Importance Of Values In Social Work

Iruonagbe, Chiazor, & Ajayi (2013) beautifully described the sentiments of my heart regarding family making mention it is not only the oldest social institution, but indeed the most important. The responsibilities of families are great ranging from guidance, to support, and more importantly it gives the individual a sense of belonging and commitment. My personal value as a social worker is family is a bond that is not to be broken. When one of us is made weak, the other steps in and pick up the pieces. We are guided by love respect and sacrifice. I come from a strong background of caregivers. I have watched my mother care for her elderly mother until she took her last breath, or family unable to care for their child and most assuredly another member will raise that child. In like manner of Mrs. Vishnick being a widow myself I bore the responsibility of my children and applaud her for doing the same. I understand she is 87 years of age, and her adult daughter has a mental disability, still I am empathic to her situation. In my culture, it is expected other members will step in as no one is a throw away. Mrs. Vishnick should not have to carry the burden alone. Family must be able to depend on each other, as we are one another’s protective factor. God and our faith in him will see us through.

This essay will address the ethical dilemmas faced by social workers and how they address these ethical dilemmas when working with service users and carers. It will be illustrated that codes of practice and codes of ethics are of paramount importance when dealing with these dilemmas as they are ones that guide social workers as to how they should try and solve these dilemmas.

The National Association of Social Work (NASW) has identified a set of values that all social workers must consider during the course of their work (NASW, 2008). Social work values are broadly covered when you define social work as being a profession of aiding those in need and addressing oppression. Helping those in need directly relates to the value of supporting the needs of others. The definition also addresses the importance of bringing awareness to oppression. This relates to the values of addressing injustice, individuality and promoting harmony. On a broader perspective, all social workers are encouraged to continually pursue knowledge in their area and maintain ethical practices. Values have the purpose of ensuring that helpers always strive for what is best for the client. Manning (1997) points out that “the power to intervene in people’s lives carries

Social work is a profession which has the objective to improve the quality of life of other individuals. The NASW code of ethics is used as a guideline for social workers and the interaction they have with their clients. In addition, within the code of ethics, there are six values, which include service, social justice, dignity and worth of a person, importance of human relationships, integrity, and competence. Therefore, going into the social work field it is important to understand that your

Shared values are essential in the creating a successful relationship between the client and social worker. Social workers operate within society, not only to assist the individual but to create a more cohesive society. Values and ethics permeate the whole of social work practice and the society within which it practices (Shardlow 1989). Values are afforded a high position within social work, this is highlighted in: “Social work is a professional activity. Implicit in its practice are ethical principles which prescribe the professional responsibility of the social worker” (British Association of Social Workers (BASW) Code of Ethics). However, there is a danger that any list of values will become something which is quoted

Explain how you became interested in social work and why you chose social work as a major.

A career in Social Work requires conviction to personal values that reflect and uphold the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) Code of Ethics. Professional ethics are the foundation of social work, as the trade has an innate obligation to endorse ethical principles and basic values to advocate for the wellness of others. The core values adopted by all social workers, as distinguished by NASW, are service, social justice, dignity and worth of the person, importance of human relationships, integrity, and competence. As a Clinical Social Worker, I will honor the NASW Code of Ethics in addition to my personal values of respect, self determination, responsibility, motivation, and wisdom. My personal values complement the NASW Code of Ethics and will resonate in my work as a social worker.

As a social work undergraduate, we have several queries regarding why it is so important to follow the NASW code of Ethics and values that relate to human diversity, with regard for the worth and dignity of all persons, as applied to a specific case where we are delivering social work. It is very essential to recognize the five core values of social work, service, social justice, dignity and worth of the person, importance of human relationships, and integrity and competence on our occupation of social work. Today, we have chosen two areas and situations of how we are going to deal with our biases and our challenges while working as social workers, by employing the NASW code of Ethics and values that relate to human diversity, with regard for the worth and dignity of all persons.

The mission of social work is to empower and enhance the quality of life by helping all people to meet the basic human needs, especially with those who are vulnerable, oppressed, and living in poverty. The mission of social work is deep rooted in a set of core values that have acted as the foundation for social work. The core social work values are service, social justice, dignity and worth of the person, importance of human relationships, integrity, and competence (NASW Code of Ethics). As social workers, we must apply the core values in our everyday profession and practice. The NASW Code of Ethics provides clear understanding of principles and values social workers should hold and exemplify. Our primary goal as social workers is to help those

Social Work is a career defined as “work carried out by trained personal with the aim of alleviating the conditions of those in need of help or welfare”. Social work varies in several fields, social workers work as part of multi-disciplinary teams with child welfare organizations, adoption and foster care agencies, hospitals, schools, prisons, mental health institutions, and more. Social work may leave the impression that it’s an easy field because it is assumed that all social workers do is serve others and manage paperwork but that is only a small chunk of the job. Social workers must deal with the ethical and emotional aspect of helping others. As a social worker, it is critical to comply with the National Association of Social Workers

The National Association of Social Workers (NASW) has written a code of ethics that serves many purposes. The main purpose is to identify the core ethics and values that provide the foundation for the profession. It details six basic principles for social workers to follow: service, social justice, dignity and worth, human relationships, integrity, and competence (National Association of Social Workers, 1999). The code acts as an ethical guide for students, and those professionals just

The commitment to act ethically is an essential aspect of social work due to the effect it can have on the quality of the service offered to those who engage with us. Through group discussions in our foundations of social work practice I have become extremely ethically aware and now will always seek to ascertain and respect, as far as possible, each individual’s preferences, wishes and involvement in decision making. From discussions with my fellow classmates I have learnt to strive to respect and uphold the values and principles of the profession by making sure I promote and work towards the code of ethics wherever possible. This in turn enables me act in a reliable, honest and trustworthy manner having worked closely with service users in a professional setting and learned of their good and bad experiences with practitioners through the service user experience we undertook in class. I believe I am now in a good position to apply the social work ethical principles to my professional practice, in a way that seeks to empower my service users and enable me to emulate the best practice. In addition from reading social work journals and staying on top of news regarding the profession more generally I am knowledgeable about the value base of social work as a profession .

The values set by their profession bind social workers by guiding their actions and decision-making in a professional setting. They are to respect the dignity and worth of persons, to strive for social justice, to offer humanity service, and to show integrity, confidentiality, and competence in their professional practice (CASW, 2005, p. 4).

There is a great necessity for the code of ethics in social welfare. The first code of ethics was “adopted in 1960” and was a single page (NASW,1998, para. 8). The last major adoption was in 1996, which was similar to what we see today, in the 2008 edition. In this changing profession it is absolutely necessary for a social worker to have something to reference to when there is an ethical dilemma, because they will transpire from time to time (NASW, 1998).

In the beginning of both codes of ethics and statement of principles it gives a clear detail of what the social worker should be doing to furnish help the community. The same ideas are being shared on each separated document but are formatted in a different way. The preamble list six core values service, social justice, dignity and worth of person, importance of human relationships, integrity, competence. These values are embraced by social workers throughout the profession’s history and are the foundation of social work’s unique purpose and perspective. The preface just listed four bullets on how social workers across the world should reflect on the challenges and dilemmas that face them and make morally informed choices about how to react in each different case.