Problem Assessment
There are many issues that have led to the outcome in your life, from an absent father, instability in your living situations, your brother being influential, yet participating in negative activity, and your mother’s lack of involvement. When you sum all of these issues up the main issue that stands out is the lack of support and mentoring that is needed to foster a child’s development positively in a social environment.
Many times in your life you have faced challenging situations or difficulties, unfortunately there was no one offering you much push or forcing you to go down a better path. Your mother had very little support, making it very difficult for her to provide and push you onto the correct path. Hoping and praying a child will do well is much different than enforcing that it happens. Because she had to work and you were left unattended, there was no one there to enforce you to make the correct decisions; there was also no one there to influence you to do differently. Your brother tried, but it is very difficult for a child to understand “Do as I say, not as I do”. Because your brother was a part of something he was telling you not to be apart.
Lack of parental or positive support and mentoring in a child, leaves the child vulnerable to making life altering decisions at an early age. A child needs a mentor or parental enforcement to ensure they make good decisions and understand the possibilities and outcomes in the long run, based off of decisions that he/she makes.
Diversity/Ethics
I think that the biggest issue in working with a client like Mr. Moore is the fact that he did participate in a crime that ended another person’s life. Murder is very difficult issue to deal with, and steering clear of judgment, assumptions, and biases, is very difficult as well when dealing with the subject matter. I think many of us empathize with the victim first, before looking at the perpetrator. It is difficult to also look at the perpetrator as a victim as well.
I think if I come across a client like Mr. Moore, I will draw upon the NASW Code of Ethics. Cultural Competence and Social Diversity:
- Social workers should understand culture and its function in human behavior and society, recognizing the strengths that exist in all cultures.
- Social workers should have a knowledge base of their clients’ cultures and be able to demonstrate competence in the provision of services that are sensitive to clients’ cultures and to differences among people and cultural groups.
- Social workers should obtain education about and seek to understand the nature of social diversity and oppression with respect to race, ethnicity, national origin, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, marital status, political belief, religion, immigration status, and mental or physical disability.
I think this section of the code of ethics, really guides you in how to keep yourself in check when we come across clients that we may feel we have a barrier or issue in dealing with.
