Self-Reflection The field of social work is one that requires much self-reflection on the part of the worker. In doing so, it helps the worker better understand his or her own emotions and the thought processes that these emotions come from. The goal of this paper is to provide my own self-reflection, relating it to my own emotional intelligence in the domains of relationships, tolerance, flexibility, self-management, and emotional awareness, and my future plans and goals in Widener University’s MSW program. Emotional Intelligence Emotional intelligence can best be defined as being able to regulate one’s own emotions, while at the same being able to identify and empathize with the emotions of others (Morrison, 2007). This is an important skill to have within the realm of social work practice because as social workers, we are working with people on all levels, micro, mezzo, and macro, who are usually experiencing some of the most emotional times of their life. As those emotional buffers for our clients, we need to be able to regulate …show more content…
For me, self-management has always been rather easy, as I am fiercely independent and would rather be left alone to manage myself than work under someone else. However, the toughest part of this particular domain for me is accepting my own failures or mistakes. While I loved learning to be more independent when it comes to school and working when I started my BSW, I also think I became harder on myself when I did not get the right grade, or the right field placement. One of the things I think I need to work own most, is finding a balance between taking responsibility for my actions and behaviors and being too hard on myself for those actions and behaviors. This, like my flexibility, comes back to emotional intelligence relating to my own self-control surrounding my own disruptive emotions, as I can work through my under-achievements without clouding my own thinking, and continue on towards my goals (Goleman,
I am passionate about social work, motivated, adaptable to new environments final year, postgraduate, social work student. I am committed to social work values and I am confident that I share Hackney Children and Young People’s Services values and core principles. I share a vision for the local area described by the Sustainable Community Strategy (SCS). I share the Council’s vision of a community based on fair and equal treatment for all and respect for the dignity and value of each person is summed up in its Equality and Diversity Statement. I am committed to promoting and to protect equality of opportunity for all groups of staff and service users and to challenge discrimination, racism, sexism and other forms of unjust behaviour. I am also committed to other Council’s core values of public service, quality, and empowerment. I am committed to the seven Principles of Public Life which are as follows: Selflessness, Integrity, Objectivity, Accountability, Openness, Honesty, Leadership
Emotional intelligence is the subset of social intelligence that involves the ability to monitor one’s own and others’ feelings and emotions, to discriminate among them, and to use this information to guide one’s thinking and actions. (Ledlow & Coppola,
My learning from this week reading, class discussions, and lecture was informed that AOP is not a resolution to the injustice that continue to perpetuate in our community. However, Sakamot asked a remarkable question whether AOP can be anti-oppressive. This question is challenging and alarming because my impression is that social workers should practice using AOP theory. In addition, while reflecting on that question, the conclusion was drawn to determine the possibility that AOP is not anti-oppressive due to social workers enormous power over their client/service users, in such a way that it can be disempowering, leading to an oppressive act/action whereas they become withdrawn from the social worker who is supposed to provide services to
Being given the opportunity to intern with the staff at the Family Resource Center in the Children’s Advocacy Center (CAC) has been a tremendous learning experience thus far. The opportunity has truly surpassed my expectation of what I imagined the journey of internship would be like and how it would help me to evolve into the professional arena as a social worker. I see myself transforming and viewing the community in which I live, the clients served, those deprived, and the tremendous job that we as social workers are tasked with to advocate for those in need from a more open-minded perspective. By enhancing and developing my personal and professional skills, such as active listening, observation, and professional comportment, I will be
This is why social workers must also be critical thinkers. Critical thinking applied to the social work profession involves “the ability to define an issue, stressor, or problem; to distinguish, appraise, and integrate multiple sources of knowledge to formulate a tentative practice direction” (Gitterman & Knight, 2013). Theories, as well as research, “about phases of individual, family and group development; about ethical, racial, religious, spiritual, and sexual identity development; and about individual, family, and group development” provide social workers with a basic starting point for a more complex and situational-based intervention plan that will later be developed. In social work practice, intervention plans and assessments are not blindly developed, but rather based off theory and research. Therefore, although social work is a profession of artistry and creativity; it is also a scientific profession enhanced by the use of theory and
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
(2013) separated emotional intelligence into four domains, self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and relationship management (pp. 30, 38). These domains are then broken into two competencies. Self-awareness, the understanding of one 's emotions and being clear about one 's purpose, and self-management, the focused drive and emotional self-control, make up the personal competence (pp. 39, 45-46). While social awareness, or empathy and service, and relationship management, the handling of other people 's emotions, make up the social competence (pp. 39, 48, 51). These emotional intelligence competencies are not innate talents, but learned abilities, each of which contribute to making leaders more resonant and effective (p. 38). This is good news for me because I still have much to develop in regards to emotional
Morrison (2007) introduces Emotional Intelligence (EI) as “Being able to motivate one-self and persist in the face of frustration; to control impulse and delay gratification; to regulate one’s mouth and keep distress from swamping the ability to think; to empathize and to hope (as stated in Goleman, 1996). In relation to social work practice, EI stresses for social workers to have a working knowledge of emotions; where they derived from and healthy ways to express and manage them. The social worker not only needs to understand these things about their own emotions, they must
Social Work is a profession that prides itself on the ability to cultivate positive relationships with people who may be very different from us. There may be differences in age, race, personality, gender, socioeconomic status, health, sexual orientation, rank, power, and privilege, as well as beliefs regarding religion and politics. The experience of these differences can cause a Social Worker to feel emotionally and cognitively disturbed. The ability to become aware of and consciously attend to these internal disturbances can positively affect the quality of relationship we are able to
The scope of emotional intelligence includes the verbal and nonverbal appraisal and expression of emotion, the regulation of emotion in the self and others, and the utilization of emotional content in problem solving. (pp. 433)
Research is a necessity when it comes to providing services. Social Workers need it to be able to determine their clients ' needs, to see what resources/services they have access to and if their client doesn 't have much access where can they get it. Research is also used to see how effective an intervention is and whether it would be a right fit for their clients. It provides social service agents with ways to identify problems within their clients, communities, organizations, and the government. Also it helps them to create ways to aid in effective change. It is very beneficial when a social worker needs to "assess the needs and resources of people in their environments, evaluate the effectiveness of social work services in meeting people
Working with others and improving own learning and performance are highly essential skills in social work. In this essay I will reflect on how well I have developed these two skills and what I need to do to improve them.
Over the course of the semester, I have learned a variety of many things regarding social work. These things vary from learning how to help oneself to understanding how to help others. Not only were the textbooks very useful, but also the materials that furthered this textbook learning. The in class presentation, activities, and guest speakers gave us insight and a different perspective on the material we were learning. I feel like this course has given me a good foundation and prepared me as a future social worker (1).
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
An individual’s ability to control and express their emotions is just as important as his/her ability to respond, understand, and interpret the emotions of others. The ability to do both of these things is emotional intelligence, which, it has been argued, is just as important if not more important than IQ (Cassady & Eissa, 2011). Emotional intelligence refers to one’s ability to perceive emotions, control them, and evaluate them. While some psychologists argue that it is innate, others claim that it is possible to learn and strengthen it. Academically, it has been referred to as social intelligence sub-set. This involves an individual’s ability to monitor their emotions and feelings, as well as those of others, and to differentiate them in a manner that allows the individuals to integrate them in their actions and thoughts (Cassady & Eissa, 2011).