Manual
Dean H. Hepworth, Pa Der Vang, Joan Marie Blakey, Craig Schwalbe, Caroline B. R. Evans,
Ronald H. Rooney, Glenda Dewberry Rooney, Kimberly Strom
Table of Contents
Purpose and Perspective of the Chapter.......................................................................................................2
Chapter Objectives......................................................................................................................................2
What's New in This Chapter........................................................................................................................2
Chapter Outline...........................................................................................................................................3
Teaching Suggestions..................................................................................................................................3
,Purpose and Perspec琀椀ve of the Chapter
This chapter introduces social work as a profession, marked by a specific context, mission, and well-
established values, which includes the demonstration of specific competencies. Because social workers
and their clients operate in many different kinds and levels of environments, ecological and systems
concepts are useful metaphors for conceptualizing what social workers and clients must deal with. Direct
social work practice is characterized by multiple roles; these roles are often performed at the same time
and are carried out at several system levels depending on the concerns addressed. Knowledge and skills
related to some of these roles are taught in segments of the curriculum that lie outside direct practice
courses. To do justice in one volume to the knowledge and skills entailed in all these roles is impossible;
consequently, we have limited our focus primarily to the roles involved in providing direct service.
[return to top]
Chapter Objec琀椀ves
The following objectives are addressed in this chapter:
01.01 Understand the historic and contemporary factors influencing direct social work practice.
01.02 Understand the mission, purposes, roles, and opportunities of direct social work services.
01.03 Identify the value perspectives that guide social workers.
01.04 Describe the nine CSWE EPAS competencies that inform and evaluate social work practice.
01.05 Delineate the roles performed by direct-practice social workers.
01.06 Describe some contemporary issues that you may encounter or experience in social work
practice.
[return to top]
What's New in This Chapter
The following elements are improvements in this chapter from the previous edition:
Chapter 1 introduces you to the social work profession and explains its context, mission, features,
and values. We included an updated presentation of evidence-based practice, reframed the
presentation of social work challenges to opportunities, revised the values and social work roles
sections, and presented the case study more quickly in the chapter. We added a description of
environmental justice and contemporary issues facing social work practice. Finally, references to
the NASW Code of Ethics have been revised to reflect the new 2021 Code of Ethics.
[return to top]
Chapter Outline
I. The Mission of Social Work (01.02, PPT Slides 4–5)
II. Direct Social Work Practice (01.02, PPT Slides 6–10)
III. Roles (01.05, PPT Slide 11)
i. Social Work Values (01.03, PPT Slide 12)
IV. Social Work Competencies (01.04, PPT Slides 13–14)
, i. EPAS Competency 1—Demonstrate Ethical and Professional Behavior (01.04, PPT
Slide 13)
ii. EPAS Competency 2—Engage Anti-Racism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Practice
(01.04, PPT Slide 13)
iii. EPAS Competency 3—Advance Human Rights, and Social, Racial, Economic, and
Environmental Justice (01.04, PPT Slide 13)
iv. EPAS Competency 4—Engage in Practice-Informed Research and Research-Informed
Practice (01.04, PPT Slide 13)
v. EPAS Competency 5—Engage in Policy Practice (01.04, PPT Slide 13)
vi. EPAS Competency 6—Engage with Individuals, Families, Groups, Organizations, and
Communities (01.04, PPT Slide 14)
vii. EPAS Competency 7—Assess Individuals, Families, Groups, Organizations, and
Communities (01.04, PPT Slide 14)
viii. EPAS Competency 8—Intervene with Individuals, Families, Groups, Organizations, and
Communities (01.04, PPT Slide 14)
ix. EPAS Competency 9—Evaluate Practice with Individuals, Families, Groups,
Organizations, and Communities (01.04, PPT Slide 14)
V. Contemporary Influences on Direct Practice (01.01, PPT Slide 15–23
i. Self-Care (01.01, PPT Slide 15)
ii. Pandemics (01.01, PPT Slide 16)
iii. Funding for Services (01.01, PPT Slides 17–18)
iv. Technological Advances (01.01, PPT Slide 19)
v. Globalization (01.01, PPT Slide 20)
vi. Scientific Changes (01.01, PPT Slide 21–22)
vii. Sociopolitical Environment (01.01, PPT Slide 23)
VI. Applying the Concepts to the Ramirez Case (01.02)
[return to top]
Teaching Sugges琀椀ons
1. After introducing yourself, divide students into randomly assigned groups of four or six. Instruct the
student within each group to introduce themselves to each other and briefly interview the classmate to
their right (five minutes each). They should ask:
What excites and intrigues you about taking this class?
What resources and strengths do you bring to this class?
What worries or concerns do you bring to this class?
When they are done, ask them to briefly introduce their classmate to the class and provide at
least one comment under the categories on the board: resources and strengths, worries or
concerns. As the instructor, note the major themes across groups. For example, students often
anticipate that they will bring eagerness to learn to the enterprise. They are also often
apprehensive that they won’t do well as other students. The exercise is designed to demonstrate
that each individual and group brings potential strengths, resources, and deficits or obstacles to a
situation. Students are then asked to consider the implications for practice if they were asked to
practice focusing primarily on reducing deficits or exclusively with building on strengths. For
example, consider the implications if instruction were built largely around reducing their anxiety
or building on their enthusiasm. Such a dual perspective will guide them in problem-solving and
building strengths with client systems throughout the book.
2. Discuss the different levels of social work practice. Ask students to reflect on the services
, provided by their practicum or employment agencies and assess the extent to which agency staff
is involved in micro, mezzo, and macro practice. Discuss the implications of their responses with
respect to the overall purpose and mission of social work.
3. The textbook described seven contemporary influences on the profession of social work and
social work practice—the need for self-care, pandemics (COVID-19, violence against Black and
Brown people), funding for services, technological advances, globalization, scientific changes,
and the sociopolitical environment. Invite students to consider contemporary movements or
problems that are not on this list. How do these movements or problems impact social welfare
policy, the social work profession, and the practice of social work?
4. Ask students to identify examples of social and economic injustice and discuss the impact of such
injustice, not only on the victims, but also on all of society. For example, current issues could
involve a discussion of the impact of an economic recession or pandemic on social work’s client
groups, the circumstances of work with clients who lack documents, racial profiling, the extent to
which homelessness is accepted as a permanent social problem, and the disproportionate number
of children of color in the child-welfare system.
[return to top]
Dean H. Hepworth, Pa Der Vang, Joan Marie Blakey, Craig Schwalbe, Caroline B. R. Evans,
Ronald H. Rooney, Glenda Dewberry Rooney, Kimberly Strom
Table of Contents
Purpose and Perspective of the Chapter.......................................................................................................2
Chapter Objectives......................................................................................................................................2
What's New in This Chapter........................................................................................................................2
Chapter Outline...........................................................................................................................................3
Teaching Suggestions..................................................................................................................................3
,Purpose and Perspec琀椀ve of the Chapter
This chapter introduces social work as a profession, marked by a specific context, mission, and well-
established values, which includes the demonstration of specific competencies. Because social workers
and their clients operate in many different kinds and levels of environments, ecological and systems
concepts are useful metaphors for conceptualizing what social workers and clients must deal with. Direct
social work practice is characterized by multiple roles; these roles are often performed at the same time
and are carried out at several system levels depending on the concerns addressed. Knowledge and skills
related to some of these roles are taught in segments of the curriculum that lie outside direct practice
courses. To do justice in one volume to the knowledge and skills entailed in all these roles is impossible;
consequently, we have limited our focus primarily to the roles involved in providing direct service.
[return to top]
Chapter Objec琀椀ves
The following objectives are addressed in this chapter:
01.01 Understand the historic and contemporary factors influencing direct social work practice.
01.02 Understand the mission, purposes, roles, and opportunities of direct social work services.
01.03 Identify the value perspectives that guide social workers.
01.04 Describe the nine CSWE EPAS competencies that inform and evaluate social work practice.
01.05 Delineate the roles performed by direct-practice social workers.
01.06 Describe some contemporary issues that you may encounter or experience in social work
practice.
[return to top]
What's New in This Chapter
The following elements are improvements in this chapter from the previous edition:
Chapter 1 introduces you to the social work profession and explains its context, mission, features,
and values. We included an updated presentation of evidence-based practice, reframed the
presentation of social work challenges to opportunities, revised the values and social work roles
sections, and presented the case study more quickly in the chapter. We added a description of
environmental justice and contemporary issues facing social work practice. Finally, references to
the NASW Code of Ethics have been revised to reflect the new 2021 Code of Ethics.
[return to top]
Chapter Outline
I. The Mission of Social Work (01.02, PPT Slides 4–5)
II. Direct Social Work Practice (01.02, PPT Slides 6–10)
III. Roles (01.05, PPT Slide 11)
i. Social Work Values (01.03, PPT Slide 12)
IV. Social Work Competencies (01.04, PPT Slides 13–14)
, i. EPAS Competency 1—Demonstrate Ethical and Professional Behavior (01.04, PPT
Slide 13)
ii. EPAS Competency 2—Engage Anti-Racism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Practice
(01.04, PPT Slide 13)
iii. EPAS Competency 3—Advance Human Rights, and Social, Racial, Economic, and
Environmental Justice (01.04, PPT Slide 13)
iv. EPAS Competency 4—Engage in Practice-Informed Research and Research-Informed
Practice (01.04, PPT Slide 13)
v. EPAS Competency 5—Engage in Policy Practice (01.04, PPT Slide 13)
vi. EPAS Competency 6—Engage with Individuals, Families, Groups, Organizations, and
Communities (01.04, PPT Slide 14)
vii. EPAS Competency 7—Assess Individuals, Families, Groups, Organizations, and
Communities (01.04, PPT Slide 14)
viii. EPAS Competency 8—Intervene with Individuals, Families, Groups, Organizations, and
Communities (01.04, PPT Slide 14)
ix. EPAS Competency 9—Evaluate Practice with Individuals, Families, Groups,
Organizations, and Communities (01.04, PPT Slide 14)
V. Contemporary Influences on Direct Practice (01.01, PPT Slide 15–23
i. Self-Care (01.01, PPT Slide 15)
ii. Pandemics (01.01, PPT Slide 16)
iii. Funding for Services (01.01, PPT Slides 17–18)
iv. Technological Advances (01.01, PPT Slide 19)
v. Globalization (01.01, PPT Slide 20)
vi. Scientific Changes (01.01, PPT Slide 21–22)
vii. Sociopolitical Environment (01.01, PPT Slide 23)
VI. Applying the Concepts to the Ramirez Case (01.02)
[return to top]
Teaching Sugges琀椀ons
1. After introducing yourself, divide students into randomly assigned groups of four or six. Instruct the
student within each group to introduce themselves to each other and briefly interview the classmate to
their right (five minutes each). They should ask:
What excites and intrigues you about taking this class?
What resources and strengths do you bring to this class?
What worries or concerns do you bring to this class?
When they are done, ask them to briefly introduce their classmate to the class and provide at
least one comment under the categories on the board: resources and strengths, worries or
concerns. As the instructor, note the major themes across groups. For example, students often
anticipate that they will bring eagerness to learn to the enterprise. They are also often
apprehensive that they won’t do well as other students. The exercise is designed to demonstrate
that each individual and group brings potential strengths, resources, and deficits or obstacles to a
situation. Students are then asked to consider the implications for practice if they were asked to
practice focusing primarily on reducing deficits or exclusively with building on strengths. For
example, consider the implications if instruction were built largely around reducing their anxiety
or building on their enthusiasm. Such a dual perspective will guide them in problem-solving and
building strengths with client systems throughout the book.
2. Discuss the different levels of social work practice. Ask students to reflect on the services
, provided by their practicum or employment agencies and assess the extent to which agency staff
is involved in micro, mezzo, and macro practice. Discuss the implications of their responses with
respect to the overall purpose and mission of social work.
3. The textbook described seven contemporary influences on the profession of social work and
social work practice—the need for self-care, pandemics (COVID-19, violence against Black and
Brown people), funding for services, technological advances, globalization, scientific changes,
and the sociopolitical environment. Invite students to consider contemporary movements or
problems that are not on this list. How do these movements or problems impact social welfare
policy, the social work profession, and the practice of social work?
4. Ask students to identify examples of social and economic injustice and discuss the impact of such
injustice, not only on the victims, but also on all of society. For example, current issues could
involve a discussion of the impact of an economic recession or pandemic on social work’s client
groups, the circumstances of work with clients who lack documents, racial profiling, the extent to
which homelessness is accepted as a permanent social problem, and the disproportionate number
of children of color in the child-welfare system.
[return to top]
