Workable ethics: Social work and progressive practice

This paper explores the limits inherent in social work codes of ethics in the light of progressive developments in social work theory and practice. The authors contend that in spite of significant developments in theory and ideology, exploration of the ethical and moral base of the profession has at best been minimal, and, at worst, tokenistic. This has implications for the teaching and practice of social work. In critiquing professional codes of ethics in some Western countries, particularly that of Australia, findings from an exploratory project conducted in Sydney in 1996 are presented and analysed.