Circlework as emancipatory social work practice

• Main Author: Drumheller, Leanne
• Other Authors: Moosa-Mitha, Mehmoona
• Language: English; en
• Published: 2010
• Subjects: Social service; Women; UVic Subject Index::Humanities and Social Sciences::Social Sciences::Social service
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/1828/2514

This thesis explores the group method of Circlework as an emancipatory tool for social work practice. The intention of this thesis is to better understand how socially popular forms of group work, such as Circlework, can ally with critical feminist, anti-oppressive practice towards personal, interpersonal and community liberation. This thesis draws upon the experiences of five graduate women from a two-year Circlework training program. This thesis begins by examining how Circlework helped to support the women heal and empower their relationships with their bodies, shifting from an alienated to an integrated experience between the body and self. This thesis then examines how the act of bearing witness and being witnessed through Circlework facilitates personal experiences of validation and self-esteem, promotes awareness to our interconnectedness and interrelation with others, and strives to support intentional community building.