Bibliotherapy in Social Work: Can a Guided Reading Improve Quality of Life and Social Functioning of Clients?

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.46991/BYSU:F/2023.14.2.118

Keywords:

bibliotherapy, helping professions, social work, cultural competence

Abstract

This article describes a specific therapeutic method used by helping professionals, librarians, and others to address various issues and needs of their service users. The guided therapeutic use of selected books, including audiobooks, stories, different genres of imaginative literature as an adjunct to intervention is applicable in all stages of life and with a variety of population groups and problems they have. The authors present definitions of the key terms and brief history of the development of bibliotherapy, based on literature review, as well as set out the applicability of bibliotherapy in health care and social work practice. It is an attempt to integrate social work, professional librarianship, health care, and bibliotherapy in this article.

Author Biographies

Lusine Karamyan, Yerevan State University

MSc (SW), Associate Professor, Faculty of Sociology, Yerevan State University, Yerevan, Armenia

Rebecca Davis, State University of New Jersey

PhD, MSW, Associate Professor, School of Social Work, Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey

References

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Published

2023-12-25

How to Cite

Karamyan, L., & Davis, R. (2023). Bibliotherapy in Social Work: Can a Guided Reading Improve Quality of Life and Social Functioning of Clients?. Journal of Sociology: Bulletin of Yerevan University, 14(2 (38), 118–128. https://doi.org/10.46991/BYSU:F/2023.14.2.118

Issue

Section

Social Work and Social Technologies