Grace H. Childs

Die aus einer einflussreichen New Yorker Familie stammende Grace H. Childs bekleidete wichtige Funktionen in der American Association of Social Workers (AASW, gegr. 1921) und dem in der Park Avenue 22 residierenden Women's City Club of New York und trug zur Professionalisierung der Sozialarbeit in den USA bei. Kriminologisch relevant war ihr Eintreten für den jungen anarchistischen Strafgefangenen und späteren Kriminologieprofessor Frank Tannenbaum.

Eine Buchbesprechung durch Grace H. Childs (1928)

PUBLICITY FOR SOCIAL WORK. By Mary Swain Routzahn and Evart G. Routzahn. New York: Department of Surveys and Exhibits, Russell Sage Foundation, 1928.

"Publicity for Social Work" is a handbook for social workers who have to handle publicity for their organizations. To anyone who is familiar with the hapha/anl publicity in which many organizations indulge, the need for such a book would not have to be demonstrated . Let us hope that this carefully prepared volume, the first in the field, will not fall on barren ground.

Mr. and Mrs. Routzahn set themselves a dif- ficult task. They found an almost virgin field in which to work out a technique. To quote from their introduction, "It soon became apparent, however, that in the majority of cases the choice of a method was determined by economy, imita- tion, or habit, rather than by deliberate judg- ment." They go on to say, "Except in rare in- stances we had no means of determining in any given case the relation between the methods used and the results achieved."

The book is divided into six parts with many pertinent illustrations. Again the authors' dif- ficulty in finding good illustrative material shows a crying need for technical skill. To quote, "Examples of good writing, pleasing design, at- tractive pictures, and judicious selection of facts and ideas in social publicity to illustrate this book were hard to find. Higher standards need to be achieved in all of these lines before scientific testing is called for."

The newspapers should be grateful to the authors for their careful explanations of when and how publicity through that medium is pos- sible. So often a social work organization will antagonize newspapers by urging on them un- suitable material or by wishing to have something published immediately which has no news value.

The book is so painstaking and detailed that the "greenest" social worker with some wit could follow its directions. Besides telling of ways of securing publicity through the newspapers and prepared printed matter, it deals carefully with public speaking, pageants, plays, exhibits, and how to organize and manage a campaign. At the end of their chapters on campaigns there is an apt warning: "Fewer and Better Campaigns might well be a slogan for social workers to fol- low. When an intensive campaign follows too closely upon the heels of a similar affair the method loses whatever advantages it may have over other forms of publicity."

In their last chapter Mr. and Mrs. Routzahn touch on a number of interesting problems in publicity yet unsolved, such as how to secure per- sons equipped in -ocial publicity. There are no training schools as yet. Xo generally accepted ideas as to what -hould be their duties and their qualifications for the task. Another interesting problem is how to appeal to your public in a popular manner and yet keep abreast with your forward-looking, highly technical organization.

Every organization should own this book. It would be well for heads of organizations to read it with special emphasis on the last chapter. Its fine concept of what publicity in social work connotes is well worth remembering.

GRACE H. CHILDS. New York City. from: NATIONAL MUNICIPAL REVIEW October 1928, 602-603.