Social Worker

20 Explaining and simplifying the terms of the social worker job to the reader of the glossary for my English class homework. terms

I'm a student at Vieux-Montreal College studying in social worker program, I just finished my second year and still have one year left to graduate. The Social Service Worker program combines academic study with practical experience to provide graduates with the skills, knowledge and attitudes required to improve the overall well-being and lives of their clients by providing support, advice, supplying counsel and therapy to help clients resolve social and personal problems.

advanced generalist practice: Advanced generalist practice refers to the practice of a master social worker who possesses advanced competencies in multilevel, multi method approaches and is equipped to work independently in complex environments that may require specialized skill sets.
advocacy: Advocacy is defined as any action that speaks in favor of, recommends, argues for a cause, supports or defends, or pleads on behalf of others.; Example: Organizing: Build power at the base. Center for Intercultural Organizing in Portland, OR organizes the immigrant and refugee communities in their area. These meetings enable immigrant leaders to mobilize their constituencies and build power in their communities.
beneficence: A primary ethical concern of social research. It refers to both doing no harm to people you are studying and at the same time promoting a common good for individuals in the research community because of your study.
best practice: A technique or method that has been shown through experience and research to reliably lead to a desirable result. The term implies that this technique or method is more efficient and/or effective at delivering a desired outcome than any other technique or method.; Example: Quality assurance; change process; evidence-based practice; good operating practices.
case management: A process by which resources and services are assessed and coordinated at both the client and systems levels, involving assessment for health and social services, coordination and planning, monitoring of service delivery, and advocacy for client rights and entitlements.
code of ethics: The Code identifies core values and establishes ethical principles and standards that guide social workers’ decision making and conduct when ethical dilemmas arise.
community development: A method by which social workers assist community members in resource development and network promotion to encourage growth of the community as a source of social, economic, political, and cultural support to its people.
confidentiality: An ethical standard that guides social work. Confidentiality refers to the protection of clients’ private information unless the client has given valid, informed consent for disclosure of said information. The expectation that information will be kept confidential does not apply when professional disclosure is necessary to prevent foreseeable, immediate, and serious harm to the client or to another identifiable individual.
critical thinking: Assessing, analyzing, appraising, and evaluating a situation, issue, or idea, by challenging underlying assumptions, considering multiple perspectives, and applying reason, judgment, and knowledge, to make an informed decision about it; process requires objectivity, intelligent skepticism, open-mindedness, persistence, and decisiveness.
cultural competence: One of social work’s core ethical responsibilities to clients. It refers to a social worker’s responsibilities in understanding the relationship between culture and personal identity, recognizing the uniqueness and strengths within varying cultures, and experiencing and studying cultural and ethnic diversity.
direct practice: A domain of social work, in which practitioners interact personally with clients, typically face-to face using a range of professional skills and methods, to help them achieve their desired goals.
diversity: Respecting and safeguarding the individuality of all people resulting from differences in factors such as race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, socio-economic level, age, gender, disability, among others.
empathy: The ability to identify with or vicariously experience the feelings, thoughts, situation, or attitude of another individual.
empowerment: Empowerment is the degree of autonomy and self-determination in people and in communities. This enables them to represent their interests in a responsible and self-determined way, acting on their own authority. It is the process of becoming stronger and more confident, especially in controlling one's life and claiming one's rights.
empowerment-oriented practice: A paradigm of social work practice that addresses power inequities on organizational, political, and personal levels by emphasizing client strengths, increasing self-efficacy, encouraging advocacy, safeguarding self- determinism and delivering education in the form of a collaborative and egalitarian helping relationship.
ethical practice dilemmas: Situations in social work practice requiring that decisions be made under circumstances where core values of the profession are in conflict.
evidence-based practice: The systematic use of available empirical evidence to better inform and direct interventions and treatment methods to ensure their effectiveness.
formal notice: A written statement concerning a fact that is communicated to the affected person, giving that person an awareness of the fact.
intervention: Coming between groups of people, events, planning activities, or an individual’s internal conflicts. These could include psychotherapy, advocacy, mediation, social planning, community organization, finding and developing resources.
sympathy: Sympathy is an emotional response, immediate and uncontrolled, which may be overwhelming whenever a person identifies closely with another’s situation.