INTRODUCTION This is a key framework of sociological theory. It depend on symbols and their meaning. The words we use to describe our behaviour and the behaviour of others is very important. To elaborate further and get into detail about this theory, firstly the theory and key terms have to be defined, secondly the major proponents and tenets, thirdly the history of the theory, fourthly the purpose of the theory, fifthly the significance of the theory for social work practice, followed by the epistemology, consistency with social work values and ethics, implication of the theory, position of the theory on the population served by the social worker, strength and weakness, relevance of Intersectionality, critical perspective on contemporary issues …show more content…
It is believed people behave in a way they believe, whether it is objectively true or not. For example in our culture, when a husband passes away a woman is expected to wear black clothes that would symbol their mourning, if a woman does not adhere to that it is believed they bring badluck to their lives. The clothes the woman wears are a symbol and has meaning that had been imposed on …show more content…
This is as to how the social worker and the population interact. It involves the people making sense in their interaction. This theory enables the social worker to study the behaviour of the people he or she is involved with. This is demostrated on her role as a consellor and educator. The community has symbols that creates meaning, also contributing to their identification, because of those symbols a social worker get to be able to work with clients. STRENGTH The relationship between meaning of symbols and a person’s behavior, this theory provides a bond between how an individual behaves is related to the meaning of objects and events. Provides the ability to understand small scale human interaction, it enables the understanding of family interaction. Recognizes that beliefs and opinions of reality are changeable, the belief people have on something can actually change and become part of reality. Considers the social environment in which learning takes place. Sees people as active, creative participants who construct their social world, not as passive, conforming objects of socialization (Blumer
It directs people to acquire knowledge to identify and use the resources. Social work studies individual problems as well as social issues which create hindrance to people in their walks of life. Social workers employ an adequate skills, techniques, strategies, principles, and activities at various system levels, for maintaining a system or for system change efforts. Social work practice makes us understand various forms of therapy and counseling, group work, and community work; policy formulation and analysis; and advocacy and political interventions. Social work practice is aimed at increasing people 's hope, self-esteem and creative potential to confront and challenge oppressive power dynamics and structural sources of injustices, thus merging consistently e the micro-macro, personal-political dimension of intervention.
The obligation of a social worker is to be aware of individual differences as well as cultural and ethnic diversity while treating each client in a kind and courteous manner (Kirst-Ashman, & Hull, 2012, p. 412). In relation to the ethical principle of Clients who Lack Decision Making Capacity (1.14) the obligation of a social worker is to protect the rights of individuals who have been deemed “legally incompetent”. Everything done by the social worker should be in the best interest of that client (Kirst-Ashman, & Hull, 2012, p. 402). The core value of Social Justice is important do address because it ties in to many parts of the book. Social change efforts from the social worker are necessary in order to promote knowledge and cultural competency about the injustices and discrimination of individuals incarcerated in Crownsville hospital as well as the injustices and discrimination of Henrietta and the rest of her family (Kirst-Ashman, & Hull, 2012, p.
Being a social worker is often a challenging, yet rewarding career. Social workers are responsible for helping individuals, families, and groups of people to cope with problems they’re facing to improve their patients’ lives. Social workers are also trained caseworkers in social service agencies who perform several functions which they use different components of the practice framework, the theoretical underpinnings to in order to build helping relationships. After interviewing a caseworker in a specific social agency there were advantages and disadvantages of methods along with challenges encountered in working in that specific agency. With all of this the functions, roles and responsibilities of a caseworker is what helps any agency to uphold
Modern social workers are frequently tasked with certain objectives by their agencies, which leave little room for any work beyond specific treatments and timeframes (Gitterman & Knight, 2016). Although social workers are bound to the set of ethics put forth by the NASW, practitioners are often limited to focusing on the issues of the individual rather than the larger societal issues that may be behind those concerns. Additionally, many social work students end up working in direct practice, rather than macro work. There is a need for social workers to engage at the macro level in order to facilitate community organization and empowerment. Critics suggest this theory may not take into account the unique experiences of each individual and perhaps key characteristics of the individual or group are not taken into consideration (Sadan, 1997).
Firstly, about its integrated features, it combined the strengths of various theories which describe human behavior helpfully. Secondly, the concepts of person-in-environment introduce the behaviors of individuals interconnect with families, organizations, local communities and so on. This feature making this approach a diverse perspective to support general social work practice. Lastly, as Miley, K.K., O'Melia, M.W. & DuBois, B mentioned, “the concepts focuses on how people and their environments fit clearly, rather than forcing workers to place blame on either one for problems that arise”. It is resonated and also kind of similar the basic value in social work, such as acceptance and objectivity in the social work code of
Social workers are there to help meet the basic needs of human, also with the need of helping encourage, mentoring, and empower human struggles in society and poverty. The code is designed for many reasons. It identifies core values in which a social worker mission is based, the code summarize broad ethnic principle such as; challenge injustices, respect the inherent dignity and worth of the person, behave in a trustworthy manner, and help people in need and to address social problems. The code is generally designed to help people with relevant needs to there every day life. These codes help apply better and relationship with the worker to client.
Social work is a profession that dedicates its efforts to ensure the well-being of individuals and the well-being of the society as a whole. The primary mission of social workers is to meet the fundamental needs of every person, especially the ones with special needs such as those who are oppressed, vulnerable and the people living in poverty. As a social worker, I intend to use these core values such as service, integrity, and dignity as guidelines to my work to make a difference in the lives of as many needy people as I can. My main goal will be to offer services to needy people to help them solve and overcome social problems that they encounter each day in their lives.
A) Values and ideology: Describe the values of social work and ideology that you think are most important to your future practice and why you have selected them? The values and ideologies that are most important to my future practice include respect for the inherent dignity and worth of persons, service to humanity and competence in professional practice. First, my value of providing respect for the inherent dignity and worth of persons is important to me and my future practice because it allows me to see the uniqueness in all my clients and subsequent cases. Moreover, it further guides me to allow my clients to be self-determined individuals.
Introduction The social work profession, was based on values that contributed not only to its own professional development and to helping different service user groups, but also to the development of societies in general. Describe how theories and research (EBP process) inform our professional knowledgebase. A clear theoretical perspective guide and influences social work practice in five key areas: observation, description, explanation, prediction and intervention.
Introduction Person-in-Environment Framework In our practice as social workers, we are urged to view and understand human behavior as a set of complex interactions between individuals and their environment. This is known as the person-in-environment framework. This framework encourages us to acknowledge the influence of environment on our lives and provides a beneficial framework to think about and understand human behavior (Hutchinson, 2017). Understanding our work from this perspective allows us to approach our clients from a multi-dimensional stance, taking into consideration how various factors, including but not limited to, race, class, age and gender create individual identity and shapes an individual’s experience in the context of
Erasmus Mundus Master in Social Work with Families and Children 4th edition - 2016-2018 1st Semester Name: Rojika Maharjan 1. Social work has evolved with different “theories in social work”; either concepts derived from other social sciences such as psychology or sociology or “theories for social work” which are the core philosophy of social work practice specified to give a professional purpose and approach to practice (Healy, 2014). a) Regarding the context of children and families, system theory and strength theory are appropriate. i)
In this essay, I will discuss the key premises of symbolic interaction as well as consider the ways in which symbolic interaction promotes the view that people have agency. I will then put forth the argument that conflict theorists make with respect to schools reproducing the culture of the dominant class. In relation, I will mention in what ways this perspective promotes the view that people are constrained by social structure. Finally, I will discuss the dialectical relationship between structure and agency "Symbolic interactionism has come into use as a label for a relatively distinctive approach to the study of human group life and human conduct."
Social workers from small local government have more negative experiences because there are a lot of people who need help, but due to the limited numbers of professional social worker in that said community, in many cases the social workers must also take care of the culture and education sphere of government. But there also exist some local government that hires professionals, because of the many problem that occurred in the local government area at a given time, for more child welfare and youth professional (NYSC). 1.1 Cooperation with Adjoining field and Networking The social workers are relatively astonishing in their profession and this makes social worker unique activity sphere ( Jokinen – 1995) on the other hand, good
Social Work Role When working with the elderly population, a social worker should focus on improving the life quality of the aging population. The role of the social worker is to be professionally involved to ensure the improvement of their welfare and personal development. Moreover, we need to make sure it is archived based on social work fundamental premise; taking into account their aging process and knowing the issues they will confront at this stage such as, working conditions, loneliness, social isolation, the loss of his partner or a family member, the abandoned, and the precarious living condition in the streets. Furthermore, social worker intervention is fundamental leading to innovate actions in order to achieve the highest standards
While studying sociology, every individual will have a distinct perspective and depending on the particular subject, not everyone will have the same viewpoint on the topic at hand. With this, Sociology consists of many different approaches, commonly known as “Sociology theories” These theories are distinctive and diverse, providing a different perspective for understanding different situations in society. With there being a wide variety of approaches such as “Feminist,” “Labelling,” and “Critical,” for instance, the top three major approaches representing Sociology are, “Structural Functionalism,” “Conflict Theory,” and “Symbolic Interactionism.” This paper will be comparing the differences and similarities between “Structural-Functionalism” approach and the “Symbolic Interactionism” approach. To start