Social Work and Social Workers in Italy

Resumo

This article reflects the lecture that Annamaria Campanini, social worker, PhD in Social Work, president of IASSW-AIETS (International Association of Schools of Social Work) gave during the International Meeting of the IASSW-AIETS Board, in July 2023, at the Federal University of Pernambuco – UFPE. In it, the author gives a concise and precise summary of the situation of the Italian Social Work and that of the Social Workers in Italy. This schematic and systematic presentation can be of great value to anyone who wishes to get closer to Italian Social Work for the purpose of increasing international academic relations and exchanging experiences and knowledge. The article briefly addresses: 1) the foundation of the profession in Italy after World War II; 2) the difficult survival of the profession during fascism; 3) The importance of the 70's for the social and academic affirmation of the profession; 4) The path taken by the profession in the last decades of the twentieth century; 5) The profession today and the challenges it faces; 6) The frontiers of the profession in the interdisciplinary world and new socio-occupational spaces; 7) The multiple fields of action of Social Work in Italy; 8) The training of the Social Worker in Italy; 9) The current challenges facing the profession; 9) The social responsibility of the profession and its presence in society vis-à-vis the State.