Week 1: Context and Philosophical Foundations of Social Work Ch.

1 (Healy) Social workers are guided by their practice purpose, which varies across institutional contexts and among practice situations Philosophies, ideas, our formal professional base, employer, and client expectations contribute to our practice purpose Understanding and responding to, the person in their environment is a guiding credo of modern professional social work Meaning and practice of social work varies by context: 1. It lacks common knowledge base and agreed ways of building knowledge - SW are divided over questions about how to create knowledge and debating over scientific ways of knowing for understanding social work practice 2. In contrast to other human service professions, such as nursing, social work does not have a primary institutional base 3. The primary task of social work varies by practice context - It may include: - Risk management, implementation of statutory law; support and advocacy; community education; research; policy development; social service administration When constructing our sense of purpose, we must be mindful of the primary tasks assigned to us within our practice context Our professional practice foundationsour knowledge, purpose and skills baseare substantially constructed in, and through, the environments in which we work Through understanding our context, we can both recognize how our practice is shaped by context and how we might act as agents of change The institutional context of practice- refers to the laws, public, and organizational policies, and accepted practices shaping the institutions where social workers are located. It provides what you, as social workers, are employed to do Formal professional base of social work- foundation is developed from a range of philosophical perspectives, theories about and for practice. Our sense of practice purpose- shaped by interactions between our institutional contexts and by our professional base Framework for practice- refers to the amalgam of formal knowledge and skills and informal onthe-job knowledge and skills developed by SWs in practice. The institutional context, particularly laws and public policies, shapes the key obligations borne by SWs. Parton defines discourses as structures of knowledge, claims, and practices through we understand, explain, and decide thingsthey are frameworks or grids of social organizations that make some actions possible whilst precluding others From post-structural view, discourses are sets of language practices that shape our thoughts, actions, and our identities A discourse analysis approach urges us to be skeptical about attempts to define social work as a single thing or a unified set of practices; instead it encourages us to recognize the diversity of social work practices Language practices adopted in our health and welfare institutions are key entities that shape our institutions including purposes and practices of social workers within them- Healy SW theories of practice provide guidance for practice as they identify who should be the focus of practice and how SW should proceed practically Theories for practice are usually developed within specific practice domains and are for specific client groupsdealing with specific situations

Discourses shape the ideas and practices adopted by a broad range of actors within practice environment, theories of social work have more limited scope of influence. The theories have been developed by social workers for use of SWs Theories for practice provide the base for professional practice Five key contemporary practice theories: problem solving; systems theories; the strengths perspective; anti-oppressive practice; post-modern, post-structural, and postcolonial approaches

Week 5- Systems Theory-Three Waves Ch. 7 (Healy): The Three Waves of Systems Theories Systems theory draws on the discourses originating, and operating, outside the field of social work. It is widely agreed that systems theory framework do not provide intervention methods Hankins, a sociologist, first introduced the term systems theory to social work in 1930 Richmond argued that SWs must balance personal and social change orientationssaid social reform and social case work must of necessity progress together Florence Hollis in 1960s urged social workers to adopt psychosocial perspective- to recognize both the social and psychological aspects of assessment intervention and systems theory reintegrates these two together First wave: General Systems Theory Systems theory emphasized its potential to provide scientific credibility to the profession and to develop an integrated theoretical foundation that would capture central elements of SW practice Bertanlaffy proposed that an individuals mental health can only be understood in relation to whether the individual has an integrated framework consistent within the given cultural frameworkin simple words the psychological pathology is considered to be socially and culturally produced They used biological terminology to explain clients needs, such as: transaction, homeostasis, entropy, equifinality and feedback. Systems theory arise from the biological sciences rather than human science disciplines However, the general systems theory (GST) reliance on abstract concepts and the mechanistic, nonhuman nature of much of its language alienated most practicing social workers It also had a narrow focus on the interaction b/w individual and their immediate environment Another criticism is the system equilibrium led to an overemphasis on system maintenance functions and negative feedback loops (putting the blame back onto the victim) in sustaining problems The Second Wave: Ecosystems Perspectives This brings together GST and ecological view to expand focus These thinkers see ecology as a useful metaphor for encouraging SW to focus on transactions within and across systems and to seek sustainable change Systems theorists argue that social work intervention should focus on person in environment transactions; while ecological metaphor thinks person in environment transactions are understood to be complex and non-linear Ecosystems encourages SWs to recognize that problems arise because of a poor fit b/w a persons environment and his/her needs, capacities, rights, and aspirations This theory guides assessment and offers general directions for intervention, but it does not purpose specific intervention methods The life Model of SW practice: Characterized by three stages: initial phase; ongoing phase; and the ending phase 1. The initial phase - Primary purpose is for the SW and service user to establish an active partnership based on mutuality and reciprocity

Social workers bring professional knowledge and skill to therapeutic encounter This is achieved first through empathy Secondly they work together to identify and prioritize life stressors (an event or transition that contributes to maladaptation in the person: environment fit 2. The ongoing phase - - Primary purpose is to promote adaption in the person: environment relationship so to maximize clients well-being - Ecology theorists would use an ecomap- which is a graphic system for viewing the relevant connected case elements together, within a boundary that clarifies for the practitioner the case system as the focus of work. - The eco-map includes: micro systems (informal systems such as home, the family, local community), meso systems (refers to formal systems that have direct impact on service users lives, such as schools and social services), and macro systems (refers to the society as a whole and to the large social institutions of government and business) - The social workers role is to promote change at the micro-, meso-, and macro-levels - The social worker enhances service user capacities through the methods od enabling, exploring, mobilizing, guiding, and facilitating - From ecosystems perspective, SW would promote a supportive community for client, at the microlevel 3. The ending phase - A well-planned termination of intervention is important to the overall structure of the systems approach - It can include discussing duration of intervention at the outset and regularly referring to this throughout the intervention process - SW should encourage service users to discuss their responses, such as anger, sadness or relief, about the conclusion of the intervention. The Third Wave: Complex Systems Theories This emerged originally in the disciplines of maths, physics, and engineering Complexity theories provide a way of articulating the intuitive knowledge possessed by most SW practitioners about the non-linearity and unpredictability of change processes They argue that complex systems ideas enrich, rather than replace, existing ideas about systems theories A complex system is one in which the behavior of the while system is greater than the sum of its parts They are characterized by non-linearitya change in one variable, or set of variables, will be associated with disproportionate increase in the rate of crime Extreme sensitivity to initial conditions, that is, small changes at initial phases in the systems development can lead to substantial and complex changes in the behavior of the systemthey refer to extreme sensitivity as the butterfly effect (extreme domino effectwhere changes in one part of the world have immediate impact on other parts) The key strength of systems theory is they provide a framework for understanding and responding to people in their environments Weakness is that they lack clarity about core systems concepts Week 6- The Strengths Perspective Ch. 8 (Healy) Founded in Mental health services Strengths perspective recognizes that responses to the spiritual needs of the service user are a dimension of holistic service provision (aboriginal approaches)

It concentrates on enabling individuals and communities to articulate, and work towards, their hopes for the future, rather than seeking remedy the problems of the past or even the present. Using the clients strengths to help them achieve their goals It requires practitioners to adopt an optimistic attitude towards the individuals and communities with whom they work Brings attention to the capabilities and assets of service users, and their communities, and use service users hopes and dreams, however unrealistic they may seem to us, as our guide for our practice (Giving false hope) Reynolds challenged the profession of SW to reject notions of professionalism that emphasized detachment, diagnosis and individualized treatment as ultimately destructive to well-being of service usershe argued social workers to focus on clients strengths and capacities rather than personal pathology Recognize clients need for improvement and dont just point out failure Advocates of the strengths perspective urge workers to be sensitive to their language use, particularly in their description of clients perceived capacities and deficits (and dont give them a psychological label like schizophrenia because they have stigma and have range of negative implications on the person) Key assumptions of strengths perspective: all people have strengths and capacities and resources; service users have the capacity to help themselves and dont need human service workers to define their best interests for them; people usually demonstrate resilience when facing adverse life events; SW need to focus on good qualities instead of clients problems and deficits; and collaborative partnership b/w workers and service users reflect and build service users capacities Principle 1 is to adopt an optimistic attitude; principle 2 is focus primarily on assets of clients; principle 3 is collaborate with the service user, principle 4 is to work towards the long-term empowerment of service users; and principle 5 is to create a community to empower the client The key strength of this approach is it recognizes the power of optimism It also promotes respect for client capacities and potential Problem is the lack of recognition of the structural barriers to service user empowerment. And they give false hopes to the user

Week 7- Critical Anti-Oppressive Approaches Ch. 9 (Healy) Anti-oppressive practice draws on sociological discourses, especially critical social sciences ideas, and concepts from the consumer rights movements, to construct understandings of client needs and appropriate social work responses to them It highlight the structural contexts of service users problems and urges SWs to facilitate service users critical consciousness of the causes of the problems they face Modern critical social work: macro-social structures shape social relations at every level of social life; they believe that world is divided b/w haves and have nots and that interests of these groups are opposed and irreconcilable The haves are members of privileged groups, such as middle class, males, Europeans, heterosexuals, and able-bodied; the have nots are the working class, women, non-Europeans, gays and lesbians, and people with disabilities SWs are presented as powerful, because of their professional status and access to institutional power, while service users are represented as relatively powerless View of modern critical SW is that the oppressed are complicit in their oppressionsecured by dominant ideologies Critical SW argues that social workers should raise consciousness of the service users and help them see the problems they are faced with

The emphasis is on empowering oppressed people to act, to achieve social change This theory emerged during the 1960s and 1970s Drawing on other theories, they argued that problems lay primarily in unjust social structures, rather than personal histories Anti-oppressive theorists emphasize: the structural origins of service users problems; an orientation towards radical social change; and a critical analysis of practice relations and an attempt to transform these relations into practice Key assumption of AOP is that social workers must recognize multiple forms of oppression and further that all forms of oppression should be acknowledged as harmful Oppression arises from unequal power across social divisions AOP emphasize that SW role is an intensely political role in which SWs occupy a privileged status. The PCS analysis: personal level of practice refers to personal feelings and attitudes of the service user; cultural level represents the interests and influence of society as reflected in the social values we internalize through the process of socialization Anti-oppressive theorists require SW to reflect on ways which social structures associated with capitalism, patriarchy and imperialism contribute to the personal and cultural levels of oppression Practice principle 1: critical reflection on self in practice Reflecting on our membership of social categories, and where possible, replacing ourselves with workers of similar backgrounds, together we can address power differentials in practice Demands we reflect on the ways in which our own biographies shapes our practice Practice principle 2: critical assessment of service users experiences of oppression Assessment requires us to consider how the service users membership of specific social divisions and their historical and geographical context shape their experiences and the options for action available to them Important to note the impact of social divisions, such as race, class, and gender and other divisions from inequality and discrimination Practice principle 3: empowering service users seek empowerment to overcome the cultural, institutional and structural obstacles to clients taking greater control of their lives Encouraging service users to share their feelings of powerlessness, and help them understand how structures shape their experiences of oppression Practice principle 4: working in partnership Working in partnership means that service users should be included as far as possible as fellow citizens in the decision making processes which affect their lives Any gesture toward partnership must begin with the genuine sharing of power at interpersonal and institutional levels Such as open clear communication Practice principle 5: minimal intervention Means that social workers should aim to intervene in the least intrusive and least oppressive ways possible SWs should focus on early intervention with the primary aim of preventing the escalation of risk of harm to the service user

Week 9- Post-conventional Approaches Ch. 10 (Healy) Post-modern Approaches in Practice Postmodernist view all aspects of SW practice, particularly concepts of client needs and social work responses, as socially constructed They are attentive to the ways discourses construct these concepts (Ex. How language affects ideologies)

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Postmodernism, poststructuralism and postcolonialism all developed in the social sciences and humanities over the 20th century Post theorists argued this view of reason as liberatory tool arguing that it is also political instrument, used to privilege the views of some groups, such as professionals, over those viewed in these discourses as less rational, such as service users The urge to be cautious in our claims to help, empower and emancipate and that these can be associated with the will to power over others We must constantly assess ourselves and how our opinion of truth may affect the service we provide Postmodernism challenges the idea that our identities are fixed, but they are socially constructed through language There are four key concepts in post theories Discourse Discourse constructs knowledge in practice, particularly what counts as true or sayable, and what is considered false or unsayable. Discourse refers to language practices through which knowledge, truth, our sense of ourselves, and social relations are constructed. It shapes our understandings of the rights, responsibilities, experiences of, and relationships between, service workers and service users Subjectivity Subjectivity used to refer to sense of ourselves Identities are not fixed, they are shaped by discourses and vary from context to context Identity is experiences of fragmentation and contradictorythey are inevitable outcome of the clashes b/w different discourses that make up our practice contexts Power Power is an ever-present and productive feature of social relations Power is a product of discourse rather than something attached to specific identities We need to analyze how discourses operate to construct identity knowledge and power within that specific context Encouraging workers to recognize and support the capacities of service users to exercise power, rather than focus on powerlessness and focus on their positive dimensions of power Deconstruction Used to describe the process of identifying and undermining oppositions through which discourses represent things such as knowledge, identify and other social phenomena It is aimed at breaking apart dualisms to show the range of positions that lie within and beyond opposed entities People in the disability movement prefer the term differently abled because the term disabled only shows lack of ability