The Pros And Cons Of Micro Practice Of Social Work

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The practice of Social Work is made up of a variety of systems which organizes the setting for either an individual, small group or a combination of both individual and small group. Furthermore, the setting of micro, working with an individual, and mezzo, working with a small group will be further discussed along with the benefits and challenges of working with each setting. Ultimately, the discussion of which setting will suit this future social worker will also, be discussed. Micro practice is a system which consists of working with an individual. For example, the micro system targets, “personality, emotion, beliefs, behavior, interests, goals, strengths, and weaknesses that make a person unique (Kirst-Ashman, 2014, p. 24).” Furthermore, this type of system creates a …show more content…

Furthermore, this sense of comfort will allow flexibility during the session which is beneficial for the client. Therefore, the client may become empowered due to the flexibility and easy flow of the session since, the setting is friendly, warm, and inviting.
However, micro practice does have some disadvantages such as the social worker not able to view the big picture. For instance, an individual is a member of a multitude of communities such as employment community, residential neighborhood community, a religious community, and other communities as well. So, if the social worker’s primary focus is the individual and not the client’s environment most problems will not be understood hence, the missing puzzle pieces.
Still, an alternative practice is that of mezzo practice which is where a family or small group is the prime target. Additionally, mezzo practice not only constitutes a family or small group it also, focuses on empowering groups and promoting change within their environment. In addition, mezzo practice is community based oriented which broadens the spectrum as opposed to micro

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