My personal values and beliefs are aimed towards the greater good of humanity. I try to have love for everyone and see the best in people. As a social worker, knowing the importance of human relationships and building rapport is a crucial part in this profession. I have always been a people person; I like having that personal connection with others. Furthermore, empowering others to increase wellbeing is something that is very important to me. There are too many people out there who just don’t care about others. We are all humans and we only have each other. We all have flaws, but that’s inevitable. I make every effort to be the person that others will trust to come to if facing a problem. My personal beliefs and values are compatible with the social work profession; however, there will be times where that will be tested. …show more content…
Even if I don’t like the person, self-determination and value of that person is number one. I may have to work with a person who just got out of prison for murder. It will be difficult to find dignity and worth of that person, seeing as I, personally, do not agree with murder. I know that I will be experiencing an abundance of certain situations and actions of others that I will not agree with. No matter what, I need to maintain integrity and ethical principles. Learning to not let my personal beliefs not interfere with how I work and handle situations is going to be a challenging yet important part of this career. I understand that this will not come easy at times, but I will take what I learn with a particular client and apply it to the next client, making every situation a learning opportunity, leaving room for growth and improvement of professional
When working with this population, if a client is withholding their diagnosis from their sexual partners and having unprotected sex the social worker faces an ethical dilemma. Confidentiality is a major concern but so is duty to warn and the duty to protect. According to Granich (2012), “Mental health professionals do not have the legal right to disclose that a person is HIV-positive to another person. This is at the discretion of physicians in many states. However, social workers and mental health professionals must struggle with this legal situation if a client insists on potentially harming another person through risk of transmission of HIV”. Social workers need to consider the society in which they are working and the society that the
Those who choose social work as their profession do so for a variety of reasons. In general, they appear to be motivated by a combination of humanitarian and egalitarian values, and by a desire to understand how society works and how to make it better for everyone. Frequently, a person is motivated to become a social worker following exposure to injustice and oppression.(p.16.)
The National Association of Social Workers, NASW, considers the following as its six most core values; service, social justice, dignity and worth of the person, importance of human relationships, integrity, and competence. The value of service is considered to be a core value because offering help to those in need is a crucial goal for all of those looking to practice in the field of Social Work. These services can include, but are not limited to, addressing social problems, helping those in need, and volunteering their knowledge to those who cannot otherwise afford such help. Social Justice is also an important core value for a Social Worker to develop. As a Social Worker one will encounter many people from several different walks of life, no two cases will ever be exactly the same. Some of these walks of life can leave a client vulnerable, defenseless, exploited, oppressed, and troubled. Therefore it is important to learn what Social Justice is, and how to help people from falling victim to injustice. Dignity and Worth of the Person is one of the most important values that one should uphold. People who need the help of a Social Worker many, but not all, times feel powerless, embarrassed, and worthless because they feel as though they cannot control aspects of their life an...
Everyone’s religious and cultural views are different. Not everyone comes from the same background, so sometimes it is hard for some to accept others views. As a social worker you are entitled to your own values and set of morals, despite the different values and morals of your clients. I know sometimes when you are with a client it can get a little difficult to not give your opinion or feedback based on what you believe in. It can be offensive to those who have different beliefs or values.
In the National Association for Social Workers (NASW) Code of Ethics, there are many standards a social worker should uphold in order to promote a healthy and helpful relationship with the client. One such aptitude is Cultural Competence and Social Diversity, which is in section 1.05 of the NASW code of ethics (National Association of Social Workers, 2008). There are three sections associated with this competency “Social workers should understand culture and its function in human behavior and society, recognizing the strengths in all cultures”. It is assumed that “social workers should have a knowledge base of their clients’ cultures and be able to demonstrate competence in the provision of services that are sensitive to clients”. As a final point “Social workers should obtain education” in order to understand cultural diversity and oppression in people (NASW, 2008, p. 9).
As a social worker, I have been able to use my skills I have learned in the field and my college education. I have values, beliefs, and ethics that I have used to center my social work career around. I also acknowledge as a social worker, I cannot push my values, beliefs, and ethics onto others. Every person does not share the same values, beliefs and ethics.
As a social work professional, you must take into account your own personal values before you can be an effective worker in this field. Social workers sometimes need to put their own values aside when working with clients who don’t share their same ideals. Clients are diverse and are not going to always have the same values that the worker has. Social workers need to be professional and adhere to the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) guidelines when working with any client.
The following paper aims to discuss and analyze the way in which my personal values intersect with the values I hold as most important within the profession of social work. It would stand to reason that these values would stand on common ground; however, there are places where my personal and professional values diverge. These conflicts may prove to be problematic within my chosen career unless I find a way to prioritize my values, or find ways for them to work harmoniously with each other.
Among an array of Values from The Code of Ethics (TCE) of social work Value 1 dictates that as social workers we must respect the dignity of our clients and refrain from passing judgement onto them (Canadian Association of Social Work, 2005, pg.7). As a social worker, it is important to follow this value as it prevents the distancing of the client from the worker as the client will have a better chance of opening up to someone who does not instantly tell them what to do or reprimand them for their actions or non-action in their lives. Oppression relates to the TCE in that it says the social work profession’s main purpose is to raise their clients who are vulnerable, oppressed and/or living in poverty (CASW, 2005, pg.7). Taking this into account
Reamer explains that values are important in regard to “The nature of social work’s mission; the relationships that social workers have with clients, colleagues, and members of society; the methods of intervention that social workers use in their work, and the resolution of ethical dilemmas in practice” (p. 15). Reamer discusses the importance of ethical decision making and ethical risk management in regards to any ethical dilemma a social worker may face. Reamer also explores how our values can challenge our profession; opposing or conflicting personal, professional, cultural and religious values in particular. Other ethical issues include confidentiality, privacy, divided loyalties, professional boundaries, dual relationships, conflicts of interest, and a client’s free will or determinism (Reamer,
“In this essay, we have been asked to critically assess the professional values in the ‘British Association of Social Work’ (BASW). With this the concepts of ethics and how this operates in social work practice and analyse the general role in governing and representatives bodies in social work practice”.
My first obstacle in becoming the social worker I envision is myself. As a Southern woman, I was taught to pray, have good manners, to cook, not to display behaviors in public unbecoming of a lady, to honor my word, and that it was my duty to help those in need. These principles speak to the social work values of service by helping others, integrity in being honest and ethical in the things I say, and dignity and worth of a person, by treating others in a respectful manner.
NASW Code of Ethic states core values is embraced by social workers: Dignity and worth of the persons. As an aspiring social worker, it is my duty to, “Treat each person in a caring and respectful fashion, mindful of individual differences and cultural and ethnic diversity” (The National Association, “n. d.”) Evaluating my own personal beliefs, and setting them aside, will allow me to put my best foot forward when pursuing my professional path and future
My reasons for wanting to become a Social worker are quite varied, the main one being to assist people in realising their potential and helping them reach their goals, and at this stage of my life I believe the experiences I have gained are extremely transferable in terms of working with the general public; but overall I can now offer the Social work profession and its clients a committed and caring attitude. I am a people’s person. I am passionately interested in listening to people’s problems and finding strategies to help solve them.
Social work is a profession which promotes social change, problem solving in human relationships and enhance well-being. It is important to acknowledge the history of social work and the purpose of social work and why it exists. Social work is a questioned theory with different perspectives on what it is and how it should be practised. Social work helps people to deal with personal and social problems so that people can overcome or adjust to any personal difficulties. Social work is a combination of social stability and social change. Social stability promotes individual and social welfare and social change seek to change negative aspects of society. Values are implicit within the law and policy and these tend to reflect the values within society. Personal values can influence the way social workers interpret and implement their profession.