SOCW 6520 WK responses
Respond to the blog post of three colleagues Has to be responded to separately and different responses in one or more of the following ways: Name first and references after every person
Respond to the blog post of three colleagues in one or more of the following ways:
- Expand on your colleague’s posting.
- Make a suggestion to your colleague’s post.
Peer 1: David Jones
Understanding the community context within which an individual lives is crucial to understanding development (Bronfenbrenner & Morris, 1997), yet many different definitions of community are used. Community is used interchangeably with neighborhood (Leventhal & Brooks-Gunn, 2000). Community effects on adult substance use where I intern and other problem behaviors are usually conducted at the individual-level: examining how individual perceptions of the community context have influenced individual outcomes (Arthur, Hawkins, Pollard, Catalano & Baglioni, 2002; Leffert et al., 1998; Resnick, Ireland, & Borowsky, 2004). Correlations among community risks, resources, and poverty are found in high levels of economic risk. This same community is associated with higher levels of crime, a more pro-substance use environment, and worse district functioning. A negative association between residential instability and the substance use environment are major contributing factors.
Economic risk and residential instability may be decreased through logistical efforts such as increasing job opportunities and/or the minimum wage, and improving access to higher education or trade schools which are some services provided. Levels of collective efficacy may be increased by incorporating physical structures and places into neighborhoods that encourage community residents to interact with each other while engaging in constructive activities.
The first step in the planning of our drug abuse prevention program with the community is to assess the type of drug problem within the community and determine the level of risk factors affecting the problem. The results of this assessment can be used to raise awareness of the nature and seriousness of the communitys problem and guide selection of the best prevention methods to address the problem.
references
Arthur MW, Hawkins JD, Pollard JA, Catalano RF, Baglioni AJ (2002). Measuring risk and protective factors for substance use, delinquency, and other adolescent problem behaviors – The communities that care youth survey. Evaluation Review.
Bronfenbrenner U, Morris PA (1997). The ecology of developmental processes. In: Damon W, editor. Handbookof human psychology. 5. New York: Wiley.
Leventhal T, Brooks-Gunn J (2000). The neighborhoods the live in: The effects of neighborhood residence on adult outcomes. Psychological Bulletin.
Peer 2: Alicia Simpkins
Working with individuals and families and groups is always inevitable in the social work setting. Working with individuals and families seems to be especially intertwined. When working at this level, the focus is on the scope of practice on the interactions of individuals and families and their environments (Birkenmaier & Berg-Weger, 2018). When working with the individual, one will likely get an understanding of how the family and the environment surrounding all parties may affect the individual. When working with groups, one may encounter different individuals from all walks of life, all of which have one common goal and are there to support one another. According to the text, group practice shares a commitment to a system perspective, group dynamics, common intervention concepts and processes, and evaluation (Birkenmaier & Berg-Weger, 2018).
Group practice seems to be most common at my intern placement. While there is often individual and family sessions with clinicians, there is commonly group practice. We have group meetings for those who are participating in intensive outpatient services for our substance abuse treatment program. We also have group practice for adolescents that are utilizing services provided by our organization, such as mentoring services, or support groups to reduce truancy, to name a few. Group practice and being able to interact with all individuals of from various backgrounds is extremely common in and allows clients to support each other since they all share a common goal.
References
Birkenmaier, J., & Berg-Weger, M. (2018). The practicum companion for social work: Integrating class and fieldwork. New York, NY: Pearson.
Peer 3: Amber Hopf
Explanation of individual, family, and group context in agency
Social workers work in different contexts to meet the needs of their clients (Laureate Education, 2013). For instance, social workers may approach situations and experiences differently depending on what services they are providing. Birkenmaier and Berg-Weger (2018) discuss how a social workers role consist of addressing the issues at hand and providing clients with the proper treatment in order to meet their needs as well as create a change within the community. In other words, social workers are meant to ensure that clients are receiving the appropriate services and resources needed to enhance their well-being.
With that being said, at my internship my role consists of working with foster and biological families to help them achieve the goals of reuniting parents with the children. Thus, my role involves more interaction with families and their achievement in reaching their goals and meeting their needs. In fact, I continuously collaborate with both parties to ensure that biological parents and children are getting these opportunities to meet and rebuild that parent-child relationship. In doing so, I am focused on reconnecting parents with children so that they can be reunited in the future. On the other hand, my role consists of working closely with case workers regarding the cases. This includes emails detailing the visitation sessions as well as any concerns that may arise with the case. In adapting to these contexts and roles, I am better able to provide additional services or resources that could benefit both the parents and children. The ultimate goal is for the biological parents and their children to rebuild these relationships with the hopes of reuniting in the home. Therefore, the procedures and treatments utilized are to give professionals the ability to provide best possible treatment in order to meet the needs of the families.
References
Birkenmaier, J., & Berg-Weger, M. (2018). The practicum companion for social work: Integrating class and fieldwork (4th ed.). New York, NY: Pearson.
Laureate Education. (Producer). (2013). Individual, family, and group contact [Audio file]. Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu.
