Practice Behaviors:
3.1: Apply an understanding of social, economic, and environmental justice to advocate for human rights at the individual and system levels.
3.2: Engage in practices that advance social, economic, and environmental justice.
Competency 3 Narrative:
Each person is entitled to the fundamental rights such of freedom, privacy, safety, an adequate standard of living, and access to quality healthcare and education. As a social worker, I understand the interconnectivity of oppression and human rights violations as well as the repercussions. I have utilized my knowledge of theories addressing the correlation between human needs and social justice and continually strive to implement strategies that eliminate forms of discrimination and oppression faced by clients from a diverse range of backgrounds at both the individual and system levels.
Evidence 1 (Field):
At my field agency, Child Protection Services, we serve a diverse client base. As our primary goal is to ensure the safety and well-being of each child in the community, interviewing children is a vital component of our practice. Not long after beginning my internship, I realized that many of the children on our case load had varying developmental disabilities. During a particular interview with a 7-year-old boy diagnosed with autism, I recognized an overlooked need of this population: DCS employees are not taught how to effectively engage and communicate with children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder. A detailed journal entry regarding this can be found here (week 3, October 21).
Evidence 2 (Class):
During the Social Welfare and Policy course, we were given the opportunity to write a letter to the Editor. I chose to write to the Chattanooga Times Free Press addressing the Trump Administration’s “zero tolerance” immigration policy as well as the treatment of migrant children and their families in U.S. detention centers. The letter I wrote can be viewed here .
Evidence 3 (Additional):
On February 7, 2020, I was given the opportunity to participate as a scribe in the Women’s Policy Conference in downtown Chattanooga. It was an incredible experience to join in camaraderie with strong women, many of whom are in the field, and participate in panels that discussed issues I am very passionate about. I was able to obtain valuable information pertaining to these issues as well as effective ways to advocate for my clients who are currently facing the injustices discussed. The notes I took at each session I attended can be accessed here and here .
Skills Used: Within each practice behavior listed above, I demonstrated interpersonal skills, advocacy skills, and communication skills. Additionally, active listening skills were utilized when I participated in the Women’s Policy Conference and when receiving feedback for my field education post.
Knowledge Used: The knowledge necessary to fulfill this competency was obtained primarily through the social welfare & policy course, which taught us how to advocate effectively and introduced the many ways in which we are able to do so. Through the Integrative I Seminar course, I learned how to be an advocate at my practicum setting through utilizing communication and interpersonal skills as well as how to recognize overlooked needs of populations served by my agency.
Values Present: Advocacy directly correlates with the social work values of social justice, service, and dignity and worth of the person. Advocating for underserved clients within my agency and participating in the Women’s Policy Conference reflected each of these values.
Cognitive Processes Used: For this competency, I was able to recognize (knowledge domain) the overlooked needs of a population and also injustices faced by women and apply (application domain) this knowledge to my own social work practice.
Affective Processes Used: As a social worker, I felt it was my responsibility to advocate for policies that would advance social justice for women and for diverse populations within my agency. I demonstrated the ability to persuade (valuing domain) others to advocate for social justice and integrated (organization domain) this value through the practice behaviors demonstrated within this competency.
Theoretical Foundation: The theory I’ve found that correlates with this competency is the Theory of Prosocial Behavior. This theory focuses on the principle of helping others without condition and without expecting anything in return, citing that the rationale for helping others is often intrinsic motivation. Social workers are mandated to continually advocate for human rights and to advance practices that reflect the values of the social work profession. It is crucial that we are able to do so without the expectation of reciprocity but with the hope that the rights of every individual are recognized.