Social Work And Social Welfare: An Analysis

The general deterrence concept was remarkable because punishment decreased crime. Ever since the number of police were put on the street, the delinquency rate has undergone a two-decade decline. Now, the problem occurs when certain youths continue to do crime after serving punishment. In some instances, experiencing punishment may actually increase the likelihood that offenders may commit new crimes. Especially for juveniles that live in troubled neighborhoods punishment will not lead to any drop on the crime rate. They care about committing crimes that are profitable and beneficial to them rather than worrying about getting

Social workers’ commitment to social justice means they want everyone to have a fair and equal opportunity to an assessment. In line with fairness, social workers should tell carers about their right to refuse an assessment as their permission, and not the person receiving care, is needed before the carer’s assessment can commence. In addition, social workers, bound by legislation regarding confidentiality and information sharing, must reserve the carer’s right to privacy whilst uphold their right to a fair hearing. This is achieved by only disclosing carer’s personal details to 3rd parties with consent, unless a safeguarding concern arises.

Social workers form relationships with people and assist them to live more successfully within their local communities by helping them find solutions to their problems. Social work involves engaging not only with clients themselves but their families and friends as well as working closely with other organisations including the police, local authority departments, schools and the probation service.

Is long-term incarceration working to resolve issues of criminal conduct? When considering the population of people incarcerated is rising at an alarming rate and crime statistics not dropping by much, it is hard to tell if incarceration is working in these modern times. The United States prison population is the largest in the world. In fact, the United States has 2.3 million persons in institutions which is more than the rest of the world combined (Wagner p. 2). Crime overall as decreased in the last 30 years with the introduction of rehabilitation programs but these programs are not universal. While serious crimes require serious punishment, most people that are incarcerated should be

(Zhang, Y., Zhang, L., Vaughn, M. (2009). Determinate prison sentences or mandatory-minimum sentencing seems like it would discourage criminals from committing crimes because one would think that with harsher sentences would be likely to deter criminals from breaking the law. In the 1970s, indeterminate sentencing was used frequently, in most states judges and parole boards used wide discretion in sentencing offenders. (Zhang, Y., Zhang, L., Vaughn, M. (2009). As it stands, the number of prisoners in the US in 2017 is ten times as much when compared to pre -1971, while the overall population rates have increased only by a third. Half of these prisoners (51%) are jailed for non-violent offenses (World Prison Brief, 2015). The existing number of prisons is not enough to hold and adequately maintain its numerous populations. Many of them are

Incarceration should be the last resort of an advanced society, not the go-to sanction for most offenders. However, if prison is the outcome, then society and the individual committed should have the expectation that they will be improved upon release. Reducing recidivism is a complex problem that begins with sentencing strategies that ensure the least probability of return to the criminal justice system. Many countries have less crime and less recidivism, America could use the successful approaches from countries with more success in reducing crime and offender outcomes. Perhaps the solution

The Department of Justice breaks crime reductions down into three basic principles: punishment, corrections, and deterrents. Citizens in the United States tend to think of prison inmates as being segregated from society. There are walls with barb wire, and guards in towers with firearms in between inmates and civilization. Millions of prisoners are released each year, so today 's prisoners could be tomorrow 's neighbors so wouldn’t you agree that corrections should be the focus of the America 's prison system. Unfortunately, rehabilitation or corrections are not the focus and the United States focuses primarily on punishment.

Currently as a nation we use severity as our biggest form of deterrence; our threat of imprisonment has grown dramatically over time. In 1985 the average release time for a conviction of robbery was 32 months and in 2002 it jumped to a minimum of 53 months (Incarceration and Crime). We focus heavily on severity and longer incarceration rates; the idea is that a 10% increase in incarceration would lead to a 1.6%-5.5% decrease in crime (Lieka 2006) but this is not true. Prison rates have increased tenfold since 1970 and yet the crime rates have not dropped near those percents.The leading argument against increase in incarceration uses other states as examples of how ineffective it is; for example Florida heavily focuses on imprisonment to reduce crime with no effect (Incarceration and Crime). This idea would be great and a good mode of deterrence if those who go to prison actually learn their lessons and mend their future ways. Also if the unwanted effects of prison were at least tolerable this might deter crime but sadly even after experiment and evidence it is not a well functioning theory. The cost of funding our mass incarceration does balance out the decrease in overall crime. Besides when we have a nation who is majority hard on crimes compared to other crimes we end up severely punishing people who probably would respond better to rehabilitation than jail.

As a social worker, we are essentially given the opportunity to utilize our past and personal experiences, educational background, and diverse relationships to make a difference in countless people’s lives. Whether we choose to dedicate ourselves to practicing micro or macro social work, we can influence the outcomes of social policies, assist clients with obtaining basic necessities, or change a person’s thought processes by applying psychosocial theories as necessary. However, we are obligated to pay close attention to the ways in which we interact with our assigned clients, administer and assess outcomes of therapeutic interventions, and do what we think will ultimately benefit our client’s well-being. Considering that a Master’s in Social Work is a professional position, general practitioner’s guidelines must be followed; hence the purpose of the NASW Code of Ethics, the CSWE Educational Policy and Standards, and precise HIPAA adherence.

PER REPORTER: Kathy said one of her students by the name of (Shadavious) went to visit her father (David Lee) this weekend when she was told some disturbing information. According to Shandavious, there are four children living in the home with David Lee and one of them by the name of Staciera told her that David Lee makes her do things they should not be doing. Shandavious said Staciera told her David Lee threatened to taker her phone and tell her mother on her if she did not do what he told her to do. She also told her that at night David Lee comes and gets in the bed with her and makes her do unknown things to him. Shandavious said one of the other children (Kishona) living in the home told her that she sleeps on the top bump bed above Staciera,

For years, there has been an on going debate as to whether punishment deters crime. One side argues that the “hard on crime” ideology acts as a deterrent, discouraging future criminal behavior, whereas, on the other hand, some believe that a correctional system that strictly focuses on punishing a criminal does not succeed in changing the behavior, but instead leads directly to more problematic behaviors; thus, ruining the offender’s chances of becoming a productive citizen within society. According to Bockern, Kinsley and Woodward (2000) “In the decade between 1986 and 1996, the U.S. prison population more than doubled, from 774,208 to 1,630,940…no other industrial nation has incarcerated such a large percentage of its population, yet all other industrial nations have lower crime rates” (Bockern, Kinsley & Woodward, 2000, para. 7). In a more recent report, The Bureau of Justice Statistics reported that a study tracking 404,638 offenders, from 30 different states, were released in 2005 and found that 67.8 percent of them were re-arrested within three years of their release date and, “76.6 percent were re-arrested within five years of release” (Durose, Cooper & Snyder, 2014, p. 1). The role prisons play in reducing recidivism should be a major concern today. Recidivism rates have roughly stayed the

Social workers serve as case managers, therapists, counselors and researchers. Social workers prepare and provide court ordered evaluations of issues that are major concerns in the Juvenile Justice System. Social workers assist with the creation of programs and following through with the usage of federal, state and local; laws, rules and regulations. In order to continue with the improvement of the social welfare of the juveniles, social workers struggle with pass laws that serves as barriers and create shortages that resist change. Due to the fact that juveniles are isolated from family and the community, the juveniles receive much more control rather than treatment.

Throughout the semester, I learned valuable lessons and skills that would aid me in becoming a successful social worker. In addition, working on the public issue project provided me with the opportunity to put what I learned into action. Fortunately, I had the opportunity to put what I learned in the classroom to use while working in the community with a group of women, as a team, to accomplish a set goal. Over the last several years, through observation, I saw the homeless population grow in the downtown Atlanta area and sometimes wondered what I could do to help aid in their well-being, especially in the winter months when they were living on the streets with little clothing. I recognized the problem, assessed the issue and came up with a goal. The public issue project gave me the opportunity to not just think about helping the homeless stay warm., but to do something to contribute keeping them warm. I learned the importance of setting a plan, putting it into action to reach a goal. Therefore, I choose to do a coat and blanket drive, as my public issue project, for those living on the streets of Atlanta, Georgia during the winter months.

This is a topic social workers should educate themselves on because, as future social workers we want to fight for equal social justice and equal opportunities. Social workers who specialize in the LGBT studies will find ways to help support these individuals. Social workers can fight for social change and advocate for legislation that will give the LGBT community counseling services and work for equal rights. Social workers can work to better the well being of transgender young and middle adulthood individuals. Whether it be to launch laws that give equal rights in the workplace or assist in the unique set of challenges this group faces social workers can do educate themselves on the topic and advocate for a transgender

Social Work is a field of interest to me because of the positive effort it contributes to society. Within the social work profession individuals are striving to improve the welfare of those in need of assistance. Social Workers assist a variety of individuals; from children, young adolescents, older adults, mentally ill, substance abuse individuals, and many other minorities; as in LGBT members, veterans, homeless people, and low socioeconomic status individuals. The broad mix population fascinates me because within this field one will always be able to work in a flexible environment. Social Work is used in multiple settings as in hospitals, nursing skilled homes, mental health and substance abuse clinics, schools, correctional facilities, community centers, child welfare agencies, employee assistance programs, and private practices.