Social Work Practice 1:

Working with
Individuals and Families
Part 2: April 26, 2021
S.O.C.I. Review Center

Presented By
Prof. Joven E. Dicen, RSW, MSSW
Outline
Theories, Concepts, Perspectives
and Principles in Case Work
Models, Interventions and
Approaches to Individuals and
Families
Techniques and Assessment
Tools
Professional Writing: Social Case
Study Report
 THEORIES, STRENGTHS-BASED
CONCEPTS The strengths perspective is based on the

AND assumption that all human beings have the

capacity for growth, change, and adaptation.
PERSPECTIVES The strengths perspective asserts that people
are experts on their situations and problems,
which means that they are naturally well
positioned to develop solutions to those
problems.
An important tenet of the strengths’
perspective is that people are resourceful and
resilient, characteristics that should be used
when clients seek help from social workers.
 THEORIES, STRENGTHS-BASED
CONCEPTS Social workers need to assess their clients’

AND abilities while evaluating the environment for

potential barriers that may be beyond the
PERSPECTIVES control of even the most resourceful client.
The strengths perspective requires that the
client and the social worker be collaborators
in the change process. Social workers begin
“where the client is,” relying on the client’s
interpretation of the situation and trusting the
client to accurately state her or his needs and
desires about how to make changes and
which goals to achieve.
 THEORIES, EMPOWERMENT
CONCEPTS Empowerment is the process by which individuals and groups

AND
gain power, access to resources and control over their own
lives.

PERSPECTIVES
In doing so, they gain the ability to achieve their highest
personal and collective aspirations and goals. It is the process
of increasing interpersonal, intrapersonal, and political power
so that individuals can act to improve their own lives.
For Andrea Napier (1998) in Zimmerman (2012),
empowerment is to give power or authority, give the ability to
enable; make powerful; give strength and validity.
Empowered outcomes in individuals might include situation-
specific perceived control, skills, and proactive behaviors.
Empowerment at the individual level of analysis may be
referred to as psychological empowerment (Zimmerman,
2012).
 ECOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE
Originally developed by psychologist Urie
Bronfenbrenner (1979), ecological theory explains
human development by describing aspects of the
individual, the environment, and the interaction
between the two.
Ecology is the study of complex reciprocal and

THEORIES, adaptive transactions among organisms and their

environments. In a later development, Germain and

CONCEPTS Gitterman’s (1980) life model of social work practice

reformulated ecological systems theory,
AND emphasizing the importance of stressful life

PERSPECTIVES
transitions on people’s ability to adapt to
circumstances.
 ECOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE
The life model sees people as constantly adapting
in an interchange with many different aspects of
their environment. From this perspective, the aim
of social work is to strengthen people’s adaptive

THEORIES,
capacities.
The ecological perspective differs from system

CONCEPTS theories in its tendency to emphasize interfaces

(points of interaction) and small groups
AND It serves as a useful way to discuss human

PERSPECTIVES
behavior in the social environment.
 SOCIAL SYSTEMS THEORY
Systems is defined as a whole, a unit composed of
people and their interactions including their
relationships. Every individual in the system is related
to at least some others in the system in a more or less
stable way within a particular time and space.
Systems theory views human behavior as the result of
active interactions between people and their social

THEORIES,
systems. The idea of systems, then, is central to this
theory. Recall that systems consist of interdependent

CONCEPTS parts that, when combined, make up an organized

whole. Systems can include any formal or informal

AND grouping of people or facets of organizations, including

couples, families, schools, communities, governments,
PERSPECTIVES and social service agencies.
 SOCIAL SYSTEMS THEORY
All of these systems are made up
of smaller, interdependent parts
that contribute to the entire
system.
Systems theory in social work
THEORIES,
practice depend on the idea that
CONCEPTS behavior is influenced of various
AND factors that contributes to the
PERSPECTIVES functioning of the whole system.
 PERSONALITY THEORIES
(Psychodynamic/Psychoanalytic Theories,
Analytical Psychology, Individual
Psychology, Psychosocial Theory of
Development, Psychoanalytic Social

THEORIES, Theory, Interpersonal Theory/Humanistic

Theory, Trait Theory, Person-
CONCEPTS Centered/Motivation Theory, Social
AND Learning Theory, Cognitive and Moral

PERSPECTIVES Development Theory).

 RIGHTS-BASED APPROACH
According to the Care about Rights, a human
right based is about empowering people to
know and claim their rights and increasing the
ability and accountability of individuals and
institutions who are responsible for respecting,
protecting and fulfilling rights.
THEORIES, It is a premised on the belief that development

CONCEPTS
is a right and deterrents to improved human
conditions are violations of human rights,
AND including poverty.

PERSPECTIVES
Based from the Universal Declaration on Human
Rights (UDHR) framework.
 RIGHTS-BASED APPROACH
Founded on the conviction that all human beings are
holders of rights.
A right requires a government to respect, promote,
protect and fulfill it. “The Legal and Normative
character of rights and the associated governmental
obligations are based on international human rights
treaties and other standards, as well as on national

THEORIES, constitutional human rights provision.”

This means giving people greater opportunities to
CONCEPTS participate in shaping the decisions that impact on

AND
their human rights. It also means increasing the ability
of those with responsibility for fulfilling rights to

PERSPECTIVES
recognize and know how to respect those rights, and
make sure they can be held to account.
 PERSON-IN-ENVIRONMENT

THEORIES,
CONCEPTS
AND
PERSPECTIVES excerpt from Prof. Taylan's presentation, UPOU
 SOCIAL FUNCTIONING

THEORIES,
CONCEPTS
AND
PERSPECTIVES excerpt from Prof. Taylan's presentation, UPOU
 SOCIAL FUNCTIONING
“Social work seeks to enhance the social functioning of
individuals, singularity and in groups by activities
focused upon their relationships which constitute
interaction between individuals and their environments.
These activities can be grouped into three functions:
restoration of impaired capacity, provision of individual and
social resources and prevention of social dysfunction.” –
Wernes Boehm
THEORIES, “Social functioning is the relation between the coping activity
CONCEPTS of people and the demand from the environment. This dual
focus ties them together. - Harriet Bartlett
AND
The bringing together of these two aspects of living in society
PERSPECTIVES can be termed social functioning.” – Louise Johnson
 SOCIAL FUNCTIONING
Social Functioning is clearly explain using the social
functioning triangle developed by Skidmore. There are three
dimensions, with each one affecting and being affected by
other. As people perform various roles, this affects their
relationship with others and their own feelings as well. Your
relationship with others also affects your role performance
and feelings of self-worth.

THEORIES,
CONCEPTS
AND
PERSPECTIVES
 SOCIAL FUNCTIONING
For individuals: social functioning encompasses striving
toward a life-style that meets basic needs, establishing
positive relationships, and accentuating personal growth and
adjustment.

THEORIES,
CONCEPTS
AND
PERSPECTIVES
 Social Case Work Principles

Individualization Purposeful Controlled

Expression of Emotional
Feelings Involvement
 Social Case Work Principles

Non- Client's Self

Acceptance
Judgmental Determination
Attitude
t y
a li
t i
e n
f i d
o n
C
 MODELS,
INTERVENTIONS
AND
APPROACHES TO
INDIVIDUALS AND
FAMILIES
 FUNCTIONAL APPROACH
IS A SOCIAL CASEWORK METHOD FOR ENGAGING THE CLIENT THROUGH A
RELATIONSHIP ESSENTIALLY ONE-TO-ONE IN THE USE OF A SOCIAL SERVICE TOWARD
HIS OWN AND THE GENERAL SOCIAL WELFARE. THIS APPROACH WAS
CONCEPTUALIZED BY SMALLEY.

THE FOCUS OF INTERVENTION IS THE DELIVERY OF A SERVICE OR SERVICES TO THE

CLIENT. IT IS INCIDENTALLY THE MOST COMMON APPROACH USED IN THE PHILIPPINES
DURING THIS PERIOD BECAUSE OF THE ALL-PERVADING POVERTY SITUATION.

DEVELOPED AT THE PENNSYLVANIA SCHOOL OF SOCIAL WORK IN THE L930’S.

EMPHASIS WAS ON THE RELATIONSHIP, THE DYNAMIC USE OF TIME, AND THE “USE OF
THE AGENCY” FUNCTION. DIAGNOSTIC CATEGORIES HAVE TENDED TO BE AVOIDED AS
HAVING LIMITED USEFULNESS.
PROBLEM-SOLVING APPROACH
ACCORDING TO PERLMAN, USES THE PROCESS OF PROBLEM-SOLVING AS THE
MEDIUM OF TREATMENT.

IT ASSUMES THAT THE PERSON’S NORMAL PROBLEM-SOLVING CAPACITIES OR

RESOURCES HAVE BROKEN DOWN AND BEEN IMPAIRED OR MALADAPTIVE.

THE FOCUS OF TREATMENT IS IN HELPING THE PERSON GO THROUGH THE

SCIENTIFIC PROBLEM-SOLVING PROCESS SO THAT HE WILL ACT AND RESOLVE
HIS PROBLEM WITH ONLY A MINIMUM HELP.
PROBLEM-SOLVING APPROACH
THE EXPERIENCE OF PROBLEM-SOLVING MAY BE SO
SIGNIFICANT THAT THE CLIENT IMBIBES AND TRANSFERS
THE LEARNING TO OTHER PROBLEMS HE MAY
ENCOUNTER IN THE FUTURE EVEN WHEN THE WORKER IS
NO LONGER THERE TO HELP HIM. IDENTIFIED WITH THE
WORK OF HELEN PERLMAN AT THE CHICAGO SCHOOL IN
1957.

THE PURPOSES OF THE PROCESS ARE TO FREE THE

CLIENT FOR INVESTMENT IN TASKS RELATED TO THE
SOLUTION OF THE PROBLEM, INVOLVE THE CLIENT’S
EGO IN WORK DESIGNATED TO DEAL WITH THE
PROBLEM, AND TO MOBILIZE INNER AND OUTER FORCES
IN THE SERVICE OF SATISFACTORY ROLE PERFORMANCE.
 Psychosocial
Approach
also known as diagnostic approach. According to Gordon
Hamilton, treatment here is focused on the individual
and his functionality. Cause and effect relationships are
identified between the individual and environment.
Ego psychology and the behavioral sciences provide
important underpinning for practice. Model has a
Freudian theory base.
 Psychosocial Approach
It is concerned with the inner realities of man, his emotional,
mental, and social processes and the social context in which
he lives.
Used mainly in psychiatric and other clinical settings there is
now a growing trend in the Philippines to used it with clients
affected by traumatic incidents or are in especially difficult
circumstances resulting from the sheet exploitation of men
and women, youth and children, violent family relationships,
armed conflicts between government troops and dissidents
or left wing or right wing oppositions, or natural disasters
such as those caused by disastrous typhoons, earthquakes,
and volcanic eruptions.
Task Centered Approach
Treatment concentrates on helping
individual clients to achieve specific or
limited goals of their own choice within
brief and bounded periods of service.
Task Centered Approach
◦Developed at the University of Chicago in the l970’s.
◦Designed to solve specific psychosocial problems of
individuals or families in a short-term, time-limited form of
practice.
◦ Caseworker and client reach an explicit agreement on the
particular problems to be worked on and also the probable
duration of treatment.
Task Centered Approach
It is similar to crisis intervention but it
focuses on a task to be achieved by the
client.
It may focus on a specific behavior or
social environment that needs to be
changed.
 Crisis Intervention
It is the application of the casework approach which tries to actively
influence the psychosocial functioning of a person during a period of
disequilibrium.
Crisis- is an upset in a steady state (state of disequilibrium)
that gives an obstacle in the fulfillment of important life goals
(Caplan 1964).

It is stressful and disruptive and can affect biological,

psychological and social functioning and can produce
disturbed emotions, impair motor functioning and negatively
impact ongoing behavior.
 Examples of Crisis Situations
Natural disasters
Death of a loved one
Disabling or life-threatening illness or injury
Cultural dislocation
Rape
Premature births
Adolescent out-of-wedlock pregnancy
Child-abuse
Battered women
Domestic violence
 Reaction to Crisis Situations

Initial rise in tension accompanied by shock

or sometimes denial of the provoking event
Reaction to the crisis situation (confusion,
overwhelmed, helpless, angry, depressed)
Coping and degree of responsiveness
(either positive or negative)
 Crisis Intervention
Its goals are:
A.) to reduce the immediate harmful
effects of the stressful events.
B.) to help mobilize the latent capacities
and capabilities of the person directly
affected so that he can cope more
effectively with the effects of the crisis.
Family-Centered
Approach
The family is the unit of interest.

In the Phil., casework is family-

centered/oriented.

It means that human beings can be

understood and helped best in the context of

family.
Family Centered Approach

The Family-Centered Approach. Is the unit of interest. Although casework

is the process of working with individuals, the worker also works with the

person’s immediate environment which normally is the family. In the

Philippines, casework is family-centered or oriented. According to Hartman

and laird, this approach locates the family as the center of the field of

action. This does not mean that the person must be subordinated to the

family nor does not necessarily imply that the social worker must work with

the entire family.

 Cognitive Behavioral
Approach
Focus: Here and Now

Aim: To modify or replace distorted cognition (maladaptive thoughts or

unwanted behavior)

To effect positive and lasting change in client's thoughts and behaviors.

To generate new skills and development of relapse prevention strategies.

Behavior-Modification - addresses cognitive or emotional problems and uses

all the effective principles of learning which influence behavior

 BioPsychoSocial Spiritual
Approach
The holistic, biopsychosocial, and spiritual focus of the study of human

behavior helps prepare social workers for the wide variety of personal

situations with which they deal on an almost daily basis. Most of the social

workers often rely on this approach when collecting information during the

intake process on clients, assessing client’s problems to work on and in

developing interventions.
Use of Techniques and
Assessment Tools
(Genogram, Ecomap,
Rapid Assessment)
Holosko, M., Dulmus, C. & Sowers, K. (2013)
explained that genograms provide a visual
representation of a family system— similar to a
family tree, but more complex.

They offer a visual guide for families and social

workers, allowing both to see how the family is The
structured and how various dynamics might be
playing out in a family system. Genogram
These “pictograms” use symbols to denote key
events, characteristics, relationships, health and
mental health issues, and communication patterns
that might persist across generations. These are
some of the categories of information that are often
depicted in genograms
 A genogram is used in practice not just as an
assessment tool to identify family patterns,
strengths and resources, and unresolved issues
but also as an ongoing tool to identify strengths
and resources in intervention planning and
implementation.

Genograms allow families and social workers

to see how issues may impact individual
family members, intergenerational
relationships, and the family system as a
whole. They also allow families and social
workers to identify strengths within the family
system that can be used to help solve problems.
Similar tool for family assessment was outlined by Rogers
(2016), the ecomap is similar to genogram, but they go
beyond genogram by demonstrating visually how family
members are affected by, and react to, their broader
ecological context:

In the center of the ecomap, basic genogram information is

incorporated.
The
ü Using symbols similar to those used in a genogram, an
ecomap diagrams a family’s relationship with its social
Ecomap
environment by identifying various systems with which a
family is involved such as schools, churches, medical
clinics, extended family, work and economic activities,
political and legal organizations, and media exposure.
An ecomap may also diagram the energy flow between the
family and external systems.
 Ecomaps can highlight strong connections to
outside systems as well as weak or stressful
ones, and they can provide a visual representation
of support systems for the family as well as sources
of strain on the family system.
The ecomap has also been used to supplement
traditional social histories and case records. It is a
shorthand method for recording basic social
information. The technique helps users (clients and
practitioners) gain insight into clients’ problems and
better sort out how to make constructive changes.
The technique provides a snapshot view of
important interactions at a particular point in time.
The primary developer of the technique is Ann
Hartman.
Systems5 Assessment Guide -
Social Worker Checklist
1.Situation?
What brings the client(s) for services today?
Who makes up the client system?
2. Safety? Determine if safety is an issue for the client system.
Immediately provide resources, support and assistance if safety is an issue.
3.Survival Needs/Other Needs?
Are basic needs being met for the client system?
What are other issues to be addressed?
4.Supports/Strengths?
What supports are in place?
What strengths does the client system bring to this process?
How were challenges dealt with previously?
What resources are needed?
5.Short-term or Crisis Work?
Which treatment modality is appropriate with this client system today?
How imminent and immediate is the need?
Is there time for an ongoing process?
 T.I.E.S. Assessment Guide
SOCIAL WORKER CHECKLIST BY WENGER CLEMENS

Transitions and Interpersonal Environmental Societal

Developmental Areas for the client Systems (Think Context
Stages for the client system Eco-Map)
system
What are significant factors in Special
Who are the significant
the client system’s daily routines? Considerations
Consider transitional issues and
persons for this client
specific developmental
needs/stages.
system? What are accessible resources?

Regarding immigrants and What kind of informal What factors contribute to

barriers?
Spirituality
refugees, what additional and formal support is
Is the client systems’
transitions had a significant
available at this time? environment supportive or
impact in their own situation?
hostile?
 Interviewing

Techniques
Discussion

Referral
 Psychological
Support
Other
Techniques Clarification

Insight
Development
References:
Avila, D. (2020). Module on Social Environment and Social Work. Unpublished Material
Brueggemann, W.(2014) The Practice of Macro Social Work. 4e
Dicen, J. (2020). Human Behavior and Social Environment: Human Growth and Development. Manual
on Filipino Personality and Social Work. Unpublished Material
Dubois, Miley (2006). Social Welfare and Social Work. Allyn and Bacon
Mendoza, TL. (2008). Social Welfare and Social Work. 3rd Edition. Central Books. Quezon City
Rogers, A. (2016). Human Behavior in the Social Environment (Perspectives on Development and the
Life Courses). 4th Edition
Sumalsy, D. (2002). A Biopsychosocial–Spiritual Model for the Care of Patients at the End of Life.
Research Gate. DOI: 10.1093/geront/42.suppl_3.24
Saleeby, D. (2006). Strengths-Based Perspective in Social Work Practice. Allyn and Bacon
Wormer, K.V (2017). Human Behavior and the Social Environment (Individuals and Families – Micro
Level). 3rd Edition. Oxford University Press
Zimmerman, M. et.al. (1992). Empowerment Theory: An Empirical Analysis of Psychological
Empowerment. American Journal
For the structure of the content: PRC BLESW TOS 2019