Public Lecture to be Held by Prof. Dr. Mark Doel from the UK

On Thursday 17 October, 5.30–7.30 p.m. at the VMU Faculty of Social Sciences (66 Jonavos g., Room 208), public lecture will be held by Prof. Dr. Mark Doel, registered social worker and Professor Emeritus at Sheffield Hallam University, UK.

In his lecture, the professor and social work practitioner will explore ‘difficult behaviour’ and help participants to understand it in a broader context.

Prof. Dr. Mark Doel will introduce nine themes arising from his research and practice in this area. He will suggest that the key to understanding and working with these behaviours in groups is the ability of the groupworker to unlock the meaning of the behaviour, and to find a way to give expression to this alongside group members. Groupworkers’ honesty with themselves about the feelings aroused by difficult behaviours is a significant factor.

Prof. Dr. Mark Doel is a registered social worker and Professor Emeritus at Sheffield Hallam University, UK. He has twenty years’ community-based social work practice, specialising in groupwork and task-centred practice. He has experience as a social work teacher and trainer, practice educator, head of school of social work, a writer (22 books, plus many scholarly articles and chapters), journal editor, a researcher, project director and external examiner. He leads workshops in groupwork and practice education. He is researching the use of objects in direct practice, with support from Coram/BAAF and with Universidad de los Lagos, Osorno, Chile: socialworkin40objects.com

Mark has lived and worked in the US, has extensive experience in eastern Europe, including Ukraine, and works alongside community activists in Kolkata, India. He is Honorary Professor at Tbilisi State University, Georgia, where he has longstanding professional friendships. He is a previous Vice-President of International Association for Social Work with Groups (IASWG).

Mark is Chair of the Nether Edge Festival, a community celebration in Sheffield.