Social Worker's Attitudes to the Law: An Israeli Perspective

Israel Doron, Haifa University
Mirit Karpel, Haifa University
Keren Or-Chen, Haifa University

Abstract

In recent years there has been a general shift towards integration and cooperation between lawyers and social workers, both professionally and ideologically. The goal of this study was to explore the general attitudes of social workers toward the law. The hypothesis was that, due to the recent legal and professional changes in Israel, social workers would express positive attitudes toward the law. For the purpose of this study, a closed questionnaire containing 25 statements regarding the law and its relationship to social work was used. The research population consisted of 202 social workers from Haifa and the Northern region of Israel. The findings of this study supported the hypothesis that there is indeed a tendency to closer ideological and professional proximity between social work and the law in Israel. However, especially regarding courts and the litigation process, their attitudes in response to the statements were relatively less favorable.