The extensive migration to Europe in the last years poses a huge challenge to professionals and social welfare institutions working with families, children and adolescents in multicultural settings. Hence, the topic of culture-sensitive social work has become very important for professionals working with immigrants and their families.
In this workshop, a special focus was put on the topic of culture-sensitive social work with Arab families in multicultural settings. The topic was addressed in two steps.
In a first step, the cultures of Arab families in general, and in particular in Israel were introduced. The workshop gave an overview of the structures of Arab families, of their belief systems and values as well as of their gender role attitudes. Furthermore, the experiences of Arab families in multicultural contexts were described and the cultural, political, and gender-based tensions that they may encounter were demonstrated. Special attention was given to the situation of disadvantaged families.
In a second step, the experiences of professionals treating Arab families in a multicultural society were described and the tensions and challenges that they might encounter with their clients were illustrated. The need to adapt professional work to cultural and minority groups was addressed and a critical multicultural perspective on social work was advanced. Models for guiding social workers in multicultural settings were discussed. The workshop combined theoretical reflection with practical training.
In the evaluation, students rated the workshop as an excellent learning experience which gave them new insights into the Arabic culture and into culturally-sensitive social work with families in multicultural settings.
