Therapeutically Engaging Young Survivors of Violence, Exploitation, Abuse, and Neglect: A Critical Social Work Approach

Therapeutically Engaging Young Survivors of Violence, Exploitation, Abuse, and Neglect: A Critical Social Work Approach highlights that the current trauma model in social work, psychology, and counselling with children and young people operates through a biomedical lens.This book argues that taken‑for‑granted notions of the 'child' or 'young person', 'maltreatment', and 'trauma' are embedded within intervention and dictate the way professionals engage with young survivors. Drawing on a critical social work lens to critique these notions and bringing together 40 years of the author's practice and research, this book opens up the area of therapeutic intervention to current critical, socio‑political, and cultural thought. By exploring the issue through a human rights lens, particularly a child rights lens, while simultaneously intersecting this exploration with critical race, feminist, and post‑colonial theorising, this book provides a socio‑political underpinning for examining therapeutic intervention in children's and young people's lives. Weaving together the expertise of both young survivors and the author to offer an understanding of current therapeutic interventions, this book invites practitioners to critically reflect on how they engage with young citizens who have experienced violence, exploitation, abuse, and neglect. Each chapter also includes questions for further reflection, designed to facilitate additional discussion of the issues raised in this book.Ideal for use in courses across Australia as well as internationally, this book will be of interest to all scholars, students, and practitioners working in the fields of social work, psychology, and counselling.

About the Author

Mary Jo McVeigh is the founder and CEO of Cara House and CaraCare. She is a proud Irish woman from Belfast, a radical social worker and activist, and a dedicated mother and friend. Mary Jo is a trained trauma therapist and an accredited mental health social worker. Among her many awards, she received the Order of Australia Medal and the Australian Social Worker of the Year Award for her dedication to her profession.