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Kristen Brock-Petroshius, assistant professor in Stony Brook University’s School of Social Welfare, has received The Frank R. Breul Memorial Prize, a prestigious award from the Social Service Review, one of the most important journals in the field of social work. Brock-Petroshius was recognized for her article “Race Talk to Change Carceral Attitudes: A Field Experiment on Deep Canvass Organizing,” which appears in the December 2024 issue. Brock-Petroshius’ article uses a randomized, placebo-controlled field experiment to demonstrate that deep canvassing is a promising method for changing underlying ideological attitudes about the carceral state and building support for anti-carceral policies. Deep canvassing is a canvassing method that focuses on building emotional connections through personal stories. This research shows that when it includes explicit discussion of anti-Black racism, it can effectively change minds. “I hope this paper provokes further discussion within social work about the role we can play in using community practice interventions to build support for racial, economic, and social equity policies,” Brock-Petroshius said. Although the competition among nominated articles was strong, members of the Crown faculty and the External Review Board praised the paper’s rigor and novelty, noting that its fresh combination of experimental methods and community organizing practice allows us to imagine a way to address one of the United States’ most deeply troubling issues: racially polarized attitudes. Strongly anchored in social work practice values, the paper addresses a topic that is difficult to study while pointing to actionable findings. Brock-Petroshius’ areas of interest include community organizing and policy practice, racial justice policies, anti-carceral social work, attitude change interventions, and race, ethnicity, and politics. The prize pays tribute to Breul’s career as an educator, administrator, and editor of Social Service Review while on the faculty of the Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice at the University of Chicago. The Breul Prize is awarded annually for the article judged by the editor, after seeking input from the editorial board, to be the best published in SSR in the preceding year. |
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