Aller-vers » les situations de grande marginalité sociale, les effets sociaux d’un champ de pratiques sociales

Using Outreach for Situations of Extreme Social Marginalization : the Social Effects of a Field of Social Work Practices As a way to approach and liaise with populations that have remained excluded from social and public health policies, “outreach” practices penetrated various areas of social intervention throughout the 20th century, both in North America and Europe. In several countries it even constitutes the core of a field of practices, namely that of street (corner) work. This article examines the social effects of this field of practices and its ability to challenge the symbolic boundaries affecting the relationships between mainstream society and those on its fringes. To do so, the authors draw on qualitative research carried out in Flanders (Belgium), Canada, and the Netherlands.