Exploring complex strengths-based practice in adult social work

Farragher, Sarah 2025. Exploring complex strengths-based practice in adult social work. DSW Thesis, Cardiff University. Item availability restricted.

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Abstract

It is widely accepted that strengths-based approaches are good practice for adult social work in England, with a particular focus in implementation on community and personal assets. This study focuses on the underdeveloped area of promoting strengths-based approaches in complex practice. It explores the extent to which strengths-based approaches are understood and embedded in adult social work practice, and how they contribute to positive outcomes for people with care and support needs. Adopting a practice ethnography methodology (Ferguson, 2016), the research engages with social constructs and environmental factors to generate context-dependent knowledge (Floersch et al., 2014). Six social workers, eight people with lived experience, three family carers and range of care providers and health professionals took part in field observations. Data was collected over an eighteen-month period through practice observations, informal conversations, reflective sessions, and triangulation of social care records. Additional insights were gathered via a strengths-based survey completed by twenty-five practitioners, including social workers, occupational therapists, and managers. Thematic analysis (Braun and Clarke, 2006) identified three themes for discussion: 1. How conversations with people and the subsequent recording of statutory assessments under the Care Act (2014) were impacted by the structure of the forms and the implications of this. 2. How social workers balance strengths versus problematisation in the context of risk. 3. How mental capacity is continuously socially constructed and influenced by a range of factors that both promote and restrict autonomy. Relational social work was identified as an enabler to strengths-based practice across all three themes. Recommendations for practice are to reconsider the way that interactions are recorded in digital systems to promote strengths and improve statutory compliance and to focus on relational social work to promote strengths for people particularly when there are complexities of risk and capacity.

Item Type:	Thesis (DSW)
Date Type:	Completion
Status:	Unpublished
Schools:	Schools > Social Sciences (Includes Criminology and Education)
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > H Social Sciences (General)
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	11 March 2026
Last Modified:	23 Mar 2026 14:06
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/185676

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