摘要：Welcome to the first edition of our Journal: Comparative Social Work. The aim of this journal is to draw attention to the field of comparative social work. We consider this important in order to shed light on global challenges in social work and to increase our understanding of the contextual nature of social work practice. The journal will provide a medium for researchers, lecturers, practitioners and students involved in social work. We will publish two issues each year. Each number will contain three parts: 1) A student corner ¨C in which we publish material written by students at master and PhD level. 2) Book reviews. 3) Reviewed articles. These articles have been anonymously reviewed by two of the academic staff on the advisory board.What is Comparative Social Work. To look into this question we will focus on social work in a contextual perspective. We have asked Elena Iarskaia Smirnova, a Russian member of the advisory board, the following question: What do you consider to be the key issues in social work in your context. Her answer focuses on the development of social work as a profession, and, for example, the problem of inadequate wage policies for qualified social workers which in fact reinforces societal assumptions regarding cheap women's labour
