At last! A resumé of current social work practice with men has been long overdue, and this valuable collection of essays considers the criminal justice response to men and masculinity. The contributors seek to demonstrate that 'it is at least as important to deal with offenders as men, as it is to deal with men as offenders.' Essays range from analysis of attempts to integrate an awareness of masculinity into existing practice to accounts of projects established to work with men in new and innovative ways. Whilst the diversity of approaches has its advantages, I was left feeling that a lack of communication between projects leaves us with the same old tensions and debates around voluntary vs. statutory sector, and mandatory vs. voluntary attendance on programmes.
I found other difficulties with some of the essays in the collection. Kevin Murphy's article on 'Men and Offending Groups', and Gardiner and Nesbits's piece on 'Cognitive Behavioural Groupwork' were thought provoking, but they suffered from a lack of any sense of the unknowing and unpredictable potential of such work. The preoccupation with detailed description of format and structure left me wondering how the facilitators manage their own issues provoked by being part of such groups.
These limitations were avoided by David Morran's excellent account of his work for the CHANGE project, which works with perpetrators of domestic violence in Scotland. His essay outlines the context of such work and the perhaps inevitable concerns of women's organisations. Morran admirably addresses the personal impact of the work which he desciibes as 'hard, depressing and quite isolating'. As a practitioner myself working in similar circumstances with violent men, I can relate to the creative tensions around the 'thin line between failing to challenge men and colluding with them, between listening to them or dismissing their explanations as excuses'. Karen Buckley and Karen Young's description of their project with young men convicted of driving offences reiterates the conflict between confronting destructive behaviour and providing activities which 'merely validate participants' fascination and obsession with cars'.
It's a refreshing move forward to at least acknowledge these tensions to seek definitions and clarify the purpose of this work, as Trefor Lloyd states in the final essay in the book. This specific debate has barely begun but it needs to occur among practitioners and managers as well as academics and trainers. Otherwise what practice does exist will remain enclosed in an isolated enclave fuelled by misunderstanding and misapprehension. Addressing masculinity with men in social work settings will prove difficult to sustain in such an environment given that it functions as David Morran points out; 'in a culture where there is little tangible support for men to challenge or change their lifestyles ... where the work has little cultural approval ... with an uncertain political climate and little opportunity for future funding'. This book provides ample evidence that creative work with men within the criminal justice system is possible; to define the parameters of good practice and consolidate the achievements of recent years appears the next challenge.
Robin Tuddenham
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