Effect of Diversity on Work Relationships
In social work, just like in any other type of workplace, diversity has a major impact on the relationship between the worker and the client. Theoretically, issues such as gender, race, ethnicity and sexual orientation should not affect how a client and the official providing service should interact. However, the reality in many workplaces in the country is that these aspects have a bearing on how workers and clients relate. As they practice in the field, social workers encounter different problems that may be associated with the background of the people. Most of the social problems faced by African Americans, for example, will be different from those faced by whites or Latinos. Similarly, women and men will have different approaches to social problems. The diversity of clients has a major bearing on the way they will relate with social workers at the working stations and in the field.
Social workers need to engage the clients in the change process in the workplace. One of the issues that social workers have to address in their daily work is the issue of discrimination and segregation of people according to their different backgrounds. Issues of gender discrimination, racism and issues affecting the youth or older people are common in the work schedule of social workers. It is in the interest of social work departments to try and bring about positive change in society so that people do not face difficulty accessing service due to their race, age or sexual orientation. Such change can be initiated through public education and advocacy, lobbying the relevant institutions and legislation of relevant laws. It is in the interest of social workers to initiate some of these changes and to achieve the best results in bringing about positive change; the works should affect the clients in affecting the changes so that they achieve desired outcomes that serve their clients optimally. Also, the clients should be involved in the change process so that they easily accept the changes that will be initiated. Hendrickson and Gray (2012) point out that resistance is one of the biggest challenges to changes in organizations, and that to reduce such resistance; change processes should be inclusive and seek the opinion of all concerned parties.
Diversity will determine the peculiar problems that the worker encounters with clients from different backgrounds. As mentioned above, for example, African Americas will have slightly different social problems from Latinos and whites. A social worker needs to understand the social problems that are likely to face different groups of people because this will be important in helping the clients cope well. Similarly, the economic background of diverse groups of people is likely to influence the way they relate to each other and the community at large. Crime is likely to be high in areas inhabited by African Americans because of the low economic and educational status. Noonan (2016) points out that African Americans have bigger social, economic problems compared to other communities in the U.S. and notes that lack of proper government intervention is the cause of most of these problems. Noonan (2016) also notes that in many cases, poverty leads to other social problems such as crime, disease, prostitution and drug abuse. When dealing with clients from such backgrounds, the social worker needs to be aware of these peculiar backgrounds so that he can know how to assist the clients well. The social worker should be more understanding and compassionate when dealing with clients from socially disadvantaged groups as this will assist in establishing trust and therefore help in solving the problems of the clients well.
Secondly, social workers fall in the category of few professionals who are expected to stand up against injustice, unfairness and stereotyping. It is common for minorities to face segregation and stereotyped treatment from government institutions. For example, African Americans are likely to be arrested by police in the country even when they are innocent. The social worker must be aware of the existence of such bias in the society and the correctional institutions and try to help the victims get justice. Furthermore, Hall and Bowie (2013) point out that stereotypes may also be from the people themselves. Hall and Bowie (2013) argue that after being subjected to years of segregation for long, and living in a system that makes people feel like second class citizens for long, members of minority groups may begin to feel that they are not good enough. Hall and Bowie note that some of the stereotypes they observed in their research were from fellow African Americans and that in many cases, children from African American families felt that they were not as good in class as those from white American families. Similarly, African American men were found to hold some stereotypes against African American women. To help bring about proper social change, the social worker needs to be aware of these stereotypes and know how to address them when dealing with communities which already feel inferior.
However, there is also evidence of bias emanating from social workers themselves in the course of discharging their duties in the field. In some cases, the social worker may harbor personal feelings about certain groups of people, and this may affect their relationship with clients. For example, several social workers may feel strongly against same-sex marriages, yet he may encounter clients who subscribe to this sexual orientation in the field. Kemper and Reynaga (2015) found that among social workers, bias was present especially against gays and lesbians and that this bias is likely to affect the way the social worker relates with the client if he is homosexual. Bhugra (2016) found that bias also extends to race and ethnicity, and in some cases, gender. The social worker needs to be consciously aware of any leanings he may hold and try to limit them when dealing with clients. The social worker should not allow personal feelings and biases to interfere with his relationship and service to clients. Instead, the social worker should learn to differentiate between personal likes and professional work and ensure that they give the client professional help despite their personal feelings about his race, gender or sexual orientation.
Finally, social workers need to be aware of the professional ethics that govern their relationship with clients. In many cases, professional ethics will require social workers to treat clients without paying attention to their backgrounds. For example, discrimination based on race is usually prohibited by many social work organizations. Hardina (2012) adds that reduction of discrimination on any grounds forms a core part of social work code of ethics and that social workers who follow this code will find it easy to cope with clients from diverse backgrounds. However, Dziegielewski (2013) cautions that social work is a changing field and that the workers need to be aware of the social, legal and religious environment in which the work so that they can avoid clashing with the interests of the clients they work for. Therefore, it is apparent from the views of these scholars that social workers need to operate in the realities of the society in which they work, and they should be aware of the changes that may be taking place in the community so that every action they take is in the interest of the clients.
Social workers operate in a community with diverse interest, and these interests have a bearing on the relationships that they have with clients. Social work is mainly concerned with bringing about equalities in the community, and in many cases, the problems they handle are about the existence of these inequalities. The social worker should be knowledgeable about the presence of discriminatory practices and stereotypes while performing his work and work hard to try and reduce discrimination in society. Additionally, the social worker should be sensitive to their feelings about certain issues in the community and try to ensure that in the performance of their duties, these prejudices do not affect the performance. To ensure that they operate fairly, social workers need to strictly adhere to the professional code of ethics and try to understand the changing times in the community. In this way, they will avoid being hampered by existing prejudices and stereotypes in the performance of their work.
References
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