"Are We Doing Fine?" The Views on Poverty Reduction Strategies Among Front-Line Workers in the Field of Social Assistance in Turkey


Coban A. I., Attepe S., Uluocak G., Celik G.

JOURNAL OF SOCIAL SERVICE RESEARCH, cilt.37, sa.5, ss.469-480, 2011 (SSCI) identifier identifier

  • Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
  • Cilt numarası: 37 Sayı: 5
  • Basım Tarihi: 2011
  • Doi Numarası: 10.1080/01488376.2011.585332
  • Dergi Adı: JOURNAL OF SOCIAL SERVICE RESEARCH
  • Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI), Scopus
  • Sayfa Sayıları: ss.469-480
  • Anahtar Kelimeler: Poverty, poverty reduction, social assistance
  • Ankara Üniversitesi Adresli: Hayır

Özet

This research highlights the views of front-line workers in the social assistance system in Turkey about the strategies of poverty reduction and the effectiveness of the assistance given by Social Assistance and Solidarity Foundations (SASFs) to the poor. The data were gathered from 33 employees from the 8 SASF offices in Ankara, Turkey. The results show that the majority of the participants agree with governmental efforts to create employment opportunities as the most important method. Although the participants felt the services they provided were effective at the individual and family level, they thought such services were extremely insufficient in terms of poverty reduction on a macro scale. The findings were discussed within the framework of the changing nature of poverty and the recent agenda on poverty reduction in Turkey. Future research based upon larger samples from different parties in the field of social assistance is needed to fully determine the positions taken by the agents.