ipl-logo

The Importance Of Empathy In Social Work

783 Words4 Pages

In the reading, the author discusses throughout the chapter skills and techniques in the middle phase of working with a service user. Honesty is a value that is highly respected in the social work profession because it creates authenticity and trust in the therapeutic alliance. I agree with the statement completely, as I believe that being honest in regards to what one is feeling as a social worker allows the service user to be honest with how they are feeling as well. Further, it is explained that empathy is of vast importance when working with a service user in order to connect, help them uncover what they are feeling, and find specific approaches and techniques that would be beneficial to the service user. Although I agree that empathy is an important skill for a social worker to have when working with a service user, I feel that at times it can be an issue. To be specific, if a social worker is trying to understand how a service user may be feeling right after they have confided in them about a traumatic event, for example, it may be detrimental to the therapeutic relationship if the social worker tunes out of the conversation to think back to a similar event in their own personal life. As a result, the social worker could be missing cues in the conversation while they are reminiscing in order to put themselves in the service user’s shoes and ultimately make the client feel as if they are being ignored. Personally, if I were in a situation in which I was a worker and my

Show More
Related

  • Nasw Code Of Ethics Essay

    813 Words  | 4 Pages

    The more knowledge social workers have, the more likely they are to come up with strategies for abuse prevention and management. Social workers have a duty to assess elderly patients according to recommended protocols and report suspected abuse to designated authorities. Although the aged client has the right to self-determination, the NASW Code of Ethics also asserts “Social workers may limit clients’ right to self-determination when, in the social workers’ professional judgment, clients’ actions or potential actions pose a serious, foreseeable, and imminent risk to themselves or others” (NASW,

    Read More

  • Essay On Anticipatory Empathy

    712 Words  | 3 Pages

    That is why I think before I speak because I do not like hurting people’s feelings. *I have used this skill when I was listening to a friend talk about her problems, instead of judging her for what she is going through I thought of support words that will get her mind off the bad things. * Social workers always have to think about what is better for their clients.

    Read More

  • Social Work Self Analysis

    1681 Words  | 7 Pages

    In this paper, I will assess my identity and my personal history and how it relates to social work professions. I first address my personal history and cultural background, where I came from, as well as my experience in working in the community. I then talk about my overall strengths, both in personal and professional lives. My strengths are listening skills, open-mindedness, respect for diversity and eagerness to learn and improve my weaknesses. Afterward, I discuss my weaknesses, such as nonassertive communication skill and low self-esteem problems, and how I plan to address these issues.

    Read More

  • Childhood Cancer Ethical Issues

    903 Words  | 4 Pages

    Social workers main ethical responsibility is to ensure that the patient is receiving the proper care that they are entitled and that the patient is the main

    Read More

  • Reflection On Link Work

    1972 Words  | 8 Pages

    The first issue is, Peter appeared to be a very respectful, calm and focus young man contrary to what I read in his notes about him. I started the link work session with an open minded approach but keeping in mind the historical evidence. I quickly understood the historical evidence does not always reflect the present situation. Rogers (1977) humanistic perspective recognises the importance of self-seeking personal growth to concentrate on the service user’s situation 'here and now' rather than on the history of the service users problems. Furthermore, one of the core value of the HCPC code of practice is for social workers to adhere to non-judgemental practice towards service users.

    Read More

  • Personal Identity In Social Work

    1353 Words  | 6 Pages

    In addition, challenges can arise when there is no commonality in identities or when identities between myself and a client are radically different. In these times, as a social worker who has a degree of power in a relationship with people seeking help, that I must acknowledge to myself that my power can impede on inclusively practicing and remain self-aware (Gelfand, Sullivan, & Steinhouse,

    Read More

  • Social Work Ethics

    1886 Words  | 8 Pages

    The basic purpose of social work is to help individuals improve the quality of their lives. Social work is a helping profession and, resultantly, social workers are oftentimes referred to as change agents. They empower individuals, families, groups, communities, and organizations to reach their full potential and enable them to make the necessary changes in their lives. They encourage clients to be self-determined and reinforce their ability to change and to focus on their own needs. Social workers strive to make contributions to the knowledge base of this profession.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Empathy By Stephen Dunnn

    974 Words  | 4 Pages

    Poetry is an effective means used to convey a variety of emotions, from grief, to love, to empathy. This form of text relies heavily on imagery and comparison to inflict the reader with the associated feelings. As such, is displayed within Stephen Dunn 's, aptly named poem, Empathy. Quite ironically, Dunn implores strong diction to string along his cohesive plot of a man seeing the world in an emphatic light. The text starts off by establishing the military background of the main protagonist, as he awaits a call from his lover in a hotel room.

    Read More

  • Ethical Issues In Social Work Practice

    1764 Words  | 8 Pages

    Ethical Issues in Social Work Practice The social work profession and its Code of Ethics dictate that social workers must act in the best interest of the client, even when those actions challenge the practitioner’s personal, cultural and religious values. In practice; however, ethical decision-making is more complex than in theory. As helping professionals, social workers are constantly faced with ethical decision-making or ethical dilemmas. As noted by Banks (2005), an ethical dilemma occurs “when a worker is faced with a choice between two equally unwelcome alternatives that may involve a conflict of moral principles, and it is not clear what choice will be the right one” (as cited in McAuliffe & Chenoweth, 2008, p. 43).

    Read More

  • Strengths-Based Approach Paper

    507 Words  | 3 Pages

    What do you think the ramifications are if you do not "start where the client is"? If the social worker does not start where the client is, the consequences are that the social worker will give advice too soon/quickly and there will be no connection between the social worker at the client. Or in-depths assessment. Building rapport with the clients is one of the most important counseling skills to possess.

    Read More

  • Reflection On Relationship-Based Practice

    970 Words  | 4 Pages

    (2011) stated that relationship-based practice is important because it encourages a practitioner to act in the service user’s best interests by “holistically understanding the service user’s response to a certain situation.” This includes understanding their cultural backgrounds, needs and values so that their response is supported and understood. Wilson et al. (2011) suggests that relationship-based practice is important in a social work setting as it understands that human behaviour and the professional relationship is an essential component on any professional intervention.

    Read More

  • Examples Of Ethical Dilemmas In Social Work

    1031 Words  | 5 Pages

    The beginning of the article discusses the ethical dilemmas during client support. It argues about two situations in which ethics needs to be considered. Some people argue that ethics is required in every case, while others disagree. However, the article says that value based decisions are needed in a social worker’s decision other than simply considering knowledge.

    Read More

  • Ethical Dilemmas In Social Work Essay

    1789 Words  | 8 Pages

    From time to time, social work practitioners face different challenges and one of such example is being confronted with ethical dilemmas. An ethical dilemma is defined as “when the social worker sees himself or herself as facing a choice between two equally unwelcoming alternatives, which may involve a conflict of moral values, and it is not clear which choice will be the right one” (Banks, 2012). Ethical dilemmas can occur in the context of either client or organisational-related conflict situations at work. The first ethical dilemma is when the patient refuses medical treatment and services because he or she would not accept that there is any problem.

    Read More

  • Strength-Based Perspective Of Social Work Essay

    724 Words  | 3 Pages

    From the client to the social worker they both play an important part within the relationship. Without trust from both parties, they 're be a lot of animosity, while the video was playing I realized it seemed like there was trust and good communication. Being a relatable social worker you have to be able to know how to talk to people, relate and most importantly respect your clients. You do not get a choice who walks through your door, so you show the client respect like in video. That client in the video could have been a rapist or a child melestor but I would have never guessed that because the social worker was very respectful and professional.

    Read More

  • Reflection On Social Work Interview

    1455 Words  | 6 Pages

    A social work interview should consist primarily of open-ended questions as it encourages clients to elaborate on their responses. Social workers should also establish they understand the client 's replies by asking follow-up questions to acknowledge the client 's comments and encourage them to continue (Williams, n.d.). Upon reflecting on the interview process, I felt that I failed to achieve this. Because I realised that some parts of my interview lack the depth that I was hoping to achieve. I think that the main reason would be that I was impatient as my concern was to finish the interview

    Read More

More about The Importance Of Empathy In Social Work

Open Document