The Institute for the Advancement of Social Work Research (IASWR) serves as both a resource to BPD members and an advocate for social work research within the national scientific community.  In Washington, DC, IASWR joins with organizations that represent psychology, sociology, anthropology, educational research, and other behavioral and social science disciplines to advocate for attention to behavioral and social science research at the federal level.  We also bring attention to the outcomes from social work research and demonstrate ways that social work research contributes to our nation’s health and well-being.  The May 2004 edition of the IASWR newsletter, IASWResearch…Reports…Resources, (available at www.iaswresearch.org) provides background on several coalitions in which IASWR participates, an update on Congressional scrutiny of certain peer-reviewed research studies especially related to sexual health, and a description of the National Institute of Health (NIH) Plan for Social Work Research (http://obssr.od.nih.gov/Publications/SWR_Report.pdf). 

The NIH Social Work Workgroup is meeting regularly, moving forward on the nine recommendations included in the NIH Plan.  At the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) Annual Program Meeting (APM), IASWR will sponsor a special presentation focused on funding opportunities for social work researchers at NIH.  This is in addition to NIH staffs involvement in the pre-conference technical assistance sessions that are offered annually at the Society for Social Work and Research Conference that will take place from January 13-16.2005 in Miami. 

Conference Presentations

IASWR organized three well-attended sessions at the 2004 BPD conference in Detroit.  A session on ‘Tips for Successful Grant Writing” was a pre-conference institute, and then there was a session on the role of universities in recruitment and retention in child welfare and a session on evidence-based practices, which also included Betsy Clark of NASW and Bill Meezan of the University of Michigan as presenters.  At the 2005 CSWE APM, IASWR has several sessions planned.  These include a technology session to highlight our e-alert service – IASWR Listserv Announcements, the above mentioned session on NIH funding, a session on interdisciplinary efforts to focus on evidence-based practice that will highlight the Campbell Collaboration (www.campbellcollaboration.org) and the Decade of Behavior (www.decadeofbehavior.org), and a session on research on quality social work services in nursing homes.  We are also collaborating with the Group for the Advancement of Doctoral Education (GADE) on a session on Science and Politics and with the National Association of Deans and Directors on a session on child welfare workforce issues.

Summer Workshops

BSW faculty and program directors had the opportunity to participate in several research methods workshops that were held during the summer of 2004.  IASWR sponsored its second Rigorous and Relevant Workshop on Meta-Analysis and use of HLM software.  NIH offered two competitive workshops targeted to social work researchers – one was on qualitative and mixed methods and the second was on aging research.  Watch the IASWR Listserv Announcements for information on summer 2005 workshops.

Special Projects

Beyond IASWR’s focus on development of research and research capacity, we are also involved with several special initiatives.  We have been actively involved in efforts to promote community-university-agency research and education partnerships in child welfare, including convening of two meetings, in collaboration with NASW, on child welfare workforce issues.  For information on these meetings and links to resource materials that have been compiled, visit our website, www.iaswresearch.org.

IASWR also received a grant to host a conference on social work in nursing home. The meeting, Evaluating Social Work Services in Nursing Homes:  Toward Quality Psychosocial Care and its Measurement, was held in Washington, DC on December 2-3, 2004 in collaboration with the Institute for Geriatric Social Work and the University of Maryland.  Expert presenters, including several federal staff, joined with representatives of social work education, national organizations, nursing home practitioners, ombudsman and advocates to assess the current state of knowledge and identify strategies for further research and practice improvement efforts.  A report will be forthcoming.