knowledge-and-philosophy-handouts-sw-101-lesson-1.pdf

lOMoARcPSD|45559581 Knowledge and philosophy Handouts-SW-101-Lesson-1 Humanities and Social Sciences (Saint Joseph College of Maasin) Scan to open on Studocu Studocu is not sponsored or endor...

lOMoARcPSD|45559581 Knowledge and philosophy Handouts-SW-101-Lesson-1 Humanities and Social Sciences (Saint Joseph College of Maasin) Scan to open on Studocu Studocu is not sponsored or endorsed by any college or university Downloaded by Clowie Navarrosa ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|45559581 LESSON 1: SOCIAL WELFARE AND SOCIAL WORK SOCIAL WELFARE Gertrude Wilson - characterizes social welfare as an "organized concern of all people for all people." Walter Friedlander - defines social welfare as "the organized system of social services and institutions, designed to aid individuals and groups to attain satisfying standards of life and health. Elizabeth Wickenden - social welfare includes those laws, programs, benefits and services which assure or strengthen provisions for meeting social needs recognized as basic to the well-being of the populations and the better functioning of the social order. According to the Pre-Conference Working Committee for the 15th International Conference on Social Welfare - defines social welfare as all the organized social arrangements which have as their direct and primary objective the well-being of people in a social context. In general, social welfare encompasses the well-being of all the members of human society, including their physical, mental, emotional, social, economic and spiritual well-being. Thelma Lee-Mendoza “Social Welfare covers practically everything that men do for the good of the society.” SOCIAL WORK - “seeks to enhance the social functioning of individuals, singly and in groups by activities focused upon their social relationships which constitutes the interaction between man and the environment.” Social Work is concerned not only with the person as a human being but with the person- in-situations/the person-in-environment. Downloaded by Clowie Navarrosa ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|45559581 A key concept in our understanding of person-in-situation interaction/configuration is the concept of “social role.” Social work started as “charity work” or “alms giving” which changed or evolved with rapid urbanization and industrialization. Social Work profession was recognized in the Philippines year 1965 when the Philippine Congress enacted R.A. 4373 otherwise known as the “Social Work Law”. SOCIAL SERVICES This refers to the programs, services and other activities provided under various auspices to concretely answer the needs and problems of the members of the society. – Thelma Lee-Mendoza SOCIAL WORK AGENCY The human service institution which employs social workers to help human beings who are experiencing some difficulties in the management of their own affairs either as individual, groups or communities. It provides the resources and services to meet certain types of problems like the need for food, shelter and clothing e.g. DSWD SOCIAL FUNCTIONING: SOCIAL WORK’S FOCUS OF CONCERN Social Functioning - means the interaction between the individual and his situation or environment. Social Environment - a network of overlapping social systems and social situations. Social Situation - smaller, more immediate environment Downloaded by Clowie Navarrosa ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|45559581 Example: family situations Functions: wife, mother and bread winner Therefore, Social Work has a dual focus: Social situation = life tasks and demand made by the situation Social environment = life tasks and demands made by the environment or people Note: Every individual has different coping capacity. It is important for the worker to understand this because these will provide an explanation for social functioning problem. Individual’s interaction is influenced by his/her physical condition, attitudes, values, knowledge, skills and perceptions of reality. A social situation and social environment are considered functional when: “it is experienced as livable and favorable, supportive and facilitative of well-functioning human beings and of other social and ecological systems.” Therefore, social workers must know how to analyze social situations. When therefore a social situation is considered dysfunctional? - When it is structurally and culturally: a) Disorganized b) Threatening/harmful c) Lacks needed resources and opportunities d) Stimulates unacceptable stress Therefore, social work intervention is appropriate when a person or group of persons out of an overwhelming and discomfort seeks help from or accepts help offered by a social worker/social agency. Social role – defined as the socially recognized pattern of behaviors and activities expected from an individual Example: child, parent, employee, patient and etc. Human Needs according to Hepworth and Larsen Downloaded by Clowie Navarrosa ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|45559581 1. Physical Needs (Food, Clothing, Housing, Health Care, safety, protection) 2. Emotional Needs (Feeling needed and valued by others, Companionship, Sense of belonging) 3. Positive Self-Concept (Identity, Self-Esteem, Self-Confidence) 4. Personal Fulfillment (Education, Recreation, Accomplishment, Esthetic satisfaction, Religion) A need becomes a problem when it is UNMET. Social Worker is a practitioner who by accepted standards of training and social work professional experiences, possesses the skill to achieve the objectives as defined and set by the social work profession through the use of basic methods of casework, group work, and community organization. Major Tasks of Social Work To accomplish this purpose or major goal of social work certain tasks or objectives must be accomplished. Pincus and Minahan once listed down four major objectives of the profession. Social Work: 1. Helps people enhance, improve their problem solving and coping abilities The social worker can accomplish this objective or task in many ways: a. Assisting the client to view his problem from a different vantage-point, considering several remedial alternatives or options; b. Enhancing and fostering self-awareness so that he becomes aware of and recognizes his own strengths and limitations which may be useful in solving his problem now or in the future; and c. Teaching problem-solving strategies and interpersonal skills. 2. Links and helps people obtain resources The social worker assumes the role of a case manager in the performance of this task, one who directs, guides or supervises the delivery of relevant social services to Downloaded by Clowie Navarrosa ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|45559581 the client so that he may solve his problem, or one who simply links the client with the resources that he needs. The social worker can help them pointing out the resources available, linking the client with the resource, and seeing to it that the resource is obtained in a timely fashion and 3. Makes the resource systems and organizations responsive to the people Resource organizations are usually founded with lofty ideals and vision. Enormous zeal is spent in formulating a mission statement and defining objectives. Sometimes however, the policies that may have been formulated may not be responsive to the needs of the clients or target population so that the result is ineffective organization. For instance, policies that uphold discriminating religious practices, or policies that stipulate the age limit when educational assistance to a child may be terminated even when the need is still there, policies and procedures that unwittingly delay the delivery of assistance for a livelihood project by as long as several months will certainly undermine the efficacy of the service. The dehumanizing procedures or even the demeaning experiences, the behavior of the agency staff may deter clients from obtaining resources they need. It is the responsibility of the social worker to see to it that these resource organizations and systems accomplish the purpose for which they have been set up. 4. Influences and contributes to the improvement and development of social policy Direct service practitioners can contribute to the improvement and development of social policy through feedbacks and by sharing with their supervisors and others their observations and experiences obtained in the course of their practice. 5. Facilitates interaction between the individual and others in the environment Social Workers can accomplish this objective, the development of community consciousness by performing any of the following functions: a. Enhancing communication among family members, Downloaded by Clowie Navarrosa ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|45559581 b. Organizing and coordinating groups in the community for purposes of improving themselves and the community, c. Assisting groups to provide maximal support to members, d. Opening lines or creating opportunities for communication among the various groups as well as among the helping agencies and workers in the community; and e. Seeing to it that communication is not only horizontal but also vertical. 6. Influence interaction between organizations and institutions By now it should be quite clear what social work is all about- that it is not merely the giving of material aid or dole-out which is the common perception held by many. The service is merely the means to an end just as the doctor would prescribe a medicine for the patient. Whether the patient finally recovers or not would depend to a considerable degree on his ability to recover, to bounce back, so to speak. In the case of social work the service is but an aid to enable the client to do something about his difficulty; his personal capability and how he uses it to help himself determine his success or failure, assuming that the other factors or conditions are in place. How he is able to do this would also be partly determined by the helper’s application of the professional knowledge, skills and the values that he possesses. That is why social work is said to be both a science and an art. Distinguishing Characteristics 1. The focus of social work is on the wholeness or totality of the person: himself, his behavior, his environment. 2. Social Work places importance on the family as a major factor in molding and influencing behavior. Hence the use of such approaches as “family based,” family centered,” and/or “total family’ when intervening in a problem. 3. The social worker utilizes community resources in helping people. 4. The aim in providing assistance is to enable the person to help himself to the degree that it is possible. 5. The social worker intervenes between the client and his problem. Downloaded by Clowie Navarrosa ([email protected])  lOMoARcPSD|45559581 6. The “social” in social work emphasizes stress or social interaction and the resultant social functioning or dysfunctioning. 7. The social work process is based on a client-worker helping relationship. 8. Social Work places considerable emphasis on understanding people and therefore is oriented to relevant or pertinent psychiatric concepts. 9. Supervision is extensively used in order to guide and direct the work of inexperienced direct service workers direct service workers and the continuing growth of the experienced. 10.Social work has a unique professional educational program based on a liberal arts course. Downloaded by Clowie Navarrosa ([email protected])