Clinical social workers in child and adolescent mental health care. Professional development and clinical praxis, 2007

This thesis aims to clarify how social workers in interdisciplinary teams in Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) have formed their professional roles. These roles are often undefined, and this can be why social workers are loosing positions. The questions asked in this thesis are: Which connections can be found between how social workers practice in mental health services for children and adolescents and the theories and values that social work traditionally are based on. To put it more precisely: 1) How can social work in Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services be conceptualised? In addition 2) What do social workers as a group in Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services have in common? 3) Is it possible to find any connection between social work theory and its practice? To answer these questions quantitative research methods were used. A survey investigation that included all social workers in CAMHS in Norway did get carry out. The survey is based on the DPPCQ, which is a questionnaire used in several countries in research concerning therapists development. Some questions got added because they are specifically aimed at clinical practice in social work, which are based on social works theories an values.