Ethical Practice & Professional Behavior in Social Work

Catalog description

This course is a required seminar intended to engage the thoughtful imagination of individuals preparing to enter the social work profession, and prepare individuals for competent and compassionate ethical practice as generalist social work professionals. In this course we will examine historical as well as emerging issues, the process of becoming a social work professional, the tensions inherent in the goals of social work, and the ways these interrelate to produce conflicts of values and ethics in both our professional and personal realms. The course focuses on acquiring and practicing the skills of ethical decision-making, including values clarification, application of ethical theory, utilization of codes of ethics, and models of ethical analysis and reflective practice. Generalist aspects of social work are addressed, with the goal of building competencies for meeting the contemporary challenges of practice in multicultural and urban as well as rural practice environments. Issues of social justice and human rights, self-care, practitioner impairment, licensure, malpractice, whistle-blowing, and other professional challenges are explored. The structure and content in this course reflects Ethics Course guidelines established by the Association of Social Work Boards. (ASWB)