Title: THE STRUCTURE AND FUNDAMENTAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE SOCIAL WORK PROFESSION AND SOCIAL WORK EDUCATION IN THE UNITED STATES
Abstract: Social work, as a professional activity, has a centennial history in the United States, rich in traditions of practical work. In spite of the obvious fact that the American experience cannot be fully translated and adopted in Russia due to life-style differences, socio-economic conditions, ethical principles and cultural differ-ences, understanding one of the leading social work models in the world can have a positive impact on the developing social work field in Russia. Having knowledge about the system of higher education of social workers in the United States may also prove beneficial. Russian social work education has been taking steps in the direction of unification of its standards with the Western higher educational sys-tem, leading to the adoption of structural and curricula characteristics present in the United States educational system, mandated by the Council on Social Work Education, the accrediting organization in the United States. SOCIAL WORK OVERVIEW Social Work Defined Social work is «the applied science of helping people achieve an effective level of psychosocial func-tioning and effecting societal changes to enhance the well-being of all people» (Barker, 2003, p. 408). An historical definition from the National Association of Social Workers’ states Social work is the professional activity of helping individuals, groups, or communities enhance or restore their capacity for social functioning and creating societal conditions favorable to this goal. Social Work practice consists of the professional ap-plication of social work values, principles, and tech-niques to one or more of the following ends: helping people obtain tangible services; providing counseling and psychotherapy with individuals, families, and groups; helping communities or groups provide or im-prove social and health services; and participating in relevant legislative processes. The practice of social work requires knowledge of human development and behavior; of social, economic, and cultural institu-tions; and of the interaction of all these factors. (National Association of Social Workers, 1973, pp. 4-5) The definition of social work from the United States (U. S.) may not be applicable to other coun-tries. The International Federation of Social Workers (2005) adopted the following international definition of social work in July 2000: The social work profession promotes social change, problem solving in human relationships and the empowerment and liberation of people to en-hance well-being. [Utilizing] theories of human [behavior] and so-cial systems, social work intervenes at the points where people interact with their environments. Prin-ciples of human rights and social justice are funda-mental to social work. (para 1) Unique Characteristics. There are features of social work that make it distinguishable from other professions in the United States. Kirst-Ashman (2003, pp. 15-19) has identified four unique charac-teristics of the social work profession: 1) being able to address any issue, regardless of its complexity; 2) being able to address individual issues from a macro practice level, focusing on changing the envi-ronment; 3) being an advocate for clients; 4) abiding by the values and ethics of the profession. Organization The social work profession in the U. S. has its own body of knowledge, ethical code, standards of practice, credentials, membership organization (Na-tional Association of Social Workers), specialty mem-
Publication Year: 2006
Publication Date: 2006-01-01
Language: en
Type: article
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