Social Work Theories and Methods

1
Social Work Theories and Methods

• Summary and Assessment Guidance
• Nigel Horner

2
Lecture Overview

• Charting our journey
• Reminding ourselves of the Rationale
• Revisiting Core Concepts
• Relating to Practice
• The Assessment Format
• Key Tips for Success
• Next Week
• Any questions?

3
Charting Our Journey

• Why this matters?
• Distinguishing between Theory (of Explanation)
  and Method (of Intervention)
• Psychodynamic approaches
• Behavioural and Cognitive Behavioural approaches
• Systems models
• Existential and Humanistic approaches
• Crisis Intervention and Task Centred Practice
• Strengths Based Approaches
• Radical / Structural models

4
Reminding Ourselves of the Rationale

• Indeed we have only the most general ideas of
  what we are trying to produce, what constitutes
  the essential skill of the social worker, and
  consequently still more varied ideas of how to
  set about it (Younghusband, 195928)
• 50 years on, do we know what social workers do
  and how they do it?

5
The Current Definition

• The social work profession promotes social
  change, problem - solving in human relationships
  and empowerment and liberation of people to
  enhance well being. Utilising theories of human
  behaviour and social systems, social work
  intervenes at the points where people interact
  with their environments. Principles of human
  rights and social justice are fundamental to
  social work (International Association of
  Schools of Social Work and the International
  Federation of Social Workers, 2001, in BASW,
  2002)

6
The Purpose of Social Work Intervention

• .the need for social work intervention arises
  when the resources available to an individual,
  family or community are insufficient for them to
  achieve preferred or required outcomes
• In other words, social work intervention is a
  response to the apparent incapacity of the
  service user target to achieve their goals
  without assistance from an external agency

7
Theories and Methods

• Theories are constructs of explanation Whats
  Going On?
• Methods are models of intervention, or practice
  What Are We Going To Do About It?

8
Theory and Method

• Theories
• Attachment
• Learning
• Cognitive development
• Developmental or Existential Crisis
• Loss
• Eco systems

• Methods
• Play work
• Behaviour modification
• CBT
• Humanistic counselling
• Bereavement Counselling
• Family Therapy or Social networking

9
Relating to Practice

• Intervention follows from and is bound together
  with assessment and planning and relates to the
  methods and models to be used to achieve changes
  or outcomes that have been identified and agreed
  (Parker, 2007 118)
• Intervention can thus be seen as situated as an
  element in an apparently sequential process of
  ASPIRE, APIE or APIR, although such linearity is
  itself a contested notion

10
The Assessment Format

• You may bring a dictionary, but no other text
  books
• You can bring in your set of notes, not copies of
  slides, handouts etc
• You can bring in up to ten pages of your own
  notes in. The idea is that you revise the
  material from the books, handouts and articles
  which have been recommended and make notes on all
  of the relevant theories and methods.

11
And remember

• This is Level One.we are seeking to ensure
  you have the basics for practice.nothing more
  and nothing less
• There are no trick questionsyou have been
  taught the curriculum on which you will be
  assessed, and finally
• We want you to pass and do well!

12
Key Tips for Success

• Read about the subject..then read more!
• Prepare good notes!
• Take care with your use of English and aim to
  communicate your meaning clearly.
• Use short sentences, avoid too much jargon, and
  aim to use clear practical examples and
  explanations in relation to any theory or
  concepts that you mention.
• Remember that there are links to other modules
  that you have already studied and that it will
  pay to revisit material e.g child development,
  mental health, communication, values and ethics.