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The Social Solidarity Economy and the Hull-House Tradition of Social Work: Keys for Unlocking the Potential of Social Work for Sustainable Social Development

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  • Michael Emru Tadesse

    (ASTRA Project, Faculty of Education, Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, Regensburger Allee 16—viale Ratisbona 16, 39042 Bressanone-Brixen, Italy)

  • Susanne Elsen

    (ASTRA Project, Faculty of Education, Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, Regensburger Allee 16—viale Ratisbona 16, 39042 Bressanone-Brixen, Italy)

Abstract

Social work (SW) is criticized for its (i) inconsistent ontology, epistemology, and methodology and (ii) co-dependency with the capitalist hegemony, which is the main cause of multiple crises that primarily affect the most vulnerable. Addressing these issues is of paramount importance if SW is to achieve its core mandate of promoting social change, social development, social cohesion, and the empowerment and liberation of people. The purpose of this paper is to assert that SW can address these issues by learning from the (i) Settlement House Movement (SHM), especially the Hull-House tradition of SW; and (ii) current endeavors of the Social Solidarity Economy (SSE). We were led to this assertion because we noticed in our research, in the area of SSE of vulnerable groups and SW, remarkable similarities and potentials of these two approaches to help transform SW. Our argument is based on data and insight gained from (i) a narrative literature review on the history of SW and the nature of SSE; and (ii) a systematic scoping review of the SSE of People of African Descent (PAD) in Europe. In this paper, we elaborate on our key arguments and provide examples and recommendations.

Suggested Citation

  • Michael Emru Tadesse & Susanne Elsen, 2023. "The Social Solidarity Economy and the Hull-House Tradition of Social Work: Keys for Unlocking the Potential of Social Work for Sustainable Social Development," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 12(3), pages 1-24, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jscscx:v:12:y:2023:i:3:p:189-:d:1102605
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Claudia Lintner & Susanne Elsen, 2020. "Empowering refugees and asylum seekers in the Italian agriculture sector by linking social cooperative entrepreneurship and social work practices," International Journal of Social Welfare, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 29(4), pages 356-366, October.
    2. Neal R. Haddaway & Matthew J. Page & Chris C. Pritchard & Luke A. McGuinness, 2022. "PRISMA2020: An R package and Shiny app for producing PRISMA 2020‐compliant flow diagrams, with interactivity for optimised digital transparency and Open Synthesis," Campbell Systematic Reviews, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 18(2), June.
    3. Anup Dash, 2016. "An Epistemological Reflection on Social and Solidarity Economy," Forum for Social Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 45(1), pages 61-87, February.
    4. Caroline SHENAZ HOSSEIN, 2013. "The Black Social Economy: Perseverance Of Banker Ladies In The Slums," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 84(4), pages 423-442, December.
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