Social
work
Wikipedia, the
free encyclopedia
Social work
is both a profession and social science. It involves the application of social theory
and research methods to study and improve the lives of people, groups, and societies.
It incorporates and utilizes other social sciences as a means to improve the human
condition and positively change society's response to chronic problems.
Social work
is a profession committed to the pursuit of social justice, to the enhancement of
the quality of life, and to the development of the full potential of each individual,
group and community in the society. It seeks to simultaneously address and resolve
social issues at every level of society and economic status, but especially among
the poor and sick.
Social workers
are concerned with social problems, their causes, their solutions and their human
impacts. They work with individuals, families, groups, organizations and communities.
Social work
and human history go together. Social work was always in human societies although
it began to be a defined pursuit and profession in the 19th century. This definition
was in response to societal problems that resulted from the Industrial Revolution
and an increased interest in applying scientific theory to various aspects of study.
Eventually an increasing number of educational institutions began to offer social
work programmes.
The settlement
movement's emphasis on advocacy and case work became part of social work practice.
During the 20th century, the profession began to rely more on research and evidenced-based
practice as it attempted to improve its professionalism. Today social workers are
employed in a myriad of pursuits and settings.
Professional
social workers are generally considered those who hold a professional degree in
social work and often also have a license or are professionally registered. Social
workers have organized themselves into local, national, and international professional
bodies to further the aims of the profession.
Contents
History
Main article:
History of social work
Jane Addams
is considered one of the early influences on professional social work in the
United States .
Social work
has its roots in the struggle of society to ameliorate poverty and the resultant
problems. Therefore, social work is intricately linked with the idea of charity
work; but must be understood in broader terms. The concept of charity goes back
to ancient times, and the practice of providing for the poor can be found in all
major world religions.
The practice
and profession of modern social work has a relatively long scientific origin, originating
in the 19th Century.[2] The movement began primarily in Europe and
North America .
Contemporary
professional development
Main article:
Social work knowledge building
Social Work
education begins in a systematised manner in universities, but is also an ongoing
process that occurs though research and in the workplace.
The International
Federation of Social Workers states, of social work today,
"social work
bases its methodology on a systematic body of evidence-based knowledge derived from
research and practice evaluation, including local and indigenous knowledge specific
to its context. It recognizes the complexity of interactions between human beings
and their environment, and the capacity of people both to be affected by and to
alter the multiple influences upon them including bio-psychosocial factors. The
social work profession draws on theories of human development and behaviour and
social systems to analyse complex situations and to facilitate individual, organizational,
social and cultural changes.
The current
state of social work professional development is characterized by two realities.
There is a great deal of traditional social and psychological research (both qualitative
and quantitative) being carried out primarily by university-based researchers and
by researchers based in institutes, foundations, or social service agencies.
Meanwhile,
many social work practitioners continue to look to their own experience for knowledge.
This is a continuation of the debate that has persisted since the outset of the
profession in the first decade of the twentieth century.
One reason
for the gap between information obtained through practice, as opposed to through
research, is that practitioners deal with situations that are unique and idiosyncratic,
while research concentrates on similarities. The combining of these two types of
knowledge is often imperfect.
A hopeful development
for bridging this gap is the compilation, in many practice fields, of collections
of "best practices" which attempt to distill research findings and the experience
of respected practitioners into effective practice techniques.[citation needed]
Although social work has roots in the informatics revolution, an important contemporary
development in the profession is overcoming suspicion of technology and taking advantage
of the potential of information technology to empower clients.
Qualifications
Main article:
Qualifications for professional social work
Professional
social workers are generally considered those who hold a professional degree in
Social Work. Often these practitioners must also obtain a license or be professionally
registered.
In some areas
of the world, social workers start with a Bachelor of Social Work (BA, BSc or BSW)
degree. Some countries offer post-graduate degrees like the master's degree (MA,
MSc or MSW) or the doctoral degree (Ph.D or DSW).
In a number
of countries and jurisdictions, registration or licensure of people working as social
workers is required and there are mandated qualifications.[5] In other places, a
professional association sets academic and experiential requirements for admission
to membership. The success of these professional bodies' efforts is demonstrated
in the fact that these same requirements are recognized by employers as necessary
for employment.[6]
[edit] Professional
associations
There are a
number of professional associations for social workers. The purpose of these associations
is to provide advocacy, ethical guidance, and other forms of support for their members
and social workers in general.
Two of these
are the International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW) and the International
Association of Schools of Social Work (IASSW).
At a national
level there are organizations regulating the profession, as well. Some of these
are the British Association of Social Workers (United
Kingdom), the Australian Association of Social Workers (Australia),
the Professional Social Workers' Association (India),
the Hellenic Association of Social Workers (Greece)
in South East Asia - the Professional Social Care Association of the
Philippines , and so forth.
The largest
membership of professional social workers in the world is the National Association
of Social Workers (NASW)[7] with 150,000 members.
Network of
Professional Social Workers is a fast growing professional network of Social Workers
across the globe. Network of Professional Social Workers aims to connect Social
Workers beyond their local and national associations across the globe. Network of
Professional Social Workers effectively uses Social networking media such as Linkedin,
Face Book etc to network with Social Workers across many countries and initiate
discussions on various issues affecting Social Work Profession. Network of Professional
Social Workers Group list serve, NPSW.
Role of the professional
Main article:
Role of the professional social worker
The main tasks
of professional social workers can include a variety of services such as case management
(linking clients with agencies and programs that will meet their psychosocial needs),
medical social work, counseling (psychotherapy), human services management, social
welfare policy analysis, policy and practice development, community organizing,
advocacy, teaching (in schools of social work), and social science research.
Professional
social workers work in a variety of mainly public settings, including: grassroots
advocacy organizations, hospitals, hospices, community health agencies, schools,
international organizations, employee assistance, philanthropy, and even the military.
Some social workers work as psychotherapists, counselors, psychiatric social workers,
community organizers or mental health practitioners.
Types of professional
intervention
There are three
general categories or levels of intervention. The first is "Macro" social work which
involves society or communities as a whole. This type of social work practice would
include policy forming and advocacy on a national or international scale.
The second
level of intervention is described as "Mezzo" social work practice. This level would
involve work with agencies, small organizations, and other small groups. This practice
would include policy making within a social work agency or developing programs for
a particular neighborhood.
The final level
is the "Micro" level that involves service to individuals and families.
There are a wide variety
of activities that can be considered social work and professional social workers
are employed in many different types of environments. The following list details
some of the main fields of social work.
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