Explanation

A working definition of explanation

Explanation is a key part of written analysis focusing on the ‘why’ of a situation. Of course there are different levels of ‘why’, a more immediate level e.g. why Mandy didn’t go to school on Monday (she said she didn’t feel well); and a more fundamental level, that is why a particular situation arises in the first place (e.g. are there deeper issues connected to Mandy not wanting to go to school). The two levels of explanation overlap of course, but here we are focusing mainly on the first more immediate level; the second level might more usefully be considered under ‘Evaluation’, the third element of written analysis. Providing explanations at this more immediate level usually involves drawing on your observations and interactions, much of which you will have logged in a number of documents e.g. case notes. It also involves you drawing on the accounts and perspectives of a number of other people:

• The people involved
• Friends or family
• Different professionals e.g. doctor, teacher, police, care worker, psychiatrists

It is important to include different accounts of why something is happening, make clear whose account you are including and on what basis. It is crucial to include the explanations and perspective of the person about whom the record is being written:

“We have the responsibilities to ensure that we are representing our service users respectfully, and that we clearly understand that our ‘version’ of events is merely that: a version of events. It is one that we should convey confidently, analytically and backed up by evidence.”
Professional Writing: A Guide for staff working in Children’s Social Work. Aberdeen City Council. Working document. P131 p4

It is also essential to include explanations from others relating to a particular person or situation: for example, an explanation provided by a teacher who knows a child well, over an extended period of time; an explanation by a psychiatrist based on three interviews.

Selecting and synthesising from the different accounts and perspectives is crucial because it will be impossible to include every detail and not all details will be equally important in helping the readers understand a situation. In carrying out this selection, you will often draw on existing written records. For example, when writing an assessment report, you will usually draw on case notes, perhaps a chronology summarising events and key moments, as well as notes you may have kept in a notebook. All of these will include particular moments of analysis and will inform the current analysis you are writing.

Hypothesising

One way of working out exactly what detail to include is to build hypotheses about a situation. Hypothesising involves you articulating some possible explanations about a particular situation and then testing them out on the basis of the evidence you have collated or are in the process of collating – that is your description of events and the different accounts and perspectives.

“The cornerstone of analysis in assessment work might be seen as the process of building hypotheses for understanding a family situation and developing these until they include a plan for the way forward.”
Sally Holland (2004) Child and family assessment in social work practice. London: Sage. p131

Consider the hypothesis below and the possible sources of evidence to support this hypothesis. Do you think there is sufficient evidence to support the hypothesis or suggest a need for further investigation? What other evidence do you think might be considered?

Example of hypothesis

Sophie is at risk of sexual exploitation by her boyfriend

What evidence do I have to test this hypothesis?

• Sophie’s account of her boyfriend introducing her to several older men – documented in my case notes
• My observation on the five occasions we met that she seemed upset about her boyfriends’ treatment of her – documented in my case notes
• Sophie’s mother reporting Sophie did not come home several nights last week – documented in my case notes

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Hypothesising is an important part of the analytic process, some of which you will include in written records, for example, in case notes, assessment reports, but some of this process will be unwritten or not in public records e.g. in your head or in notes you make (see Writing as a process that supports analysis). It is important to state the particular hypotheses in your written records but of course your hypotheses may change over time, in relation to the evidence you collate.

For example in early case notes about a particular person or situation you may have several possible hypotheses about what is going on and you will include: e.g. one possible explanation is that xxx; another is yyy.

However, when writing what we can think of as ‘milestone’ documents – that is publicly significant documents, such as an assessment report being presented to a local authority panel or court – you will draw on all existing records to synthesise what you see as the clearest explanation, the hypothesis that is proven or demonstrated based on all existing records. Acknowledging that several hypotheses are possible can also help to strengthen your assessment of a situation. A written document showing that several hypotheses have been considered, but that there is more evidence to support one, will have more credibility and validity than a document which ignores possible hypotheses.

Thinking about the language of explanation

In providing explanations of a situation it is important to clearly indicate how explanations have been arrived at for example, by:

• Reporting others’ accounts and views:
  • Sophie explained that…
  • Dr X based on his interview with Sophie states that, reports that, is of the view that
  • On the basis of my three two-hour long visits at Sophie’s home, I consider that…
• Offering a balanced account:
  • While Ms X the teacher considers… Mr. X Sophie’s father considers…
  • Ms X the teacher considers… however Mr. X Sophie’s father considers…
  • There are different views about what happened on the previous weekend: x reports… and y reports….
• Making causal links reflecting the evidence provided:
  • On the basis of the evidence to date, it seems clear that/it is likely that/it is possible that/it is probable that… so; therefore; thus.

Practical exercise: Explanation

Think of or reread a recent record (a case note, an assessment report) where you have provided some explanations of a particular situation.

• Have you made clear whose view is being reported and on what basis?
• Have you highlighted any possible contrasting explanations and perspectives?
• Have you indicated possible links between different sources and explanations?