Comparison of social justice advocacy levels of social workers working in public institutions and civil society organisations

The aim of this study is to reveal the levels of social justice advocacy of social workers working in public institutions and civil society organizations. And the aim is to determine the meaningful differentiation of social justice advocacy by working status in public institutions and non-governmental organizations. In addition, the aim is to evaluate the level of social justice advocacy by taking into account the information related to the introductory information and professional activities. The quantitative research method is used in the research. The data was obtained from 100 social workers through the Social Justice Advocacy Scale and Questionnaire Form. In the analysis of the data, t-test, correlation, and ANOVA analyzes were used. According to the study, social justice advocacy, collaborative action, client empowerment, and client/community advocacy levels are high, and social/political advocacy levels are medium. In the research, the significant difference and relationship between the Social Justice Advocacy Scale with its subscales and the data obtained from the questionnaire form were examined. Accordingly, social justice advocacy and collaborative action levels of social workers differ significantly in terms of working status in public institutions and civil society organizations. In addition, social justice advocacy and the subscales differ significantly according to gender, being a member of an NGO, and receiving advocacy training besides the university. Also, there is a significant relationship between social justice advocacy with the subscales and working periods in the public and civil society sectors. Results and suggestions are presented in light of the findings obtained from the study. Keywords: Advocacy, social justice, social work in civil society, social work in public sector