A Feminist Action Research methodology was used as a
collaborative process with five ACT Health social workers
based at the Community Health Centres and four at the
Woden Valley Hospital. The primary purpose of the study
was to investigate, both through critical reflection and
action in their work setting, the participants' relevance
or otherwise to Aboriginal people in the ACT and region.
Behind this is the question of how encapsulated social
work is by racism. The impetus for the study arose from
my unresolved concerns regarding these issues, having
been a social worker in ACT Health for 6 years, to 1990.
Decisions on how to proceed involved a process of ongoing
consultation between the participant social workers and
myself. Exploratory meetings were held in March and
April, with an ongoing program being held 2-3 weekly from
June to September, followed by a review in December. Most
gatherings were specific to the Woden Valley Hospital or
Community Health settings. However two half-day workshops
were held for all the participants. All the sessions from
June were taped. Aboriginal leaders were consulted, as
were several managers in ACT Health.
The phenomena of institutional, cultural and personal
racism were addressed by the social workers through
discussion, exercises, and anti-racist initiatives in
their work setting. They found that significant time
restraints presented an example of institutional racism
working against their good intentions. Another dimension
arose from implicitly racist education in social work
courses when most of the participants undertook their
undergraduate courses in the 1960s and 1970s. Aspects
related to professionalism such as its language and
separation of a personal and professional self were
indicative of cultural racism. Stories of personal racism
were shared, in the context of raised awareness leading
to changing those attitudes and behaviours.
The fact that the study took place in 1993 - a watershed
year for Aboriginal/white relations in Australia - seemed
to lead to greater momentum for the project. The social
workers found that participation in this study increased
their knowledge of, and their confidence - both actual
and potential - in interaction with Aboriginal people.
However, they also understood these to be just small
steps towards greater justice for the indigenous people.
An outcome of the project has been involving some
colleagues in similar anti-racist actions to those the
social workers participated in during the time of the
study. The action research project has continued on in
different ways, beyond 1993, despite my withdrawal as
'the researcher' who took the initiative.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ADTP/219114 |
| Date | January 1994 |
| Creators | Larkin, Christine M. A., N/A |
| Publisher | University of Canberra. Education |
| Source Sets | Australiasian Digital Theses Program |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Rights | ), Copyright Christine M. A. Larkin |
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