The Impact Of Social Worker On Contemporary Society

The role of the Social worker is varied as it involves the facilitation of change and empowerment of the individual through social, cultural and environmental influences. Between 1910 and 1970, the role of the social worker was significant due to the impact of the Stolen Generation on Australian society. The Stolen Generation was a dark period in the Australian history where many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children were often taken without consent from their homes and families by the government, police and welfare authorities. The children were taken from their homes in order to try to ‘"civilize" them by assimilation into white society’ (McCarthy 2000). The impacts of this period often resulted in severe psychological consequences for the children, the loss of identity, social isolation, depression, alcohol abuse and an increased level of violence. The role of the Social Worker was significant during this period as they were often involved with removing children from their homes and were also required to participate in the reconciliation process to improve the relationships between Indigenous peoples and the wider Australian community. One of the lasting effects of this practice is the distrust of indigenous people towards the social welfare profession.

This essay will focus on how contemporary social workers work to balance the competing demand of care and control. It will start by outlining the nature of the contemporary social work and what it is like and how it works within society. The discussion will then move on to look at and discuss the key professional values of social work practitioners and analyse its relationship to their own personal values, this will also bring into account how these values and views influenced the relationship a social worker can have with both service users and other agencies. Lastly it will explore the range of challenges and dilemmas that are faced by social work practitioners in everyday practice when it comes to trying to balance the demand of care and control and how they work to overcome these problems in order to ensure an effective and fair service to all who avail of it.

The journey towards the attainment of the Bachelor of the social work degree has been an enlightening and educational experience, as the individual is exposed to the realities of many social and political issues in the society. As a student, I ventured into the degree, with minimal insight as to how the degree can influence and shape the way I perceive the social world, and the way I relate these matters to myself. However, throughout my endeavour, which encompasses years of theoretical studies, and two intensive placements at two drastically different organisations, I believe I have accumulated the bare minimal knowledge to possess a solid foundation about the unfairness and inequality that people in disadvantaged conditions face. Social workers are predominantly found in welfare organisations which Howe (as cited in Limber, 2015) suggested largely influences the practice, direction and values of the social worker, and impacts on their ability to act autonomously (Lymbery, 2015). During my placements, there was a dominant theme that frequently stood out and enticed my attention. This was the accepted practice of focusing on the individual’s problem, as opposed to the social problems that existed and the lack of acknowledgement about the social restrictions of the human agency that limited self-determination. The realization that organisations were managed this way was important in ensuring that I made a proactive effort to understand and untangle the reasons behind such

Alot of people do not notice the mammoth problem drug abuse is in the United States, and how fast it is increasing in our society. Billions of dollars are spent each year to combat drug treatment but more are spent on buying and selling narcotics. Many people think they

Modern social workers participate actively in helping people to obtain rights, services, benefits and opportunities that they might not otherwise obtain through micro policy advocacy, ?often prioritize the needs of vulnerable populations when they engage in advocacy? (Jansson, 2016, p. 21). Through community immersion, the social worker gains an understanding of the community attributes and desiderata, requiring them to utilize their experience and expertise to advocate policies that will satisfy the client?s needs (NASW, n.d.). Furthermore, when social workers immerse themselves in the community, it becomes an act of care and concern to serve the community. Compelling them to implement new changes, depict workable intervention schemes, and generate attainable treatment plans to satisfy the needs of the individuals, families and community.

As social workers, we cannot influence positive policy development if we do not understand it. Therefore, to be effective and meet ethics we must be competent. We must understand the social policies in place and how they have been developed and implemented. We must understand who they help and who they hinder. Furthermore, as social workers, we are often the professionals who identify when and where policies are not working or, when they are causing more harm then good. When these flaws are noted we must advocate by speaking up. We cannot remain idle and continue our work following a policy which is oppressive to others. However, most importantly as Baines (2011) explores, we must recognize that singularly we cannot create change to social, economic, or political problems alone. Instead, we must build partnerships, allies and teams as strength and change comes in

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.

The changes that Social Workers have to face today is somewhat similar to that of Industrial Revolution because we are still dealing with economic change. We no longer need to look at the short term and temporary availability of the social welfare system, but as well as the long term. In which has been going unnoticed because our focus is no longer on every issue that needs assistant but only on ones that we feel that are important to address unlike the Industrial Revolution when every problem was being addressed and being handled. Because most problems that individuals experience stem from their environment, which we do not seem to care much of anymore because most Americans would rather stay in poverty than to actually go out and find jobs. This wasn’t common in the Industrial Revolution time because Americans were willing to work because they knew it was the only way they could provide for their family. But in today’s world most Americans would rather get government assistance than to actually provide for their family themselves and most of them now abuse it unlike then when you were grateful for being able to get the assistance. Social Workers are still providing the services but rules have developed since

A system that has been used by many yet left misunderstood, with continuous downgrade through the mass media. Social work has had its roots with an idea or attempt to try and look in look into tackling problems within different communities like inequality and poverty throughout the UK. The Social welfare services were introduced to us after the being introduced to industrialisation and urbanisation. “The main purpose of early social work was to focus on primarily poverty and other concerns within that same line. In contemporary social work today social workers find themselves focusing on other raised problems like mental health, child protection, racism, care for adults, refugees, people living with both physical and mental disabilities and so much more. Often given caseloads to work through”(Truell, 2014). Social workers are assigned with different cases from referrals or through their mangers. When it comes to

Margarita Perez received a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from York College, The City University of New York. She then went on to receive her Master’s of Social Work degree at San Francisco State University, with a double emphasis on Individuals, Families and Groups, as well as, Child Welfare. She began her social work career as a Mental Health Treatment Specialist at Family Paths, a child abuse prevention and treatment agency. There she gained experience dealing with infant mental health, lack of attachment and the effect of trauma on early childhood. She now works as a Family Treatment Rehabilitation Case Planner at Forestdale Inc, a child welfare agency dedicated to ensuring the safety of all children.

Finding a job in this field should be relatively easy. According to the Bureau of Labor statistics, the employment of social workers is projected to grow around 12 percent from 2014- 2024. This growth is much faster than most other occupations. The increased demand for social services and health care will lead to the employment growth.

In the beginning of the semester we were given the task to complete 25 or more hours of community service. This task was given to be completed for my Social Work Ethics class. We were to volunteer at an organization that was associated with social work and would give us an experience. I was given the opportunity to work/volunteer along with Trio, a student support service at Fort Valley State University.

Setting a boundary is an important core value in social work. Social workers are generally compassionate people, but they also need to recognize that they have to set limits. They need to accept that they cannot be available to serve everyone’s needs and wants. This was the case when I worked as an adjunct instructor and provided individual tutoring to a student who happened to be related to some of my family. For new social workers, this kind of reflection may be helpful as they define their roles professionally, as well as personally. During my experience with a student, who was connected to my family, I learned how important it was to set boundaries.

Setting boundaries is an important core value in the field of social work. According to the Social Work Code of Ethics, “Social workers should provide and represent themselves as competent only within the boundaries of their education, training, license, certification, consultation received, supervised experience, or other relevant professional experience” (Code of Ethics of the NASW). Professional social workers are generally compassionate people, but they also need to recognize the value of setting limits. This was the case when I worked as an adjunct instructor, which included providing individual tutoring. My relationship with Sara Towns (name changed), a student and distant cousin, evoked the possible clouding of boundaries. For new social workers, this kind of reflection may be helpful as they define their roles. Through a series of professional and personal experiences with Sara, I learned that boundaries must be maintained to foster a positive relationship and prevent potential conflicts.

Underlying the political actions of social workers is their drive to right some wrong, to bring some improvements to policy, or to change some practice that harms the well-being of people they represent. One important dimension of social workers’ political activity is usually referred to as the ‘policy dimension’ of social work practice where social workers implement, analyse, comment on, influence, and generally work towards making policies fair and significant. This is important because policy is the vehicle through which the voiceless are given access to services and resources, as well as to protection from harm. Thus social workers’ pursuit of social justice, by its very nature, gives their work a political dimension. They are lobbyists, advocates and activists. Thus one way in which social workers engage in social development is through their political activities intended at securing social justice and human rights for their clients and