Social Work Communication Skills

Effective communication skill is one of the most crucial components of a social worker’s job. Good communication skills help to build a relationship between the worker and client. Social workers need to communicate well with clients and other professionals in order to access relevant information. Communication in the therapeutic process usually consists of verbal and non-verbal interaction between the worker and the client. The Social Worker uses communication techniques in therapy sessions with the client and also teaches communication techniques to the client, such as I messages, assertiveness, reflection etc. The social worker should always be aware of client’s cultural differences and use communication skills that will be respectful of

Confrontation is a method of helping a client to become more self-aware of components of his /her thoughts. When using interpretation, the social worker suggests a new meaning or way of viewing a problem or event in response to the feelings and meanings a client expresses. Interpretation responds to the complete elements of a client’s message. Summarization can be used to summarize a section of an interview or a lengthy client statement. Summarization is also useful for helping a client to see connections among several ideas or feelings the client

A passive therapist who does not direct the therapy session may cause the client to fall to reveal all necessary information. Excessive interruptions during the therapeutic session may convey to the client that the therapist is more interested in things other than the session or the client. A social worker should consider cultural differences when communicating with clients. If a client does not speak or understand English, the first step in the helping process would be to obtain an interpreter, preferably one from the clients own