“Adopting unsuitable solutions constitutes an additional risk factor”: Context-informed social work practice with at-risk young adult Arabs

Although previous studies regarding professional interventions with at-risk minority young adults have focused on the challenges in providing support, few have examined these needs through the perceptions of social service providers. The aim of the current study is to learn about the needs of at-risk young adult Arabs in Israel in their intersecting contexts, as well as about the challenges in addressing these needs, so as to promote context-informed practice. We conducted a qualitative study of 39 social service providers. The findings are organized according to two main themes: (1) context-informed needs, which consists of three sub-themes: personal needs, social needs, and systemic needs, and (2) challenges in addressing these needs, consisting of three sub-levels: personal, social, and systemic. The findings shed light on a significant issue concerning the context-informed approach. At the micro level, social workers are able to implement a context-informed practice, whereas at the macro level of policy formulation and implementation, social workers seem to have less control over determining the nature of policies and resource allocation. We discuss the implications of the findings for social work practice, with the aim of promoting a context-informed practice in the intersecting levels of at-risk minority young adults’ lives.