Exploring Theoretical Perspectives and Interventions in Social Work

As an aiding profession, the main practice principles in the field of social work is; to promote social change, empowerment /liberation of client; to enhance clients’ well-being and to enable each service user to develop their full potential (Banks,2001). To effectively achieve the above principles and to ensure competent practice, professional social work practitioners are equipped with a vast range of theoretical knowledge which serves as a framework for case assessments, intervention planning and outcome evaluation (Stepney and Ford, 2012). Following this note, the purpose of this essay is to demonstrate my ability to construct and critically consider two different theoretical hypotheses of the family’s circumstances. The theories and interventions featured in the essay include Crisis theory and Crisis intervention; Person-centred approach and Motivational interviewing. More specifically, this paper will discuss the fundamental principles, strengths and limitations of each theory and how they will be applied to the understanding and intervention of the case study, with particular emphasis on Jenny’s circumstances. The intervention of a Social worker is needed in Jenny’s case due to her recent diagnosis with depression and her heavily increase in alcohol consumption, together with the allegations regarding one of her sons being sexually abused. To conclude, this essay will provide a summary of the key ideas mentioned in the body of the essay.

Crisis Theory

The Majority of social work interventions are often undertaken with individuals in states of crisis (Coulshed and Orme, 2012), such as in the case of Jenny who has experienced the loss of her mother. In such circumstances, social workers must have sound knowledge of the principles surrounding Crisis theory and on the application of its intervention. Crisis theory has been elaborated over the last five decades. An important factor in comprehending crisis theory links to the understanding of the term crisis. Coulshed and Orme (2006) pointed out that the definition of Crisis is broad and subjective, this is because different scholars have used terms such as critical incidents, change, or crisis interchangeably.

The terms differ according to their individual’s experiences, making it difficult to provide a single definition. Rapoport defined a crisis as “an upset in a steady state” (Rapoport, 1970 p.276). He believes that individuals seek equilibrium in their lives, but in the context of adversity, crisis ensues. Furthermore, O’Hang (1968) noted that different people interpret a crisis in different ways. Therefore, it is empirical that Social work professionals develop an open mindset and are sensitive when working with crisis service users to comprehend their concerns and preoccupations, rather than categorising crisis from the practitioners' frame of reference (Stepney and Ford, 2012).

Furthermore, Payne (2005) identified two distinctive categories of crisis; situational crisis and developmental crisis. The ladder occurs during the eight stages of personal development, with each stage characterised by a psychological crisis (Erickson, 1963). An example of a developmental crisis involves getting married. Situational crisis, on the other hand, is caused by acute events that affect an individual’s capacity to function (Stepney and Ford, 2012); such as an unplanned pregnancy or with regards to Jenny’s family circumstances the discovery that Chris had been sexually abused. When such events occur, individuals with little resistance experience higher levels of stress as opposed to people with significant levels of resilience; this is because they have not developed an understanding of how to cope with severe stressors, thus experience difficulties in maintaining equilibrium (Newman and Blackburn, 2002). Furthermore, Crisis theory shows how service users such as Jenny, more often than not experience periods of both internal and external upset. They often demonstrate extreme use of defence mechanisms such as denial, which can further lead to mental illnesses such as depression. Therefore, Crisis theory advises social work practitioners to encourage resilience in service users as it could become a potential way of reducing the impact of the crisis in clients’ lives.

Moreover, the origins of Crisis theory dates to the work of Erich Lindemann (1944), who evidenced how individuals cope with bereavement crisis in the aftermath of the Cocoanut Grove nightclub, fire in Boston. Lindemann’s findings were further developed by his colleague Caplan (1961), whose theory on crisis is heavily embedded in the concept of homeostasis. From his ideas, Caplan devised a model of crisis where he identified four distinctive stages of crisis reaction. The first stage of the model includes the individual being confronted with a problem that imposes a threat to their emotional balance. The threat increases psychological tension. The individual attempts to restore their homeostatic state by employing their habitual problem-solving techniques. The second stage of the model describes a further increase in the individual’s psychological tension due to the failure of usual problem-solving measures and the continual presence of the threat, resulting in the person's internal equilibrium becoming disrupted. At the third stage of Caplan’s model, the person may either find a solution to their problem or may give up. If the individual is unable to find a solution to their problem, Caplan states that there will be an increase in psychological distress causing heightened levels of anxiety which further causes the individual to progress to the last stage of the model. The final stage involves extreme psychological tension which may develop into an extensive breakdown in the individual's mental and Social Well-being.

Applying Caplan’s model of crisis to Jenny’s Circumstances, It is evident that Jenny perceived the allegation of Chris’s sexual abuse as a threat to her homeostatic balance, causing an increase in psychological tension. As predicted by Caplan’s model, Jenny’s denial of her knowledge about the non-accidental injuries exemplifies her attempt to resolve the perceived threat using her usual problem-solving measures to rapidly re-establish the previous harmony. Moreover, the involvement of the social worker and the police may have contributed to an increase in psychological tension as she might have felt that her son may be removed from her custody. Furthermore, because she was unable to find an immediate solution to her threat, this resulted in her equilibrium becoming disrupted, leading her to the next stage of the Caplan’s model. Katie’s accusation of Nick being responsible for abusing Chris together with her disengagement from her husband and the recent remarriage of her father had consequently led to the breakdown of her mental health, leading to an increase in alcohol intake and depression.

Crisis Intervention

Crisis intervention is an effective short-term intervention. One of the well-known and widely applied models of crisis intervention involves Robert’s (2005) model. This model is a seven-stage model that set out guidelines that practitioners may utilise when working alongside crisis service users. The early stages of the model demand that social workers establish a quick rapport with the service user. With reference to Jenny’s circumstances, this is an essential aspect as it demonstrates the practitioner’s ability to connect and empathise with Jenny during her crisis phase thus contributes to decreasing her anxiety. In addition, the middle stages emphasise identifying the major problems, including crisis precipitants and goals setting. This stage is important because it involves both the practitioner and Jenny working together to address the crisis and to reinforce healthy problem-solving measures for future resolution. During these stages the practitioner may also make referrals, with regards to Jenny’s crisis; she may be referred to a therapist to address her depression. Lastly, the final stages involve the practitioner and the service user identifying goals achieved. During these stages, it is important that the social worker sensitively confirms the achieved goals and the healthy coping measures established. This is because endings can revive old, unsolved crisis and the service user can fall back into previous patterns.

Strengths

A core strength of utilising crisis intervention in social work links to its time-limited intervention. Over the last two decades, there have been cuts to the funding of care, and recently there is additional uncertainty due to the Brexit crisis. This has resulted in a great emphasis on time-limited intervention to address immediate issues concerning clients such as in Jenny’s circumstances (Monach and Monach 1993). A second benefit of utilising crisis intervention involves its emphasis on the positives. Crisis intervention attempts to alter danger into opportunity by maximising the positive potential of crisis (Thompson,1991).

Limitations

A prime challenge associated with the use of Crisis intervention links to client developing an emotional dependency on the social worker which could make the termination of crisis intervention extremely difficult and counterproductive (Thompson,1991).

Lastly, Carol L. Langer and Cynthia Lietz have highlighted the need for social workers to have self-knowledge of personal limitations when using Crisis theory intervention with users of services. They point out the need for social workers to seek routine supervision, this will help avoid vicarious trauma. (Lenger and Lietz, 2005).

The person-centred approach

According to Brearley (1995), both social work and counselling have a common ancestry. This is because both services had their origins in social casework, whose aim was to engage the client in a re-evaluation of the individual in their circumstances (Hollis,1964). Due to a shared history, both social work professions and counselling practices have mutual skills and values such as attentive listening or a Eurocentric and middle-class orientation (d’Ardenne and Mahtani, 2004). However, there are also differences between both the two services such as social work being a mandatory practice as opposed to counselling, which is a voluntary profession. Despite such differences, social work practice draws on the concepts and skills of counselling (Trevithick, 2005a). Therefore, it is important to achieve a sound understanding of the theoretical bases surrounding counselling.

The person-centred approach is attributed to the work of the American psychologist Carl Rogers (1961). Most of Rogers’ work in counselling is based on humanist beliefs. Humanistic researchers believe that viewing people as elements rather than a whole means that much of what is significant or makes the person who they are is lost (Acevedo, 2018 ). On this basis, Carl Rogers (1961) developed his person-centred theory, where he emphasises on the uniqueness of human experiences and how they should be studied and understood in their own right. The person-centred approach is a non-directive therapy, hence clients thoughts, feelings and actions are not subjected to advice, criticism, or confrontation from the therapist, and there are no set tasks involved (Trevithick, 2012, ch.7). The core idea behind his Rogerian theory is that every client has an innate ability to find solutions to their problems. Carl Rogers (1957) therefore suggest that workers should invest time in creating a relationship with clients, one which can benefit the individual and aid their personal growth. He argues that this will help create the ideal therapeutic environment that supports the client’s innate ability to self-heal. Rogers further proposed that workers should exhibit specific values and attributes which have since been profoundly influential in the field of social work practices. He referred to these values and attributes as the Core conditions. These include empathy, genuineness and unconditional positive regard.

According to Egan (1994, p.106), empathy involves ‘getting in contact with others' world’. Therapists need to develop an empathetic understanding of the client’s standpoints. Mark Hamer (2006) stated that the worker’s role is to learn from the client. This is because service users like Jenny have a greater knowledge of their problems than any expert. Hence, workers must try to interpret the world similarly as the clients. Lishman (2009) defined genuineness as being oneself. This translates as the therapist becoming authentic, congruent and real in the relationship with clients, rather than hiding behind a mask of the professional role. However, it is clear that self is a result of one's own cultural and historical experiences; therefore, therapists are to try and decrease the power dynamics between themselves and their clients. Further, Rogers believed that an important way of demonstrating genuineness is through unconditional positive regard. This involves a non-judgmental attitude from the therapist even if the actions of the client is not approved or condoned. The worker must separate the undesired behaviour from their client, without displaying any judgement. It is important that the worker makes the client feel comfortable and accepted, this further allows both the client and the worker to identify any potential barriers that may hinder the client from becoming fully functioning individual (Wood, 2008). Lastly, person-centred approach is supported by Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Similarly to Roger, Maslow argued that individuals must strive to achieve all the needs present on the hierarchy in order to become self-actualised (Acevedo, 2018 ).

Conclusion

In conclusion, this essay has explored the application of various theoretical perspectives and intervention methods in social work practice, particularly in addressing complex family circumstances like those of Jenny. It began by outlining the fundamental principles of social work and the importance of theoretical knowledge in guiding practice. The discussion then delved into Crisis Theory and the Person-Centered Approach, along with their respective interventions, providing insights into their strengths and limitations.

Crisis Theory offers a framework for understanding how individuals experience and respond to crises, emphasizing the importance of resilience and coping mechanisms. Crisis intervention, based on models like Robert's seven-stage model, provides a structured approach to addressing immediate crises and promoting positive outcomes.