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Applied anthropology and social work
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Applied anthropology and social work
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Recommended: Applied anthropology and social work
Applying Anthropology: Anthropology and Social Work
ANTH.210
Fayetteville State University
Keli’ikai Aipia
Spring 2017
In order to incorporate anthropology with social work, understanding the meaning of both disciplines must be attained. According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, Anthropology is defined as the study of human beings and their ancestors through time and space and in relation to physical character, culture, environmental and social relations, (Merriam-Webster.com n.d.). Social workers use their knowledge and skills to provide social amenities for clients (within individuals, families, groups, communities, organizations, or society). Social workers assist people by enhancing their abilities for problem solving and managing,
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Application of these anthropological studies in social work can benefit in multiple ways. A few of the four anthropology fields will be identified and discussed when applying skills to the social work area in Hawai’i.
Cultural anthropology is used by social workers to have a better understanding of the individual’s culture and their cultural perspective. For instance, in Japan, it is considered rude to look someone in the eye when speaking, where here in the United States, it customary to look at that individual. A social worker would not want to be disrespectful and possibly lose a client due to miscommunication and not being properly educated and aware. Cultural awareness is key when dealing with a client of another cultural environment.
The data gathered by biological anthropologists on living populations, falls into numerous overlying classifications. Evolution and biosocial variation are essential themes in studies that deal with nutrition, child growth, health within societies, the genetics of human populations, and adaptation to the environment (American Association of Physical Anthropologists n.d.). Understanding how Eskimos have survived in the harsh cold of the Arctic using clever behavioral modifications alongside biological adaptations is an example of biological
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They ask questions such as, what message is being conveyed, how is it formed, and what is the cultural meaning? Linguistic anthropologists initiate their work using instruments initially developed by descriptive linguists to define various elements of language and the assortment of sounds individuals use when speaking.
Linguistic anthropologists teach us that individuals use a massive diversity of languages and dialects to communicate ideas. Several languages, however, have established a particular vocabulary to converse about things important to their culture. People who speak English have started to use words associated with computers in their everyday dialogue. The terms download, boot, e-mail, hack, and surf the web, were never used until recently. Comparing cultures and languages, linguistic anthropologists can understand the major concerns, interests and even physical environments of various groups of people.
Applying anthropology to social work can be done in various ways. Linguistic is used through translation of language and sound. Cultural is applied through knowledge of client’s society and customs. Physical (biological) aspects are utilized in understanding the causes of a particular epidemic in a population to aid
A social worker needs to understand human diversity in order to analyze and understand human behavior in this diverse society to achieve the following goals; to respect cultural and ethnic backgrounds, buildup of knowledge to understanding of individuals families and communities in their social cultural and social-economic aspects of life, develop the ability to bring individual and social change towards justice. This helps in understanding human behavior (University of Chicago).
In the Human Services profession there are several areas of interest ranging from mental health, human rights, and even criminal justice; to name a few. However, when it comes to the values and missions of several human services organizations, individual cultures and beliefs may play a major role in their formation and services provided. To reflect back on the history of the human services field, culture has not always the main focus of most services that were being provided. The focus was mainly placed more on simply helping those in need. But since then, times has changed and culture has now became the major influence on the practices within the human services field.
Why is so important to possess cultural knowledge in the field of human service? Firstly, is my understanding based on the class discussion and the text book information, that as human service professionals, we must constantly maintain direct interactions with other human beings. Secondly, knowledge about the client’s culture may prevent so many misunderstandings and help a lot to bring the expected outcome within the timeframe. Let’s make it clear with one example. Several days ago during a class discussion about a cultural topic, one of the students comment in the class discussion that she belongs from Haitian culture and in their culture making eye contact while talking is considered disrespectful. On the other hand, in American culture while speaking, if someone does not make eye contact, leads to believe that the person speaking is lying. Thus, it is a significant contradiction between two cultures and may creating misunderstanding if individual does not aware about these culture. That is why having some basic knowledge about a client’s culture plays a vital role In the Human
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.
In Richard Nelson’s “Understanding Eskimo Science” a man, Nelson, traveled. below the Arctic Circle in the boreal forest of interior Alaska where he lived, studied. and interacted with a few native Eskimos groups during the mid-1960’s. Throughout the article Nelson provides an abundance of interesting and relevant information. Eskimo survival comes about through the understanding of one’s environment.
In summary, Indigenous health and the role of social workers in the rural environment are not without their complexities. As demonstrated, obvious issues of autonomy and conflicts of core professional values with the practical delivery of social health policy exist. Whilst the modern social worker faces ethical dilemmas daily, it is the core values and ethics of the profession that help those hindered by complexities to operate within best practice.
I have decided to discuss the topic of Spirituality in Native Americans. To address this topic, I will first discuss what knowledge I have gained about Native Americans. Then I will discuss how this knowledge will inform my practice with Native Americans. To conclude, I will talk about ethical issues, and dilemmas that a Social Worker might face working with Native American people.
Springer, J. F, Sale, E, Kasim, R, Winter, W, Sambrano, Soldad, C, (2004). Sandra; Journal of Ethnic & Cultural Diversity in Social Work: Innovation in Theory, Research & Practice; Vol 13(3); 1-23. Doi: 10.1300/J051v13n03_01
As a social worker, the ability to merge cultural competencies with social work methods and theories allows intervention to be customized to meet their client’s need-based which vary upon culture. Since there are a massive amount of different cultures with different traditions, values, and beliefs the social worker needs to obtain the fundamentals of the culture in order to assess and advocate for the ethnic group effectively. The NASW of Ethics clearly values the competence and the Ethical Principle of Social workers practice within the areas of competence and enhances their professional expertise. In addition, “ Cultural competence is a set of congruent behaviors, attitudes, and policies that come together in a system or agency or among professionals and enable the system, agency, or professionals to work effectively in cross-cultural situations” (NASW, 2000b, p. 61). Cultural competency ensures that our primary mission of the social work profession to enhance human well-being and help meet the basic human needs of all people, with particular attention to the needs and empowerment of people who are vulnerable, oppressed, and living in poverty.
As anthropologists seek to understand the culture that they are studying they must overcome the language barrier. Similar to the concept of culture, “people use language to encode their experiences, to structure their understanding of the world and themselves, and engage with on...
Cultural Competence is being able to engage in respectful and effective practice with diverse individuals, families, and communities, preserving their dignity and affirming their worth. A social worker should be aware of their clients’ cultural and environmental contexts, in order to know a client’s strengths, but cultural competence is never fully realized, achieved, or completed, but rather cultural competence is a lifelong process for social workers who will always encounter diverse clients and new situations in their practice. 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’ cultures. Social workers should obtain education
In social work, a social worker has to come to the client’s level and start from there. The client does not have to come to the social workers level. In order for this to happen the social worker has to know the importance of culture, race, gender, sexual, diversity and other forms of diversity to make the best decision for choosing a type of intervention. Understanding the client’s culture, race, gender, sexual diversity and other form of diversity is important because they affect each person differently. An example, Roberto is Latino and in their culture they believe in machomism, so this is something his social worker needs to know when addressing Roberto or someone of the Latino culture. Hispanic women bring machomism
From the frozen tundra of the arctic north to the arid deserts of sub-Saharan Africa – humans not only survive, but even thrive in some of the most extreme and remote environments on the planet. This is a testament to the remarkable capacity for adaptation possessed by our species. Each habitat places different stressors on human populations, and they must adapt in order to mitigate them. That is, adaptation is the process by which man and other organisms become better suited to their environments. These adaptations include not only physical changes like the larger lung capacities observed in high altitude natives but also cultural and behavioral adjustments such as traditional Inuit clothing styles, which very effectively retain heat but discourage deadly hyperthermia-inducing sweat in Arctic climates. Indeed, it seems this later mechanism of adaptation is often much more responsible for allowing humans to populate such a wide variety of habitats, spanning all seven continents, rather than biological mechanisms. Of course, not all adaptations are entirely beneficial, and in fact may be maladaptive, particularly behavior adaptations and highly specialized physical adaptations in periods of environmental change. Because people rely heavily on social learning, maladaptaptive behaviors such as sedentarization and over-eating – both contributing to obesity – are easily transmitted from person to person and culture to culture, as seen in the Inuit’s adoption of American cultural elements.
Social work practitioners can use the information from this study to document activities that MSW graduates engaged in relevant to cultural competency. The study will provide current and future social workers with specific details and strategies that they can employ to assist them on their journey toward culturally competent practice. In addition, this research study will offer examples of what social workers can do to build their knowledge, skills, and values.
Kedia, Satish, and Willigen J. Van (2005). Applied Anthropology: Domains of Application. Westport, Conn: Praeger. pp. 16, 150.