Doing it better: On imagining the uses of information

EDITORIAL NOTES

TRAINING EARTHWORMS TO TAP-DANCE seems a less onerous task than getting people in the helping professions to read professional literature and then apply what they have learned in their practices. Our authors, for example, hope that their ideas, research findings, and experiences, as described within these pages, fall on fertile ground, and grow into something that might change the world ever-so-slightly.

If we become frustrated in this quest we can take solace in the reminder that many years ago the great educator John Dewey coined the term "pedagogical fallacy" to describe the erroneous expectation that knowledge and theory acquired from reading books or sitting passively in classrooms would be readily employed in realworld situations.

The problem with new knowledge being disconnected from the place of its possible use is an old one. The truth is that reading or hearing something is rarely an impetus for substantial and lasting change. Unlike holy writ that might ostensibly move a reader to make life changes, it is rare that a well-honed research report or scholarly study will move a casual reader to make some major and lasting change. Scholarly work may evoke, at best, a muted epiphany if read and a dreadful silence when it is not read. I suspect that the same intellectual quandary that has been raised in undergraduate philosophy classes applies here: If a tree falls in the forest but no one hears it does it make a sound? If great information is written but no one reads it, does it make a difference?

After over 30 years of practice and teaching, and then editing Families in Society, I wonder how much thought-provoking and useful information is being ignored or missed by substantial numbers of people in the helping professions. Perhaps this is due, in part, to insufficient ready access to journals in agencies. If so the discussion of their contents can't become a routine part of agency life. If your agency does not subscribe to several journals, it might be a good idea to begin doing so. Subscriptions to professional journals are not a large budgetary item, and having current information readily available to staff can be very advantageous. Sometimes journals are sent to the "wrong person," someone who then fails to pass it along to others who might benefit from the publication and its content. It is also possible that some professionals read only a couple of articles don't make the connection between the research and theory and its use in professional practice. People don't automatically know how to apply theory and facts to actual practice and neither imaginative ability nor reflective practice is always nurtured or modeled in educational settings or workplaces (Chestang, 1992). The art and skill of applying theory and knowledge to professional procedures and practices deserves more emphasis in our educational programs and in our research efforts. I am most concerned about this disconnect between theory, as expressed in journals and lecture halls, and the failure to use that knowledge in professional practice.

So, how can research findings, theory, and ideas be employed to change how we think and what we do? What issues arise that impinge on the possibility of creatively seeking out and connecting information and knowledge with practice on an ongoing basis? If we are conscientious and seek to improve our services, how do we go about actually using the vast store of knowledge that is currently available? It takes quite an intellectual "work ethic" to habitually think creatively and routinely seek information and knowledge. Schon (1987) suggested that people learn to do this better if coached or mentored so that they "see" it in their own unique way. That is, we can't tell others how to do it so much as guide them through the process of being thinkers who are also doers. Social workers and others might benefit from collaboration-having more professional preparation take place in agencies where experienced professionals and teachers model the art of melding theory and information with procedures and behavioral practices. We never outgrow our need for modeling. As Dewey observed, people (including clients) don't learn to "see" how to do things in new ways by being lectured or ordered to do something. We have to be guided into the habit of intellectual inquisitiveness and connecting what we think to what we do, going from insight into action. There are collective benefits to enhanced mentoring relationships for practitioners and society. Modeling how one imaginatively thinks about one's practice on an ongoing basis and how knowledge can be used to tailor it can change attitudes, beliefs, and practice methods for future generations of professionals. To nurture and inform creative useful habits of mind we need to meld the thoughtful use of information and knowledge with experiential learning.

Zeldin (2000) suggested that much of the wise use of knowledge in our work is connected to the art of conversation. If we talk and digest information and think creatively, thinking with one another, it is much more likely that new knowledge will be grounded in increased understanding and practice skills and be woven into our professional culture. In other words, we benefit from spending time deeply conversing with others rather than speaking to them or, as Zeldin put it (2000, p. 88), "Ideas need not just to meet but to embrace ... [and] thoughts need time to make love." Great ideas and new knowledge don't take root in casual conversation nor do deep insights arise from 30-second sound bites. Barring the unexpected epiphany, it simply takes time to consider new knowledge and reflect on what one does and then ground our understandings in behaviors.

The Root-Bernsteins (1999) discussed the dilemma facing creative thinking-in action; it is creative and imaginative thinking that allows us to perceive things differently and makes possible the link between new knowledge and improved practice. They observed that our culture generally fails to support inquisitiveness and imaginative thinking and that organizations don't see it for the desirable ability that it is, nor do they nurture it. Pat slogans to the contrary, most organizations prefer drones to artists. It would behoove us to make participation in discussions of current research and theory a part of job descriptions in agencies. I am not talking about giving obligatory summaries of articles so much as engaging in heated debates about the merits of articles in our field and then formulating ways to take advantage of new information. Learn it, digest it, and apply the best of it.

Kritek (1994) examined the world of organizations and the interpersonal dynamics that either support or work against new ways of doing things. She discussed issues of power and dominance, negotiating change, cultivating new ideas until they become grounded in common practice, and the negative subtext of issues of dominance and control. For individuals and organizations, professional practice that reflects the intersection of theory, knowledge, and work is a rare commodity that needs to be observed to be learned, and reinforced to be maintained. We need to nurture the best and most useful in one another. Practitioners have much to gain by imaginatively thinking about new ideas, research, or field experience detailed in professional journals, and how a particular piece of work could inform and enhance their practice. Authors and scholars have much to gain by writing in a way that is accessible to those who most need new knowledge.

In this issue we are again presented with the opportunity to learn new things, to think in new ways, and imagine how knowledge might applied. Sandra Turner explores the subject of resilience. The topic has seen a resurgence of interest and Turner provides additional insight into the ways that people deal with stress and adversity while still managing to succeed in life. It might behoove the reader to imagine ways of creatively incorporating this information into professional practice. Sandra Barnes provides new insights into African American families and the way that stressors and strengths interact to shape the lives of family members. What can practitioners learn about families to strengthen their practice effectiveness? Deborah Waldrop and Joseph Weber address the stresses and satisfactions of grandparents who become caregivers. How might helping professionals and policy makers gainfully use the information they provide? Richard Caputo looks at grandparenting and caregiving in a different way-he examines the effects of role changes on the physical and mental health of the grandparents. How might we meld his information with that in the previous article to better comprehend the lives of people in similar circumstances?

Child support enforcement services and guidelines and the effect they may have on the well-being of children is examined by Walter Ellis. The results of his study help us examine how policy is grounded in laws and regulations. Jerome Smith shares information about the difficulty in accurately seeing the sequelae of adoption as it influence the lives of children. He suggests that we should question the lens of our theory(s) and the assumptions we make and re-look at this aspect of the human condition as if through the eyes of innocents. That is, with an open mind that is receptive to what exists rather than what is anticipated.

Kathleen Kost allows the reader to see the notion of fatherhood through the eyes of (some) poor men-what they see their roles to be in the lives of their children and what they have to offer. Do their comments help us appreciate the fact that we all "see" the world in different ways and can such appreciation help us start where the client is? Carol Dorr also listened to the stories of men but focused on obstacles to intimacy and how such obstacles were dealt with. Her information gives us entree into the ways that men's lives are lived out and how changes in narrative threads are made. How might we better understand men and their lives and how might we make practical use of our understanding?

Next, Kathleen Tangenberg examines the complex lives of mothers trying to cope with both AIDS and addictions and looks at the influence of spirituality, social support, and inner strengths. Her insights into how people cope with incredibly complex circumstances should be information that finds some utility in practice. Finally, Cynthia Poindexter gifts us with the possibility of a deeper insight into the lives of older HIV-affected caregivers and shares those assets that help people cope as well as their needs that too often go unmet. Poindexter's work can also help us appreciate the many complex ways that people cope with difficult circumstances.

The articles in this edition of the journal are all different from one another yet all give us different vantage points from which we may better understand the human condition. My hope is that professionals will read what is offered with a critical eye, engage in the work of creatively thinking about the disparate ways that enhanced knowledge may be used, share and discuss new knowledge, and do the necessary work for using new knowledge to shape practice.

References

Root-Bernstein R., & Root-Bernstein, M. (1999). Sparks of genius. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.

Chestang, L., Educating for research utilization. (1992). In A. Grasso & I. Epstein (Eds.), Research utilization in the social services (pp. 365-367). New York: Haworth.

Kritek, P. (1994). Negotiating at an uneven table. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Schon, D. (1987). Educating the reflective practitioner. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Zeldin, T. (2000). Conversation. Mahwah, NJ: Hiddenspring.

Copyright Families in Society Sep/Oct 2001
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