Creativity strengthening the transformative power of social work

Social work operates within complex conditions that require developing professional practice. A holistic understanding of how social work may support people in their change processes is, therefore, crucial. The key to transformative social work practice lies in relational approaches that promote respectful and trust-based relationships by valuing clients as partners. Utilizing creativity and arts engagement in social work practice holds the potential to facilitate navigation towards the aims of social work, however, it also challenges professional thinking. This research aims to understand the development of transformative potential and, specifically, how creative approaches may benefit professionals in their work and why. This phenomenological-hermeneutic research asks the question: what kind of meanings do professionals give for creative approaches as part of social work practice? The data consists of 12 semi-structured interviews of professionals working in social services in Finland. The findings show that creativity-infused social work strengthens transformative potential by 1) opening new possibilities for co-building of relationships, 2) facilitating professional reflection and collaborative learning and 3) generating new approaches for navigating social work practice. Widening the Creative Transformative Space (CTS) in social work requires professional compassion and sensitivity, acknowledging the different modes of the narratives emerging in rich interaction, including dialogue beyond words: the non-verbal, playful, creative and bodily ways to be and express ourselves. Focusing on CTS provides new horizons for developing practice, professional reflection and education.