The Human Experience
Description, Explanation and Judgment
Published on 15. February 2007
Book
Paperback/Softback
312 pages
978-0-7425-5939-4 (ISBN)
Description
The Human Experience is a comprehensive text that examines, analyzes and applies theories of humans, environments and human-environment interaction to professional thinking and action. Through the lens of their original theory, Explanatory Legitimacy, the authors differentiate descriptive from explanatory theories, and analyze the purposive, epistemological, and value base of theory in six major theoretical domains: longitudinal theories or those concerned with passages over time, environmental theories or those concerned with sets of conditions both interior and exterior to the body, categorical theories or those that parse populations into groups, systems theories which look at relationships among parts of wholes, and contemporary and emerging theories that advance pluralism as desirable and relevant to the 21st century. The authors highlight the previously unexamined values and assumptions that underlie theory, its generation and its use in professional practice and challenge the reader to answer two questions throughout the book: how do we know, and what do we do with our knowledge? Significant critical emphasis is devoted to diversity of humans and environments and the value-perimeter in which professionals create, analyze and use theory for decisions and activity.
Reviews / Votes
Depoy and Gilson present a thoughtful and thought-provoking analysis of theory and related assumptions and values that moves theory from the sidelines to its central role in human services practice across the disciplines. The Human Experience is an exceptional text that should be required pre-service reading for all disciplines in the human services-and will surely find its way to the bookshelf of thinking human services professionals everywhere. -- Lucille A. Zeph Ed.D, director and associate professor of education, Center for Community Inclusion and Disability Studies, University of Maine The importance of The Human Experience cannot be overestimated. It is a clarion call, an invitation for the Allied Health Professions, and, particularly, for Social Work, to enter the 21st century. The Human Experience takes social theory, makes it accessible and attractive, and points the way to a better way of analyzing human situations, which will lead to a better way of achieving social justice and alleviating suffering. -- Tina Passam Ph.D., M.Div., associate professor, Classical Languages & Literature; chair, Interdisciplinary Disability Studies Academic Committee ...a stimulating work... * PsycCRITIQUES * In this textbook, authors DePoy and Gilson introduce the social work field to an innovative, postmodernist conceptual approach for understanding human behavior, appearance, and experience. This text will revolutionize the way instructors think about and teach their human behavior courses, and will challenge students to examine how values influence which human behaviors are considered legitimate for social work services and which types of professional responses should be provided. The text includes numerous interesting case examples and thinking points, which encourage the students to engage in critical reflection about the material. DePoy and Gilson incorporate recent postmodern thinking in the chapters on emergent and contemporary approaches to theory, including an inventive section on visual culture. -- Elizabeth P. Cramer, Ph.D., associate professor, Virginia Commonwealth University School of Social WorkMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
United States
Publishing group
Bloomsbury Publishing Plc
Target group
College/higher education
Dimensions
Height: 256 mm
Width: 180 mm
Thickness: 21 mm
Weight
649 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-7425-5939-4 (9780742559394)
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Schweitzer Classification
Persons
Elizabeth DePoy is jointly appointed as professor in the School of Social work and professor and coordinator for interdisciplinary disability education at the Center for Community Inclusion and Disability Studies. She is a nationally and internationally recognized scholar for her work in developing Explanatory Legitimacy theory with Dr. Gilson, and for her substantive foci in research and evaluation methods, theory of human diversity, and geostatistical and mixed methohds of inquiry. She received a Fulbright Scholarship in 2003, has authored and co-authored seven books combined, has contributed chapters to numerous edited collections, and has published over 50 peer reviewed articles. Stephen Gilson, Ph.D. is professor in the school of social work, and professor and co-coordinator for interdisciplinary disability studies at the Center for Community Inclusion and Disability Studies, University of Maine.
Content
Chapter 1 Introduction and Theory Overview: And There Was Theory Chapter 2 Introduction to Explanatory Legitimacy Theory Chapter 3 Scope of Human Description Chapter 4 Explanations Chapter 5 What is Legitimacy? Chapter 6 Longitudinal Foundations Chapter 7 Longitudinal - Grand Longitudinal Approaches Chapter 8 Longitudinal - Specific Longitudinal Descriptions and Explanations Chapter 9 Foundations of Environmental Theories Chapter 10 Interior Environment Chapter 11 Exterior - Environment Chapter 12 Categorical Foundations Chapter 13 Interior Category Chapter 14 Exterior Category Chapter 15 Systems Descriptions and Explanations Chapter 16 Contemporary and Emerging Theories Chapter 17 Longitudinal - Legitimacy Chapter 18 Environmental Legitimacy Chapter 19 Category Legitimacy Chapter 20 Systems Legitimacy Chapter 21 Contemporary and Emerging Legitimacy Chapter 22 Putting ELT to Work 23 References