SOCIAL CASE WORK

1. BY AMIT KUMAR MOB NO.: +919435028022/9708811272 EMAIL-amitranjanfn09@outlook.com
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR
DCTCL, CUJ RANCHI
SOCIAL CASE WORK
BY
AMIT KUMAR
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR
DEPARTMENT OF CONTEMPORARY AND TRIBAL CUSTOMARY LAW
CENTRAL UNIVIERSITY OF JHARKHAND
Lecture 2
CONCEPT OF SOCIAL CASE WORK
Mary Richmond pioneered scientific social case work. She states that, “Social case work
consists of those processes which develop personality through adjustments consciously
effected, individual by individual, between men and their social environment. In 1915 she said
that social case work is the art of doing different things for and with different people by
cooperating with them to achieve at one and the same time their own and society’s betterment.
Again in 1922 she said that social case work is for change of the personality of the individual
for proper social adjustment.
Hamilton (1956) defined that in social case work, the client is stimulated to participate in the
study of his situation, to share plans, to make an active effort to solve his problems using his
own resources and whatever community resources are available and appropriate.
Perlman (1957) described social case work as a process used by certain human welfare
agencies to help individuals to cope more effectively with their problems in social functioning.
In this definition, Perlman has indicated four essential components of social case work in their
relationship to one another: A person with a problem comes to a place where a professional
representative helps him by a given process. Since this is the heart of almost any situation
where a person seeks provisional help, the distinctive characteristics are delineated which are
as follows:
Person: The person is a man, woman, or child, anyone who finds himself, or is found
to be, in need of help in some aspect of his social-emotional living, whether the need

2. BY AMIT KUMAR MOB NO.: +919435028022/9708811272 EMAIL-amitranjanfn09@outlook.com
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR
DCTCL, CUJ RANCHI
be for tangible provisions or counselling. As he begins to receive such help, he is called
a client.
Problem: The problem arises from some need or obstacle or accumulation of
frustrations or maladjustments, and sometimes all of these together, which threatens or
has already attacked the adequacy of the person’s living situation or the effectiveness
of his efforts to deal with it.
Place: The place is a social service agency or a social service department or some kind
of human welfare agency. Its purpose is to help individuals with the particular social
handicaps, which hamper good personal or family living and with the problems created
by faulty person-to-person, person-to-group, or person-to-situation relationships. This
purpose and functions of the agency come to life in the person and professional
performance of the case worker.
Process: The process, named “social case work” denotes the individualized aspect of
progressive transaction between the professional helper and the client. It consists of a
series of problem-solving operations carried on within a meaningful relationship. The
client develops effectiveness in coping with his problem and or to so influence the
problem as to resolve it or vitiate its effects.
Causes of Human Problems
Lack of material resources:
Social work agencies do not provide financial resources to give assistance to people who seek
material help. However, when lack of resources makes it difficult for the individual to deal
with a particular situation then it is possible that the client can obtain financial help through the
services of case worker depending upon the nature of situation and the policy of the agency.
For example, it is possible for the poor patients in a general hospital to get monetary help
through the social work department of the hospital for buying medicines.
Misconceptions about situations and relationships:

3. BY AMIT KUMAR MOB NO.: +919435028022/9708811272 EMAIL-amitranjanfn09@outlook.com
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR
DCTCL, CUJ RANCHI
Wrong notions about situations or circumstances prevent people from handling them
effectively. Sometimes ignorance about existing services and resources delays action. Help is
required to correct distorted perceptions and for obtaining essential information.
Illness or health related handicaps:
Physical or mental illness and health related handicaps of various types make people helpless
or irrational in the face of difficulties. For instance, if the main earner in the family develops
severe illness, then wife may bear extra burden and face problems for which she may require
help. The patient and the family members need help to accept illness of the former and to make
realistic plans for the present and future.
Emotional distress:
In certain situations, strong feelings are aroused which make it difficult for the person to act
sensibly. For instance, sudden death of a spouse could be a shock for other. In such emotionally
upsetting situation, person needs someone to verbalize feeling freely for catharsis.
Personality features:
Sometimes personality features of individuals create problematic situations for oneself and
others but also make the person incapable of solving problems of life. These include unhealthy
attitudes and beliefs deeply embedded in the personality, which may cause numerous problems
in human relationship.
Types of Problems

4. BY AMIT KUMAR MOB NO.: +919435028022/9708811272 EMAIL-amitranjanfn09@outlook.com
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR
DCTCL, CUJ RANCHI
Purpose of social case work
According to Freindlander (1991), the purpose of case work practice is to help individual client
to solve or to prevent or to cure the breakdown of a healthy relationship between an individual
and his family or other associates. It helps people to identify and resolve problems in their
relationships or at least to minimize their effects.
In general, the purpose of social case work is to help an individual client to solve his psycho-
social problems in such a way that he finds himself capable of dealing with these problems at
present and also may solve them in the future (Mishra1994). Thus, social case work has the
following objectives:
1. To understand and solve the internal problems of the individual.
2. To strengthen the ego power
3. Remediation of problems in social functioning
4. Prevention of problems in social functioning
5. Development of resources to enhance social functioning
Values of Social Case Work
Values determine worker’s attitudes and approaches. Social Work assumes inherent worth and
importance of the individual and interdependence between the individual and society. In the
democratic tradition, powers are delegated to the individual and people. Social institutions are
created by people and are subordinate to their desires and wishes. They are formed by
individuals and exist to serve them. They can be changed or renewed but the individual remains
and enjoys a certain supremacy.
The values of social case work are as follows:
1. The value and worth of an individual are uppermost
2. Man, and society are interdependent upon each other and have social responsibility for
one another
3. Each person is essentially different and unique yet, each person has needs in common
with all others

5. BY AMIT KUMAR MOB NO.: +919435028022/9708811272 EMAIL-amitranjanfn09@outlook.com
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR
DCTCL, CUJ RANCHI
4. In a democratic society the potential of each person is realized and it is assumed that
they will accept social responsibility by actively participating in society
5. When an individual is unable to function, society has a responsibility to remove the
obstacles that prevent achievement.