Disciplines of
Social Work
Introduction :
•
This module demonstrate a high level of understanding
of the basic concepts of social work through a group
presentation of a situation in which practitioners of social work
collaborate to assist individuals, groups, or communities
involved in difficult situations (e.g., post disaster, court hearing
about separation of celebrity couple, cyberbullying).
• Objectives:
• In this lesson, you are expected to:
• 1. Define social work;
• 2. Explain the context and the basic concepts of the social
work;
• 3. Describe the goals and scope of social work;
• 4. Discuss the principles of social work; and
• 5. Explain the core values of social work.
• What comes to your mind when you hear the phrase
“social work”?
ACTIVITY 1: Think and Share:
•
This activity to share to express social concerns on social
work or issues on what they think and feel. With that, the
student will describe what they have engage in and determine
what makes it social work. An opportunity to explore wide
imagination to share thoughts on verifying your insights by
reading ahead about the concepts, goals, and scope of social
work..
• Discipline of Social Work
• Discipline of social work is closely associated with government welfare
and social programs aimed at achieving social justice, fairness and
attainment of social equilibrium.
•
“The social work profession promotes social change, problem solving in
human relationships and the empowerment and liberation of people to
enhance well-being. Utilizing theories of
human behavior and social systems, social works intervenes at the points
where people interact with their environments. Principles of human rights
and social justice are fundamental to social work. “(International Federation
of Social Workers 2013).
•
Aims to protect vulnerable people from abuse, neglect, or self harm
and to help enhance their well being and quality of life. Operates within
legal frameworks for protecting an supporting vulnerable people. Work
closely with other professional, often known as inter-professional
working.
• Social Care to Social work
•
Social work has evolved from being a domestic
common sense care to professional service. A wide
variety of people in the community, from friends to
parents, relatives, volunteers to all people of goodwill
participate in providing social care. This includes
providing personal care, supporting individuals with
daily living, and supporting people to engage with their
communities and involve more direct contact with
people
Definition of Social work
•
The policy, ethics, and human rights committee of the
British association of social workers (2012) provides the
definition of social work: “The social world profession
promotes social change, problem solving in human
relationship and the empowerment and liberation of people to
enhance well-being. Utilizing theories of human behavior and
social systems, social work intervenes at points were people
interact with their environments. Principles of human right
and social justice and fundamental to social work.”
•
It is understood here the social work is a profession
that fulfills the social work mandate to promote well-being
and quality of life. As such, it encompasses activities
• directed in improving human and social conditions and
alleviating human distress and social problems through
enhancing people’s competence and functioning, ability to
access social support and resources, creating human
responsive social services, and expansion of the structures
of the society that provide opportunities for all citizens
(DuBois & Miley 2008)
Context and the basic concepts of social works
•
To appreciate the context and the basic concept of social
work, one has to look into its professional history (Segal,
Gerdes, & Steiner 2005). The aim of social work is to help
individuals fit better into their environment and change
concept, Segal, Gerdes, & Steiner (2005) Locate the history of
social work in the history of social welfare in America. They
particularly link social work history to the charity organization
societies founder 1877 with the aim of discovering the causes
of poverty among individuals, eliminate the causes, and
eliminate poverty from society.
•
Poverty was then seen as a character defect of an individual.
This perspective is half true, as evidence of social science
showed that there are multiple external forces and structures
that account for poverty and individuals.
•
The next movement that emerged as if to complement the
first wave of social work was called settlement movement which
began 1877 (Segal, Gerdes, & Steiner 2005). The settlement
movement operated on the assumption that an individual’s
well-being was directly linked to his or her external
surroundings therefore, that to help and individual changing
the environment where that the individual lives. Such include
advocating for better neighborhood services, public health
programs, and employment conditions.
• This two movement efforts of solving poverty of individuals by
helping the individuals fit better in their environment and
changing that environment serve as today’s basic concept of
social work and its all various forms and services.
•
The context of social work is a place that requires
professionals to direct their service on needs of empowerment
of people who experience some forms of vulnerability,
oppression, and living in poverty.
Goals and scope of social works
DeBois and Miley(2008) highlight the following goals and scope of social
works and calling them tenets.
Empower people, individually and collectively, to utilize their own
problem-solving and coping capabilities more effectively.
• Support a proactive position with regard to social and economic policy
development to prevent problems for individuals and society from occurring
period.
• Uphold the integrity of the profession in all aspects of social work
practice.
• Establish linkages between people and societal resources to further social
functioning and enhance the quality of life.
•
••
Develop cooperative networks within the institutional
resources systems.
••
Facilitate the responsiveness of the institutional resource
systems to meet help and human service needs.
••
Promote social justice and equality of all people with regard
of full participation and society.
••
Contribute to the development of knowledge for social work
profession through research and evaluation.
• •Encourage exchange of information in those institutional systems in which
both problems and resources opportunities are produced.
• • Enhance communication through an appreciation of diversity and through
ethnically sensitive, non-sexist social work practice.
• • Employ educational strategies for the prevention and resolution of problems.
• • Embrace a world view of human issues and solutions.
• The goal and scope of social work has laid down here is a noble and broad-to
help and individual being included in society and to transform the very society
that creates structures the marginalize individuals from full participation in the
enjoyment of social services and resources of community. Change sought is one
that makes and individual and the community a better place for everyone.
Principles of social work
• The policy, ethics, and human rights committee of the British association of social
workers (2012) has the following principles that apply in general to all the
professionals in the social work profession
1. Upholding and promoting human rights and well-being
2. Respecting the right to self-determination
3. Promoting the right to participation
4. Creating each person as a whole
5. Identifying and developing strengths
Core Values of Social Work
• The core values of social work serve to provide consistency in the fulfillment of the
social welfare delivery and in the general promotion of the well-being and quality of
life of all people. However, special attention or priority is given to those who supper
some forms of exclusions from receiving social services. Therefore , the core values
in the pursuit of social work include compassion, service, social justice, dignity and
worth of the person, importance of human relationship, integrity, and competence
(Du Bois & Miley, 2008; Segal, Gerdes & Steiner,2005).
1.Compassion
2.Service
4.Social justice
5.Dignity
worth
of
person
can be considered as an important values for all humankind but in social work, it
occupies a special impetus to the functioning of the profession. It is the basis for
someone to go out and become a voice to the voiceless and a friend to the people who
need it most.
as a value, direct social workers to go beyond performing a service for a pay and allow
them to be generous with their time. Their work borders on charity and professional
service. Without a special interest in pure service, much of the social work could not
be properly accomplished.
as a value for social workers, is a basis of their understanding of the need to ensure
that everyone get serviced and that everyone get a share of what the community
possesses in material and non-material assests.
and Is a value that provides the determination and drive for social workers to seek the
the marginalized in all forms without much regard as to whether such problem is selfinflicted or socially imposed. At the heart of social work is the belief that all human
have dignity and worth regardless their acts and status in life.
5.Importance of human
relationships
6.Integrity
7.Competence
as a value, makes it possible for soc workers do their job as most
human situation they seek to address require collaborating with
so many others professionals and individuals with a stake the
issue. It is about relationships. After all, it is in the context of
relationship is the context of social marginalization and
inclusion.
is necessary in all human endeavors. In social work, nothing can
be accomplished without integrity. A social worker will have
difficulties to be accepted by the people to receive services and
by those he/she needs to collaborate with facilitate problem
solving and empowerment of an individual or a group.
is a very important value for social work because it separates
social care giving from social work professional practice.
Through special training, a social worker becomes separated
from all common sense, culture and religious-based care.