Social Work and Education

1. Dynamics of
Relationship in
Social Work Practice
UNIT 2

2. Ethical Relationships in Social Work
Practice
For Merinda, Michael, her social worker, had become her knight in shining
armour. He knew everything about her and was one of the only persons she
had ever met who had not judged her about the bad decisions that she had
made in the past. He understood her struggles and supported her through
them. He listened to her and he was so patient. He was everything she had
always dreamt about in a partner.
Michael, Merinda’s social worker, was experiencing a struggle. He had seen
Merinda grow from a fearful, insecure young lady to one who was confident
and able to address the challenges that she had faced. He was really proud of
her. “It would be sad to say goodbye after our final session next week”, he
thought. “Per haps I can arrange to meet her for dinner from time to time after
termination. Perhaps I can become a mentor and continue to encourage”.

3. Defining Social Work Relationships
 Biestek (1957), an influential author in social work, defined the casework
relationship as ‘the dynamic interaction of attitudes and emotions between
the caseworker and client, with the purpose of helping the client achieve a
better adjustment between himself and his environment’ (p.17).
 Folgheraiter (2004) noted that the social work relationship generally refers
to the “bond established between a person able to give help (the helper)
and a person who needs that help (the helpee)” (pp. 95 - 96).

4. Differentiating personal from
professional relationships
 Can you differentiate from a personal and a professional relationship?
 Can you give examples of the two?

5. The importance of social work
relationships
 Social workers operating from a psychodynamic perspective link the
problems experienced by the adult client to the childhood experiences
he/she may have had and employ the relationship to “repair” the
poor/destructive relationships from the past (Sudbery, 2002).
 O’Leary, Tsui and Ruch et al. (2010) (citing research by Coady, 1993,
Howe, 1998 and Lee & Ayon, 2004), indicated that the quality of the social
work relationship is a greater predictor of the outcome of intervention than
the specific model used by the social worker. The relationship provides
the context within which and the means by which the challenges
experienced by the client are addressed.

6. Ethical guidelines for social work
relationships
Reamer (2001) provides a five-step risk-management protocol to assist social
workers in guarding against boundary violations.
1. Be on the lookout for the development of dual relationships with clients. Let
the client know when you recognise a boundary violation/crossing.
2. Liaise with your social work supervisor and/or colleagues about concerns
about boundary violations/crossings.
3. Read the code of ethics which guides your region as well as the agency’s
guidelines to identify boundary violations/crossings and possible strategies for
addressing them.
4. Plan and implement a strategy for addressing the boundary violation.
Ensure that the client experiences the least harm possible, but be aware that
this may, in some cases, involve the termination of the professional
relationship.

7.  5. Ensure you record all the steps that you have taken to address the
boundary violation.
 6. Monitor your implementation of the plan of action to ensure that it was
effective in addressing the boundary violation/crossing.

8.  These similarities between professional and personal relationships can, if not
carefully managed, create confusion for clients and lead to boundary
crossings or violations in the professional relationship. Let’s expand the
description of Merinda, the character in the case scenario.
 Merinda had rarely seen her father when she was growing up and as an adult,
she had several failed intimate relationships. On meeting a male social worker,
who was skilled in the art of relationship building and who was able to use the
relationship therapeutically for her growth and development, Merinda began to
confuse the purpose of the relationship. She began to think that she had
finally met a person who understood her and with whom she could establish a
relationship. Although she never admitted these feelings to her social worker,
she invested heavily in the social work relationship and frequently expressed
her appreciation to Michael for his role in transforming her life.

9. Let’s think about it…
 How should Michael, the social worker, deal with Merinda’s attraction to
him? Should he follow through with his idea to have dinner with her from
time to time after termination? Why or why not?

10. Power in Social Work
Relationships
Session 2.2

11. Understanding the power of dimension
in relationship
 When you think of power, which of the following do you think of:
 Abuse
 Authority
 Strength

12. Types of Power
Raven (2008), referring to a well-known article by French and Raven (1959)identified six
sources of power.
 Informational power: When the agent (the person possessing greater power in the
relationship) has greater knowledge than the target (the person possessing less power
in the relationship), he/she has informational power. Sharing this information with the
target may lead to a change in behaviour or attitude.
 Reward power: When the agent possesses incentives (for example, money, gifts,
grades), the target may change his/her behaviour in hope of receiving the incentives.
 Coercive power: The agent has the power to implement negative actions and
consequences. The target person may change his/her behaviour in order to avoid the
actions/consequences.
 Legitimate power: The target person accepts that the agent has the right to impose
his/her power.
 Expert power: The target believes that the agent has sufficient knowledge or
experience and is willing to accept his/her decision, even if he/she does not fully
understand it.
 Referent power: The target views the agent as someone he/she would like to model or
imitate. The agent is therefore able to influence the target because of the regard with
which he is held by target.

13. Power in social work relationships
Let’s look at the categories mentioned on the previous slide, and relate the to
social work.
 Informational Power
 Reward Power
 Coercive Power
 Legitimate Power
 Expert Power
 Referent Power

14. Effective
communication in
Social Work
Practice
Session 2.3

15. The Communication Process
Sheafor, Horejsi and Horesi (2000) provided several tips for enhancing
communication, which may be applied to the social work interview. They
recommend that when sending a message you should
• “Use clear, simple language . . .
• Make sure (your body language) is congruent with your message
• Break up a lengthy or complex message into several parts so it can be more
easily followed and understood
• Ask for . . . feedback so you will know whether you are being understood” (p.?)
 When listening to a message from a client, you should
• Listen patiently without interrupting
• Communicate interest in what the person is saying
• Seek clarification if you are unclear about any aspect of the message
• Process your emotions, so that strong emotions do not hinder you from
understanding the message.

16. “
”
The basic building block of good
communications is the feeling that every
human being is unique and of value
UNKNOWN