On the sheer variety of outcomes

EDITORIAL NOTES

THIS ISSUE OF THE JOURNAL has a special focus on outcomes-a topic that is both practically and painfully timely. What is an "outcome" and what are the many guises the concept can assume? On September 11 of this year, we were witness to one of the most heinous acts of terrorism of our time-not simply because of the number of dead and injured, but also because of the sheer blatant audacity of the events, the spectacle of it all. The events of that one day have, and will continue to have, a profound effect on our national behaviors, our freedom, our mood, our need for retaliation, and our sense of security. It will test our ability to put aside our obvious differences and find the tie that can bind us and heal us. It will also test our ability to tolerate diversity in our midst, be it ethnic, religious, or political and ideological. But, when we recall the events of that day and its aftermath, will they be understood in the larger global context-in a world where we are players as well as victims? Will we examine our own behaviors as rigorously and objectively as we examine those of the terrorists?

That was one day's spectacularly obscene events in a world filled with a mix of both violent and civilized behaviors. It was a reminder that obsessive hatred can drive people to do the unthinkable. It was an attack on symbols of our economic system and our military. But, the incidents did not occur in the context of an otherwise peaceful world. The past decade was also witness to the butchery in central Africa that killed hundreds of thousands yet garnered barely a thousandth of the attention of the events of September and which saw almost no attempt by nations of the world to stop it. The "civilized" world simply stood aside and watched as well-conditioned innocent bystanders are inclined to do. Year after year in this country we witness the death of thousands by handguns in our homes and schools. But, the numbers of such deaths mount up one by one and we are dulled into inaction and inattention by the sheer constancy of the violence. Our films are filled with spectacular violence and we have seemingly become numbed into accepting the continual escalation of such spectacles of death and destruction. Numbed, that is, until it is real and close to home. It takes a spectacle close to home to command our attention and we got it. The events of September 11 th are an outcome of things that went before-hatreds, religious fundamentalism gone awry, extreme anger, the indifferent erasure of other cultures, carelessness, ignorance, callous indifference, economic oppression, and the growing gulf between the haves and have nots, and God only knows what else. What is most disconcerting is that we seem reluctant to do a complete post mortem on all the cumulative events and circumstances that resulted in the outcomes that gripped, and yet grip, the nation. To look at it all, including the roles we ourselves played in the events in which such evil festers and erupts, requires maturity and a sense of responsibility. Those sometimes seems in short supply-there is, in the aggregate, not always a sharp line dividing the good guys from the bad guys based on the color of their hats or their ethnicity or religion or whose side they take.

It is all too easy to point a blaming finger at others and stop there-that same kind of base anger and easy blaming was done by terrorists, to our pain and detriment. That same blaming will be done by us to the pain and detriment of many others. One hopes that when we grow mature enough and strong enough to look honestly and comprehensively at what happened in September we can look at both the actions of others as well our own behaviors for the sake of understanding how such terror comes to be and to know how people can feel driven to the point of such heinous acts. We also need to examine how our anger and outrage changes us. If we do not pause to understand how such acts come to be, we will inherit a world in which terror is a constant outcome-one event at a time until we become numbed to it-conditioned cynicism. We also need to dialogue about it, to find where we find agreements, to dissent, to find new ways of framing situations and needs, to find common humanity, to seek justice rather than revenge, but perhaps most of all to feel like we can create a world where such events simply remain unthinkable and the welfare of all people matter.

Our national press is filled with depictions of acts of heroism and caring as well as the breast beating of pious nationalists who see any attempt to temper more violence as "bilge" that comes from our polluted and politically suspect campuses (Leo, 2001). The bell tolls for our trust of one another. Alternately, there are voices that counsel that dissent is neither cowardice nor unpatriotic (Cohen, 2001). Patriotism can be found equally among those opposed to violence as those who accept it. We have national columnists such as Michael Kelly who refers to pacifism as "evil" and pacifists as "liars" and "hypocrites" and we have columnists such as E. J. Dionne who write in support of pacifism (Dionne, 2001). Had pacifism a more universal following, we would have fewer terrorists. Had we more objectivity and reason we might have fewer columnists.

I hope that we are strong enough and wise enough to value opposing viewpoints and beliefs about all this. There is neither joy nor goodness in all this; there is only the pain that has been and will be done. But, in truth, something must be done and will be done but there is no satisfaction in the need to do violence. Perhaps grief and sorrow are the most appropriate responses to what was done to us and what we will do in turn. After our anger and grief abate perhaps we can again give in to hope for a more just world.

In our human serving agencies we are, rightly, paying attention to the outcomes of our work--do we do what we say we're doing? Do we fulfill our mission? Do we do any reasonable amount of good considering the resources invested? In a nutshell, do we know what to do and do we do it effectively with passion and precision? How do we measure what we accomplish? After all, people and the meaningful things in their lives are not "widgets" (Goldberg, 2000) that can simply be measured or counted in our elusive goal of objectifying everything. What services do morally healthy societies make available for their members and how and what do we measure about them? How do we measure social obligation and what are its outcomes? Can we measure caring and responsibility? How do we measure outcomes such that they give us feedback about our values and our ethics? How do we use our knowledge of outcomes to improve what we do? What are the outcomes of our limited regard for our fellow humans? Who pays the dearest price for the outcomes of our class and economic system? We must also be mindful of Goldberg's (2000) note of caution that in our zeal to appear like we perform well we must not "cream" off the "best" clients and disregard the rest. What would be the outcomes of that practice?

The subject of outcomes is a worthy topic for the journal and one that should provoke and hold our interest. Aside from the articles devoted to that subject we have added complementary articles on a variety of other worthy topics. Joanne Riebschleger writes for our "Writers at Work" column and discusses the agonies and ecstasies of writing a doctoral dissertation. She gives good advice and a first-person account of lessons learned when one goes through the struggle to write in that particularly demanding and stressful endeavor. Gale Goldberg Wood and Susan Roche provide the reader with principles that may guide a feminist practice that works with the survivors of male perpetrated violence. Their contribution provides another way of framing the issues that envelop violence and its aftermath. I would note that a book reviewed in this issue is on a related topic. Katherine Tyson and Emily Carroll provide a much-needed perspective on the residential care of homeless, severely mentally ill clients. Their advocacy of the perspective of intrapsychic humanism to guide the interactions of clients and staff and treatment planning is a needed relief from the more mechanical business logic that permeates some service organizations. Michael LaSala provides the reader with an insight into work that deals with the understandings of gay male partners. His work is also a reminder that our concern for the well-being of all people is the measure of our collective moral and social health. Cathryne Schmitz, Catherine J. Stakeman, and Jose A. Sisneros provide another needed voice about diversity and oppression in society. They provide a thoughtful discourse on preparing people to practice in a pluralistic environment-one that should induce more than a casual reading and pondering. Finally, Ruth Dean also thoughtfully addresses the topic of professional practice in a culturally diverse and changing society. She questions some of our current assumptions and proposes another model for competent practice. The last two articles, together, provide ample fodder for an excellent discussion of what we need to do to prepare for practice in a world that is changing around us. What are the outcomes of failing to consider such issues?

References

Cohen, R. (2001, October 3). Dissent isn't cowardice. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel,11A.

Dionne, E. J. (2001, October 5) The case for pacifism. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 19A.

Goldberg, P. (2000, December 22). People are not widgets. USA Today. December 22, 23A.

Leo, J. (2001, October 2). From campuses comes an ocean of bilge in response to terror. Wisconsin State Journal, A6.

Safransky, S. (2001, September 11): A special Sunbeams supplement, 310. The Sun.

by William E. Powell, Editor

The staff of Families in Society wish to extend our deep gratitude to Dr. Kristine L. Mika for her efforts to bring this special issue into being. Her passion for the topic of outcomes and for enlightened and effective practice has been a source of inspiration for us; she has also been a pleasure to work with. Her effort to bring the special focus portion of this issue to fruition results in much needed knowledge becoming available to those who strive to improve their services. The outcome of her efforts may benefit us all.

Copyright Families in Society Nov/Dec 2001
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