Prof Writes Textbook on Global Social Problems

Newswise — An Elizabethtown College professor has written a textbook to introduce students to the current global social problems they may face.

Susan Mapp's "Human Rights and Social Justice in a Global Perspective: An Introduction to International Social Work" (Oxford University Press) addresses difficult topics such as healthcare, violence against women, war and conflict, forced labor and child soldiers. She analyzes problems in their cultural contexts to help readers understand how they developed, why they persist, and what the local and international responses, both governmental and nongovernmental, have been.

Mapp also offers brief but vivid narratives of individuals suffering from these social problems, along with suggestions for what students can do to create change: both now and what they will be able to do as professionals. Her book encourages students to think critically about such problems, research the issues and get involved with organizations that are working on them.

Mark Lusk, professor and director of social work at the University of Texas at El Paso, writes, "Susan Mapp has authored the definitive book on international social development. By incorporating human rights as the central organizing feature, she has brought a complex field into clear focus."

Mapp is an assistant professor of social work. She earned a bachelor's degree in psychology and religion from Trinity University, a master's in social work from the University of Texas at Austin, and a doctorate in social work from the University of Houston. Her areas of expertise include international social work as well as research and program evaluation. She has led Elizabethtown students on short-term study abroad trips to Ireland and Thailand as well as a service-learning trip to Vietnam this past summer.

Located in southeastern Pennsylvania, Elizabethtown offers its 1900 students more than academic programs in the liberal arts, sciences and professional studies. Driven by its motto to "Educate for Service," Elizabethtown centers learning in strong relationships, links classroom instruction with experiential learning, emphasizes international and cross-cultural perspectives and nurtures the capacity for lives of purpose.