Transcript Document 7262280

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MENU
SWK 101
Introduction to Social Work
and Social Services in Singapore
Study Unit I, Chapter 3, Topic 1:
Theories in Social Work
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Introduction
Social theory is a broad area, comprising
many discourses about society, humans and
human social action, touching on most
philosophical issues. There are hundreds of
different social theories. This module will
focus on the Bio-medical Model, General
Systems Theory, the ecological perspective,
person-in-environment,
Bio-psychosocial
Model and the strength perspective which are
all central in helping us understand human
relationships with the environment.
Introduction
According to the International Federation of Social Workers:
•
•
•
Social work bases its methodology on a systematic
body of evidence-based knowledge derived from
research and practice evaluation, including local and
indigenous knowledge specific to its context.
It recognises the complexity of interactions between
human beings and their environment, and the capacity
of people both to be affected by and to alter the
multiple influences upon them including biopsychosocial factors.
The social work profession draws on theories of human
development and behaviour and social systems to
analyse complex situations and to facilitate individual,
organisational, social and cultural changes.
Source: http://www.ifsw.org/en/p38000208.html
Bibliography
Bertalanffy, L. von (1968). General Systems Theory. New York: George Braziller.
Bronfenbrenner, U. (1979). The Ecology of Human Development: Experiments by Nature
and Design. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Engel GL: From biomedical to biopsychosocial: being scientific in the human domain.
Psychosomatics 1997; 38:521–528
Germain, C. B. (1979). Introduction: Ecology and social work. In C. B. Germain (Ed.).
Social work practice, people and environments: An ecological perspective (3-22).
New York: Columbia University Press.
Richardson, G. P. (1991). Feedback thought in social science and systems theory.
University of Pennsylvania Press, Philadelphia.
Saleebey, D, ed. (1992) The Strengths Perspective in Social Work Practice. New York:
Longman.
Shah, P & Mountain, D. (2007)The medical model is dead - long live the medical model.
British Journal of Psychiatry, 191, 375-377
Weick, A. (1981). "Reframing the Person-in-Environment Perspective." Social Work 26:
140-143.
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Importance in Understanding Social Work Theories
Observation
• It tells us what to see and what to look out for.
Description
• It provides a conceptual vocabulary and framework
within which observations can be arranged and
organised.
Explanation
• It suggests how different observations might be linked
and connected; it offers possible causal relationships
between one event and another.
Prediction
Intervention
• It indicates what might happen next.
• It suggests things to do to bring about change.
The Bio-Medical Model
PROS
Provides a humane approach to treating people
with emotional or behavioural problems as prior
to that, these people were thought to be demonpossessed, viewed as mad, blamed for their
disturbance and often beaten or locked up.
CONS
Problematic as as it reduces complex social
and interpersonal issues to a matter of
individual failing and dysfunction.
General Systems Theory
In the 1960s, social work began questioning the usefulness of the medical
model. Environmental factors were shown to be as important as internal factors
in causing a client’s problems. Social work then shifted some of its emphasis to
a reform approach which seeks to change systems to benefit clients (healthy
start and special education are examples of efforts to change the system to
benefit clients).
Since the 1960s, social work primarily used a systems approach in assessing
human behaviour when working with the individual, groups, families,
organisations and communities.
The system perspective emphasizes the importance to look beyond the client’s
present problems to assess the complexities and interrelationships of the client’s
life situation.
General Systems Theory
Developed by biologist Ludwig von Bertalanffy in 1936.
General Systems Theory is an inter-disciplinary field of
science and the study of the nature of complex systems in
nature, society and science. More specifically, it is a
framework by which one can analyse and/or describe any
group of objects that work in concert to produce some
result.
Von Bertalanffy (1968, p. 33) points out, "there are many
instances where identical principles were discovered
several times because the workers in one field were
unaware that the theoretical structure required was already
well developed in some other field. General systems theory
will go a long way towards avoiding such unnecessary
duplication of labour.”
Systems are a set of “objects” and the achieved by the
relationships between these objects and their attributes.
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General Systems Theory
Key concepts of the General Systems Theory are wholeness, relationship and
homeostasis.
Wholeness means that the object or element within a system produces an entity that is
greater than the additive sum of its separate parts. Hence, it is important to
understand the system in its entirety, rather than break them down into its separate
part. Hence, we should not seek to understand the object (person) alone, without
considering his or her interaction and relationship with the environment.
Relationship asserts that there is a pattern or structure in the interaction of the different
elements within a system. Hence, social workers should focus on helping different
elements (eg: husband and wife) change their interaction and communication pattern
to improve the relationship, rather than focusing on the psychological make-up of any
individual.
Homeostasis suggests that most living systems seek a balance to maintain and
preserve the system. For example, families tend to establish behavioural patterns
that they are familiar with and resist change. Emergence of an imbalance (eg: crisis)
may bring the family interaction to another equilibrium.
General Systems Theory
Basic Principles of General Systems Theory
•
The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
•
All systems are made up of subsystems.
•
All parts of the systems are interconnected.
•
All systems have boundaries.
•
The systems must be understood as a whole.
•
All systems seek stability and balance.
•
The systems and their environments affect each other through feedback (input and
output).
•
A change in any part of the system affects all other parts.
•
Systems are heuristic, offering a way of looking at phenomenon but are not real
objects.
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General Systems Theory
•
Systems theory provides the social worker an internally consistent framework for
classifying and evaluating the world. It provides a scholarly method of evaluating a
situation and an universal approach to all sciences.
•
Systems theory offers a way to conceptualise the relationship between people and
environments and encourages a balanced approach to both domains of practice.
Emphasis is on the ‘goodness of fit’ between the client and their environments.
•
Because systems are in dynamic interchange, a change in one part of the system
will create problems in other parts of the system because of a misfit between
individuals and the systems of which they are a part of. Hence, the role of the
social worker is to enhance the fit between the individual and the systems affecting
them.
•
Workers can focus on how family, community, social, economic and political
factors interact and affect the client’s situation.
THE ECOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE
•
In recent years, social work has increasingly focused on using an ecological
perspective. This approach integrates both treatment and reform by
conceptualising and emphasising the dysfunctional transactions between
people and their physical environment.
"The ecological perspective uses ecological concepts from biology as
a metaphor with which to describe the reprocity between persons and
their environments ... attention is on the goodness of fit between an
individual or group and the places in which they live out their
lives"(Sands, 2001).
•
Human beings are viewed as developing and adapting through transactions
with other elements in their environment. An ecological model explores both
their internal and external factors.
•
Ecological theories focus on inter-relational transactions between systems,
and stress that all existing elements within an ecosystem play an equal role
in maintaining balance of the whole.
THE ECOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE
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• It views people not as passive reactors to their environment but
rather dynamic and reciprocal interactors with their environment.
• An ecological model tries to improve coping patterns so that a better
match can be attained between the individual’s needs and the
characteristics of their environment.
•
In social work practice, applying an ecological approach can be best
understood by looking at persons, families, cultures, communities and
policies, and identify and intervene upon strengths and weaknesses in the
transactional processes between these systems.
•
Holistic thinking can provide a paradigm for understanding how systems
and their interactions can maintain an individual's behaviour.
THE ECOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE
Bronfenbrenner (1979) suggests four levels of ecological components as a useful framework in
understanding how individual or family processes are influenced by the hierarchical
environmental systems in which they function.
The four systems are:
•
Microsystem: The most basic system, referring to an individual's most immediate
environment (i.e., the effects of personality characteristics on other family members).
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Mesosystem: A more generalised system referring to the interactional processes between
multiple microsystems. A system comprises of connections between immediate environments
(i.e., effect of spousal relationship upon parent-child relationship).
•
Exosystem: Settings on a more generalised level which affect family interactions indirectly on
the micro and meso levels (i.e. the effects of parent's employment on family interactions).
•
Macrosystem: The most generalised forces, affecting individual and family functions (i.e.,
political, cultural, economic, social).
A fifth system was later added:
•
Chronosystem: The patterning of environmental events and transitions over the course of
life.
Bronfenbrenner, U. (1979). The Ecology of Human Development: Experiments by Nature and Design. Cambridge,
MA: Harvard University Press.
THE ECOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE
•SELF
Bronfenbrenner, U.
(1979). The Ecology of
Human Development:
Experiments by Nature
and Design.
Cambridge, MA:
Harvard University
Press.
•Microsystem
•Mesosystem
•Exosystem
•Macrosystem
•Chronosystem
THE ECOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE
Legal
system
Economic
system
Religion
Social
system
Self
Political
system
Family, friends
National
security
Interaction between
work & home
Education
system
Changes over time
Media
Interaction
between work &
son’s childcare
Leisure
Person in Environment
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One emphasis from the ecological perspective is the “person-in-environment”. The
concept of “person-in-situation” or “person-in-environment” stemmed from the beginning
of social work and its dual focus on both individual assistance and social reform.
Term is coined by Florence Hollis in 1964 to describe the three-fold interaction of the
person, situation and the interaction between them.
Persons and social systems were both seen as significant in problem solving. As such,
social work needed to intervene in both the personality and environment to help the
person find a fit with the environment.
“On an ecological view, social work practice is directed at improving the transaction
between people and environment in order to enhance the adaptive capabilities and
improve the environment for those who function within them.”
Germain (1979)
Person in Environment
Using the person-in-environment framework, social work can focus on
three separate areas:
1) First, it can focus on the person and seek to develop his problemsolving, coping and developmental capabilities.
2) Second, it can focus on the relationship between the person and the
systems he or she is interacting with and link the person to needed
services, resources and opportunities.
3) Finally, it can focus on the environment and seek to reform and
change them to meet the needs of the individual more effectively.
Person in Environment
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Example 1:
A child with special needs in a mainstream school will find difficulties coping. The
social worker in understanding the problem will advocate and spearhead a new
service or the development of a special school which better caters to the learning
needs of the child.
Here, the problem does not lie with the child or the school. The intervention is not
towards making any changes to either of these components. Social work should
focus on development of new services which may better meet the needs of the
child.
Person in Environment
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Example 2
Ali was deemed a problematic student who does not pay attention in class. He got into
frequent fights and had problems with discipline. He did very poorly in school and the
school had threatened to expel Ali if he did not change.
Social workers may intervene in the “person” realm by providing counseling and working
on Ali’s behaviour, values and beliefs. They can help Ali to understand the
importance of education, the implication of his behavior, and how he can embark on
more positive behaviour.
A social worker may also intervene in the “environment” realm such as the family, after
understanding that Ali’s behaviour problems had stemmed from his anger towards his
parent’s marital problems. The social worker may provide family counseling and
mediation to work on their interaction at home.
Alternatively, the social worker may also work with the school environment to help them
appreciate the reason why Ali may be acting out in school, by helping the school to
focus on Ali’s strength and recommending strategies on how the school may better
relate to Ali.
BIO-PSYCHOSOCIAL MODEL
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The bio-psychosocial model was theorised by psychiatrist George L. Engel(1977) who
rejected the biomedical model. He criticised the medical community for its acceptance of
the biomedical model as dogma, and for failing to acknowledge its weaknesses and
limitations. Engel implored the world to accept that “the boundaries between health and
disease, between well and sick, are diffused by cultural, social and psychological
considerations.
The bio-psychosocial model posits that the following play a significant role in human
functioning in the context of understanding a problem or illness:
•Biological factors (illness, physical functioning, medication)
•Psychological factors (which entails thoughts, emotions, and behaviours)
•Social factors (family, social support, job and interaction with environment)
This is in contrast to the traditional reductionism biomedical model of medicine that
suggests every disease process can be explained in terms of an underlying deviation
from normal function.
BIO-PSYCHOSOCIAL MODEL
The bio-psychosocial model is a comprehensive, integrative and elegant
model that allows us to address all major areas of the issue across three
spheres: Physical, psychological and socio-cultural. It allows and encourages
social workers to holistically examine the interactive and reciprocal effects of
environment, genetics and behaviour.
A social worker using the bio-psychosocial model considers not only the
biological impact of the illness but also the psychological and social
components which affect the person. It is a commonly used model among
medical social workers to consider the impact of an illness upon their
biological, psychological and social well-being.
Some social workers have recently added and emphasised a spiritual
dimension to the bio-psychosocial framework in their work with their clients.
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THE STRENGTH PERSPECTIVE
•
For most of the past decades, social work and other helping professions have had a
primary focus on problem, pathology, deficit, shortcoming and dysfunction of the
client.
•
Such an emphasis on problem is biased and skewed as every individual possesses
strength and resources to help him or her to cope and deal with situations.
Unfortunately, these strengths and resources are not being acknowledged or
emphasised in working with the clients.
•
Using a strength’s perspective, social workers include clients’ strengths into the
assessment process. Likewise, social workers focuses on clients’ strengths rather
than their weaknesses when working with clients to help them resolve their
difficulties. The social workers must first identify these strengths before they can
utilise the client’s strength effectively.
•
Focusing on weakness often impairs a worker’s ability to identify strength and growth
potential in the client. Focusing on the clients’ strengths helps to enhance their self
esteem.
•
The strength perspective emphasises people’s abilities, values, interest, beliefs,
resources, accomplishments and aspirations.
•
The strength perspective is closely related to the concept of “empowerment” which is
central to social work. It is useful across the life cycle and throughout the
assessment, intervention and evaluation stage of the helping process.
THE STRENGTH PERSPECTIVE
According to Dennis Saleebey (1997), five principles guide the development of the
strength perspective.
1) Every individual, group, family and community has strength. The strength
perspective is to identify these strengths and resources.
2) Trauma and abuse, illnesses and struggles may be injurious, but may also be
sources of challenges and opportunities. Hence, we can help clients to focus on their
growth and opportunities in such events.
3) Assume what you do not know as the upper limits of the capacity to grow and
change and take the individual, group, and community aspiration seriously. This
principle means workers need to hold high the expectations of their clients and form
alliance with their visions, hopes and values.
4) We best serve our clients by collaborating with them. A helper is more effective as a
collaborator than being an expert or professional.
5) Every environment is full of resources. The strength perspective seeks to identify these
resources to make them available to benefit their clients.
Summary and Conclusion
Different sets of theories and paradigms had an impact in guiding social
workers in their work with their clients. These theories provide a set of
lens through which we view problems and our clients which, in turn,
affect how we relate to them. It also guides social workers on the
important aspects to focus on in their work with their clients.
In this learning unit, we had learnt about some of the major theories
which were central to social work practice. Many of these theories had
stood the test of time and had an inffluence upon social work practice.
These theories include the Bio-medical Model, the General Systems
Theory, the ecological perspective, persons-in-environment framework,
Bio-psychosocial Model and the strength perspective.
New theories may continue to be developed through the years to
explain different social phenomenon and shape social work practice.
Social workers need to closely examine the premise of new Social
Work Theories and its relevance to practice rather than adopting them
in a wholesale manner as they emerge.
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Mini Quiz – Question 1
Howe identified five areas in which theoretical perspective guides and
influences practice. Match the five different areas to the respective
definitions.
It tells us what to see and what to look out for.
• Observation
•
Intervention
•
Description
•
Prediction
•
Explanation
It provides a conceptual vocabulary and
framework within which observations
can be arranged and organised.
It suggests how different observations
might be linked and connected;
it offers possible causal relationships
between one event and another.
It indicates what might happen next.
It suggests things to do to bring about change.
Mini Quiz – Question 2
According to Bronfenbrenner’s levels of ecological components, match the
various levels of systems to the corresponding examples.
•
Microsystem
•
Chronosystem
•
Macrosystem
The effects of personality characteristics on other
family members
Effect of spousal relationship upon parent-child
relationship
Events and transitions over the course of life
•
Mesosystem
•
Exosystem
The effects of parent's employment on family
interactions
Political, cultural, economic, social forces
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Mini Quiz
Which of the following statements describe the General Systems Theory?
1. The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
2. All parts of the systems are interconnected.
3. There are no boundaries between different systems.
4. The systems must be understood as a whole.
5. All systems seek change and evolution.
6. The systems and their environments affect each other through feedback
(input and output).
7. Change in any part of the system can occur independently to other parts.
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Reflections
1.
What are the benefits and challenges of integrating theories into social
work practice?
2.
Which of the theories discussed in this learning unit do you see as more
useful in working with clients? Why?
3.
How do we integrate the theories discussed in this learning unit into our
social work practice with our clients?
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