The Blackwell encyclopaedia of social work /

Davies's well-designed encyclopedia surveys the field of social work and its related disciplines. Some 400 signed entries are treated in varying degrees of complexity: essays of 1,000 words with three further reading suggestions; 200-word explanations that suggest one bibliographical reference; and 100-word definitions. The introduction provides a helpful overview and the entries, alphabetically arranged, have cross-references that point to related topics (e.g., under "Transnational Issues," several entries are listed, including "Globalization and Social Work," "Intercountry Adoption," "Social Work with Refugees"). Following the entries is a roster of contributors, a bibliography, and indexes of names and subjects. Individuals and named organizations are omitted. Davies emphasizes that a conscious effort was made to exclude the "legislative context of social work in the United Kingdom." Since most of the 250 contributors are from the UK, this latter statement is not observed: the articles and statistics focus on the UK, and the references cite primarily British publications. Undergraduate students will be better served by the more comprehensive Encyclopedia of Social Work, ed. by Richard L. Edwards et al. (CH, Nov`95), or Robert L. Barker's Social Work Dictionary, (3rd ed., 1995), both published by the major US social work organization, the National Association of Social Workers. Recommended only for graduate students and faculty. C. S. McGowan Fairfield University