HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES 12 members, and to help them realize the importance of

Handouts 2- Disciplines and Ideas in Applied Social marriage, parenting, and the family as a whole. They
Sciences work closely with their clients to help them get through
nd
2 Quarter - Lesson 2 -Clientele, Work Services, with difficult challenges in life whether it’s addiction,
Processes and Methods in Social Work abuse, disability, poverty, discrimination and the like.
They help them discover new and innovative ways to
Learning Objectives: resolve or cope up with those personal and social
1. describe the Clientele of Social Work problems thereby giving them the knowledge, skills and
(HUMSS_DIASS 12-Ig-24); empowerment they need in order to improve their lives.
2. distinguish the needs of Individuals, groups hand, social worker professionals provide the need for
organization and communities conflict resolution skills to couples and children to deal
(HUMSS_DIASS 12-Ig-25); with problems and issues that threaten their unity. Their
3. illustrate the different processes, method involving goals are to reconcile couples or the family members,
social work (HUMSS_DIASS 12-Ig-27) and to help them realize the importance of marriage,
parenting, and the family as a whole. They work closely
with their clients to help them get through with difficult
challenges in life whether it’s addiction, abuse,
disability, poverty, discrimination and the like. They
help them
To strengthen your ideas about the topic, read
discover new and innovative ways to resolve or cope up
the following learning points and prepare for the
with those personal and social problems thereby giving
different activities that will test your knowledge and
them the knowledge, skills and empowerment they need
skills as you go through the lesson.
in order to improve their lives.
Characteristic of Clientele and Audience of Social
The Individual as Client of Social Work
Work
Social workers play a critical role in stabilizing
All people with various social concerns share the lives of individuals and families through a variety of
characteristics and qualities of the clientele and audience intervention. They are oriented also toward the
of social work; individuals, families, groups and prevention, improvement or resolution of health, social,
communities needing assistance in realizing change of and environmental issues that affect individuals. Social
behavior or attitude and experiencing different personal work services promote the health and well-being of
and social problems like grief and loss, different kinds individuals by helping them to become more self-
of violence, abuse, terminal illness and etc. The type of sufficient and competent members of the society.
information that is effective and suitable will be Problems like loss of job, divorce, alcoholism, illness,
influenced by the characteristics of the target audience, and violence may result to depression which in turn may
including their gender, ethnicity, culture, age, disability, lead to death if not given appropriate action. That is why
sexuality, lifestyle, communication needs, location, social work services are very important in coping up
health literacy, socio-economic status, beliefs, with the challenges in every stage of our lives.
preferences, health condition, and coping strategies. In order to give assistance to the person, the
There is a need to consider the characteristics of the worker must assess his problem and the ways on how to
audience, such as disability, language spoken and health offer solution to the problem.
literacy, and the impact of this on how it is most A social casework is more of a client or person
effective to communicate with them. centered that finding solution to the problem is based on
the person’s adaptability to cope with the said difficulty.
Needs of Various type of Clientele and Thus, it is imperative to know that the person’s present
Audiences of Social Work Social workers are dominant behavior is a manifestation of his current condition that
members of society who work passionately to relieve cause him stress.
suffering and better the lives of all people in need. They
engage themselves in different clients with different
behaviors and characters who are seeking for help and
assistance. These helps and assistance vary for each type
of clientele and audience of social work. In the school
context for example, guidance counselors provide the
need for personal guidance among the students by
helping them find better and more appropriate career
choices that is suitable for them. In terms of family on
the other hand, social worker professionals provide the
need for conflict resolution skills to couples and children
to deal with problems and issues that threaten their
unity. Their goals are to reconcile couples or the family
 Social Work Processes
The social work process comprises a sequence
of actions or tasks that draw on all of the components of
practice. Although its process is presented sequentially,
it rarely follows a clear linear route and is more often a
fluid, circular cycle whereby workers move from
assessment through to implementation and evaluation
and back to assessment again. Despite this fluidity, some
parts of the process, such as assessment, have clearly
defined procedures guided by local or national policy.
Some tasks may be fairly short and discrete, but many
are longer term and more complex,
such as assessments. You will also find that tasks often
overlap and are revisited over a period
of involvement with a service user. The tasks or stages
of the social work process are shown in Figure below.

The Group and Organization as Client of Social

Work

Groups are essential part of social life. The

inevitability of being with them makes it one of the most
important factors in our society. It exists in
communities,
organizations, students in schools, teachers in school,
and departments in workplaces. They can be highly
rewarding to their members and to society as a whole,
but there are also significant problems and issues that
must be resolved in order to have a successful
organization. The needs can range from desire to reduce
conflict or manage it, become more productive as a team
or work better together. Social work practice with
groups builds on the important impact of groups on
individuals and utilizes group processes to accomplish
individual and group goals.

The Community as Client of Social Work

Social workers help communities to function
effectively. They conduct assessment on a larger scale
and design programs and specific intervention
techniques. Such programs include organizational and
community practice or community empowerment and
program development. Once established, a strong
community generates a participatory energy that makes
members feel integrated and empowered. This sense of
community brings out the best in people and inspires
them to do more for themselves and those around them.
Developing an understanding and awareness of the
social work process is one of the prerequisites for
becoming a ‘reflective’ practitioner. Reflection refers to
the ability to work in a thoughtful and systematic way.
Practitioners need to be aware (and inform service users)
of why they are engaged in particular tasks and to be
able to justify their methods of working. Interventions
should be meaningful and fit within an overall plan or
strategy. Awareness of the different stages of the social
work process can assist social workers to prepare for,
carry out and evaluate their interventions in order to
both be accountable for, and reflect upon, their actions.