Poetry Matters: A Case for Poetry in Social Work Practice

Abstract

A B S T R A C T Poetry matters: a case for poetry in social workThis article seeks to contribute to an unfortunate decline in literature that explores the importance of the arts and humanities to social work practice, education and research through an exploration of the role of poetry in social work. The authors explore the metaphor of the poet/practitioner, identifying what practitioners can learn from the poet. Second, the authors explore the use of poetry in therapeutic settings, identifying the strengths of using this tool in clinical practice. Third, the authors address the use of poetry within the context of research, exploring how the research poem can be used as a tool of post-modern qualitative research to help social workers understand the lived experiences of their clients. Finally, the authors explore current and future consequences of the profession ignoring the arts and humanities.

Understanding homelessness through poetic inquiry: Looking into the shadows

“…Our use of participatory participant poetry, written by either single authors or as a collaborative group poem, was based on using poetic inquiry to uncover or create new knowledge. Participant written poetry can create insights using language where exploration of feelings and experiences can occur (Furman, et al, 2012).…”

“…Participant poetry is treated as data (Lahman. et al, 2010), and as such the words and language used by participants directly allows exploration of feelings and experiences (Furman, et al, 2012). This approach is different to other forms of poetry used in qualitative research in which researchers use words or themes from research interviews to generated poetry.…”

Found Poetry

“…Poetry is a methodological tool taken up by arts-based researchers to represent the lived experiences of their study participants (Meyer, 2008; Smith, 1999). A fundamental goal of research poetry is to give voice to participant experience (Furman, Enterline, Thompson, & Shukraft, 2012). Just as literary poets use language to represent life experience (Abercrombie, 1926), so too, research poets use language to represent participant experience (Furman et al, 2007).…”

Tornar-se pesquisadora: uma conquista simbólica e as suas interações com o contexto social

“…Isso vale tanto para acessar a subjetividade dos outros como a do próprio pesquisador em uma poesia autoetnográfica. Essa abordagem permite que o autor expresse sentimentos difíceis em suas próprias palavras, assim ele pode contar uma história e ilustrar como é sentir aquilo (Furman, Enterline, Thompson, & Shukraft, 2012;McCulliss, 2013). Sob o disfarce velado da metáfora, típica do texto poético, o pesquisador deixa que os outros acessem sua subjetividade sem um ataque direto às suas emoções (Furman et al, 2012).…”

“…Representei os conflitos entre as minhas características e o modus operandi desse ambiente por meio de metáforas, preservando a ética relacional. Conforme Furman et al (2012), foi como se as experiências e emoções pertencessem aos personagens e não ao autor.…”