social work knowledge essay

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Module 1 Chapter 1: Social Work and “Ways of Knowing”

This chapter is largely about social work knowledge—how social work professionals come to “know” what we know, and how that knowledge can be leveraged to inform practice. Thinking about what we know and how we come to know it is critically important to understanding social work values, beliefs, and practices. This means critically thinking about the sources and types of knowledge on which social workers rely, and the implications of relying on these different sources and types of knowledge.

What you will learn from reading this chapter is:

• The philosophical roots of different approaches to scientific knowledge on which social workers rely (epistemologies);
• Different types and sources of knowledge (“ways of knowing”);
• Strengths and limitations of various “ways of knowing” social workers encounter and might apply in understanding social problems and diverse populations;
• Principles of critical thinking;
• Distinctions between science, pseudoscience, and opinions.

Thinking about Knowledge

The study of knowledge and knowing about the world around us called epistemology , and represents one of the major branches of philosophy. Throughout much of human history, philosophers have dedicated a great deal of thought to understanding knowledge and its role in the human experience. Ancient Greek and western philosophers like Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, as well as those who came before and after them, made lasting contributions to the way we think about knowledge and its applications in daily life. A great deal of this western philosophical activity centered around building knowledge based on facts and provable “truths,” rather than spirituality, mythology, and religion. These philosophical efforts contributed greatly to the evolution of rational thought, science, theory, and scientific methods that we use in our everyday and professional lives to make sense of the world around us. Much of the science on which we often rely to find answers to perplexing questions is derived from a philosophical position called positivism . Positivism essentially involves adopting a stance where valid knowledge, or “truth,” is based on systematic scientific evidence and proof: in order to be positive about knowing something, that something must be proven through scientific evidence. Scientific evidence, developed through a positivism lens, results from a rational, logically planned process identified as the scientific process. Similarly, empiricism  is about proven knowledge, but contends that proof also may come through the application of logic or through direct observable evidence. In our SWK 3401 and SWK 3402 coursework you will be exposed to many of the methods that investigators apply in scientifically answering questions about social problems, diverse populations, social phenomena, and social work interventions. But science is not the only way of knowing, and it is important for social workers to understand the place science occupies in an array of ways knowledge is developed and applied.

Much of what is taught in the United States about knowledge and epistemology is somewhat constrained by traditions of western philosophy. Challenges to these constraints emerged in the literature during the 1990s under the headings of naturalistic epistemology, anthroepistemology, and ethnoepistemology  (e.g., Maffie, 1990; 1995). An important contribution to our understanding of knowledge is an anthropological appreciation that knowledge is constructed within a cultural context. This is quite different from the positivist perspective concerning single, provable truths that are waiting to be discovered.

“Anthroepistemology views epistemology as an historically and contingently constituted phenomenon, the nature, aims, and province of which are to be understood in terms of the life context in which epistemology is organically rooted and sustained rather than in terms of divine imperative, rationality per se, or pre-existing epistemic facts or principles” (Maffie, 1995, p. 223).

In other words, what we know, how we come to know it, and how we think about knowing all are influenced by the personal, historical, and cultural contexts surrounding our experiences. For example, consider what you “know” about deafness as a disability. This deficiency perspective comes from the cultural context of having lived in a hearing world. However, members of the Deaf community offer a different perspective: living within deaf culture and linguistic structures (e.g., using American Sign Language to communicate) conveys specific social and cultural implications for human development, behavior, thinking, and worldview (Jones, 2002). These implications are viewed the same way other cultures are viewed—as cultural differences when being compared, not as deficiencies, or “otherness.” This diversity of experience perspective (rather than a disability perspective) could be applied to other topics, such as autism, reflecting human neurodiversity rather than a disorder.

Implications for Social Work. 

One implication of this observation might be that social workers should expect worldviews held by individuals with vastly different lived experiences to differ, too. Well over 100 years ago, the philosopher and psychologist William James (1902), discussing the varieties of religious experience, observed:

“Does it not appear as if one who lived more habitually on one side of the pain-threshold might need a different sort of religion from one who habitually lived on the other?”  (p. 105).

In broader terms, social workers strive to understand diversity in its many forms. We appreciate that diverse life contexts, experiences, opportunities, and biology all interact in complex ways in contributing to diverse outcomes. These differences include differences in knowledge and understanding of the world—differences, not deficiencies. For example, we understand that the elements of a parenting education program delivered to two-parent, well-resourced, privileged, reasonably empowered families of one racial or ethnic background may be grossly inappropriate for families existing in a far different reality, facing very different challenges, very differently resourced or privileged, and responding to different experiences of discrimination, oppression, exploitation, threats of violence, and micro-aggression. The pre-existing knowledge different families bring to their parenting situations and their parenting knowledge needs differ significantly—even their parenting goals, approaches, and means of learning and developing knowledge may differ.

Social workers who adopt an anthropological, ethnoepistemology perspective are open to considering the beliefs of ordinary people around the world alongside those of leaders, academics, scientists, colleagues, and authorities. This line of thought encourages us to reflect on all epistemologies—wherever in the world they are practiced and by whomever they are practiced. Western philosophy, rational logic, and science are situated within this context—as one of the multitude of epistemologies that exist, not as the first or the most significant, but simply as one of many. These perspectives contribute to social work having a rich array of research methodologies available for understanding social problems, diverse populations, and social phenomena. A positivism/empiricism perspective contributes to many of our quantitative research  methodologies; an anthropological, ethnoepistemology perspective underlies many qualitative research  methods.

This philosophical background is relevant to social work education for several reasons:

• Social work professionals engage with individuals from many diverse backgrounds and social contexts. This means that we encounter many different ways of knowing and great diversity of belief among the people with whom we interact. Colleagues, professionals from other disciplines, clients, community members, agencies, policy decision makers and others all have their own understanding about the world we live in, and these understandings often differ in critically significant ways. We cannot work effectively with others if we do not have an appreciation for this diversity of understanding, thinking, and believing.
• To be effective in our interactions, social workers also need to understand and critically evaluate our own personal and professional epistemologies, and what we “know” about social work problems, diverse populations, and social phenomena. This idea fits into the social work practice mandate to “know yourself” (e.g., see Birkenmaier & Berg-Wegner, 2017).
• Significant differences exist between the philosophies that underlie different scientific methodologies. Rational logic underlies quantitative methodologies and ethnoepistemology underlies on qualitative methodologies. These differences contribute to complexity around the qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods (integration of qualitative and quantitative) choices made by investigators whose work helps us understand social work problems, diverse populations, and social phenomena.  

Thinking about Different Sources and Types of Knowledge

Humans have many different ways of developing our knowledge about the world around us. Think about how young children come to understand the world and all kinds of phenomena they experience. First, they utilize all five senses to explore the world: vision, hearing, smell, taste, and touch. For example, a baby might hear food being prepared, see and smell the food, touch it and taste it.

Sensory evidence provides people of all ages with a great deal of experiential knowledge about the physical and social world.

Second, people engage in internal mental operations we call cognition —they engage in thinking and problem solving—to create meaning from their experiences. To continue our example, it is through these internal mental experiences that babies develop their ideas about food. Some of their conclusions are effective, while their other conclusions are inaccurate; these guesses need to be revised through further experience and cognition. For example, this toddler learned (the hard way) to understand that paint is not food. These cognitions may take a few trials to accurately emerge.

Third, knowledge comes through basic learning principles involving reinforcement and punishment of behavior, as well as observational learning of others’ behaviors. Young children often conduct repeated experiments to develop knowledge concerning the basic principles by which the physical and social world operate. For example, a young child might experiment with using “naughty” swear words under different conditions. The first few times, it might simply be a case of copying a role model (such as parents, siblings, peers, or television/movie/music performers). Based on the way the social world responds to these experimental uses of language, the child may continue to experiment with using these words under different circumstances. This behavior might get one response from siblings or other children (laughing, giggling, and “Oooohhhhh!” responses), a different response from a parent or teacher (a corrective message or scolding response), and yet a different response still from a harried caregiver (simply ignoring the behavior). We may consider this child to be an “organic” scientist, naturally developing a complex understanding about the way the social world works.

People of all ages rely on these multiple ways of knowing about the world—experiential, cognitive, and experimental. What additional ways of knowing are important for social workers to understand? Answers to this question can help us better understand the diverse people with whom we engage and can help us better understand our own sources of knowledge as applied in professional practice. By the way, thinking about our thinking is called metacognition —having an awareness of your own processes of thinking and knowing.

Ways of Knowing.

Textbooks about the Theory of Knowledge offer various ways through which human beings derive knowledge (see for example IB, n.d.; TOK network, n.d). These ways of knowing include:

• Sensory perception
• Imagination and Intuition

Let’s examine each of these ways of knowing in a little more detail, and consider their implications for knowledge in social work. It is helpful to think about how we might consider our use of each source of knowledge to avoid running “off into a ditch of wrong conclusions” (Schick & Vaughn, 2010, p. 4).

Sensory perception and selective attention. We have already considered the ways that individuals across the lifespan come to know about the world through engaging their five senses. In general, human beings rely on information acquired through their senses as being reliable evidence. While this is generally appropriate, there are caveats to consider. First, knowledge developed through our sensory experiences are influenced by the degree to which our sensory and neurological systems are intact and functional. There exists a great degree of variability in different individuals’ vision, for example. We can reduce the variability to some degree with adaptive aides like eye glasses, contact lenses, adaptive screen readers, and tools for sensing color by persons who are “color blind.” But, it is important to recognize that perception is highly individualistic. You may have played with optical illusions in the past .Or, you may recall the 2015 social media storm created by the “What color is this dress?” dilemma (#thedress, #whiteandgold, and #blackandblue). Or, for example, when you look at this image, what do you see?

You might see a duck head looking to the left, a rabbit head looking to the right, both, or neither. In both the dress and duck/rabbit examples, different individuals perceive the same stimuli in different ways.

This raises the question: can we trust our own perceptions to represent truth? In our everyday lives, we rely heavily on our perceptions without thinking about them at all. Occasionally, we might experience the thought: “I can’t believe my own eyes” or “I can’t believe what I am hearing.” Between these extremes, social workers often experience the need to confirm our perceptions and checking with others about theirs.

One reason why our perceptions might not match the perceptions of another person has to do with what we each pay attention to. Everyone practices a degree of selective attention . For example, as you are reading this material, are you aware of the feel of the room temperature, the sound of the air circulation, or the amount of light in the room? This information is all available to you, and you might have paid attention to them when you first sat down to read. But, you stopped being consciously aware of them as they remained steady and irrelevant to the task of reading. If any conditions changed, you might have noticed them again. But, it is human nature to ignore a great deal of the information collected by our sensory systems as being irrelevant. A source of individual difference is the degree to which they attend to different types of information. For example, as you ride through a neighborhood you might notice the location of different food or coffee establishments. Someone in recovery from an alcohol use disorder, taking the very same ride, might attend to the different liquor advertisements that could trigger a craving and warrant avoiding. You both experienced the same environment, but through selective attention you each came to know it differently.

Memory and memory bias. You might argue that memory is not really a way of knowing, that it is only a tool in the process of knowing. You would be partially correct in this argument—it is a tool in the process. However, it is not ONLY a tool. Memory is an integral and dynamic part of the human mind’s information processing system. The diagram below represents steps in human information processing. The process begins with the sensory systems discussed earlier. But, look at what happens to those sensory perceptions next:

In terms of the information processing model, once something has been perceived or an event has been experienced by an individual (perception), the perception moves to the memory system. A perception first moves into short-term memory as something the person is actively aware of or thinking about. The short-term memory “buffer” is typically limited in space to around 5-7 items at a time and lasts for only about 18-30 seconds. After that, the memory either is cleared from the “buffer” zone and forgotten forever, or it is moved to longer term memory. If a memory is not converted into a long-term memory, it cannot be retrieved later.

The long-term memory system has a tremendous storage capacity and can store lasting memories. However, stored memories are relatively dynamic, rather than static, in nature. Memories are remarkably susceptible to change through the incorporation of new information. Human memory does not work like a video camera that can be replayed to show exactly what was originally experienced. Instead, recalling or retrieving memory for an event or experience happens through a process of recreation. In this process, other factors and information become woven into the result, making it a less-than-perfect depiction of the original experience. Consider research about the ways that additional (mis)information affects what individuals recalled about a story presented to them in a memory study (Wagner & Skowronski, 2017). Study participants reported “remembering” new facts presented later as having been part of the original story—these later facts became false memories of the original experience. False or erroneous memories were more likely when the original facts were scarce (versus robust), the new information seemed true (rather than questionably reliable), and the person was highly motivated to retell the story. These conditions provoked the human mind to fill in gaps with logical information.

The nature of a memory also may be (re)shaped by internally generated cognition based on our pre-existing understanding of the world—our thoughts. This process makes memories more relevant to the individual person but is a significant source of memory bias. We often use our own thoughts, ideas, cognitions, and other experiences to fill in knowledge gaps around what we remember from direct experiences. For example, you may have learned about the poor reliability of eyewitness testimony—what is remembered by the eyewitness is influenced by how the situation is understood, making it susceptible to distortion from beliefs, stereotypes, prejudice, and past experiences. This explains why convenience stores often have rulers painted on the doorframe: if a crime occurs, a shorter witness might recall a person’s height as being tall, and a taller witness might recall the person’s height as being short. The yardstick allows more objective, undistorted recall of the facts.

Memory reshapes itself over time, and sometimes people lose the connections needed to retrieve a memory. As a result, what we “think” we know and remember is influenced by other external and internal information.

Language.  Like memory, language is both a product and producer of knowledge.  Language is a created set of signs and symbols with meaning that exists because of conventional agreement on that meaning. Language helps describe what we know about the world, both for ourselves and to communicate with others. But, language also has the power to shape our understanding, as well. Linguistic determinism  is about how the structures of language constrain or place boundaries on human knowledge.

Consider, for example, the limitations imposed on our understanding of the social world when language was limited to the binary categories of male and female used in describing gender. Our language being structured in this binary fashion leads individuals to think about gender only in this manner. Conventional agreement is extending to include terms like agender, androgynous, bigender, binary, cisgender, gender expansive, gender fluid, gender non-conforming, gender questioning, genderqueer, misgender, non-binary, passing, queer, transgender, transitioning, transsexual person, two-spirit (see Adams, 2017). With the addition of multiple descriptive terms to our language, it becomes easier to have a more contextual, complex, non-binary understanding of the diverse nature of gender. Language is one mechanism by which culture has a powerful influence on knowledge.

Reason and logic . Humans may come to “know” something through their own internal cognitive processing and introspection about it. Logic and reasoning represent thought processes that can result in knowledge. You may recall the important piece of reasoned logic offered by Rene Descartes (1637): “I think therefore I am.” This piece of reasoning was the first assumption underlying his building of an orderly system of “truth” where one conclusion could be deduced from other conclusions: deductive reasoning . In deductive reasoning, we develop a specific conclusion out of assembling a set of general, truthful principles (see Table 1-1). The specific conclusion is only as good as the general principles on which it is based—if any of the underlying premises are false, the conclusion may be incorrect, as well. The conclusion might also be incorrect if the premises are assembled incorrectly. On the other hand, inductive reasoning  involves assembling a set of specific observations or premises into a general conclusion or generalized principle (see Table 1-1). Inductive reasoning is a case of applying cause and effect logic where a conclusion is based on a series of observations. For example, estimating future population numbers on the basis of the trend observed from a series of past population numbers (Kahn Academy example from www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=43&v=GEId0GonOZM ).  Abductive reasoning  is not entirely inductive or deductive in nature. It generates a hypothesis based on a set of incomplete observations (inductive reasoning) and then proceeds to examine that hypothesis through deductive logic.

Table 1. Examples of deductive, inductive, and abductive reasoning from Live Science https://www.livescience.com/21569-deduction-vs-induction.html

A person does not actually need to witness or experience an event to draw logically reasoned conclusions about what is likely. For example, a social worker may be trained in the knowledge that persons with traumatic brain injury (TBI) in their histories have a greater likelihood than the general population to experience problems in family relationships, unemployment, social isolation, homelessness, incarceration, depression, and suicide risk (Mantell, et al, 2017). In meeting a client with a TBI history, the social worker might reason that it is important to screen for the risk of each of these problems. The social worker does not need to wait for these problems to be observed; the knowledge gained through reasoning and logic is sufficient to warrant paying attention to the possibility of their being present or emerging.

Sometimes a line of reasoning seems rational and logical, but when carefully analyzed, you see that it is not logically valid—it is fallible, or capable of being in error. A fallacious argument  is an unsound argument characterized by faulty reasoning. Fallacious arguments or flawed logic can result in the development of mistaken beliefs, misconceptions, and erroneous knowledge. For example, in the 1940s to 1950s a mistaken theory of autism was offered in the professional literature (see Rimland, 1964): the “refrigerator mother” theory was that the low levels of warmth parents were observed directing to an autistic child caused the child’s autism symptoms. The logic flaw in this case was a very common error: drawing a false causal conclusion from a correlational observation. The observed parental behavior actually was a sensitive response to behavioral cues presented by the children with autism, not a cause of the autism. Thus, the “refrigerator mother” misconception was influenced by logical fallacy. Clearly, the knowledge gained through reasoning is only as good as the weakest link in the chain of ideas and logic applied.

Emotion and affect . Human feelings have a powerful influence on what we think and understand about the world around us. Another word for emotion is affect (not to be confused with effect, pronounced with an “a as in apple”). For example, the advertising, entertainment, and news media have long recognized that individuals more strongly remember information to which they have developed an emotional response. This explains why we see so many cute puppies, adorable children, attempts at humor, and dramatic disaster footage in advertising and news programming. This also is why we are more likely to remember the score of a game our favorite team played than the scores of other games. It is why we remember news events that “hit close to home” compared to other reported world events.

The strongest emotions we experience as human beings may have developed as ways to improve our individual chances for survival. For example, by avoiding experiences that elicit fear we may be avoiding danger and risk of harm. By avoiding that which we find disgusting, we may be avoiding that which could make us ill. A lot of questions surround the emotional world—the origins of emotions and what is innate versus learned, for example. One thing that research since the 1970s concerning affective education has demonstrated is that how we interpret our own and others’ emotions (affect) has a strong influence on how we behave in different situations (e.g., Baskin & Hess, 1980). Because the ability to identify and label emotions (knowledge of your own and those of other people) has such a significant impact on interpersonal interactions and behaviors, a great deal of attention has been directed towards trying to understand individual differences in “emotional intelligence” or “EQ” (see Goleman, 1995).

Faith.  Religious faith is only one aspect of how faith relates to knowledge. For some individuals, religious teachings provide them with knowledge surrounding certain topics. What a person knows through faith is considered to require no further analysis or proof—that is the nature of faith. For this reason, we can include other sources of knowledge derived through faith. This includes relying on knowledge attained through information shared by a mentor, expert, or authority. Identifying someone as an authority is intensely personal and individualized. Just as “beauty is in the eye of the beholder,” perceptions of another person’s expertise are relative. One person might have faith in the expert opinion shared by a parent, grandparent, sibling, or best friend. Another person might place greater faith in the opinions expressed by celebrities, sports figures, news anchors, or political leaders. Social work interns may place faith in the expertise shared by field instructors and course instructors. Social work clients often rely on the knowledge shared by others in their support or treatment group who may have experienced similar challenges in life.

Knowledge derived from experts and authority is not foolproof, however. First, there may be differences of opinion expressed by different experts. For example, legal counsel on different sides of a court case often engage expert witnesses who have diametrically opposed expert opinions. Jury members are then faced with the challenge of evaluating the experts’ qualifications to decide which opinion is more reliable. Second, the knowledge held by experts and authorities is subject to the same sources of bias and limitation as any knowledge. For example, the expertise of social work supervisors was (at least partially) influenced by their supervisors’ expertise, which was influenced by their supervisors’ expertise, and so on. What if the original was wrong from the start? Or, more likely, what if that knowledge no longer applies to the current environment? In short, faith in the knowledge of authority needs to be tempered by awareness that knowledge from these sources is fallible.

“ Arguments from authority carry little weight—‘authorities’ have made mistakes in the past and will do so again” (Sagan, 1987, p. 12).  

    Imagination and Intuition. Sometimes what a person “knows” is not based on external events or objects, knowledge might be generated as new ideas or concepts completely through internal processes. Imagination, creativity, and intuition are special forms of cognitive activity, resulting in the creation of unique forms of knowledge. You have probably been exposed to examples of highly imaginative, creative art, music, film, dance, or literature. Sometimes the original insights we gain from these creations make them seem like sheer genius. We might say the same thing about a person’s apparent cognitive leaps that we might call intuition: seeming to know something without being able to trace where the knowledge was derived; it comes from reasoning that happens at an unconscious level. These ways of knowing combine elements from other forms previously discussed, but in different ways: perception, memory, emotion, language, and reasoning, for example. This is what leads to that “aha” moment when a new idea is born.

Take a moment to complete the following activity.

Culture and Ways of Knowing .

Earlier, you read that language is one way that culture has a powerful influence on knowledge. The influence of culture is not only in terms of what we know, but also in terms of how we learn what we know. The book Women’s Ways of Knowing : The Development of Self, Voice, and Mind (Belenky, Clinchy, Goldberger, & Tarule, 1986) describes the results of a deep qualitative study of how women develop their views and knowledge. The women’s development of knowledge was heavily influenced by their cultural experiences with authority, particularly in learning from family and schools. The authors included an analysis of five different ways of knowing, outlined below. These may very well express others’ ways of knowing, based on their own experiences with majority culture, not only based on gender.

Silence . As a way of knowing, silence is an expression of “blind” obedience to authority as a means of avoiding trouble or punishment. The concept of silence refers to an absence of self-expression and personal voice. The authors indicated that individuals characterized by silence also found the use of words to be dangerous and that words were often used as weapons.

Received Knowledge.  Carriers of this way of knowing rely on others for knowledge, even knowledge about themselves. They tend to learn by listening to others, lacking confidence in their own original ideas or thoughts. There is a heavy reliance on authority as a source of knowledge. As a result, thinking is characterized by an inability to tolerate ambiguity, and is concretely dualistic—everything is categorized as good or evil, us or them, and black or white with no shades in between.

Subjective Knowledge.  Subjective knowledge is highly individualistic because personal experience, “inward listening” and intuition are major sources of knowledge. A sense of voice exists, expressed as personal opinion. The source of knowledge is internal, and the authority listened to is self—and this knowledge is more important than knowledge from external sources.

Procedural Knowledge.  Objective approaches are applied to the process of acquiring, developing, and communicating procedural knowledge. In other words, careful observation and critical analysis are required. Knowledge can come from multiple external sources, but only after careful internal critical analysis of the arguments provided by those sources. There exists awareness that others and one’s self can be wrong, and an effort to remove the impact of feelings from the process of objective analysis.

Constructed Knowledge.  This is an integrative view where both subjective and objective strategies apply to knowledge. Ambiguity is tolerated well, as are apparent contradictions in what one knows. There exists a strong, constantly developing sense of self in relation to the external world. Constructed knowledge involves belief that knowledge is relative to context and frame of reference, and a person is responsible for actively trying to understand by “examining, questioning, and developing the systems that they will use for constructing knowledge” (see https://www.colorado.edu/UCB/AcademicAffairs/ftep/publications/documents/WomensWaysofKnowing.pdf ).

Thinking about Critical Thinking

As we have seen, much of what humans “know” is susceptible to bias and distortion, often represents only partial or incomplete knowledge, and socially constructed knowledge varies as a function of the different societies constructing it. The concept of critical thinking  describes approaches to knowledge and knowing that rely on disciplined, logical analysis, and knowledge that is informed by evidence. Critical thinking extends beyond simple memorization of facts and information; it involves the analysis and evaluation of information, leading to reasoned, “thought-out” judgments and conclusions. You might recognize elements of critical thinking in the procedural and constructed ways of knowing previously described. A person engaged in critical thinking expresses curiosity about the topic or issue under consideration, seeks information and evidence related to the topic or issue, is open to new ideas, has a “healthy questioning attitude” about new information, and is humbly able to admit that a previously held opinion or idea was wrong when faced with new, contradictory information or evidence (DeLecce, n.d.).

Carl Sagan (1987) argued that critical thinking is, “the ability to construct, and to understand, a reasoned argument and—especially important—to recognize a fallacious or fraudulent argument” (p. 12). To understand what a fallacious argument might be, we can examine the concepts of logic: a branch of philosophy dedicated to developing the principles of rational thought. Sagan’s (1987) discussion of critical thinking indicated that it does not matter how much we might like the conclusions drawn from a train of reasoning; what matters is the extent to which the chain of logic “works.” He also contended that untestable propositions are worthless—if you cannot check out the assertions, it is not worthwhile considering. However, Sagan also reminded readers that critical thinking and science itself exist in a state of constant tension between two apparently contradictory attitudes:

“an openness to new ideas, no matter how bizarre or counterintuitive they may be, and the most ruthless skeptical scrutiny of all ideas, old and new. This is how deep truths are winnowed from deep nonsense” (Sagan, 1987, p. 12).

This quote describes the quality of a critical thinker mentioned earlier: simultaneously being open-minded and having a reasonable degree of skepticism about new information or ideas.

In terms of social work and social work education, being able to apply critical thinking skills, particularly “the principles of logic, scientific inquiry, and reasoned discernment” has been a curriculum expectation since the 1990s (Mathias, 2015, p. 457). The characteristics of critical thinking in social work include rational, reasoned thinking about complex, “fuzzy” problems that lack at least some elements of relevant information and readily apparent solutions (Mathias, 2015; Milner & Wolfer, 2014). Critical thinking in social work practice involves initially suspending judgment, then engaging in the process of generating relevant questions, considering assumptions, seeking information and divergent viewpoints, and applying logical, creative problem solving.

What is (Scientific) Evidence?

Strong arguments appear in the published literature concerning the importance of scientific reasoning in social work practice, and its significance to critical thinking and problem solving (e.g., see Gambrill, 1997; Gibbs & Gambrill, 1999; Gibbs et al., 1995). Francis Bacon is credited with presenting an approach to scientific method that is a foundation for science today (Dick, 1955). The Merriam-Webster definition of scientific method ( https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/scientific%20method ) is:

Principles and procedures for the systematic pursuit of knowledge involving the recognition and formulation of a problem, the collection of data though observation and experiment, and the formulation and testing of hypotheses.

What you may find interesting is that different authors suggest different numbers of steps in the process called scientific method—between four and ten! Let’s look at what these descriptions have in common:

Step 1. It all begins with an observation about something that arouses curiosity. For example, a social work investigator and her colleague observed an emerging population of people who rely on emergency food pantry support for relatively long periods of time—despite the programs’ intended period of emergency support being relatively short-term (Kaiser & Cafer, 2016).

Step 2. The observation leads the curious social worker to develop a specific research question. In our example, the investigators asked what might be “the differences, particularly in food security status and use of federal support programs, between traditional, short-term emergency pantry users and an emerging population of long-term users” (Kaiser & Cafer, 2016, p. 46).

Step 3. Out of their questions, the social work scientist develops hypotheses. This may come from a review of existing knowledge about the topic—knowledge that is relevant but may not be sufficient to directly answer the question(s) developed in step 2. In our food security example, the investigators reviewed information from literature, community practice, and community sources to help identify key dimensions to explore. The hypothesis was, essentially, that exploring three factors would be informative: longevity, regularity, and trends of food pantry use.

Step 4. The social work scientist develops a systematic experiment or other means of systematically collecting data to answer the research question(s) or test the research hypotheses from steps 2 and 3. Kaiser and Cafer (2016) described their research methodology for randomly selecting their sample of study participants, their research variables and measurement tools, and their data collection procedures.

Step 5. The social worker will analyze the collected data and draw conclusions which answer the research question. This analysis not only includes the results of the study, but also an assessment of the study’s limitations of the methods used for the knowledge developed and the implications of the study findings. Our working example from the food security study described the approaches to data analysis that were used. They found that almost 67% of 3,691 food pantry users were long-term users, most commonly female and white. Being a persistent user (versus short-term user) was predicted by having Social Security, retirement, pension, or SSI/disability payment income. Also, the probability of being a persistent pantry user increased with participant age. The authors also discussed other patterns in use as related to some of the other study variables and the implications related to food security and economic vulnerability (Kaiser & Cafer, 2016).

Step 6. Social work scientists share their resulting knowledge with colleagues and others through professional presentations, training sessions, and professional publications. As noted in the reference list to this module, the investigators in our study example published their findings in a professional journal (see Kaiser & Cafer, 2016).

Step 7. The social work scientist then may ask new, related questions, and progress through the stages anew. In our food security example, the authors concluded with a new question: would raising minimum wage or establishing a living wage be a better means of supporting families in the precarious position of long-term dependence on emergency food pantry support?

As you can see, the scientific process potentially incorporates multiple sources of knowledge that we have discussed in this module and allows for inclusion of various methods of investigation depending on the nature of the research questions being asked. The result of quality science, regardless of methodology, is called research or scientific evidence.

In an interview where he was asked if religion and science could ever be reconciled, Stephen Hawking responded:

“There is a fundamental difference between religion, which is based on authority, [and] science, which is based on observation and reason. Science will win because it works.”

It may not be necessary to continue pitting these two ways of knowing against each other. Engaging in science involves multiple ways of knowing. Scientific activity requires a certain degree of imagination about which might be true, rational reasoning about how to demonstrate what might be true, perception and observation of what is happening, memory about what has happened in the past, language to communicate about the process and results, an emotional investment in what is being explored, (sometimes) a certain degree of intuition, and faith in the scientific process and what has come before. Acknowledging the collaborative, constructive, dynamic nature of scientific knowledge development, consider a quote Sir Isaac Newton borrowed from an earlier popular saying:

“If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.”

This does not mean always having noncritical faith in the results of science, however. Scientific results are wrong sometimes. Sometimes scientific results are inconsistent. Sometimes scientific results are difficult to interpret. For example, are eating eggs bad for you? In the early 1970s, a link between cholesterol levels in the body and heart disease was detected. The advice coming from that observation was that people should limit their consumption of cholesterol-containing foods (like eggs) to prevent heart disease. However, this conclusion was based on faulty logic: eating cholesterol was not the cause of the elevated cholesterol levels; cholesterol was being produced by the body. Further research indicated no increased risk of heart disease with eating eggs; the elevated cholesterol problem stems from other unhealthy behavior patterns. This example demonstrates the serial, sequential, accumulating nature of scientific knowledge where previous assumptions and conclusions are questioned and tested in further research. We need to accept a degree of uncertainty as complex problems are unraveled, because science is imperfect. Again, quoting Carl Sagan (1987):

“Of course, scientists make mistakes in trying to understand the world, but there is a built-in error-correcting mechanism: The collective enterprise of creative thinking and skeptical thinking together keeps the field on track” (p. 12).

Critically important is that science be conducted and shared with integrity. Research integrity concerns conducting all aspects of research with honesty, fairness, and accuracy. This includes objectively examining data, being guided by results rather than preconceived notions, and accurately reporting results and implications.  Research integrity , or “good” science means that a study’s methods and results can be objectively evaluated by others, and the results can be replicated when a study is repeated by others. Science nerds enjoy the playfulness presented in the scientific humor magazine called The Journal of Irreproducible Results  ( www.jir.com ).

Take a moment to complete the following activity. For each statement, decide if it is accurate (True) or not (False).

  Imperfect Science versus Pseudoscience.  Even “good” science has certain limitations, imperfections, and uncertainties. For example, conclusions drawn from statistical analyses are always based on probability. In later modules you will learn what it means when a statistical test has p <.05 and about the 95% confidence interval (CI) of a statistical value. In practical terms, this means that we cannot be 100% certain that conclusions drawn from any one study’s statistical results are accurate. While accepting that we should not engage in unquestioning acceptance even of “good” science, it is even more important to avoid unquestioning acceptance of information offered through “poor” science. Especially, it is important to recognize what is being presented as scientific knowledge when it is not science. By way of introducing the importance of scientific data and statistics, Professor Michael Starbird (2006, p. 12) introduced a famous quote by the author Mark Twain:

“There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics.”

Professor Starbird’s response was:

“It is easy to lie with statistics, but it is easier to lie without them.”

Pseudoscience  is about information that pretends to be based on science when it is not. This includes practices that are claimed to be based on scientific evidence when the “evidence” surrounding their use was gathered outside of appropriate scientific methods. You may have learned about “snake oil salesmen” from our country’s early history—people who fraudulently sold products with (usually secret) ingredients having unverifiable or questionable benefits for curing health problems—these products often caused more harm than cure! The pseudoscientific “evidence” used in marketing these products often included (unverifiable) expert opinions or anecdotal evidence from “satisfied” customers. See the historical advertisement about Wizard Oil and all the ills that it will cure: rheumatism (joint pain), neuralgia (nerve pain), toothache, headache, diphtheria, sore throat, lame back, sprains, bruises, corns, cramps, colic, diarrhea, and all pain and inflammation. The product was 65% alcohol and other active ingredients included turpentine, ammonia, capsicum, camphor, gum camphor, fir oil, sassafras oil, cajeput oil, thyme oil, according to the Smithsonian National Museum of American History. Fortunately, Wizard Oil was a liniment, applied topically and not consumed orally.

What does this look like in present times? We still, to this day, have people relying on unsubstantiated products and treatment techniques, much of which can be identified as “quackery.” For example, 9% of out-of-pocket health care spending in the United States pays for complementary health approaches (e.g., vitamins, dietary supplements, natural product supplements and alternative practitioners): over $30 billion (Nahin, Barnes, & Stussman, 2016). Many alternative and complementary health approaches lack a strong scientific evidence base—that does not necessarily mean that they offer no health benefits, but it may be that they do not help and sometimes they cause harm, especially with overuse. Proponents of these approaches adopt what Gambrill and Gibbs (2017) refer to as a “casual approach” to evidence, where weak evidence is accepted equally to strong evidence, and an open mind is equated with being non-critical.

Three reasons why this matters in social work (and other professions) are:

• There may be harmful “ingredients” in these interventions. For example, an untested treatment approach to helping people overcome the effects of traumatic experiences might have the unintended result of their being re-traumatized or further traumatized.
• Engaging in unproven interventions, even if not containing harmful “ingredients,” can delay a person receiving critically needed help of a type that has evidence supporting its use. For example, failure with an untested approach to treating a person’s opioid use disorder extends that person’s vulnerability to the harmful effects of opioid misuse—including potentially fatal overdose. This is difficult to condone, particularly in light of emerging evidence about certain combination approaches, like medications combined with evidence-supported behavioral therapies (medication assisted treatment, or MAT), having significant effectiveness for a range of individuals under a range of circumstances (Banta-Green, 2015).

Treatment failure with untested, ineffectual interventions can discourage a person from ever seeking help again, including from programs that have a strong track record of success. Engaging in these ineffectual interventions may also deplete a person’s resources to the point where evidence-supported interventions may not be affordable.

Despite limitations, pseudoscience does become applied. For example, the book about “psychomythology” called  50 Great Myths of Popular Psychology  (Lilienfeld, Lynn, Ruscio, & Beyerstein, 2010) discusses implications of the myth that most humans use only 10% of their potential brain power. The authors suggest that this myth is pervasive, in part because it would be great if true, and because it is exploitable and lucratively marketable through programs, devices, and practices available for purchase that will help people tap into the unused 90% reserve.

Learning to Recognize Pseudoscience . In Science and Pseudoscience in Clinical Psychology , the authors identified ten signs that raise the probability that we are looking at pseudoscience rather than science (Lilienfeld, Lynn, & Lohr, 2015). In their book Science and Pseudoscience in Social Work , Thyer and Pignotti (2015) help explain these signs. The ten signs are summarized here.

• Excuses, excuses, excuses. When a strongly held belief fails to be supported by rigorous empirical evidence, proponents of that belief may generate excuses to explain away the failure. These excuses are often unsupported by evidence. Hundreds of examples are present in recent political arguments aired on news talk shows. In science, when an expected result is not observed through application of scientific method, new hypotheses are generated to explain the unexpected results—then these new hypotheses are tested through scientific methods.
• Absence of self-correction makes the belief grow stronger . In pseudoscience, erroneous conclusions go untested, so corrections of theory and conclusions do not happen. Proponents of an untested, erroneous belief have no impetus to make corrections and critical questioning may lead them to “dig in their heels” more strongly. Scientists admittedly do make mistakes, but errors are eventually eliminated through application of scientific methods.
• Conspiracy theories. Proponents of a pseudoscientific belief may argue that scientific review of their “evidence” is never going to be favorable because of bias built into the scientific process and the science community. The approach is a “blame the system” strategy, as opposed to recognizing the flaws in their work. Pseudoscience is not likely to survive peer-review scrutiny because the methodologies, assumptions, and/or conclusions are flawed. Of concern in the information technology era are the many open-source journals appearing globally that claim peer-review and falsify editorial board membership. These “predatory journals” do not provide the review services present with legitimate journals and may be challenging for information consumers to spot (more on this topic in Chapter 4).
• & 5. combined: Shifting the burden of proof. A sign of pseudoscientific beliefs involves demanding that critics prove them wrong (rather than assuming responsibility for proving the claim right). In science, the burden of proof is on the one making the claim. This goes along with the sign where promoters of a pseudoscientific claim seek only confirmatory evidence, not any evidence that might disprove the claim. Scientists, however, “bend over backward” to design studies that “test and potentially falsify our most cherished notions” (Thyer & Pignotti, p. 10).
• Unlike anything seen before. A common claim with any pseudoscientific beliefs is that it represents a totally new phenomenon, a dramatically different innovation, unlike anything seen before. In science, innovation is derived from existing models, theories, or interventions. Often the innovation involves a unique, novel, new way of thinking about what came before, but connectivity between past, present, and future can be demonstrated. With pseudoscience, claims of the extraordinary are involved, disconnecting the innovation from anything in the past. “Hence, the well-known saying that extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence applies” (Thyer & Pignotti, 2015, p. 11).
• The power of testimonials. Promoters of pseudoscientific innovations rely heavily on testimonial statements and anecdotal “evidence” provided by those who have been swayed into belief. While it may be true that an individual providing the testimonial was helped by the innovation, this alone does not constitute reliable scientific evidence. It does not attempt to rule out influences such as social desirability, placebo effects, and poor retrospective recall on the person’s perceptions. The proponents of a pseudoscientific claim also do not share any complaints or reports of negative results in their advertising. This is at the heart of recent challenges to how social media product reviews are biased and potentially unreliable.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, consciousness is merely the potentiality of quantum locality expressing itself beyond the constraints of four-dimensional space-time. And, that is the externalization of what we call love.”

“Mindfulness, on the other hand, differentiates itself into the multi-dimensional expanse of external reality. It really is that simple. Quantum perception embraces all potential space-time events exponentially. Cosmic balance is simply the way the universe transcodes the raw potential of quantum energy into unbridled happiness.”

• One size fits everything . In the world of fashion, “one size fits all” is a false claim—there are always going to be individuals for whom that item is too large, too small, too short, or too long. The same is true in social work—the most effective possible interventions still fail to help some individuals. It is important for science to identify for whom an intervention might not work as intended; future scientific work might be able to unravel the reasons and create interventions targeted specifically to those individuals. Pseudoscientific claims tend to be overly inflated—the interventions are often advertised as working for everyone and/or for everything. A scientific approach requires evidence that it works for each condition claimed.
• The Combo Meal.  Just as fast-food eateries offer consumers a combination meal option, rather than ordering individual items, pseudoscientific approaches are often presented as part of a package—where the other parts of the package might have supporting evidence. What makes this pseudoscience is that the new add-ons have not been scientifically evaluated independently, and the combination may not have the support of evidence, either. Science does not stop at demonstrating that an intervention has an effect on outcomes; a great deal of effort is directed to understanding the mechanisms of change, how the changes are produced. Not only would each intervention alone be tested, the mechanisms by which they operate would be studied, as would their interactions when combined.

When broken down and analyzed this way, you might wonder why people believe in pseudoscience, especially in the face of challenges from more critical thinkers. At least two forces are in play at these times. One is that people sometimes desperately seek simple, effective solutions to difficult problems. Parents tormented by watching their child disappear into the altered state of schizophrenia, individuals haunted by the cravings induced by addiction, anyone who experiences wrenching grief over the death of someone they love: these people are particularly susceptible to pseudoscientific claims.

The second reason people often stick to pseudoscientific beliefs despite a lack of evidence relates to a psychological phenomenon known as cognitive dissonance. A significant internal conflict is created when a person’s deeply held belief or attitude is challenged by contradictory beliefs, attitudes, or evidence. The discomfort of this conflicted experience is called cognitive dissonance . The person is left with few choices: change the original belief/attitude to fit the new information, remain in limbo with the two in conflict, or refute the new information and stick to the original belief/attitude. Remaining in limbo is an extremely uncomfortable state, so the person is likely to restore balance and comfort by selecting one of the other two options. Thus, it is not unusual for a person to reject the new evidence and cling to the original belief.

Consider the example of how you might respond to a homeless person on the street who asks you for money. Why does this scenario make you feel uncomfortable? On one hand, you see yourself as a kindly, generous, giving person who cares about other people. On the other hand, you do not want to give your hard-earned money away to strangers. These two beliefs come into conflict when the person in need asks for money, a conflict you experience as the uncomfortable state of cognitive dissonance. (One solution is to resort to rationalization to resolve the conflict and not give the money: it is not good to reinforce this behavior, the money might do harm if the homeless person buys alcohol or drugs with it, someone else with more money than I have will donate, my taxes go to providing services to this type of person so I have already donated, letting on that I have any money will make me vulnerable to being robbed, and other reasons.)

Emerging Science.  Does all of this mean that all unproven techniques are pointless and should be avoided? No, not really. After all, we should consider the observation attributed to Sir Isaac Newton:

“What we know is a drop, what we don’t know is an ocean.”

Knowledge and science are always emerging and evolving. It is possible that what is unheard of today is going to be common knowledge in the future. In other words, what is today an alternative or complementary treatment approach may eventually become a standard practice based on evidence of its effectiveness and safety. For example, not long ago, meditation practices were considered to be unconfirmed alternative mental health intervention strategies. Evidence supports the inclusion of mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) and meditation alongside other intervention strategies for addressing a range of mental health concerns (Edenfield & Saeed, 2012). This includes stress reduction, anxiety, depression, and combat veterans’ post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (Khusid & Vythilingam, 2016, Perestelo-Perez, et al., 2017).

A more current conundrum concerns the use of EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) therapy as a treatment approach for addressing PTSD. As scientific study progresses, elements of this therapy that are similar to other evidence-supported approaches seem to have significant treatment benefits, but it is unclear that all of the eye-movement procedures are necessary elements (Lancaster, Teeters, Gros, & Back, 2016). Investigators are learning more about EMDR as the mechanisms of change in the treatment process are being more systematically and scientifically investigated. This EMDR therapy example fits into that part of the ocean about which we do not know enough. It serves as a reminder that we need to be mindful of the tension between what we know is true, what could be true, and what masquerades as truth.

Distinguishing between Facts and Opinions

We hear hundreds of statements of fact and opinion every day—from family, friends, the media, and experts in our field. It is important to decipher which are facts and which are opinions in making decisions about important matters. A fact is information that can be objectively proven or demonstrated. An opinion is a personal belief or point of view, is subjective, and proof is not relevant. Just because a person expresses an opinion does not mean that person has useful knowledge to impart.

“There are in fact two things, science and opinion; the former begets knowledge, the latter ignorance” (Hippocrates, circa 395 BC).

In a 1987 essay, The Fine Art of Baloney Detection: How Not to be Fooled, Carl Sagan addressed the importance of critical thinking and a healthy degree of skepticism about the information and knowledge that we encounter. He stated that:

“Skeptical habits of thought are essential for nothing less than our survival—because baloney, bamboozles, bunk, careless thinking, flimflam and wishes disguised as facts are not restricted to parlor magic and ambiguous advice on matters of the heart. Unfortunately, they ripple through mainstream political, social, religious and economic issues in every nation” (p. 13).

It is worth noting that they also ripple through the world of professional practice, as well. So, how do we tell the difference when we are provided with practice-related information? Here are some ways of assessing the information (Surbhi, 2016).

• Is the information based on observation or research, can it be validated or verified with pieces of evidence (fact)? Or, is it based on assumptions and personal views, representing a personal perception, judgment, or belief (opinion)?
• Does it hold true in general (fact) or does it differ individually (opinion)?
• Is it presented or described in objective, unbiased words (fact) or is it expressed with subjective, biased words (opinion)?
• Is it a debatable view (opinion) or non-debatable (fact)?
• Facts can change opinions but opinions cannot change facts.

The Problem with Expert Opinion. Over years of practice, social workers develop a wealth of experience in identifying and addressing certain problems encountered in routine practice. Under the heading of “practice makes perfect,” experience contributes to developing a certain degree of practice wisdom and expert opinion. What is important in this label is the word “opinion.” Experience does not change facts, it shapes opinion. Expert opinion is not, in itself, a bad thing to turn to. The problem lies in non-critical reliance on expert opinion. Let’s consider an example that a social work intern experienced in practice.

At intake in a mental health center, Mr. R (aged 34) describes recent scary incidents where he has experienced a loss of memory for certain events and found himself in dangerous situations. Most recently, he “came to” standing on the edge of a river embankment with the potential of falling into rushing water at night. He has complete amnesia for how he came to be at the river. In supervision, the intern suggested two hypotheses: Mr. R has a dissociative disorder and these incidents might involve suicidality, or Mr. R has alcohol (or other substance-induced) blackouts. The intern’s social work supervisor discounted the first hypothesis on the grounds that dissociative disorders do not occur in men, only women. Furthermore, the supervisor stated that dissociative disorders are rare, making it unlikely that the intern would encounter this in a first semester field placement, since most practitioners never see such a case in an entire career. The supervisor indicated that the proper assessment would be a substance use disorder.

Relatively few facts are present in this example. They include:

• Mr. R was seen by the intern at intake to the mental health center.
• The intern was in the first semester of field placement.
• The client provided a description of events.
• The intern offered two hypotheses.
• Dissociative disorders are rare.
• The supervisor did not address the potential suicidality risk of the client’s reported incidents.

The following either fall short of being demonstrable facts or represent opinion:

• The intern has the client’s description of what happened but does not know for a fact that these things happened.
• Dissociative disorders do not occur in men, only in women (they are more common among women but do occur among men).
• Because the disorder is rare, this would not show up in a first-semester internship caseload (a classic logic fallacy).
• The proper assessment is substance use disorder.

Based on this analysis, the social work intern should consider the “expert opinion” of the supervisor but should also seek more information to confirm the hypothesis of a substance use disorder. The intern should also keep an open mind to the other possibilities, including dissociative disorder (often related to a trauma experience) and suicidality, and seek information that either supports or refutes these alternative conclusions.

The Problem with Groupthink . Sometimes an individual makes decisions or judgments in conformity with a group’s thinking, decisions that run contrary to what that individual would have decided alone. The process of group think typically refers to faulty decision-making resulting in a group’s systematic errors. Groupthink is characterized by individuals abandoning their own critical analysis, reality testing, and reasoning—possibly abandoning their own moral reasoning (Street, 1997). An example discussed by the originator of the groupthink concept was the space shuttle Challenger  disaster: the commission appointed to determine the probable causes of this incident concluded, among other things, that “a highly flawed decision process was an important contributing cause of the disaster (Janis, 1991, p. 235). A more everyday example follows:

Four friends on vacation at Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park hiked out to view an active volcano. They arrived at a point where park rangers had posted signs indicating that no one should go further because of the danger of breaking through thin lava. The group members were disappointed that they could only see the active lava flow in the distance. The group’s informal leader announced they had come this far and it looked safe enough; he encouraged everyone to follow him out onto the lava bed to get a closer look. Two other members started to willingly go along with him. One member decided that she was not going to cave in to group think, and told the others so. The two following the leader soon turned back, as well, conceding that this was ill-advised. The “leader” eventually agreed, and returned safely, too.

Critics of the original groupthink model proposed by Janis (1991) argue with the emphasis placed on certain aspects of group cohesion as a precursor to the observation that group decision-making can be faulty. However, researchers have observed that “the propensity for the group to display groupthink symptoms” is greatest when the group is characterized by a high degree of cohesion based on the socioemotional dimension and a low degree of task-oriented cohesion (Street, 2017, p. 78). This difference in groupthink occurrence is attributed to the importance placed on analytical (critical) thinking in task-oriented groups. These findings have important implications for social work practitioners working in organizations and communities, in particular.

Social Work 3401 Coursebook Copyright © by Dr. Audrey Begun is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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Introduction to the Professional Competency Framework in Social Work

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• Ana Opačić 4  

Part of the book series: European Social Work Education and Practice ((ESWEP))

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In past two decades, there has been growing interest to define social work profession within the framework of professional competencies. Professional competencies are considered in their complexity as a triangle of knowledge, skills, and values. Professional competencies are not solely a tool for education and practice but also are important for professional socialization and professional identity. Competency-based approach has been used to define standards and expectations for social workers–practitioners, it is an evaluation tool for formal education programs and lifelong learning programs, it provides guidance for field practice and field placements for social work students and it could be a frame for distinguishing levels of professional expertise. This chapter aims to explain professional competence framework through several basic arguments. First, we will elaborate the concept of “competence” and knowledge-skills-values triangle in social work. We will also elaborate different traditions in considering professional competencies. Moreover, we will map heuristic potential of competency-based approach, including its implications for social work research, for formal education and field practice in social work, for lifelong learning program and professional career development.

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Opačić, A. (2022). Introduction to the Professional Competency Framework in Social Work. In: Opačić, A. (eds) Social Work in the Frame of a Professional Competencies Approach. European Social Work Education and Practice. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-13528-6_1

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• Section 3: MSW Curriculum and Degree Requirements

3.2 Social Work Core Competencies

The social work core competencies.

The MSW curriculum is organized around a set of social work core competencies, representing the dimensions of social work practice that all social workers are expected to master during their professional training. Berkeley MSW students are assessed throughout the course of their graduate study on progress to achieving each of the following social work competencies established for the Berkeley MSW Program:

Competency #1: Demonstrate Ethical and Professional Behavior

Social workers understand the value base of the profession and its ethical standards, as well as relevant laws and regulations that may impact practice at the micro, mezzo, and macro levels. Social workers understand frameworks of ethical decision-making and how to apply principles of critical thinking to those frameworks in practice, research, and policy arenas. Social workers recognize personal values and the distinction between personal and professional values. They also understand how their personal experiences and affective reactions influence their professional judgment and behavior. Social workers understand the profession’s history, its mission, and the roles and responsibilities of the profession. Social Workers also understand the role of other professions when engaged in inter-professional teams. Social workers recognize the importance of life-long learning and are committed to continually updating their skills to ensure they are relevant and effective. Social workers also understand emerging forms of technology and the ethical use of technology in social work practice. Social workers:

• make ethical decisions by applying the standards of the NASW Code of Ethics, relevant laws and regulations, models for ethical decision-making, ethical conduct of research, and additional codes of ethics as appropriate to context.
• use reflection and self-regulation to manage personal values and maintain professionalism in practice situations.
• demonstrate professional demeanor in behavior; appearance; and oral, written, and electronic communication.
• use technology ethically and appropriately to facilitate practice outcomes.
• use supervision and consultation to guide professional judgment and behavior.
• infuse social work principles and interactions with clients and other relevant stakeholders.

Competency #2: Engage Diversity and Difference in Practice

Social workers understand how diversity and difference characterize and shape the human experience and are critical to the formation of identity. The dimensions of diversity are understood as the intersectionality of multiple factors including but not limited to age, class, color, culture, disability and ability, ethnicity, gender, gender identity and expression, immigration status, marital status, political ideology, race, religion/spirituality, sex, sexual orientation, and tribal sovereign status. Social workers understand that, as a consequence of difference, a person’s life experiences may include oppression, poverty, marginalization, and alienation as well as privilege, power, and acclaim. Social workers also understand the forms and mechanisms of oppression and discrimination and recognize the extent to which a culture’s structures and values, including social, economic, political, and cultural exclusions, may oppress, marginalize, alienate, or create privilege and power. Social workers:

• apply and communicate understanding of the importance of diversity and difference in shaping life experiences in practice at the micro, mezzo, and macro levels.
• present themselves as learners and engage clients and constituencies as experts of their own experiences.
• apply self-awareness and self-regulation to manage the influence of personal biases and values in working with diverse clients and constituencies.
• use inclusive strategies that carefully consider  the context of individuals, families, groups, organizations, and/or communities and challenge common assumptions, solicit ideas, and gain inspiration from clients and other relevant stakeholders.

Competency #3: Advance Human Rights and Social, Economic, and Environmental Justice

Social workers understand that every person regardless of position in society has fundamental human rights such as freedom, safety, privacy, an adequate standard of living, health care, and education. Social workers understand the global interconnections of oppression and human rights violations, and are knowledgeable about theories of human need and social justice and strategies to promote social and economic justice and human rights. Social workers understand strategies designed to eliminate oppressive structural barriers to ensure that social goods, rights, and responsibilities are distributed equitably and that civil, political, environmental, economic, social, and cultural human rights are protected. Social workers:

• apply their understanding of social, economic, and environmental justice to advocate for human rights at the individual and system levels.
• engage in practices that advance social, economic, and environmental justice.
• facilitate team and coalition-building and other collaborative strategies for promoting system change designed to reduce social and economic inequities.

Competency #4: Engage In Practice-informed Research and Research-informed Practice

Social workers understand quantitative and qualitative research methods and their respective roles in advancing a science of social work and in evaluating their practice. Social workers know the principles of logic, scientific inquiry, and culturally informed and ethical approaches to building knowledge. Social workers understand that evidence that informs practice derives from multi-disciplinary sources and multiple ways of knowing. They also understand the processes for translating research findings into effective practice. Social workers:

• use practice experience and theory to inform scientific inquiry and research.
• apply critical thinking to engage in analysis of quantitative and qualitative research methods and research findings.
• use and translate research evidence to inform and improve practice, policy, and service delivery.
• use strategies that reduce gaps between science and social work practice including the translation of research findings into social work practice and policy.

Competency #5: Engage in Policy Practice

Social workers understand that human rights and social justice, as well as social welfare and services, are mediated by policy and its implementation at the federal, state, and local levels. Social workers understand the history and current structures of social policies and services, the role of policy in service delivery, and the role of practice in policy development. Social workers understand their role in policy development and implementation within their practice settings at the micro, mezzo, and macro levels and they actively engage in policy practice to effect change within those settings. Social workers recognize and understand the historical, social, cultural, economic, organizational, environmental, and global influences that affect social policy. They are also knowledgeable about policy formulation, analysis, implementation, and evaluation. Social workers:

• identify social policy at the local, state, and federal level that impacts well-being, service delivery, and access to social services.
• assess how social welfare and economic policies impact the delivery of and access to social services.
• apply critical thinking to analyze, formulate, and advocate for policies that advance human rights and social, economic, and environmental justice.
• assess and respond to the political, resource, and technology environments that shape policy practice to effectively advocate for social and economic justice.

Competency #6: Engage with Individuals, Families, Groups, Organizations, and Communities

Social workers understand that engagement is an ongoing component of the dynamic and interactive process of social work practice with, and on behalf of, diverse individuals, families, groups, organizations, and communities. Social workers value the importance of human relationships. Social workers understand theories of human behavior and the social environment, and critically evaluate and apply this knowledge to facilitate engagement with clients and constituencies, including individuals, families, groups, organizations, and communities. Social workers understand strategies to engage diverse clients and constituencies to advance practice effectiveness. Social workers understand how their personal experiences and affective reactions may impact their ability to effectively engage with diverse clients and constituencies. Social workers value principles of relationship-building and inter-professional collaboration to facilitate engagement with clients, constituencies, and other professionals as appropriate. Social workers:

• apply knowledge of human behavior and the social environment, person-in-environment, and other multidisciplinary theoretical frameworks to engage with clients and constituencies.
• use empathy, reflection, and interpersonal skills to effectively engage diverse clients and constituencies.
• demonstrate high quality, evidence-informed engagement skills to address complex systems related to client or community needs in different fields of practice. 

Competency #7: Assess Individuals, Families, Groups, Organizations, and Communities

Social workers understand that assessment is an ongoing component of the dynamic and interactive process of social work practice with, and on behalf of, diverse individuals, families, groups, organizations, and communities. Social workers understand theories of human behavior and the social environment, and critically evaluate and apply this knowledge in the assessment of diverse clients and constituencies, including individuals, families, groups, organizations, and communities. Social workers understand methods of assessment with diverse clients and constituencies to advance practice effectiveness. Social workers recognize the implications of the larger practice context in the assessment process and value the importance of interprofessional collaboration in this process. Social workers understand how their personal experiences and affective reactions may affect their assessment and decision-making. Social workers:

• collect and organize data, and apply critical thinking to interpret information from clients and constituencies.
• apply knowledge of human behavior and the social environment, person-in-environment, and other multidisciplinary theoretical frameworks in the analysis of assessment data from clients and constituencies.
• develop mutually agreed-on intervention goals and objectives based on the critical assessment of strengths, needs, and challenges within clients and constituencies.
• select appropriate intervention strategies based on the assessment, research knowledge, and values and preferences of clients and constituencies.
• demonstrate high quality, evidence-informed assessment skills to address and monitor complex systems related to client or community needs in different fields of practice.

Competency #8: Intervene with Individuals, Families, Groups, Organizations, and Communities

Social workers understand that intervention is an ongoing component of the dynamic and interactive process of social work practice with, and on behalf of, diverse individuals, families, groups, organizations, and communities. Social workers are knowledgeable about evidence-informed interventions to achieve the goals of clients and constituencies, including individuals, families, groups, organizations, and communities. Social workers understand theories of human behavior and the social environment, and critically evaluate and apply this knowledge to effectively intervene with clients and constituencies. Social workers understand methods of identifying, analyzing and implementing evidence-informed interventions to achieve client and constituency goals. Social workers value the importance of inter-professional teamwork and communication in interventions, recognizing that beneficial outcomes may require interdisciplinary, inter-professional, and inter-organizational collaboration. Social workers:

• critically choose and implement interventions to achieve practice goals and enhance capacities of clients and constituencies.
• apply knowledge of human behavior and the social environment, person-in-environment, and other multidisciplinary theoretical frameworks in interventions with clients and constituencies.
• use inter-professional collaboration as appropriate to achieve beneficial practice outcomes.
• negotiate, mediate, and advocate with and on behalf of diverse clients and constituencies.
• facilitate effective transitions and endings that advance mutually agreed-on goals.
• demonstrate high quality, evidence-informed intervention skills to address complex systems related to client or community needs in different fields of practice.

Competency #9: Evaluate Practice with Individuals, Families, Groups, Organizations, and Communities

Social workers understand that evaluation is an ongoing component of the dynamic and interactive process of social work practice with, and on behalf of, diverse individuals, families, groups, organizations and communities. Social workers recognize the importance of evaluating processes and outcomes to advance practice, policy, and service delivery effectiveness. Social workers understand theories of human behavior and the social environment, and critically evaluate and apply this knowledge in evaluating outcomes. Social workers understand qualitative and quantitative methods for evaluating outcomes and practice effectiveness. Social workers:

• select and use appropriate methods for evaluation of outcomes.
• apply knowledge of human behavior and the social environment, person-in-environment, and other multidisciplinary theoretical frameworks in the evaluation of outcomes.
• critically analyze, monitor, and evaluate intervention and program processes and outcomes.
• apply evaluation findings to improve practice effectiveness at the micro, mezzo, and macro levels.
• demonstrate evaluation skills to monitor complex systems related to client or community needs in different fields of practice.

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Social work is an academic discipline and practice-based profession concerned with meeting the basic needs of individuals, families, groups, communities, and society as a whole to enhance their individual and collective well-being.

Females account for around 83% of all social workers. Healthcare social workers and family, child, and school social workers are the highest paying social work jobs. Social workers helped decrease the number of juvenile arrests by 68% between 1996 and 2015. Social workers provide over 60% of mental health services.

Mahatma Gandhi, Jane Addams, Alfred Neumann, Frances Feldman, Ida B. Wells, Harriett Rinaldo, etc.

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September 1

10 Focuses to a First in Social Work Essays

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Introduction

Before you start, this is a long article. You might prefer the pdf version here .

So… You want to write a great social work essay?

It’s deceptively difficult, isn’t it?

I remember the time I got back my first assignment from university. I was so excited.

How high would I get?

Then I saw the mark.

Was it out of 50? No, it wasn’t. it was out of a 100. That’s when I realised that I had

Sitting at the edge of the pool, I felt like crying. I couldn’t believe it. I had come all the way from Singapore to England… to fail?

That’s when I realised I truly needed to bring up my game. If I was not going to be serious, the 35 would not be an isolated event, but a continual series.

This short article covers the series of steps I took to move from failure to first. I hope it helps you on your own journey in social work too.

In this short book, the first 3 focuses cover what happens before your coursework has been assigned. It covers the basics of class-going, reading, and creating the right study environment.

Focuses 4 to 7 cover the writing process, from understanding the essay- writing process, to planning deadlines, to the actual writing itself.

Focuses 8 and 9 share about how you can polish up the essay before submitting, before 10 suggests how you might use the returned coursework as a springboard to your next A.

Note: Please bear in mind, this bears relation to academic papers we must write as part of the social work course and not the performance on placement.

Focus 1: Understand what tutors want

If you don’t know what your tutors want, they will never give you what you want – a high grade. Therefore, it’s important that you and I turn up for our classes. I know, I know, it’s a travesty when universities force you to turn up for class at 9am.

But there’s no excuse if a first is what you want. Appearing at lectures is essential to see what tutors are focusing on when they teach you something. It also helps to see what tutors know, and more importantly, do not know, when they teach.

Why do I say that?

When you write an essay, the thing that differentiates an average essay from an A+ essay is the number of unique insights you give. Rehashing what your tutors have said is simply not going to get you a high grade.

Therefore, when you appear at their lectures, see what they have focused on, you can start giving your own insightful take on what they have said.

To put it more simply,

Basic arguments + Unique Insights = Mark attained

Secondly, when you turn up for your lectures and seminars, you build a treasure trove of insights that other students give when they are in class.

It’s no use to appear at the last lecture, hoping that the tutor is going to give you all the essential tips for scoring an A+. It doesn’t work that way.

Consistency is key.

Focus 2: Read right

When I see students lug their 6 pack Red-Bulls to the library, bring the blanket, and prepare for an overnight stay at the library, I empathise with them.

Why? Because just 5 years ago, whilst I was studying for my A Levels, I was like them. I thought that doing well meant that you had to sacrifice on your sleep, spend long hours at the library, and down litres of caffeine.

When my A-Level results were released, I was deeply disappointed. All those hours of suffering at the hands of caffeine, worrying about work…all that hadn’t worked? What had I done wrongly?

Many things.

But for one, I realised I had not focused on consistent work. Instead, I had focused on bursts. I had failed to realise that the assessment started the day lessons started . This was a crucial insight.

This meant that lessons were no longer a joke, a chance to play with my friends, or to laugh at the homework I hadn’t completed.

It was when the assessment started .

Putting in effort during classes is vital for reducing the amount of work you do for your final assessment. But it does not mean doing everything that the tutor asks you to do.

Nor does it mean reading everything the tutor tells you to read.

When I was at university, everyone used to joke about how they never had to do readings, and yet still managed to survive.

I know readings are long and boring.

But they are important to build your understanding of the topic. In social work, this is vital.

For example, understanding the method of practice is important to help you choose the right method to write about. One that engages you enough to spend weeks researching, writing and editing. You cannot write about something you are not interested in.

There’s an important caveat though – you don’t have to read everything. With readings being hundreds of pages, you would not have enough time physically to read all.

To help you determine what to read, Newport developed a useful heuristic.

Readings that make an argument > Readings that describe an event > Readings that provide context

For example, a reading that explains why we use the relationship-based approach is more important than one describing Gillian Ruch, who brought it into prominence, which is more important than an article describing BASW’s 2019 theme of relationship- based practice.

This is not an excuse to skip readings, but to read the ones that truly matter.

Focus 3: Create the right study environment

When the deadline is close, we often bring along packs of Red-Bull to the library, hoping that the wings Red-Bull gives is going to help us to sail through this assignment.

It works when you want to turn in a mediocre assignment, but for a first, it doesn’t work very well.

That’s because your brain is on a sugary high, and is focused on getting the job done. Rather than trying to draw unique insights from the readings, you are focused on getting the essay out of the door.

To create the right study environment where this cramming does not need to happen, there are 3 essential tips that helped me.

Firstly, study alone.

When you are studying in a group, the tendency is for you to chat from time to time, go out for breaks, laugh together, and end up with little work done. But I’m a social person! Sure, that’s important. But you can always be sociable after the work is done.

This way, you focus entirely on the work that is in front of you, rather than the friend that is beside you. You face little distractions that will take you away from developing a great essay.

Secondly, study in a quiet area.

This is as clear as it gets. studying whilst lying on the bed, with Netflix in front of you, and trying to type out a great essay is not a great idea.

Cal Newport, founder of the famous Study Hacks website, calls it ‘pseudo-working’. Sure, you can complain about the hours you spent on your essay, but how much of it was quality time, instead of quantity time?

When you want to write your essay, take yourself to a library with few distractions around you, and focus.

Lastly, study smart. We are human. Expecting yourself to focus for 2 consecutive hours is impossible.

Rather, it becomes more productive when you focus for 25 minutes, rest for 5 minutes, focus again for 25 minutes, before resting again for 10 minutes.

Called the Pomodoro technique, this breaks work down into more manageable chunks rather than an impossible mountain.

Focus 4: Understand the writing process

Rather than seeing an essay as a whole process of writing, breaking it down into its sequential parts will make the job much more organised, and much, much, more effective.

In the first step of research, determine the necessary sources for your arguments.

Find at least 2 references for each argument before moving on. Reference those arguments correctly, indicating the page number. This makes it easy to put everything together later.

Then, we move onto the writing section. In this section, before you even start writing, construct a proper topic level outline for your essay.

Discuss this outline with your tutor, and get their feedback. Most tutors can’t give direct feedback on written drafts, but they can give feedback on written outlines.

This is important to ensure that your essay is moving on the right track and not going into potential dead-ends. This process of consulting your tutor is explained in the next section.

Then, start writing!

Focus 5: Plan deadlines

After you get your assignment, the next step is to start planning!

It doesn’t matter where you are going if you don’t have a plan. If you don’t care about what grade you get, don’t bother planning! It will be a waste of your time.

But if you do, then plan. The point of planning is that it breaks up what you are doing so that you can know what exactly needs to be done to get to the end.

Here, I have developed a simple worksheet for you to keep track of your writing.

Write down the dates, and keep yourself accountable to them by showing them to a friend.

Focus 6: Consult your tribe

Whatever you are writing, I can guarantee that you will not do well if you keep your outline to yourself.

Why am I so sure?

As humans, we are subject to the confirmation bias.

Bestselling author Rolf Dobelli (2013:23) describes it as the:

‘mother of all misconceptions’, because it is the ‘tendency to interpret new information so that it becomes compatible with our existing theories, beliefs and convictions’. Rolf Dobelli, The Art of Thinking Clearly

This means that however bad the outline you plan is, it will look brilliant to you. Why? Because you are the one who planned it.

That’s why it’s important to give someone you trust, such as your tutor, another colleague, or even your placement supervisor, a quick read through to ensure that you are on the right track.

Tell them to be honest with you about the theories you are using, the arguments you are going to make, and if they have any suggestions for you. This way, you ensure that you are on the right track to success before spending too much time on it.

Even though it might look troublesome and embarrassing, consulting others is very is important.

During my last practice analysis, my mark dropped from a previous high of 85 to 65, simply because I was too arrogant to ask. Just because my first practice analysis had been an all-time high of 85, I thought this meant that I no longer needed any consultation.

Well, now I know.

It’s a little too late now, though.

But I hope that sharing this with you shows you the importance of sharing your outline with someone else, and having the humility to take their feedback into consideration when you craft your eventual essay.

Focus 7: Argue well

This is a distillation of the most useful tips I learnt from 24 years of arguing in school, as a debater, as a writer, and as a student. It is meant as a list of guidelines you should use as you write your essay.

Firstly, when writing your essay, you need to offer a roadmap to the marker. Don’t let them get lost. Where are you taking them on the journey through your essay? For me, it has been useful to write the introduction last , after I’ve been clear about the main arguments and conclusion I will make.

Secondly, always be clear about what your argument is.

Don’t assume that your marker is going to understand it without you stating it explicitly to them. I would suggest you state it within the first two sentences of your paragraph.

Use clear markers such as, ‘I would argue that…’, ‘This essay believes that…’.

Thirdly, connect the dots between each paragraph and your question. Remember to link your argument to the question with concluding words such as therefore, thus, in summary , to illustrate to your marker that you are drawing a link between what you have said to what the question has asked.

Fourthly, let your voice shine through.

During my last assignment, I made the mistake of referencing every other sentence I wrote. An example is shown below.

The social pedagogy approach guided how I related to A. The 3 key concepts involve ‘haltung, head-heart-hands, and the common third’ (Ruch et al. 2017:1016). ‘Haltung’ brings one’s whole self – ‘rational, emotional and practical’ to develop sincere relationships (Ruch et al. 2017:1016). With A, I brought the ‘haltung’ of authenticity. My practice analysis, 2018

Authenticity is not ‘hustling for acceptance and changing who we are to fit in’ (Brown 2018:25). It was embracing myself, and using my ‘self’ to influence A.

My marker commented that it felt quite turgid and stilted. She meant that it had felt unnatural. She had felt that whilst I had referenced well, my own voice had not come through. Therefore, whilst evidencing is good, I would argue that your own perspectives must first be explained before you start throwing in references. This brings me to my next point on referencing.

The best students understand how to question the evidence that is given to them, rather than copying the references wholly from the source. Thus, rather than using references in a descriptive manner, start using it in an analytical manner.

Descriptive

I used the relationship-based approach (Ruch et al. 2017) to work with X.

Ruch (et al. 2017) recommends bringing the authentic self into work with clients. However, with X, I found that this was not necessarily helpful as he tended to overstep boundaries, taking advantage of my kindness.

I hope these 5 tips help you to write better essays.

Focus 8: Work consistently

I like to think of essay-writing as something similar to chopping a tree. You can chop a tree in a day, but it’s difficult. Rather, taking small chops consistently ensures that you can give it a good ‘THWACK!’ each day, and come out alive.

I am aware that you might be reading this as another act of procrastination, telling yourself that you are going to go back to that essay after reading yet another article on how to write a good essay.

Well, it’s not going to work that way.

Working consistently helps. Period. If you like pulling all-nighters, rushing through your essay on the deadline, I cannot stop you. But I’m here to tell you that there is a better way.

To deal with procrastination, your mind needs to be assured that it is going to be able to rest. It hates the fact that you might put it through another all-nighter again, and it starts likening your early attempts to work to an all-nighter.

Thus, to start the ball rolling, building momentum, start with 5 minutes.

5 minutes is all it takes. If you can’t do 25 minutes of reading, just tell yourself, ‘I will do 5 minutes of studying today.’

Time yourself with a stopwatch. The probability is, after 5 minutes, your mind will start gathering momentum and will continue to work.

Use the Pomodoro technique described above to have regular work-rest cycles.

Here is another important tip.

When writing your essay, go offline. As we have discussed in Focus 3 – Understand the writing process , essay-writing is split into research, writing and editing. When you are researching, it’s fine to be online. But when you are writing, go offline.

This removes unnecessary distractions like email, social media, and notifications.

When you go offline, you find it much easier to go into the flow, rather than trying desperately to switch between your browser, your word processor, and your phone. It makes you less likely to procrastinate, because there is nothing to procrastinate on.

Rather than telling yourself that you are going to finish 3000 words on the final day, why not set yourself a more manageable goal of 300 words over the next 10 days? Consistency, not craziness is key to your excellence.

Focus 9: Review your paper

Someone once said, ‘it’s not about the plan, but about the planning.’ Similarly, in essay- writing, it’s not about the final essay, but it’s about the process of constantly reviewing what you have written. We have researched. We have written.

Finally, we come to the editing portion. In his book ‘How to be a Straight-A Student’, which I thoroughly recommend for every student, Cal Newport suggests three different edits.

• Read the paper carefully on the computer, ensuring clarity of argument.
• Fix obvious flaws.
• Rewrite when flow needs improving.
• Print out your essay and read it out loud.
• Highlight or mark any passages that seem unclear and edit it.
• Read over for the final time to fix any remaining flaws.

I don’t know about your tutors, but my tutors were very strict on things like referencing, naming of clients, and naming of organizations.

Editing ensures that these small chinks are ironed out, creating a beautifully crafted paper, ready for a first!

Focus 10: Ask for feedback

No matter how well or how badly you do, it’s vital to learn from it. Don’t simply let it go.

I would say that this is the most important factor in getting a first at social work. Reading the comments about your essay, and the markings on the essay are not particularly helpful in and of themselves. It’s only when you begin to have a conversation about them that it starts becoming helpful.

When you know the points you did well at, you can focus on including more of them in your next essay, so that you can get an even higher grade.

When you know the points you could even improve on, eliminating those pain points ensures that you make the marking process an easy one for your marker.

Arrange a call with your marker to review what you had done well or not so well over the course of your essay.

Many students forget that social work is a social science subject. This means that many of your assignments will be based on your writing capability, rather than your ability to write the CORRECT answer.

There is no correct answer in something subjective like social work. Instead, markers grade you on how well you argue your point, the unique insights you give, and the evidence you have combed through to get to your point.

Therefore, getting your tutor’s feedback on your writing ability, and the points you could improve on is helpful for your future essays. Look at it this way. your tutors do this for a living.

That means they have seen hundreds, if not thousands of essays. They have also probably written hundreds of essays themselves to get to where they are.

They know what qualifies as good writing. Teasing from them the principles of arguing was perhaps the most important lesson of my university experience.

Social work essays can be tough. But they are not that tough.

If you follow the steps here, I hope you find them a little easier.

• Appear at lectures and seminars.
• Ask questions.
• Store insights from classmates and tutors.
• Read right.

You don’t have to read everything!

• Study alone.
• Study in a quiet environment.
• Study smart.
• Have clear dates for significant milestones.
• We are guilty of the confirmation bias.
• Ask for feedback
• Offer a roadmap to the reader.
• Be clear about what your argument is.
• Link your paragraph to your question.
• Let your voice shine through.
• Analyse the evidence.
• 300 words everyday is better than 3000 words on the last day.
• Argument adjustment pass
• Out loud pass
• Sanity pass
• Ask for feedback.
• Ask your tutors: What have I done well? What can I do better?

I hope you enjoyed this short article that distils the essence of how I turned from failure to first in social work.

What helps you get your A? Add a comment below.

Cheers to your next A,

Useful resources

These are a list of resources that transformed my study habits. If you have the chance, read them, and you will see why.

Dobelli, R. (2013) The Art of Thinking Clearly . London: Sceptre Books Newport, C. (2007) How to Become a Straight-A Student: The Unconventional Strategies Real College Students Use to Score High While Studying Less New York: Three Rivers Press.

Wong, D. (2012) The Happy Student. Singapore: Write Editions.

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Writing Guide for Social Workers

Social workers serve as a link between clients and community resources, providing vital human services that assist underserved populations. Writing is a key part of the job; social workers frequently write documents such as assessment reports, case notes, letters, emails, and support plans. Often, social workers are responsible for procuring and providing services for clients, and their writing skills must be strong to enable the best support possible. The social work field has a reputation for bureaucratic red tape and paperwork, but it’s up to skilled social workers to navigate these systems and secure the most useful resources and social services for their clients.

This guide examines the ins and outs of professional writing for social work practice, exploring the main types of writing you’ll likely encounter while studying social work in college. Along with a breakdown of common types of writing, you’ll also find information on style and citation formats relevant to academic writing. Additionally, this guide includes common writing mistakes to avoid, resources to help you improve your general writing skills, and writing resources specifically for social workers.

Types of Writing Social Workers Will Do in School

Personal statements.

The personal statement is a written representation of your interests and abilities, giving colleges a sense of who you are and why you’re interested in social work. Specific topic requirements vary between schools, but the statement of purpose typically calls for you to describe your personal and professional experiences and relate them to the goals of a specific social work program. Schools also use the statement as a social work writing sample, gauging your career motives as well as your creativity, self-awareness, critical thinking skills, and overall writing ability. Common prompts may include describing your background, the development of your interest in social work, your experience with diversity, or your work experience in the field.

A strong personal statement answers all required prompts in a cohesive narrative. The essay should explain your experiences and how they relate to your aspirations while avoiding clichés and overly generalized statements. Almost everyone who goes into social work wants to help people; distinguish yourself from other applicants by explaining precisely why and how you want to help, and what makes this desire unique. Some schools don’t require the statement of purpose, but you should always complete one if you have the option, as it gives the admissions committee a clearer sense of who you are as a student and a social worker.

In many social work programs, exams take the form of essays completed during class. Professors rarely announce the essay topics in advance, but you can prepare by examining the syllabus and determining major course ideas and themes. You may also be able to anticipate potential essay topics by examining previous course materials and looking for patterns in the type of questions the professor assigns. A study group can also help you prepare for essay exams by reviewing the course curriculum and devising possible essay topics with other students.

Before you begin writing an essay, you should first determine exactly what the prompt asks, which ensures that you’re fully prepared to answer the question. Next, compose an outline with a thesis and at least three main points that support your idea. Ideally, you should spend 10-20% of your allotted time devising your main ideas and drawing up an outline. Essay exams must follow the same logical progression of ideas that characterizes conventional expository writing, so be sure to organize your supporting paragraphs properly. While writing the essay should occupy most of your exam time, try to give yourself a few minutes at the end of the exam to proofread your work and make minor revisions.

Research Papers

Of all social work writing, the research paper ranks among the most common. You’ll likely complete several extensive research papers throughout the course of your studies, requiring you to examine and synthesize many information sources on a specific topic. While a research paper is similar to an essay, several key factors distinguish the two forms: an essay typically expresses your own perspective, while a research paper uses the work of others to draw new conclusions on a topic. Research papers are typically longer than essays and require a greater depth of knowledge on a topic. Potential topics for social work research papers vary as much as the field itself and may cover subjects like substance abuse, child and family services, community organizing, or education.

Most research papers either make an argument on a topic or explore overall perspectives on a topic, and some do both. Like other forms of writing, a research paper needs a thesis and supporting information, though the thesis often changes as further research occurs. Since research papers call for substantial information gathering and presentation, outlining and organization are particularly important, and a topic must be complex enough to sustain significant research.

How Do You Write an Essay?

Regardless of your area of study, you’ll likely complete several types of writing throughout the course of your degree. Different essay styles call for different approaches, and the following section outlines the most common essay forms you’re likely to encounter, along with tips for writing them.

• Narrative : A narrative essay allows you to tell a personal story, typically with more freedom than most forms of writing. However, the narrative essay must fulfill certain requirements, such as telling a cohesive, interesting story with a beginning, middle, and end. A narrative essay must also serve a purpose; readers need to understand why you’re telling your story and come away with a message or lesson.
• Expository : The expository essay requires you to explore a topic and make a compelling argument based on your research. An expository essay begins with a clear thesis statement, moves into body paragraphs that support your argument, and ends with a conclusion that sums up your main ideas. Expository writing encompasses many styles, including comparative writing and cause-and-effect writing.
• Persuasive : Similar to the expository essay, the persuasive essay requires you to research a topic and make an argument based on your assessment. However, persuasive essays differ in that they require more extensive research and often entail more writing. Expository essays may occur as in-class assignments or as parts of exams, while persuasive essays often function as final assignments with more time to complete. A persuasive essay still requires a strong, evidence-based thesis and extensive supporting details in its body paragraphs.
• Comparative : A comparative essay examines the similarities and differences between two or more items, which could be anything from political systems to literary texts. After analyzing these items, you must develop a thesis that makes an argument about their similarities or differences. Some comparative essays focus more on similarities to develop a thesis, while others focus on differences. Like other essay forms, the comparative essay needs well-organized points that support a thesis.
• Cause and Effect : This essay type examines a certain event or pattern and attempts to analyze the factors that caused it, making an argument about why the event occurred in such a way. For example, an essay on the Great Depression and the stock market crash of 1929 might examine the various economic and social factors that led to the depression, making an argument about how these factors functioned together to create the situation.

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Citations guide for social work students.

Citation plays an important role in all forms of academic writing, as it ensures that writers properly attribute their research sources and avoid plagiarism. Failure to cite your sources properly can cause major problems in your academic career, and even unintentional plagiarism can result in heavy penalties in the academic world, particularly at higher levels of study. This section outlines the major citation styles used for academic writing, highlighting key differences and presenting examples of each style’s citation format.

American Psychological Association Style

APA style is the citation method of choice in most social science courses, and this format generally serves as the default social work writing style. Since research in the social sciences constantly changes, APA emphasizes the dates of sources to help readers determine their recency and relevance. For in-text citations, APA style uses the author’s name, the date of publication, and the page number. Book citations used in a reference list typically include the author’s name, year of publication, book title, city of publication, and the publisher.

“If the manner of a man’s dying seems arbitrary, his morality is inescapable” (Anderson, 1983, p. 10).

Anderson, B. (1983). Imagined Communities. New York, New York: Verso.

Chicago Manual of Style

The Chicago style ranks among the most comprehensive and complex of formatting choices, and it often serves the needs of high-level academic writing, particularly in the field of history. Unlike most other styles, Chicago calls for the use of either footnotes or endnotes for in-text citations. Numbered in-text citations correspond to notes that indicate the author’s name, book title, publisher information, publication date, and page number. Chicago style formatting also typically includes a formal bibliography at the end of the text.

“If the manner of a man’s dying seems arbitrary, his morality is inescapable.”[1] [1] Benedict Anderson, Imagined Communities (New York: Verso, 1983), 10.

Anderson, Benedict. Imagined Communities. New York: Verso, 1983.

Modern Language Association Format

MLA formatting most commonly occurs in humanities and liberal arts writing, such as English and philosophy. This format emphasizes authorship, with in-text citations that indicate the author’s name and page number at the end of each quotation. For reference lists, MLA format calls for writers to include the author’s name, the title of the work, the publisher, and the year of publication.

“If the manner of a man’s dying seems arbitrary, his morality is inescapable” (Anderson 10).

Anderson, Benedict. Imagined Communities. Verso, 1983.

Associated Press Style

AP style isn’t commonly used for academic writing, but you may find yourself using this style if you’re writing a more journalistic piece. Created for newspapers and other forms of mass media, the AP style emphasizes consistency, clarity, accuracy, and brevity. Since it’s not academic, there aren’t concrete rules for citing particular types of texts, but generally the style calls for the citation of a source directly before or after a quote, often using the words “said” or “stated.”

“If the manner of a man’s dying seems arbitrary, his morality is inescapable,” said Anderson.

The Best Writing Style for Social Work Majors

Social work combines many academic disciplines, but typically, social work courses call for assignments to be formatted in APA style, though this may vary between schools, programs, and individual professors. Your faculty will likely indicate which format they prefer in the course syllabus, but it never hurts to ask. Always be sure to follow formatting instructions exactly, as professors may penalize you for disregarding specific formatting requests.

Common Writing Mistakes Students Make

Active vs. passive voice.

One of the most common mistakes among developing writers is the use of passive voice, which makes sentences wordier, less immediate, and less clear. In the active voice, the sentence’s subject performs the action. Using passive voice, the subject receives the action. Passive construction occurs everywhere in writing, but there are easy strategies to help you locate it and convert your sentences to active voice.

Certain keywords and phrases, such as “by,” “was,” and “it was” often indicate the use of the passive voice. When revising your writing, look for these words and determine if they form part of a passive sentence. For example, if you notice the word “by” connected to the subject of the sentence, see if you can alter the construction so the subject occurs closer to the beginning of the sentence.

Punctuation

Improper comma usage often leads to confusion in writing. One of the most common errors is the comma splice, which occurs when a writer connects two independent clauses using only a comma. For example: “I don’t like accounting class, it’s too difficult.” Both “I don’t like accounting class” and “it’s too difficult” are independent clauses, meaning they can stand as separate sentences. To link these clauses correctly, a comma isn’t enough; you can often correct a comma splice by either creating two separate sentences, using a semicolon to link the two clauses together, or using a coordinating conjunction like “because.”

Incorrect semicolon and colon usage also causes problems for many writers. While they function similarly, these two punctuation marks serve different purposes. A semicolon links two separate, but related, thoughts: “I’m glad I’m going to Europe; I really need a vacation.” A colon typically sets off a list or an example: “I always bring three things on vacation: my camera, my suitcase, and my sunglasses.”

Grammar mistakes hinder writers of all skill levels. In an abstract sense, grammar forms the entire structure of a language and its usage, but in practice, many simple rules exist to help you keep track of and avoid common mistakes. For example, many writers struggle with the use of there, their, and they’re, but the differences in the words are quite pronounced. There indicates a location. Their is the possessive form of they. Finally, they’re is a contraction of “they” and “are.”

Another common grammatical mistake hinges on the confusion between its and it’s. The word its is a possessive that indicates ownership. On the other hand, it’s is a contraction of “it” and “is.”

Writing Resources for Social Work Students

• Purdue OWL : Purdue University’s Online Writing Lab offers support for all types of writing, with a wealth of instructional material that covers general writing strategies and the specific facets of academic writing.
• WiSP : Writing in Social Work Practice seeks to examine the role of writing in the field of social work, with the goal of improving the overall efficiency and effectiveness in social work writing practices.
• Foundation Center : Grant writing plays a major role in social work, and the Foundation Center offers resources to connect social workers with philanthropic organizations and improve grant writing skills.
• Grammar Girl : Casual and conversational, Grammar Girl offers general writing tips for all types of writers. Most articles highlight common writing mistakes and offer strategies for recognizing and fixing them.
• Council on Foundations : Another major resource for grant writers, the Council on Foundations offers online learning and mentorship services that help social workers develop their grant writing and public policy knowledge.

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Social Work Practice Reflective Essay

Introduction.

Social work is a professional area of practice which applies knowledge, skills, research techniques and social theory to improve the lives of individuals, communities and groups.

Social work is considered as a helping profession because it is majorly concerned with the plight of people who are in difficult situations with an aim of helping them overcome those difficulties.

Social workers work in diverse fields both in the private and public sectors such as in rehabilitation centers, child welfare institutions, humanitarian organizations, borstal institutions and homes of the elderly among others (Hare, 2004).

Social workers go through the formal education system with a special bias in the social, biological and behavioral sciences.

During training, they are exposed to field practicum in which they get an opportunity to work with various organizations where they merge theory with practice (Healy, 2008).

Just like other professions such as law or medicine, social work is guided by values, ethics and codes of conduct. Some of the values include competence, integrity, professionalism, social justice and value for human dignity.

Some of the core principles include confidentiality, controlled emotional involvement and client self determination among others. Some of the skills include self awareness, observation and critical thinking (Healy, 2007).

In this paper, I will explore social work practice by looking at oppression of women by men. I will also look into the knowledge, values and skills which are associated with culturally sensitive practice with diverse populations.

Eventually I will engage in a self-awareness exercise by self-administering a value-based assessment and cultural competency inventory; and finally engage in a thoughtful analysis and discussion of my strengths and weaknesses as they pertain to my cultural competency and how I plan to improve on the weaknesses.

Gender and oppression of women

Gender refers to the roles associated with a particular sex, either male or female. Males and females are born with physical and biological differences. Some physical differences include height, appearance, weight and physical strength.

Biological differences may include sexual reproduction organs and hormonal processes. These differences between males and females have been misused to oppress women in several aspects of life like in education, career, power, leadership, employment and management (Connel, 2009).

In the field of management for example, women have been oppressed by men through various ways. For example, the issues of masculinity and femininity have played a role in gendering the field of management (Crosby, Stockdale, & Ropp, 2007).

Many organizations are guided by the principles of masculinity which do not have respect for women. In these organizations, the authority of women managers is not respected as the authority of men managers.

This leads to a situation whereby the leadership or management by a woman may not be as effective as that of a man because the employees in those organizations do not recognize women as a source of authority and therefore, any guidelines, instructions or regulations given by a woman manager may not be taken seriously by the employees (Hartl, 2003).

In many organizations, women do light jobs such as secretarial work or marketing. The central roles are dominated by men who are responsible for planning, policy making and moving the organizations towards the realization of their mission and vision (Rivas, 2013).

Many professional women or the “working mothers” are faced with role multiplicity. At home, they are supposed to be good mothers and wives. They are supposed to ensure that the children are well fed, are healthy and clean (Gregory, 2003).

They are also supposed to take good care of their husbands. At the work place, they are supposed to produce good results either as managers or as normal employees. This makes them fall short of what is expected of them at the work place.

The men on the other hand have very few roles to play at home which leaves them with a lot of time to concentrate on their roles in the work place. Due to this, they are able to meet the set targets or expectations of the organizations (Mason, 2002).

For the women, reproduction is part of labor which they are not compensated for yet if they do not reproduce children, there would be no human resources to work in the organizations.

Women have also been oppressed through promotions in organizations. Some women have to engage in sex with male directors so as to get promoted to the positions of managers.

In the work place, women may be sexually or physically abused by their bosses due to the fact that they are perceived as being inferior and not able to resist the harassment or abuse (Coin & Budapest, 2010).

In some communities especially in the African continent, girls are denied the opportunity to gain education with the belief that women’s role in the society is to give birth to as many children as possible and also entertain the men with sex.

In Kenya for example, the enrollment rates for girls in some communities like the Turkana is less than 10%, meaning that in every 100 girls of school going age, only 10 go to school.

The others are betrothed to elderly men as wives after undergoing female genital cut. This has made women lack leadership, political and technological skills (Kenya National Bureau of Statistics, 2011).

In the developing countries mostly in Africa and Asia, poverty is very rampant. The economies are poorly managed and therefore there are few job opportunities. Many people depend on rain fed agriculture which is not sustainable due to lack of rainfall.

In these countries, most men flee their homes to search for jobs and leave their wives at home with young children. These women are not able to take care of the welfare of the children and they strain a lot to ensure that the children are fed, clothed and schooled.

Some women are forced to engage in prostitution as a source of income for their families. The women in these countries suffer silently because there are very few women in positions of power and leadership who can advocate for their rights.

Women have also been oppressed through being denied the opportunity to inherit property. In the developing countries especially in Africa, women are not supposed to inherit any property from their parents.

Among the Turkana of Kenya for example, if a wife does not give birth to a male child, the husband marries another wife who will give birth to a male child. It is this male child who will inherit all the properties of the parents when they die or when they grow old.

The reasoning behind this is that women are not supposed to own any property but are instead supposed to be owned as property by men.

Since 1974, some improvement has been realized in increasing the number of women in management positions. In the UK for example, the percentage of women who held management positions in 1974 was only 2%. In 2008, the percentage rose to 34.5% (Meulders, 2010).

In other parts of the world, women are almost at par with men in various aspects such as leadership, education and technical know how.

This is not however to say that oppression of women does not exist but what it means is that many people are slowly realizing that women are just like men and what men can do, women can also do it provided that the playing field is leveled.

Effects of women oppression

One of the effects of women oppression in the work place is that it leads to role conflict which eventually leads to stress.

Role conflict refers to a form of disagreement among the roles held by one individual; that is, roles which correspond to various statuses of the same individual. Role conflict pulls an individual in different directions at the same time. It may be short lived or long lived.

A good example to illustrate role conflict is by a working mother. As explained earlier, the mother is expected to deliver good results at the work place and also be a good wife at home through taking care of the children, husband and doing other domestic chores.

At the family level, women are oppressed through various ways such as wife battering, marital rape, female genital cut, being denied opportunity to gain education and inherit property, men running away from home among others.

Domestic violence is the most common form of women oppression at the family level especially in the developing countries. Domestic violence has traumatizing effects on women. Such women need advocacy, empowerment and counseling for them to heal.

There is also need for social workers to agitate for policy change to enable women get education and inherit property. Social workers should also educate the communities to avoid cultural practices which have been used to oppress women.

Social work knowledge

Social workers working with culturally sensitive and diverse populations need to have social work knowledge in specific areas. One of the areas of social work knowledge is the knowledge of human behavior.

Having knowledge of human behavior helps the social workers understand the cultures, values and norms of specific communities.

This in turn helps the social workers package their intervention in such a manner that it does not conflict with the cultural practices, beliefs and norms of the particular communities.

Such knowledge also helps the social workers to understand the cultural prejudices in various communities. This understanding of the cultural prejudices enables the social workers to help the people differentiate the facts and fictions in regard to certain prejudices.

For example, in a community which believes that women are not allowed to go to school, the social workers can help the people understand that women in other parts of the world are allowed to attain eduction and challenge them to change that kind of perception.

Another social work knowledge which is useful for social workers working with culturally sensitive and diverse populations is the knowledge of social justice. Social workers need to have an understanding of social justice so as to help people in communities who suffer social injustice.

The social workers should also educate the people about the concept and show them the importance of embracing social justice.

Social workers working with culturally sensitive and diverse populations also need social work knowledge about the code of conduct for social workers and the ethics which govern the profession of social work.

This knowledge can help the social workers avoid unprofessional conduct which might conflict with certain values, norms and practices of particular groups.

Social workers working with such populations also need an understanding of human rights.

For example, they need to understand the various international laws, treaties and conventions which stipulate various human rights for different categories of people such as employees, children and women among others.

This understanding can help the social workers educate the populations for them to know when their rights are violated and what they are supposed to do. However, the social workers must do it in a professional manner so that they are not accused of incitement.

Social work values

One of the values for social workers working with culturally sensitive and diverse communities is the value of service to humanity.

This value is very important for the social workers because it enables them to serve the populations irrespective of their cultural, religious, economic and historical orientations.

Social workers without this value may have difficult time and in some cases, they may find it almost impossible to work with some cultural groups.

The value of service to humanity also enables the social workers to appreciate and empathize with the populations without necessarily sympathizing with them.

Another value which is important for social workers working with culturally sensitive and diverse populations is the value of human dignity. Social workers must understand that they have an obligation of respecting the clients and their cultural practices.

They have to put aside their personal biases against a certain group for them to help the clients. Some times social workers may consider some practices as weird.

However, with the value of human dignity, they are able to acknowledge the fact that clients have a right of self determination. When they understand this, they are able to assist the clients without any obstacles.

Social workers also need to have the value of competence and integrity. They need to apply their knowledge, skills and techniques in a professional manner when dealing with clients.

The essence of this is that competence and integrity enable the social workers to avoid any questionable behavior or practice. It also enhances the trust and confidence of the clients in the social workers.

This also enables the clients to open up to the social workers and give as much information as possible. With the information and cooperation from the clients, the social workers are able to solve the problems affecting the clients or refer those which they cannot handle.

This enhances the acceptance of the social workers by the communities (Morreau & Benson, 2012).

Social work skills

One important skill which social workers working with culturally sensitive and diverse populations should have is the skill of observation. Observation has to do with going beyond what people say and focusing on their body language and reaction to some social situations.

The skill also has to do with doing more listening than talking. This is because the social workers are supposed to treat the clients as the best teachers of their own problems.

If the social workers do more listening and observing than talking, they are able to gather as much information as possible which is very crucial for the interventions.

Another skill for dealing with culturally sensitive and diverse populations is the skill of critical thinking. This has to do with how social workers interpret the information they gather from clients either through interviewing, listening, observing or reading.

The social workers should apply critical thinking in order to interpret the information correctly. Lack of critical thinking may lead to wrong diagnosis, treatment and intervention. The social workers should therefore understand the information correctly without any personal biases

Another skill which is important when working with culturally sensitive and diverse populations is the skill of self awareness. Social workers need to understand how their background, perceptions, biases, motivations and prejudices may affect their relationship with clients.

If social workers have low levels of self awareness, chances of acting improperly are increased. It is therefore very important that the social workers put aside any subjective reasoning and replace it with objectivity for them to be able to effectively assist the clients.

The skill of self awareness also helps the social workers to identify transference in clients. Transference is a situation in which clients associate their fate with the social workers.

For example, a female client whose husband is violent may easily confuse a male social worker for her husband; she may do this through making statements such as ‘you men are really bad’.

In such a situation, the social worker is supposed to counter the transference by helping the client understand that his role is to help her out of the problem and not to take the blame of others (Tsui, 2010).

Social workers working with culturally sensitive and diverse populations also need to have excellent verbal communication skills. This is because communication is the only way that the social workers can use to understand the clients and for the clients to understand the social workers.

They must be able to understand how to communicate with different groups at different times. For example, the way a social worker is supposed to talk to an elderly refugee woman is not the same way he or she can talk to a young child who is a school drop out.

Verbal communication is an important asset for social workers working with culturally sensitive and diverse populations because it enables them to effectively advocate for the clients especially those who are oppressed or marginalized.

The skill can enable social workers to influence policy change or development for the improvement of people’s welfare. Apart from verbal communication, social workers need to have the skill of documentation.

Proper documentation enables social workers to keep track of every aspect of their interventions and this becomes an asset for them when they want to influence the development or change of a certain social policy.

Cultural competency inventory

My total score for the value based assessment and cultural competency inventory is 75. What this means is that I am headed in the right direction as far as embracing cultural diversity is concerned.

I would have wished to score 80 and above but this is not the case, probably because I am yet to cover some topics in therapeutic approaches and the relationship between myself as a therapist and clients.

My strengths and weaknesses in cultural competency

Based on my value based assessment and cultural competency, there are the areas which I scored poorly and others which I scored well. Those which I scored well are my areas of strength while those which I scored poorly are my areas of weakness.

One of my strengths in cultural competency is that I like meeting new people especially those who are different from me in terms of race, gender and culture. Being a Russian lady for instance, I like associating myself with African or Asian men.

I also love and embrace the culture of non whites such as the African Americans and Asian Americans. Another area of strength is the fact that I understand that I am independent and do appreciate the views of other people even if those views are in contrary to my own views.

I am able to control my personal biases when interpreting the actions of those who are different from me. I also appreciate various communication methods used by various groups of people.

Similarly, I am able to understand that other people may stereotype against me and therefore I am able to work against those stereotypes in order to interact with such people in a harmonious manner.

I am also good in sorting out my values to know which one to compromise in order to communicate with others without losing my integrity as a social worker. I am also able to seek clarifications from people in regards to what they are saying so as to get the correct meaning of what they say.

I like and accept others they way they are and avoid any remarks which may hurt certain groups in the community such as women, the people of color or those who are less fortunate in the society.

One of my main weaknesses is that I do more talking than listening. This is because sometimes I listen as I talk. This is not good because I may not be able to capture what the other person is saying. I may also not be in a position to observe the body language of others which is also part of listening.

Sometimes I also use my cultural jargon or slag when talking to people from other cultural backgrounds. This is a weakness because others may mistaken my language jargon as lack of respect for them.

I am also weak in judging people based on the fluency of their languages. This is a weakness because it amounts to biases which may lead to wrong interpretation of messages by those who are from other cultural backgrounds.

Sometimes I use some ethnic jokes when referring to some groups of people who are from different ethnic backgrounds but I get offended when others use the same language on me. This is a weakness because some ethnic jokes may hurt or provoke some people.

I plan to improve my areas of weakness by doing further reading on the area of human behavior. I also plan to gain more knowledge in interpersonal skills and how to gain and apply them in various cultural settings.

Also in my plan is to learn how to appreciate others and how to avoid judgmental attitudes towards particular populations. I also need to check on my listening skills by learning the art of doing more listening than talking.

This is because doing so would boost by ability to get as much information as possible from others and especially from clients.

My conceptual framework for practice

My future conceptual framework as a social worker is the strength based perspective of social work practice. This perspective has to do with using people’s strengths as a basis of therapy.

The perspective aims to capitalize on the strengths of clients (individuals and groups) to form a strong foundation for therapy.

It is based on the belief that despite the fact that people have problems, there is something which they are good at or they have some useful information, history or practices which can be used to overcome the problems which they are faced with.

It is also based on the belief that empowering people with information is useful for successful therapy (Rapp, 2007).

Implications of the perspective to practice

One of the implications of the strengths based perspective to practice is that it has reversed roles between the therapists and the clients. What this means is that the therapists must restrain their expertise and make the clients be the experts in solving their problems.

The therapists are supposed to play the role of empowering the people to become experts in addressing the problems which face them.

In other words, the therapists’ role is to create a sustainable intervention such that the clients are able to handle their problems even without the assistance of the therapists.

Social workers using this perspective must therefore refrain from using stigmatizing language, having negative perceptions and labeling when dealing with clients.

This is because such negative language or perceptions interferes with the ability of the social workers to effectively capacity build and empower the clients (Rapp, 2007).

When capacity building and empowering clients, social workers must be realistic; that is, they must ensure that the clients actually have those strengths which can be used as a starting point for a sustainable intervention.

They must also consider the magnitude of the problem affecting the clients and evaluate the clients’ ability to effectively handle the problem when empowered (Rapp, 2007).

Oppressed women usually suffer from stigma and feelings of inadequacy. They also undergo through emotional, psychological and social distress due to oppression.

As a social worker working with oppressed women, I will apply the strengths based perspective to empower such women with information so as to resist oppression by men. For instance, I will educate them about their rights to education, employment and fair treatment.

I will also highlight their areas of strength when dealing with men. For example, the fact that women are very good in negotiations, have patience and do not easily lose their temper can be used by a woman who is a victim of domestic violence to talk to the husband to avoid such violence.

I will also empower the oppressed women with information, skills and tactics of resisting male oppression both at the family setting and at the work place.

For example, I will inform them of the relevant agencies where they can report any form of oppression without the fear of victimization. Through this perspective, I will go a long way in fighting the vice of women oppression.

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Morreau, W., & Benson, K. (2012). Human trafficking: Improving victim identification and service provision. International Social Work, 55: 488-503.

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Rivas, F.S. (2013). Burnout, workplace support, job satisfaction and life satisfaction among social workers in Spain: A structural equation model International Social Work, 56: 228-246.

Tsui , M. (2010). From resilience to resistance: A reconstruction of the strengths perspective in social work practice. International Social Work , 53: 233-245.

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IvyPanda. (2023, December 29). Social Work Practice. https://ivypanda.com/essays/social-work-practice/

"Social Work Practice." IvyPanda , 29 Dec. 2023, ivypanda.com/essays/social-work-practice/.

IvyPanda . (2023) 'Social Work Practice'. 29 December.

IvyPanda . 2023. "Social Work Practice." December 29, 2023. https://ivypanda.com/essays/social-work-practice/.

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Student voices

Get the student perspective on life at York

• My experience as a Social Work student

19 January 2022 by Charlotte

I have always been the type of person to care about those around me and always wanted a career where I could help people to improve themselves and/or the situation they are in. I felt social work was the perfect career path for me as the whole nature of the job is to support and empower people within society.

What kind of impact do you want to make on people’s lives?

I hope to make a positive, hopefully, life-changing impact on people’s lives. I would like to think that the social worker I become is able to better people’s lives and empower them for the future.

What advice would you give to any A-level or BTEC students about their studies?

When it came to uni, I found it helpful to have an understanding of social work and be able to apply elements of it to my personal life. My advice would be if you can get any work experience or volunteering in then definitely do that – you can reflect on it in your university interviews!

What advice would you give to these students about: a) getting relevant work experience; and b) about developing the right skills and knowledge for social work?

In my opinion, any work experience working with people is beneficial as you come across things that relate to social work every day! But make sure you get work experience in something that interests you. I had mine in a primary school! 

Before I started the degree, I did some wider reading and understanding of what social work involves, as well as understanding the Professional Capabilities Framework (PCF) model and other important frameworks. Many unis put reading lists available online for you to find before starting your degree.

What have I enjoyed the most about the course so far?

In my opinion, the people on my course are what I have enjoyed the most, getting to know each other and our personal life experiences. As well as making new friends and getting to know the supervisors and lecturers. 

Has anything surprised you?

I found the assignment rather enjoyable, which was a shock to me as I hated writing in A level studies. I liked how you are able to apply your learning actively when writing the assignment. As well as researching your answer and learning new things within them.

Has your understanding of social work changed since you started the course and if so, how?

I would say my understanding of social work has changed since the course has begun. Now, I have a wider understanding of the history of social work and how it has changed over the past century within the UK and will continue to change. I would also say my understanding of how social policy impacts social work has changed – I never realised how much social work is dependent on policies.

Read more student stories about studying Social Work at York

About Charlotte

Hi, I'm Charlotte, a 2nd Year Social Work student here at York.

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These blogs represent students’ views and reflections, at the time of publish. For course details and the official information please always refer to the University of York website .

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