Premium
Reflections on practice: Ethics, race, and worldviews
Author(s) -
Bishop Brian J.,
Higgins David,
Casella Francis,
Contos Natalie
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
journal of community psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.585
H-Index - 86
eISSN - 1520-6629
pISSN - 0090-4392
DOI - 10.1002/jcop.10030
Subject(s) - harm , indigenous , sociology , context (archaeology) , psychological intervention , intervention (counseling) , environmental ethics , engineering ethics , race (biology) , epistemology , psychology , social psychology , gender studies , medicine , nursing , history , ecology , philosophy , archaeology , engineering , biology
Abstract Two case studies involving Indigenous Australians are described, which pose ethical and conceptual problems. Over two decades ago Sarason (1972) gave the warning that we are socialized into a culture so well that our interventions can be ineffective or misguided unless we attempt to come to grips with history and the broader social context. Understanding worldviews of both the targeted community and ourselves is imperative if we are going to do more good than harm. The two case studies involve White practitioners working with Indigenous people, and as such, bring into sharp relief the ethical issues and worldviews of those involved. Reflection on the process of intervention provides a mechanism for insight into informed practice and the development of professional knowledge and theory. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.