Intro to Social Work

• Social Work encompasses helping individuals restore capacity for social functioning
• Social Work also creating favorable societal conditions

Social Work Organizations

• National Association of Social Workers (NASW)
• Council on Social Work Education (CSWE), which aims to promote human and community well-being

Characteristics of the Social Work Profession

• Social work depends upon expertise
• Social work has a professional body of knowledge and evidence-based practice
• Social work operates under a code of ethics
• The code of ethics provides core values and practice competencies
• University education can provide a PHD, BSW, or MSW
• Specializations include mental health, children and youth or policy practice
• Individuals have to be licensed before credentials for a final project

History of Social Work (1850s-1950s)

• In the mid 1800s, the first benevolent societies and self-help organizations were founded
• Settlement Houses formed in the 1880s
• Charity Organization Society (COS) formalized the social work profession in the 1880s
• The first schools of social work were founded from 1904-1908
• World War 1 increased the need for social workers, from years 1914-1918
• The Great Depression shifted welfare from private charities to the federal government from 1929-1939
• World War 2 leads to a special classification for military social work from 1939-1945
• CSWE and NASW were founded in the 1950s

History of Social Work (1960s to Today)

• The Civil Rights Movement occurred from 1954-1968
• The "War on Poverty" began in 1964
• The federal government pulled back on social reforms in the 1970s
• There was reduced federal spending and new challenges in the 1980s
• Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) passed in 1996
• Social workers make up the largest percentage of mental health and family services fields in the 2000s

Jane Addams

• Founded the social work field
• In the 1800s, industrialization and immigration lead to the growth of cities and unmet social needs
• Addams won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1931, she was the first American woman to win this prize
• Addams founded Hull House
• Helped pass child labor laws in 1916

Hull House

• Members of the Progressive Movement of the 1800s spoke out about social injustices of the Industrial Revolution
• This formed part of the settlement house movement
• Settlement houses focused on the specific needs of the local neighborhood
• Hull House was located in an immigrant neighborhood, where many people lived in poverty

Mary Richmond

• Charity Organization Societies (COS) were the first to develop a structured social work profession
• Richmond began working for COS in 1889
• She became the first woman general secretary of the COS
• Believed professionalization would lead to a better understanding of social problems (needs assessment) as well as better treatment
• Richmond published Social Diagnosis in 1917
• Care between social work and client requires a partnership

The Great Depression (1929-1940)

• Social welfare shifted from being the responsibility of private charities to the federal government
• President Franklin Roosevelt signed laws to create New Deal programs
• The programs created jobs and attended to Americans' social welfare needs through programs such as Social Security
• Prominent social workers who helped implement New Deal include Jane Hoey, Harry Hopkins, Frances Perkins, Molly Dewson, and Aubrey Williams

Social Welfare

• Contains a system, the safety net, and a policy
• Policy has a liberal or conservative framework
• More funding is available for specific liberal or conservative-aligned policies

Conservative Approach to Social Work

• Focuses on individual responsibility
• Emphasizes personal accountability
• Views poverty as a result of personal failure

Liberal Approach to Social Work

• Advocates for government involvement
• Believes in collective responsibility
• Supports programs and policies aimed at reducing poverty and promoting equality