Last Updated on November 26, 2023 by Team TSW

To conduct social work effectively, you must know the social work concept. For that, it is important that you become conversant with the knowledge, skills, and procedures for doing social work. The use of inappropriate procedures and strategies might cause uncertainties on the part of the client, which could affect the result of the intervention. In social work, clients look for specialized skills, which enable them to obtain services to help them deal with feelings about themselves, or assist them to deal with their problems and concerns.

In the opinion of W.A. Friedlander (1963:4): “Social work” is a professional service based upon scientific knowledge and skill in human relations which assists individuals, alone or in groups, to obtain social and personal satisfaction and independence.”

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Social Work Concept

Social work is a helping profession which fundamentally and radically aims to assist the individuals and community to cope with their complex socio-economic psychological problems through enabling themselves so that they can solve their problem by helping themselves.

Objectives of Social Work

Objectives in general are the statements or formulations, what we seek to achieve. The Preamble to the American Council on Social Work Education’s (CSWE) Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards on objectives of Social Work states: Social work practice promotes human well-being by strengthening opportunities, resources, and capacities of people in their environments and by creating policies and services to correct conditions that limit human rights and the quality of life. The social work profession works to eliminate poverty, discrimination, and oppression. Guided by a person-in-environment perspective and respect for human diversity, the profession works to effect social and economic justice worldwide.

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When Assistance From Social Worker Required

Man faces multiple difficulties in day to day life. Most of the difficulties we face are within our coping capabilities hence these difficulties don’t turn into problems. Difficulties which are not within our coping capabilities affects our mental realm and create problems. These problems further affects social functioning of individual and to solve these problems assistance from social worker is required.

Psycho-Social Problems

Anything that causes difficulty to an individual or even a group of persons may termed as a problem. In the same manner, unsatisfied needs or wants may result in problems. Problems can be broadly categorized into physical, mental a social.

Physical Problems

Physical problems are those problems that affect our body.e.g. cancer, fever, pain, disability etc.

Mental Problems

Problems that affect the mental realm, such as inferiority, stress, depression, excessive anger are examples of psychological or mental problems.

Social Problems

Some social problems affect individual as well as the people around them; eg. alcoholism, crime, unemployment, riots etc.

Causes of Problems

Main causes of problems are:

1. Non-availability of material resources such as poverty, destitution, unemployment, housing problem and related factor. lack of money makes it difficult for an individual to deal with problem.
2. Critical illness of bread earner of family cause problem to whole family.
3. Superstition like epileptic fits caused by devils. is a myth.
4. Personality traits if mother had a bad marriage, daughter may borrow traits from mother that all men are bad. This will cause problem in the marriage life of daughter as well.
5. Emotional distress such as son of respected individual is involved in anti-social activity.

Professional Social Work Intervention

Think about solving these problems! Is it easy? Is it possible to solve these problems in a single step? No, it is impossible! Common people use their own strategies to solve these problems, but those strategies may not be scientific and may have many limitations. That resulted in the emergence of a scientific profession to solve psycho social problems.

From the social work perspective, problems are generally interrelated. It ranges from simple to complex. Every problem has numerous solutions. But individuals and communities are confused with the problem and its solutions. Social work profession also helps the client to choose the right solutions which are most appropriate to the client. This profession helps the client to understand the problem and to cope with it. It also prevents the onset of similar problems in future. If you are rejected by your classmates. How would you feel?

You would feel a sense of inferiority, alienation, depression etc. These feelings would influence your social relations; so we can term these problems as psycho -Social social. Psycho-social problems may affect an individual’s mental health. The term psycho-social refers to psychological and social factors that influence personality. Individuals with psycho social disorder frequently experience difficulty in social functioning. Social factors such as socialization, peer pressure, parental support, cultural and religious back ground, socio-economic status and inter personal relationships help to shape the personality of an individual.

However, social work is a very dynamic profession that does not limit itself to problems alone; it goes on to empower the client systems to handle preventive and promotional initiatives. In the context of social work, client systems include individuals, groups and communities.

Social Work Methods

Social work is a Scientific profession and has its own methods and technologies to solve the problems. Some problems occur at individual level, some at group level and some at community. Group level problems may happen in families, neighborhood or among friends. Gang behavior is a typical example of group level problem. Traditionally the methods of social work are divided as primary and secondary. 

Primary methods are social case work, social group work and community organization. The primary methods make interventions directly with the clients. 

Secondary methods are social action, social welfare administration and social work research. Observe the given illustration.  Secondary methods indirectly assist the primary methods and also help the clients.

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Allied Social Work Concepts

Most religions advocated the practice of charity for obtaining religious merit. Voluntary action is done by individuals for improving the conditions of others without expecting any tangible benefit in return. It may be motivated by natural feeling of concern and compassion. However now days we often observe that many people who claim to engage in voluntary action are guided by less social motives. Social movements are collective actions outside an established institutional structure to resolve a common problem. Closely related to the concept of social movement is social reform which means bringing about changes in the practices of people to eradicate social evils. You must have noticed that there is considerable difference in the way a social work professional uses these words and the way a layman uses them. You being a student should learn to use them as professional would use them.

Here we deal with concepts such as social service, social welfare, social work, social policy, social health, social justice, social security and social defence. The modern state has taken major responsibility in ensuring the welfare of its citizens. Voluntary action by individuals and agencies also contribute to supplement these efforts. In some cases voluntary agencies act as critic of government performance by raising issues related to human rights and excessive government action. We must understand the relevant concepts to understand these issues.

Social Services

Social services refer to any aid or assistance provided to society to enable its members to perform effectively as a citizen. In other words, it consists of all efforts to improve the human resources of the society. Social services thus are those services which are envisaged and provided by society to its members to enable them to develop optimally and help them to function effectively and to lead life of decency, dignity, and liberty. These services directly benefit all the members of society, irrespective of their religion, caste, race, language, region, culture etc.

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Social Defense

The aim of social defense is to protect society from the varied kinds of deviance resulting into widespread social disorganization which seriously disrupts the effective functioning of society. In the absence of any well – thought out policy and planned programme of social defense, the basic objective of any society to ensure happy and peaceful living to all its members is seriously hampered. Thus social defense is a planned deliberate and organized effort made by society to defend itself against the onslaught of disruptive forces which endanger its law and order and thereby impede its socio-economic development.

Social Welfare

Social welfare as specifically designed system of services and institutions aimed at protecting and promoting the interests of weaker and vulnerable sections of society who left to themselves will not be in a position to maximally develop and effectively compete to enter the mainstream and to live with liberty, decency and dignity. These are the services provided by usually government to fulfill need of weaker class.

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Social Security

Every person wants protection against any kind of unforeseen event which may endanger his/her safety and threaten the continuity of his/her income; and this security has been guaranteed to people through varied kinds of institutions which have been fast changing.

Social Justice

Justice is of immense social significance. It gives rise to a sense of duty and concern for others. Social justice creates and sustains trust and confidence among people. It preserves law and order. Social Justice fosters understanding and thereby promotes harmony and integration.

Social Policy

It is the policy of state responsible for conducting the affairs of society. A finer distinction has to be clearly understood here between social policy and social welfare policy. While social policy concerns itself with the provision of social services affecting the life and living of people in general, social welfare policy relates itself to organization of specially designed social welfare services for weaker and vulnerable sections of society to enable them to come at per with other sections.

Social Reform

It is a process to make changes or improvements in the society. Social reform involves “deliberate attempt to bring about change in social attitudes, social values, and social institutions.” This can be achieved through the process of persuasion and public education.