The National Association of Social Workers (NASW) is a professional organization of social workers in the United States. NASW has about 120,000 members.[1] The NASW provides guidance, research, up to date information, advocacy, and other resources for its members and for social workers in general. Members of the NASW are also able to obtain malpractice insurance, members-only publications, discounts on other products and services, and continuing education.
History
In 1955, the National Association of Social Workers was established through the consolidation of the following seven organizations:[2]
American Association of Social Workers
American Association of Psychiatric Social Workers
American Association of Group Workers
Association for the Study of Community Organization
The 1996 NASW Delegate Assembly (revised by the 2017 NASW Delegate Assembly) approved the NASW Code of Ethics (available in English and Spanish), which is intended to serve as a guide to the everyday professional conduct of social workers. This Code includes four sections. The first Section, "Preamble", summarizes the social work profession's mission and core values. The second section, "Purpose of the NASW Code of Ethics", provides an overview of the Code's main functions and a brief guide for dealing with ethical issues or dilemmas in social work practice. The third section, "Ethical Principles", presents broad ethical principles, based on social work's core values, that inform social work practice. The final section, "Ethical Standards", includes specific ethical standards to guide social workers' conduct and to provide a basis for adjudication.[5] Since 2012, the Code of Ethics includes an LGBT non-discrimination policy.[6] The 2018 revision of the Code of Ethics includes 19 changes that address ethical responsibilities when using technology.[7]
NASW Press
NASW Press is the division of the National Association of Social Workers that publishes books and journals for the social work profession. The NASW Press was formally established in 1990 to advance social work scholarship through the publication of books, journals, and other resources.[8] The NASW Press portfolio includes academic journals, scholarly texts, practice manuals, reference works, pamphlets, brochures, and videos.
NASW Press publishes over 100 scholarly textbooks, peer-reviewed journals, practice manuals, reference works, pamphlets, videos, and brochures in the United States and abroad.[9]
Books: The NASW Press catalog includes scholarly books and e-books, practice manuals, brochures and posters.[10][11]
Social Work Advocates Magazine and NASW News: Beginning August 2018 Social Work Advocates magazine became NASW's primary means of communicating with membership about association activities and developments in professional practice and social policy. It carries statements of opinion by a variety of spokespersons and the views expressed do not necessarily represent positions of NASW. The magazine is published quarterly. It replaced NASW News, which began publishing in 1956 and was the official newspaper of the National Association of Social Workers for six decades. Many issues of NASW News are available in an online archive.
Journals: Since NASW began publishing its flagship journal, Social Work, in 1955, its portfolio has grown to five journals—including the specialty journals Children & Schools, Health & Social Work, Social Work Research—and Social Work Abstracts.
Social Work Abstracts is a resource for literature searches in social work and social welfare. The president of NASW appoints members to the journal’s advisory group, which establishes policy for the journal.
Reference Works: Among NASW Press' reference works, the Encyclopedia of Social Work and The Social Work Dictionary are the most widely distributed titles. NASW policy statements are revised and published every three years in Social Work Speaks, which is now in its 12th edition.<ref>"NASW Press. (2020). "Reference Works"". Archived from the original on 2021-02-24. Retrieved 2014-02-21.
