Ruralidad y Trabajo Social. Una aproximacion desde el caso andaluz

Social work in rural areas, in contrast to its configuration in urban settings, is conditioned by particular organizational circumstances and socio-cultural contexts that call for reflection on its possible specificity. In this sense, the practice of social work in rural contexts is a specific challenge for the profession. The aim of this article is to analyse the organizational models and practice of social work in a rural context in order to investigate this potential particularity and its implications for social intervention. The research focuses on an exploratory case study in Andalusia (Spain), where we carried out qualitative research in 14 community social services centres through in-depth interviews with 95 social workers. These interviews enabled us to identify some of the characteristics of the organization and practices of social workers in rural contexts. The results highlight two fundamental differences fromintervention in urban contexts: (1) a different model of service organization, with a generalist tendency; and (2) a particular approach to professional practice, based on personal proximity and care. The particularities of rural social work are highlighted in the discussion section: participants recognise that they are practising social work that is "different" from that done in urban contexts, more aligned with the profession "ought" and "is". The conclusions point to the existence of an urbanormativity bias in the organization and practices of social work, which makes rural peculiarities invisible and which could limit the ability of social work to respond to the rural crisis.