Looking at the Social Work Profession through the Eye of the NASW Code of Ethics

Introduction

The main aim of the study was to examine the National Association of Social Workers code of ethics particularly what it says about the issues which are faced by the contemporary social work practice and carry out an examination of its implication for the acceptance of the social work as a profession. In the study, a lot of concern has been raised about the growing gap which is exists between the work ethics and social work practice. Besides, it was to assess the dilemma which faces the social workers during the practice and other workplace issues which affect the social work professionals (unionization, feeling of disempowerment, isolation and frustration, lack of motivation hence delivery of poor care to the clients). The primary question was that does the practice driven by the market forces of demand and supply or responds to the client's needs? The primary audience of the study is the social workers who are governed by the NASW code of ethics.

Due to the significance of the social work to the development and growth of the society, the welfare of the social workers, their practices as well as code of ethics should be evaluated. It is because it enhances the human well-being and assist in meeting the basic human needs of all people by putting the greatest consideration to those who are vulnerable, oppressed and living in poverty. It also gives a reason why the social work should be accepted as a profession and the codes of ethics which should be adopted while at work. It can thus be justified that the problem at hand was valid to warrant a journal article since it helps to comprehend the impacts of NASW Codes on the social work profession.

In the study, the literature provided in the introduction is very vital since it has assisted me in understanding the problem which the study aims to solve. It is because it gives the main purpose of the study and gives a clarification over the issues which affects the social work practice and approve that shows that social work should be accepted as a profession. The research is more exploratory since it is based on the PhD dissertations done by the Massachusetts chapter executive director of NASW. The advancement was being done on the study which was conducted on the manner in which the NASW directors and members implement the codes of ethics. These thus depict the difference between this study and the previous study which was to be improved. However, in the study, the researcher has failed to state their research questions and hypothesis.

Ethical Perspectives

From the article, the main ethical values which have been discussed comprised of issues which are related to the misinterpretation of competence of the social workers, the confidentiality issues to protect the third parties from harm and putting a lot of emphasis on the importance of avoiding the conflict of interest. It also involves the expansion of standards of practice around the informed consent, raising the issues which touch the sexual harassments of clients, students, supervisors and the research subjects. It also involves the examination of the expected behavior with colleagues in greater details and addressing the general concerns around research, supervisory relationships and other faculty relationships between the clients and the social workers. These were meant to improve the working environment of the workers as well as ensuring that the clients get enough resources which they can use to address their problems.

The ethical issues which are discussed in the article fall in a large spectrum of human service codes of ethics. It covers most of the issues which aims at improving the service delivery to the general public and the social workers. For instance, it focuses on the enhancement of the client's relationship since they aim at improving or promoting confidentiality, respect, negotiation and recognition of the rights of the client as far as informed consent and self-determination is concerned. It is very vital that social workers should respect the privacy of the client and gather only the statistics which are required to offer services. The social workers should avoid the intrusive actions which are not required for the delivery of services to the clients and the public. Also, just as the human service code of ethics, the NASW codes have shown a high level of respect for culture, beliefs and relationships which are vital for client's life. Besides, they have put service to the public above the cases of self-interest. Some of the professional ethics comprise of embracing high degree of integrity, adherence to the regulations or laws, following the employers' procedures and policies and proper maintenance of the records of the clients. These improve the provision of service, a situation which enhances the public's experience as well as the satisfaction of the workers hence intrinsic motivation.

From the article, I have learnt a lot about ethics and its importance in the creation of relationships. For instance, I have learnt that ethical issues aim at improving the service for the general public. It should focus on implementing the issues to deal with oppression and discrimination of people in the society and guarantees that there is a high level of advocacy enhancement either in the short or long run. Besides, it means that when one is a social worker, there is need for them to be socially responsible for the colleagues, employers, students and the entire society. This means that they should not do what harm them, disclose any information which destroys their reputations and take action with a minimal level of negligence. Also, one should ensure that the clients are primary in the provision of service (no self-interests) and there is no form of sexual harassment which exists between the worker and the client. Moreover, I have come to learn that it is through high level of ethics which are embraced by the social workers plays a vital role in enhancing the clients' loyalty, assist in retaining well-behaved employees, creates positive work environments, helps in avoiding the legal reforms and improves the productivity of the workers. Therefore, it is very vital for the social workers to put into consideration the ethical issues to achieve a comparative edge.

Discussions

In case I am a reviewer for the Journal in which this report was to be published, I would recommend that a few parts of the article should be modified before it is published. These should comprise of labeling and adding the crucial sections of the paper which has been overlooked. The primary sections which should be adjusted include adding the research questions and hypothesis of the study. Besides, the author has just explained the study in which the current research is based on but failed to show the methodology which was used in the study. Therefore, there is need for the author to include the research design of the study to give the readers a sense of direction. The provision of the research design, hypothesis and questions is vital since it will guarantee the readers to ascertain if the research process answers the research questions as well as justification of the research hypothesis.

However, a part from that I can affirm that the study meets the criterion which makes it viable for publication. First and foremost, it addresses a key issue which is primary in the enhancement of the societal living standards. Besides, the author has written a compelling introduction, it has an abstract and a precise conclusion about the study. Besides, it has a concise and descriptive title which explains exactly what the study was to cover.

References

Carol Kopeikin Brill (2018). Looking at the social Work Profession through the Eye of the NASW Code of Ethics.