Sociology

INTRODUCING
Society is changing in short, it is in a constant state of evolution. In this dynamism, health and care has become the optimum requirement of every human being. The growth and advancement in the medical sector has given optimum benefit to all, but at the same time the rising cost of medicine and medical treatment has also become a problem for many. A social worker addresses these psychosocial implications of health.

THE TERM SOCIAL WORKER
The term social worker came to special light in the turn of 20th century. But at that point of time, the term was limited to making health services available to the poor and improving social conditions. However, as time passed, there was an active participation needed in other health professions, and now social workers are actively involved in helping the medical fraternity to reach to the masses in a more effective manner.

A social worker is someone who is a pillar when it comes to health practices. It is often required that a patients clinical needs, that is, behavioral and psychological. Clinical social workers comprise the highest amount of social workers in the nation. Such social workers are often, the first to come in contact with the client, suffering from mental and emotional disorders.  In such a mode of treatment, a social worker needs to take into account a clients behavior or reaction with respect to hisher environment. A clinical social worker provides essential care and treatment to the environment, community of the people heshe seeks to serve.

VALUES
However, there are certain values that a clinical social worker must adhere to. The primary objective of social services is to improve the condition of human living. Also, it should cross the barriers of color and creed. It has nothing to do with any individuals race. Equal opportunities must be provided for all and also the betterment of the conditions and environment of living should be aimed at. Also, special attention must be given to those who are oppressed, vulnerable and living in poverty. This is the core value rooted in any social worker.

Also, there should be respect for every human being. Nothing should pose as a barrier while serving others. The skin color, at all, should have no influence on the work being carried out. Again, the utmost aim should be that of social justice. At no point should one be carrying out actions which are unjust and illegal.

Taking all of this into account, we can very well sum up these following values or mandates for a social worker
The importance of dignity of individuals and self
The importance of respecting privacy and maintaining absolute confidentiality in dealing with the client.
The importance of freedom in the client, their ability to choose freely.
Having faith in the local body and respecting its powers and functions.

SOCIAL JUSTICE
Social justice is the defining standard for a profession like this. Commitment to social justice is one of the foremost aim and requirement of a social worker. Regardless of our environment, all social workers are in one way or other related to work involving oppression and injustice to the society. Lorraine Gutierrez rightly says, We are more aware than most people of the challenges faced by children and families living in poverty, the inadequacy of our safety net of human services, the disproportionate incarceration of men of color, and the challenges experienced by those living with disabilities.

Marginalization by mankind
It is sad to note that mankind has now become selfish and adrift. Man has excelled in creating communities and groups to limit people of a same origin and a lesser population. This often gives rise to inequalities and unjust conditions. We term men and women as gays and lesbians these days, as we are too ashamed to understand and accept their identity. Society in a way is degrading itself when it comes to human affection and care. If that is not all, we have pending issues relating to refugees, child laborers trafficked people open to be oppressed and opposed to. Thus, it becomes the utmost responsibility and duty of the social worker to address these issues and provide a voice for these communities, which have lost their voices in their journey. It is important to note that sometimes, race and color becomes a big barrier while serving these minority communities. However, it should always be given a backseat and human serving emotions should be the ulterior motive behind the actions.

THE BASIC HUMAN RIGHTS
It is very important to understand the basic human rights for a social worker to serve the masses. The international body, UN Human Rights Council defines human rights as, rights inherent to all human beings, whatever our nationality, place of residence, sex, national or ethnic origin, color, religion, language, or any other status. We are all equally entitled to our human rights without discrimination. These rights are all interrelated, interdependent and indivisible.

Human rights are inalienable, that is they can never be taken away from an individual. This automatically makes everyone worthy of the right heshe is born with. No one has the right to snatch it away. Again, there are certain strong cases when these rights can be curbed or bounded. If there is a criminal on the loose, obviously his right to liberty needs to be attacked to keep the society in peace.

Again, all the basic human rights are interdependent and indivisible. All of them go hand in hand and cannot be separated from each-other. Of course, they co-exist independently but hampering one always leads to the damage of the other. Likewise, the improvement in one leads to the improvement in other.

Equality is something with which these rights should be viewed. One cannot discriminate on the basis of color, caste, creed, sex. All these rights are independent of such barriers. Also, as a social worker, the primary objective should be such that an individual enjoys all his rights without constant threat in the name of sex, color, caste, race, et cetera.

Taking care of the rights
As a social worker, one must understand that with rights come obligations, that is, the need for these rights to be fulfilled. One must enjoy all his rights and also the State should make sure that there is no interference from any external source on the same. Also, at individual level, these rights must be respected and others rights must be taken into account as well. No behavior should be tolerated which harms others rights.

WHY SOCIAL POLICY
While serving our client, we often come across as the system set by the state as inadequate or interfering with our own modes and methods of serving. This often leads to distress and frustration. However it is important to admit that every form of social work practice finds its roots in a social policy.

An example to highlight the importance of social policies would make its definition and meaning clearer. Suppose, you are sitting with a child laborer who is facing undeniable poverty, with lack of education, and hunger pangs. While the child is clearly troubled and in grave danger, your sympathy for him also finds root in the social evil that is child labor, which again has helped to shape the social policy. Thus, social policies always define the way we treat or behave with our client.

Social workers deal with their clients, their environments, their living conditions and hope to make their lives better. Social problems kind of define their work more clearly and hence, the importance of social policies. Again, there are some hindrances of the same. One such case is, who gets to decide what would justify or befit as a social problem Social policies thus formed on the basis of this, are often oppressive or forced upon individuals. For example, the pay assistance policy helps individuals of all strata of the society but it also lays down some ground rules on the same, like, there are a number of children they can have, or the candidate must be knowledgeable and hard-working.

UNDERSTANDING SOCIAL POLICY
However, social policy might be seen from two angles  at one point we see that a social policy aims to provide betterment to peoples live, but also at the same time it kind of restricts the free movement of people and suppresses them. This gives rise to a huge anomaly. This example can be very well seen in the US policy of public assistance. In this policy, the people who are in dire need are provided with money. In short, this policy helps them survive. But, the glitch in the policy is that it is not open to all. The pre-requisites for a receiver of this service are knowledge, education, good behavior and someone who abides by the ban of having a limited number of children. This is just a small example of how policies come with an attached bouquet of terms and conditions.

Why social policies fail
It is very important to understand why these policies often lead to failure. It is often so because of the fact that these policies come attached with more than one goal  that is they look at the social, political and economic objective. With such a multi-faceted goal, any policy is bound to get into an arena of conflict and anomaly. Again, one needs to stand by the same and understand how the same can be incorporated properly in our dealings.

SOCIAL RESEARCH
If we think of researching for our social work, we will often find ourselves in a sea of knowledge. The world is changing, so is our society. With terms like globalization and development freezing our attention, we often find our actions and decisions being led by the same. The post-modern thinking has affected our view of the world. Research is something which anyone and everyone can do. In simple terms, it is all about reading, collecting information and sieving through it to understand which suits our subject better. The various benefits of research in social work are many. Some are listed below

Research  adds to our existing knowledge
Research helps us address a specific issue of concern of the problem. Sometimes it also helps us to identify a certain side of the problem which is more important than other aspects.
Research helps the client understand our work and also helps in the bonding with the client.
Research changes the way things are done and gives a more professional approach to the work we are doing.
Research gives unheard voices a medium to express their concern.
Research collects the individual needs to a collective voice.
Research organizes our work in a much better manner.
Research helps us develop more postulations and propositions.
Research helps us influence the policy makers.

This leads us to questions like who carries out the research. Who would take the lead What should be researched on Where does one start from It is important to understand that as a form of social practice, it is expected from like minded people to help us out with research and data. Also it is very important to understand what we want to research on.

Qualitative and Quantitative Research
Thus, raises the need of qualitative research. Many a times, we work with people suffering from diseases about which very less is known. Understanding their emotions and mental make up is very important. For example, if I am working with my client who is suffering with AIDS, I need to understand how his caretakers family treat him. Apart from that, I need to understand what the family thinks about my client. It is understood that my client is extremely disturbed about his ailment, but again his support system is his family caretaker. Hence, I need to understand what can make their relationship better, so that my client is comfortable living with his ailment, with the love and support of his family and well wishers.

Another very important example of the same is the identity of inter-racial children in the fast moving world. How things are changing in their lives How much acceptance have they found in society How many interracial friends do they have and what is special about their community How their family functions How their peers behave with them and do they face any sort of racism or abuse All these questions are important and often help us understanding their lives, and other aspects of racism and culture.

The dilemmas
Another very important thing to understand while researching is that the general questionnaire is not the only thing one should go by. A social worker deals with many sensitive and emotional issues in day to day life. If I am addressing a victim of incest, I cannot look forward to answers to my pinpointed and questionnaire format questions. In fact, I ought to have a very strong yet emotional approach to my client. A very strong example is my own family, since my child is suffering from autism, I would not entertain any questions which are rude or generic. In fact, that would be very insulting. An approach which is warm and friendly is much more acceptable and responsible. I would obviously not open up to anyone who is being insulting.

Understanding the client
Another approach is, understanding the lifestyle of the client. A very important way to understand your client is to live life through hisher eyes. It helps immensely in understanding the challenges faced by the client and how heshe copes up with them. It helps us understanding the clients point of view. This ultimately helps in understanding the client better and strengthening of the bond with himher.
All these types of qualitative research undoubtedly help us get a better perspective of our client and his view point. However, we cannot completely rule out the existence or importance of quantitative research. This helps us immensely in proving our point and often arguing about something we feel for, often influencing policy and decision makers. Again, the quantitative and qualitative methods of research go hand in hand. One cannot fall back on one kind of research. One is the backbone of another. A quantitative finding is often backed by qualitative explanations and theories. A chart or series of numbers cannot themselves explain any point of view. The charts and figures need the support of theories to make a point.

The key points in research
There are obviously certain pointers to keep in mind before researching on a particular subject. These are
We need to identify the concerned area we need to work in. It is one of the most important things while working on a problem. If there are confusions and problems surrounding this, the research holds no meaning. Again, this should be a subject of interest and not something forcibly done, for the sake of it. This will ruin the research.

The next step would automatically be generating a list of questions that would be of importance to the research. Again, dividing the questions is another big task. We need to understand the relevance and approach of the questions. Also, if the subject is very emotional, it will definitely influence the way of approach to the client or other concerned people.

Then comes separation of questions, how we can create sub groups and put the questions in the sub groups. This will be of immense help as it will obviously help us understand our approach and how we can separate straight questions from emotional ones. Also whom to approach for what.

Another important thing is to develop a focus and sieving through the gathered information. This is very important as often, we over-do things, and tend to get carried away from the main theme of research. This is one of the key things we need to keep in mind while researching.

All these points will definitely make social work research a leaner and crisp thing with right matters addressed at the right time and right people approached for the right thing. This also prevents the useless running around without any particular aim or focus in mind before proceeding to work on the subject of interest.

EXAMPLES
If I exemplify this practice, it would give a much clearer approach to my work. Suppose I am set to research on a particular topic of interest, this is how I would proceed

First, I need to identify a problem or area of interest which I am catering to. If I am dealing with depression in obese persons, I need to look at many aspects of the problem. There are many related issues like anorexia, bulimia, drugs, addiction which are linked to this. I need to understand what I am looking at while working on a project like this. If I am looking at anorexic people, I need to channel my research on that regard.

The next step is to understand what is it that I am looking at with respect to the angle of the research topic I have chosen. If I am looking at anorexic people, I need to understand the psycho-social implications of the problem. I need to frame my questions accordingly. What or rather how am I going to approach my sources is another important thing. If it is all about anorexia, I need to view the world from an anorexics eyes, someone who is not at all comfortable with the way she looks, also how it is more of gender specific rather than age specific. Again, it is important to understand that deep emotional and mental disturbance causes such an extreme step. Then I need to frame questions accordingly. If I am approaching the clients peers, I need to understand their behavior towards her, how her looks matter or how they dont.

After this, I need to group my questions under sub-topics. Questions on the social aspect of the problem can be grouped under one, where in I would talk to the peers of my client, to her teachers, people who surround her, ask them how her social life is, how she gets along with them. Then, another sub-topic could be the psychological aspects where in I would understand her mental status which has led her to take such a drastic step. I would understand her family structure, take a view at her relationships, how they have affected her emotionally. Again, I could take help of a psychiatrist, understanding more about the problem of anorexia  why it happens, how it can addressed.

After such an intensive research, comes a strong focus. Even a strong research loses its importance due to loose ended approach. Thus, a brief and strong approach is very much needed. Again, here what I should ideally include is quantitative research about my project. An analysis of deaths due to anorexia and bulimia through available statistic and data will be extremely important. Also, an opinion poll of which is more important, good looks or an overall good personality will also help me understand the trends and traits of the society and what actually leads to such a chronic depression. All this is bound to formulate into a strong research.

Thus, it is very important to focus and understand why one is researching. This leads to a very strong product and helps in influencing the policy makers positively.

Talking it out
One important thing to keep in mind is that when we talk to people about our research we need to understand if they are akin to our beliefs or not. There are many instances where we find a lot of mismatch between fact and reality. Also, there are vast cultural and social differences which affect our research. Often the participants give out their personal views which are often blinded by religion, caste, creed, and race. We need to keep these factors in mind after the research is complete. Lastly, if possible include it in the research or sieve it so that we get a neutral point of view of the society with respect to the problem, which is not practically possible.

SKILLS IN A SOCIAL WORKER
Needless to say, a social worker must possess certain specific skills which should make himher reach out to the client and ultimately the outer world more effectively. Some of these skills can be traced in our day to day lives. One also needs to develop certain skills to be a good social worker. Some skills cannot be acquired, but they can be worked on.

Cognitive Skills
One skill which is particularly important is the cognitive skill. Any social worker will have to do a lot of research to understand the problem better and have a more methodical approach towards it. Though, cognitive skills refer to those through which we carefully understand and analyze things. This also involves the application of ones knowledge to the findings. For example, if I am researching on racial disputes in children, after gathering the data and other information, I need to carefully analyze the same and throw in my own understanding of the matter. If I fail to do it, the research becomes useless.

Administrative Skills
Another important skill is administrative skill. Careful management and focus on ones work is of utmost importance. Though many organizations have administrators and services which look after these things, it doesnt go without mention that a social worker should also take care of the work that has been done and do so in an organized manner. This skill can be traced in our day to day functions. We cannot lead a normal life if there is no organization of our tasks, actions and thoughts. Thus, the same is needed in the field of practice. As in my case, since I am a mother, I have to look after my children and also manage the household properly juggling with work. I can manage it well and it helps me manage my professional work as well.

Inter-personal Skills
Another important part is the inter-personal skill. This is the utmost important thing for a social worker. If the client is not satisfied with the work he has been provided with, chances are you are not giving your best. It is very important that a strong bond is developed with the client and a deep understanding is grown. Such a skill helps in peeping into his world and helping him out in a much better way. One also needs to understand his own behavior and manner of presentation. Many a times, we do not understand but our mannerisms and behavior are not taken very nicely by the second person. This often creates misunderstandings. This should always be avoided and a comfort zone should be provided to the client. Again, strong communication skills and the mode of communication are extremely important for something like this. Sometimes, we need to be absolutely sure and sometimes modify our mode of communication to make the client feel better about us.

Decision Making skills
Authority, accountability and authority construct decision making abilities. These three are very important. The decision being taken should be reviewed and reworked again and again until absolutely sure. Asking questions to ones own self, making it sure that all the glitches and hunches from the decision are removed. Also, continuously questioning the decision if there is any hint of doubt in it is very much needed. I myself consider myself as a tough decision maker as I have worked with the Army. This exposure has taught me a great deal about surviving and taking strong decisions.

Teamwork skills
This is also important. As a social worker, we will always be surrounded with like minded people who are ready to help. We should never drive them out because of our inability to work in a team. This is absolutely wrong and should not be tolerated. This skill is developed in one, from childhood. For example, I was in my Schools Basketball Team. This kind of exposure taught me a lot on working with a team, performing as a team and not only as an individual. These skills have definitely helped me in being an effective team player.

Problem-solving skills
This can be summed up as the most basic and common skill of the profession. If someone lacks this, there are lesser chances of him able to take care of his client. This is needed in day to day life as well. A social worker should always be ready to take up challenges. Even if there is failure in the beginning, the going should be strong. I personally think my life has taught me a lot about this skill. Since my child is autistic, it was initially a huge challenge for me to understand how I go about in life. Things changed gradually and I took up a more mature outlook to life. Thus, my personal life has helped me immensely to acquire this skill.

These are certain skills which are of utmost importance and which should always be rooted in a social worker. Anyone who misses out on any of these skills will not be able to function properly. It is important to understand that these are basic skills and irreplaceable. Often, we gain these as we grow up.

UNDERSTANDING CLINICAL SOCIAL WORK
It is very important to understand what exactly is meant by clinical social work. Until, very late, this wing of social work was not much accepted as a separate entity. It is every social workers imperative to understand the client better and aim at the holistic development of the client. Any problem can have roots in deep emotional and psychological imprints of life. This often leads to many actions which should be not committed. Such a backdrop in every social workers mind helps a lot in understanding the clients behavior and his response to his surroundings and peers.

What exactly is clinical social work This question might confuse many. It is very important to distinguish it from other concerns of social work and welfare. Clinical social work aims at the psycho-social development of an individual or families. It helps us in understanding the way a person has been brought up, the hardships heshe has faced and how it has affected himher to lead life in the particular manner.

Exemplifying
Carla is 40 and a mother of four. Her husband has been imprisoned for four years now. She is bringing up the children on her own. Though she doesnt do anything of her own, her childrens education and food come from the welfare services money. Carlas youngest child, Steve is five years old and is suffering from Downs syndrome. Steves playschool teacher complains that he is extremely shy and clings to her almost all the time he doesnt have any friends and often misses school. Carla is aware of the same, yet unresponsive. The other children take care of each other and do not bother their mother much. Carla doesnt have the slightest idea if the children are falling in bad company.

A social worker visited Carla and a session with her brought out the fact that Carla was once a very enthusiastic and energetic young women. Her interests, when she was in school, was story writing and singing. At a very young age she started working at a nearby inn as a waitress and she met her husband there. Things changed after that. Marriage made things very difficult for her, as she was of a very ripe age when she married. Her life was surrounded by her treacherous husband and her kids whom she gave birth to within few months of her marriage.

Life became quite burdensome for her and she started losing herself to it bit by bit. Carlas interest in other things became extinct and she lost her natural abilities as well. After her husbands arrest, she was rendered helpless and could not think of possibly making her life better. In fact, she now thinks that her life is beyond lonely and she can never ever think of becoming that young Carla again she is now overweight and clearly depressed. Her children are burdensome for her and she has no idea how to handle a family.

This kind of situation, though uncommon, is a perfect example of how therapy and counseling can improve life of people. Carla needed a friend badly and was unable to take the pain she has received. Though she has lost her confidence, it cannot be dead. As a social worker, one can take it as a very interesting case study. Since, clinical social work looks at the whole development of the individual, it is important to understand that the social, the mental, the cognitive, in short the psycho-social attributes of the individual should be kept in mind.

WHAT DOES CLINICAL SOCIAL WORK INCLUDE
 Clinical social work very broadly includes provision of mental health services to the needy. If not the needy, it also provides diagnosis to prevent emotional and mental disorders of an individual or family. It is based on the social work theory of psychological understanding, deep and sometimes unconscious motivation, stress, psychopathology, behavioral sciences, et cetera.

The key perspective in clinical social work practice is the person in question. The client is the most important subject in any practice. It is him who should be given importance and understood. Also, the method of qualitative research helps a lot in this mode of practice. A lot of research usually accompanies clinical social work. The social worker should be working towards researching and understanding the client properly. A thorough research is needed as it is very much needed that the client is very close and comfortable with the person who is attending to him. Also, since in the case of clinical work, the topic or issue is extremely sensitive, a very emotional or soft approach should be kept while handling the client. This helps in building a strong rapport with him.

In this mode of work, the following are very important
Seeking and understanding the clients value and merit. This is the utmost important thing. A social worker should be very sure of his client and be able to bring out his hidden talents to bring back his confidence in himself.

There should be a strong respect for diversity. The clients different culture should not pose as a barrier in any social workers path. In fact, it should bring an opportunity to bring out cultural competence, giving each other opportunity to understand different cultures and traditions.

Promoting the clients self-determination. It is very important to have confidence in your client. There should be complete trust in him and his talent. Once, that is done, the client himself will open up and try to cope with his life or situation.

The clients confidentiality and privacy is of utmost importance. At no point should that be revealed to anyone under any circumstances. This creates a lot of problems in the clients progress. This also is a sign of poor efficacy on the workers part.

Also, the client should be protected from harm as much as possible. This is the sole responsibility of the social worker. Though, harms here refer to the mental and emotional complications that the client might involve himher in. This can be prevented by competent guidance and understanding.

Such a deep understanding of mankind makes it interesting for me to take up this profession. I would personally want to be a clinical addiction counselor. Being a mother myself, I understand how difficult life can be to you sometimes and how it is always a challenge to battle it out and emerge as a winner. My profession in the army has also taught me a lot of things.

One thing is very important to understand that being a mother myself I understand what youngsters are going through and how it helps to have someone to talk to. I would keenly look at clinical addiction. This is a very important topic of discussion. In this age of modernism, somewhere down the lane, we are losing touch with ourselves. Any small disturbance received by us, leads us to extreme decisions. This can be traced in people suffering from drug abuse, substance abuse, et cetera. This can only be prevented through careful counseling and strong understanding.

CLINICAL ADDICTION COUNSELLING
If I get to counsel someone who is suffering from drug abuse, my first aim would be finding the root of that abuse. A careful analysis of his circumstances will help me out with the same. What else I would do is talk to his family, his peers, understand what led him to such an extreme. This would help me get to the problem and its root. After that is over, what I would do is device a special set of questions and meetings which would help us in knowing each other better. This will take some time. After this is achieved, a careful retrospection on his life along with him is what I would do. This might help me reach to some conclusion and also help him in revisiting his life and one problem which is particularly significant. After this, we might start the counseling sessions on how to get rid of such an abuse. A careful understanding of his likes and dislikes is needed. It would help me in taking charge of what is it that would make his attention move away from drugs and other addiction.

LAW AND ACTION
Its known that drugs, addiction, et cetera often, lead to many heinous crimes. This often leads to misunderstanding of a person. The law sometimes has loopholes which prevent the careful understanding of situations and circumstances under which such crimes might have been committed. Thus, this often makes me feel that as a social worker and a mature individual, it is my duty to ensure that justice is not trampled with and also an innocent should not be punished wrongly. Hence, I see myself as a criminal attorney in the near future. I would be someone who would take help of her deep understanding of the social work profession and her challenges in day to day life, to seek out justice for others.

Social work as a profession is nobler than anyone imagines. It brings a reason to understand mankind and do every possible bit to improve it. Many a times, there are situations in which we might feel trapped but the best way to get out of it is to share it with a friend. Again, a social worker should always be considered as a friend. Nothing could be better than sharing problems and pains with someone who is mature and experienced enough to understand it. Sometimes, a social worker cannot function alone in the society. There is a vast need of like minded people to help the social worker community to perform better and to help the society better.

As a mature and responsible citizen, I am doing my bit to spread smiles and help my fellow beings. I meet challenges in my life everyday, but they make me strong. Again, talking to my clients, understanding their problems, make my life even better. The feeling of sharing joy is second to none.