The
Future
of Social
Work
Science in Action
The Social Work profession applies rigorous research, critical theories, and scientific methods in order to advance social change, drive innovation, and yield sound and effective practice. At NYU Silver, students learn about evidence-based practices and research-informed interventions and are trained in quantitative and qualitative modes of inquiry. NYU Silver faculty and students are engaged in dozens of studies, including researching family interventions to reduce teen risk behavior, evaluating services for adults with co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders, identifying modifiable determinants of child neglect, testing real-world implementation of patient-centered care, and many more. We are constantly developing new knowledge that will benefit individuals, families, and communities, and solve significant social problems. NYU Silver is harnessing science for public impact.
Bridging the Research-Practice Gap
NYU Silver is the home of Information for Practice (ifp.nyu.edu), which provides the latest news and scholarship with implications for evidence-based practice.
Data Drives Deeper Impact
The Constance and Martin Silver Center on Data Science and Social Equity was established at NYU Silver in June 2021 to harness the emerging power of big data to identify the root causes of society’s most pressing challenges and achieve broad and transformational social impact. The center, which aligns with the Grand Challenges for Social Work challenge to Harness Technology for Social Good, helps to develop and nurture the scientific skill set of NYU Silver faculty, doctoral students, and researchers and supports scholarship and early development of innovations in the field of data science for social equity.
We are intervention designers, coming together to produce knowledge and evidence that can be translated into direct practice
NYU Silver Faculty on the Grand Challenges for Social Work
We have the power to end homelessness. To eliminate social isolation. To advance long and productive lives. This nationwide Grand Challenges for Social Work initiative, powered by science, is a call to action for researchers and practitioners to collaborate in tackling some of our toughest social problems. NYU Silver faculty lead three of the 13 challenges and the School has helped to sustain this groundbreaking initiative.
Preventative social work is the new frontier
The Silver School Faculty Is Examining Society’s Pressing Problems
Understanding the Context Behind Parental Behaviors is First Step to Preventing Neglect
With a grant from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, Associate Professor Darcey Merritt is conducting a study that aims to redefine the way we think of child neglect based on mothers’ perspectives on their behavioral choices. “We typically design policies and interventions for parents involved with the child welfare system without thoroughly understanding the context in which they live,” said Dr. Merritt. “Listening to parents and assessing the elements associated with their parenting choices is a first step toward identifying modifiable determinants of child neglect to inform effective prevention.”
A Silver PhD Student is Using Scientific Research Methods to Address Chronic Health Disparities
PhD student Laura Esquivel, whose research explores disparities in disease prevalence based on race/ethnicity and gender, was awarded a Science Alliance Leadership Training Program Fellowship by the New York Academy of Sciences to advance her leadership in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math. Esquivel noted that it is validating for social work that NYAS considers the profession a STEM field. “They recognize that we do research using scientific methods. In fact, in my specialty of health disparities, we are measuring sub-categories of people other fields don’t study in the same way. We are getting to pockets of the population that other fields often miss out on.”
