Measuring Complexity: Applications for Social Work Research Education

Abstract

Complexity theory provides a promising approach in social work education as researchers and educators begin examining and quantifying the concepts of non-linearity and emergence. This paper introduces several components of complexity theory and discusses various statistical methods to consider when measuring contributions from each of these components. While social work research typically relies on group comparisons, complexity theory provides a broad framework for structuring and investigating social work phenomena. These applications include understanding how social movements emerged to viewing the interdependencies of communities.