BUSSW Foundation and Advanced Practice Behaviors
2.1.1 Identify as a professional social worker and conduct oneself accordingly.
Foundation:
 advocate for client access to the services of social work;
 practice personal reflection and self-correction to assure continual professional
development;
 attend to professional roles and boundaries;
 demonstrate professional demeanor in behavior, appearance, and communication;
 engage in career-long learning; and
 use supervision and consultation.
Advanced Clinical Practice:
 Demonstrates self-reflection through understanding and application of
transference/countertransference; demonstrates ability to monitor one’s
responses to clients’ presentation based on clinical assessment of the client.

Functions within clearly-defined professional roles and boundaries based on the
needs of the client, the agency context, the type of service provided, and
differential use of self.
Advanced Macro Practice:
 Demonstrates self-reflection related to one’s strengths, motivation, limitations,
and work-style.

Functions in professional roles based on the needs of the consumers or
constituencies, the organization and community, the type of services provided,
clear role definition, and differential use of self.
2.1.2 Apply social work ethical principles to guide professional practice.
Foundation:
 recognize and manage personal values in a way that allows professional values to
guide practice;
 make ethical decisions by applying standards of the National Association of Social
Workers Code of Ethics and, as applicable, of the International Federation of Social
Workers/International Association of Schools of Social Work Ethics in Social
Work, Statement of Principles;
 tolerate ambiguity in resolving ethical conflicts; and
 apply strategies of ethical reasoning to arrive at principled decisions.
Advanced Clinical Practice:
 Integrates personal with professional values to appropriately guide clinical
practice.

Takes action to resolve complex ethical conflicts in clinical practice while
acknowledging ambiguity

Applies strategies of ethical reasoning related to clinical practice to arrive at
principled decisions using consultation properly.

develop professional relationships that recognize the power differences between
clients and workers and take steps to minimize harms related to the misuse of
power.
Advanced Macro Practice:
 Integrates personal with professional values to appropriately guide macro
practice.

Takes action to resolve complex ethical conflicts in macro practice while
acknowledging ambiguity

Applies strategies of ethical reasoning related to macro practice to arrive at
principled decisions using consultation properly.
2.1.3 Apply critical thinking to inform and communicate professional judgments.
Foundation:
 distinguish, appraise, and integrate multiple sources of knowledge, including
research-based knowledge, and practice wisdom;
 analyze models of assessment, prevention, intervention, and evaluation; and
 demonstrate effective oral and written communication in working with individuals,
families, groups, organizations, communities, and colleagues.
Advanced Clinical Practice:
 Identifies, evaluates and integrates multiple sources of knowledge (e.g., clinical
theory, evidence based practices and practice wisdom)
Advanced Macro Practice:
 Identifies, evaluates and integrates multiple sources of knowledge (e.g. macro
theories & evidence-based research & practice).
2.1.4 Engage diversity and difference in practice.
Foundation:
 recognize the extent to which a culture’s structures and values may oppress,
marginalize, alienate, or create or enhance privilege and power;
 gain sufficient self-awareness to eliminate the influence of personal biases and
values in working with diverse groups;
 recognize and communicate their understanding of the importance of difference in
shaping life experiences; and
 view themselves as learners and engage those with whom they work as informants.
Advanced Clinical Practice:
 Develops relationships based on understanding how culture shapes life
experiences and impacts on clinical work.
Advanced Macro Practice:
 Recognizes how culture may oppress, marginalize, or create privilege & power
dynamics which are replicated in services & policies in institutions &
communities.

Builds professional relationships with diverse consumers, constituents,
communities & organizations to provide culturally competent services &
programs.
2.1.5 Advance human rights and social and economic justice.
Foundation:
 understand the forms and mechanisms of oppression and discrimination;
 advocate for human rights and social and economic justice; and
 engage in practices that advance social and economic justice.
Advanced Clinical Practice:
 Engages in clinical practice that advances human rights and social and economic
justice
Advanced Macro Practice:
 Engages with and supports the empowerment of community members who have
the least power and are often the most vulnerable in terms of access to community
resources, opportunities and decision-making forums.

Advocates for inclusive strategies that help all community members reach their
full potential.

Diminishes structural and cultural barriers that discriminate against people.
2.1.6 Engage in research-informed practice and practice-informed research.
Foundation:
 use practice experience to inform scientific inquiry and
 use research evidence to inform practice.
Advanced Clinical Practice:
 Uses an evidence-based process to identify effective clinical interventions for
particular populations, problems and settings
Advanced Macro Practice:
 Utilizes qualitative and quantitative research to understand the nature of
communities and organizations and the best practices to improve well-being in
these macro systems.
2.1.7 Apply knowledge of human behavior and the social environment.
Foundation:
 utilize conceptual frameworks to guide the processes of assessment, intervention,
and evaluation; and
 critique and apply knowledge to understand person and environment.
Advanced Clinical Practice:
 Critiques and applies HBSE theories (strengths, ecological, cognitive, behavioral,
interpersonal, family systems, life-span development, psychodynamic) to guide
clinical prevention, assessment, intervention and evaluation.
Advanced Macro Practice:
 Apply HBSE theories including systems, organizational, empowerment, and
social capital to guide assessment, intervention, and evaluation.
2.1.8 Engage in policy practice to advance social and economic well-being and to deliver
effective social work services.
Foundation:
 analyze, formulate, and advocate for policies that advance social well-being; and
 collaborate with colleagues and clients for effective policy action.
Advanced Clinical Practice:
 Analyzes, formulates and advocates for policies (e.g., agency, program,
legislative) that advance social well-being for individuals and families.

Collaborates with colleagues and clients for effective policy action that promotes
social and economic justice.
Advanced Macro Practice:
 Actively engages in the policy arena on behalf of community and organizational
interests, working in collaborative efforts to formulate policies that improve the
effectiveness of social services and the wellbeing of people, especially for the most
vulnerable.
2.1.9 Respond to contexts that shape practice.
Foundation:
 continuously discover, appraise, and attend to changing locales, populations,
scientific and technological developments, and emerging societal trends to provide
relevant services; and

provide leadership in promoting sustainable changes in service delivery and
practice to improve the quality of social services.
Advanced Clinical Practice:
 Provides relevant services based on changes within communities and populations,
scientific and technological developments, and emerging social trends.

Provides leadership to promote changes in service delivery.
Advanced Macro Practice:

Provides relevant services based on changes within communities and populations,
scientific and technological developments, and emerging social trends.

Provides leadership (consistent with the student’s role) to promote changes in
service delivery.
2.1.10(a)–(d) Engage, assess, intervene, and evaluate with individuals, families, groups,
organizations, and communities.
Foundation:
a. Engagement
 substantively and affectively prepare for action with individuals, families, groups,
organizations, and communities;
 use empathy and other interpersonal skills; and
 develop a mutually agreed-on focus of work and desired outcomes.
b. Assessment
 collect, organize, and interpret client data;
 assess client strengths and limitations;
 develop mutually agreed-on intervention goals and objectives; and
 select appropriate intervention strategies.
c. Intervention
 initiate actions to achieve organizational goals;
 implement prevention interventions that enhance client capacities;
 help clients resolve problems;
 negotiate, mediate, and advocate for clients; and
 facilitate transitions and endings.
d. Evaluation

critically analyze, monitor, and evaluate interventions.
Advanced Clinical Practice:
(a) Engagement
 Encourages clients to be equal partners in the establishment of treatment goals
and methods.
(b) Assessment
 Gathers and organizes appropriate information including precipitants to the
presenting problem, interpersonal dynamics and historically relevant events.
 When appropriate, utilizes formulation to aid in diagnosis
 Collaborates with client to define goals within the context of the agency’s
services.
(c ) Intervention\
 Initiates and implements treatment plans and contracts with the client to meet
goals, based on appropriate theory and research evidence.

Utilizes clinical frameworks and treatment protocols appropriately.
(d) Evaluation
 Evaluate client progress and intervention effectiveness (e.g., client selfassessment and satisfaction, collateral reports, behavioral outcome measures).
Advanced Macro Practice:
(a) Engagement

Develop partnerships with and among consumers, constituents, organizations
and communities that are based on participation, empowerment, collaboration,
and indigenous leadership.

Utilize a range of skills that facilitate engagement (e.g. outreach and
recruitment, collaboration, coalition building).
(b)

Assessment
Engages formal & informal (nontraditional) sectors of the community in the
assessment process.
(c) Intervention

Plans with communities & organizations to apply interventions through a variety
of models appropriate to local contexts.
(d) Evaluation

Utilizes and demonstrates skill in a variety of process and output methods that
stress participatory principles