Social work
Unit 1
Thinking critically and understanding
social work
The purpose and need
Social work:
Promotes – social change, problem solving in human relationships and empowerment
and liberation of people to enhance their well-being
Uses – theories of human behaviour and social systems
Intervenes at the points where people interact with their environments
Fundamental aspects – principles of human rights and social justice
, South Africa has adopted the social development aspect of welfare.
Supports a people centred approach to social and economic development.
high rates of inequality result in extreme feelings of disappointment and conflict in
the majority of people who are excluded from the developing middle class.
Community developers, people in the helping professions and social workers:
• Address the needs of individuals, families, groups and communities
• Act as advocates for the poorest and most marginalised members of society
• Help people identify the impact of social and economic oppression and exclusion
• Engage in processes of social action to change socio-economic structures and to
empower them to improve their life circumstances
Thinking critically
Critical thinking can be defined as: involves the ability to actively and skilfully
conceptualise, analyse, question and evaluate ideas and beliefs.
, Critical thinking involves:
thinking for yourself, informed reasoning and critical self-reflection
Important aspects:
questioning of beliefs, statements, assumptions, lines of reasoning, actions and experiences.
not taking this ""fact"" or ""truth"" at face value.
Uncritical persons: are those who have not developed intellectual skills, persons
who are naive, conformist, easily manipulated, often inflexible, easily confused,
typically unclear, narrow-minded, and ineffective in their use of language.
Selfish critical persons: are skilled thinkers who use their intellectual skills of critical
thinking selectively and self-deceptively to foster and serve their vested interests (at the
expense of truth). They are able to identify flaws in the reasoning of others and to disprove
them, and to back up their own claims with plausible reasons, but they have not learned
how to reason empathically within the points of view with which they disagree.
Fairminded critical persons: are skilled thinkers who do accept and honour
the values of critical thinking.
, WHY SHOULD YOU STUDY, CRITICALLY
THINK ABOUT, UNDER- STAND, AND
BECOME INVOLVED IN POLICY?
Social policy offers:
• a way of studying the kinds of issues that matters in real life,
• it engages with serious social problems,
• looks at how those problems can be dealt with,
• and examines strategies for putting responses into practice.
Social policy has often drawn in people who are concerned about social wrongs, and who
want to facilitate processes to put them right.
Social workers are the main providers, defenders, and advocates of the social welfare
system.
Social workers must have two types of policy related knowledge:
1. from a practice perspective, the social workers should possess a general knowledge of:
• the suitability of welfare programmes,
• the different forms of services available for clients,
• the levels of assistance provided by the government and organisations.
Unit 1
Thinking critically and understanding
social work
The purpose and need
Social work:
Promotes – social change, problem solving in human relationships and empowerment
and liberation of people to enhance their well-being
Uses – theories of human behaviour and social systems
Intervenes at the points where people interact with their environments
Fundamental aspects – principles of human rights and social justice
, South Africa has adopted the social development aspect of welfare.
Supports a people centred approach to social and economic development.
high rates of inequality result in extreme feelings of disappointment and conflict in
the majority of people who are excluded from the developing middle class.
Community developers, people in the helping professions and social workers:
• Address the needs of individuals, families, groups and communities
• Act as advocates for the poorest and most marginalised members of society
• Help people identify the impact of social and economic oppression and exclusion
• Engage in processes of social action to change socio-economic structures and to
empower them to improve their life circumstances
Thinking critically
Critical thinking can be defined as: involves the ability to actively and skilfully
conceptualise, analyse, question and evaluate ideas and beliefs.
, Critical thinking involves:
thinking for yourself, informed reasoning and critical self-reflection
Important aspects:
questioning of beliefs, statements, assumptions, lines of reasoning, actions and experiences.
not taking this ""fact"" or ""truth"" at face value.
Uncritical persons: are those who have not developed intellectual skills, persons
who are naive, conformist, easily manipulated, often inflexible, easily confused,
typically unclear, narrow-minded, and ineffective in their use of language.
Selfish critical persons: are skilled thinkers who use their intellectual skills of critical
thinking selectively and self-deceptively to foster and serve their vested interests (at the
expense of truth). They are able to identify flaws in the reasoning of others and to disprove
them, and to back up their own claims with plausible reasons, but they have not learned
how to reason empathically within the points of view with which they disagree.
Fairminded critical persons: are skilled thinkers who do accept and honour
the values of critical thinking.
, WHY SHOULD YOU STUDY, CRITICALLY
THINK ABOUT, UNDER- STAND, AND
BECOME INVOLVED IN POLICY?
Social policy offers:
• a way of studying the kinds of issues that matters in real life,
• it engages with serious social problems,
• looks at how those problems can be dealt with,
• and examines strategies for putting responses into practice.
Social policy has often drawn in people who are concerned about social wrongs, and who
want to facilitate processes to put them right.
Social workers are the main providers, defenders, and advocates of the social welfare
system.
Social workers must have two types of policy related knowledge:
1. from a practice perspective, the social workers should possess a general knowledge of:
• the suitability of welfare programmes,
• the different forms of services available for clients,
• the levels of assistance provided by the government and organisations.
