Studyspark Study Document

Background of Social Work Essay

Pages:2 (741 words)

Sources:1

Document Type:Essay

Document:#53097262


Micro and Macro Practice |

Background of Social Work

The profession of social work sparked off as an effort to aid the impoverished, needy and marginalized classes of a swiftly evolving social order. This aim is still pursued to this day, though possibly with a few sporadic departures from the initial direction and spirit. In America, social work mostly resulted from the very industrial revolution which gave rise to an industrial society and welfare state. Industrialization resulted in a factory system requiring flocks of concentrated personnel, eventually bringing about the phenomena of mass migration, urbanization, and innumerable related issues. Social work served as a reaction to mass impoverishment, illiteracy, mental health issues, disease, food shortage, and several other urban issues. The Settlement House Movement and Charities Organization Society developed in response to the aforementioned issues, guiding social work's development and professionalization in America (McNutt, 2013).

The Dichotomy between Micro and Macro Practice in Social Work Profession

Hahn (2013) claims the two-fold approach of fostering social transformation and offering individual service represents a key trait of the social work profession. This field integrates micro (individual, group or domestic unit) as well as macro (organization, community, or policy) interventions. Often, micro-level social workers cater to individual people, families or small groups, whereas macro-level social workers typically participate in policy making and revision, as policy reformation is deemed to be highly critical to what's perceived in a majority of organizations and communities.

Micro-level social workers are responsible for initiating organizational and community change. Often, these social workers recognize the issue as well as patterns suggesting what requires change. If only a couple of individuals exhibit any given problem, social workers tend to prefer dealing separately with these people. If a larger number of individuals are seen suffering the ill consequences of a given problem, social workers presume client interaction systems are probably being problematic. At this juncture, social workers adopt the duty of identifying systems needing change and the precise type of change needed. Change nature and type might lead to community- or company- wide (i.e., macro) approaches. Here, the issue will be resolved at micro (individual) as well as macro (community) levels (Hahn, 2013).

Another difference between macro and micro social work approaches are based on the kind of evaluation social workers undertake. Micro-level workers' procedures entail individual bio-psychosocial appraisal. Small group and individual (micro) interventions may be described as clinical/mutual assistance…


Sample Source(s) Used

REFERENCES

Hahn, S. A. (2013, April 9). Bridging the Dichotomy between Micro and Macro Practice in Social Work: A Study of Clinical Social Work Practice with Domestic Violence Survivors. Retrieved from KU ScholarWorks: https://kuscholarworks.ku.edu/bitstream/handle/1808/11459/HAHN_ku_0099D_12735_DATA_1.pdf?sequence=1

McNutt, J. G. (2013, June). Social Work Practice: History and Evolution. Encyclopedia of Social Work. Retrieved from http://socialwork.oxfordre.com/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780199975839.001.0001/acrefore-9780199975839-e-620

Rothman, J., & Mizrahi, T. (2014). Balancing Micro and Macro Practice: A Challenge for Social Work. Social Work, 59(1), 91-93. Retrieved from https://www.acosa.org/joomla/pdf/Rothman_Mizrahi.pdf

Cite this Document

Join thousands of other students and "spark your studies."

Sign Up for FREE
Related Documents

Studyspark Study Document

Social Work Exercise the Imaginary Recording Helped

Pages: 7 (2118 words) Sources: 1+ Subject: Mythology - Religion Document: #37200829

Social Work Exercise The imaginary recording helped me to examine the language that I use commonly, and listen for embedded biases. I noticed that I assumed that the client could hear me and see me, rather than acknowledge the fact that the client could be deaf or visually impaired. It might be helpful to establish immediately whether the client requires assistive technologies when understanding the types of services we provide. I also

Studyspark Study Document

Social Work Summary Assessment of My Motivation,

Pages: 3 (912 words) Sources: 3 Subject: Family and Marriage Document: #88195338

Social Work Summary Assessment of My Motivation, Readiness, and Suitability for the Profession of Social Work Social work is a profession that denotes incredible responsibility to individuals, community, and colleagues. As a personal passion, social work is a calling. Yet it takes more than interest in helping others to establish a professional foundation based on respect and hard work. My overall readiness for being a professional social worker depends on factors like

Studyspark Study Document

Social Work Acquires Its Name by Virtue

Pages: 4 (1343 words) Sources: 4 Subject: Careers Document: #90196100

Social work acquires its name by virtue of its responsibilities. The profession is entrusted by society to look at how individuals are affected by their environment, how they interact and are affected by their community, and at how individuals are influenced by social institutions. These are important responsibilities and it is important that the profession keep its eye on its responsibilities (Howe, 1994). Too often the profession's clients are victims of

Studyspark Study Document

Social Work Informatics USES, Merits

Pages: 6 (1824 words) Sources: 5 Subject: Education - Computers Document: #63166356

The creation of timely and well-designed outputs leads to further information recording, correcting and completing previous recordings. This builds into a "virtuous circle (Gatehouse et al.)." Social workers rendering children's services should analyze their own work, compare it with others and contribute their data for evaluation (Gatehouse et al., 2004). They need output tools in order to do this. The critical outputs for improving child protection services are, in most

Studyspark Study Document

Social Work Field Perception of Social Work

Pages: 7 (2143 words) Sources: 1+ Subject: Family and Marriage Document: #10529285

Social Work Field Perception of Social Work Social work is a challenging profession that also helps one make a difference in the lives of others (CUW 2011). It aims at improving the overall functioning and well-being of people served. A social worker must have a genuine and special concern for the poor, marginalized, and the vulnerable. Social work is an art and a science at the same time. It fits service to

Studyspark Study Document

Social Work: Working With the Culturally Diverse

Pages: 6 (1930 words) Sources: 4 Subject: Sports - Drugs Document: #8771204

Social Work: Working With Substance Abuse Issues Social Work Individuals in the clinical population of interest Substance abuse includes use of drugs such as cocaine, heroin, and opioids, and other substances such as alcohol, amphetamines, benzodiazepines, and barbiturates. Often use of these substances leads to criminal ramifications since they are outlawed in many states alongside possible social, physical, and psychological consequences from their use. They also lead to antisocial behaviors and may lead

Join thousands of other students and

"spark your studies".