Between and , Ms. Richmond was associated with Charities, which developed teaching materials for Charity Organization Societies nationwide. She also taught and did research at the New York School of Philanthropy. From through , she developed and headed summer institutes attended by secretaries of charity organization societies from all parts of the country. Her most celebrated book, Social Diagnosis , was based on her lectures and on her wide readings in history, law, logic, medical social work, psychology, and psychiatry.
Widely hailed as evidence of the professionalization of social work, it was the first formulation of theory and method in identifying the problems of clients. In , she defined social case work as "those processes which develop personality through adjustments consciously effected, individual by individual, between men and their social environment. An Introductory Description To be considered at the June meeting, submit your nomination package by March 31, To learn more, visit our Pioneer nomination guidelines.
New Pioneers In , 16 new Pioneers have been inducted. From until her death, she was director of the charity department of the Russell Sage Foundation in New York, an influential fund supporting social science research. In modern social work, about everybody agrees there is a need for diagnosis and research to happen before care provision. It was Richmond who systematically developed the content and methodology of diagnosis in the period around Her first principle was that care had to focus on the person within her or his situation.
Her famous circle diagram visualised the correspondence of client and environment. Richmond identified six sources of power that are available to clients and their social workers: sources within the household, in the person of the client, in the neighbourhood and wider social network, in civil agencies, in private and public agencies. Through her approach to research, Richmond gave social work clients a voice for the first time.
In this way, she opened a new and fruitful area of social research which is up to now a cornerstone of social work. Her first principle was that care had to focus on the person within their situation.
Her famous circle diagram visualized the correspondence of client and environment. Richmond identified six sources of power that are available to clients and their social workers: sources within the household, in the person of the client, in the neighborhood and wider social network, in civil agencies, in private and public agencies.
With her book Social Diagnosis , Mary Richmond constructed the foundations for the scientific methodology development of professional social work. She searched for the causes of poverty and social exclusion in the interaction between an individual and his or her environment. For her contributions, Mary Richmond is considered a principle founder of the profession of social work and the importance of professional education.
On the death of her parents while she was very young, Richmond was raised by her maternal grandmother and two aunts in Baltimore, Maryland. Richmond grew up surrounded by discussions of suffrage, racial problems, spiritualism, and a variety of liberal religious, social, and political beliefs. This upbringing promoted critical thinking and social activism in her. Social interaction or relationships were not her strong point and she spent considerable time reading literature.
She graduated from high school at the age of sixteen and went with one of her aunts to New York City. She took a job at a publishing house doing a variety of clerical and mechanical tasks, a very difficult life with twelve-hour workdays. Her aunt soon became ill and returned to Baltimore, leaving Mary on her own at the age of seventeen.
After two years in New York, Richmond returned to Baltimore and worked for several years as a bookkeeper. During this time, she became involved with the Unitarian Church and developed her social skills as she met new friends.
The Charity Organization Societies in several cities were the first organizations to develop a structured social work profession, providing social services to the poor, disabled, and needy especially children. By their very nature, early urban areas fostered industrial accidents, diseases, unemployment, poverty, family breakdown and other social and economic problems.
When afflicted by unemployment, sickness, old age or a physical disability, individuals and families without relatives nearby or financial resources had few options: apply for public relief, appeal to private charities or beg help from strangers.
The problems of dealing with urban poverty increased significantly when a city suffered an economic depression, labor strife or some other event that left large numbers of able-bodied men and women without a source of income. A vast number of independent groups and organizations had formed to ameliorate the problems of poverty caused by rapid industrialization, but they operated autonomously with no coordinated plan.
The overall purpose of the charity organization societies was to bring order to a disorganized and ineffective system of alms giving by churches, charitable agencies, and individuals. During the time Richmond was connected to the COS, she demonstrated her qualities as a leader, teacher, and practical theorist. Throughout her career she was a strong supporter of professionalizing the work that the Friendly Visitors did with families. She believed that proper training was imperative for helping poor families manage and change their circumstances.
It was during her historic speech at the annual meeting of the Nation Conference of Charities and Correction in that she articulated her beliefs and called for schools to train professional social workers.
Her opening statement at the Conference set the tone and direction for training:. The question now is how to get educated young men and women to make a life vocation of charity organization work.
We must educate them.
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