Systems Theory for Social Work and the Helping Professions

Preface to the Swedish original; Preface to the international version; Introduction; Outline of the book; Chapter 1. Communication.; What people often mean by "communication"; The transmission model and its shortcomings; The complexity of communication; What is emergence?; Communication as system; Systems theory, communication and causality; Metacommunication and the five axioms of communication; Pathological communication: the practical relevance of systems theory; Chapter 2. System and environment.; Interaction systems; Organisation systems; Differentiation of different system levels: interaction, organisation and society; Chapter 3. Modern society and functional differentiation.; A short history of societal differentiation; Societal differentiation by the classics of social science; The differentiation of society according to systems theory; What does "functional differentiation" actually mean?; Function systems: some examples; The difference between function systems and organisation systems; Organisations and interactions in the context of function systems; Polyphonic organisations; Chapter 4. Society and the human being. On inclusion and exclusion.; The concept "person"; The human being in modern society: multi-inclusion; No inclusion without exclusion; Inclusion, exclusion and the role of organisations; Exclusion as a problem; Social work as exclusion management; Chapter 5. Constructionism and realism.; Functional differentiation: a short recap; Toward a constructionism so radical that it is realist at the same time; Systems as observers; Realism and constructionism: realities of the first and second orders; Causality from a systems-theoretical perspective I: circularity; Causality from a systems-theoretical perspective II: causality as construction; Application case: teachers in a "blackboard jungle"; Chapter 6. Systems theory and social problems.; Systems theory and social problems: realism; Systems theory and social problems: constructionism; Illustration: suicide among people with mental illness as a social problem; Illustration: loneliness among older people as a social problem; Chapter 7. Intervention and steering.; Expectations structure systems; Political steering; Steering optimism or steering pessimism?; Steering of organisation systems; Case study; Chapter 8. Functions and latent problems, systemic criticism, and social work as a reflection theory.; Systems theory and the functional method; Illustration: the latent function of the Ethical Platform in healthcare priority-setting; Social criticism with systems theory; Social work research as a reflection theory of the help system; Conclusion; References; Index