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Values

Values
Crystal D. Clay
Wayne State University
Social Work 3010
20 February 2015
004338700

Values

Abstract

This essay will discuss personal values in relation to the NASW Code of Ethics. The discussion
will include personal values that are congruent with the Code of Ethics and possible conflicts. I
share which values I view, as important and helpful in practice as a social worker. In addition, I
share life experiences that have assisted in forming my values and support my beliefs in the
values of social work. Moreover, I expound on possible populations that present difficulty in
serving and I will provide an explanation. The discussion concludes with a description of how
this assignment has affected my decision to become a social worker. I convey my plans to
embrace and utilize the core values of social work and the ethical codes in serving populations
that challenge my thought, beliefs, habits, and actions.

Values
My values in relationship to the NASW Code of Ethics intertwine. I believe all human
beings, should be treated with respect, and viewed as valuable. I believe all people deserve and
desire an equitable and equal opportunity at creating a sustainable existence, for themselves and
future generations. The occurrence of people understanding we are more alike than different,

can enlist us to assist and uplift each other; regardless of race, class, sex, gender and age, among
other things. I believe human survival depends on human engagement, interaction, and seeing
self- within another human being.
In my life, I have had many experiences that have helped to shape my values and support
my beliefs in the values of social work and the NASW Code of Ethics. I grew up in the city of
Detroit and saw first-hand the oppressed conditions. Many suffered in blighted neighborhoods,
with failing educational systems, with little or no access to available resources. I grew up with
people that only needed an opportunity provided, information, and direction given in how to
challenge conditions their outcomes may have been different. The conditions of oppression
enlisted me to look for information and seek a different way- not for self, but for all.
I do not feel there is a population I cannot work with and I have no religious affiliation
that guides me. As a child growing up and throughout my life, I have been exposed to many
populations. As a social worker, I want to concentrate my efforts with the senescent community.
However, I feel I can assist battered women, LGBT community, persons of differing ethnicitys,
teens, and any other group. I feel we are human first and labels are of no concern to me. I too
have labels-Black, poor, minority, etc. As mentioned prior, we all need each other.
In conclusion, I feel I can and will use the Code of Ethics along with my value system to
assist all persons and communities in need. This assignment has provided a bit of confirmation
that I have made the right choice in selecting social work as a career. It illuminated my feelings

Values
and standards for living and engagement with people to be in line with the social work code of
ethics. If there should ever come a time were my thoughts, beliefs, habits, and/or actions are
challenged serving a particular population; I will focus and utilize the core values of Dignity
and Worth of the Person, and the Importance of Human Relationships. My plain is to
remember the humanness of a person first.

Values