Teaching clinical social work under occupation: Listening to the voices of Palestinian social work students
Date
2016-03-14
Authors
Kokaliari, Efrosini
Berzoff, Joan
Byers, David
Fareed, Anan
Berzoff-Cohen, Jake
hreish khalid
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Routledge: Taylor and Francis
Abstract
The authors were invited to teach clinical social work in the Palestinian West Bank. In order to teach, we designed a study exploring how 65 Palestinian social work students described the psychological and social effects of working under occupation. Students described social stressors of poverty, unemployment, lack of infrastructure, violence, imprisonment, separation of families, and severe constraints on travel. They identified depression, suicide, anxiety, and war-related trauma as emerging from these conditions. Many experienced the same psychosocial problems as their clients in coping with harassment and delays at checkpoints. Implications for teaching social work theory and practice are discussed.