The twelve chapters of this important book, written by leading social work educators, define and explain the essential components of the social work curriculum: social work practice, social welfare policy and services, human behavior in the social environment, research and evaluation, field education, values and ethics, oppression and social injustice, and diversity and populations at risk, including ethnic minorities and people of color, women, lesbians and gays, and people with disabilities. The only contemporary collections of essays analyzing what every social worker needs to know about the profession's intellectual underpinnings The Foundations of Social Work Knowledge will stimulate discussion and debate throughout the profession and will be essential reading for social work faculty, administrators, practitioners, and students.