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BSW1502/1/2018–2023

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CONTENTS

Page

WELCOME vi
SPECIFICATIONS OF THIS MODULE vi
NAtional hours vii
The use of Icons viii
LEARNING UNIT 1: Social work and social auxiliary work within the developmental
paradigm 1
INTRODUCTION 1
1.1 IMPORTANT CONCEPTS IN SOCIAL WORK AND SOCIAL AUXILIARY WORK WITHIN
THE DEVELOPMENTAL PARADIGM 2
1.1.1 What is social work? 3
1.1.2 Why is social work a profession? 5
1.1.2.1 Individual as a holistic being 5
1.1.2.2 Knowledge of community resources 5
1.1.2.3 Integration of theory and practice 5
1.1.2.4 Primary methods of intervention 5
1.1.2.5 Statutory body 5
1.1.2.6 Worker-client relationship 6
1.1.2.7 Multi-disciplinary profession 6
1.1.2.8 Problem solving 6
1.1.2.9 Social work operates under the auspices of a welfare agency 6
1.1.2.10 Belief in strengths of the client 6
1.1.2.11 Rehabilitation, prevention and developmental social welfare 6
1.1.2.12 Team approach 6
1.1.3 What is a social worker? 6
1.1.4 What is developmental social work? 7
1.1.5 What is social auxiliary work? 8
1.2 The functions and goals of social work 9
1.2.1 The functions of social work 9
1.2.2 The goals of social work 11
1.3 Social work values and principles 12
1.4 The code of ethics for the social work profession 16
1.5 Ethical decision-making 17
1.6 Generalist social work practice and specialist social work practice 19
1.7 Core characteristics of a social worker 20
1.8 Social work practice in a diverse context 23
1.9 CONCLUSION 24
LEARNING UNIT 2: The levels and methods of social work intervention 25
INTRODUCTION 25
2.1 THE LEVELS OF SOCIAL WORK PRACTICE 26
2.1.1 The generic levels of social work intervention 27

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2.1.2 The levels of social work service delivery (intervention) in South Africa 27
2.2 METHODS OF SOCIAL WORK INTERVENTION 29
2.2.1 Primary methods of social work intervention 29
2.2.1.1 Social work practice with individuals (casework) 30
2.2.1.2 Social work practice with groups (group work) 33
2.2.1.3 Social work practice with communities (community work) 36
2.2.2 The secondary methods of social work intervention 39
2.2.2.1 Management and administration 39
2.2.2.2 Social work research 41
2.3 THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE PRACTICE LEVELS AND THE SOCIAL WORK
METHODS 42
2.4 CONCLUSION 43
LEARNING UNIT 3: The broad theoretical framework in social work practice 44
INTRODUCTION 44
3.1 DEFINITIONS OF CONCEPTS 45
3.1.1 What is a theory? 45
3.1.2 What is a perspective? 45
3.1.3 What is a model? 46
3.1.4 What is an approach? 46
3.2 THE DIFFERENT THEORIES, MODELS, PERSPECTIVES AND APPROACHES IN SOCIAL
WORK PRACTICE 46
3.2.1 The ecological systems perspective 47
3.2.2 The strengths perspective and empowerment 48
3.2.3 The problem-solving approach 49
3.2.4 The task-centred approach 50
3.2.5 The psychosocial theory 52
3.2.6 The person-centred approach 52
3.2.7 The developmental approach 53
3.2.8 The crisis theory 54
3.2.8.1 Different types of crises 54
3.2.8.2 Different stages in the crisis intervention process 55
3.3 CONCLUSION 57
LEARNING UNIT 4: Different fields of social work practice 58
INTRODUCTION 58
4.1 THE DIFFERENT FIELDS OF PRACTICE IN SOCIAL WORK 58
4.1.1 Social work with children 61
4.1.2 Social work with older persons 64
4.1.3 Social work with families 65
4.1.4 Social work with persons living with disabilities 68
4.1.5 Social work in health care 70
4.1.6 Social work in mental health care 73
4.1.7 Social work and addiction 74
4.1.8 Social work in private practice 76
4.1.9 Social work and employee assistance programmes 78
4.2 CONCLUSION 79
LEARNING UNIT 5: Introduction to the helping process in social work 80
INTRODUCTION 80
5.1 DIFFERENT ELEMENTS OF THE HELPING RELATIONSHIP 81
5.1.1 Verbal and nonverbal communication 82
5.1.2 Attentive and respectful listening 83
5.1.3 Facial expressions 84
5.1.4 Body posture 84

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5.1.5 Tone of voice 85
5.1.6 Warmth 85
5.1.7 Empathy 85
5.1.8 Genuineness and congruence 86
5.1.9 Eye contact 87
5.1.10 Showing concern for others (ubuntu) 87
5.2 IMPORTANT CHARACTERISTICS THAT SOCIAL WORKERS SHOULD HAVE 88
5.3 DIVERSITY AND THE HELPING RELATIONSHIP 91
5.4 CONCLUSION 92
BIBLIOGRAPHY 93
ADDENDUM A: FIKILE’S FAMILY 95
ADDENDUM B: SOCIAL AUXILLIARY WORKER ASSISTING WITH CASE WORK 1 96
ADDENDUM C: SOCIAL AUXILLIARY WORKER ASSISTING WITH CASE WORK 2 98
ADDENDUM D: MOLEBOGENG’S CASE STUDY 99
ADDENDUM E: TSAKANI’S STORY 100

(v) BSW1502/1
 WELCOME

Welcome to your second social work module in the BSW programme. This study guide is
1

aimed at helping you to lay the foundation for your studies in social work. It is also aimed
at introducing you to the profession of social work, which you have chosen as your career.
The study guide contains a number of activities aimed at getting you involved so that
2

you do not become just a passive recipient of information. For instance, the question of
why social work is regarded as a profession is aimed at stimulating your interest in this
profession. It also gives you an opportunity to reflect on your dream of being a social
worker.
A variety of case studies are used to help you to understand the theory that you will be
3

learning so that you can begin, at this elementary level, to apply it to a client’s situation.
The case studies are a tool to stimulate your thinking about what you are learning and
also to help you to find your place within the social work profession. It is good to have a
curious mind and to pursue your dreams.
A person who studies social work needs to be ready to learn who he/she is in relation to
4

the profession because when you start practicing, you will need to go beyond the call of
duty. Social workers deal with people’s situations that are very challenging, emotionally
and physically. If you are not ready to share the client’s emotional and physical being,
you are unlikely to enjoy being a social worker.
This profession demands that you be aware of yourself so that you can be efficient and
5

effective in providing services to your clients. As a result, you will be embarking on a

journey of self-discovery, without any reservations. Self-awareness enables you always
to be aware of your personal space when interacting with other people, including your
clients. Moreover, this self-awareness is achieved only through your personal commitment,
since no one can force you to go through that journey unwillingly.
I hope that you are going to enjoy this demanding journey so that you will become an
6

asset to society.

SPECIFICATIONS OF THIS MODULE

7Name of the Module: Introduction to Social Work as a profession
8Module code: BSW1502
9NQF Level: 5
10 Number of credits: 12
11

(vi)
 NATIONAL HOURS
WORKLOAD FOR MODULE BSW1502 NATIONAL
HOURS
Reading and comprehending study guide of 165 pages, including note- 43
taking (at five to ten pages an hour)
Reading and comprehending Tutorial Letter 101 of 18 pages (average of 5
5 pages an hour)
Completing 30 activities in study guide (average 20 minutes) 20
Completing 3 assignments (11.25 hours to produce 450 words, half on 15
reading)
Reading and comprehending tutorial letter 301 of 69 pages (average 5
7.5 pages an hour)
Revision 30
Examination 2
TOTAL number of notional hours 120

Teaching Methods
The module will be presented through online discussion forums, e-tutor support and
12

group work to facilitate the development of the module outcomes.

Assessment Methods
a. Assignments 20%
b Examination 80%
13 Total 100%

(vii) BSW1502/1
 THE USE OF ICONS
14 The icons that will be used in this study guide are as follows:

Icon Description

Learning outcomes. The learning outcomes indicate what aspects of the

particular topic or study unit you have to master and be able to demonstrate.

Activity. This icon refers to activities that you must do in order to develop a
deeper understanding of the learning material.

Reflection. This icon requires you to reflect on the important issues or problems
dealt with in the study unit.

15

16

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Learning unit 1
Social work and social auxiliary work within the
developmental paradigm

INTRODUCTION
This learning unit is the first step towards building the foundation that will enable you
17

to understand social work as a profession, as well as social auxiliary work as a support

service to social work practice in South Africa. This basic understanding will assist you as
you proceed with your studies towards your social work degree. Because social workers
need the support of social auxiliary workers to provide a comprehensive service, you need
to know how they work together as a team. This will also help you to decide on which
career path to follow, which is a very important decision in life. If you are not happy with
your career choice, you will be miserable for the rest of your life. Therefore, by gaining
this basic understanding of social work, you will be able to make an informed decision.
Social work is a career path that you probably learnt about only after you obtained
18

your matric, making it seem very strange and difficult. Since you will begin to learn the
language that is peculiar to social work (known as social work jargon) when you start your
studies at university, we advise you to obtain a good English dictionary and a social work
dictionary to facilitate your understanding. You need this understanding in order to grasp
the unique concepts in social work and then to apply them in practice. Remember that
social work is a profession that is characterised by performing certain actions, meaning
that it is a practical profession demanding that you learn about the necessary skills from
the very beginning of your studies. As a result, you need to develop skills at the basic
level, which will form the foundation of your entire career path.
In this first learning unit, you will learn about the goals, values and principles of social
19

work, the difference between a generalist and a specialist social work practitioner, the
core characteristics a social worker should have in order to facilitate the helping process
in clients’ lives, as well as the important role played by diversity in social work practice. All
these aspects form the basis for understanding the nature of social work practice, which
is the foundation for understanding social work as a profession.
You need to engage yourself in the activities provided so that you can master the subject
20

matter; if you fail to do the activities, you will be missing out on the opportunity to build
this important foundation. There are also a number of examples provided throughout
to assist you in understanding the concepts better. A case study is also provided towards
the end of the learning unit to help you to reflect on your learning process by applying
your acquired knowledge to deal with the issues in the case study. The case study should
help you to reflect on the level and pace at which you are able to master the learning unit.
It is important to note that the practice of social work in South Africa shifted from the
21

medical model towards the developmental paradigm at the start of the democratic
dispensation in 1994. This was done because the medical model did not facilitate change
1 BSW1502/1
in the lives of clients, but merely focused on the pathology, without including or sustaining
any form of development in the client. Therefore, social work training is now based on
the developmental approach that you need to grasp from the beginning of your training
towards a social work degree. A detailed discussion of the developmental paradigm is
provided in module BSW1501, which is one of the core modules in the first year of social
work training. You need to devote an equal amount of time to these modules so that you
gain a comprehensive understanding of the foundation of social work as a profession.
A case study on Fikile is provided in page 136 of this Study Guide. Read this case study
22

carefully and make sure that you understand how it has been linked to the social work
theory discussed in Learning unit 1 of this Study Guide. This will give you an opportunity
to understand how to apply social work theory to the different problematic situations that
clients present to social workers. Obviously, there is no single formula to deal with all the
different problematic situations that clients present with; the social worker must adapt
the social work theory to suit the needs of each client, since every individual (client) is
unique. This aspect is discussed in detail later in this learning unit, when the social work
professional values and principles are discussed.

Learning unit outcomes

After completion of this learning unit, you will be able to:

• describe the concept of social work as a profession, as well as social auxiliary work as
a support service to the social work profession
• describe the goals of social work
• demonstrate a basic knowledge of the social work values and principles by applying
them to a case study
• distinguish between generalist and specialist social work practice
• explain the core characteristics of social workers
• demonstrate an understanding of the complex context of social work practice (diversity
and culturally sensitive social work practice)

RECOMMENDED READING
Farley, OW, Smith, LL & Boyles, SW. 2010. Introduction to social work. 11th edition. Boston:
Pearson Education.
Cournoyer, BR. 2008. The social work skills workbook. 5th edition. Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole.
Nicholas, L, Rautenbach, I & Maistry, M. 2010. Introduction to social work. Cape Town: Juta.
Schenck, R. , Mbedzi, P., Qalinge, L., Schultz, P., Sekudu, J & Sesoko, M. 2016. Introduction
to Social Work in the South African context. Cape Town: Oxford University Press

1.1 IMPORTANT CONCEPTS IN SOCIAL WORK AND SOCIAL

AUXILIARY WORK WITHIN THE DEVELOPMENTAL
PARADIGM
You will need a good understanding of the following concepts in order to master the
23

foundation of social work and social auxiliary work. We will discuss these concepts one
by one so that you can grasp them fully. Initially, we will discuss them at an elementary
level, but then you will build on them as you proceed with your social work training.
2
1.1.1 What is social work?
As a first-year social work student, you might have various ideas of what social work entails.
24

You might have had an opportunity to interact with some social workers or observe how
they perform their duties. This might even have sparked your interest in following this
career, although you may still have some questions about what the profession entails.
Therefore, you need to obtain an accurate definition of social work. Firstly, it is important
to realise that the definition of social work has evolved over the years because of the
socio-political and socioeconomic developments globally, since social work practice is
always influenced by the political and socioeconomic contexts of the time. These contexts
always influence how social work is practiced because the budget allocated for social
work practice depends on the philosophy of the ruling party of a particular country in a
particular period.
It is important to equally remember that social work is regarded as one of the helping
25

professions. Yet social work within the developmental paradigm goes further than just
helping clients to deal with problematic situations; it also makes an effort to facilitate a
process of skills development that equips clients to deal with future problematic situation
without the help of a social worker.

Activity 1

You might have already come into contact with social workers or heard about the social
work profession. Use your own understanding of what social work is to answer the
following questions:
• What particular characteristics must a social worker possess to render effective services?
• What do social workers use in their efforts to assist clients to deal with their problematic
situations?
• Why do people need social workers, specifically during this era in South Africa?

With the above information in mind, let us now consider the definition of social work.
26

Different social work authors have come up with different definitions of social work as a
profession. All these definitions focus on the core of the profession, which is, to improve
the social functioning of individuals, families, groups and communities and creating
opportunities for development. According to Kirst-Ashman (2017:5), social work is based
on a set of professional values and principles that are aimed at:
• helping people to access tangible services
• providing counselling and group therapy for individuals, families and groups
• helping communities or groups to provide or improve social and health services
• participating in relevant legislative processes (National Association of Social Workers
1973:4–5)

Social work is defined by Farley, Smith and Boyle (2010:7) as “an art, a science, a profession
27

that helps people solve personal, group, and community problems and attain satisfying
personal, group, and community relationships through social work practice”. From this
definition, it is clear that the aim is not for social workers to be seen as superheroes who
solve people’s problems; rather, they serve as facilitators of change in the lives of people
to enable them to achieve improved social functioning. Social workers are not there to
3 BSW1502/1
give people advice; instead, they must facilitate a process that allows clients to own their
problems and to grow during the process of resolving them.
Social work practice occurs at local, regional and global levels and its definition is adjusted
28

for each of these levels. There are also professional bodies that operate at each of these
levels and they ultimately agree on a particular definition at a particular period in time;
these definitions then evolve over time, depending on the political and socioeconomic
changes that occur globally.
The global social work professional body known as the International Federation of Social
29

Workers (IFSW) recently adopted the following definition of social work, after a process
of deliberations based on what the focus of social work must be:
Social work is a practice-based profession and an academic discipline that promotes
30

social change and development, social cohesion, and the empowerment and liberation
of people. Principles of social justice, human rights, collective responsibility and respect
for diversities are central to social work. Underpinned by theories of social work, social
sciences, humanities and indigenous knowledge, social work engages people and
structures to address life challenges and enhance wellbeing. (http://ifsw.org/policies/
indigenous-peoples).
31 From the above definition, it becomes evident that social work:
• is a profession
• is aimed at promoting social change among its clients
• is aimed at working towards growth and development in the lives of the clients
• is aimed at empowering people
• is a profession that regards social justice, human rights and respect for diversity as
core elements of its practice
• is a profession that uses theories, models and approaches to intervene in problematic
situations, taking the indigenous context of the clients into consideration

Furthermore, social work, as a profession, cannot be practised in a vacuum, meaning that

32

the political context of a country always influences social work practice, as all the policies
and legislative documents are aligned with the philosophy of the ruling party. Therefore,
the definition of social work must be understood within the political context of the time
and then critically evaluated. This sometimes poses a challenge to the practice of social
work, as it opens the profession to political manipulation.

Activity 2

As a citizen of this country, you are aware of the political dispensation, and how the
government formulates legislative and policy documents that affect people directly.
Look around in your local community and think about the definition of social work as
given above and then try to answer the following questions:
• Identify any social work activities in your community and link them to the definition
of social work above.
• Are there any community projects that are aimed at empowering your community
members both socially and economically?
• How many people in your community are involved in those projects?
• How many people in your community depend on government grants for basic survival?

4
 • In your opinion, is there any willingness on the part of community members to be
independent?

1.1.2 Why is social work a profession?

Social work is seen as a profession because it is characterised by a specific set of values
33

and principles that regulates the behaviour of social workers when dealing with their
clients. These values and principles require that social workers adhere to specific behaviour
when dealing with their clients, the agency they are working for, the profession itself, the
community they serve, as well as the society at large. This set of values and principles
sets social work apart from other professions. You will learn more about these values
and principles later in this learning unit. For now, let’s look at the characteristics of social
work as a profession.
34 These characteristics are adapted from Farley et al. (2017:7–11):

1.1.2.1 Individual as a holistic being

Social work looks at the individual as a holistic being that is in continuous interaction with
35

the environment. Emphasis is placed on how the individual interacts with the family as
a system responsible for socialisation of its subsystems to create a state of balance. Any
disturbance in any part of the system creates an imbalance in the system as a whole. The
family is therefore often regarded as the case and a focal factor in social work.

1.1.2.2 Knowledge of community resources

Identification and knowledge of community resources remain a cornerstone in helping
36

people deal with daily challenges.

1.1.2.3 Integration of theory and practice

Social work practice uses a number of theories, approaches and models to understand
37

client’s problems and to intervene at different levels. Social workers are therefore expected
to understand theory in order to be able to integrate theory into practice.

1.1.2.4 Primary methods of intervention

Social work is based on three primary methods of intervention, which are casework,
38

group work and community work. In addition to the three primary methods, there are
secondary methods, namely, research, and administration/ management. These will be
discussed later.

1.1.2.5 Statutory body

Social work is regulated by the statutory body called the Council for Social Service
39

Professions as promulgated by the Act of parliament.

5 BSW1502/1
1.1.2.6 Worker-client relationship
Building of a positive worker-client relationship is paramount in the helping process. A
40

positive worker-client relationship facilitates the development of a warm and conducive

climate.

1.1.2.7 Multi-disciplinary profession

Social work is a multi-disciplinary profession borrowing from other disciplines, such as
41

Sociology, Psychology etc.

1.1.2.8 Problem solving

Social work recognises that social problems are the results of the environment not
42

responding to the needs of the people, and that human behaviour is greatly influenced
by the social institutions of humanity. To facilitate problem solving, it is necessary for
social workers to understand the environments people live in and how their environments
impact on their daily lives.

1.1.2.9 Social work operates under the auspices of a welfare agency

Most social workers are employed in welfare agencies or institutions and as such operate
43

within the framework and policies of the organisation they work for. The welfare agency
or organisation provides resources for social workers to perform their services.

1.1.2.10 Belief in strengths of the client

The basic aim of social work is to help clients help themselves or to help communities
44

develop to a stage of sustainability.

1.1.2.11 Rehabilitation, prevention and developmental social welfare

Social workers emphasise rehabilitation (which is restoring individual, groups and
45

communities to a balanced state of equilibrium) and prevention being proactive by

introducing preventative programmes) in alleviating health and social pathologies.

1.1.2.12 Team approach

A team approach and use of community stakeholders is encouraged throughout the
46

problem solving process.

1.1.3 What is a social worker?

Now that you have a foundational knowledge of social work as a profession, it is equally
47

important to learn what a social worker is. This will facilitate further understanding of social
work as a process. A clear understanding of what a social worker does is important at this
early stage of your studies in social work so that you can make an informed decision about
your career path. The definition of a social worker is based on the definition of social work.

6
It is obvious from the definition of social work discussed above that a social worker is a
48

professional who practices social work, after having been trained to be a social worker.
According to Farley et al (2010:7), a social worker is a social service professional who
focuses on a person in relation to his/her environment. The social worker acknowledges
that an individual exists within a particular environment, and that, it is this environment
that sometimes has a negative or a positive impact on the development of the individual.
Accordingly, a social worker helps to improve people’s lives in their own environment by
49

creating opportunities for self-understanding and development and by improving their

ability to interact with others in the environment in which they live. It is important to add
that, in addition to working with individuals, the social worker also deals with individuals,
families, groups and communities.
In South Africa, a social worker is defined as a person who has qualified with a bachelor
50

of social work degree (BSW), which is a four-year degree programme. After qualifying,
the person must be registered with the professional body that regulates how social work
training and practice are conducted, as well as how the client systems are handled by the
social workers. This professional body is established in terms of the country’s legislation,
meaning that it is a statutory body and is known as the South African Council for Social
Service Professions (SACSSP). This body is established according to the Social Service
Professions Act 110 of 1978, which clearly spells out how the body has to be established
and regulated.
All social work students have to register with this body during their second year of social
51

work study because they are expected to make direct contact with clients. This ensures
that the client systems are protected from any harm, since student social workers are
still in a training process. This therefore calls for a regulated service to protect the clients
from harm.
The facets of social work qualifications will be clarified later in this learning unit, when we
52

discuss the difference between generalist and specialist social work practice.

Activity 3

• Now that you are aware of what a social worker is, according to the legislation in South
Africa, do you believe that it is important to have a statutory body regulating what
social workers are doing, including social work students?
• In your opinion, is it important to subject future social workers to a comprehensive
process of training?

1.1.4 What is developmental social work?

As already indicated above, the practice of social work in South Africa is based on the
53

developmental paradigm. This shift came about as a result of the new political dispensation
in 1994. We have already indicated that the political philosophy of the government of the
day always influences how social work is practiced in a country at any given time. This
aspect is clearly outlined in BSW1501, where the history of social work is discussed. At
this point, however, it is important to clarify what the developmental paradigm is. This
paradigm is explained in the White Paper for Social Welfare (1997), which emphasises
the social and economic development of clients. This entails a shift from the residual
7 BSW1502/1
and institutional paradigms that prevailed before and simply provided for material
assistance without any emphasis on empowerment/development. The adoption of the
developmental social work paradigm was influenced by problems that were evident
during the Apartheid regime and which resulted in fragmented service delivery and a
significant lack of development.
The developmental paradigm focuses on the strengths of clients and empowering them
54

to become self-reliant. You are urged to read the White Paper for Social Welfare (1997) so
that you have a clear picture of what the developmental paradigm entails. (This policy
document is currently under review. You will be informed about the new one as soon as
it has been finalised.)

1.1.5 What is social auxiliary work?

Read this section thoroughly for you to understand the position and role of social auxiliary
55

work in the field of social work practice. Social auxiliary work is part and parcel of social
work practice in South Africa. Therefore, to fully comprehend the field of social work in
this country, you need a clear understanding of what social auxiliary work is and where
it features in the overall field of practice.
According to the Social Service Professions Act 110 of 1978, as amended, social auxiliary
56

work refers to any activity or conduct that is practiced by a social auxiliary worker under
the guidance and supervision of a social worker, in order to achieve the aims of social work.
The training of social auxiliary workers is on an NQF level 4 or 5, the latter being a higher
57

education qualification. It consists of modules similar to those for social work training,
including an overview of welfare and welfare policy, social work, human behaviour, the
methods of social work and fields of practice, such as poverty, mental illness, substance
abuse, HIV and AIDS and working with children. Furthermore, the training makes provision
for relevant supervised practical work. Social auxiliary workers are also given clear training
in terms of their role as team members, working together with and under the supervision
of social workers. Although they may not do the work of a professional social worker, such
as therapeutic and statutory work, they may to a certain extend assist in working with
individuals, families, groups and communities.
All persons practicing as social auxiliary workers must be registered with the relevant
58

professional council, namely the South African Council for Social Service Professions
(SACSSP), as is the case with social workers. Registration with the council provides
professional recognition, but also protects the interest of the profession and the clients.
The South African Council for Social Service Professions (SACSSP) requires social auxiliary
59

workers to have at least a basic understanding of the South African welfare context,
including related policies and practices in terms of developmental social services, as
well as an understanding of their role within this context. In addition, they must be able
to display a basic understanding of human behaviour, relationship systems and social
issues. Their conduct should be ethical in all matters, reflecting the values and principles
contained in the Bill of Rights and the social work profession’s code of ethics, as discussed
later in this learning unit.
Against this background, social auxiliary workers work with social workers and other
60

members of a multisectoral team, under the guidance of a social worker, utilising available
8
resources in their service delivery to client systems. In their provision of services, they
must keep an accurate record of all their activities, as well as assist social workers with
administration and research.
Study the case studies in Addenda B and C in this Study Guide which illustrate how social
61

auxiliary workers become involved in the field of social work practice.

Activity 4

Now that you are aware of what social work and social auxiliary work entails , try to answer
the following questions:
• What are the distinct similarities and differences between social work, as a profession,
and social auxiliary work?
• What do you see as the major function of social auxiliary work in the field of social
work service delivery?
• Do social auxiliary workers need to be supervised by social workers? Give reasons for
your answer.
• Describe the relationship that must exist between the social worker and the social
auxiliary worker, according to your own understanding.

1.2 THE FUNCTIONS AND GOALS OF SOCIAL WORK

In order to further your understanding of social work as a profession, it is important for
62

you to learn what the functions and goals of social work are. Social work intervention has
specific goals and specific functions, and these will be discussed separately to prevent
confusion. It is important that you understand these different functions and goals right
from the beginning of your studies.

1.2.1 The functions of social work

The functions of social work, as highlighted in Learning unit 1 of this Study Guide () are
63

as follows:
• Facilitate change and development
This function focuses on developing opportunities for putting individuals, families, groups
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and communities in touch with services, resources and opportunities to develop and
change. In the case of Fikile (Addendum A), the function of a social worker may be to put
her in touch with a rehabilitation centre that could help her son, who is abusing drugs.
Fikile could also be linked to a support group of people who are in a similar situation to
hers; this would enable her to receive support and develop skills to cope with her situation.
Later in this study guide, when we discuss the different methods of social work, you will
learn how groups can be used to facilitate growth and development in people’s lives.

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 Talking heads to illustrate this function
Social worker: We have now had three sessions with Tebogo, your son. It is my suggestion that
we consider sending him to a rehabilitation centre to give him time to be assisted by specialised
professionals to get off the drugs and develop skills to cope with his life challenges that he may
encounter, without going back to drugs.
Fikile: If that will help him, I am prepared to go along with your suggestion. I will do anything in
my power to help my boy; it hurts me to see him in his current state.
Social worker: if you are sure about this, I will start with the process to have him committed to the
rehabilitation centre. I am happy that you are cooperating, as it is in Tebogo’s best interest for him
to be restored to an acceptable level of social functioning.

• Enhance problem-solving
The fundamental function of a social worker is to enhance the problem-solving, coping
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and developmental capacities of individuals, families, groups and communities. We must

remember that clients approach the social worker in a situation of helplessness and,
sometimes, hopelessness. The social worker has the responsibility to identify and activate
the fighting spirit that is inherent in every person by drawing the client’s attention to his/
her inner strength. This is the starting point in the process of enhancing problem-solving,
where the social worker uses skills and theoretical knowledge to help the client to tell his/
her story, identify the problem, look at alternative ways of dealing with the problem and,
subsequently, develop a plan of action to deal with the identified problem, together with
the client. In this process, the social worker has to actively involve the client at all times
in the decision-making process so that the client takes ownership of the problem. When
the client feels that the problem is his/her own, and not the social worker’s, it becomes
easier for the client to get involved in tackling the problem. No person enjoys feeling
helpless, and the same is true of clients, no matter how complicated their situation may
be. Problems are usually multifaceted and the client should be involved right from the
beginning until the problematic situation has been resolved. When the client’s strengths
are emphasised by the social worker, the client becomes an active participant in the
process, owns the process and cooperates more readily.

Talking heads
Social worker: The step that you took to come here shows that you are brave and determined to
change your situation.
Fikile: Hey, social worker, I just feel helpless and sometimes see myself as a failure.
Social worker: Taking action towards changing your situation shows you are not a failure.
Fikile: I am glad you see me as someone who can achieve something; this really encourages me.
Social worker: Now that we have talked about your problem, we need to break it down into
smaller chunks so that we can deal with them one by one, starting with the one you find to be
most pressing.
Fikile: I want to see this situation resolved and I am prepared to cooperate with you, as I can see
that you are really trying to help me.

• Promote coordination
This function is aimed at promoting the effective coordination of systems that provide
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individuals, families, groups and communities with resources and services. In this case, the
10
social worker can work with the family, as a system, to improve interpersonal relationships
and facilitate involvement of other systems in the environment to provide resources and
support to the whole client system which might comprise an individual, a family, a group
or a community. This function is sometimes referred to as case management, where the
social worker has the responsibility to ensure that the client system – be it an individual,
family, group or community – receives a coordinated service from all the service providers
that are involved in resolving the problematic situation. According to Kirst-Ashman and
Hull (2012:120), case management often involves coordination of services by a variety
of professionals, with the aim of ensuring that all services provided to the client are
accomplished in a way that is responsive to the needs of the client.
For example, in Fikile’s situation, her son has to be referred for rehabilitation, where he
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will be attended to by a number of professionals. The social worker has to facilitate the
process of his admission to the rehabilitation centre and then keep in contact with the
social worker at the centre to monitor his progress so that she can communicate with his
family. She also has the responsibility to ensure that Tebogo is kept informed about his
family while he is in the rehabilitation centre. The services within the centre are coordinated
by the social worker at the centre, who will update Fikile’s social worker. This function is
very important, especially when the client’s problematic situation cannot be handled by
a single agency/organisation.

1.2.2 The goals of social work

As mentioned above, social work has specific goals that must be kept in mind by every
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social worker, as all social work interventions must be geared towards achieving one of
these goals at any given time. According to Du Bois and Miley (1996:10–12), these goals
are as follows:
• Enhancing people’s capacities to resolve problems, to cope and to function
effectively
To accomplish this goal, social workers assess the obstacles to their clients’ abilities to
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function. They also identify resources and strengths, enhance skills for dealing with
problems in life, develop plans for solutions, and support their clients’ efforts to initiate
changes in their lives.
• Linking clients with the required resources
At one level, achieving this goal means helping clients to locate the resources they need
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to deal more effectively with their respective situations. This calls for the social worker
to be familiar with the resources in the community that he/she is serving in order to be
able to link the clients with these resources. In other instances, the social worker has to
facilitate the process of developing new resources to meet the clients’ needs. An example
of this would be in a community where there is a problem of substance abuse among
the youth, but there are no rehabilitation facilities. The social worker may then use his/
her community development knowledge and skills to initiate such a service/facility, in
partnership with the community.
At another level, this means social workers advocate policies and services that provide
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optimal benefits, improve communication among human service professionals who

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represent various programmes and services, and identify gaps and barriers in social
services that need to be addressed.
• Improving the social service delivery network
This means that social workers must ensure that the system that delivers social services is
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humane and adequately provides resources and services to participants. To accomplish

this, social workers advocate planning that centres on clients, is effective and efficient
and incorporates measures of accountability.
• Promoting social justice through the development of social policy
Social policy, as expressed through the social welfare system and other systems (e.g. political
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and economic systems), determines the availability, existence and vitality of these systems’
resources. With regard to developing social policies, social workers examine social issues
for policy implications. They make suggestions for new policies and recommendations
for eliminating policies that are discriminatory or have become unproductive. In addition,
social workers translate general policies into programmes and services that respond to
participants’ needs. Social workers also have a responsibility to be engaged continuously
in research so that they are able to influence the existing policies, based on evidence and
not simply on conjecture/guesswork. (You will learn about social work research in your
final year of studies.)
When you study the above functions and goals, you will notice that they are interrelated
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and deal with similar aspects. They also touch on the particular roles that social workers
have to play in the process of facilitating change and development in the lives of their
clients. We will examine these roles in more detail later in this learning unit.

Activity 5

Now that you are familiar with the functions and goals of social work, use the situation
of Fikile that is described in Addendum A and link these functions and goals to what the
social worker has to do in assisting Fikile to alleviate her problematic situation.

1.3 SOCIAL WORK VALUES AND PRINCIPLES

Social work is based on and guided by a set of professional principles and values, such as
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respect for human beings, that is, respecting the inherent dignity and worth of the people
that they deal with. Accepting people without prejudice, that is, not discriminating on the
basis of colour, age, religion, sexual preferences, race and disability. Treating each person
as an individual, that is taking into consideration that each individual is as unique as his/
her thumb print, thus understanding the experiential world of every person as central,
unique and personal becomes paramount. Keeping clients’ problems as confidential as
possible, thus respecting their right to privacy. As well as allowing each individual self-
determination and purposeful expression of feelings. It is these principles and values that
direct social workers in their efforts to help clients who come to their social work office
for assistance.
12
Carefully read through the case study in Addendum D in this Study Guide to see how the
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values and principles are applied in social work practice. After studying the case study,
you should be able to answer the following questions:

Questions that encourage you to reflect on your own value system

• In your opinion, what makes a person trustworthy?
• What do you think Molebogeng’s friends did to jeopardise their friendship?
• If you were in Molebogeng’s position, how would you have responded when your best friends
behaved the way her friends did?
• If you were in Tsotlhe and Tshidi’s position, what would you have done differently to save your
friendship (relationship) with Molebogeng?
• What is your view of this kind of relationship, which changes because Molebogeng is now sick?
• How do you feel about people who gossip or talk behind someone’s back?
• Define the concepts of confidentiality and a non-judgemental attitude in a relationship.
• Define your own values and principles that you have developed over the years regarding
being a trustworthy person.
• How would you describe your own values and principles in relation to professional social work
values and principles?

Let’s now focus on the definitions of values and principles. We will consider different
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definitions to help you to understand the essence of this important aspect of social work as
a profession. You will recall that earlier on we mentioned the statutory body that regulates
how social work must be practiced in a country. This body is responsible for formulating
a code of ethics and ensuring that the practitioners registered with it adhere to this code.
This aspect will be dealt with in detail as you proceed with your studies, since you will
have to become familiar with the roles and functions of this body and begin complying
with its regulations as early as your second year of social work studies.
Values, ethics and principles are the cornerstone of social work practice in any given
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country. For a person to be called a social worker in practice, he/she should internalise
and practise this set of values and principles. As stated by Kirst-Ashman (2013:22), social
work is a value-based profession and everything that social workers do must be within
the framework of these professional values. Social work values must inform social work
practice, determining whether behaviour is acceptable or not. The different definitions of
professional values and principles are clearly stated in Learning unit 1. Make sure that you
learn and internalise them, as they form the basis of social work practice. The following
are some of the definitions and explanations of social work values:
Barlett (1970), as cited by Bisman (1994:45), defines values as that which is regarded as
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good and desirable. Therefore, social work values provide the basis for distinguishing
between good and bad. According to Dominelli (2009:18), the traditional values that
underpin social work’s code of ethics were initially identified by Biestek (1961) as follows:
a. Individualisation – a focus on the uniqueness of each individual’s situation
b. Purposeful expression of feelings –using emotions to initiate behavioural changes
c. Controlled emotional involvement – maintaining a professional distance in rela-
tionships with service users
d. Acceptance – valuing a person in his or her own right
e. Client self-determination – promoting service users’ independence and ability to
make decisions about their lives
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f. Confidentiality – not disclosing information obtained in a professional relationship
g. Non-judgemental attitude – refraining from passing judgement on other people

Grobler and Schenck (2010:38) refer to social work values as certain attitudes that the
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social worker, as the facilitator of change, can adopt to help him/her to treat clients with
respect. They see values as an integral and continual part of the process of facilitation.
They also emphasise that without professional values, it is impossible to create the safe
space necessary for clients’ self-exploration. This means that in their interaction with
individuals, families, groups and communities, social workers should be aware of the
importance of the values that they reflect during the intervention process.
Rogers (1987), in Grobler & Schenck (2010:38–44), identified the four basic professional
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values relevant for intervention as respect, individualisation, self-determination and

confidentiality.
a. Respect: This refers to the facilitator’s (social worker’s) showing respect for the client
and believing that the individual has sufficient capacity to deal constructively with
all those aspects of his/her life that come into his/her conscious awareness.
b. Individualisation: This is involved when the facilitator (social worker) perceives the
client as the client sees himself/herself and sees each client as unique; he/she does
not generalise and treat people with similar problems in the same way.
c. Self–determination: This means that the facilitator (social worker) must believe that
the client has the capability and capacity to determine for himself/herself what he/
she wants. This value is similar to respect; in this case, the social worker will encour-
age the client to believe in himself/herself and draw on his/her inner strengths by
using effective communication skills.
d. Confidentiality: This means that whatever the client tells the social worker will re-
main private; the social worker will not repeat the information to someone else. The
information shared in the helping relationship must be used in that context only. In
a situation where the social worker operates under supervision and where he/she
has to share the content of his/her cases with his/her supervisor, the supervisor is
also a social worker who is governed by professional values and principles, so he/
she, too, will uphold the value of confidentiality.

Corcoran (2012:183–184) and Kirst-Ashman (2013:35–36) describe six core social work
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values, as outlined by the National Association of Social Work (NASW), along with their
supporting principles. Make sure that you internalise these values and are able to relate
them to the case studies provided.
Table 1: NASW core values

Social work values Supporting principles Values emphasis

Service Providing help, resources and Social workers to provide
benefits to people to help service to all people in need
them achieve their maximum of help and not discriminate
potential. against anyone.

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 Social work values Supporting principles Values emphasis
Social justice Upholding the condition Social workers are to promote
that in the perfect world social justice directly or
all citizens would have indirectly through their
identical rights, protection, servicesand as they connect
opportunities, obligation and clients to other services.
social benefits regardless
of their background and
membership groups
(Barker, 2003: 404–405).
Dignity and worth of a person Social workers respect the The dignity of clients
inherent dignity and worth of and communities is to be
a person respected at all times by
social workers.
Importance of human Social workers recognise the Social workers are required
relationships central importance of human to build professional
relationships. relationships with clients and
communities.
Integrity Social workers behave in a Social workers are required
trustworthy manner to have integrity in order
to service clients and
communities honestly and
professionally
Competence Social workers practice within Social workers must be able
their areas of competence to apply skills, knowledge,
and development theories, tools and techniques
to facilitate change. They
should take responsibility
to see to it that they have
the required skills and
knowledge.

Source: Adapted from Schenck, Mbedzi, Qalinge, Schultz, Sekudu & Sesoko: 2016.

Activity 6

Social work values and principles form the cornerstone of social work practice. Use the
above information to answer the following questions:
• Why does social work, as a profession, need a set of values and principles to direct the
services rendered to clients?
• In your opinion, which of the values and principles discussed above seem to be most
important? Give reasons for your answer.
• Do you think it is important to deal with each client as an individual or to categorise
clients according to the problems that they are experiencing?
• What do you think should be done in cases where a social worker divulges the information
that a client has shared as part of the helping relationship?

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 1.4 THE CODE OF ETHICS FOR THE SOCIAL WORK
PROFESSION
At this stage it is important to refer to the code of ethics adopted by the professional
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body that regulates social work training and practice in South Africa, namely the South
African Council for Social Service Professions (SACSSP). You will be required to register
with this professional body during your second year of social work studies, as well as after
completing your degree, so that you are able to practise as a social worker.
The code of conduct describes the standards of professional conduct required from
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social service practitioners in their daily professional activities. The code of Ethics can be
referred to as the manual or the booklet for social work practice. It contains the standards,
rules and regulations for practice. It has a legislative and moral function. The code also
educates individuals and community members about what to expect from social workers,
especially in their conduct and behaviour. The council, as the professional body for the
social services practitioners is the custodian of the Code of Ethics.
It is important to note that, the social work profession has developed different codes of
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ethics to address specific fields of practice and country specific social work issues
86 (Dolgoff, Loewenberg & Harrington: 2005:14).

87 The role of the South African Council for Social Service Professions (SACSSP)
We have now established that the social work profession in South Africa, like in many other
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countries, is regulated. This means that social workers operate within a specific regulated
setting that stipulates how they are expected to behave and conduct themselves while
dealing with clients, other professionals, colleagues and the general community. The
South African Social Service Professions Act 110 of 1978, as amended, provides for the
establishment of the South African Council for Social Service Professions and defines
its powers and functions. This statutory council regulates the conduct, training and
registration of social and associated workers.
The main objectives of the SACSSP, as stated in the policy guidelines (SACSSP policy
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guidelines 2006:5), are to:

a. protect and promote the interest of the professions
b. maintain and enhance the prestige, status, integrity and dignity of the professions
c. determine, on the recommendation of the professional boards, the qualification for
the registration of social workers, social auxiliary workers and persons practicing
other professions
d. regulate the practicing of professions
e. determine the standard of professional conduct
f. exercise effective control over the professional conduct
g. encourage and promote efficiency with regard to the practice of the professions

It is clear from the professional ethics, values and principles that social workers need to
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provide services to their clients within a particular framework, namely one that promotes
human dignity so that the client feels safe to interact and share his/her problematic
situation with the social worker, providing all the necessary information in the hope of
receiving appropriate help.
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Activity 7

• In your own words, describe the role played by the South African Council for Social
Service Professions as far as social work practice is concerned.

1.5 ETHICAL DECISION-MAKING

Social workers have a responsibility to make ethical decisions when they intervene in their
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client’s problematic situations. This responsibility places a number of legal obligations

on the shoulders of the helping professions, social work included.
According to Cournoyer (2008:96–102), there are six legal obligations (listed below) that
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the social worker must observe at all times when engaged in an intervention process
with his/her clients:
• Duty to care
As professional practitioners, social workers have the obligation to care for their clients in
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the process of service delivery. This calls for competency on the part of the social worker in
a wide range of settings, which means that they are trained to be generalist practitioners.
Social workers must be willing to keep themselves up to date professionally by reading
the professional literature so that they know about any new developments in the field of
social work. This ensures that their service delivery will be relevant and responsive to the
needs of their clients. In addition, social workers must keep their clients informed about
their availability, for example by informing their clients in good time before going on leave.
Furthermore, the social worker has a legal duty to ensure that his/her clients are physically
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protected by determining if the client might be a danger to others or himself/herself, as

well as if he/she is disabled not to care for himself/herself. This ‘duty to care’ also calls
for the social worker to keep accurate records of the services that he/she is providing to
clients and to keep these records safe and confidential.
• Duty to respect privacy
Social workers have an obligation to protect the privacy of the clients they serve. The
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information elicited from the clients must be strictly related to the problematic situation
for which they sought assistance; the social worker must not pressurise the client to reveal
any other unnecessary information. For example, if a social worker is approached by a
homeless person requesting assistance with locating his/her family, it is not important to
ask about the homeless person’s religion or sexual orientation. Every person has private
issues that do not need to be in the public domain; the social worker must respect that
and ask only about what is relevant to the current problematic situation.
• Duty to maintain confidentiality
In a helping relationship, clients have to share their secrets with the social worker, so the
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social worker has a duty to ensure that this information is not divulged to others outside
the helping relationship. This involves the value of confidentiality. If any confidential
information needs to be used elsewhere, the client has to give his/her informed consent.
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When a client has to be referred to another agency for further assistance, this information
must be treated with the necessary confidentiality.
• Duty to inform
The social worker has a responsibility to inform the client of the services that his/her
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agency is able to offer so that the client will know if he/she has approached the correct
agency or needs to be referred to another agency. For example, some agencies charge
clients for their services, so the client has to be informed about the cost implications at
the beginning of the interaction. This will allow him/her to determine if he/she will be
able to afford the services of the agency or needs to be referred to government services
that are offered free of charge. In cases where a client’s action might endanger another
person’s life, the client must be informed that the person whose life might be endangered
will be warned about the client’s intended action, despite the confidentiality clause that
exists between the client and the social worker. For example, if a client tells the social
worker that he intends divorcing his wife because she is not treating him well, and that
he intends to do it secretly to catch her off guard, the social worker has an obligation to
inform the client about the implications of his intended action and the need to inform
his wife.
• Duty to report
Another responsibility that goes hand in hand with practising as a social worker is to
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report any action that violates the right of another person. In South Africa, where the rate
of abuse against women and children is so high, the social worker has a responsibility to
report such cases if they come to his/her attention. For instance, if a social worker suspects
that a child is being abused at home, he/she needs to conduct preliminary investigations
to confirm the suspicion and then report the matter to the South African Police Service.
This duty, then, accompanies the duty to care.
• Duty to warn and protect
This responsibility accompanies the duty to report crimes against humanity discussed
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above. With regard to this responsibility, the emphasis is on warning the potential victim
and taking action to protect him/her. For example, in cases where a wife tells the social
worker that she has endured enough ill treatment by her husband and has decided to
add poison to his food so that he will die slowly without realising what is happening,
the social worker has a responsibility to inform the client that he/she is obliged to warn
the husband so that he can protect himself. If the client is adamant that she will proceed
with her plan, even after the social worker’s intervention, the social worker has a duty to
warn the client’s husband.
Ethical conflict and ethical dilemmas are two factors that cause stress in social work and
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other helping professions. Because of the stress caused by these factors, social workers may
suffer from burnout and, consequently, become disillusioned with the helping process;
they may even end up in a situation in which they are found guilty of unprofessional
conduct. Because social workers have to make ethical decisions on a daily basis, they
should accept that they will be confronted with these realities in practice.
You may be wondering what constitutes an ethical dilemma. Moral or ethical problems
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may arise when the underlying values of social work have to be applied in practice.
Compton and Galaway (1994:197) define what they call an ‘‘ethical dilemma’’ as follows:

18
“An ethical dilemma is one in which you cannot simultaneously meet your obligations
to two different parties in the role set without violating your ethical commitment to one
or the other.” In addressing this ethical dilemma, Congress (in Cournoyer 2008:112–113)
suggests that social workers adopt the ETHIC model of decision-making, which comprises
the following steps:
• E – Examine relevant personal, societal, agency, client and professional values.
• T – Think about the ethical standards embodied in the code of ethics of your professional
body, as well as any relevant laws.
• H – Hypothesise about the possible consequences of different decisions.
• I – Identify who will benefit and who will be harmed in view of social work’s commitment
to the most vulnerable.
• C – Consult with your supervisor and colleagues about the most ethical choice.

These guidelines will go a long way in assisting the social worker to make ethical decisions
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that are beneficial to their clients.

Example
An 88-year-old woman is admitted to hospital. She has end-stage cervical cancer and has been
receiving oncology treatment for five years. She was once in remission and felt positive that she
was going to beat the cancer, but her remission was short-lived and she relapsed. Owing to the
treatment, she has lost her hair and always feels nauseous. She has lost interest in life and feels
that she has completed her journey on planet earth. As a social worker, you have been involved
i with her case for a long time and she feels that she can trust you completely. One day, during
your counselling session, she tells you that she would like to say goodbye to you because you
have been so kind to her, have supported her all along and have made a difference in her life; she
feels that she would not be able to rest in peace without saying goodbye to you. She also tells you
that she has managed to get some help from one of her relatives, who brought her something to
help her to rest in peace. Think deeply about how you would handle this situation and consider
all the ethical issues discussed above.
Note: The process of making ethical decisions continues throughout the helping process.

1.6 GENERALIST SOCIAL WORK PRACTICE AND SPECIALIST

SOCIAL WORK PRACTICE
Social work training in South Africa aims to enable social workers to intervene in people’s
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troubled situations as generalist practitioners. Generalist practitioners are expected to

be equipped with basic social work knowledge and a variety of skills and techniques
to meet the needs of their clients at a basic level. Furthermore, generalist practice is
the application of an eclectic knowledge base, professional values and a wide range of
skills to target systems for change within their clients’ different contexts. It is important
always to take the client system’s environment into consideration so as to understand
the interaction between the two, which might have contributed to the problematic
situation. Understanding the interaction between the system and the environment assists
the social worker in identifying the problematic area and coming up with appropriate
intervention strategies.
As a generalist practitioner, the social worker is equipped to meet the needs of his/
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her clients at all levels of intervention, namely individual, family, group and community
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levels. As this intervention process unfolds, the social worker assumes a number of roles,
depending on the client system’s needs and capabilities to engage in the helping process.
At the entry level in social work practice, the social worker must be able to intervene as a
generalist and be able to recognise, after assessing the client’s situation, that a situation
needs specialised intervention so that he/she can refer the client to such services (Schenck
et al, 2016).
The qualification for social work practitioners in South Africa is a four-year bachelor’s degree
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in social work (BSW) from an accredited South African institution of higher learning. Within
the South African context, a prospective practitioner is required to apply for registration
with the South African Council for Social Service Professions (SACSSP), which will evaluate
the academic record to assess if the candidate has complied with all the requirements for
registration. Based on the evaluation of the curriculum, the candidate will be registered as
a fully qualified social work practitioner. After obtaining a BSW qualification, the person
is assumed to be able to practise social work as a generalist practitioner because he/she
must have been exposed to different problematic situations in his/her practical training,
in preparation for the real social work field.
On the other hand, for a person to practice as a social work specialist, he/she must have
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continued with his/her social work studies and completed a postgraduate programme in
a particular specialised field of practice. Different universities in South Africa offer these
postgraduate degrees at master’s level. After completing such a degree, the graduate may
practice as a specialist. Some examples of specialisation include social work in health care,
occupational social work, social policy, and school social work. People who are specialists
are still able to work as generalists, but they usually work in their fields of specialisation
and generalists then refer clients to them for further services. There are also organisations
that employ people who have studied further to specialise in a particular field, but most
organisations in South Africa employ generalist social workers, specifically at an entry level.

1.7 CORE CHARACTERISTICS OF A SOCIAL WORKER

Now that you know why social work is a profession, it is important for you learn about
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the specific characteristics that social workers need in order to render effective services.
It is virtually impossible to describe “the ideal helping person” because there are almost
as many kinds of helpers as there are people who need help. There is probably no
single person who will be effective in creating helping relationships with all people.
Therefore, each of us probably lacks some of the qualities a helping person should possess;
nevertheless, as social workers, we must all possess certain specific/core characteristics.
These characteristics may be complemented by the social work skills and knowledge
we acquire, but they cannot be taught (which means that every person who would like
to become a social worker has to do introspection and develop these characteristics
by himself/herself). Therefore, it is important for you to do some serious introspection
to check if you have these characteristics and just need to enhance them. According to
Segal, Gerdes and Steiner (2013:25–26), these are the personal characteristics that make
a person well suited to social work practice:
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Activity 8

Imagine yourself as a social worker in a community where polygamy is practised and

accepted. One day a man in a polygamous marriage comes to see you because he is
experiencing relationship problems in his family: the children from different mothers do
not get along with one another, and there is also hostility between the different wives.
Do you think it would be beneficial for you, as the social worker, to ask the client the
following questions?
• What were you thinking when you married so many women?
• Have you ever considered separating your sub-families for the sake of peace?
• Is it really important for you to be married to so many women and to have so many
children?
After considering these questions, give your own opinion on the situation and suggest
the best way of resolving the client’s problem.

• Commitment to self-awareness
In order for you to be able to help other people, you first need to know yourself. This self-
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knowledge includes your personal values, assumptions about life, beliefs, strengths and
weaknesses; without this self-knowledge, it will be very difficult to assist your clients to
develop their own. You also need to understand your own personal problems and biases
and then tackle them so that they do not interfere with your social work practice. Imagine
a person who is biased against people with different religious beliefs. As a qualified social
worker, how successful will he/she be in assisting people from other religious groups?
• Trust in people
Since social workers must be guided by the professional value of client self-determination,
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they have to be able to trust others. This entails giving the clients some space to decide
what will suit them best, recognising that they are experts in the situation that they have
brought to the attention of the social worker. They have a better knowledge of what is
possible in their current situation than the social worker.
Therefore, the social worker is there simply to assist them to discover their inherent abilities
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to deal with their problematic situations.

• Positive outlook
Change is always a difficult process, including making changes that are necessary in the
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client’s life. As a result, the social worker needs to be a positive person who believes that
change is possible in every situation, despite how hopeless it might seem. If the social
worker does not believe that change is possible in a client’s life, then engaging in the
helping process will be a useless exercise.
• Respect for diversity
Because social workers have to deal with different types of people, they do not have a
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choice regarding whom they must help. Diversity is always part and parcel of the client
systems that the social worker has to deal with; this calls for the social worker to be aware
of diversity and prepared to work within diverse contexts. For example, the South African
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population comprises different religions, cultures, ethnic groups and races; without
respect for these diverse elements, it would be impossible to practise as a social worker.
• Creativity
Social workers deal with a variety of complex problems in the lives of their clients, for
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instance poverty, violence, substance abuse, oppression and inequality. This calls for the
social worker to be creative when dealing with these problems, because there is no single
recipe that works for everybody. Creativity will assist the social worker to come up with
new ways of addressing these problems, based on the available resources at a given time.
• Open-mindedness
Social workers need to be open-minded so that they do not become trapped into believing
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that there is only one way to address a situation. They need to be open to other people’s
opinions, evaluate them and try them; social workers cannot afford to be rigid in their
thinking.
• Empathy
It is important for social workers to make an effort to understand their clients’ situations
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fully, including their feelings, so that they can interact with them appropriately. In a helping
relationship, clients must experience empathy from the social worker so that they feel
safe and relaxed to share their problems, without any fear of intimidation or judgement.
• Compassion
Compassion helps the social worker to be concerned about a client’s problematic situation
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and to want to help them. The desire to improve the wellbeing of other people must be
the driving force behind social work practice.
• Flexibility and willingness to receive feedback and then change accordingly
In trying to deal with the client’s problems, the social worker must bear in mind that no
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single method will be effective in every situation; therefore, he/she must be willing to
try different approaches. The social worker must also be willing to accept feedback from
other people and then act upon it to improve how he/she does things. This is mostly
achieved through supervision from a senior social worker.
• Curiosity and lifelong learning
Once social workers have completed their four years of training and have obtained their
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degree, it does not mean that they will know everything there is to know about social
work practice. This shows that social workers must be curious and continually read up on
new developments in their field so that they remain up to date. They cannot rely solely
on the theories that they learnt about at university, otherwise they will be left behind as
far as any new developments are concerned. They need to be engaged in continuous
research regarding the needs of their clients.
• Patience
Social workers need to remember that making changes takes time; as a result, they need
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to be patient with their clients. Intervention at any level – be it at the individual, family,
22
group or community level – takes time and sometimes the process does not unfold as
expected, which requires the social worker to make a change in planning and intervention.
122 Patience is a characteristic that needs to be cultivated over time.
• Healthy scepticism
Social workers should not accept everything at face value; they have to think critically
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about matters and analyse the facts before drawing a conclusion. This corresponds with
the characteristic of curiosity, in terms of which the social worker is eager to learn more
before accepting anything new.
It is very important for a social worker to possess these characteristics if he/she is to have
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a meaningful practice.

Activity 9

After learning about these specific characteristics that social workers should possess in
order to be effective in the field, reflect seriously on your own personality and identify
those characteristics that you do not possess. List them and then come up with a practical
plan of how you are going to develop them.

1.8 SOCIAL WORK PRACTICE IN A DIVERSE CONTEXT

A case study on Tsakani – Addendum E is provided so that you can see clearly how the
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social worker has to intervene with clients in diverse contexts. Read this section carefully
so that you understand what it means to be a culturally sensitive social worker.
South Africa is a country with a variety of cultural groups and this is the environment in
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which the social worker has to practice. This requires the social worker to be well informed
regarding the cultural practices in the community in which he/she practices. The social
worker has to be culturally competent to ensure that he/she is able to understand the
meanings attached to these cultural practices, as this will enable him/her to establish the
helping relationship that is so crucial for effective intervention. Even after successfully
establishing the helping relationship, culturally competent communication is essential
for ensuring that the intervention process unfolds positively for the benefit of the client.
The social worker must always be aware of his/her own culture and the specific aspects
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of it that he/she finds unacceptable; this will make him/her realise that all cultures contain
some aspects that are difficult to accept and internalise. With this awareness, the social
worker will be able to guard against being prejudiced when clients refer to their cultural
practices, which might be unacceptable to the social worker, based on his/her own cultural
background. This cultural awareness develops slowly, as the social worker interacts with
and gets to know the community. Knowing the community that you serve is the first step
towards understanding the community so that your own prejudices do not interfere with
the intervention process.
Social workers must make a conscious effort to achieve cultural competency, because it
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is not an inherent ability. And, social workers will not learn how the community operates
by staying in the social work office and waiting for the clients to come to them. This is the
reason for adopting an integrated approach to rendering social work services in a given
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community. Through community work, the social worker gets out into the community
and interacts with the members; this is the only way in which he/she can learn about the
culture of the community. This challenges social workers not to see themselves as case
workers only, but as all-round practitioners who are able to use all the different social
work methods to render services to the communities.

Activity 10

After having studied what social work is all about, think deeply about yourself in relation
to the social work profession and then answer the following questions:
• Do you dream of being part of this profession?
• Do you believe you can succeed as a social worker?
• Observe what is going on in your community. Which social work functions are missing?
• Which functions of social work appeal most to you and why?
• What is your opinion of social auxiliary work in relation to social work?
• What do you think is the most difficult function of a social worker?
• South Africa is a country that had to deal with inequality for many years. Use the
knowledge that you have acquired from BSW1501 (regarding the history of social work),
the definition of social work in this learning unit and the goal of social work that deals
with social justice to discuss your opinion of this goal and how it can be applied to
improve the lives of the citizens of this country.
• Which of the core characteristics of a social worker do you possess?
• Which of the core characteristics do you lack or need to enhance?

1.9 CONCLUSION
In this learning unit you have been introduced to social work as a profession. You should
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now be able to understand the concepts of social work, social worker, social auxiliary
worker and the professional values and principles of social work. This knowledge will
help you to understand the following learning unit more easily.

24
Learning unit 2
The levels and methods of social work intervention

INTRODUCTION
This learning unit is the second step in establishing the foundation for your understanding
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of social work as a profession in South Africa. Before considering what this learning unit
will entail, it is important for you to think about the knowledge that you have acquired
so far with regard to social work practice in South Africa. Do you recall that in BSW1501
you were introduced to the concept of social welfare, and also learnt that South Africa has
adopted the developmental paradigm to providing social welfare services? Do you also
recall that BSW1501 introduced to you the development of social work? Furthermore, in
learning unit 1 of this study guide (BSW1502), you learnt about social work as a profession;
the goals of social work; the values and principles of social work practice; and generalist
and specialist social work practice. It is important to keep all this information in mind so
that you can understand this learning unit.
In this learning unit you will learn about the different levels of social work intervention
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and the different methods of social work practice. What this means is that social workers
practice within specific service delivery levels and use specific methods within those levels
to render services to people. But you may be wondering why this is the case. The answer
is actually quite simple: firstly, social work is a profession. As such, it is characterised by
a specific set of values and principles that regulate the behaviours of practitioners. But
there are also other characteristics that make social work a profession, namely the use of
specific techniques when working with clients, hence the levels and methods. Secondly,
in South Africa, all social work students are trained to be generalist social workers. This
implies that, on entering practice, all social workers should apply similar techniques when
rendering services to their clients.
The levels and the methods referred to above will be discussed from the viewpoint of
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the developmental paradigm. The discussion will also take cognisance of the complex
context of social work practice in South Africa (i.e. diversity and cultural sensitivity).
Therefore, please complete all the activities provided so that you can master the content
of this learning unit.

Learning unit outcomes

After completing this learning unit, you will be able to:

• distinguish between the different levels of social work intervention
• distinguish between the generalist level of social work services delivery and the specialist
level of social work services delivery in South Africa
• distinguish between the primary and secondary methods of social work practice
• establish a link between the levels of intervention and the methods employed
• identify an appropriate level of social work intervention and an appropriate method
to use in a case study

25 BSW1502/1
RECOMMENDED READING
South Africa. Department of Welfare. 1997. White Paper for Social Welfare. General Notice
No. 1108. Pretoria: Government Printer.
Mbedzi, P.; Qalinge, L.; Schultz, P.; Sekudu, J. & Sesoko, M. 2016. Introduction to Social Work
in the South African context. Cape Town: Oxford University Press.

2.1 THE LEVELS OF SOCIAL WORK PRACTICE

There are certain generic levels of social work practice. The South African Department
133

of Social Development, which is the custodian of social work services in this country, has
formulated additional levels of social work intervention as well. Both of these categories
will be discussed here. But before you immerse yourself in the content of this learning
unit, we strongly encourage you to complete the following activity.

Activity 11

Visit a professional social worker in your area; this could be a social worker in your own or
a neighbouring community, or one who is located in the organisation you are working
for (if you are currently employed).
Request an interview with the social worker. Some of you may interview social workers
found in the mainstream social work service sector. Others might interview practitioners
found in the corporate sector, e.g. in auditing companies; and others may turn to parastatals
or other government departments (besides the Department of Social Development),
such as the Department of Arts and Culture or the Department of Human Settlement,
or municipal offices or the SAPS. In all these examples, you will find that the social work
services are only one component of these entities. This should not deter you; in such
instances, just realise that the social worker will answer your questions with reference to
the social work component within the context of the organisation as a whole.
You are advised to make an appointment well in advance and to give your prospective
interviewee the questions prior to the interview so that he/she can prepare thoroughly
for the interview. In instances where the answers are not clear, ask follow-up questions.
Provide the social work practitioner with your proof of registration and student card as
evidence that you are a student of social work at Unisa.
Regarding the practitioner’s scope of practice, ask him/her to provide the following
information:
• background information on the organisation, such as how it started, the mission and
the goals of the organisation, the hierarchal structure of the organisation and the
organisation’s overall scope of social work service delivery
• his/her reporting line within the hierarchy of the organisation
• his/her typical working week (Monday to Friday) in terms of the types of cases that he/
she deals with and how he/she deals with those cases (The social worker could give
you an example of one of his/her cases.)
NB: Keep comprehensive notes of this interview because you will be required to refer to
them throughout the learning unit.

26
2.1.1 The generic levels of social work intervention
The generalist social work notion (idea) provides guidelines for rendering social work
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interventions across different countries and at specific levels of intervention. These levels
include the micro, the mezzo and the macro levels of intervention. Different clients are
targeted at each level: at the micro level, services are directed at individuals and families;
at the mezzo level, services are directed at small groups; and at the macro level, services
are geared towards a community.
What you need to understand in this regard is that working from a developmental
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paradigm means that a social work practitioner should link these age-old levels of social
work practice in the provision of services. The developmental approach requires social
workers to bridge the micro, mezzo and macro divide in service delivery by promoting
the enhancement and empowerment of individuals, families’ groups and communities
at different levels, using multiple methods and community-based, integrated generalist
practice intervention. South African social workers practice within these generalist levels
of intervention. But over and above these, the social work practitioner in South Africa
must adhere to the levels of service delivery prescribed by the Department of Social
Development.

2.1.2 The levels of social work service delivery (intervention) in South

Africa
In BSW1501, you learnt that social work services prior to the 1994 democratic elections
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were based on the apartheid system, resulting in fragmented welfare services that were
unevenly distributed among the different racial groupings. The services provided in the
white community were of better quality than those provided in the townships, which
also differed to some extent from those offered in the homelands/rural areas. After the
1994 elections, steps were taken to correct this situation and the White Paper for Social
Welfare was promulgated. The White Paper for Social Welfare was aimed at:
• building consensus on a national social welfare policy framework
• creating a single national welfare department, as well as provincial welfare departments,
and exploring the potential role of local government in service delivery
• phasing out all disparities in social welfare programmes
• legislative reform at all levels of government and developing a financially sustainable
welfare system

A few years after the adoption of the White Paper for Social Welfare (1997), a gap was
137

identified: despite having adopted a developmental approach to service delivery, the

focus had not shifted from social security (which prevailed during the apartheid system)
to the developmental paradigm. To correct this, an Integrated Service Delivery Model
(ISDM) was developed. The ISDM was aimed at providing a national framework that clearly
determines the nature, scope, extent and level of work for developmental social services.
The White Paper for Social Welfare (1997) had classified the levels of intervention for social
138

work practice and the ISDM re-emphasized them. These levels are described below.
139

27 BSW1502/1
• Prevention
Service delivery at this level is aimed at strengthening and building the capacity, self-
140

reliance and resilience of service beneficiaries while addressing individual, environmental

and societal factors to create conditions that enhance or support wellness. At this level,
the client is functioning at an adequate level, but there is a possibility of at-risk behaviour
that might occur at a later stage.
Social work practitioners become involved in prevention in various ways. Firstly, social
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workers or social work agencies establish prevention programmes on the basis of their
caseloads. For instance, if a particular agency notices an increase in the number of cases
of elderly abuse, they may embark on an awareness campaign to combat the problem.
Social workers also become involved in national prevention programmes, such as the
recent HIV/AIDS “double up” campaign, the sixteen days of activism against women and
child abuse, child protection week, organ donor week and many others.
• Early intervention (non-statutory)
Service delivery at this level focuses on the early identification of risks, behaviour and
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symptoms in individuals, groups and organisations that could negatively affect their
social wellbeing. These services are aimed at limiting the impact of risk and preventing
the development/progression of social problems. Developmental and therapeutic
programmes are used to ensure that those who have been identified as being at risk
are assisted before they require intensive intervention or placement in residential care.
• Statutory intervention/residential/alternative care
At this level, service beneficiaries’ quality of life or social functioning is compromised.
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An individual has either become involved in some form of court case or is no longer
functioning adequately in the community. Service beneficiaries may be removed from
the most empowering environment and into the most restrictive environment because
they can no longer function adequately in the community. This may involve removing
them from their normal place of abode (residence) – either by a court order or on the
recommendation of a service provider – to alternative care (e.g. foster care) or placing
them in a residential facility (e.g. an old age home). This level of service delivery includes
protection services that endeavour to safeguard the wellbeing of service beneficiaries.
Cases handled by social work practitioners at this level involve those of child abuse and
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neglect, domestic violence, elderly abuse and children in conflict with the law, to name
but a few. For instance, a boy child suspected of having been sexually molested by his
father may be removed from his home to a place of safety pending the outcome of the
case. Further, a probation social worker may make a recommendation to the court that a
14-year-old boy who has been arrested for physically assaulting his mother and siblings
on several occasions be sent to a school of industry for rehabilitation.
• Reconstruction/reunification and aftercare
The previous intervention is aimed at providing alternative care, which should be a
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temporary measure, followed by reunification and aftercare services. This is because the
aim of this level is to enable service beneficiaries to regain self-reliance and optimal social
functioning in the least restrictive environment possible. It facilitates the reintegration
into family and community life of service beneficiaries who have been removed.
28
Using the examples of the sexual molestation and physical assault cases mentioned
146

previously, at this level the social worker will have to work at providing therapeutic
support and assisting the parties to rebuild their relationship, regardless of the outcome
of the case. Social workers at the school of industry will also have to work on rebuilding
the relationship between the 14-year-old boy and his family so that he can return home
when he is released.
Most substance abuse rehabilitation centres and prisons have aftercare services. Former
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residents are required to visit their satellite or community office to prevent relapses.
Both classifications of levels of social work practice (i.e. the micro, mezzo and macro
classification and the one in the ISDM, as discussed above) are on a continuum, that is,
they are not hierarchical.
They do not occur in a step-wise process; their application is solely dependent on the
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problem at hand.
The aforementioned levels are also directly linked to the methods of social work intervention.
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To help you to understand these levels, please complete the following activity.

Activity 12

With reference to your interview with the social worker, were you able to identify the
following?
• the generic levels of intervention at which the social worker operates (Give reasons for
your answer.)
• all the intervention levels prescribed by the Department of Social Development at
which the social worker operates (Give reasons for your answer.)

2.2 METHODS OF SOCIAL WORK INTERVENTION

There are primary and secondary methods of social work practice/intervention. The
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term “primary” implies main, crucial and most important; the term “secondary” means
supplementary, additional and less important. The term “methods” refers to procedures,
ways, means and techniques. With the preceding discussion of terms in mind, it is clear
that the primary methods of social work practice refer to the most important techniques
used by social workers when rendering services to clients, whereas the secondary methods
are those that complement (support) the primary methods.

2.2.1 Primary methods of social work intervention

These methods comprise the following: social work practice with individuals, which is
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also referred to as casework; social work with groups, also referred to as group work;
and social work with communities, referred to as community work. After reading this
introductory sentence, can you identify the link between the methods and the generalist
levels? Casework is directly linked to the micro level of social work practice because services
are directed at individuals and families; group work is social work practice at the mezzo
level; and community work is rendered at the macro level of practice.
152

29 BSW1502/1
153 A discussion of each method follows.

2.2.1.1 Social work practice with individuals (casework)

The term “casework” was widely used during the first half of the 21st century to refer to
154

social work practice with individuals and families (Farley et al 2012:69). The latest trends,
however, indicate a shift from the term “casework” to “clinical social work”, “social casework”
and “direct social work practice”. However, this does not mean that the term “casework”
has been discarded; it is still widely used and regarded as acceptable terminology to refer
to practice services with individuals.
Social workers work with individuals from different socioeconomic backgrounds, that
155

is, from the lower, middle and upper classes. Social workers also work with individuals
presenting with various socio-emotional problems, such as those who are bereaved (have
experienced loss); ill (with either physical or psychological conditions); poor; battling
addiction; unaccompanied children, abandoned children and children living on the streets;
the elderly; the abused; and those living with disabilities. Because of the generalist nature
of the social work training, South African social workers perform casework by working
with clients using a multilevel problem-solving approach that empowers the primary
client and advances change within the community (Black-Hughes & Strunk 2010:115).
156 The goal of working with individuals is to empower clients by:
• enhancing a person’s capacity to resolve problems that brought them to the social
worker, to help the individual to cope with their problems and to assist the individual
to function effectively in all spheres of their life
• linking a client with resources that will help them deal more effectively with their
situation
• providing culturally sensitive services to individuals
• using prescribed legislation and policies to render effective and efficient services to
the client

Social work practice with individuals is undertaken through a process, which, comprise
157

the following phases:

158 Step 1: Engagement/Exploration
This step is referred to as ‘social study’ by Ambrosino, Heffernan, Shuttlesworth (2012:106–
159

107). It consists of obtaining relevant information about the client system and the perceived
needs. During this phase the social worker establishes a helping relationship with the client,
to assist the client to relax and share his/ her problem. In establishing this relationship, the
social worker uses social work skills, techniques, values and theories, as well as cultural
sensitive social work skills.
160 Step 2: Assessment:
This involves a process of making tentative judgements about how the information derived
161

from the social study affects the client system in his or her life personally. Assessment
requires thorough attention to ensure that the actual need or problem that motivated
the client’s visit to the social worker’s office is identified.
162

30
163 Step 3: Planning
During this process, the client and the practitioner determine intervention options
164

that have the potential to resolve the identified problems. After determining the most
appropriate options, the social worker and the client then set goals. These goals should
be realistic and achievable. After this, the social worker and the client have to agree on a
contract that will outline how the actual intervention is going to take place.
165 Step 4: Implementation/Intervention
According to Kirst-Ashman (2013: 124), implementation is seen as “the process whereby
166

the client systems and the worker follow their plan to achieve their goals that have been
identified and agreed upon in their contract”.
167 Step 5: Evaluation
This is an ongoing process in which the practitioner and the client assess the impact of
168

the intervention on the client’s problem.

169 Professional roles of a social worker
In addition to functions they perform, social workers have professional roles to play in
170

the process of intervention. These roles can be used in working with individuals, groups
and communities (Kirst-Ashman & Hull, 2009:24):
• Counsellor
As a counsellor, the social worker provides guidance to individuals, groups and communities
171

and assists them in reaching a stage of psychosocial competence.

• Educator
As an educator, a social worker provides knowledge and information to clients for better
172

social functioning.
• Broker
The social worker links clients to needed systems, programmes and resources to facilitate
173

personal development.
• Mobiliser
A social worker may mobilise a community to create awareness about the use of drugs
174

in the community and how drugs affect the lives of young people.
• Mediator
As a mediator, a social worker resolves arguments or disagreements amongst client
175

systems.
• Facilitator
As a social worker one is mostly involved in some form of facilitation, such as facilitating
176

interaction between individuals, groups or communities.

31 BSW1502/1
• Co-ordinator
As a coordinator, a social worker may coordinate resources and people in the community,
177

for an example, to fight the abuse of drugs by young people.

• Negotiator
A social worker may negotiate between different client systems to reach a workable
178

consensus.
• Advocate
179 As an advocate, social workers speak on behalf of individuals, groups and communities.
180 Social work skills
Social workers are able to assist their clients successfully only if they use effective social
181

work skills such as listening, information gathering, relationship building, observation,

questioning and empathy. Furthermore, social workers need to: apply theoretical
approaches/models/perspectives, continuously apply values and principles of social work,
adherence to the ethics of social work practice, adherence to ethical decision-making and
maintain professional boundaries between themselves and their clients. Social workers
must also be aware of and acknowledge the diversity of clients and of different family
members. They should also respect the cultural backgrounds and practices of clients
without compromising their professional integrity.
• Listening
In order to understand what the client is experiencing, the social worker first needs to
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listen vigilantly to the client. Listening can take the form of using body language, such as
nodding the head, keeping eye contact, and sitting in a manner that convinces the client
that you are interested in his/her story (Grobler & Schenck, 2009: 49).
• Information gathering
The ability to help clients depends on how much accurate information the social worker is
183

able to gather to develop the ‘prognosis’. The more information the social worker gathers,
the more accurate the assessment will be.
• Relationship building
This is the cornerstone of any helping relationship. When meeting the social worker for
184

the first time, the client may feel uneasy to disclose his/her personal experiences to a
’stranger’. The social worker then needs to establish a positive professional relationship
with the client.
• Observation
This is an important skill in social work. Sometimes clients may not be able to express
185

their true feelings. What they sometimes say may not be congruent with their facial or
bodily expressions. The social worker needs to observe overt (observable, obvious) and
covert (non-observable, hidden) behaviour.

32
• Questioning
During the helping process, in an effort to engage the client, the social worker asks
186

relevant questions.
• Empathy
This refers to the social worker being able to see the problem from the client’s own frame
187

of reference and being able to feel what the client feels.

• Reflect
188 This is the ability to reflect back on the client’s feelings, emotions and content.
• Communication
The social worker needs to communicate clearly and openly with the client. To facilitate
189

communication, the social worker needs to create a warm climate to make the client feel
accepted and understood.
• Facilitate
The social worker needs to facilitate the problem solving process without imposing your
190

values on the client.

2.2.1.2 Social work practice with groups (group work)

Group work can be defined as a goal-directed activity with small treatment and task
191

groups aimed at meeting the members’ socio-emotional needs and accomplishing tasks
(Toseland & Rivas 2009:12). As a student, what you need to understand in this regard is
that the activities of a group are directed at individual members of a group and at the
group as a whole, within a system of service delivery.
From the above definition, it can be deduced that social work services with groups must
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be goal-directed, that is, there must be a reason why a social worker intervenes using
group work. Secondly, it is clear that groups are classified into two types, namely treatment
groups and task groups. Lastly, the main purpose of a group is to help the individual
members of the group to fulfil their social and emotional needs.
As established earlier, groups are classified into treatment and task groups. The purpose
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of treatment groups is (1) support, (2) education, (3) growth, (4) therapy, (5) socialisation
and (6) self-help (Toseland & Rivas 2009:20–28). In support groups, the individual members
of a group should be able to support one another in order for them to resolve their
stressful life events. An example of a support group is a group of recovering alcoholics
whose purpose is to maintain their sobriety. Educational groups are those whose primary
objective is to teach their members. An example is a teenage pregnancy group aimed at
teaching teenagers about ways to prevent teenage pregnancy.
Socialisation groups help members to learn social skills and socially acceptable behaviours.
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For example, a social worker can work with members of a gang to help them to learn
socially acceptable behaviours. Growth-oriented groups offer opportunities for members to
become aware of, expand and change their thoughts, feelings and behaviours regarding
themselves and others. An example of a growth group would be group work with prison

33 BSW1502/1
inmates sentenced for sexual assault crimes; the aim of such a group would be to raise
awareness of the impact of their crimes on themselves, their victims, the victims’ families
and the larger community.
A therapy group helps members to change their behaviour, cope with and overcome
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personal problems or rehabilitate themselves after physical, psychological or social trauma.

An example of a therapy group would be one that a social worker establishes for victims
of sexual assault to help them to cope with what happened to them. Self-help groups may
be focused on helping members to change or on social change and advocacy, although
many groups combine different areas of focus (Toseland & Rivas 2009:28). These groups
may be led by lay people or professionals. Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and Gamblers
Anonymous are examples of self-help groups.
Task groups have three primary purposes: (1) meeting client needs, (2) meeting organisation
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needs and (3) meeting community needs (Toseland & Rivas 2009:29). Groups aimed at
meeting client needs may include teams that engage in collaborative work on behalf of
the client system; treatment conferences to develop, coordinate and monitor treatment
plans; and staff development groups aimed at educating members for better practice with
clients (Toseland & Rivas 2009:30). Groups aimed at meeting organisational needs include
committees that are established to discuss issues and accomplish tasks; cabinets that
advise an executive officer about future directions or current policies and procedures;
and boards of directors that govern organisations (Toseland & Rivas 2009:31).
Groups aimed at meeting community needs include social action groups, coalitions and
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delegate councils (Toseland & Rivas 2009:32). Social action groups exist to advise and
implement social change tactics and strategies; coalitions exert greater influence by
sharing resources, expertise and power bases of social action groups with common
goals; and delegate councils represent organisations, chapters or other units (Toseland &
Rivas 2009:32). Social work practitioners form part of such groups only when wanting to
challenge legislation and policies that aggravate structural inequalities, social injustices
and human rights violation, as well as to challenge social policies.
A social worker who undertakes group work is often referred to as a group worker and
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the goals of engaging in group work include following:

• enhancing the problem-solving and developmental capabilities of group members
• challenging the group members’ feelings of apathy, powerlessness and insecurity by
relating life experiences of group members to motivate one another
• preventing social dysfunction by identifying and strengthening individuals
• linking members with alternative resources that will help them to deal more effectively
with their situation

Social workers are expected to provide culturally sensitive services to individuals in the
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group. The expectation here is that the social worker should know and understand the
cultural diversity of each member because it will influence the life of the group as a
whole. Social workers must also use prescribed legislation and policies effectively, where
appropriate, to render effective and efficient services to the client group.
200

34
Group work has a life cycle characterised by the following developmental stages (Ambrosino
201

et al 2012:117):
• The beginning phase. Members are learning about the group and getting acquainted
with one another. The goal of the group, the number of sessions required and the
topics for discussion are determined in this phase.
• The middle phase. This is a working stage. The group engages in discussions and
members undertake individual and collective tasks to accomplish their goal.
• The ending phase. The group is terminated. The group reflects on the growth of
individual group members and the loss of the group experience. The group work
process is also evaluated so that the practitioner can improve his or her group-work
skills.

202 Group processes

Group processes are the changes that take place in a group. As groups develop, group
203

processes change and thus contribute to the characteristics of the different stages on
group development. The processes influence the behaviour of group members. They can
facilitate group development or retard group progress in the group.
• Interaction and communication
These are the basic group processes resulting in the development of other processes.
204

Interaction and communication are the ways members communicate with one another,
and communication can be verbal or non-verbal.
• Roles and status
To facilitate group development, group members are sometimes allocated roles to perform
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on behalf of the group.

• Sub groups
Sub groups are a division of small groups that develop within a larger group based on
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similar points of view, and mutual feelings of attraction. Sub groups are inevitable in
groups and sometimes become a source of conflict.
• Group influence
As members interact and start to identify with one another, they automatically develop
207

influence on each other.

• Cohesion
Cohesion is the development of the ‘we’ feeling in the group. At this stage, members
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refer to the group as ‘our’ group. Cohesion is a characteristic of the third stage of group
development.
• Group climate
It is the emotional state of the group members. It is determined by the level of satisfaction
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and contentment of group members. It depends on the atmosphere that prevails here
and now. It changes from stage to stage.

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• Norms and standards
Norms are developed in the group and set standards for member’s behaviour, or specify
210

proper group behaviour. Norms are normally developed during the first stage of group
development, but are bound to change as the group progresses.
• Group culture
Group culture comprises rituals that members develop over time. It refers to values,
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beliefs, customs and traditions held in common by group members.

212 The practice framework for working with groups is also rooted in the effective use of:
• social work skills such as listening, relationship building, questioning and empathy
• the application of theoretical approaches/models/perspectives (to be discussed in
learning unit 3)
• the continuous application of the values and principles social work (covered in learning
unit 1)
• adherence to the ethics of social work practice (discussed in learning unit 1)
• adherence to ethical decision-making (discussed in learning unit 1), and
• maintaining professional boundaries between the social worker and the client.

Social workers must also be aware of and acknowledge the diversity of clients within a
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group, as well as the diversity of the group as a whole; and they should also respect the
cultural backgrounds and practices of individual group members, without compromising
the integrity of the profession.

2.2.1.3 Social work practice with communities (community work)

Community work in social work practice is defined as a method of social welfare service
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intervention that consists of various processes targeted at communities and it is aimed at

bringing about change through community development, social planning, community
education, social marketing and social action practice models (South Africa. Department
of Social Development 2013:19).
There are several critical aspects of community work that are evident from this definition.
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Firstly, social workers engage in community work for specific purposes, namely
• to enhance the social functioning and capabilities of community members by
conscientising people about their circumstances and empowering them with the
knowledge and skills they need to change these circumstances
• to link people with resources that will help to improve their lives
• to promote social inclusion of minority groups through the empowerment of those
who are socially at risk
• to address oppression and discrimination that arise not only from structural forces,
but also from social and cultural beliefs and practices that hamper social inclusion and
the empowerment of individuals

Secondly, community work in the context of social work is carried out within specific
216

processes. Therefore, the phases of community work are as follows: conducting a situational
36
analysis; identifying specific social problems; formulating a plan of action; implementing
the plan; and evaluating the process and results.
The definition also indicates that there are specific theoretical models that are followed
217

in community work, including the community development model, the social planning
model, the community education model, the social marketing model and the social
action model.
218 The concept ‘community’ is defined
The term community is defined differently by various authors. According to Hawtin,
219

Percy-Smith and Foreman (1994:33), the term ‘community’ is very difficult to define and its
usage has become so pervasive in everyday language. They see ‘community’ as referring
to geographical areas or localities, such as a single street, a ward, a neighbourhood, a
village, and a town, and a group of people. They further indicate that a community may
have other common bonds that can create a sense of belonging, for example, a shared
problem such as a medical condition or disability, a shared working environment, or
members of the same church or political group.
220 Clarke (1973:32) defines ‘community’ in the following four ways:
1. Community as a locality refers to a community of place.
2. Community as a social structure refers to the social relation between and among
groups of people.
3. Community as a social activity refers to a group of people performing specific tasks.
4. Community as a sentiment refers to a sense of solidarity and common attitude
towards a specific concern or task.

Swanepoel and de Beer (2006:43) define ‘community’ as a grouping of people who reside
221

in a specific locality and exercise some degree of local autonomy in organizing their social
life in a such a way that they can, from the locality, satisfy the full range in their daily needs.
Banks, Butcher, Henderson and Robertson (2003:34) define ’community’ as a group of
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people who come together and perceive common needs and problems, acquire a sense
of identity, and have a common set of objectives.
Schenck, Nel and Louw (2010:7) define ‘community’ as a perception experiences of people
223

in a particular space that are continuously changing. It may mean how people in a group
experience their social reality at a given time.
At this point, it is important to mention community development. Campfens (1997)
224

defines community development as a process by which community members create

an organizational structure for collective action with respect to decision-making and
leadership training. The structure created will be utilized to facilitate needs identification
and resources to bring about change in the community.
Community development may be viewed as a means of mobilisisng communities to
225

join state or institutional initiatives that aim to alleviate poverty, solve social problems,
strengthen families, foster democracy and achieve modernization and socioeconomic
development.
226

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227 The core values and principles of community development
Community development processes, like individual and group therapy, are guided by values
228

and principles. These guidelines help to facilitate community change or development

processes. Some principles are mentioned below:
229 Participation
This means inclusivity of community members and not excluding members when engaging
230

communities with regards to community issues and needs.

231 Empowerment
Any development process should lead to growth or should aim to empower individuals,
232

groups or communities.
233 Collaboration, coordination, team work and partnership
These concepts are used interchangeably. In the processes of engaging communities in
234

their own development, what is key in cooperation is team work and collaboration.
235 Problem-solving
In community development processes, problems can be resolved if the community
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acquires problem solving skills.

As in the case of casework and group work, the practice framework for working with the
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community is rooted in:

• the effective use of social work skills such as listening, relationship building, questioning
and empathy
• the application of generic social work theoretical approaches/models/perspectives (to
be discussed in learning unit 3), along with community work-specific models (discussed
here in this study guide)
• the continuous application of the values and principles of social work
• adherence to the ethics of social work practice and ethical decision-making, and
• the maintenance of professional boundaries between the social worker and the client,
who, in this case, is a specific community.

Social workers must also be aware of and acknowledge the diversity of individual members
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of a community, as well as the diversity of the community as a whole. They should also
respect the cultural practices of different communities, without compromising the integrity
of the profession.
To enhance your understanding of the methods involved in community work, complete
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the following activity.

Activity 13

With reference to the interview with the social worker, do the following:
Identify and define the methods of social work practice that the practitioner uses in
providing services to clients. You are also required to give practical examples of cases
where the social worker has applied this/these method(s).

38
 • Of the three methods, which method does the social worker seldom use? Thinking of
his or her scope of practice, give at least one recommendation for how the social worker
could make use of that method.

NB: It is important that you write down your answers, since writing down the information
will help you to internalise the methods.

2.2.2 The secondary methods of social work intervention

2.2.2.1 Management and administration

Organisations are characterised by their management structures. Likewise, there are
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different management structures in social work organisations, including top management,

middle management and lower-level managers. The management and administration of
social workers is elevated when a social worker is appointed in a managerial position. In
fact, many who are currently administrators began their careers as direct practitioners,
subsequently became supervisors and then moved into administrative roles (Ambrosino
et al 2012: 28).
There are three dimensions to social work management and administration: Firstly, you
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are introduced to management and administration as a student during your social work
training; next you are exposed to management and administration as an entry-level social
worker; and, finally, you may be appointed as a manager in a social work organisation.
As a student, management and administration begins as soon as you are placed in an
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organisation to conduct practical work. As a student social worker, you will be expected
to work directly with clients (individuals, a group and/or a community) and to manage
your caseload, while also conducting group work and a community work project. Your
administrative duties here will be to keep a record of every client you deal with.
As a newly qualified social worker entering the field, you should be able to manage
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a slightly higher caseload than the one you dealt with in your fourth year of study.
Depending on the organisation you will be working for, you may be expected to attend
to individual cases while simultaneously running groups and a community project. The
administrative task here also involves keeping records of all interventions with clients,
because the only way to account for work done is by means of your process reports for
individuals, groups and a community.
Finally, some individuals may be appointed in management positions in an organisation.
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There are different type of managers in a social work organisation and they each have
different functions, such as management of administration; management of professional
staff; management of professional services; and personal management (Suraj-Narayan
2010:183).
The manager of administration in a social work organisation refers to individuals serving
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at the levels of director and CEO. The functions of these managers include planning,
organising, staffing, leading, controlling, decision-making and coordinating. These
individuals are located at the uppermost level of management. They are administrators
because “in their managerial role, they focus on maintaining organisational functioning
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in line with organisational goals and they ensure an organisational context that enables
others to provide efficient services” (Hughes & Wearing 2012:16).
Social work organisations usually have satellite offices and the role of top management is,
246

therefore, to oversee the social work services of all the satellite offices. They also have to
manage the various divisions of the organisation, such as human resources, finance and
support services (the latter comprises secretaries, receptionists and office cleaners). In
essence, these top managers manage all the managers of the aforementioned divisions.
The management of professional services, on the other hand, may include office managers
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who are located at middle management level. These managers are also administrators;
they seldom work with clients and are mostly involved in the management of the social
work component of the organisation. Some are located at the satellite offices and are
referred to as office managers. They report to the top management of the organisation.
The management of professional staff is carried out by social work supervisors. They are
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located at the lower level of the management structure. Supervisors have social work
practitioners reporting to them regarding the day-to-day events relating to their caseloads,
group work and community work. The main functions of supervisors are to ensure that
practitioners keep up-to-date records of the services they have provided to clients; this
activity is referred to as administrative supervision. Supervisors also educate practitioners
about policies and theoretical developments in the profession, an activity referred to as
educational supervision. Supervisors also provide supportive supervision to practitioners,
which entail helping social workers to enjoy their jobs by boosting their morale, helping
them to deal with job-related discouragement or discontentment, promoting a sense
of professional pride and providing them with a sense of security and belonging within
the organisation.
The component of personal management applies to all employees within the social work
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organisation. Practitioners must have short-term and long-term work-related goals and
personal goals and they should strive to achieve both types of goals, without letting
the one type interfere with the other. This is especially important in social work because
practitioners deal with emotionally charged issues daily and if they do not have any
aspirations or passion for their work, they may experience burnout and end up leaving
the profession.

Activity 14

Do you recall in the interview with the social worker that you were also expected to ask
him/her about the management structure of the organisation that employs him/her?
Now, with that information in mind, answer the following questions:
• What levels of management exist within the organisation where the social worker is
employed?
• With which dimension (aspect) of social work management and administration is the
social worker you interviewed involved?
• What are his/her administrative duties?
• According to the different levels in this organisation (see first question), which manager
is the social worker reporting to?

40
2.2.2.2 Social work research
When you were at high school, you were probably asked to conduct research on different
250

topics, such as the impact of load-shedding on the economy of South Africa or the
historical development of certain cultures. In completing the assignment, you probably
conducted an internet search and read various textbooks. Perhaps you wrote a paper on
your research and then presented your findings in class. So how does social work research
differ from the research you did in high school?
The difference is that social work research refers to a systematic and objective inquiry
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that utilises the research method to solve human problems and create new knowledge
that is generally applicable (Grinnell & Unrau 2011:20).
From the above definition of social work research, I hope you were able to discern that
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it is, in fact, the scientific method that sets social work research apart from other forms
of knowledge acquisition.
According to Yegidis, Weinbach and Myers (2012:14–15), the characteristics of the scientific
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nature of social work research have the following implications:

• Studies should be empirical. This means that knowledge gained in a social work research
study must be based on direct observations of the real world and not be based on
someone’s beliefs.
• Studies must be objective. This means that researchers must make sure that their own
beliefs and opinions do not influence the results of their studies.
• Studies are undertaken using rules, procedures and techniques. This means that there is
an acceptable and an unacceptable way of conducting scientific research.
• Studies should use known methods to conduct research and publicise the findings.
Researchers share their findings. Therefore, the research methods they use to produce
their findings will be made available for peer review.

Social work research is undertaken for two different purposes: One purpose is to solve
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current problems experienced by social workers, social work managers and the social
work organisation regarding practice issues; such research is called applied research.
Other social work research studies are directed solely towards the development of new
knowledge; such studies are referred to as basic/pure or fundamental research. In both
instances, research outcomes influence the nature and the scope of interventions (Dumont
& Sumbulu 2010:198).
Research studies in social work are conducted either for academic purposes or they may be
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practice-based. Academic research studies are conducted at master’s and doctoral levels
and are usually a prerequisite for completion of the degree. Practice-based research projects
are those that are prompted by the circumstances and challenges that social workers face
in their interventions with clients. Nevertheless, academic research and practice-based
research are linked. For example, a social worker registered for a postgraduate degree
will investigate the challenges that he/she experiences in his/her work as part of his/her
master’s research project.
The focus of social work research studies is on the methods and the intervention levels
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of social work practice. A social worker can conduct a study on group work, casework,
community work and/or on management and the administrative components. Also,
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they must cover diverse topics to address the diverse problems experienced by a diverse
society/population. The research studies must also be culturally sensitive. Examples of
research projects are presented next.

EXAMPLES
Example 1: Review the interview you had with the social worker. Let’s assume that he/she informs
you that he/she deals on a daily basis with adoption applications and that, in recent months, he/
she has dealt only with applications for adoption of South African children by foreign nationals.
In this instance, the social worker could investigate the need for foreign nationals to adopt South
African children. Such a study would reveal why foreign nationals want to adopt South African
children and the findings would have an impact on the adoption practices of social workers and
policies regulating adoption.
Example 2: Rose is a social worker employed by the Motoring Industry Association of South Africa,
which has 1 400 employees. In the past year, Rose has seen approximately 200 cases of employees
presenting with the problem of absenteeism. Therefore, Rose could conduct a study on the reasons
for absenteeism among employees. The study would assist different units in the organisation to
come up with strategies to counteract the absenteeism of their employees.
Example 3: Clifford is working for the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) and has
been on combat missions to offer therapeutic support to South African soldiers in four different
countries. During his missions, he became intrigued by the effects of war on the aged. Later, as
part of his master’s degree, Clifford decided to investigate the effects of war on the elderly people
in the Central African Republic (CAR).
Note: At this level, it is important for you merely to be aware of social work research. In your second
and third years of study, you will be introduced to other dimensions of research. Then, in your
fourth year of study, you will be expected to conduct a research project.

2.3 THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE PRACTICE LEVELS AND

THE SOCIAL WORK METHODS
By now it should be clear to you that the practice levels and the intervention levels of social
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work are linked, and that these two levels are also linked with the social work methods.
At the micro level, social workers work with individuals and families and make use
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of prevention services, early intervention, statutory/residential/alternative care and

reunification and aftercare. At the mezzo level, social workers work with small groups
and apply prevention services and early intervention services. Also, when individuals are
placed in residential/alternative care, social workers make use of group-work practice as
a technique to assist individuals in dealing with the removal and adaptation to their new
environment; later, they may also help them to be reintegrated into their community.
And at the macro level, practitioners work with communities and use prevention and
early intervention services.
Management and administration is carried out by social workers across all levels of
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intervention when they are engaged in casework, group work and community work.
Similarly, research can be undertaken within the different levels of intervention, with a
focus on casework, group work, community work or management and administration.
To help you to gain a comprehensive understanding of the contents of this learning unit,
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we have provided another example of a case study below. Read through it and then
answer the questions that follow.

42
 Case study: Clients A
Client A approaches the Department of Social Development located in Ackerville, Emalahleni.
On meeting with the social worker (Mr B), she describes her problem: She is having difficulty
looking after her four grandchildren, aged 8, 10, 14 and 16 years respectively (two boys and two
girls), whose mother passed away three years ago. Her main problem is that she cannot provide
adequately for the children’s financial needs; therefore, she has come to apply for the children to
be placed in foster care. After documenting the problem presented by the client, Mr B schedules
an appointment to visit client A at her home so that he can examine their domestic circumstances
and also meet and interview the children involved.
On the day of the home visit, Mr B manages to interview all the children and establishes the
following: Firstly, the mother of the children committed suicide and was found hanging from a
tree by her sons when they returned from school. Secondly, the eldest boy has joined a gang that
sells drugs at school and he has taken over the role of providing financially for his siblings. Lastly,
the 8- and 10-year-old children are becoming unruly; they miss school whenever they want to
and their grandmother is unable to discipline them.

2.4 CONCLUSION
This learning unit has provided you with an introduction to the intervention techniques
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of social work practice/service delivery. In this regard, it is important for you to realise
that the contents presented here are just the tip of the iceberg. From your second year
of study onwards, you will learn about these levels and methods in much greater detail.

Self-reflection

Self-assessment activity
• Identify the levels of intervention you would consider when helping the different family
members of client A. Provide reasons for your choices in each case.
• Identify and discuss at least two methods of social work practice that you would use
when helping the different members of client A’s family.
• If you were to conduct research on this case study, which problem would you focus on
and which type of research would you conduct?
• Discuss how, where and why administration and management are relevant in this
scenario.

43 BSW1502/1
Learning unit 3
The broad theoretical framework in social work
practice

INTRODUCTION
By now you have learnt about social work as a profession, as well as social auxiliary work.
262

You have also learnt about the fields of social work practice, including the general roles
played by the social worker and the social auxiliary worker.
In this learning unit we will outline the broad theoretical framework within which social
263

work practice takes place. In learning unit 1 you learnt that social work practice in South
Africa is based on the developmental paradigm as stipulated in the White Paper for Social
Welfare (1997). This was confirmed in the Framework for Social Welfare Services (South
Africa. Department of Social Development 2013:9), which emphasises the developmental
approach to social welfare service. Therefore, the theoretical framework provided in this
learning unit has to be within the developmental approach, where the emphasis is on
human, social and economic development to ensure empowerment.
In this learning unit, we will examine different theories, perspectives, approaches and
264

models at an elementary level to give you an overview of the theoretical framework

guiding social work practice. The theoretical framework assists social workers to organise
their perceptions of clients’ situations so that they can understand them better. It is
because of this understanding that the social worker is able to engage the client in the
helping process.
At this stage it is important to remind you that you are being trained to be generalist
265

practitioners; this will enable you to practice social work effectively as a beginner, despite
the diverse fields of practice you will find yourself in. A generalist social work practitioner
is a qualified social worker who has been trained to deal with a broad spectrum of social
problems.

Learning unit outcomes

At the end of this learning unit, you will be able to:

• discuss the following concepts: theories, perspectives, approaches and models in social
work practice
• explain the different theories, perspectives, approaches and models in social work
practice

It is important for you to be familiar with the different theories, perspectives, approaches
266

and models in social work so that you can choose the appropriate model, perspective,
approach or theory to assist your clients who are experiencing problematic situations.
Remember that your assistance in this regard has to do with your ability to use social work
44
knowledge, skills and techniques to engage the client in the problem-solving process;
it is not the duty of the social worker to give advice to the client, but to allow the client
to determine the most appropriate solution to his/her problem. This aspect will be dealt
with in detail in learning unit 5, where we will be examining the process of intervention.

RECOMMENDED READING
Teater, B. 2010. An introduction to applying social work theories and methods. New York:
Open University Press.

3.1 DEFINITIONS OF CONCEPTS

At the outset, it is important to mention that different authors use these concepts
267

interchangeably, even though they have different meanings. It is therefore crucial for you
to understand what each concept means so that you can use it appropriately during the
intervention process.

3.1.1 What is a theory?

Although the concepts “theory”, “perspective”, “approach” and “model” are sometimes
268

used interchangeably, many authors believe that a theory is more firmly grounded in
research than the other concepts. This means that a theory is developed based on the
research results. According to Miley, O’Melia and DuBois (2009:29), a theory represents
an explanation that is reasonable and valid about the relationship between a set of
facts and a framework for change. Teater (2010:2), on the other hand, sees a theory as a
hypothesis, an idea or a prediction about what can or might happen in certain situations,
given certain circumstances. Both definitions tell us that a theory gives us direction on
what to expect, given a particular situation under certain circumstances.
A theory can be further seen as a clear group of general propositions or concepts used
269

as principles of explanations for a certain occurrence or phenomenon. Simply stated, a

theory is formulated from the observation of events taking place around us. A theory is
thus developed through a process by which we look at the world and order and explain
the information (knowledge) obtained according to specific guidelines. This knowledge
enables the social worker to make some predictions regarding the clients’ situations
presented for attention. This does not mean that the social worker has to use the theory
in a rigid manner; rather, it should merely be a guideline to understand the client’s
situation and to allow the client the space to come up with the possible solutions to his/
her situation. An example of a theory is the crisis theory, which will be discussed later.

3.1.2 What is a perspective?

In trying to understand the theoretical framework that guides social work practice, let’s
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now focus on what a perspective is. According to Teater (2010:3), a perspective is slightly
different from a theory, as it does not necessarily predict or describe a phenomenon, but
describes a framework or a way of viewing and understanding a particular situation. It can
be described as a lens through which we choose to perceive and understand a particular
aspect. This way of viewing a particular aspect assists the social worker to understand
45 BSW1502/1
that aspect, for example when using the strengths perspective to understand the client’s
situation and facilitate change. (The strengths perspective will be discussed in detail later
in this learning unit.)

3.1.3 What is a model?

A model is defined as a set of guidelines indicating how interventions should be carried
271

out. A model tells us what we must do and how we must do it. Models are based on
theory and give us an indication of the steps or process we should follow. According to
Teater (2010:3), a model “is a theory or method depicted logically and/or graphically and
is concerned with what and how something happens”. A model does not have to be
used rigidly because the social worker has to be aware of the client’s cultural, emotional
and socioeconomic background, as well as his/her political context, so that the client
can be understood in totality. This awareness guides the social worker to apply the
particular theory appropriately for the benefit of the client. This confirms the professional
responsibility that the social worker has towards the clients, which involves observation,
assessment, interaction and intervention with clients in their social contexts.

3.1.4 What is an approach?

An approach is a way of thinking about and dealing with a particular situation. Teater
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(2010:2) indicates that “the concept ‘approach’ can be used interchangeably with ‘method’,
‘intervention’ or ‘practice’”. According to her, these concepts denote all the actions taken
by the social worker in addressing the problematic situation of the client. In other words, it
can be said to be a way of interpreting and addressing the problematic situations of clients
at the individual, family, group and community levels (micro, mezzo and macro levels).

Activity 15

After learning about the differences between the above concepts related to the theoretical
framework of social work practice, test your understanding by answering the following
questions:
• Is it necessary for the social worker to know the different theories of social work practice?
Explain your answer to illustrate your understanding. Then compare your answer with
that of a fellow student and debate the topic to ensure further clarity.
• In your opinion, what are the differences between the following concepts: model,
theory, perspective and approach?
• What is the benefit of understanding the differences between these concepts?

3.2 THE DIFFERENT THEORIES, MODELS, PERSPECTIVES AND

APPROACHES IN SOCIAL WORK PRACTICE
We will now examine these different theories, models, perspectives and approaches so
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that you know what they stand for and how they can be applied in social work practice.
46
3.2.1 The ecological systems perspective
The ecological systems perspective is widely used in social work practice as it helps the
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social worker to understand the client in totality. With this perspective, the social worker
is able to understand the client’s social environment, including the systems that the client
continually interacts with, as well as the client as a system. The ecological context of the
client plays an important role in the client’s life. The ecological context is sometimes
referred to as the social context of the client. It is impossible for the social worker to
understand the client’s problematic situation without knowing what is going on in the
client’s social context.
For the client to function optimally in his/her social context, there has to be a healthy
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balance between him/her and his/her social environment. At times, the client will
experience problems because of an imbalance between himself/herself and his/her social
environment, making this context an important aspect of the intervention process. If the
social worker ignores this aspect, it may happen that the real problem is not identified,
which results in a waste of time and energy and no positive results.
The diagram below illustrates the interaction between an individual and his/her social
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context.
277

Family
278

system

279 Educational Social service

280

system system

Person
Friendship
285

281

284 Political
system system

Religious
282 Employment
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system system

Figure 3.1: Interaction between the individual and his/her social environment

The client himself/herself is also a system because a person consists of a number of

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dimensions. For example, an individual has social, spiritual, physical and psychological
dimensions. If there is a disturbance in one dimension, the whole system is affected
because there will be an imbalance. This makes it very important for the social worker
to be aware of these dimensions and to explore them during the assessment process to
ensure that the client is understood in totality.

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Activity 16

• Use the information on the ecological systems perspective above and reflect on your
own social environment. To what extent is your social environment affecting your social
functioning? Refer to the diagram above.
• Discuss with your fellow students how they are affected by their respective personal
social environments and then use the information to come up with suggestions for
how to improve these social environments.
• Study the case study on Fikile and illustrate how you would use the ecological systems
perspective to analyse her situation and then intervene to assist her in dealing with the
problematic aspects of her life.

3.2.2 The strengths perspective and empowerment

The strengths perspective goes hand in hand with the developmental approach that
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has been adopted by the South African government to deliver social welfare services.
The focus of the strengths perspective is the notion that every person is born with inner
strengths, which are usually suppressed by the difficult situations that people experience
in life. This challenges social workers to be mindful of these strengths when interacting
with clients so that they can assist the client to recognise these inherent strengths and
build on them. It is important to remember that there is no problematic situation in life
that can render a person so helpless and hopeless that it is impossible to discover any
strength in him/her. This means that no matter how complex the situation of the client,
his/her inner strengths cannot be destroyed, but merely overshadowed temporarily.
With this in mind, the social worker has to use his/her skills and professional values and
principles to assist the client to believe that he/she has inner strengths that simply need
to be uncovered and optimised.
The strengths perspective facilitates the assessment process in the sense that the social
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worker, together with the client, are able to focus on the client’s strengths and minimise
his/her weaknesses. This empowers the client to take ownership of the intervention
process. It is extremely empowering for a person to realise that he/she already possesses
qualities that can be used to improve his/her problematic situation.
Empowerment is a very important concept in the strengths perspective; indeed, it is
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impossible to apply the strengths perspective without referring to empowerment.

Empowerment is the process of enabling clients to amongst others, increase their inner
strengths through information sharing and the development of problem-solving and
coping skills. The social worker thus tries to help the client to believe in himself/herself
and in his/her ability to change/improve the problematic situation he/she is facing. After
the intervention process, the client must be able to act independently, rather than relying
on the social worker to deal with every problematic situation encountered in the future.
The social worker must not see himself/herself as a saviour/rescuer who has to intervene
every time the client encounters problems; rather, his/her aim is to empower the client
to feel confident enough to tackle any situation he/she encounters in life.
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291

Activity 17

• Take time to reflect on your innate (inborn) strengths and then list them. When you
are faced with difficulties in your life, to what extent do you use these innate strengths
before you seek help from others?

3.2.3 The problem-solving approach

In the problem-solving approach, the social worker uses an organised and well-planned
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process of engaging the client in the helping process. The social worker does not take
control of the process, but gives the client the opportunity to explore his/her problematic
situation and ultimately come up with workable solutions. It is important for the social
worker to remember that the client is always the expert as far as his/her situation is
concerned. Based on the strengths that every person is assumed to possess, the social
worker allows the client to discover his/her strengths through engagement throughout
the helping process. The social worker thus uses the social work knowledge, skills and
professional values and principles to engage the client in the problem-solving process.
There are specific phases in the problem-solving approach to social work intervention,
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namely the contact, contract and action phases. There are also specific activities that the
social worker has to perform during each phase to ensure that the intervention process
is successful.
During the contact phase, the client approaches the social worker and presents his/
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her problem. It is the responsibility of the social worker to help the client to present the
problem in a manner that makes it clear to the social worker. This is achieved through the
use of social work skills and techniques, as well as the professional values and principles of
the profession, with full involvement of the client. The social worker has to do a thorough
assessment of the actual problem and then engage the client in the process of generating
solutions to the identified problem. Without thorough assessment, the social worker might
end up dealing with the presenting problem, rather than the actual problem of the client.
The “presenting problem” refers to the problem that the client presents to the social
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worker at face value, before the trust relationship is established. Clients often use the
presenting problem to test the trustworthiness of the social worker, so if the social worker
is not careful, the intervention process could proceed without the actual problem being
uncovered, thus leading to wasted time and energy. This challenges the social worker
always to ensure that the helping relationship is established with the client at the beginning
of their interaction. (The process of establishing a relationship with the client is discussed
in detail in learning unit 5.) After the generation of possible solutions, the social worker
and the client have to agree on the process of dealing with the problem; this is known
as the contract. During this contract phase, the social worker and the clients come up
with strategies of how to deal with the problem and clarify which aspects must be dealt
with, by whom and how this will be done.
After the contract phase, the action phase follows. This phase marks the actual
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implementation of the contract phase, where agreed-upon activities are put into practice
to deal with the client’s problem. As the implementation unfolds, the social worker and
the client must continuously evaluate the effectiveness of the actions taken to ensure that
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they are actually handling the problem identified. When the social worker and the client
have agreed that the intervention process has been successful, they then agree to end
the process. Bear in mind that this process does not unfold in a linear fashion; sometimes
it goes back and forth, depending on the evaluation results.
These phases are important. Study them carefully so that you can master them, since they
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form the basis of this approach. These phases must not be confused with the helping
process in social work; rather, they are the phases specific to the problem-solving approach
as a theoretical framework in the intervention process.

Activity 18

Study the problem-solving approach and then answer the following questions:
• What is the difference between the problem-solving process and the social work
helping process?
• What are the specific steps/phases that are used in the problem-solving approach?
• Apply the problem-solving approach in your own life.
• Think about your family situation and apply the problem-solving approach to your
family as a unit.

3.2.4 The task-centred approach

The task-centred approach, as a theoretical framework in social work practice, is aimed
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at a short-term intervention process where specific tasks are achieved. Teater (2010:179)
sees the fundamental nature of task-centred social work intervention as a collaborative
process between the social worker and the client to alleviate explicit problems that
are acknowledged and understood by both parties. The process begins with the social
worker and the client together establishing the goals that must be achieved through the
intervention process. These goals must be clear to both parties (social worker and client)
so that they can work collaboratively to achieve them.
Once the goals are clear, the social worker and the client break them up into specific tasks
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that must be achieved within a specific period of time in order for the goals to be achieved.
The social worker and the client have to agree on the tasks each has to accomplish within
the stipulated time. This process encourages the client to own the helping process and
facilitates commitment. With each task that is achieved, the process is moved forward
until the last task has been achieved.
Healy (2005:113–115) identifies specific characteristics and principles used in this approach,
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as described below.
301 1. Seek mutual clarity with service users
It is always important for the purpose of the interaction between the social worker and
302

the client to be clarified. There has to be a common understanding of what the purpose
is so that all the actions can be geared towards achieving this common goal. After this
common goal has been agreed upon, the social worker and the client must work out a
contract that will be used to guide the intervention process.
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303 2. Aim for small achievements rather than large changes
Clients who approach the social worker’s office for professional assistance are usually
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faced with complex problems. Therefore, it becomes essential for the social worker, in
collaboration with the client, to break these problems into smaller sub-problems that
can be addressed one after the other to ensure progress. The client has to give the social
worker an indication of which of these smaller sub-problems needs to be addressed
first; only the client knows which one is the most pressing issue, which must be given
immediate attention. This allows the client to believe in himself/herself and to see that
he/she can bring about change in his/her own life.
305 3. Focus on the here and now (the present)
With this principle, the social worker focuses on what is currently happening in the
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client’s life that might be contributing to the problematic situation that the client is
currently experiencing. The past history of the client is taken into consideration only if it
is contributing to the current situation.
307 4. Promote collaboration between the social worker and service users
This principle emphasises the importance of the client’s involvement as an active partner
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in the helping process. The social worker should not do anything for the client; rather,
they should work together throughout the helping process. Thus the client develops
confidence, which leads to ownership of the problem and the motivation to deal with it.
309 5. Build client capacities for action
It is important for the social worker to assist clients to develop new skills to address the
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problematic situation that they are experiencing. Remember that the clients approach
the social worker because they feel unable to address their problematic situations alone.
Therefore, they have to be assisted to develop new skills that will enable them to deal
with the current problematic situation in their lives, as well as any future situations that
may arise.
311 6. Planned brevity
The social worker and the client have to develop a well-planned programme consisting of
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specific tasks to address the problematic situation at hand. This programme must always
be time-specific to ensure that the problematic situation is handled within the shortest
possible period of time. However, an extension beyond the stipulated time frame may
be negotiated, if necessary.
313 7. Promote systematic and structured approaches to intervention
The intervention process has to be well-structured so that it can unfold systematically.
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This can be achieved if the social worker and the client clarify the goal/s at the beginning
of their interaction, as indicated above.
315 8. Adopt a scientific approach to practice evaluation
This principle stipulates that the social worker must continually evaluate the intervention
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process to determine if it is moving towards the desired goal that was agreed upon at
the beginning of the process. Evaluation and monitoring the outcome of the process are
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needed to ensure that time is not wasted on a process that cannot succeed in addressing
the problematic situation.

Activity 19

Study Fikile’s case study (see addendum A) and discuss how the task-centred approach
could be used to address her problems. Your application of this approach in these case
studies will give you a clearer picture of how the task-centred approach can be used to
assist the social worker and the client in addressing a complex problem of a client.

3.2.5 The psychosocial theory

This theory is seen as forming the foundation of many social work theories and methods, as
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it provides the context in which other theories and methods should be understood by social
workers (Teater 2010:6). The psychosocial theory in social work practice is closely linked
with the ecological systems perspective discussed earlier. When using the psychosocial
theory in social work practice, the client is understood as the product of the interaction
between his/her biogenetic make-up, the effects of significant relationships, the impact
of life experiences and participation in societal, cultural and current events. This clearly
shows that the social worker has to understand the clients in totality, by viewing them
within their social environment, as indicated in our discussion of the ecological systems
perspective.
This theory takes into consideration all the important aspects that form the basis of social
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work intervention, which can be summarised as follows:

• the technique of engagement, where the helping relationship has to be established
• the importance of empathy and the helping relationship
• factual exploration of the client’s problem
• the importance of thorough assessment of the client’s problem and of understanding
human development and behavior
• transference in the helping relationship
• the important role played by the social environment in the person’s problematic
situation

It is important to realise that the psychosocial theory affords the social worker an
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opportunity to think systematically about the client’s problematic situation and then
engage the client in the helping process. The intervention process is always based on
the needs of a particular client at a particular point in time. The needs are explored and
agreed upon by the social worker and the client system; together, they also determine
the goals to be achieved.

3.2.6 The person-centred approach

The person-centred approach deals with the self or identity of the individual, family,
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group or community. According to Sharf (in Kirst-Ashman 2013:419), the person-centred

approach takes a positive view of individuals, based on the belief that every individual
strives towards becoming fully functioning. The client approaches the social worker while
in a state of inner conflict, which creates uncertainty and self-doubt regarding the identity
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of the client. Therefore, the focus of the intervention process is always on facilitating
change of this identity. This approach is mostly used in therapeutic settings to ensure that
the identity of the client is understood, because without this understanding, appropriate
intervention cannot take place. One of the important principles of this approach is to
establish a healthy relationship with the client and to create an environment that allows
the client to feel free to explore and deal with the problematic situation.
The other important principle is respect for/acknowledgement of human nature, in terms
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of which it is believed that every human being is born with a desire to improve his/her
life. This principle leads to the third one, namely self-actualisation, which is the lifelong
pursuit by every person to reach his/her optimum potential. The social worker has to
use this understanding when interacting with the client so that the facilitation process is
geared towards assisting the client to reach his/her optimal potential. This theory reminds
the social worker that since each client has the urge to grow, it is the social worker’s
responsibility to ensure that an environment that is conducive to achieving this innate
need is created.
In establishing such an environment for the client, the social worker uses the professional
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values and principles, social work skills and techniques.

Activity 20

Study the person-centred approachand answer the following questions:

• Think about your life situation and identify the conflict you might be experiencing as
far as your identity is concerned. Use the person-centred approach to engage in the
process of dealing with your identity (self).
• Use the person-centred approach to identify and explain the identity of your family
as a whole.

3.2.7 The developmental approach

When the new government in South Africa was established in 1994, there was a paradigm
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shift regarding welfare service delivery, from a medical approach to a developmental one.
The developmental approach takes the social and economic development of the client
systems into consideration. This approach is defined by Midgley (in Zastrow 2014:9) as a
“process of planned social change designed to promote the well-being of the population as
a whole in conjunction with a dynamic process of economic development”. This definition
presents the developmental approach as being beneficial to the client systems because
it encompasses empowerment, in terms of which the client has to develop certain skills
that will assist him/her in future when further problematic situations arise. This approach
can be used at all the levels of social work intervention, namely at the individual, family,
group and community level. When using this approach, the practitioner engages the
client system in a process of development towards an improved quality of life, resulting
from improved social functioning.
As indicated earlier, this approach is discussed in detail in BSW1501. You must study it
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carefully, as it forms the theoretical framework for all social welfare services in this country.
53 BSW1502/1
3.2.8 The crisis theory
The crisis theory recognises that people are exposed to different crises during their
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lifetime. At times, they are able to handle these crises and overcome them effectively, but
there are also times when they might need some professional assistance in this regard.
The professional who intervenes in the client’s life during a crisis situation will use crisis
intervention to assist the client in dealing effectively with the crisis and then moving
on with his/her life. Crisis intervention is therefore a brief intervention that focuses on
mobilising the client’s inner strengths and resources to enable him/her to overcome the
crisis situation and improve his/her coping capacity (Teater 2010:196). The important thing
that the social worker must remember is that the client has to emerge from the crisis
situation having learnt new coping skills that will be useful to him/her later on in life. The
important concepts in the crisis theory are stress and crisis, and you need to understand
the meaning of each to be able to understand the crisis theory properly.
“Stress” can be defined as an event that is experienced by a person at a particular time in
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life that demands coping skills beyond the person’s normal coping capacity. This event
might be of a psychological, social or physical nature, which ends up disturbing the
stable coping strength of a person, leading them to seek external help. A “crisis” can be
defined as the perception or experience by an individual of an event as an intolerable
difficulty (Schenck et al, 2016:103). The intensity thereof depends on the perception of
the individual experiencing the event, who believes that he/she lacks the required ego
strength and coping capacity to deal with it successfully.
How the individual client experiences stress and a crisis will always be unique. This situation
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requires the social worker to be aware of this fact and then to deal with each individual,
family, group or community as a unique entity when addressing the crisis situation.
Individuals react differently to crisis situations and there are different types of crises, which
328

require a unique process when using crisis intervention in social work.

3.2.8.1 Different types of crises

Developmental crisis. This crisis emanates from the normal developmental stage of a
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person, where a person experiences internal stress due to the changes in his/her life. An
example of this crisis would be when a person leaves home for the first time to go and
stay in a university residence after finishing his/her schooling and obtaining a matric pass.
This could be a serious crisis for a person who has been staying with his/her parents all
his/her life. The crisis is caused by the fact that, for the first time, this person has to face life
alone, without the protection and constant guidance of his/her parents. Another example
is the adolescent stage that every person has to pass through before reaching adulthood.
(You are going to learn more about human development in your psychology modules,
including the stages of human development and the demands or crises emanating from
each stage.) As a result of the crisis experienced, the person feels unable to cope; therefore,
a social worker may be approached to assist the person in acquiring new coping skills.
Situational crisis. This crisis may emanate from a sudden change in a person’s life situation.
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An example is the sudden loss of a loved one through death, or a loss of employment. In
most cases, these situations are unforeseen, which causes a disturbance in the life of the
person thus affected because he/she is not psychologically, socially or financially prepared
for the change in circumstances. As there was no prior planning or preparation for such
54
a situation, the person’s normal coping capacity is challenged, meaning that external
assistance will be required.
Existential crisis. This crisis is experienced when a person is struggling with inner conflict
331

regarding his/her identity and purpose in life. This situation might arise because a person
regrets many of the decisions that he/she made earlier in life, which cannot be reversed.
As a result, the person experiences inner tension, leading to a situation where he/she is
unable to cope by himself/herself.
According to Teater (2010:197), the crisis intervention process unfolds through different
332

stages.

3.2.8.2 Different stages in the crisis intervention process

333 1st stage: Planning and conducting crisis assessment
It is important at this stage to do a thorough assessment of the client’s state so that all
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the bio-psychosocial aspects involved in the crisis situation can be analysed. This helps
the social worker to establish the real situation, as well as what might have triggered the
crisis. Once this has been clarified, the social worker will know what he/she is dealing
with, which will assist in the real intervention process.
335 2nd stage: Establishing the therapeutic relationship
It is important to realise that these stages do not unfold in a linear fashion. During the first
336

stage, for example, the social worker cannot do the assessment without first establishing
a therapeutic relationship with the client. Specific skills are required to establish this
relationship, which is so crucial to the whole intervention process. (You will learn more
about this therapeutic relationship in learning unit 5.)
337 3rd stage: Identifying the dimensions of the presenting problem
At this stage it is important for the social worker to understand the crisis situation as it
338

is perceived by the client, as well as all the aspects that have precipitated the crisis. This
understanding and clarification are very important, as they pave the way for appropriate
intervention.
339 4th stage: Exploring and dealing with the emotions involved
A person in crisis is always experiencing different emotions that might prevent him/her
340

from thinking clearly. As a result, the social worker must deal with these emotions to help
the client to see his/her situation clearly.
341 5th stage: Generating and exploring alternatives
After attending to the client’s intense emotions, it becomes easier for the social worker
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to facilitate a process whereby the client is given an opportunity to generate different

alternatives that could assist in changing his/her situation. The social worker must always
remember that the client is the expert in his/her situation; as such, he/she knows what
in his/her immediate environment could be of assistance.
343

55 BSW1502/1
344 6th stage: Developing an action plan and implementing it
After generating the alternatives, the social worker and the client must agree on the
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plan to implement these alternatives in an attempt to change the crisis situation. Only if
the client is mentally unfit to make appropriate decisions should the social worker take
action without involving the client. Sometimes the client may be referred to another
agency or person to continue with the intervention process, but this has to be done in
collaboration with the client.
346 7th stage: Establishing a follow-up plan and agreement
It is important for the social worker to monitor the effect of the intervention process to
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ensure that the client benefits. As indicated in stage six, if the client has been referred to
another agency or person, the social worker who initiated the intervention process must
follow up to check if the client is receiving the appropriate service that would alleviate
his/her crisis situation.
Remember that crisis intervention is a short-term process where the focus is on the crisis
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and helping the client to attain a state of equilibrium.

Person-in-environment
349

The ecosystems theory incorporates concepts from both systems theories and the
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ecological perspective, which focus on the environment (Zastrow & Kirst-Ashman 2016).
One definition of ecosystem theory is as follows: “systems theory used to describe and
analyse people and other living systems and their transactions” (Beckett & Johnson
1995:1391). Ecosystems theory fits in well with the concept of person-in-environment
(PIE), a foundational notion in social work practice and our basis for understanding the
dynamics of human behaviour (Greene 1999; Sheafor & Horejsi 2012). Kirst-Ashman and
Hull (2012:12) explain the concept ‘person-in-environment (PIE)' as follows:
A person in environment’s focus sees people as constantly interacting with various
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systems around them. These systems include the family, friends, work, social services,
politics, religion, goods and services and educational system. The person is portrayed as
being dynamically involved with each. Social work practice then is directed at improving
the interactions between the person and the various systems. This focus is referred to as
improving person-in environment fit.
Greene (1999:17) describes the importance of the person in environment concept and
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an underlying principle of social work practice as follows:

The person in environment perspective has been a central influence on the profession’s
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theoretical base and its approach to practice. This perspective is based on the belief that
the profession’s basic mission requires a dual focus on the person and the environment
and a common structured approach to the helping process (Gordon 1962). By serving
as a blue print or an organizing guide for social work assessment and intervention at a
multiple systems level, the person in environment has allowed social workers to intervene
effectively “no matter what their different theoretical orientations and specializations,
and regardless of where or with what client group they practice” (Meyer 1987:409).

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 3.3 CONCLUSION
In this learning unit you have learnt about the differences between the concepts of theory,
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approach, perspective and model. You have also learnt about the different theories,
approaches, perspectives and models used in social work practice. The following learning
unit will focus on the different fields of social work practice.

Self-reflection

Self-assessment activity
• Use your own words to describe a crisis.
• After studying the crisis theory, think about your own life and identify a time when you
were facing a crisis and how you overcame it.

Discuss with a fellow student the different crises encountered by people in your
communities.

57 BSW1502/1
Learning unit 4
Different fields of social work practice

INTRODUCTION
The purpose of this learning unit is to give you a comprehensive, although condensed,
355

overview of the different fields of practice in social work within the developmental
paradigm that was introduced to you in BSW1501. Embedded in the discussion will be
the roles of social workers in practice. It is therefore important that you revisit BSW1501 to
revise the different roles involved in social work practice because you will learn to apply
these roles in this learning unit. You are expected to consult your recommended book
for more information on the different fields of practice.
This learning unit will equally cover issues of diversity and culturally competent social
356

work practice. These concepts were introduced to you in learning unit 1. Case studies/
scenarios and diagrams/illustrations will be used to help you grasp the contents of the
different fields of social work practice.

Learning unit outcomes

After completion of this learning unit, you should be able to:

• demonstrate an understanding of the different fields of social work practice
• clearly identify the critical role played by social workers within the different fields of
social work practice
• identify possible future preferences with regard to your own career path within the
broader spectrum of social work fields of practice

RECOMMENDED READING
Teater, B. 2010. An introduction to applying social work theories and methods. New York:
Open University Press.

4.1 THE DIFFERENT FIELDS OF PRACTICE IN SOCIAL WORK

There are various fields of practice in social work. Kirst-Ashman (2013: 273) provides the
357

following groupings:
• social work and services for children and families
• social work and services for older adults
• social work and services for persons with disabilities
• social work and services in health care
• social work and services in mental health
• social work and services in substance use, abuse and dependence
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• social work and services in schools, and,
• social work and services in the criminal justice system.

358 Similarly, Rosenberg (2009) mentions the following fields:

• social work in addiction

• social work with older adults
• social work in child welfare
• social work in criminal justice
• social work and domestic violence
• social work in health care
• social work regarding housing and homelessness
• social work and mental health
• social work in the military
• social work in palliative and end-of-life care
• social work in private practice, as well as
• social work in schools.

In South Africa, the organisations where you are likely to find social workers are usually
359

formal entities such as governmental organisations (e.g. the Department of Health,

the Department of Social Development and the Department of Education) and the
nongovernmental sector, including organisations such as Child Welfare South Africa,
the Deaf Federation of South Africa (DEAFSA) and old age homes. Corporate companies
such as Eskom, Metrorail, Anglo American, Shoprite and the different banking sectors are
obliged by law to establish social initiative programmes geared towards giving back to
their consumers; in this regard, such companies may employ the services of social work
practitioners. In South Africa, therefore, it is the combined effort of corporate organisations,
government entities and the nongovernmental sector that comprise the developmental
welfare paradigm that was introduced to you in BSW1501. What is critical to note in this
regard is that the specific services offered in each organisation mentioned above are
referred to as the fields of practice.

What this means, therefore, is that a social worker employed by the Department of Health
360

will be said to be working in the health field; one employed by Child Welfare South
Africa will be said to be working in the child and/or family care field; one working in a
mining company will be said to be working in the mining field; and one owning a private
practice will be said to be operating in the private sector. Social workers are employed in
the different fields of practice because, as stated in the study guide for BSW1501, people
experience difficulties in the different phases and areas of their lives. Therefore, social work
must be able to deal with the needs and circumstances of people from birth until death.

As an introduction to this subject, you are required to read the case study of the Mahlangu
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family below. This case study will stimulate your thinking and help you to begin to develop
insight into what is meant by the different fields of practice in social work practice.
59 BSW1502/1
 Case study 2: The Mahlangu family
Mary and John Mahlangu have been married for over twelve years. The couple has two children,
Mike and Tom, aged 12 and 3 years respectively. The family has been living in a fairly prosperous
neighbourhood; they have a domestic helper and the children have been attending a prestigious
private school. John has a qualification in marketing and has been working in the distribution
section of a logistics company for over 10 years. Mary is employed as an assistant director at the
Department of Home Affairs and has a qualification in local government administration. John is
going to be retrenched in a month’s time. The distribution component of the company where
he is working has been outsourced by his employers as a cost-cutting measure. Since he heard
the news of the outsourcing two months ago, John has been looking for other employment, but
nothing has been forthcoming. If John does not secure new employment in a month, it means
that Mary will have to become the breadwinner of the family until John secures another job.
It is Sunday afternoon and the couple is sitting dawn to discuss their predicament. They are
considering the following options, but cannot agree on the way forward:
• relocating to a smaller home
• moving their older son Mike
• to a mainstream school
• letting their helper Sarah go
• although she is a single parent of three children and has worked for them for over 6 years
• taking their younger son Tom, out of day care so that John can look after him while also
performing the domestic duties
• until he (John) finds other employment.

Reflect on the Mahlangu case study:

• Do you think that John and Mary need formal intervention to help them to deal with their crisis?
If so, who should offer them that support, or where could they go to acquire such support?
• Do you think that John and Mary both need formal intervention, individually and/or as a couple,
to help them to deal with their crisis?
• What about the children; do you think that Mike and Tom will need intervention to help them
to deal with the changes? Do you think Mike will require assistance to adjust to the new school?
And if so, whom can the parents approach for help? Or could the school assist in that regard?
• What about Sarah, their helper; how will she take care of her own family until she secures
another job? Where can she go for assistance?

Hopefully, the information that preceded the case study will have made you aware
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that social work practitioners are employed in various organisational settings, with
each organisation delivering specific services to its clients. In this regard, social workers
employed in the various fields of practice can assist the Mahlangu family to deal with
their crisis or problems. For instance, John’s employers can refer all the employees to be
retrenched for counselling to their in-house social work wellness practitioners; in addition,
the couple can attend couples’ therapy sessions at a private social work practitioner to
help them reach decisions on the way forward.
The family can also contact the social worker at Child Welfare to obtain individual play
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therapy for the children to help them to adapt to their new living conditions; Mike can
also be referred to a school social worker, once he starts at his new school, to help him
to integrate better. Sarah can contact the social workers employed by the Department
of Social Development in her area for food vouchers, which she can use to buy food for
her family while she is looking for another job. Sarah can also contact the district office
of the Department of Education in her area for assistance with school uniforms for her
children; and for other clothing, she can contact the local church for donations.
60
We hope that you also noticed from the case study that the different fields mentioned
364

in this learning unit address different problems and needs that people experience daily
during different phases of their lives.
If you looked closely at the fields of social work practice mentioned earlier by different
365

authors, you would have noticed that they are somewhat similar. Therefore, in this learning
unit, we will examine the following fields: social work with children; social work with
families; social work with persons living with disabilities; social work with older persons;
social work in health care; social work in mental health care; social work and addiction;
social work in private practice; and social work and employee assistance programmes.

4.1.1 Social work with children

Social work with children means that the primary client to receive social work intervention is
366

the child, and such services are usually referred to as child welfare services. The Constitution
of the Republic of South Africa, 1996, defines a child as any person under the age of
18 years. Child welfare services are programmes designed to promote the safety and
wellbeing of children because “children come to the attention of the social workers
as a result of deprived, disadvantaged, dysfunctional or abusive family circumstances”
(Wilson, Ruch, Lymbery & Cooper 2011:462). The need for these services also emanated
from the historical “concern for children who are ill-treated, neglected, abused, and more
prominently because they are vulnerable in an adult dominated world”.
In South Africa, likewise, child welfare services cater for children who have been abused
367

or neglected, who are without parental care, who live on the streets or who live in child-
headed households. Services are also geared to unaccompanied foreign children or those
whose parents are in the country illegally and seeking asylum, and those whose parents
have refugee status. The services used to intervene in the different circumstances consist
of child protection services, family preservation and preventive services, foster care, kinship
care, adoption services and residential care at designated facilities (Rosenberg 2009:31).
Family protection and preservation services aimed at child protection refer to interventions
368

aimed at protecting children at risk of maltreatment. “Child maltreatment” is the umbrella

term for physical abuse, sexual abuse, psychological abuse and neglect (Kirst-Ashman
2013:282–286). Family preservation services are short-term, family-based services designed
to assist families in crisis by improving parental functioning while keeping the children safe
(Kirst-Ashman 2013:289–290). Practically, this is done by giving parents the resources and
services they need to function effectively. Foster family care is the provision of substitute
care with a family for a planned temporary or extended period when parents or legal
guardians are unable to care for a child (Kirst-Ashman 2013:297). Whereas, kinship care
refers to either the formal or informal type of out-of-home placement that involves placing
a child with relatives or with the supportive network of the child’s family (Kirst-Ashman
2013:296). Informal kinship care refers to those circumstances in which the extended
family takes in children without the intervention of a social worker, whereas in formal
kinship care, a social service agency gains legal custody of a child and places that child
with the extended family or the family’s supportive network.
The purpose of residential care settings is to address the unique needs of children and
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youth who require more intensive services than a family can provide. These settings
provide educational, medical, psychiatric and mental health services, as well as recreation

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(Kirst-Ashman 2013:301). Adoption is the legal act of taking in a child born to other parents
and formally making that child a full member of the family (Kirst-Ashman 2013:303); the
result is that the biological parents of the child are deprived of all their parental rights
and responsibilities in respect of the child.
The major employment settings for child welfare social workers are not-for-profit
370

organisations (NPOs) or nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) (Rosenberg 2009:32).

In South Africa, the custodian of child welfare services is the Department of Social
Development. NGOs rendering child welfare services in South Africa are required by law
to register with this department and must be certified to render the services. The child
welfare services in the country are regulated by means of the Children’s Act 38 of 2005,
as amended. As a practising social worker in South Africa, you have a responsibility to
ensure that you are knowledgeable about and can interpret and implement child-related
legislation that regulates child protection services.
• The social worker’s roles in child welfare services
Social workers utilise the three primary methods of social work, namely casework, group
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work and community work, as well as the secondary methods, namely research and
administration, to intervene in the lives of children. They also intervene at the three levels
of intervention, namely the micro, mezzo and macro levels. Furthermore, social workers
also utilise theoretical approaches, theories and perspectives in their interventions with
their child clients.
The goal of social work intervention in working with children is developmentally inclined
372

because it upholds the following principles: the empowerment of children and their
families or significant others and the participation of children and their families/significant
others in the facilitation process. Social workers also endeavour to provide services to
all children who deserve it (universal access) and to ensure that they provide efficient,
effective and transparent services.
Social workers assume various roles in addressing problems faced by children within the
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different methods of intervention, some of which may include the following:

Table 2: The application of the roles of social workers in child welfare services

The micro level The mezzo level The macro level

At this level, social workers Social workers work with
work with groups (group communities at this level to
work method). The groups address issues of concern that
may be of family members have been identified within a
and/or significant others of particular community. Social
children. The groups may be workers become advocates
supportive groups, in terms in this regard, advocating for
of which the social worker the rights of children. Social
will challenge the group workers must also influence
members to identify and legislation at national level
confront the problems that and policies at organisational
led to the social worker’s level to ensure that they cater
intervention, and to develop for the needs of children.
and execute plans to resolve
those problems. As brokers,

62
 The micro level The mezzo level The macro level
social workers link families
or significant others with
needed resources. At this
level, social workers can also
host educational groups and
play the role of educators.

• Social workers also have administrative and research duties to fulfil:

Social workers’ administrative role in working with children requires them to maintain
374

records at all levels of their intervention.

Social workers working in the child welfare field may also conduct work-based research
375

projects on various issues concerning children, with the aim of solving problems
experienced by practitioners in practice.
Of critical importance in this regard is that whatever role social workers play, the aim of the
376

social work intervention is always to promote and protect children through a myriad of
interventions that may be directed towards individuals, families and effecting community
change (Rosenberg 2009:33).
377 Now read the following case study.

Case study 3: A social worker named Tshepo

Tshepo is employed as a social worker by the South African Vroue Federasie (SAVF). He is one of
six social workers employed by this organisation and his work territory is Thabong in Welkom. His
other colleagues are working in Dagbreek, Jan Niemand Park, Hani Park, Odendaalsrus and Virginia.
From his caseload, Tshepo is noticing an increase in the number of abandoned children: in the past
6 months, he has attended to 20 cases of abandoned children. Tshepo discusses this trend with his
supervisor and together they discuss this dilemma during one of their staff meetings. The office
staff collectively devise a means to prevent more babies from being abandoned in their respective
areas. Firstly, the social workers agree that they will each establish at least two educational groups
with young people; the one group will consist of school-going teenagers, while the other will be
made up of unemployed young adults. The purpose of the groups will be to establish the reasons
for the abandonment of children and then to teach them how to prevent unwanted pregnancies;
they will also be informed where they can go for help if they should fall pregnant and are unable to
care for the children. The social workers also agree that they will each host awareness campaigns
among the members of their respective communities. Tshepo further decides that, as part of his
master’s degree, he will conduct a research study on the abandonment of children.
It will be entitled “Reasons for the abandonment of children in the Lejweleputswa Municipality,
in the Free State Province”. He hopes that the findings of the study will enhance the intervention
strategies to minimise the abandonment of children.

Activity 21

• Identify the different levels of intervention that the office staff (social workers) have
selected to use to deal with the identified challenges.
• Discuss the roles that can be played by social workers at each level.
• Can you see how research can be linked to problems experienced by clients in practice?
Substantiate your answer.

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4.1.2 Social work with older persons
Social work with older people is also referred to as geriatric social work. In South Africa,
378

the Older Persons Act 13 of 2006 is the regulatory instrument for all services directed at
older people. In terms of this Act, an “old person” is defined as a person who, in the case
of a male, is 65 years of age or older; in the case of a female, the person is 60 years of age
or older. In South Africa, social workers may be employed by the nongovernmental sector
in organisations such as the South African Association for the Aged and Age in Action.
The Department of Social Development is the custodian of social work services rendered
to older persons. The department has an established directorate that coordinates the
services offered to older persons by NGOs/NPOs.
To better understand social work with the elderly, you must first understand the stage of
379

development referred to as “aging”, since the elderly fall within this developmental stage.
Aging is generally associated with both physical and mental challenges that we will all
380

experience later in life. This is because, as people age, they generally become weaker and
more vulnerable to certain illnesses and diseases (Kirst-Ashman 2013:316). People also
become vulnerable to different kinds of abuse because they no longer have the physical
and/or mental strength to defend themselves. According to Kirst-Ashman (2013:316), aging
can be classified into two categories: primary aging refers to the fact that physiological
variables involved in such decline will inevitably occur; secondary aging is concerned
with how the primary aging process can be either hastened or slowed down by lifestyle
and behaviour. Factors that can slow aging include physical exercise, a healthy diet,
stress management and access to adequate medical treatment and resources. Rosenberg
(2009:16) states that the problems that social workers are likely to deal with when working
with older adults include depression, isolation, decline in physical abilities and financial
problems. Social workers also deal with housing issues and the care of the elderly.
• The social worker’s roles in working with older persons
As in the child welfare field, social workers utilise the three primary methods of social
381

work (casework, group work and community work) and the secondary methods (research
and administration) to intervene in the lives of older persons. They also intervene at the
three levels of intervention, namely the micro, macro and mezzo levels, and they utilise
theoretical approaches, theories and perspectives in their interventions.
The goal of social work intervention in working with the elderly is also developmentally
382

inclined because it upholds the principle of empowerment of elderly people and their
families or significant others. According to Kirst-Ashman (2013:314), the empowerment of
elderly people can be achieved, firstly, by treating older adults with dignity and respect,
regardless of their situation. Secondly, older adults should be in control of their lives,
making their own choices and doing as much for themselves as possible. Thirdly, they
should actively participate in family and community life. Fourthly, they should be treated
fairly and have their rights respected in the same way as all other citizens. Finally, older
adults should have the right to “security”, which includes adequate income and access
to a safe living environment.
Social workers also endeavour to cater for all elderly people alike (the principle of equality)
383

and to offer services to those who need it (universal access). Their participation and the
participation of their families/significant others is also critical in the intervention process.
Social workers also endeavour to provide transparent, efficient and effective services
64
to all their elderly clients. The roles of social workers in this regard are presented in the
following table to aid your understanding.
Table 3: The application of the roles of social workers with older persons

The micro level The mezzo level The macro level

Social workers work directly Social workers can arrange At the macro level, social
with the elderly person for the elderly people to workers can conduct
and the services are largely form therapeutic groups to awareness campaigns to
therapeutic, helping them to tackle emotional problems, advocate for the rights of the
deal with loss – either of their as well as support groups elderly; they can influence
spouse or their children – as and educational groups to policy-makers to uphold the
well as preparing for their tackle their health problems/ rights of the elderly and, at
own death. Their role may needs, recreational needs organisational level, they can
also be educational, teaching and financial constraints. establish programmes geared
them about abuse and their Social workers can also work towards fulfilling the needs of
rights. with family members and/ elderly citizens.
or significant others and can
establish similar groups with
those individuals to tackle
similar issues.

Social workers’ administrative role in working with older persons requires them to maintain
384

records of their intervention at all levels and throughout the intervention. Social workers
may also conduct work-based research projects on various issues concerning older people,
with the aim of solving problems experienced by practitioners in practice.
Because children and older adults are members of families, social work in relation to
385

families will be discussed next.

4.1.3 Social work with families

In learning unit 1 you were introduced to the concept of diversity, coupled with the
386

discussion of the diversity of social work. Now we require you to think in terms of the
diversity of families in the 21st century. Think of the families in your own community and
ponder the following questions:

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 387

Figure 4.1: Social work with families

If you answered “yes” to at least two of the questions in figure 4.1 above, then you are
388

well on your way to understanding the diversity of families living in our midst. We hope
that this exercise has developed your awareness of the blended nature of families, for
example there are gay and lesbian families, single-parent families, child-headed families
and extended families.
389 Kirst-Ashman (2013:277–278) describes the different types of families as follows:
• A nuclear family consists of two married parents who have never divorced and live
together in one household with their own birth children.
• Blended families refer to the configuration of people who live together, are committed
to one another and perform functions traditionally assumed by families. Such families
may include stepfamilies and intergenerational families.

Single-parent families are family units in which only one of the parents, usually a mother,
390

is present in the household.

In South Africa, child-headed households are a growing trend. In these households, there
391

are no parents; this is either due to the death of the parents or because their whereabouts
are unknown to their children. Usually the eldest child assumes the responsibility of being
the caregiver.

66
Social work practitioners work with families when either the whole family or some of its
392

members are deprived, disadvantaged, dysfunctional or abused. It is important to note

in this regard that family members themselves may cause the deprivation, dysfunction
or abuse in respect of one another. Social workers specifically intervene in families if one
or more members of the family are being abused by other members of the same family
(domestic violence), or by a community member. Social workers also help to prepare
couples for marriage (marriage counselling) and intervene when couples are experiencing
problems in their marriage (couples therapy). Social workers can also mediate in cases of
divorce to determine the best interests of the child(ren) (mediation).
393 The roles of the social worker when working with families
Social workers utilise the three primary methods of social work (casework, group work and
394

community work) and the secondary methods (research and administration) to intervene
in the lives of families. They also intervene at the three levels of intervention. As in the case
of other fields of practice, social workers make use of theoretical approaches, theories
and perspectives in rendering services to families. The goal of social work intervention
when working with families is to uphold the principles of the developmental approach,
namely to empower the family unit to overcome their difficulties; to offer equal services
to different family members and to different families; and to ensure the participation
of the family members in the intervention. Social workers also endeavour to provide
transparent, efficient and effective services to families. The roles of social workers in this
regard are presented in the following table to aid your understanding.
Table 4: The application of the roles of social workers working with families

The micro level The mezzo level The macro level

At this level, social workers At the mezzo level, social At the macro level, social
work with individual family workers work with the workers can advocate for the
members. Their intervention whole family to tackle the development of programmes
is usually therapeutic and challenges experienced by that address family issues;
geared towards resolving the individuals in the family. they can also influence
the emotional problems Family therapy can be used policy-makers to formulate
experienced; they usually to tackle any emotionally or amend legislation and
help family members to charged issue that is policies that deal with family
explore their feelings, experienced by all family issues.
confront problematic issues members. The social worker
and make life plans. can use the broker role to link
the family with resources that
will enhance their quality of
life. Different families can be
grouped together to form
supportive and educational
groups. Social workers also
provide supportive services to
families to support, reinforce
and strengthen the ability of
parents and children to meet
the responsibilities of their
respective statuses (Kirst-
Ashman 2013:280).

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In their work with families, social workers also have an obligation to keep records of the
395

services rendered to each client/at all levels of intervention. They can also conduct research
studies on various family issues to influence programmes in practice.
Families may consist of able-bodied individuals and/or members living with disabilities.
396

The latter group will be the topic of our next discussion.

4.1.4 Social work with persons living with disabilities

As mentioned earlier, the social workers working with persons living with disabilities may
397

be located in the private or public sector. The government institutions that employ social
workers include hospitals, clinics and rehabilitation centres, while the nongovernmental
institutions employing social workers include various organisations such as DEAFSA, the
Association of People Living with Disabilities and the Blind Society of South Africa.
A social worker working in this field needs to understand the different types of disabilities.
398

They also need to understand that some people are born with a disability, while others
acquire the disability at some point in their lives; in either case, people may also have multiple
disabilities. Disabilities may be classified into mobility disabilities and developmental
disabilities. People with mobility disabilities are those whose physical differences require
them to achieve physical activities in a variety of alternative ways (Mackelprang & Salsgiver
2009 in Kirst-Ashman 2013:344). Mobility disabilities may be congenital, that is, acquired
before, during or immediately after birth, or they may be acquired at some point later in
life. Conditions such as cerebral palsy, epilepsy and orthopaedic problems can be classified
as congenital mobility disabilities (Kirst-Ashman 2013:344).
399 Developmental disabilities, on the other hand, are characterised as follows:
1. the disability is both severe and chronic, resulting from some mental or physical
impairment
2. the disability occurs before age 22
3. thirdly, the conditions are likely to be permanent
4. fourthly, the disability results in substantial impairment in functioning in three or
more of the following areas: self-care, receptive and expressive language, learning,
mobility, self-direction, capacity for independent living and economic self-efficacy;
and
5. the disability indicates the need for lifelong supplementary help and services (Kirst-
Ashman 2013:347).

Intellectual disabilities, epilepsy, orthopaedic problems, deafness and hardness of hearing,

400

visual impairment and autism spectrum disorders may be classified as developmental

disabilities (Kirst-Ashman 2013:347).
• The roles of social workers in working with people living with disabilities
Social workers utilise the three primary methods of social work (casework, group work and
401

community work) and the secondary methods (research and administration) to intervene
when working with people with disabilities. Using these methods, social workers intervene
at the three levels of intervention. As in the case of other fields of practice, social workers
make use of theoretical approaches, theories and perspectives in rendering services to
people living with disabilities. The goal of social work intervention when working with
68
people living with disabilities is to empower them and their families/significant others to
overcome difficulties resulting from a disability and to be impartial when offering services
to different family members and to different families on issues relating to disabilities. Central
to the intervention is the participation of clients and their family members. Social workers
also endeavour to provide transparent, efficient and effective services. The roles of social
workers in this regard are presented in the following table to aid your understanding.
Table 5: The application of the roles of social workers when working with people living with disabilities

The micro level The mezzo level The macro level

At this level, intervention At this level, intervention is At this level, social workers
is largely therapeutic and geared towards the family assume the advocacy
geared towards resolving of a person living with a role to “seek to improve
the emotional problems disability or disabilities. the treatment of people
experienced by clients; the The social worker tackles with disabilities through
social worker usually helps challenges experienced influencing legislation and
people to explore feelings, by the family members agency provision of services
confront problematic issues regarding the disability, or to be suitable to the needs of
and make life plans. with the actual person living people living with disabilities”
with the disability/disabilities. (Kirst-Ashman 2013:342).
The social worker can educate At this level, social workers
family members about a can also, through campaigns,
disability (educator role) and “educate community
can use the broker role to link members by providing them
them with resources that will with information about
enhance their quality of life disability and related issues”
and that of the person living (Kirst-Ashman 2013:342).
with the disability/disabilities.
As part of a rehabilitation
Therapeutic groups and team, for instance, social
support groups are also workers consult with other
established in this regard professional groups such
to assist family members to as occupational therapists,
deal with their own emotions speech therapists,
resulting from the disability of psychologists, nurses and
a family member. medical personnel to develop
a coordinated team plan for
people with disabilities (Kirst-
Ashman 2013:342).

Administratively, social workers synchronise and oversee service provision for people with
402

disabilities who have multiple needs (Kirst-Ashman 2013:342). And at all the identified
levels of intervention, social workers have an obligation to keep a record of the services
rendered to people living with disabilities, or to their families or significant others. As in
other fields of practice, social workers can also conduct research studies on various family
issues to influence programmes in practice.
Now read the case study below to see what social work with people with disabilities
403

entails. Then answer the questions below to test your understanding.

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 Case study 4: Tom’s case
Tom is an 18-year-old boy. He is the third of four children born to Mr and Mrs Msibi. His two older
brothers are both university graduates and are employed in the financial sector. His younger sister
is in Grade 10. Tom is a part-time student at Unisa, majoring in anthropology. Tom’s ambition in
life is to become a professional footballer; he only enrolled for the qualification to appease his
parents, who do not support his dream of becoming a professional football player. The club that
Tom is currently playing for is in the first division of the soccer league. As a result, he spends most
of his time at the gym and on the pitch practising; he also goes to trials every month in the hope
of getting into the Premier Soccer League (PSL).
On Saturday, 16 May 2015, Tom attends trials hosted by the Kaiser Chiefs Football Club. Tom and
other aspiring footballers are divided up into two teams and, while playing, Tom sustains a serious
injury and is immediately rushed to hospital. After a full medical examination, Tom is told that he
has sustained a spinal injury. A team of medical doctors operates on him and is hopeful that he
will recover from his injury, but after a month in hospital, Tom’s medical team has to inform him
that he will not be able to walk again; he is a paraplegic. Tom realises right there and then that
his dream of becoming a great footballer has been crushed.
Tom is discharged from hospital two months later, but he is not the same person he was before
the accident; on arriving home, he becomes withdrawn, cries all the time and often refuses to eat.
In desperation, his parents approach the Child Welfare office in Taung, where you are employed
as a social worker, to seek assistance in dealing with their son.
Answer the following questions regarding the case study:
What kind of disability does Tom have? Explain your answer.
• Describe five roles that you will assume when working with Tom. Also state why you think
these particular roles will be appropriate in this intervention.
• At what level of intervention would you work with Tom’s family? Give reasons for your answer.

4.1.5 Social work in health care

Working in a health care setting is very different from working in the child and welfare
404

fields, although there are similarities between them. Social workers employed in the
health care field may be employed in hospitals (i.e. within district, provincial and tertiary
hospitals), in rehabilitation centres and in primary health care centres (popularly referred
to as clinics). They may be located in both the private and public sectors. Furthermore,
they may work with clients on an inpatient or outpatient basis. Inpatients are clients who
reside in the facility for some time, while outpatients are clients who come to the facility
for consultation and then return home.
In South Africa, those social workers who are employed in the private sector mostly work
405

as private practitioners, while those employed in the public sector are mostly employed
by the Department of Health. Some social workers assume generalist roles, while others
specialise. Social workers in this field deal with an array of health problems, including
physical malfunction, injury or diseases, and they work with all members of the population,
from infants to the elderly (Kirst-Ashman 2013:371); they also work with families, tackle
child welfare issues and work with people living with disabilities.
The goal of social work intervention in health care is to empower clients – whether they
406

are individuals, families, a group or a community – to help them to overcome their medical
difficulties. They also offer the same services to all clients, regardless of differences between
the clients. Central to the intervention is the participation of clients and their family

70
members or significant others. Social workers also endeavour to provide a transparent,
efficient and effective service.
In South Africa, the health care fraternity is regulated by, among others, the National
407

Health Care Act 61 of 2003, as amended, and social workers need to be able to interpret
and adhere to this legislation.
• The roles of social workers in health care
As in the other fields of practice, social workers utilise the primary and secondary methods
408

of intervention and operate at the three levels of intervention. They also make use of
theoretical approaches, theories and perspectives in rendering services. What is significant
in the case of health care, though, is that social workers use a multidisciplinary approach
in rendering services to clients in this field. Working from a multidisciplinary approach
means that they work as part of a team that includes doctors, dieticians, speech and audio
therapists, physiotherapists and nurses.
Social workers in health care spend most of their time involved in direct patient care,
409

including psychosocial assessments, crisis intervention, treatment planning, individual

counselling and discharge planning (Rosenberg 2009:30).
The roles of social workers in health care are presented in the following table to aid your
410

understanding.
Table 6: The application of the roles of social workers in health care

The micro level The mezzo level The macro level

At this level, social workers At this level, social workers Social workers work with
work with individuals work with groups (group communities at this level
(casework method) and their work method). The groups to address health issues
services are often therapeutic may be of family members identified as threats within
in nature. and/or the significant others communities.
of patients. The groups may
They help patients to They provide large-scale
be supportive in nature or
understand and interpret health education aimed
they may be educational
technical medical jargon. at establishing a healthful
groups. Supportive groups
lifestyle and preventing
They offer emotional support are used to help families
illnesses. A typical example
to clients and their significant and significant others deal
is awareness campaigns. In
others. with emotionally charged
South Africa, the national
They help terminally ill people issues such as preparation health calendar is used to
to deal with their feelings and for death of a loved one; identify critical health issues
to make end-of-life decisions. they also help families plan that must be campaigned for
These services are also for and accommodate the
or against.
referred to as palliative care changed circumstances of a
loved one after prolonged Social workers also advocate
services.
hospitalisation. for health rights and social
Following the patient’s justice in the provision of
discharge from hospital, these When hosting educational health care. In this regard,
services are usually taken over groups, social workers they may join or become
by social workers in hospices assume the educator role.
affiliated with coalition
and other assisted-living As educators, they provide
groups.
residential homes, both on health education aimed
at establishing a healthful Social workers must also
an inpatient and outpatient
lifestyle and preventing influence legislation at
basis.
illnesses.
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 They help patients to adjust Social workers also become national level and policies at
their lives and lifestyles to brokers; they link families regional levels.
accommodate their changed or significant others with
circumstances when they needed resources.
return home after receiving
medical treatment.
They help parents of children
who have serious illnesses or
disabilities to cope with these
conditions and to respond to
their children’s needs.
They serve as brokers that
link patients and their families
with the necessary supportive
resources and services after
the patients have left the
medical facilities.
They provide health
education aimed at
establishing a healthful
lifestyle and preventing
illnesses.
They may assist with housing
or accommodation issues
after the patient’s discharge.
They also help patients to
deal with disclosures of
terminal illnesses.

Activity 22

Refer back to the case study on Tom, the aspiring footballer who sustained a spinal-cord
injury; reread the case study. Now imagine that you are a social worker employed in the
orthopaedic department of the hospital where Tom has been hospitalised for the past
month. Tom is referred to you because he is displaying signs of grief and post-traumatic
stress. He has not stopped crying since he heard that he is a paraplegic. He is also not
eating or sleeping well.

Now answer the questions below:

• From the above-mentioned roles performed by social workers in the health field, which roles
would you execute at the macro level when working with Tom? Give reasons for your answer.
• Which roles would you execute at the mezzo level, and at whom would those services be
directed?
• Should you work with Tom at the micro level, which method of intervention would you employ?
• How would you get involved in research in this case?
• What would your administrative duties be in this case?

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To further expand your understanding of the fields of practice in health care, read through
412

the following passage and answer the embedded questions:

Veterinary science forms part of the South African health spectrum. This is because
413

humans live alongside both domesticated and wild animals, and diseases among
animals may spread to humans; hence the need for veterinary medicine. Do you
think there is a need for social work services in animal health? If your answer to this
question is “no”, give reasons for your answer. If your answer is “yes”, then answer the
following questions: In which sector would social workers be employed? In which
institutions would social workers be located? Which services would they offer? At
what levels of intervention would they intervene and with whom? And which roles
would they play at the identified levels of intervention?

4.1.6 Social work in mental health care

Social workers working in mental health care need to understand the concept of mental
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health, which has two dimensions: mental health and mental illness. Kirst-Ashman
(2013:399–400) describes the dimensions as follows: Mental health is the state of relative
psychological and emotional wellbeing in which an individual can make acceptably
rational decisions, cope adequately with personal and external stress and maintain a
satisfactory adjustment to society. Mental illness (also known as mental disorders) refers
to any of the wide range of psychological, emotional or cognitive disorders that impair
a person’s ability to function effectively. Social workers thus work with both categories
of mental health care users.
Mental health services in South Africa are rendered at hospitals and clinics. In general
415

hospitals, social workers may be assigned to the wards that treat mental health conditions
and illnesses. There are also designated mental health hospitals in the country, which
are historically referred to as psychiatric hospitals. Examples of these are Weskoppies
Hospital, located in Pretoria, and Sterkfontein Hospital, located in Krugersdorp. There
are also NGOs, such as Mental Health South Africa, which are dedicated to working with
mental health care users and their families.
A multidisciplinary team approach is usually employed to render services to mental health
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care users. Such a team may consist of medical doctors, nursing personnel, social workers
and psychologists, to name but a few. Mental health services in South Africa are regulated
by the Mental Health Care Act 17 of 2002, as amended, and a practicing social worker in
this field has a duty to understand the regulations and implement them, where necessary.
The goals of intervention in this field of social work practice include the empowerment
417

of clients – whether they are individuals, families, a group or a community – to help them
to overcome their challenges with mental health care conditions or illnesses. They also
offer their services impartially to all clients. Central to the intervention is the participation
of clients and their family members or significant others. Social workers also endeavour
to provide a transparent, efficient and effective service.
Social workers working in this field are required to be familiar with the Diagnostic and
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Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders Text Revision (DSM-IV-TR) (2000). The DSM-IV-TR is
a classification system for defining and diagnosing mental disorders (e.g. mood disorders,
personality disorders, eating disorders, sexual disorders and dementia) and it has 17 major
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diagnostic categories and dozens of more specific conditions. You will deal extensively
with these conditions in your psychology modules.

Activity 23

Go online and search for NGOs that render mental health care services in South Africa.
Browse these websites and read up on, among other things, the mission and vision of
each organisation, its staff complement and, specifically, the services that it offers to its
clients. This exercise will help you to gain a better understanding of what mental health
care in South Africa entails.

• The roles of social workers in mental health care

Social workers can fulfil many roles when working with mental health care users. In this
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field, too, social workers utilise the primary and secondary methods of intervention to
intervene at the different levels of intervention in the lives of their clients. Social workers in
the mental health field also make use of theoretical approaches, theories and perspectives
in rendering services. According to Rosenberg (2009:131), the roles of social workers in
mental health include assessment, treatment planning, counselling and referrals. These
tasks are undertaken at the three levels of intervention. The following table will help you
to understand these roles better.
Table 7: The application of the roles of social workers in mental health care

The micro level The mezzo level The macro level

Social workers work with At this level of practice, social At the macro level of
individuals to help them workers may establish groups practice, social workers
to accept their conditions such as therapy groups, strive to develop innovative
(Kirst-Ashman 2013:417). support groups, educational programmes to meet the
Often social workers have to groups and growth groups. needs of their clients at an
help their clients to deal with Here, too, social workers work organisational level; they can
issues of stigma associated with family members and/or also advocate for change
with their conditions. the significant others of the on behalf of their clients
Specialist social workers clients and may use groups to by influencing policies that
at this level offer intensive intervene. address the needs of this
psychotherapy to clients and category of clients.
support to their families or
significant others.

At all the identified levels of intervention, social workers have an obligation to keep a
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record of the services rendered to mental health care users, their families or significant
others. As in other fields of practice, social workers may also conduct research studies
on various issues related to mental health and social work to influence programmes in
practice.

4.1.7 Social work and addiction

Social work is important in addiction because substance dependency constitutes one
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of the country’s (South Africa) major health and social problems that “cut across age,
gender and class” (Rosenberg 2009:1). Both generalist and specialist social workers deal
with addiction. Generalist social workers will encounter clients presenting with addiction

74
at some point in their careers because “most often many clients with substance-abuse
problems initially present themselves in non-addiction settings” (Rosenberg 2009:2),
such as welfare organisations, clinics and other health care sectors. However, some social
workers are employed in rehabilitation centres and, by virtue of their field of practice,
may be referred to as “specialists”. In South Africa, these services are regulated by, among
others, the policy document entitled “The National Drug Master Plan”.
As a student social worker, it is important for you to understand what addiction entails.
422

A synonym for “addiction” is “dependency”. In relation to human beings, dependency

or addiction refers to substance dependency, which results from abusing a particular
substance or combination of substances.
A substance is referred to as a mind-altering drug. Substance abuse is referred to as a
423

maladaptive pattern of substance use manifested by recurrent and significant adverse

consequences related to the repeated use of substances. According to the DSM-IV-TR
(2000), substance dependence is a cluster of cognitive, behavioural and physiological
symptoms resulting from continued use of a substance, despite its causing significant
problems for the user (Kirst-Ashman 2013:442–443). The mind-altering substances are
administered in various ways, including “oral consumption, inhalation or smoking, injection
or ingestion” (Kirst-Ashman 2013:443).
In working with addiction, social workers therefore need to be knowledgeable about
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the different types of addiction, the symptoms of the different types of addiction, the
defence mechanisms employed by users – as well as some of their family members – and
the recovery and relapse processes that users go through.
• The roles of social workers when working in the field of addiction
In working in the field of addiction, social workers also render services at the micro,
425

macro and mezzo levels of intervention, utilising casework, group work and community
work methods respectively. They also employ the secondary methods of research
and administration. Similarly, their intervention strategies are informed by theoretical
approaches, theories and perspectives in social work practice. And the goal of social work
intervention in this regard is to continue to emphasise the empowerment of clients –
whether they are individuals, families, a group or a community – to help them to overcome
the challenges presented by their addiction. They also offer their services impartially to
all clients, thus ensuring equality. Central to the intervention is the participation of clients
and their family members or significant others. Social workers also endeavour to provide
transparent, efficient and effective social work services when working in this field.
426 The table below illustrates how social workers’ roles can be applied in practice:
Table 8: The application of the roles of social workers when working in the field of addiction

The micro level The mezzo level The macro level

At this level, social workers Families of people who abuse At this level, the social
work with individuals, namely substances are targeted at worker can advocate
the persons dependent on this level. Family counselling for the development of
the substance (the substance can be used to tackle the programmes that address
abusers). Their intervention emotionally charged issues substance dependency in
is therapeutic and geared experienced by family their respective fields and
towards helping the client members. The social worker organisations. They can also

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 The micro level The mezzo level The macro level
to confront the addiction can use the broker role to influence policy-makers
by attending to emotionally link them with resources that at national level to fund
charged issues that led will enhance their quality of substance-dependency
them to start abusing the life. Different families can be programmes. They can also
substance. Clients are also grouped together to form use awareness campaigns to
helped to explore their supportive and educational educate community members
feelings and deal with groups. about substance abuse and
the consequences of the its treatment.
addiction in their lives, their
relationships with others and
their work. Finally, the social
worker helps them to rebuild
their lives by making life
plans.

At all the identified levels of intervention, social workers have an obligation to keep a record
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of the services rendered to clients – whether they are individuals, a family, a group or a
community. There are also plenty of opportunities to conduct research studies that will
influence the existing programmes and, hopefully, convince the state to fund additional
substance-dependency programmes.

4.1.8 Social work in private practice

Social workers in private practice are also referred to as private practitioners. And private
428

practice is sometimes referred to as independent, solo or autonomous practice because

private practitioners are self-employed and work on their own (Rosenberg 2009:173).
Many private practice social workers develop a specialised practice niche, which is usually
429

targeted at a particular population group, such as working exclusively with families or

adolescents (Rosenberg 2009:173). The niche area is sometimes also linked to a treatment
approach (Rosenberg 2009:173), such as the strengths-based perspective or the systems
theory. Another niche may be developed by specialisation in treating specific problems
such as substance abuse or eating disorders (Rosenberg 2009:173). As with generalist
social workers, social workers in private practice must apply for special registration with
the South African Council for Social Service Professions (SACSSP), which you learnt about
in BSW1501.
Private practice is an appealing career choice for multiple reasons: it affords practitioners
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the freedom of working for themselves, thus avoiding having a boss and having to deal
with office politics; in addition, the working hours are flexible and it can be very lucrative
(Rosenberg 2009:173). Nevertheless, it is critical that you understand that private practice
is financially risky because there is no safety net in the form of job security, benefits or
a package (Rosenberg 2009:173–174). Some private practitioners work independently in
their own offices, which are often rented, while some may jointly rent a suite of offices
and share the expenses (Rosenberg 2009:174); still others may join a practice that includes
other professionals, such as medical doctors and psychiatrists. Another major challenge
of private practice is that any private practice is a business, and social workers are not
taught business skills in social work education (Rosenberg 2009:17). To avoid such risks,
therefore, some practitioners establish offices at their own homes.

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431 The roles of social workers in private practice
Unlike in other fields of practice, social workers in private practice mostly work at the micro
432

and macro levels of intervention. They tend to work with individuals, couples, immediate
families and/or significant others and “their functions mostly involve diagnosis, assessment
and treatment” (Rosenberg 2009:174). The goal of social work intervention in this regard
is also aimed at the empowerment of clients – whether these are individuals, families or
groups. Social workers are obliged to provide their services impartially to all clients and
to ensure that their services are efficient and effective. Also central to the intervention is
the participation of the clients and their family members or significant others.
In this field, too, social workers must keep records of the services rendered to their clients,
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be they individuals, a family or a group. There are also plenty of opportunities to conduct
research studies that will influence not only the programmes already in place in private
practice, but also the overall welfare system of the country.
Table 9: The application of the roles of social workers in private practice

The micro level The mezzo level The macro level

At this level, social workers At this level, private At this level, the social worker
work with individuals. Their practitioners also work with must develop community
intervention is therapeutic family members and the linkages. Cox (2009:12) makes
and geared towards helping significant others of their the following suggestions for
the client to confront an clients. Family counselling supporting community links:
emotionally charged issue. can be used to tackle the
Educational
emotionally charged issues
workshops: These involve
experienced by family
establishing skill-building
members. Different families
groups with members
can be grouped together
of a local community
to form supportive and
organisation. The skills
educational groups.
offered should be supported
by professional experience.
Training: Social workers can
offer workshops to the staff
of local organisations to
help them to improve their
service delivery. These can
range from basic introductory
workshops to full-length
training interventions for staff
working with populations
or social issues that social
workers encounter in practice.
Public speaking: This entails
offering expert opinions at
events relating to mental
health or social issues.
Teaching: As in the case of
public speaking, teaching
provides a means of
increasing visibility and

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 The micro level The mezzo level The macro level
establishing a social worker’s
professional name; it also
provides another stream of
income.
Authoring: This involves
sharing expert opinions with
readers of local publications.
Magazines and newspapers
welcome professionals who
are willing to educate their
readers on various topics of
interest. This also helps to
establish the professional
credibility and visibility of
a private practitioner in the
event of future referrals for
therapy or other services.

4.1.9 Social work and employee assistance programmes

Employee assistance programmes (EAPs) are services geared towards employees in a
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particular organisation. They focus on employees’ mental health and on adjustment

problems that interfere with their work performance (Kirst-Ashman 2013:403). The rationale
for offering these services is that impaired worker performance due to factors such as
absenteeism costs companies money, and EAPs can significantly reduce such costs (Akabas
& Gibleman in Kirst-Ashman 2013:403). These programmes deal with problems such as
substance abuse, family conflict, absenteeism, financial problems, job stress, problems
with care of children and dependant parents, and many other personal problems that
can interfere with an employee’s job performance (Kirst-Ashman 2013:403).
The speciality of social workers working in this field is referred to as occupational social
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work, but generalist social workers are also employed in this field. In South Africa, both
the private and public sectors utilise these services, and some organisations may hire
in-house practitioners, while others outsource the services to EAP companies.
Table 10: The application of the roles of social workers in EAPs

The micro level The mezzo level The macro level

At this level, social workers At this level, practitioners At this level, practitioners
work with individuals. Their work with family members focus on the organisation as
intervention is therapeutic and the significant others a whole. Practitioners largely
and geared towards helping of their clients. They may assume an educational role.
the client to confront an also work with small groups, They hold formal training
emotionally charged issue. such as the Lesbian, Gay, sessions/workshops on
Bisexual, Transgender and issues affecting employees
Trauma debriefing may also
Intersex (LGBTI) community. and employers with specific
be conducted at this level.
Counselling/therapy is used employees and their
Therapy may be undertaken to tackle the emotionally employer(s). Practitioners also

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 The micro level The mezzo level The macro level
on a one-to-one basis charged issues experienced offer life skills development
or it may be conducted by family members. programmes.
telephonically. Supportive and educational
groups may be formed with
different family groups.

Activity 24

Do you remember the case study of the Mahlangu family, which mentioned EAP services?
Who in the family was to receive this service, and was it offered in-house or was it
outsourced?

4.2 CONCLUSION
In this learning unit you have learnt about the different fields of social work practice and
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the roles that social workers may assume in the different fields. We hope that this has
made you curious about the many other fields of social work practice that exist (e.g. social
work in witness protection services) so that you will take the time to investigate them on
your own and thus know which field you want to work in once you have finished your
studies. The subject matter of this learning unit was linked to the levels of intervention
and the different methods of social work practice; this was done to help you to avoid
viewing the theory in isolation. It is important for you to realise that all the material that
we cover in your first year of study is interrelated.

Self-reflection

Self-assessment activity
• Do you know of any elderly person or couple living alone in your community?
• What health challenges do they face?
• What mental challenges do they face?
• Who assists them with these challenges?
• Have you considered getting involved in their lives to assist them?
Write down your responses to these questions so that you give serious consideration to
the implications.
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Learning unit 5
Introduction to the helping process in social work

INTRODUCTION
You have now learnt about social work as a profession, as well as social auxiliary work.
438

You have also learnt about the fields of social work practice, including the general roles
played by the social worker and the social auxiliary worker. In learning unit 3 you learnt
about the broad theoretical framework of social work practice and in learning unit 4, about
the levels of social work intervention. These levels were discussed within the broader
framework for social welfare services delivery in South Africa and as outlined in social
work theory. We will now focus on introducing you to the helping process. As we have
already established in learning unit 1 and BSW1501, the social work helping process has
to unfold within the developmental approach. This is aimed at ensuring that the clients
are empowered through the process so that they do not become dependent on the
social worker.
In this learning unit, we will only introduce the helping process, since you will learn about
439

the helping process at different levels of social work intervention in your second year of
study. Therefore, the focus of this learning unit is on the building blocks that you need
to facilitate a helping process. The helping process at individual, group and community
levels will be discussed in detail in your second level of study. The helping relationship is
important in all of the social worker’s interactions with the client, irrespective of the level
of intervention. This means that the social worker cannot engage with the client – whether
it is an individual, a family, a group or a community – without establishing a helping
relationship. The helping relationship marks the beginning of every interaction between
the client and the social worker. Think of the first meeting between the social worker and
the client; they will be strangers, meeting for the first time. The social worker must make an
effort to help the client to relax and feel accepted if any meaningful interaction is to take
place. If the social worker fails in this regard, the client will be unable to relax and share his/
her problematic situation with the social worker. In the case of a group, if the social worker
fails to make group members feel at ease, they will not be able to share their problems or
concerns with one another. In the case of a community, the community members will not
be able to engage meaningfully in dealing with the problematic situation at hand, nor
will they be prepared to share their real issues with a stranger, namely the social worker.
This illustrates the importance of the helping relationship in every interaction between
the social worker and the client/s.
In establishing the helping relationship, it is important to realise that there are specific
440

elements that have to be taken into consideration. This process demands that the social
worker be knowledgeable and skilled to use these elements for the benefit of the client/s.
It is also important to realise that student social workers will always be supervised and
guided by a senior social worker in this process. You will learn about supervision later in
your studies.
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 Learning unit outcomes

After completing this learning unit, you will be able to:

• discuss the important role of the helping relationship as a component of the helping
process
• discuss the important elements used to establish the helping relationship
• describe the basic communication skills and their role in the helping process
• describe the characteristics that a social worker must possess in order to facilitate the
helping process
• describe the influence of diversity in the helping relationship

RECOMMENDED READING
South Africa. Department of Welfare. 1997. White Paper for Social Welfare. General Notice
No. 1108. Pretoria: Government Printer.
Grobler, HD, Schenck, CJ & Mbedzi, P. 2013. Person-centred facilitation: process, theory and
practice. 4th edition. Cape Town: Oxford University Press.

5.1 DIFFERENT ELEMENTS OF THE HELPING RELATIONSHIP

The clients who approach the offices of social workers are people who are facing impaired
441

social functioning due to a variety of factors. Some of them have being battling with the
problem for a long time, and by the time they approach the social worker, they might be
feeling helpless and hopeless. Some of them might have experienced prolonged rejection
in their lives. This state of affairs demands that the social worker be mindful and make
efforts to ensure that the client feels accepted and respected as a human being. This
feeling of acceptance plays an important role in encouraging the client to be motivated to
engage in the helping process without reservations or fear of being judged. This applies
to all the levels of social work intervention.
The helping relationship marks the entry point of the helping process and requires the
442

social worker to make every effort to ensure that the client will trust him/her. If this step
is overlooked by the social worker, the helping process may not benefit the client; the
client may just end up being a subordinate in the process, which should be avoided at
all costs. The client must always be treated as a partner in the helping process so that he/
she is fully involved; this will produce the required results, which will benefit the client. In
making this effort to establish a relationship of trust and beneficial interaction, the social
worker must take specific aspects into consideration.
The social worker must always remember that it was probably very difficult for the client
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to approach a complete stranger to talk about his/her problematic situation. Therefore,

the social worker should meet the client halfway by working to establish this helping
relationship. If the social worker were to take this relationship for granted, the client
might not be able to relax enough to share the details of his/her problematic situation.
As a result, the process may not yield positive results for the client. In the context of
the helping process, if the client cannot relax and feel free to share his/her problematic
situation, he/she will end up wasting time by testing out the social worker, for example
by talking about other, irrelevant things, rather than the real problem that brought him/
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her to the social worker’s office. The client may also talk about a problem as if he/she has
observed it in someone else and is concerned about that person’s welfare; by doing this,
he/she is checking the social worker’s responses to see if the latter can be trusted. This
state of affairs is referred to as the client’s sharing the “presenting problem” and not the
“actual problem”.
As indicated earlier, the helping relationship is regarded as the door to the helping process
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and if it is not well established, the helping process is unlikely to unfold satisfactorily
to meet the needs of the client. In establishing this relationship, the social worker uses
verbal and nonverbal cues to communicate unconditional acceptance of the client as a
worthwhile human being who deserves to be respected while being helped. Warmth
has to be communicated to the client to create such an environment. The client must be
made to feel safe and free to share his/her situation, without any fear of being judged;
the social worker must be seen as someone who is willing to listen and assist the client.
It is important to note that these elements are not used in isolation in practice, but in an
445

integrated manner.

Activity 25

Carefully read Tsakani’s case study in Addendum E. Imagine yourself in a situation where
you experience a problematic situation that requires professional assistance:
• What would you expect from the professional as you meet him/her for the first time?
• How would you like the professional to approach you?
• Explore your feelings towards the professional when you meet with him/her for the first
time and discuss these feelings with a fellow student so that you learn to verbalise them.

5.1.1 Verbal and nonverbal communication

As humans, we use words and nonverbal cues to communicate with one another; this also
446

applies to the clients who approach social workers’ offices. This makes it very important
for the social worker to be conscious of his/her own verbal and nonverbal cues that he/
she sends to the client. For instance, if the social worker does not clearly demonstrate
acceptance of the client, it will be difficult for the client to relax and share the problem
that brought him/her to the social worker’s office. Even if the social worker is going
through a difficult time in his/her own life, this must not be communicated to the client,
as it could disturb the establishment of the helping relationship. Social workers are also
human beings, who may be facing challenges in life, but this should not interfere with
their work with their clients. In this regard, the social worker is obliged to be aware of
his/her personal space at all times so that he/she can determine whether he/she is able
to assist a client or not.
This calls for self-awareness on the part of the social worker, as you will discover in your
447

practical work in BSW1503, where you will be required to learn who you really are, as well
as your suitability for the social work profession.
The social worker must also be able to observe and interpret the verbal and nonverbal
448

cues of the client because these will help him/her to have a clearer picture of the client’s
situation. Verbal communication refers to what is being said in words, whereas nonverbal
communication refers to what is being said through body language. It becomes very

82
important for the social worker to be able to read the nonverbal communication of clients
because the client might be experiencing such an overwhelming situation that he/she
is unable to verbalise what he/she is experiencing, but may only show it through his/
her body language. In addition, a client might not express what he/she is experiencing
because of a lack of trust in the social worker; in such cases, he/she may use nonverbal cues
to communicate. If the social worker does not make an effort to interpret this nonverbal
communication, the real issue that brought the client to the social worker’s office may
be overlooked, resulting in an unproductive helping process, which will not bring about
any positive change in the client’s situation.
This can also lead to failure to establish the helping relationship because the client feels
449

that the social worker does not take him/her seriously. For example, if a client reports
at the social worker’s office that she has lost her husband, is unemployed and has five
children to take care of, but she shares this information with a smile on her face, the social
worker has to use his/her skills to explore what is being reported and what is not being
reported verbally. There has to be congruency between what is being said verbally and
what is communicated nonverbally. An observant and skilled social worker will be able
to detect any discrepancy between the verbal and the nonverbal communication. After
observing this discrepancy, the social worker has to be tactful in bringing it to the client’s
attention, thus demonstrating that the social worker is listening to and observing the
client carefully in order to understand his/her situation. Without full understanding of the
client’s situation, the helping process will unfold superficially, without benefiting the client.
When the social worker communicates clearly and respectfully with the client, a strong
450

helping relationship is established, which is so vital for the helping process.

5.1.2 Attentive and respectful listening

Social work is a profession that deals with the problematic situations of people who, in
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most cases, have been exposed to rough environments. Sometimes they approach the
social workers’ offices as a last resort, after being sent from pillar to post without receiving
any assistance. It is very important for the social worker to be mindful of this and to
make an effort to ensure that the client feels respected as a human being; the warmth
and acceptance conveyed at this point will encourage the client to trust both the social
worker and the helping process. Respect for clients is one of the principles emphasised
in the developmental approach, as outlined in the White Paper for Social Welfare (1997).
Attentive and respectful listening are important skills that the social worker has to use at
all times when interacting with clients. This goes hand in hand with the topic of verbal
and nonverbal communication discussed above. The body posture and facial expression
of the social worker should assist in communicating that the social worker respects the
client and is listening attentively to him/her. This should be further illustrated by the
verbal responses that the social worker gives to the client as the helping process unfolds.

Example of inattentive and disrespectful listening

Client: I was dismissed from my job after I was hospitalised for three months. I did submit a medical
report to confirm that my absence was due to ill health, but nobody listened to me. I am now
struggling to put food on the table and my children are suffering.
Social worker: Did you submit your medical report to your supervisor at work after you were
discharged from the hospital? (responding while busy on the phone with a friend)

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The above example illustrates disrespect and a lack of attentive listening on the part
452

of the social worker. The client will soon realise that she is wasting her time because
the social worker is not interested in listening to her story with the aim of intervening
appropriately. This will hamper the establishment of the helping relationship and the
client will not learn to trust the social work helping process. All of this is the result of one
social worker’s disrespectful behaviour.
Attentive listening enables the social worker to understand what the client is sharing
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and encourages the client to be involved in the helping process. When the social worker
demonstrates that he/she is listening attentively to the client, he/she is also communicating
respect for the client. This will help the client to feel important and to own the helping
process.

5.1.3 Facial expressions

During the interaction between the social worker and the client, the social worker has to be
454

conscious of the messages that he/she is sending through his/her facial expressions. Think
of a situation where you are talking to your friend and, all of a sudden, he/she frowns. You
would immediately wonder whether you have said something disrespectful or offensive
to your friend. In most cases, you would make a follow-up on this facial expression to get
to the bottom of the matter. In a case of a client and a social worker, however, it is not
always easy for the client to confront the social worker about any facial expressions that
seem puzzling; in that case, the client might simply withdraw and stop sharing his/her
story. It is therefore crucial for the social worker to communicate respect for the client at
all times – even in facial expressions – so that the client remains involved in the helping
process. The social worker’s facial expression must encourage the client to be committed
to the helping process. Therefore, the social worker’s facial expressions must be used
consciously in the establishment of a healthy helping relationship with the client.
However, this does not mean that the social worker can fake a smile and expect the client
455

to be convinced that the social worker accepts him/her; the facial expressions must be
genuine.

5.1.4 Body posture

Body posture is also very important in the helping process, where the social worker will
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want to communicate caring and acceptance to the client. The social worker cannot
conduct an interview or a counselling session with a client if his/her body language
shows detachment. When the client comes into the social worker’s office, all the elements
discussed above must bear testimony to the social worker’s commitment to the helping
process; it must not be a mechanical interaction. A social worker that is concerned about
facilitating a beneficial helping process will always lean forward towards the client, thus
inviting the client to be engaged in the process. If the social worker is detached and not
focusing on the client, the helping relationship will be hampered and the client might
think that he/she is not being taken seriously. This will cause the client to withdraw and
the process will not yield positive results.
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84
An important note with regard to body language and leaning forward towards the
458

client is that this must be done within the professional context. For example, a young
female social worker must be careful about leaning forward towards a young male client
so that he does not misinterpret this gesture. The social worker’s dress code must also
reflect professionalism because the client will form an immediate impression when he/
she enters the office. If the first impression that the client gains of the social worker is of
unprofessionalism, the entire helping relationship could be jeopardised. Read more about
this topic in relation to the professional code of ethics for social workers, as discussed in
learning unit 1 of this guide.

5.1.5 Tone of voice

The tone of voice used by the social worker communicates his/her emotions to the client.
459

If the social worker uses a loud voice, the client might be scared and feel that the social
worker is angry and judgmental towards him/her. It is therefore very important for the
social worker to use an appropriate tone of voice when communicating with the client.
The social worker’s tone of voice must encourage the client to be engaged in the helping
process, which will be for the client’s own benefit. It is also important for the social worker
to observe the client’s tone of voice so that he/she can understand the emotional state
of the client while he/she is sharing a particular aspect of his/her problematic situation.
The client’s tone of voice can reveal a lot about the client and facilitate greater understanding
460

by the social worker.

5.1.6 Warmth
Warmth is another element of the helping relationship that needs to be used carefully
461

by the social worker. It can be communicated both verbally and nonverbally. Warmth
strengthens the helping relationship and helps the client to feel relaxed enough to share
the problematic situation that prompted his/her visit to the social worker’s office. Warmth
communicates unconditional acceptance, irrespective of the client’s condition.

Examples of how warmth can be communicated by the social worker

“Good morning, madam. It is good to see you today!”
”Welcome to my office. Please have a seat.”

All these statements must be uttered while presenting an open face and making an
462

effort to lean forward to show the client that he/she is accepted unconditionally. Even if
the client is accompanied by an unpleasant odour, the social worker has to remember
that he/she is a fellow human being and to treat him/her with respect. It would be very
offensive to the client if the social worker were to immediately open the office windows
and comment about the client’s body odour while frowning. This would just make the
client feel judged and disrespected.

5.1.7 Empathy
Empathy is another important element in establishing the helping relationship and it refers
463

to the ability of the social worker to understand the client’s problematic situation from the
85 BSW1502/1
client’s perspective. The social worker must then communicate this understanding to the
client, which will reassure the client that he/she is being taken seriously. This strengthens
the helping relationship. In using empathy, the social worker is able to show the client
that he/she understands what is being said, as well as the feelings accompanying the
situation, thus treating the client holistically.
It is also important to mention that empathy is used not only to establish the helping
464

relationship, but must also be maintained in all further interactions with the client.

Examples of empathetic statements

“You appear to be devastated by the situation you are experiencing.”
“If I understand you correctly, you feel overwhelmed by this situation.”

The client’s responses to such statements will either confirm or refute the social worker’s
465

understanding of the situation. In the latter case, the client will then be able to correct
the social worker’s understanding, enabling him/her to intervene appropriately in the
client’s problematic situation. Communicating empathy to the client also shows the client
that he/she is not being judged.

5.1.8 Genuineness and congruence

As indicated earlier, it is important for the social worker to be genuine and congruent
466

when interacting with the client. Genuineness in the helping relationship requires the
social worker to be honest, open and natural at all times. Genuineness means that the
social worker is always true to himself/herself, even though the interaction is geared
towards achieving a goal for the benefit of the client. Being genuine challenges the client
to be wholly involved in the helping process, knowing that he/she is in interaction with a
real person, who is also being honest and real. Clients can usually detect when the social
worker is putting on a pretence, and this will hamper the establishment of the helping
relationship. It is important to remember that social workers are human beings who also
face challenges in their lives. Sometimes a client might present a problem that is similar
to the one the social worker is facing at that particular time, causing the social worker
to be distracted from attending to the client’s situation or feeling overly sensitive and
defensive. This calls for the social worker always to be aware of his/her personal space.
In situations where the social worker feels emotionally unable to deal with the client’s
situation effectively due to his/her own personal problems, the social worker’s supervisor
must be alerted to this fact. In that case, the supervisor himself/herself might take over
the case or refer it to another social worker.
In a situation where the social worker is mature enough and has dealt with his/her own
467

situation successfully, it may be helpful for him/her to disclose his/her own situation to
the client (self-disclosure). Nevertheless, this has to be done with extra care so as not to
create an impression in the client that the social worker is prescribing the solution to the
client. Self-disclosure is a technique that is used only when the helping relationship is
strong and the social worker is skilled enough not to jeopardise the helping process. You
will also learn more about this technique as you continue with your social work studies.
Congruency refers to a situation where the social worker avoids contradictions in all
468

interactions with the client. Congruency allows the helping process to unfold appropriately
to the benefit of the client. The social worker must also observe the client’s communications
86
carefully so that any incongruence can be detected immediately. Maintaining congruence
in the helping relationship reassures the client that the social worker is serious about
helping him/her to address the problematic situation that he/she is facing.
Genuineness and congruence can also be communicated nonverbally, with the social
469

worker’s facial expressions, body posture and eye contact confirming his/her verbal
communication.

5.1.9 Eye contact

Eye contact is another element that needs to be taken into consideration when establishing
470

the helping relationship. This is a very sensitive issue and must be used within the
framework of culturally sensitive social work practice. Social workers use eye contact
when interacting with their clients to emphasise their presence and interest in the client.
This is a professional technique, but it must always take the culture of the client into
consideration. In this regard, refer to the case study of Tsakani (See Addendum E) Every
social worker must learn the culture of the community that he/she serves so that he/she
can respect how the community does things. For example, in some cultures, a younger
person must never look an older person in the eye when talking to him/her. This means
that a young social worker would be seen to be disrespectful by trying to maintain eye
contact with an older client. The social worker must therefore be aware of this custom
so that he can use eye contact with sensitivity.
Also note that there is a difference between maintaining eye contact respectfully with
471

the client and staring at the client. By maintaining eye contact, the social worker is
communicating interest in the client and respect for the client, whereas staring at the
client is disrespectful and could make the client feel very uncomfortable. Therefore, the
social worker must be aware of how he/she uses eye contact as a technique to facilitate
the helping process.

5.1.10 Showing concern for others (ubuntu)

In most cases, when first-year social work students are asked what prompted their
472

interest in the social work profession, they often mention their concern for other people’s
wellbeing. Some confirm this by mentioning their voluntary involvement in various welfare
organisations. It is a requirement for social workers to have this attribute so that they can
deal with their clients without being judgemental.
The concept of ubuntu is unique to South Africa and is defined in the White Paper for
473

Social Welfare (1997) as “the principle of caring for each other’s well-being and a spirit
of mutual support”. The White Paper for Social Welfare (1997) also says that “people are
people through others”, meaning that it is through recognising others as human beings
and interacting with them as such, that a person can be seen as a human being. This
notion means that social workers’ interactions with clients must be characterised by
concern for others and treating them as fellow human beings. Caring for others is learnt
through the process of socialisation and is enhanced by the training that social workers
receive in preparing them to practice social work. Social workers need to be passionate
about helping other people by facilitating the helping process.
87 BSW1502/1
All of the above elements of the helping relationship must be taken into consideration
474

when the social worker interacts with clients, because without the helping relationship,
the helping process cannot develop and benefit the client. It is also important to realise
that no person is born with these skills, but they are acquired through interaction with
the immediate environment and are enhanced through training.
The other important aspect to remember is that these elements are applied within the
475

framework of the social work professional code of ethics, as discussed in learning unit 1
of this study guide.

Activity 26

After learning about the important elements involved in establishing the helping
relationship, ask a fellow student to listen to and observe you while you demonstrate
the following:
• engaging with a stranger to begin a helping relationship, using your body posture,
tone of voice and warmth
• using your facial expression to illustrate genuineness
• making statements that show empathic responses

5.2 IMPORTANT CHARACTERISTICS THAT SOCIAL WORKERS

SHOULD HAVE
In learning unit 1, you learnt which specific characteristics the social worker must possess
476

in order to facilitate the helping process. We are now going to try and help you to link
those characteristics with the helping process. It is also important for a social worker to
internalise these characteristics so that his/her social work practice is professional and
beneficial to the clients, rather than just being performed out of a sense of duty. There are
twelve qualities discussed in learning unit 1 that are seen as central to effective functioning
as a social worker. Someone once wrote that ‘‘helping relationships are created by helping
people, not by helping techniques’’ (Compton & Galaway 1994:290). This clearly shows
that social workers are able to facilitate change in their clients’ problematic situations
through the conscious use of self, that is, what they are and what they have learnt and
internalised through their life journey and training. This means that not every person has
the capacity to facilitate change in another person’s life, but only those who are qualified
to do so and have the following characteristics, as discussed in learning unit 1.
• Trust in people
The social worker has to be able to trust that the client has the ability to make decisions
477

that will help him/her to change his/her problematic situation. The fact that the client has
taken the first step to approach the social worker means that he/she is willing to change
his/her situation; as a result, the social worker must trust the client’s decisions. The client
is the one who has the best understanding of his/her situation; therefore, he/she must
be given the space to decide what would work best to alleviate the distress he/she is
experiencing. This must be communicated by the social worker from the beginning of
the interaction, during the establishment of the helping relationship.
88
 Activity 27

To see how you could be more trusting when interacting with other people, engage in
this activity:
Think about your everyday interaction with your friends and the type of problems that
they usually share with you. Some of the problems are similar and recur. Do you always
give the same responses to your friends when they discuss their situations with you? To
what extent do you give them space to deal with their situations independently?

• Commitment to self-awareness
As you already learnt in learning unit 1, it is impossible for social workers to facilitate change
478

in their clients’ lives if they themselves are not committed to continually learning about
themselves. This is clearly stated in your practical module (BSW1503). This characteristic
assists the social worker to identify the space he/she is in personally when establishing a
helping relationship with a client as the first step towards dealing with the problematic
situation.
• Positive outlook
Social workers must always maintain a positive outlook so that they can engage with
479

their clients and believe that the intervention process will bring about the desired change
to improve the clients’ social functioning. This positive outlook encourages the social
worker to make an effort to establish a helping relationship, knowing that the outcome
will be positive.
• Respect for diversity
Social work is a profession that is practised in a diverse environment. This requires social
480

workers to respect all their clients, irrespective of their observable differences. This respect
will be demonstrated in the way that the social worker interacts with his/her clients right
from the beginning of the helping process and will strengthen the helping relationship.

Activity 28

Think about your own neighbourhood and identify the different classes, races, languages,
cultures, religious affiliations and educational backgrounds of the people. Then answer
the following questions:
• How do you respond to all these differences in your neighbourhood?
• Do you find it easy to interact with all these different people?
• Do you feel comfortable interacting with people that are different from you?

• Creativity
Creativity allows social workers to intervene in their clients’ problematic situations
481

appropriately. Social workers must be able to use the knowledge, theories, skills and
techniques of social work creatively, rather than dealing with each problem in the same
way. This creativity will also enable them to establish meaningful helping relationships
with all their clients, leading to an effective intervention process.
89 BSW1502/1
• Open-mindedness
This characteristic is directly linked to creativity as it assists the social worker not to be rigid
482

when interacting with clients. This means not following a certain formula when dealing
with clients, but allowing themselves to be led by the helping process itself and to assist
the client in being actively involved in changing their problematic situation.
• Empathy
Empathy is also an important characteristic that assists the social worker to interact with
483

clients in an appropriate manner and to facilitate the helping process to the benefit of
the client. When the social worker is able to understand what the client is going through,
he/she is able to intervene at the appropriate level, making it possible for the client to
be engaged in the helping process. Empathy makes the client feel respected and taken
seriously, which promotes his/her active involvement in the process.
• Compassion
It is impossible for social workers to intervene effectively in the problematic situations of
484

their clients without having compassion, as we have already established when we discussed
ubuntu. When they have compassion for their clients, social workers are able to engage
in their clients’ problematic situations with the aim of effecting change. Compassion also
enables the social worker to establish the helping relationship that is so crucial to getting
the client to participate in the helping process.
• Flexibility and willingness to receive feedback and then change accordingly
The social worker must always be willing to listen to the feedback of the people he/she
485

interacts with so that he/she can keep on improving in the way that he/she does things. It
is also important for the social worker to be flexible, as we have already established earlier.
This flexibility facilitates the effective interaction between the social worker and his/her
clients, leading to the establishment of the healthy helping relationship that facilitates
the achievement of the desired change in the client’s problematic situation.
• Curiosity and lifelong learning
The social worker must be someone who keeps on learning by reading relevant material
486

to keep on improving how he/she intervenes in his/her clients’ problematic situations.

Social work is an evolving profession and social workers need to remain curious so that
their service delivery remains relevant. This is also required by the SACSSP in the form
of the continued professional points that social workers have to accumulate in order
to remain registered to practice in South Africa. New technologies that are developed
through research have to be learnt and implemented continually to ensure that clients
are served appropriately.
• Patience
In order for social workers to assist clients to achieve positive changes in their lives, they
487

have to be patient and allow the helping process to unfold at a pace that suits the client.
Because each client is unique, the process of change always varies from one client to
another; this requires the social worker to be adaptable and patient. This characteristic, in
turn, will foster the establishment of healthy helping relationships with all clients, leading
to effective intervention.
90
• Healthy scepticism
This characteristic is needed to help the social worker to adopt an analytical attitude to
488

all his/her interactions with different clients, not just accepting things at face value. This
will also facilitate the establishment of the healthy helping relationship because the client
will realise that the social worker is taking his/her situation seriously.

Activity 29

After learning about these characteristics and how they can affect the helping process,
think about yourself, as an aspiring social worker. Discuss these characteristics with a
fellow student and come up with practical ways of using them in your everyday life so
that you internalise them.

5.3 DIVERSITY AND THE HELPING RELATIONSHIP

We have already established that social work is practiced within diverse cultures, which
489

means that the social worker should strive to become competent to work with different
cultural groups. This effort begins with the student social worker’s becoming curious
about who he/she really is and how he/she regards other cultures that are different from
his/her own. You will be given an opportunity in BSW1503 to discover yourself in relation
to social work as a profession, as well as other cultures.
According to the National Association of Social Work, as cited in Zastrow (2014:417), the
490

standards for cultural competence in social work practice are as follows:

• Ethics and values. Social workers must always function within the framework of the
social work code of ethics.
• Self-awareness. Social workers must always seek to develop an understanding of
their own personal and cultural values as a way of appreciating the importance of
multicultural identities.
• Cross-cultural knowledge. Social workers must have and continue to develop
specialised knowledge and understanding of the history, traditions, values, family
systems and artistic expressions of the clients they serve.
• Cross-cultural skills. Social workers must use appropriate methodological approaches,
skills and techniques that reflect their understanding of culture in the helping process.
• Service delivery. Social workers must be knowledgeable about and skilful in the use
of the available services in the community and the broader society.
• Empowerment and advocacy. Social workers must be aware of the effects of social,
political and economic programmes on diverse client populations and advocate them
whenever appropriate.
• Diverse workforce. Social workers must always advocate the recruitment, admissions,
hiring and retention efforts in social work programmes and agencies that ensure
diversity within the profession.
• Professional education. Social workers must advocate for and participate in educational
and training programmes that help advance cultural competence within the profession.
• Language diversity. Social workers must always strive to provide or advocate for the
provision of information, referrals and services in the language appropriate to the client.
91 BSW1502/1
• Cross-cultural leadership. Social workers must communicate information about
diverse clients to other professionals.

The above standards clearly show that the social worker cannot render effective services
491

to the client without attaining cultural competence. In relation to the helping process, the
social worker has the mandate to continue making efforts to communicate sensitivity to
all his/her clients, irrespective of the level of intervention he/she is engaged in. Culturally
sensitive social work practice enables the social worker to establish the helping relationship
with the client that ultimately leads to an effective helping process.

Activity 30

Think about your own cultural background and identify other cultures in your
neighbourhood that are different from yours. Now answer the following questions:
• How did you react the first time you had to interact with someone from a different
culture?
• To what extent would you say that you understand your own culture?
• How did you learn about your own culture? If you think that you do not know much
about your own culture, what do you intend doing to learn more about it?
• To what extent would you say that you understand the different cultures in your
neighbourhood?
• Use the elements of the helping relationship to establish a relationship with a total
stranger in your neighbourhood who belongs to a different culture.

5.4 CONCLUSION
This learning unit has introduced you to the important elements involved in establishing
492

a helping relationship in the intervention process. You have also reviewed the crucial
characteristics that a social worker must possess in order to render effective services to
the client systems.
Studying this module will have equipped you with the foundational knowledge of social
493

work as a profession. You should now be ready to proceed to the next level of study.

Self-reflection

Self-assessment activity
Study the information on verbal and nonverbal communication in this Unit and answer
the following questions:
• Think about your personal life and the challenges that you sometimes encounter. Think
further about how you always respond verbally, as well as nonverbally, to your challenges
when someone asks you about them, specifically someone you are not close to.
• How does it make you feel when you try to talk to another person about your challenges
and that person just responds to what you are saying verbally, without observing your
nonverbal cues?
• How would you respond to a client who comes to your office in tears and is unable to
talk about what he/she is experiencing?
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92
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 ADDENDUM A: FIKILE’S FAMILY
Fikile is a 28-year-old mother. She lives with her parents and two of her own kids, Kagiso,
495

a little girl aged three, and a 14-year-old boy named Tebogo. Tebogo has behavior
challenges as he is deeply involved in drugs and keeps bad company. Fikile’s parents are
unemployed and live on their pension. Fikile receives a child support grant for the two
children, but struggles to make ends meet.
Fikile is in denial that her son abuses drugs and this infuriates her parents who try their
496

best to make Fikile accept that the boy is on drugs. This creates a rift in a relationship
between Fikile and her parents. Tebogo continues to steal from his grandparents, and
sleeps out on several occasions with no permission from the family. Most of the time
Tebogo is not home with his family, and his family does not know his whereabouts. His
academic performance at school is deteriorated because he does not attend school
regularly or do his homework. In addition to this, Fikile faces further challenges with the
father of her children who visits the family house as and when he pleases and upsets the
family by demanding attention from Fikile and speaking badly of Fikile to Tebogo. This
confuses Tebogo even more.
The grandparents do not like the father of the children because of his disruptive behavior.
497

For example, he comes to the family house drunk, encourages Tebogo to indulge in
alcoholic drinks and subsequently causes a lot of commotion in the family. Fikile is thus
depressed, frustrated, anxious and feels she cannot cope with the situation. She finally
makes a decision to seek professional help, and finds herself in a social worker’s office.
Source: Adapted from Schenck, R., Mbedzi, P., Qalinge, L., Schultz, P., Sekudu, J & Sesoko, M. 2016.

498

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 ADDENDUM B: SOCIAL AUXILLIARY WORKER ASSISTING WITH
CASE WORK 1
A social auxiliary worker was requested to visit a family of six. The breadwinner of the
499

family passed away on his way home when the taxi he took was involved in a taxi accident
three days before. As this family is the client of the agency, the social worker asked the
social auxiliary worker to find out the family’s circumstances and how they are coping.
On arrival, the social auxiliary worker finds the family is still mourning and there are any
visitors who have come to express their condolences. The spouse of the deceased is upset
and resistant to talk. The one son says the family is suddenly left without an income and
they do not know who will pay for the funeral. Furthermore, there are three children who
are still at school and the school fees are four months in arrears. They are also behind in
paying their electricity as well as the rent to their house.
While the son informed the social auxiliary worker about their finances, the eight-year-
500

old daughter is pushed forward by her twelve-year-old sister who demands the little one
inform her of the fact that she is bullied at school and that the school does not want to
help the family. At the same time, the sister of the deceased wants the social auxiliary
worker to go with her to her late brother’s employer to demand money to assist with
the funeral.
The social auxiliary worker may initially feel overwhelmed by the situation, but must
501

remember that he or she was sent by the social worker to establish the circumstances, and
this needs to be clear from the onset. It is suggested that he/she does not at all become
involved in any discussion regarding the matters, but merely note them down and even
ask if there are further issues. If any of the family members have a phone, it is wise for
her to take a contact number. He/ She will provide the matters at hand and report back
to the social worker as a matter of urgency.
The feedback form the social auxiliary worker, given to the social worker, may include
502

the following:
• The family is mourning the loss of a loved one. There were many visitors from
the community to support the family emotionally.
• The spouse of the deceased is battling emotionally to come to terms with the loss
• The death leaves the family in financial difficulty as the late father was the only
breadwinner. There is therefore no money for the funeral, the rent of the house and
electricity, and school fees are in arrears. There is no immediate plan to address the
situation.
• The youngest child is bullied at school and it seems as if the school is not addressing
this issue.

503 The social worker and social auxiliary worker can then agree on the following:
• The funeral is the first priority
• The social worker should sit down with the family to provide emotional support and
to determine what arrangements can be made for the funeral
• The social auxiliary worker should contact the school and municipality to negotiate
a temporary postponement in paying the school fees, rent and electricity due by the
family

96
• After the funeral, the social worker should follow the up on the issue of bullying with
the family and at school
• The social auxiliary worker should establish if there are groups or programmes in the
area which attend to the family’s needs
Source: Adapted from Schenck, R., Mbedzi, P., Qalinge, L., Schultz, P., Sekudu, J & Sesoko, M. 2016.

504

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 ADDENDUM C: SOCIAL AUXILLIARY WORKER ASSISTING WITH
CASE WORK 2
The social auxiliary work is employed by a community based organization involved in
505

treating substance abusers. He/ She sees all new persons and their families who request
assistance with their substance abuse problems. When they arrive, he/ she briefly explains
to them the problem of chemical substance abuse and the assistance the organization
offers. He/she explains the organisation’s expectations of each client and if the client
agrees to continue, he gathers all their biographical information as well as the drug and
treatment history of the substance abuser. When he has obtained all the information,
he records it in a file opened for the client and brings it to the social worker for his/her
attention.
Once the social worker receives the information from the social auxiliary worker, she
506

studies the information and draws up an individual development plan with the client to
use as a reference during treatment. The social worker will explore, in greater depth, with
the client the information collated by the social auxiliary worker.
Source: Adapted from Schenck, R., Mbedzi, P., Qalinge, L., Schultz, P., Sekudu, J & Sesoko, M. 2016.

507

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 ADDENDUM D: MOLEBOGENG’S CASE STUDY
Molebogeng had two friends, Tshidi and Tsotlhe, who she trusted a lot and shared deep
508

secrets with. Tsotlhe and Tshidi knew Molebogeng as a woman who loved them very
much. One day she told them about her relationship with her new boyfriend, and that she
suspected that he, Kgotso, was HIV positive. She also indicated that he may have infected
her as she was feeling very sick and had been vomiting blood since she started dating
him. She was also losing weight and was afraid to go to the clinic, as she did not want to
be told that she was HIV positive. Tsotlhe and Tshidi started spreading the rumour that
Molebogeng was HIV positive.
The two friends saw Molebogeng as a danger to their lives. They decided to stay away
509

from her, and so avoided her. They felt she might infect them. Molebogeng noticed some
changes in her two friend’s attitude towards her and wanted to know why they were
avoiding her. Tsotlhe indicated that she wanted to focus on her studies and did not want
to hang out with her anymore. Tshidi told her she was busy at church and could not visit
her. This made Molebogeng very sad, as she could sense that they were rejecting her. Then
one day Molebogeng’s neighbor told her that she overheard Tsotlhe and Tshidi talking
about her in the bus. They said that she was HIV positive. Molebogeng was disappointed
that her close friends were talking behind her back. This destroyed their relationship.
Source: Adapted from Schenck, R., Mbedzi, P., Qalinge, L., Schultz, P., Sekudu, J & Sesoko, M. 2016.

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 ADDENDUM E: TSAKANI’S STORY
Tsakani is a 55-year-old lady from a rural area in Limpopo. She recently had to relocate
510

to Diepsloot, near Johannesburg in search of better economic opportunities. She is a

single mother caring for her four grandchildren, whose mothers are unable to secure
employment due to their lack of skills and the high unemployment rate in the country.
The social worker is a young person who was born and raised in an urban area where
no strict cultural practices are observed by community members. She completed her
schooling and tertiary education in an area where distinct cultures are diluted due to
the integration of people from many different cultures. A unique culture in this particular
community emerged and was adopted by community members as acceptable. Tasakani
arrived at the social worker’s office in her traditional XiTsonga attire and when offered
a chair she declined as she preferred to sit on the floor. When the social worker tried to
persuade her to accept the chair, she felt offended and told the social worker that she is
disrespectful. The social worker ignored the comment and tried to focus on why the client
visited her office. In an effort to use the social work skills to build the helping relationship,
the social worker maintained eye contact with the client, which also offended the client,
as this was also seen as disrespectful. The social worker became irritated and her tone of
voice changed from a soft professional to loud and harsh.
Source: Adapted from Schenck, R., Mbedzi, P., Qalinge, L., Schultz, P., Sekudu, J & Sesoko, M. 2016.