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Importance of self awareness in social work practice
Social work skills
Importance of self awareness in social work practice
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As the child welfare field coordinator at Lewis Clark State College, I have the honor of attending an annual child welfare conference where many of my students present their research on issues that affect child welfare in the State of Idaho. One of my duties at this conference is to introduce our institution’s student presenters, which includes a quick description of their internship placements and a few positive notes on what I have enjoyed about supervising their field placements during the previous year. As I introduced one of my students this year, I praised the student regarding her unique ability to use her personality and sense of humor to set families at ease and to build relationships and rapport with clients. Due to the fact that …show more content…
Social workers believe they know what it means when they hear the term, but they have a hard time defining and describing the term when pressed. The use of self in social work practice is the combining of knowledge, values, and skills gained in social work education with aspects of one’s personal self, including personality traits, belief systems, life experiences, and cultural heritage (Dewane, 2006). It is the use of self that enables social workers to strive for authenticity and genuineness with the clients we serve, while at the same time honoring the values and ethics we so highly value in social work practice. In an effort to explain the use of self to my child welfare interns and other students, I will often use their micro skills coursework as an example of how use of self looks in professional practice. When I teach interviewing skills, each student is exposed to the same basic skill set (e.g., paraphrasing, summarization, responding to content, feeling, and meaning). However, no student’s use of this skill set is exactly the same, because these skills are manifested through the individual student’s personality, relational skills, and developmental capacity. What I have found in the classroom, as well as when I am supervising field placements, is that successful students have not only mastered the skill set taught in social work practice …show more content…
Although fundamental to social work practice, the social worker’s theoretical orientation and mastery of skills appear to have the least impact on client satisfaction when compared to the social worker’s authenticity and how they use personality traits as a therapeutic tool (Edwards & Bess, 1998; Baldwin, 2000). What is important regarding authenticity is to reflect your “real self” at all times. If you accidentally run into your client while shopping for groceries or at the park on the weekend, the client should be able to engage with the same person he or she met during your last home visit. In other words, social workers need to take time to fully understand who they are as individuals, as well as their identities as professional social workers, in order to holistically integrate these two
Social workers address people’s problems every day, but it’s the identification of people’s strengths that provides clues for how to solve their problems and improve their life situations (Saleeby, 2013, pp.17-20).
I knew I loved to help others but it was not until I was an emerging adult that I knew what my calling was. My devotion to improve the quality of life for those who are disadvantaged is one of the reasons I have chosen to pursue a Master’s in Social Work. After obtaining my masters, I plan on diversifying my masters by getting licensed and becoming a Licensed Clinical Social Worker. I would like to study social work because I feel it will lead me directly to one of the most emotionally fulfilling careers available, as well as giving me the chance to combine helping people 's mental well being with their physical
Social Workers are very important to everyday life. They are the ones that help people in need when they have nobody else to turn too. Also, they provide resources and better understanding of predicaments that you could be experiencing. I will reflect on how the class has affected me, my own experiences and how some theories have connected to my life experiences, and lastly, if the class helped toward my major. This class is important for someone that wants to become a social worker and wants to learn about the different theories used. Also, learning about me during this process of completing this class is fun and a way to see if the social work profession is right for me. There was many theories explained throughout this class but many will not be said because it wasn’t the main points that I was trying to get across. There are two tools that are used that can help a social worker organize a client’s life: Bubble map and Briefcase exercise. There are so many different ways a social worker can help a client deal with their problems and come up with a solution. It is up to that social worker to identify the client’s problem and see what theory fits.
Thompson, N (2005) Understanding Social Work: Preparing for Practice, Palgrave, MacMillan (Second Edition) Hampshire (Supplementary Course Reader)
Perhaps one of the most versatile and diverse careers is social work, as this career works with individuals struggling with substance abuse, low-income families, and homeless individuals. Social work is a profession that is concerned with solving personal, group, and community relationships (Farley, Smith, & Boyle, 2011). Among some of the most important aspects of social work are the restoration of impaired social functioning, the provision of social services, and prevention (Farley et al., 2011). Reducing problems in human relationships and improving human interactions among individuals are the major focuses of this profession, regardless of which people group the social workers are serving (Farley et al., 2011). Even though it is a relatively new profession, social work has existed in various forms throughout history. However, the beginning of social work’s development as a profession was primarily European in origin, with the ideals spreading to the United States
Much like occupational therapy, social workers incorporate theory in their field to increase the understanding of human behavior and the delivery of exceptional service. The profession of social work follows the code of ethics, core values, and guiding principles of the National Association of Social Workers (NASW). Fultz described how the principles of service, social justice, dignity and worth of a person, importance of human relationships, integrity and competence guide her clinical practice by strengthening her commitment to her client centered services. Although Fultz incorporates theory into her clinical experience, she addressed the challenges that occur when trying to apply theory. She believes that since each client is unique to themselves, not all theories may be helpful to all individuals. However, she continues to use theory due to the fact that it is evidence based and ensures that health professionals are using the most efficient and up to date treatment
Entering the field of social work you must be prepared to encounter many personalities. Knowing this, you have to become aware of people with different backgrounds and morals. By doing this you will be able to help your clients to the best of your ability, without forcing your personal beliefs or values on to them. A value is a set of rules or or beliefs that affect your every day decisions (Sheafor & Horejsi, 2011). Applying your personal values to every situation is very important, however, you must learn to separate what you know and what is in actuality the best outcome for your client. I will be discussing the ways I feel about the “Vignette’s”, while also incorporating different things I have learned from the readings and class discussions.
Social workers deal with intense situations daily. It is important that social workers are aware of how they are affected by these interactions. Priscilla Dass-Brailsford explains in her book, that countertransference, vicarious trauma (VT), secondary traumatic stress, compassion fatigue and satisfaction, and burnout are all different ways that counselors can be affected (Dass-Brailsford, 2007). This is where it is important for social workers to have a plan of self-care and stress management resources to use.
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.
After completion of the social work program I would like to work in a clinical setting. I would really like to be in a mental health center or a hospital working with military members. I don’t have and preference on the kinds of issues that I would like to work with. As long as I am helping veterans, I will be happy. The reason that I prefer to work under these condition is because I have a passion for working with military members, since I am prior military I feel like I can relate to them and I understand what they are going through. I know that it is very hard for military members to talk to civilian about their problems because civilians just don’t understand, no matter what they say. I will be required to have a diverse set of qualities
There are several ways in which I am incorporating social work values in my human services experience and interaction with others. I make an effort to be trustworthy and not to betray confidential information. I respect the cultural differences of individuals. I interned at three different facilities with different populations ranging from mental illness, Aids and the underprivileged. I am continually striving to improve my knowledge in the field of social work through education, volunteering, and self-awareness which will benefit my future
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.
When I think of Social Work I think of the wellbeing of others and how they deserve to have all of the resources needed to have productive opportunity. When I first began college I started as a Pre-Nursing major whose intent was to work in a Juvenile or an asylum setting. As my freshman year came to an end, I noticed that I only wanted to work in those settings so that I could help advocate for those who were not able to have a voice of their own. I later noticed that nursing was not the field of study that would allow me to express my true intensions for helping people. Now that I am entering my junior year of college and being that I have taken Introduction to Social Work I feel that I have truly found my calling. Being someone who is passionate and concerned about everyone’s situations I find that I am a great asset to the Social Work
When I first entered college I was an undecided new student who wasn’t exactly sure how I wanted my life to go. Once I started taking a couple of classes in the business, Marketing and social work fields I knew right away what my calling was. Just having that first intro to social work class my attention was hooked. I loved the classes and the experneices I learned about. I realized that my direction of college and a degree was to be accomplished in the social work setting. Being able to help those in need in Micro and Macro setting. Moving forward in the social work degree I soon realized that I was fully comminted to this major, knowing that one day I could help those people and children in the worl warmed my heart. My sophomore and senior
The social work profession is defined as “a practice-based profession and an academic discipline that promotes social change and development, social cohesion, and the empowerment and liberation of people (ISFW, ‘Global Definition of Social Work’, 2016).” The definition may be true about the profession but it is more in depth than just that. To me, the profession’s primary focus is to help others through life as much as we can while letting them make their own choices and guiding them. In society, social workers are utilized in many different nonprofit and government roles. They serve the community in many different ways from monitoring parent visits to helping people through mental illnesses. Human beings are so complex and things that happen