show that the emphasis on "social work with Chinese characteristics" is closely related to Chinese culture, which is collectivistic in nature, and has been strongly influenced by the political climate. This thesis probes into the challenges faced by China during the indigenization of social work, and looks at its implications for the future development of international social work.;In 1978, China re-opened its doors to foreign investment. This attitudinal shift paved the way for what has become known as the economic reforms of Communist China. In 1987, the Ministry of Civil Affairs and the State Education Committee of China came to a joint decision to reinstate social work education in China. Reasons given for the reinstatement included a growing concern for human needs, and to ensure social stability. Some senior officials, however, specified that the reestablished social work profession needed to be indigenized, with "Chinese characteristics".