International Social Work and Social Welfare: Middle East and North Africa
- LAST REVIEWED: 28 April 2017
- LAST MODIFIED: 30 March 2015
- DOI: 10.1093/obo/9780195389678-0082
- LAST REVIEWED: 28 April 2017
- LAST MODIFIED: 30 March 2015
- DOI: 10.1093/obo/9780195389678-0082
Introduction
Social welfare in the twenty-one countries of the Middle East and North Africa has been influenced by local cultural, political, social, and economic traditions, as well as imported models of social welfare. But each country has evolved differently due to distinctive historical, socioeconomic, and demographic factors. This entry focuses primarily on how the ideals of social welfare have been established within these countries throughout the past century. It discusses how various colonial assumptions have blended with the local, and how colonial and postcolonial circumstances have intersected with social welfare by way of geopolitical conflict and interethnic disputes and weakened political institutions and socioeconomic effects related to poverty, inequality, and political repression. This entry examines, first, the economic, social, and political features of social welfare services in different countries at various stages of development. After this, it examines social policy and welfare services and how they are influenced and fostered in different countries. Next it looks at the role of social work and social service education and the relevance of this sector among the different regions. The final section recognizes the trends and challenges facing this sector in an ever-changing world as these countries continue to develop regional models of practice. The focus throughout is on major works in the field, for no one document could cover all of the myriad scholarship that has been published.
Introductory Works
The references in this section provide insights into social policy and social welfare issues in the Middle East and North African regions. Al-Krenawi and Graham 2003 presents social work as a Western concept and demonstrates how it has infiltrated these regions as a consequence of colonialism. The authors argue that one of the manifestations of the eighty years of colonial influence in the two regions is the ongoing process of imposing Western models of intervention, which intersect with the local, rendering them unique to the region. The realm of social welfare and policy has also been affected by colonial infiltration. Bayet 2002 explains that the Western-influenced concepts have now become a part of these two regions and points to the constant struggle between traditional political forces and neoliberal ideals. Bush 2004 suggests that there is a neoclassical bias in the study of poverty in the region, but De Soto 2000 takes an alternative look at the origins of poverty in the region, using the city of Cairo, Egypt, as a case study. Barakat 1993 explains Arab cultural perspectives in greater detail, allowing for a better understanding of the role of social work as well as policy in these evolving societies. Iqbal 2006 presents an empirical analysis of the poverty plaguing these regions, calling for stronger governmental representation in the social welfare sector. El-Ghonemy 1998 presents a regional comparison of the successes and failures of Arab welfare systems and explains the differences in wealth distribution among Arab countries.
Barakat, Halim. 1993. The Arab world: Society, culture, and state. Berkeley: Univ. of California Press.
NNNOffers a perspective of Arab culture from an Arabic point of view written for a predominantly Western audience. To better understand the role of social work in the Arab world, it is important to understand the society from within.
Bayet, Asef. 2002. Activism and social development in the Middle East. International Journal of Middle East Studies 34:1–28.
NNNProvides a perspective of the current populations of Middle Eastern countries as they struggle between implementing social policy—by combining older traditional regimes—and introducing neoliberal ideas as part of social development as it is a consequence of colonialism.
Bush, Ray. 2004. Poverty and neo-liberal bias in the Middle East and North Africa. Development and Change 35.4: 673–695.
DOI: 10.1111/j.0012-155X.2004.00375.x
NNNSuggests that there is a neoclassical bias in the dominant literature on poverty in the Middle Eastern and North African region. The author suggests that poverty in the region is not a result of exclusion but rather a consequence of how poor people are differentially incorporated into the economic and political process.
De Soto, Hernando. 2000. The mystery of capital: Why capitalism triumphs in the West and fails everywhere else. New York: Basic Books.
NNNStudies the origins of poverty and the failure of capitalism in third world and former communist countries. Suggests that poverty is maintained in these countries through the inability of the poor to enter economic markets, regardless of owning tradable properties and goods. Cairo, Egypt, is one of several cities examined.
El-Ghonemy, M. Riad. 1998. Affluence and poverty in the Middle East. New York: Routledge.
NNNA regional study of the causes and consequences of wealth distribution in different Arab countries. El-Ghonemy analyzes and compares the impact of government policies and government intervention in social welfare in opposition to the free activity of the market.
Iqbal, Farrakh. 2006. Sustaining gains in poverty reduction and human development in the Middle East and North Africa. Washington, DC: World Bank.
DOI: 10.1596/978-0-8213-6527-4
NNNOffers an indication of poverty levels over the last few decades by examining human development indicators. This provides more insight into the obstacles facing the Middle East and North Africa in terms of poverty reduction.
Issawi, Charles. 2005. An economic history of the Middle East and North Africa. New York: Routledge.
NNNA comprehensive economic history of the past two hundred years in the Middle East and North Africa, not just focusing on the changes related to the oil in the region. This book also touches on the Western impact and subsequent decline along with the region’s response.
Al-Krenawi, Alean, and John R. Graham. 2003. Principles of social work practice in the Muslim Arab world. Arab Studies Quarterly 25.4: 75–91.
NNNThis introductory article offers a Muslim Arab perspective on the principles of social work while understanding that the principle of social work is primarily a Northern concept and is subsequently a consequence of colonialism.
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Article
- Abortion
- Adolescent Depression
- Adolescent Pregnancy
- Adolescents
- Adoption
- Adoption Home Study Assessments
- Adult Protective Services in the United States
- African Americans
- Aging
- Aging out of foster care
- Aging, Physical Health and
- Alcohol and Drug Abuse Problems
- Alcohol and Drug Problems, Prevention of Adolescent and Yo...
- Alcohol Problems: Practice Interventions
- Alcohol Use Disorder
- Alzheimer's Disease and Other Dementias
- Anti-Oppressive Practice
- Asian Americans
- Asian-American Youth
- Assessment
- Autism Spectrum Disorders
- Baccalaureate Social Workers
- Behavioral Health
- Behavioral Social Work Practice
- Bereavement Practice
- Bisexuality
- Brief Therapies in Social Work: Task-Centered Model and So...
- Bullying and Social Work Intervention
- Canadian Social Welfare, History of
- Case Management in Mental Health in the United States
- Central American Migration to the United States
- Child Maltreatment Prevention
- Child Neglect and Emotional Maltreatment
- Child Poverty
- Child Sexual Abuse
- Child Welfare
- Child Welfare and Child Protection in Europe, History of
- Child Welfare Practice with LGBTQ Youth and Families
- Children
- Children of Incarcerated Parents
- Christianity and Social Work
- Chronic Illness
- Clinical Social Work Practice with Adult Lesbians
- Clinical Social Work Practice with Males
- Cognitive Behavior Therapies with Diverse and Stressed Pop...
- Cognitive Processing Therapy
- Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy
- Community
- Community Development
- Community Policing
- Community-Based Participatory Research
- Community-Needs Assessment
- Comparative Social Work
- Computational Social Welfare: Applying Data Science in Soc...
- Conflict Resolution
- Council on Social Work Education
- Counseling Female Offenders
- Criminal Justice
- Crisis Interventions
- Cultural Competence and Ethnic Sensitive Practice
- Culture, Ethnicity, Substance Use, and Substance Use Disor...
- Dementia Care
- Dementia Care, Ethical Aspects of
- Depression and Cancer
- Development and Infancy (Birth to Age Three)
- Differential Response in Child Welfare
- Digital Storytelling for Social Work Interventions
- Direct Practice in Social Work
- Disabilities
- Disability and Disability Culture
- Disasters
- Divorce
- Domestic Violence Among Immigrants
- Early Pregnancy and Parenthood Among Child Welfare–Involve...
- Eating Disorders
- Ecological Framework
- Economic Evaluation
- Elder Mistreatment
- End-of-Life Decisions
- Epigenetics for Social Workers
- Ethical Issues in Social Work and Technology
- Ethics and Values in Social Work
- Ethnicity
- European Institutions and Social Work
- European Union, Justice and Home Affairs in the
- Evidence-based Social Work Practice
- Evidence-based Social Work Practice: Finding Evidence
- Evidence-based Social Work Practice: Issues, Controversies...
- Experimental and Quasi-Experimental Designs
- Families
- Families with Gay, Lesbian, or Bisexual Parents
- Family Caregiving
- Family Group Conferencing
- Family Policy
- Family Services
- Family Therapy
- Family Violence
- Fathering Among Families Served By Child Welfare
- Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders
- Field Education
- Financial Literacy and Social Work
- Financing Health-Care Delivery in the United States
- Forensic Social Work
- Foster Care
- Foster care and siblings
- Gay Men
- Gender, Violence, and Trauma in Immigration Detention in t...
- Generalist Practice and Advanced Generalist Practice
- Group Work
- Group Work across Populations, Challenges, and Settings
- Group Work, Research, Best Practices, and Evidence-based
- Harm Reduction
- Health Care Reform
- Health Disparities
- Health Social Work
- History of Social Work and Social Welfare, 1900–1950
- History of Social Work and Social Welfare, 1950-1980
- History of Social Work and Social Welfare, pre-1900
- History of Social Work from 1980-2014
- History of Social Work in China
- History of Social Work in Northern Ireland
- History of Social Work in the Republic of Ireland
- History of Social Work in the United Kingdom
- HIV/AIDS
- HIV/AIDS and Children
- HIV/AIDS Prevention with Adolescents
- Homelessness
- Homelessness Outside the United States
- Housing
- Human Needs
- Human Trafficking, Victims of
- Immigrant Integration in the United States
- Immigrant Policy in the United States
- Immigrants and Refugees
- Immigrants and Refugees: Evidence-based Social Work Practi...
- Immigration and Health Disparities
- Immigration and Intimate Partner Violence
- Immigration and Poverty
- Immigration and Spirituality
- Immigration and Substance Use
- Impact of Emerging Technology in Social Work Practice
- Impaired Professionals
- Implementation Science and Practice
- Indigenous Peoples
- Individual Placement and Support (IPS) Supported Employmen...
- In-home Child Welfare Services
- Intergenerational Transmission of Maltreatment
- International Social Welfare
- International Social Work
- International Social Work and Education
- International Social Work and Social Welfare in Southern A...
- Internet and Video Game Addiction
- Interpersonal Psychotherapy
- Intervention with Traumatized Populations
- Interviewing
- Intimate-Partner Violence
- Juvenile Justice
- Kinship Care
- Korean Americans
- Latinos and Latinas
- Law, Social Work and the
- LGBTQ Populations and Social Work
- Life Span
- Mainland European Social Work, History of
- Major Depressive Disorder
- Management and Administration in Social Work
- Maternal Mental Health
- Measurement, Scales, and Indices
- Medical Illness
- Men: Health and Mental Health Care
- Mental Health
- Mental Health Diagnosis and the Addictive Substance Disord...
- Mental Health Needs of Older People, Assessing the
- Mental Illness: Children
- Mental Illness: Elders
- Meta-analysis
- Microskills
- Middle East and North Africa, International Social Work an...
- Military Social Work
- Mixed Methods Research
- Moral distress and injury in social work
- Motivational Interviewing
- Multiculturalism
- Native Americans
- Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders
- Neighborhood Social Cohesion
- Neuroscience and Social Work
- Nicotine Dependence
- Occupational Social Work
- Organizational Development and Change
- Pain Management
- Palliative Care
- Palliative Care: Evolution and Scope of Practice
- Pandemics and Social Work
- Parent Training
- Personalization
- Person-in-Environment
- Philosophy of Science and Social Work
- Physical Disabilities
- Podcasts and Social Work
- Police Social Work
- Political Social Work in the United States
- Positive Youth Development
- Postmodernism and Social Work
- Postsecondary Education Experiences and Attainment Among Y...
- Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
- Poverty
- Practice Interventions and Aging
- Practice Interventions with Adolescents
- Practice Research
- Primary Prevention in the 21st Century
- Productive Engagement of Older Adults
- Profession, Social Work
- Program Development and Grant Writing
- Promoting Smart Decarceration as a Grand Challenge
- Psychiatric Rehabilitation
- Psychoanalysis and Psychodynamic Theory
- Psychoeducation
- Psychometrics
- Psychopathology and Social Work Practice
- Psychopharmacology and Social Work Practice
- Psychosocial Framework
- Psychosocial Intervention with Women
- Psychotherapy and Social Work
- Qualitative Research
- Race and Racism
- Readmission Policies in Europe
- Redefining Police Interactions with People Experiencing Me...
- Rehabilitation
- Religiously Affiliated Agencies
- Reproductive Health
- Research
- Research Ethics
- Restorative Justice
- Risk Assessment in Child Protection Services
- Risk Management in Social Work
- Rural Social Work in China
- Rural Social Work Practice
- School Social Work
- School Violence
- School-Based Delinquency Prevention
- Services and Programs for Pregnant and Parenting Youth
- Severe and Persistent Mental Illness: Adults
- Sexual and Gender Minority Immigrants, Refugees, and Asylu...
- Sexual Assault
- Single-System Research Designs
- Social Development
- Social Insurance and Social Justice
- Social Intervention Research
- Social Justice and Social Work
- Social Movements
- Social Planning
- Social Policy
- Social Policy in Denmark
- Social Security in the United States (OASDHI)
- Social Work and Islam
- Social Work and Social Welfare in East, West, and Central ...
- Social Work and Social Welfare in Europe
- Social Work Education and Research
- Social Work Leadership
- Social Work Luminaries: Luminaries Contributing to the Cla...
- Social Work Luminaries: Luminaries contributing to the fou...
- Social Work Luminaries: Luminaries Who Contributed to Soci...
- Social Work Regulation
- Social Work Research Methods
- Social Work with Interpreters
- Solution-Focused Therapy
- Strategic Planning
- Strengths Perspective
- Strengths-Based Models in Social Work
- Suicide
- Supplemental Security Income
- Survey Research
- Sustainability: Creating Social Responses to a Changing En...
- Syrian Refugees in Turkey
- Systematic Review Methods
- Task-Centered Practice
- Technology Adoption in Social Work Education
- Technology for Social Work Interventions
- Technology, Human Relationships, and Human Interaction
- Technology in Social Work
- Terminal Illness
- Terrorism
- The Impact of Systemic Racism on Latinxs’ Experiences with...
- Transdisciplinary Science
- Translational Science and Social Work
- Transnational Perspectives in Social Work
- Transtheoretical Model of Change
- Trauma
- Trauma-Informed Care
- Triangulation
- Tribal child welfare practice in the United States
- Unions
- United States, History of Social Welfare in the
- Universal Basic Income
- Veteran Services
- Vicarious Trauma Redefining PTSD
- Victim Services
- Violence
- Virtual Reality and Social Work
- Welfare State Reform in France
- Welfare State Theory
- Women and Macro Social Work Practice
- Women's Health Care
- Work and Family in the German Welfare State
- Workfare
- Workforce Development of Social Workers Pre- and Post-Empl...
- Working with Non-Voluntary and Mandated Clients
- Young and Adolescent Lesbians
- Youth at Risk
- Youth Services