S.Rengasamy.

Social Case Work

10 Going Beyond Prejudice and Fear toUnderstanding

Safrad Social Case Work is a method employed by a social worker to help individual, find asolution of their problem of social adjustment which they are unable to handle in a satisfactory way by their own effort. Objectives of Social Case Work

To make good rapport with the common people To find-out, understand & solve the internal problems of an individual To strengthen ones ego power To prevent problem To develop internal resources Nature & Characteristics of Case Work Relationship arise out of shared & emotionally charged situation

Relationship contains elements of acceptance, expectation, support & stimulation Client & case worker are interdependent Case work relationship may have several therapeutic values Improvement of condition More adjustment within the society Development of personality

Capacity building Relationship needs outside help Case worker too has relationship reactions and part of and part of ones professional skillsin their management Components/elements of case work:

Purpose & concern for the client system A purpose to find-out internal problems & try to solve it and a

concern to make goodrapport, feel ones feelings and aims at individualized service
Expectation at three level -Expectation of the case worker from the client, how the case worker feels about theclients ability & what extend client support anybody-Expectation of the client from the Case workerPositive result in the period of interaction Accuracy of Empathy and clear communication - Think positively in others point of view- What extent you are

sympathetic- Ability to perceive & communicate accurately & feel- Case worker should be sensitive to express feelings towards client by voice, posture andgood communication
Non Possessive warmth Give respect, acceptance,liking, caring and concernfor the client in a non-dominating way. Genuineness andacceptance Case worker mist bepractical in nature. He must

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Solving problems byDrawing inner strength

Case Work
Principles and Techniques of Casework The foundation of the practice of casework is a conceptualframework consisting of certain values or philosophicalassumptions. The most basic value is that of the worth anddignity of every human being. The next is thecommitment to the goal of human betterment, in terms of both material and emotional wellbeing. Then, there is thevalue related to the development of human potential to

thehighest level possible. Since each individual is consideredto be important, there is the corollary of the need for everyperson to participate fully in the direction of his own life.These value orientations are the result of philosophicthought over years of human existence and are to bedifferentiated from scientific theories which can be tested andproved. Nevertheless, belief in these values is a necessaryprerequisite in order that casework may be effective. There is another set of commitmentsemerging from these philosophical assumptions and the idea of individualised help. Theyare concepts of acceptance, non-

condemning attitudes, confidentiality and controlledemotional involvement. Though these concepts originally developed from the valuesmentioned earlier, they were reinforced later by the experience of social workers with theresult that they subsequently became casework principles or rules of action. Closely linkedwith these values and principles is the postulate that human behaviour can change. Humanhistory indicates that sages, philosophers, priests and teachers, since times immemorial,had tried to explain human behaviour and to change it. They were only partiallysuccessful. It will be presumptuous to think that by

application of behavioural sciencesone can change human behaviour easily. One has to be rather modest as regards one'sexpectations
Human dignity

Human PotentialHuman participationAcceptanceNon condemning attitudeConfidentialityControlled emotionsHuman Behaviour can change

be a person of genuineness being real, honest in their approach and never go beyondher/his limit.
Authority Case worker must have a capacity to handle any situation, being resourceful and helpfulHaving

knowledge, attitude, experience and a position to identify and solve internalproblem of client Principles of Case work IndividualizationPurposeful expression of feelingsControl of EmotionSelf determinationAcceptancePrinciple of non-judgmental attitudePrinciple of Confidentiality I. Individualization Individualization means analyze an individual not from a singleaspect but from various aspects. Every Individual is different fromothers & unique in itself. Problem of every individual is different from another & depend

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upon her/his intelligence, so the mode of helping (Technique) must be according to theIntellectual level, socio-economic situation and ego strength, ones capacity and resource. II. Purposeful expression of feelings Case worker must give the chance to the client to express her/his feelings freely, especiallyher/his negative feelings because maximum time feelings are negative in nature. The caseworker listen purposefully clients feelings neither praising nor condem ning. Dont point out

any one as good or bad because of ones psycho-social problems. III. Control emotional involvement Without feeling any one s emotion with sensitivity, its impossible to find -out her/hisproblem & get a solution of that problem.Emotion comes from 3 ways as- Sensitivity-UnderstandingResponse IV. Self determination Self determination we means let the client to take her/his own decision in own way, givechance her/him to decide, what is right or wrong for them.

V. Acceptance A case w orker must be accept an individual as a person of worth & dignity, not treat as a problem and always accept ones positive feelings and negative feelings VI. Non-Judgmental attitude A case worker mustn t have the right to judge any one as guilty or innoce nt. VII. Principle of Confidentiality Case work relationship has a principle to take the problems of the client in confidence andkeep it as secret.

More Explanations on the Principles of Social Casework 1. A worker should believe in social reality.
Every individual has his own different problems because every personality is unique Problems do exit and there is no stigma attached to a problem and or any maladjustedperson and a social worker does not believe in social isolation for the physically,mentally, emotionally and socially sick person.

Every problem can, therefore, be solved provided we create conditions for an individualwho help to make an adjustment with his social environment.2. The personality of the client is to be respected.3. Worker should build up purposeful relationship with the client.4. Worker should always have belief in the ability of the human beings to change and grow.5.

Worker should not involve himself emotionally with the client. There should not be anyover-identification with the client.6. Worker has to accept and appreciate the individual differences and prejudices of theclient.7. In the process of helping, it should be observed that the client is as active as the worker, since the formers participation in the treatment is very nece ssary. The client should behelped to help himself.8.

Worker has also to look to the interest of the family, community and the agency and assuch he has to help the client to adjust with the family and the community by releasingthe immediate resources available in the community, taking family as a primaryinstitution. The worker has to consider the client as part of the family, community andsociety with mutual responsibility.9. In order to establish rapport with the client, worker should be sincere and sympathetic

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III. Psycho - Social diagnosis (Assessment):

Perlman (1957) Diagnosis helps in determining the focus of treatment, furthercollection of facts and deciding the best course of action to solve the problem.

Social diagnosis is the attempt to arrive at an exact definition as possible of th e social situation and personality of a given client.

Diagnosis is concerned with understanding both the psychological or personality factorswhich bear a causal relation to the clients difficulty and the social or environmental factors which tend to su stain it.

Diagnosis may be viewed as the fluid, constantly changing assessment of the client, theirproblems, life situations and important relationships. Content of the Social Diagnosis 1. The nature of the problem brought and the goals sought by the client, in their relationshipto.2. The nature of the person who bears the problem and who seeks or needs help with theproblem, in relation to.3. The nature and purpose of the agency and the kind of help it can offer and/ or makeavailable. Process of making diagnosis

Shifting the relevant from irrelevant data Organizing the facts and getting them into relatedness Grasping the way in which the factors fit together Preparing the meaning as a whole. Data for Diagnosis 1. Interviews 2. Checklist and Inventories 3. Direct Observation Steps in Diagnosis

1. The worker begins to focus on problematic behaviors. Both functional and dysfunctional behaviors in the clients environment are surveyed. The clients personal strength as well as of his environment are evaluated.2. He specifies the target behaviors. Break down complex behaviors into clear and precisecomponent parts.3. Baseline data are collected to specify those events that appear to be currently controllingthe problematic behaviors.4. The collected information is summarized in an attempt to anticipate any major problem intreatment and as a

way of beginning to establish objectives for treatment.5. Selecting priorities for treatment is the final step of the diagnosis

P s y c h o S o c i a l d i a g n o s i s ( A s s e s s m e n t )

III Types of diagnosis

1. Clinical The person is described bythe nature of the illness.E.g. schizophrenia,psychopath, typhoid, etc. Used in medical practice.

Use is minimum in casework practice. - Importancein medical and psychiatry. 2. Etiological Tries todelineate thecauses anddevelopment of presentingdifficulty. History of theperson. Limitation doesnt look into 3. Dynamic Proper evaluation of the clients current

problem as he is experiencing it now. Role of psychological, biological, socialand environmental factors in the causationof the problem. No attempt to dig life history. Case worker and client engage inappropriate corrective action or treatment. These developments may lead tomodifications in the goals for treatment

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IV. Intervention / Treatment (Problem-solving process): * Hamilton, Treatment is the sum total of all activities and service directed towards helping an individual with a problem. The focus is relieving of theimmediate problem and, if feasible, modifies any basic difficulties which precipitated it.
The objectives of Social case work treatment

1. To prevent social breakdown. 2. To conserve clients strength. 3. To restore social functioning.4. To provide happy experiences to the client.5. To create opportunities for growth and development.6. To compensate psychological damage.7. To increase capacity for selfdirection.8. To increase his social contribution. Methods of Social treatment 1. Administration of concrete and practical services. E.g. money, medical care,scholarships, legal aid, etc.2.

Indirect treatment (modification of environment, both physical and social). E.g. camps, group experience activities, training programmes, etc.3. Direct treatment : A. Counselling marriage, occupational, family, school, etc. B. TherapeuticInterviewing family and marital therapy. C. Clarification D. Interpretation and InsightE. Psychological suppo rt. F. Resource utilizationG. Enviro nment modification.

I n t e r v e n t i o n / T r e a t m e n t ( P r o b l e m s o l v i n g p r o c e s s )

IV
V. Monitoring and Evaluation: * Monitoring provides crucial feedback to case worker and the client regarding1. Whether the treatment program is succeeding as desired,2. Whether established goals have been achieved,3. Whether modifications in the program are necessary and4. Whether the client is being helped in real sense. Importance of Monitoring and Evaluation

The purpose of Evaluation is to see if the efforts of the case worker are yielding anyresult or not, if the techniques used are serving the purpose, and if the goals arebeing achieved. Evaluation is the process of attaching a value to the social work practice. It is themethod of knowing what the outcomes are. It is a continuous process. Evaluation of the approach used and result should be taken up

with the client so thatthe efforts are meaningfully utilized. Evaluation will further strengthen the relationship between the caseworker and clientand motivate the client to work towards his goal. Casework practices need to be evaluated from time to time. The subject needs to betested and researched and most importantly needs ongoing validation. They need tobe proved to the public that they are effective and beneficial to the clients.

Casework practice should be subjected to critical review. Workers need to be heldaccountable for what they do and for their social work competence. Workers need towin approval for their programs. They may sometimes have to be told that their services are overlapping andineffective. Workers have to enhance their own image and also of the agency to develop publicrelations. The clients need to give a feedback on the effectiveness of the services.

I m o r t a n c e o f M o n i t o r i n a n d E v a l u a t i o n i n C a s e W o r k

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F o l l o w

& T e r m i n a t i o n

VI. Follow-up and Termination :

At the end, i.e. termination, the worker should discuss the original as well asrevised goals and objectives, achievements during the helping period, factorshelpful or obstructive in achieving the objectives, and the efforts needed tomaintain the level

of achievement and the feelings aroused by disengagement. It is neither wise nor necessary for the termination to be an abrupt one. It is best to discuss termination and its ramifications (implications) several timesbefore the final interview. The frequency and amount of contacts should be gradually decreased.

Termination of the helping process brings up in both the case worker and client(s)many feelings both positive and negative which must be verbalized anddiscussed. Follow-up is done to help client maintain the improvement. During follow-up, the client is helped to discuss the problems he faces inmaintaining the improvement.

Work is done with the people significant for his improved social functioning. If required, he is referred to the proper source for needed services and help. The follow-up should be planned on a diminishing basis after two weeks, then amonth, then three months, six months and a year following the termination of theformal program.VI

Social Case Work Process

Intake

(FirstInterview)Rapport Building Psycho-Socialstudy exploration/ Investigation) Psycho - Socialdiagnosis (Assessment) Treatment (Problem-solving process) M&E Follow-upand Termination

The components of socialcasework are-The Person-The Problem-The Place-The Process-The worker clientrelationship-The Problem solving work