Introduction to Social Work PDF

SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIAL WORK: FAMILY, GROUP, COMMUNITY AND ORGANIZATIONS MR. IAN JOHN BELGIRA, RSW COURSE CONTENT 01 Introduction to Social Work Definitions, History, Concepts, Terms, etc. 02 Introduction to Social Environment Person-in-Environment, Levels of Assessment & Inte...

SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIAL WORK: FAMILY, GROUP, COMMUNITY AND ORGANIZATIONS MR. IAN JOHN BELGIRA, RSW COURSE CONTENT 01 Introduction to Social Work Definitions, History, Concepts, Terms, etc. 02 Introduction to Social Environment Person-in-Environment, Levels of Assessment & Interventions 03 Theories and Perspectives Different Theories and Concepts, related to Social Environment 04 Families Definitions, Types, Structures, Functions, Process MSU – SW | BELGIRA COURSE CONTENT 05 Groups Definitions, Characters, Structures, Purposes, Process, etc. 06 Communities Definitions, Elements, Patterns, Structures, Models, etc. 07 Organizations Definitions, Classifications, Structures, Theories, etc. 08 Intersectionality Integration of Social Environment and Social Work MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Environment Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT “The social environment is the sum total of social and cultural conditions, circumstances, and human interactions that encompass human beings.” Kirst-Ashman MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Environment Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT “Persons are dependent upon effective interactions with this environment in order to survive and thrive. The social environment includes the actual physical setting that society provides.” MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Environment Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT “The social environment, is the configuration of communities, organizations, and groups within the latter that are products of social, economic, and political forces and social institutions. The following breaks down the definition of the social environment into various facets and explains what each means.” MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Environment Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT “The social environment involves communities, organizations, and groups and how these systems affect people.” MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Environment Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations COMMUNITY  a number of people who have something in common that connects them in some way and that distinguishes them from others.  common feature might be a neighbourhood where people live, an activity people share such as jobs, or other connections like ethnic identification. (Homan, 2004) MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Environment Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations ORGANIZATIONS  are social entities that  are goal directed, and  are designed as deliberately structured and coordinated activity systems, and  are linked to the external environment (Daft, 2004) MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Environment Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations SOCIAL SERVICES  includes the work that social work practitioners and other helping professionals perform in organizations. In essence, social services include the wide range of activities that social workers perform in their goal of helping people solve problems and improve their personal well-being. MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Environment Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations SOCIAL AGENCY  or social services agency, is an organization providing social services that typically employs a range of helping professionals including social workers in addition to office staff, paraprofessionals (persons trained to assist professionals), and sometimes volunteers. (Barker, 2003). MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Environment Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations GROUP  is ‘‘a collection of people, brought together by mutual interests, who are capable of consistent and uniform action.’’ (Barker, 2003)  our concern with groups involves their significance in the context of communities and organizations. Communities and organizations are made up of groups, which, in turn, are composed of individuals. MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Environment Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations SOCIAL FORCES  are values and beliefs held by people in the social environment that are strong enough to influence people’s activities, including how government is structured or restricted. Key words here are ‘‘values’’ and ‘‘beliefs.’’ MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Environment Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations ECONOMIC FORCES  are the resources that are available, how they are distributed, and how they are spent. The key word here is ‘‘resources.’’ MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Environment Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations POLITICAL FORCES  are the current governmental structures, the laws to which people are subject, and the overall distribution of power among the population. Political forces are reflected in laws and public policies. Here the key word is ‘‘government.’’ MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Environment Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations SOCIAL INSTITUTIONS  Social forces converge over time to form social institutions. A social institution is an established and valued practice or means of operation in a society resulting in the development of a formalized system to carry out its purpose. Social institutions establish expectations and requirements for expected behavior, and govern these through policies and laws. MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Environment Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations “Social work is currently experiencing an important period of change in its priorities, organisation and day-to-day practices.” (Parton, 1996) MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Environment Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations “Why do people behave the way they do? Are behaviour and personality caused mainly by a person’s genetic makeup and given nature? Or are they due to the environment and a person’s treatment in that environment?.” Yousef (2001). MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Environment Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations ACTIVITY TIME MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Environment Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations CASE ANALYSIS “THE CASE OF VICTOR.” MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Environment Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations CASE ANALYSIS “Was it ethical for Dr. Itard and the others to remove Victor from the wild against his will?.” MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Environment Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations “Understanding Human Behavior will explore various dimensions of human behavior to enhance your understanding of why people have developed as they have and why they behave the way they do.” MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations “Social work is unique in that it emphasizes a focus that stretches far beyond that of an individual. Assessment in social work addresses all aspects of a client’s situation.” MSU – SW | BELGIRA SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIAL WORK: FAMILY, GROUP, COMMUNITY AND ORGANIZATIONS MR. IAN JOHN BELGIRA, RSW INTRODUCTION to Social Work MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations “Many times it’s not the client’s fault that problems exist. Rather, something outside the client may be instigating the problem.” MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations “The client’s whole family may not be functioning well. There may be difficulties beyond the client’s control in his or her workplace. Existing social service organizations may not be providing what clients need. Resources may be too difficult to obtain, inadequate, or even non-existent. Organizational policies or laws affecting the client may be unfair.” MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations “In order to recognize the significance of foundation knowledge, the purpose and process of social work need to be understood. Social work may be viewed as having three major thrusts.” (Baer & Federico, 1978) MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations 3 MAJOR THRUST  First, social workers can help people solve their problems and cope with their situations.  Second, social workers can work with systems, such as social agencies, organizations, communities, and government bureaucracies, so that people can have better access to the resources and services they need.  Third, social workers can “link people with systems” (Baer & Federico, 1978, p. 68), so that clients themselves have access to resources and opportunities. Much of social work, then, involves social functioning. MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations “People interact with another people, with organizations (such as social service agencies), and with small groups (such as families and colleagues in the workplace). Social work targets not only how individuals behave, but also how these other systems and people affect each other.” MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations ACTIVITY TIME MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations CASE ANALYSIS “THE FAMILY OF FIVE.” MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations CASE ANALYSIS An example is a family of five in which both parents work at low-paying jobs in order to make a marginal living. The father works at a small, non-unionized leather processing plant. The mother works as a waitress at a short order diner. Suddenly, the father is laid off. For a short time the family survives on unemployment compensation. When that runs out, they face a serious financial crisis. Despite a great effort, the father is unable to find another job. In despe ration, the family applies for public assistance. Due to some unidentified error in the lengthy application process, the payments are delayed for two months. MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations CASE ANALYSIS Meanwhile, the family is forced to eat poorly and is unable to pay rent and utility bills. The phone is disconnected, the electricity is turned off, and the landlord threatens to evict them. Reacting to the externally imposed stress, the parents begin to fight verbally and physically. The children complain because they are hungry. This intensifies the parents’ sense of defeat and disillusionment. As a result of stress and frustration, the parents hit the children to keep them quiet. MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations CASE ANALYSIS “What did you observed in the case? If you are the social worker reviewing this case, assess how the family and other systems in the environment have had an impact on each other.” MSU – SW | BELGIRA Introduction to Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations “Social workers today are generalists. A generalist practitioner is one who uses a wide range of knowledge and skills to help people with an extensive array of problems and issues. These include anything from “individualized personal issues” to “very broad problems that affect whole communities.” (Kirst-Ashman & Hull, 2006) MSU – SW | BELGIRA LEVELS OF INTERVENTION in Social Work MSU – SW | BELGIRA Levels of Interventions in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations LEVELS OF INTERVENTION Individual Family Group Organization Community MSU – SW | BELGIRA Levels of Interventions in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations LEVELS OF INTERVENTION Individual Intervening at the individual level involves working one-on-one, either to help a person better adapt to his or her environment or to modify the environment so it better meets the needs of the person. MSU – SW | BELGIRA Levels of Interventions in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations LEVELS OF INTERVENTION Family Intervening at the family level may involve working with whole families or parts of a family, such as a mother and child or a pair of parents. MSU – SW | BELGIRA Levels of Interventions in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations LEVELS OF INTERVENTION Group Intervening at the small group level may involve working with many different types of groups. MSU – SW | BELGIRA Levels of Interventions in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations LEVELS OF INTERVENTION Community Intervening at the community level involves evaluating community needs and planning and coordinating efforts to meet those needs. MSU – SW | BELGIRA Levels of Interventions in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations LEVELS OF INTERVENTION Organization Intervening at the organizational level involves assessing needs within an organization and planning and coordinating efforts to meet those needs. MSU – SW | BELGIRA LEVELS OF ASSESSMENT in Social Work MSU – SW | BELGIRA Levels of Assessments in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations THE THREE LEVELS OF PRACTICE Micro-level Practice At this level, the population served by practitioners includes a variety of client systems, including individuals, couples, and families. MSU – SW | BELGIRA Levels of Assessments in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations THE THREE LEVELS OF PRACTICE Micro-level Practice Practice at the micro-level is designated as direct (or clinical) practice because practitioners deliver services directly to clients in face-to-face contact. Direct practice, however, is by no means limited to such face-to-face contact. MSU – SW | BELGIRA Levels of Assessments in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations THE THREE LEVELS OF PRACTICE Mezzo-level Practice The second level is defined as “interpersonal relations that are less intimate than those associated with family life; more meaningful than among organizational and institutional representatives; [including] relationships between individuals in a self- help or therapy group, among peers at school or work or among neighbors.” (Sheafor et.al, 1994) MSU – SW | BELGIRA Levels of Assessments in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations THE THREE LEVELS OF PRACTICE Mezzo-level Practice Mezzo events are “the interface where the individual and those most immediate and important to him/her meet.” (Zastrow & Kirst-Ashman, 1990) Mezzo intervention is hence designed to change the systems that directly affect clients, such as the family, peer group, or classroom. MSU – SW | BELGIRA Levels of Assessments in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations THE THREE LEVELS OF PRACTICE Macro-level Practice Still further removed from face-to-face delivery of services, macro practice involves the processes of social planning and community organization. MSU – SW | BELGIRA Levels of Assessments in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations THE THREE LEVELS OF PRACTICE Macro-level Practice On this level, social workers serve as professional change agents who assist community action systems composed of individuals, groups, or organizations in dealing with social problems. MSU – SW | BELGIRA Levels of Assessments in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations THE THREE LEVELS OF PRACTICE Macro-level Practice Activities of practitioners at this level include the following: (1) development of and work with community groups and organizations; (2) program planning and development; and (3) implementation, administration, and evaluation of programs (Meenaghan, 1987) MSU – SW | BELGIRA Levels of Assessments in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations THE THREE LEVELS OF PRACTICE Macro-level Practice On this level, social workers serve as professional change agents who assist community action systems composed of individuals, groups, or organizations in dealing with social problems. MSU – SW | BELGIRA Levels of Assessments in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations THE THREE LEVELS OF PRACTICE Micro-level Practice MSU – SW | BELGIRA Levels of Assessments in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations THE THREE LEVELS OF PRACTICE Mezzo-level Practice MSU – SW | BELGIRA Levels of Assessments in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations THE THREE LEVELS OF PRACTICE Macro-level Practice (Organization) MSU – SW | BELGIRA Levels of Assessments in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations THE THREE LEVELS OF PRACTICE Macro-level Practice (Community) MSU – SW | BELGIRA DIMENSIONS OF ASSESSMENT in Social Work MSU – SW | BELGIRA Dimensions of Assessment in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL In navigating the maze of human behavior, biology alone is insufficient, but so is psychology, not to mention sociology. For a full understanding, a multidimensional and interactionist perspective is required. To chart that difficult maze, we must follow four essential paths— biology, psychology, sociology, and the spiritual realm. Picture these paths as sometimes parallel but more often as overlapping and interlocking. MSU – SW | BELGIRA Dimensions of Assessment in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL Social workers must have a solid grounding in the science of human behavior and understand the biological, psychological, social, and spiritual needs of people at various stages of development. They also need to know how aspects of the external environment, aspects that are reflected in the social welfare system, give rise to desirable and undesirable patterns of behavior. MSU – SW | BELGIRA Dimensions of Assessment in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations BIOLOGICAL DIMENSION Refers to the role of biological systems within the body and outside. MSU – SW | BELGIRA Dimensions of Assessment in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations PSYCHOLOGICAL DIMENSION Refers to the role of thoughts, emotion, and behavior on individual, group, or community functioning. Inclusion of this dimension also acknowledges the mind–body connection in the assessment of problem. MSU – SW | BELGIRA Dimensions of Assessment in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations SOCIAL DIMENSION Refers to how a client relates to various groups and institutions in society, as well as how groups and institutions relate to him or her. Social workers assist not only individual clients, but all others who might be similarly affected by an issue. MSU – SW | BELGIRA Dimensions of Assessment in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations SPRITUAL DIMENSION Refers to the role of religious or spiritual belief on well-being, whereas the cultural dimension acknowledges the importance of considering traditions, customs, rituals, values, and communications that may be part of a client’s cultural heritage. MSU – SW | BELGIRA Dimensions of Assessment in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL As social workers and students of human behavior, we are thus obligated, Saleebey (2001) notes, “To understand, as best we can, those forces that shape and drive, constrain and obstruct, the human experience.” MSU – SW | BELGIRA Dimensions of Assessment in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL “Because people are complex, social workers should focus on the dynamic interaction among biological, psychological, and social aspects of development. Various aspects of development act together to affect an individual’s overall growth and maturity.” MSU – SW | BELGIRA Dimensions of Assessment in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL Social workers assess problems and attempt to understand human behaviour within the context of social work values and ethics. The National Association of Social Workers (NASW) Code of Ethics (1999) focuses on six areas involving how a worker should behave in a professional role. These include ethical responsibilities: (1) to clients, (2) to colleagues, (3) in practice settings, (4) as professionals, (5) to the social work profession, and (6) to the broader society. MSU – SW | BELGIRA Dimensions of Assessment in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL “Social workers should always keep in mind their clients’ rights and well-being. To the best of their ability, social workers should strive to abide by professional ethical principles, respect the rights and needs of others, and make decisions about right and wrong consistent with their professional ethics. This sounds simple but this requires self-awareness and full understanding of the values and principles of social work.” MSU – SW | BELGIRA Levels of Interventions in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations ACTIVITY TIME MSU – SW | BELGIRA Levels of Interventions in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations CASE STUDY “STEFFI HISMANN.” MSU – SW | BELGIRA Levels of Interventions in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations CASE STUDY “Relate the case to the levels of intervention and discuss how the worker extended help to her client.” MSU – SW | BELGIRA Dimensions of Assessment in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations ACTIVITY TIME MSU – SW | BELGIRA Dimensions of Assessment in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations CASE ANALYSIS “THE CASE OF ELDERLY WOMAN.” MSU – SW | BELGIRA Dimensions of Assessment in Social Work Social Environment and Social Work: Family, Group, Community and Organizations CASE ANALYSIS “Assess the elderly in terms of dimensions of assessment in social work and answer what is asked in the case.” MSU – SW | BELGIRA  Thank you Enjoy the rest of your day. God bless!