Shared values are essential in the creating a successful relationship between the client and social worker. Social workers operate within society, not only to assist the individual but to create a more cohesive society. Values and ethics permeate the whole of social work practice and the society within which it practices (Shardlow 1989). Values are afforded a high position within social work, this is highlighted in: “Social work is a professional activity. Implicit in its practice are ethical principles which prescribe the professional responsibility of the social worker” (British Association of Social Workers (BASW) Code of Ethics). However, there is a danger that any list of values will become something which is quoted as opposed to a useful tool for practice. Values can be helpful as they enable the social worker to analyse their practice in relation to the expectations of the law and the needs of the people they work with.
What are values? Is there a place for them in contemporary social work? Is it even possible to define what constitutes values in contemporary social work? Biestek created a list of seven principles with the intention of showing social workers how clients ought to behave. These principles may have been well meaning but they hardly reflect everything that is going on in contemporary society. The very existence of a list of morals can be damaging to social work as it creates a feeling of security based on the presumption that the list itself incorporates everything required for successful practice. Values determine what a person thinks they should do, which may not exactly be the same as what they want to do. Personal values allow us to evaluate the actions of others in relation to our own...
... middle of paper ...
...) Ethical Issues in Social Work, Routledge
National Association of Social Workers (1980) Code of Ethics of the National Association of Social Workers, NASW: Silver Spring, Maryland
Payne, M (1997) Modern Social Work Theory. Second edition. MacMillan
Plant, R. (1970) Social and Moral Theory in Casework, London, Routledge and Kegan Paul
Repper, J. & Perkins, R. Social Inclusion and Recovery: a Model for Mental Health Practice, Bailliere Tindal
Shardlow, S.M. (1989), The Values of Change in Social Work, Routledge: London
Taylor-Gooby. P (1981) Social Theory and social welfare, Edward Arnold. London
Thompson, N. (1997) Anti-discriminatory Practice (2nd Ed), London Macmillan
Thompson, N. (2000) Theory and Practice in Human Services, Buckingham, Oxford University Press.
Wilson, K. et al (2008) Social Work: An Introduction to Contemporary Practice. Pearson, London
Entering the field of social work you must be prepared to encounter many personalities. Knowing this, you have to become aware of people with different backgrounds and morals. By doing this you will be able to help your clients to the best of your ability, without forcing your personal beliefs or values on to them. A value is a set of rules or or beliefs that affect your every day decisions (Sheafor & Horejsi, 2011). Applying your personal values to every situation is very important, however, you must learn to separate what you know and what is in actuality the best outcome for your client. I will be discussing the ways I feel about the “Vignette’s”, while also incorporating different things I have learned from the readings and class discussions.
First, the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) Code of Ethics Preamble (2008) states, “The primary mission of the social work profession is to enhance human wellbeing and help meet the basic human needs of all people.” In RCT, the goal is also to enhance wellbeing through the basic need for connection and growth-empowering relationships which is based on mutual empowerment for all people (Banks, Jordan, & Walker, 2011). Further, the NASW (2008) lists their core values to be: “service, social justice, dignity and worth of the person, importance of human relationships, integrity, and competence.” All of these values define RCT, because it emphasizes human relationships and the “five good things” (Jordan, 2008, p.2) that promote authenticity, respect, self-esteem, dignity, equality, and acts that promote relationships that empower others for an inclusive society (Banks, Jordan, & Walker,
As a student new to social work, The Code of Ethics written by the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) is in the forefront of my mind whenever practicing my freshly learned skills. According to the Code, these rules were written as the “values, principles, and standards to guide social workers’ conduct” (Code of Ethics - NASW, n.d.). Within my most-recent session, certain aspects of this code were relevant, including informed consent, privacy and confidentiality, a commitment to the client, the dignity and worth of a person, the importance of human relationships, integrity and competency of the worker, and social diversity.
National Association of Social Workers [NASW]. (1998). The New NASW Code of Ethics Can Be Your Ally: Part I. Retrieved from: http://www.naswma.org/displaycommon.cfm?an=1&subarticlenbr=96
According to NASW (2010), values are descried as the mission of the social worker in which this includes service, social justice, dignity and worth of the person, importance of human relationships, integrity, and competence. An essential value that is applicable to my practice setting is the service value. This value is define as the social workers’ priority to help people and addressing social problems in the environments As an intern, it has been a priority to provide services to our client depending on their specific needs. There has been times that client have needed transportation in order for them to attend monthly events, clothes’ donations, and mentoring services. Another importance value that
The NASW (National Association of Social Workers) Code of Ethics is intended to serve as a guide to the everyday professional conduct of social workers. This Code includes four sections. The first Section, "Preamble," summarizes the mission and core values of the social work profession. The second section, "Purpose of the NASW Code of Ethics," provides an overview of the Code 's main functions and a brief guide for dealing with ethical issues or dilemmas in social work practice. The third section, "Ethical Principles," presents broad ethical principles, based on social work 's core values, that affect social work practice. The final section, "Ethical Standards," includes specific ethical standards
These are the values that all social service workers must follow. I feel that the most important value that underpins social care practice is trust. It is very important that the person being cared for trusts you as their social service worker. The best way to do this is to develop a strong relationship with the person so that they know that they have someone they can speak to if they ever have a problem. This value is described in various different ways within the SSSC codes of practice. One of these codes states that as a social service worker should be seen as “being reliable and dependable” (SSSC,2009:2.4) if you are always there for them then they will be able to trust you. Another value that is related to the SSSC codes of practice would be the value of respect. All clients want to be and deserve to be respected by everyone especially their social service worker. This also means respecting their personal belongings as well as them as a person. As a social service worker your role includes “treating each person as an individual” (SSSC,2009:1.1) this just means that everyone should be accepted for who they are and treated with the utmost
The Australian Association of Social Workers (AASW) Code of Ethics (2010) proposes three core values of Social Work, respect for persons, social justice and professional integrity (pp.12). These core values establish “ethical responsibilities” for the social worker (AASW, 2010, pp.12), specifically, the value of respect for persons, which sustains the intrinsic worth of all human beings as well as the right to wellbeing and self determination consistent with others in society (AASW, 2010,p.12). This Code of Ethics stipulates the duty of care a social worker must provide, a...
The six core values that are described in the Code of Ethics by the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) are social justice, service, importance of human relationships, dignity and worth of a person, integrity, and competence. According to the NASW (2016), these core values are the foundation for the purpose of the social work profession. It is essential for social work professionals to be able to put aside their personal values, and embody these core values when working with clients.
The following paper aims to discuss and analyze the way in which my personal values intersect with the values I hold as most important within the profession of social work. It would stand to reason that these values would stand on common ground; however, there are places where my personal and professional values diverge. These conflicts may prove to be problematic within my chosen career unless I find a way to prioritize my values, or find ways for them to work harmoniously with each other.
Her scientific casework methods are still used in assessing clients in today’s practice. The Social Work profession also built off her values of individuality, dignity, and importance of human relationships in the core values of the profession, these can be seen in the National Association of Social Workers’ Code of Ethics. While Social Workers still follow most of Richmond’s values today, other values have been re-evaluated as time has progressed. Instead of Richmond’s suggestions of gathering personal information without the client’s knowledge (Pumphrey, 1961), the Social Work profession now values confidentiality and privacy when dealing with clients.
Prior to having the class of Professional Values and Ethics, I assumed I understood the basic concepts of what defines a professional who has competence of values and ethics. Nevertheless, by being enrolled in this course, I have gained great knowledge of which professional values and ethical principles must be held by a social worker, which I did not know before. Progressively in this class, by learning professional values and ethics, my motivation to succeed as an upcoming social worker has gotten stronger.
The six core values of social work should guide and impact how social workers act and treat their clients. A social worker must show anyone who they come in contact with that they are valued by serving, standing up against injustices, letting them know they have inherent worth, teaching them the importance of healthy human relationships, having integrity, and being competent. These values are necessary to apply not only to the professional areas but in our daily
Values are described as set of rules and guides in the right and wrong decisions we make. Values facilitates the decisions in recognising what is worthy and valuable, with this, weighs out the important and less important, when there is a conflict of values. Ethics is set of moral principles of values, and these contribute to individuals and what groups live by. Ethics consists of factors being culture, religion, and these continuously effect a person’s beliefs and ethics. As individuals continues to develop and there adapt different values with ethics. This is through past experiences and the expectations as our life pattern changes. Core values in social work practice are the code of ethics informing our understanding of the difference and diversity. Social work profession is evaluated by a whole set of guidelines, measures put in place by regulatory body, giving the movement to put in place new governmental laws and guides within this field.
There are certain ethics that social workers must follow and is a guidance for professional standard of work. However sometimes people are not aware of their own values, though the more fully conscious someone is about their values, the more people are able to ensure that their actions are consistent with the values. As a social worker it is vital to know the dangers of not taking account of values and the ethical dimension of practice. A social worker should see their client for who they are and not just another object that is unclear by their own emotions hence why self-awareness is a key to