Principles Of Empowerment: Applying Theory To Generalist Social Work

Words never fade. Whether they help or hurt an individual, words influence his or her thoughts, beliefs, and behaviors long after he or she hears them. Even though Mother Teresa has passed away, her work and quotes influence me as an aspiring social worker. She once said, “I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the waters to create many ripples” (as cited in Bradberry, 2015). Mother Teresa worked in the slums of Calcutta, India with the poor and the outcasts. Even though her outreach was limited, she influenced the entire world by creating ripples. I desire to be a social worker that continually welcomes those who need empowering while simultaneously creating ripples to the broader society.
Empower the One and Ripples

One of the principles of empowerment theory is that an increase in personal self-efficacy creates a higher potential for social action (Langer & Lietz, 2015, p. 173). Thus, when empowering individuals, they become stones that create ripples in their own lives. One illustration of this idea occurs when a whole system changes as the result of one person’s modification (Langer & Lietz, 2015, p. 38). Various other social work theories, such as empowerment or narrative, also emphasize a dual perspective. This perspective entails viewing consumers’ circumstances and the societal forces or ripples that influence their position in society concurrently (Langer & Lietz, 2015, pp. 173, 188 ). In fact, the ecosystems theory adheres to this logic, and social workers apply to a wide range of professional activities (Langer & Lietz, 2015, pp. 42, 164). Through helping consumers understand how institutions and socialization affect them, social workers open a door to possible social action. Some practitioners spearhead social action themselves rather than through a consumer. An example of this is leading the creation or change of policy on a macro-level, even if the intention is to benefit consumers. Although Mother Teresa was not a social worker, she worked at both the micro and macro-levels to create ripples of