Overview of General Social Work Communication Skills As

Overview of General Social Work Communication Skills As a social worker, you will serve people in all walks of life and in all kinds of situations. The range of settings in which you might serve is wide and varied. The contexts for social work practice are often complex, usually demanding, and always challenging. To serve competently in such circumstances, social workers today need to be knowledgeable, ethical, accountable, and proficient 1

l At some point in your career as a social worker, you might serve in a child protection capacity, responding to indications that a child may be at risk of abuse or neglect. You may help families improve their child caring capabilities or serve in the emergency room of a hospital, intervening with persons and families in crises. You may lead therapy groups for children who have been sexually victimized or provide educa tion and counselling to abusive adults. 2

You may aid couples whose relationships are faltering or help single parents who seek guidance and support in rearing their children. You may serve persons who abuse alcohol and drugs or help family members who have been affected by the substance abuse of a parent, child, spouse, or sibling. You might work in a resi dential setting for youthful offenders, a prison for adults, or a psychiatric institution. 3

You could help people who are in some way physically or mentally challenged. You might serve in a school system or perhaps as a consultant to a police department. You may function in a crisis intervention capacity for a suicide prevention service. I will demonstrate an audio taped interview with a suicidal client [with time permitting]. N. B. 4

l You may ask yourself, "Can I possibly learn what I need to so that I can serve competently as a social worker in all those places, serving such different people, and helping them to address such complex is sues? " The answer to that question is certainly No! l However, you can acquire expertise in those skills that are common to social work practice with all population groups and all psychosocial issues in all settings. 5

Professional social workers pledge adherence to a social work code of ethics, and usually view social work in the following manner: l The social work profession promotes social change, problem solving in human relationships and the empowerment and liberation of people to enhance well being. Utilising theories of human behaviour and social systems, social work intervenes at the points where people interact with their environments. Principles of human rights and social justice are fundamental to social work. 6

l Social workers tend to view the person-and -situation (PAS), person-in-environment (PIE), or person issue situation as the basic unit of attention. In addition, they consider the enhancement of social functioning and the promotion or restoration of "a mutually beneficial interaction between individuals and society to improve the quality of life for everyone" as the overriding purpose of practice. 7

l This dual focus on people and society leads social workers to consider multiple systems even when an individual person is formally the "client" and regu larly involve other people or other social systems in the helping process. 8

Social workers tend to conceive of people and situations as continually changing and as having the potential for planned change l Social workers recognize that professional service to others often involves powerful interpersonal processes that have considerable potential for harm as well as for good. Each social worker needs professional integrity a highly developed understanding of oneself and extraordinary personal discipline and self control. 9

l It is for these reasons that this 304 course is invaluable, not only in your professional relationships but they will help you in your own communication skills in general l in truly understanding others, affirming their uniqueness and celebrating their individuality 10

Social Work Skill is "the practice component that brings knowledge and values together and converts them to action as a response to concern and need (Johnson, 1995, p. 55), "a complex organization of behaviour directed toward a particular goal or activity" (Johnson, 1995, p. 431), 11

and a "social worker's capacity to use a method in order to further a process directed toward the accomplishment of a social work purpose as that purpose finds expression in a specific program or service" (Smalley, 1967, p. 17). Skill is "the production of specific behaviours under the precise conditions designated for their use" (Middleman & Gold berg, 1990, p. 12). 12

l A social work skill is a circumscribed set of discrete cognitive and behavioural actions that (1) derive from social work knowledge and from social work values, ethics, and obligations, (2) are consistent with the essential facilitative qualities, (3) reflect the characteristics of professionalism, and (4) comport with a social work purpose within the context of a phase or process of practice. 13

A "social worker's skills include being proficient in communication, assessing problems and client workability, matching needs with resources, developing resources, and changing social structures" (Barker, 1995). 14

Among the Twelve Skills l l Listen to others with understanding and purpose. Elicit information and assemble relevant facts to prepare a social history, assessment, and report. Create and maintain professional helping relationships. Observe and interpret verbal and non verbal behaviour and use knowledge of personality theory and diagnostic methods. 15

l l Engage clients (including individuals, families, groups, and communities) in efforts to resolve their own problems and to gain trust. Discuss sensitive emotional subjects supportively and without being threatening. Create innovative solutions to clients' needs. Determine the need to terminate therapeutic relationship. 16

l The skills are derived from the tasks associated with commonly identified phases or processes of social work practice, the essential facilitative qualities exhib ited by most effective professional helpers, and the fundamental characteristics of professionalism and include 17

l l l l * * * * Preparing Beginning Exploring Assessing Contracting Working and evaluating Ending 18

Effective social workers consistently demonstrate the following essential facilitative qualities in their work with clients: l Empathy l Respect l Authenticity 19

Competent social workers integrate the following characteristics of professionalism throughout all aspects of their service: 20

l l l l Integrity Professional knowledge Critical thinking and lifelong learning Ethical decision making Self understanding and self control Cultural competence and acceptance of others Social support and self efficacy 21

Common Factors and Essential Facilitative Qualities l Findings from research studies suggest that certain common conditions present in most counselling and psychotherapeutic approaches accounted for much of the beneficial outcomes. 22

Recent analyses of the research yielded four general categories of common non specific factors asso ciated with client outcomes in counselling and psychotherapy. 23

Emphasis is on the Person and Situation Client and Situational Factors: Strengths, assets, resources, challenges, and limitations within the client and client's external situation. These extra therapeutic factors what clients bring with them to the relationship with the helping professional may have the most powerful impact on client out comes (Lambert, 1992). 24

Relationship Factors: Qualities of the helping professional and the resulting relationship between the client and helper. The nature of the client worker relationship may have the second most significant effect on client outcomes (Lambert, 1992). 25

l Social workers have long recognized the importance of the relationship. Proficiency in the social work skills addressed in this book will help you establish and maintain positive working relationships with clients and others with whom you interact as part of your professional activities. 26

l Expectancy Factors: Hopefulness, optimism, and expectations that the help ing encounter will be beneficial are important dimensions. Such "placebo ef fects" significantly affect client outcomes (Lambert, 1992). Social workers commonly encourage hope and serve as examples to others through their positive attitudes and enthusiasm. 27

Model and Technique Factors: The models, strategies, techniques, and proto cols adopted in the process of helping also affect outcomes. When combined, expectancy and model/technique factors may account for about the same amount of client outcome impact as do relationship factors (Lambert, 1992). 28

Krill (1986, p. xi) suggested that the relationship between a social worker and a client is more likely to be productive and is clearly related to client satisfaction and effective outcomes if 29

The participants like and respect each other. The client is clearly told what to expect and how to contribute to the helping process. The worker is warm, genuine, and sincere and regularly expresses empathy about the client's experience. 30

The worker and client engage in goal directed activities such as practice, in session tasks, or between session action steps. The social worker actively seeks to involve significant persons in the client's life in the helping process. 31

The characteristics of effective helpers are often called the facilitative qualities or the core conditions and when consistently demonstrated by professionals, aid in developing and maintaining a spe cial rapport with their clients. This rapport is sometimes called the helping relationship, the working relationship, professional rapport, or therapeutic alliance. 32

The essential facilitative qualities be come critical because when social workers consistently reflect these qualities, the risk of harm ing the person and situation tends to decrease and the probability of helping usually increases. 33

l Some clients feel quite uneasy when the worker is frequently and in tensively empathic. They might prefer a formal encounter in which the worker pro vides direct advice and guidance in a business like fashion. 34

l Regardless of theoretical orientation and choice of intervention approach, effective helpers tend to reflect common characteristics such as (1) empathy, (2) regard, and (3) authenticity, and (4) professionalism in their service to others. 35

l Empathy l The term empathy is a process of joining in the feelings of another, of feeling how and what another per son experiences, and feeling with another person. It is an under standing and appreciation of the thoughts, feelings, behaviours, experiences, and circumstances of another human being. 36

Through empathic connection with your clients, you increase the probability of developing rapport and maintaining productive working relationships 37

l l Regard The facilitative quality of regard or respect suggests an attitude of non Regard l. Regard controlling, warm, caring, unconditional positive regard non possessive acceptance of other persons. In cross or inter cultural contexts, regard also includes the genuine acceptance of difference. Respect of this nature goes well beyond basic tolerance to include appreciation of the value of diversity in human communities. 38

l Authenticity refers to the genuineness and sincerity of a person's manner of relating. Reflecting fundamental honesty, an authentic social worker is natural, real, and per sonable. The presentation is congruent so that verbal, non verbal, and behavioural ex pressions reflect synchronicity. Words and deeds match. 39

l Professionalism l Includes several characteristics: (1) integrity, (2) professional knowledge and self efficacy, (3) ethical decision making, (4) critical thinking and lifelong learning, (5) self understanding and self control, (6) cultural competence and acceptance of others, and (7) social support. 40

41

42