Is this new?
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Outreach workers and other assertive social
intervention workers (ASI workers) have always
been good at 'just getting on with it' and rarely
spend time dwelling on what it is that they are
doing and why it is sometimes effective and
sometimes not.
However, new levels of professionalism are
expected and if we are to attain this and be seen
as equals amongst peers such as social workers,
doctors, police officers, counsellors etc, it is
necessary that ASI workers legitimise themselves
by engaging in a process of articulating what is
effective and what are the 'tools' specific to the
role.
For doctors, police officers and social workers there
are a wealth of good practice guidelines and books
debating the value of different approaches, but for
the new breed of ASI workers there are not yet the
same foundations.
A term like 'assertive engagement' is often used
but without real clarity as to what is meant.
Clarifying assertive engagement is the starting
point of this resource. We can then take small
steps towards articulating what it means to be
effective in these new fields by pulling together
websites, articles and by reviewing books and
publications that have something valuable to say
about the work we do.
This is an open resource, everything is free for your
use, however, we encourage participation. There is
so little quality literature on this kind of social
intervention we require you to help us find it. Email
us with suggestions of books and websites you
have found useful. If you are brave why not try
writing an article or a case study around assertive
engagement or some aspect of social intervention
that hasn't previously been covered and send it to
be featured here.
In short, this is new.
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