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International Social Work
H-index 9

International Social Work

0020-8728

Published by: SAGE

https://journals.sagepub.com/home/isw

Ranking & Metrics

Discipline name Position Best Scientists Publications D-Index
Social Sciences and Humanities 701 15 18 7

Additional Metrics

Number of Best Scientists*: 31
Documents by Best Scientists*: 34
Top 100 Ranked Scientists*: 0
SCIMAGO H-index: 56
SCIMAGO SJR: 0.542
Impact Factor: 1.2

Overview

Top Research Topics at International Social Work?

Social work, Economic growth, Social change, Media studies and Public relations are the subjects of interest in International Social Work. The research on Social work featured in the journal combines topics in other fields like Pedagogy, Social psychology, Social Welfare, Gender studies and Social science. Most of the works presented in International Social Work deals with Pedagogy but it intersects with the subject of Social work education.

International Social Work dives deep in exploring the relationship between the study of Social Welfare and Social policy. Economic growth and Development economics are closely related fields of research discussed in the journal. Social change research featured in International Social Work incorporates concerns from various other topics such as Social relation and Social engagement.

International Social Work focused on Media studies research but expanded to cover Library science.

  • Social work (44.28%)
  • Economic growth (14.86%)
  • Social change (10.34%)

What are the most cited papers published in the journal?

  • Defining Social Work for the 21st Century: The International Federation of Social Workers' Revised Definition of Social Work (235 citations)
  • Enhancement of community preparedness for natural disasters: The role of social work in building social capital for sustainable disaster relief and management (194 citations)
  • Exploring the history of social work as a human rights profession (135 citations)

Research areas of the most cited articles at International Social Work:

The most cited publications tackle a plethora of topics, such as Social work, Social change, Gender studies, Economic growth and Humanities. While work presented in the most cited papers provide substantial information on Social work, it also covers topics in Pedagogy, Social psychology, Ethnology, Public relations and Social science. In addition to Social change research, the most cited articles aim to explore topics under Social policy, Social Welfare and Social engagement.

What topics the last edition of the journal is best known for?

  • Law
  • World War II
  • China

The previous edition focused in particular on these issues:

The journal was organized to reinforce research efforts on Social work, Pandemic, Public relations, 2019-20 coronavirus outbreak and Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The Social work study featured falls within the wider field of Economic growth. The Economic growth study featured in International Social Work draws parallels with the field of Psychological intervention.

It tackles research in various disciplines, including Pandemic and Criminology. International Social Work tackles research in Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and various other disciplines, including Psychiatry and Autism. Studies on Social work education discussed in the journal link to the field of Context (language use).

The most cited articles from the last journal are:

  • Conceptualisation of child neglect: A Ghanaian practice narrative: (7 citations)
  • Emotional well-being and resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic: Guidelines for social work practice (6 citations)
  • Usage of human rights practice by Romanian social workers (5 citations)

Papers citation over time

A key indicator for each journal is its effectiveness in reaching other researchers with the papers published at that venue.

The chart below presents the interquartile range (first quartile 25%, median 50% and third quartile 75%) of the number of citations of articles over time.

The top authors publishing in International Social Work (based on the number of publications) are:

  • Lena Dominelli (30 papers) absent at the last edition,
  • Ming-sum Tsui (27 papers) published 4 papers at the last edition, 1 less than at the previous edition,
  • Patrick O’Leary (21 papers) published 5 papers at the last edition, 2 less than at the previous edition,
  • Daniel Pollack (14 papers) absent at the last edition,
  • Mel Gray (12 papers) published 1 paper at the last edition.

The overall trend for top authors publishing in this journal is outlined below. The chart shows the number of publications at each edition of the journal for top authors.

Only papers with recognized affiliations are considered

The top affiliations publishing in International Social Work (based on the number of publications) are:

  • Hong Kong Polytechnic University (40 papers) published 4 papers at the last edition, 3 more than at the previous edition,
  • University of Hong Kong (34 papers) published 3 papers at the last edition, 1 less than at the previous edition,
  • City University of Hong Kong (28 papers) published 1 paper at the last edition,
  • University of Calgary (28 papers) published 2 papers at the last edition, 1 less than at the previous edition,
  • University of Toronto (25 papers) published 5 papers at the last edition, 3 more than at the previous edition.

The overall trend for top affiliations publishing in this journal is outlined below. The chart shows the number of publications at each edition of the journal for top affiliations.

Publication chance based on affiliation

The publication chance index shows the ratio of articles published by the best research institutions in the journal edition to all articles published within that journal. The best research institutions were selected based on the largest number of articles published during all editions of the journal.

The chart below presents the percentage ratio of articles from top institutions (based on their ranking of total papers).Top affiliations were grouped by their rank into the following tiers: top 1-10, top 11-20, top 21-50, and top 51+. Only articles with a recognized affiliation are considered.

During the most recent 2021 edition, 11.97% of publications had an unrecognized affiliation. Out of the publications with recognized affiliations, 16.00% were posted by at least one author from the top 10 institutions publishing in the journal. Another 9.60% included authors affiliated with research institutions from the top 11-20 affiliations. Institutions from the 21-50 range included 13.60% of all publications and 60.80% were from other institutions.

Returning Authors Index

A very common phenomenon observed among researchers publishing scientific articles is the intentional selection of journals they have already attended in the past. In particular, it is worth analyzing the case when the authors participate in the same journal from year to year.

The Returning Authors Index presented below illustrates the ratio of authors who participated in both a given as well as the previous edition of the journal in relation to all participants in a given year.

Returning Institution Index

The graph below shows the Returning Institution Index, illustrating the ratio of institutions that participated in both a given and the previous edition of the conference in relation to all affiliations present in a given year.

The experience to innovation index

Our experience to innovation index was created to show a cross-section of the experience level of authors publishing in a journal. The index includes the authors publishing at the last edition of a journal, grouped by total number of publications throughout their academic career (P) and the total number of citations of these publications ever received (C).

The group intervals were selected empirically to best show the diversity of the authors' experiences, their labels were selected as a convenience, not as judgment. The authors were divided into the following groups:

  • Novice - P < 5 or C < 25 (the number of publications less than 5 or the number of citations less than 25),
  • Competent - P < 10 or C < 100 (the number of publications less than 10 or the number of citations less than 100),
  • Experienced - P < 25 or C < 625 (the number of publications less than 25 or the number of citations less than 625),
  • Master - P < 50 or C < 2500 (the number of publications less than 50 or the number of citations less than 2500),
  • Star - P ≥ 50 and C ≥ 2500 (both the number of publications greater than 50 and the number of citations greater than 2500).

The chart below illustrates experience levels of first authors in cases of publications with multiple authors.

Career Opportunities in Social Work

Considering a career in Social Work goes beyond just researching or reading about it. One must also explore potential career paths within the field. For instance, mental health is an important aspect of Social Work that one can choose to specialize in. As a mental health counselor, not only will you have the ability to affect positive change in people's lives, but you'll also constantly be learning and growing in your field.

If you're interested in diving deep into this rewarding career field, we have created a resourceful guide that can walk you step-by-step through what it takes to become a mental health counselor. Our guide focuses on becoming a mental health counselor in the Lone Star State – Texas. You might wonder why Texas? Well, Texas represents a diverse population that might encounter a range of mental health issues. Thus, our guide can cater to those looking for varied experience and exposure in the field.

Here's a direct link to our article, How to be a mental health counselor in Texas, which provides a comprehensive insight into what your journey might entail. The guide offers information on educational prerequisites, necessary certifications, potential earnings, and a broad scope of where you could work.

We hope this guide can be instrumental in fostering your interest in social work, particularly as a mental health counselor, and propelling you further along your journey to making a tangible difference in people's lives.

Top Publications

  • Post-disaster social work research: A scoping review of the evidence for practice:

    Louise Harms;Jennifer Boddy;Lyndal Hickey;Kathryn Hay

    (2020)
    43 Citations
  • Effects of corruption and unaccountability on responses of frontline health workers to COVID-19 in Nigeria: Lessons and considerations for the social work profession

    (2022)
    23 Citations
  • Working and learning from home during COVID-19: International experiences among social work educators and students

    Michael Wallengren-Lynch;Lena Dominelli;Carin Cuadra

    (2021)
    17 Citations
  • COVID-19: Health disparities and social determinants of health

    Élan C Burton;Delancy Hs Bennett;Linda M Burton

    (2020)
    15 Citations
  • Perceptions of stigma toward mental illness in Arab society in Israel

    Kholoud Fahoum;Alean Al-Krenawi

    (2021)
    12 Citations
  • Understanding female migrant child labor within a cumulative risk framework: The case for combined interventions in Ghana:

    Laura Gauer Bermudez;Ozge Sensoy Bahar;Mavis Dako-Gyeke;Alice Boateng

    (2020)
    12 Citations
  • Troubled times: Canadian social workers’ early adversities, mental health, and resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic

    (2023)
    10 Citations
  • Community social workers as social entrepreneurs: Lessons from Israel

    (2023)
    6 Citations
  • A critical review of Chinese and international social work: Walking a tightrope between local and global standards:

    Qian Meng;Mel Gray;Lieve Bradt;Griet Roets

    (2021)
    5 Citations
  • Associations of lifetime prevalence of homelessness with risky sex, sexual victimization, depressive symptoms, and suicidality among youth in Kampala, Uganda:

    Matthew Lyons;Monica Haavisto Swahn;Daniel Whitaker;Jessica Rogers Brown

    (2021)
    5 Citations

Related Online Degrees & Career Pathways

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Each of these options highlights the diversity and flexibility of online social sciences and humanities degrees designed to meet modern learners' needs and career goals.

Best Scientists Contributing to This Journal

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