News of the European Resource Centre for Social Work Research Data base

Geneviève Crespo/Françoise F. Laot, ETSUP Paris

1        The CERTS database is now online!

Our efforts bear finally fruit! It is possible to visit our database on the web now in French, in English and in about ten European languages in the forthcoming months. Your turn! Connect you to the following address: www.certs-europe.com/database

2        Reminding the aims of the database

Project supported by the European Commission (5th Programme)

The aim is to enter the most research studies as possible in order to make this database working and to test it at user level. You have got a few months (until October) to make suggestions in order to improve the technical aspects of the CERTS data base. Making research studies in the field of social work visible is the aim of the European CERTS data base. This data base will constitute the basis of European exchanges between researchers. It is also aimed at students and experts in social work, as well as political decision makers.

You will find in this data base:

·         Doctoral theses in all scientific and social academic disciplines relevant to the field of social work

·         National scale research carried out within the field of social work, which purpose is to be edited or to be an official report

·         a list of European researchers, who have carried out research in the field of social work

·         You can freely check these research works, in the research original language. Some information has been translated in one other European language, the title and the key words are compulsorily translated in English. Welcome to our site!

3        Brief sum-up of the implementation of the database

·         2002, during the European Steering Committee bringing together partners from ten European countries: Work and decisions related to the objectives and suggested contents of a European database gathering research studies in the field of social work.

·         2003, February: validation of the main lines of specifications and framework texts and organisation in network of National bridge-head, by the widened European Steering Committee

·         2003, March - July: testing of the database mock-up by the European Steering Committee and consulting experts in data-processing with the ETSUP operational team

·         2003, Autumn: from the conclusions reached by the test and experts advises, the operational team draws up detailed specifications and launch an invitation to tender.

·         2003, December: Examining replies and selecting an Operator: Webnet

·         2004, January: The operational team works in dose collaboration with Webnet an the technical aspects of the implementation of the database.

·         2004, January 26th - February 13th: First data capture in the database by some European partners allowing to validate technical architecture.

·         2004, Mid-February: Final corrections and web publishing in bilingual version French/English.

4        Programme

·         2004, March - September: Test in real conditions an the web by a Maximum of users in insert mode and search mode.

·         2004, October: assessing the testing phase and decision making an the continuation during the widened European Steering Committee.

·         2004,October -December : final corrections and stable version of the database

5        Make the data base functioning

5.1         The role of the bridge-heads

The national bridge-heads will be the kingpins of the success of this project. A document has been sent to them and specifies the procedure to be followed for an optimum working of the database. One of the important tasks of the National bridge-head will be to translate the database in the language of their own country.

They are also responsible for spreading information to research milieu in order to make the database known and to encourage the researchers or the specialised resource centres to enter data in the Base.

The aim (in the first five months - march to September 2004) is to enter information on 10 to 20 doctoral theses or other research studies per month.

5.2         Create new bridge-heads!

Once the database is on the web, we do hope that it will encourage new partners to join us. The capture of research studies has to be validated by the National bridge-head, in order to ensure coherence and good quality of the data. Therefore, it will be impossible for the researchers to enter their doctoral thesis if there is no bridge-head in their country.

Bridge-heads are found in the following countries: Belgium, Spain, Finland, France, Italy, Lithuania, Poland, Portugal, Czech Republic, the British Isles, Russia, Sweden, Switzerland. Name and address of the bridge-heads appear an the CERTS site. There are notable absentees in this list. The network of the CERTS partners needs to be widened.

If you are interested in creating a bridge-head in your country, contact: certs@etsup.com. Additional information on the role of the bridge-heads is available an the CERTS site (click: Network).

Author’s Adresses:
Geneviève Crespo/Françoise F. Laot
Centre Européen de ressources pour la recherche en travail social (CERTS)/
European Resource Centre for Social Work Research
c/o Ecole Supérieure de travail social – Etsup
8, villa du Parc Montsouris,
75014 Paris
France
Tel.: +33 1 44 168 181
Fax: +33 1 45 880 141
E-Mail: certs@etsup.com