This book addresses the change of social work in the frame of modernisation. Through Mary Richmond’s classical idea of social work, the book seeks to set current societal trends affecting social work into the context of a long historical line, opening spaces for the new debates within the social work discipline as well as proposing and taking some new directions in the current era of compressed modernity. From the viewpoint of social work, there still is an individual in a situation, however, the situation has profoundly changed during the past hundred years.


Divided into seven chapters, topics covered include, firstly, the rethinking of Richmond’s original idea, revisiting the modernisation theories and social transformations as well as discussion on the social work theories and mandates according to the chosen classics. Secondly, the book continues with sketching the pillars of compressed modernity and rethinking the global and local relations. During the era of glocalisation, polycentrism, digitalisation and hybridisation, the previous conceptualisations of social theory have to be reconsidered. Finally, a proposal for glocal social work vision is represented by setting questions which should be taken under scrutinity.


Academics, researchers, practising social workers and students of social work, as well as of social policy, administration, social law and other social sciences, will find this book to be an essential text for understanding the current societal changes, trends and tendencies. The book provides a lot of information for policymakers and citizens interested in the background knowledge for the contemporary societal situation.