Human Services in Contemporary America

by William R. Burger

Reflecting the latest policy and practice changes, HUMAN SERVICES IN CONTEMPORARY AMERICA, 8e delivers a complete overview of the helping field, its available programs, and the practical skills workers can employ. Completely current, it illustrates how recent governmental policy shifts impact the way human services professionals work. The author presents the history and practice of human services through the lens of a social problems and policy perspective. As you progress through the chapters, you understand how social, economic, and political issues might affect you as a human service worker--as well as the people you serve. Both practical and relevant, the text is packed with captivating, real-life examples that highlight personal experiences and other options available to legislators--such as national health care. It also provides invaluable information on selected careers within the field, including training and licensing requirements.

Genres: Nonfiction

384 pages, Paperback

Published February 17, 2010

Reviews

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was the text for my intro. to Human Services class. Sometimes, I used this book for assignments directly & sometimes I used it as a springboard for further research. It was well written & kept my interest.

[Emily · Rating 1 out of 5]

Cengage should be SO embarrassed to have published this book. It is absolutely riddled with typos. I found one on almost every page. My favorite was when Burger was talking about stigma and they left off the "s". So "tigma". Even the most basic spellcheck should have caught that.

It was also extremely apparent where Burger had made updates to this particular edition and when he made them. Parts of the book were obviously written before the 2016 election, some after, some clearly hadn't been updated in close to 20 years. So many statistics that are wildly out of date. Many of the claims Burger made were not supported or cited.

The subject matter is interesting, but the typos were so distracting and the writing so poor that the topic couldn't redeem this text. If it hadn't been for a class there is no way I would've finished it.