This study is concerned with the government of private social welfare agencies, and in particular, with the measure of agreement that the conduct of their government shows with the principles of political representation. Diverse and, as yet, imperfectly reconciled theories exist as to the nature of representativeness in government, but for the purposes of this investigation the concept has been specified in terms of a number of selected propositions that would probably be taken as axiomatic in the political traditions of western countries. These include the notions that all enfranchised members of a political society should enjoy the effective right to participation in the choice of their government; that the representative himself is charged to act with a view to the good of the whole group and not with partiality towards some particular and subordinate interest within it; and that the membership has a right to require an accounting from the representative for the manner of his performance in office. The examination of these questions has been annexed in the present study to the special case of the representation on the boards of directors of the private welfare agencies of the segment of the organized, labour movement falling into the relevant jurisdiction. Among the methods used in making the investigation were: (1) a review of the criteria of membership recognized by the private agencies both in their formal constitutions and in their procedural traditions; (2) an assessment of the conduct of the agencies' general meetings when viewed as a mechanism of accountability; 3) an analysis of the composition of the agency boards by certain occupational categories; and (4) a number of interviews with selected union officials, themselves differentiated, on the basis of whether they were members of agency boards or not. The findings of the study are that there is a pervasive ambiguity about the status of the agencies in relation to the formal categories of "private" and "public", that the agencies are unable to render a consistent or plausible account of the theory of political organization to which they hold themselves bound, and that their internal political processes fail to satisfy even those criteria, of legitimacy that they themselves volunteer. The question of the representation of labour groups was held in abeyance for want of agreement in any quarter as to what would constitute evidence for an answer to it. / Arts, Faculty of / Social Work, School of / Graduate

This study was undertaken (a) to examine some areas where the traditional role of the chaplain has undergone significant changes, (b) to determine the present role of the chaplain in a general hospital and (c) to study the Clinical Pastoral Training Movement, and its significance to the traditional chaplaincy and to social work. After a discussion of the historical background of the chaplaincy in the Christian Church and in some selected social institutions, there is an examination of the role of the chaplain in the general hospital and a discussion of some religious needs of patients. To gain information from chaplains at Vancouver General Hospital each was interviewed and a questionnaire was completed. The chaplains also kept statistics of some aspects of their work for a two-week period. There is an examination of the chaplain's backgrounds, their counselling practices and referral patterns. The latter are compared to referral patterns made by theological students and social work students in three brief case illustrations. The Clinical Pastoral Training Movement and its literature are examined in some detail. Standards and curriculum are outlined and references made to the rapid expansion of the movement. Implications are drawn for the Churches, the Vancouver General Hospital and social work. Some specific suggestions are made for these three areas arising from these findings. / Arts, Faculty of / Social Work, School of / Graduate

"Social Welfare" is of great, and growing, importance in the modern world, and it constantly demands definition. Statistical resources are needed (a) as aids in the definition of welfare problems, (b) to determine the nature and distribution of welfare needs, and (c) for evaluating the appropriateness and effectiveness of existing welfare services and planning the development of new services. As a background, the main types and sources of welfare measurements are reviewed in the light of the increasing volume of studies In Great Britain, the United States and Canada during the present century. To focus on the problem of adequate provincial statistics, an exploratory examination is made of two major groups of data: (a) demographic data from the Census and related sources; (b) the current standard measurements of the recipients of provincial public welfare services, abstracted from the annual reports of the Department of Social Welfare of the Province of British Columbia. The first group includes population trends, age-composition and family formation. The second group gives particular attention to the "categorical assistance programmes", the aged, social allowances, and provincial family services. There is now available a larger body of socio-economic data than ever before, but it is not being fully utilized for welfare interpretation or social service planning. A serious barrier to intensive analysis on a provincial basis is the lack of standardization of a set of regions covering the total geographical area, (as between Departmental Regions, administrative units and census districts). Variations In reporting procedure and insufficient development of socio-economic data and of components or causal factors in dependency are the greatest weaknesses in existing materials. Other areas of welfare in which new measurements as well as the co-ordination or modification of existing data are needed, are only briefly indicated in the present study. "Welfare", today, is more important than ever, and so is welfare research that provides the base for the improvement of existing services and creation of new ones, through broad, statistical measurements as well as special counts and studies. / Arts, Faculty of / Social Work, School of / Graduate

This study was undertaken (a) to examine some areas where the activities of the social work profession and the ministry overlap, (b) to throw light on the attitudes of one profession toward the other and (c) to exemplify instances of collaboration. Because the subject is very large and extensive, limits were set by confining it to the relationships between social work agencies and ministers of Protestant denominations. After a brief discussion of the historical background of the subject, areas of common concern and areas of difference between the two disciplines are outlined. Examples are given of the role of the clergyman as an institutional chaplain, as a pastoral counsellor in a social agency and as a counsellor in his own parish. Other areas in which the roles of the clergyman and social worker show similarities are found in the institutional church, the church-sponsored social agency and the independent, religiously-oriented agency. The lay volunteer movement in both church and social work is given some attention. Research projects which relate to both fields, and special activities where there is active collaboration between social work and the ministry, are discussed. This section, which draws its material from Canada and the United States generally, concludes with some mention of the education of each profession in terms of what it teaches about the other. To gain information from social workers and ministers actually concerned with welfare matters in the Vancouver area, a questionnaire was sent out to both groups. The one to the clergy was organized by the Vancouver Council of Churches for a somewhat different purpose but its results were made available to the writer. As its focus was specifically on mental health, further opinions directly related to social work were secured by interviewing a small group of ministers. In the final chapter, the findings from the questions and from the literature are summarized. General implications are easier to draw than specific directions for particular problems or kinds of collaboration. The interest on the part of each profession in the work of the other is clear; there is also awareness of the contribution the other can make in meeting individual needs, and a desire for further understanding. The ministry is found to be making more use of the resources offered by social work agencies than vice versa. Some suggestions are made arising from these findings and a number of areas for further investigation outlined. / Arts, Faculty of / Social Work, School of / Graduate

The purpose of this study has been to review the development of public assistance in British Columbia; and to compare the present policies of (a) eligibility and determination of need, (b) assistance levels, and (c) service programs, in war Veterans’ Allowance, old Age Assistance, Blind Persons’ Allowance, Mothers’ Allowance and Social Allowance. Reference is made to American programs where a comparison of policies is helpful in clarifying Issues. On policy concerning such questions as residence, relatives’ responsibility, citizenship, assessment of resources, levels of assistance, and service programs, the policy Manual and the Acts and Regulations of the B.C. Social Welfare Branch are used as the basis for comparative analysis, interviews were held with authorities administering the programs and these were pursued in order to clarify apparent variation in policy between programs and administrative agencies. Information on the American programs was obtained through literature, correspondence; and a visit to one local office of the State Department of public Assistance, Washington. For the purpose of measuring levels of assistance, use is made of a standard budget developed in a previous Master of Social Work thesis. From this a monthly cost schedule is developed to suggest an up to date budgetary standard and to point up the evaluation of the adequacy of current public assistance allowances. Discrepancies between programs on such matters as exemptions and additional income are also examined. Service programs including the social and medical aspects are studied comparatively, and it is established that British Columbia is a leader in this respect. The more effective use of trained and untrained personnel in the social services appears to demand further research. The study leads to seven major suggestions; (a) abolition of local residence qualifications with appropriate financial arrangements; (b) standardization and liberalization of policies respecting assessment of resources and income; (c) use of the standard budget in establishing and meeting need; (d) use of a simplified budget - deficit method for determining grants; (e) more effective use of personnel in social services; (f) extended use of research in public assistance; (g) development of advisory - committee groups in public assistance. / Arts, Faculty of / Social Work, School of / Graduate

This thesis examines public welfare administration in British Columbia. An historical review reveals the beginnings of the present administration as a number of "bits and pieces" of welfare legislation which were gradually co-ordinated over a period of fifty years. The present operations of the administration are examined in general, but focus is taken particularly on headquarters relationships with field units or regions. These are discussed and evaluated in the light of current administrative principles and against the background of difficult terrain and isolated regions common to the province. Delegations of authority from headquarters to the field receive special attention. The greater part of the material for the thesis was obtained by direct interview with provincial officials. With considerable reference to theory the information was then subjected to critical analysis. It was found that the public welfare organization had achieved: (a) A unified administration of technically good design, (b) A plan for headquarters field-relationship suitable to provincial terrain, (c) A partial implementation of the plan. Several unsolved problems prevented fuller use of the plan: (a) Lack of agreement among all elements of the administration regarding the decentralization. (b) Scarcity of personnel professionally trained in social work. (c) Cumbersome provincial-municipal relationships in regard to public welfare. These problems point to still existing needs: (a) A redefinition of administrative objectives acceptable to all elements. (b) A greater supply of professionally trained personnel. (c) Increased standards of treatment and supervision in the field. / Arts, Faculty of / Social Work, School of / Graduate

This review was undertaken to present the 1962 Amendments to the Social Security Act of the Federal Government of the United States of America; what they are; the rationale behind them; and, what they are expected to accomplish. Attention was given to the administrative problems involved in putting such an ambitious service program into effect, including those of the individual caseworkers. The impact of the program on the problem of dependency was reviewed in terms of 8$ cases, closed after the inception of the program. Answers to 2 questions were sought: 1. Did concentration on services, particularly those prescribed by the Federal Government result in termination of assistance? 2. Were the caseworkers able to make valid judgements concerning severity of problems and potential for avoiding dependency in classifying their cases? It was concluded that the majority of the case terminations were fortuitous and likely to have occurred with or without services, though service was a factor in a minor percent of the cases. Caseworker judgements, however, were found to be reasonably reliable. Some other general conclusions were also drawn concerning directions for focus of casework service and additional research. Experiences in other areas were reviewed and found not to be too different from those in Whatcom County. / Arts, Faculty of / Social Work, School of / Graduate

Recent research in social work and the social sciences has emphasized the importance of environmental influences upon social problems, particularly those social problems that welfare programmes are designed to combat. Consequently, social welfare organizations have taken a renewed interest in activities which promote interaction and involvement of the community when providing direct services. In this study, these activities have been collectively referred to as community work. This study examined the community work done by the Department of Social Welfare of the Province, of British Columbia to determine the extent and nature of the community work activities undertaken and the variables associated with participation in community work. Using a conceptual base derived from the literature, five principal research questions were clarified and delineated: 1) What community work activities were underway? 2) How much time was involved? 3) Which staff members (social workers or supervisors) carried major responsibilities in these activities? 4) What variables influenced participation in these activities? 5) What training was relevant for participation in these activities? The research design adopted was the "descriptive study." The principal research questions were utilized in designing a mail questionnaire. This was pre-tested and then sent to all the supervisors and a stratified sample of social workers in the District Offices of the Department. Computer tabulation of the data provided frequency tables for an extensive series of cross tabulations. Rigorous tests for validity, reliability, association, and statistical significance of the data were applied. Also included in this study were brief reviews of the history and literature of community work. The major findings of the study were as follows: 1) With minor limitations, the research design was effective for the purpose of the study. 2) Virtually every staff member participated in some community work activity with considerable variations amongst the different types of activity. 3) Supervisors spent more time on a broader range of community work activities than social workers and each participated in distinctly different activities. 4) Several variables were associated with participation in community work, particularly the length of time the staff members were in the District Office and the size of the supervisors' caseloads. 5) Staff members' perceptions of the adequacy of their training varied considerably depending upon the activity examined. The study fulfilled its dual purpose of providing a detailed description of the community work done by the District Office Staff and of delineating some of the variables that were associated with participation in community work. These findings should provide considerable clarification of the operational and administrative considerations relevant to the expansion of community work. Questions were raised about what constitutes suitable training for participation in certain types of community work activity. / Arts, Faculty of / Social Work, School of / Graduate

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