The Importance Of Core Communication Skills Social Work Essay

The Importance Of Core Communication Skills Social Work Essay According to Nelson (1980) social work was one of the first professions to recognise the importance of communications skills and the link to effective practice. Communication skills can be essential to the task of assessment, interviewing and later decision making for social workers. In practice, communication tends to be defined primarily as: The verbal and nonverbal exchange of information, including all the ways in which knowledge is transmitted and received (Barker, 2003: 83 in Trevithick, 2005, p 116). The latter elements of communication, which can often translate the emotional content of the communication, are also referred to as interpersonal skills. According to Thompson (2002) social workers use such skills to communicate ethically sensitive practice (p.307). The purpose of this essay is to highlight the role and importance of verbal and non verbal communication skills involved in social work practice. According to Koprowska (2008) communication is both interactive and context related. Therefore, careful consideration needs to be taken when communicating. There may be several barriers involved in communication, such as: authority; language; ability; personality; gender; age; and class (Thompson, 2009). True communication can only be achieved if the barriers are identified and removed. This can be attained by the practice of an anti oppressive and anti discriminatory approach to communication on the part of the social worker. Verbal Communication In practice good communication skills, practically listening and interview skills, are crucial for establishing efficient and respectful relationships with service users and lie at the heart of best practice in social work (Trevithick, 2005, p116). Social workers must demonstrate several skills while assessing or interviewing a client. Verbal communication is a key skill in social work practice and refers to face to face interactions and involves the impact of the actual words we use in speaking (Thompson, 2009, p100). It is importance for social workers to be aware of how and what they say in certain situations; for example, in regards to the issue of formality. If the social worker does not access the situation correctly they may be conceived as being too formal or informal and thus will inevitable create barriers. Further, many service users tend to come from vulnerable sections of society. It is possible that their involvement with social workers may invoke feelings of shame or f ear. It is likely that this will then leave them vulnerable to feeling misunderstood and not listened to. It is therefore fundamental that social workers treat each client as an individual and assess their situation as a unique case. In order to build a good relationship with each client the social worker must demolish any power or untrusting issues that may be present. This power may be either perceived or real in certain situations. For that reason, congruence plays an important role during the interview process. It may not be completely possible to eradicate the power imbalance but it is a key skill to be aware of the need to achieve congruence. This can be active by using the appropriate language so that the client can fully understand and be listened to. It is through such skills that social workers can convey genuine warmth, respect and non-judgement for the service user. Indeed, verbal communication skills also play a major role when working with other colleagues and professi ons, and are essential for decision making and assessments (Cournoyer, 1991). Non Verbal Communication Non verbal communication is a major component for interpersonal skill repertoire and includes posture, facial expression, proxemics, eye contact, and personal appearance (Kadushin and Kadushin, 1997, in Trevithick, 2005, p120), and it can support or contradict verbal communication. The importance of non-verbal communication is not a new concept in the social work field, in an article by DiMatteo, Hays, and Prince (1986) maintained that there are two dimensions of nonverbal communication, firstly decoding or sensitivity and secondly encoding or expressiveness. According to DiMatteo et al nonverbal decoding refers to the capacity to understand the emotions conveyed through others nonverbal cues such as facial expressions, body movements, and voice tone. Nonverbal encoding refers to the capacity to express emotion through nonverbal cues (p 582).For example, much of the understanding of non verbal communication can be gathered through using observation skills. Observation skills can be v ital for social workers interviewing a client. According to Kadushin and Kadushin (1997) there are five thousand distinctly different hand gestures and one thousand different steady body postures so precise observation of non-verbal behaviour is important(P 315). The client may tell the social worker they are coping fine and dont need any help but by observing their facial expression or lack of eye contact they may contradict this. Sheldon stresses that social workers must be aware of their own capacity for self-observation, although always somewhat limited, provides us with an opportunity to analyse our own role and impact. (Sheldon 1995: 132-3 in Trevithick, 2005, p123). Active listening Research has verified listening as the most utilized form of communication. If frequency is a measure of importance, then listening easily qualifies as the most prominent kind of communication (Adler Rodman, 1997, p. 283). Listening may appear to be straightforward but active listening skills need to be learned, practised in training, developed and refreshed for effective use in real situations. Active listening describes a special and demanding alertness on the part of the social worker involved in interviewing a client. For Egan, active listening is about being present psychologically, socially and emotionally, not just physically (Trevithick 2005,p.123). By using skills such as paraphrasing, reflective questioning and open and closed questioning the social worker can convey full interest and understanding to a vulnerable client. Self awareness The concept of self-awareness is important in social work interviewing. Burnard (1992) defines self awareness as the process of getting to know your feelings, attitudes and values (in Thompson, 2009, p.3). A key aspect of self awareness is being aware how we may be perceived by others. In regards to interviewing the social worker may believe they are being laid back, however for the client it may be conceived as being uncaring. Supervision is therefore an important tool to gain feedback and explored any issues. Further importance of self awareness included understanding how possible external factors may affect social workers. Social workers need to aware of concepts such as transference, triggers and blind spots during interviewing process. Thompson stressed that the worker can be affected by a situation without knowing. Therefore, the use of self is extremely important. Empathy Empathy is another important communication skills involved in social work interviewing. This skill involves understanding or appreciating the feelings of others, but without necessarily experiencing them (Thompson 2009, p111). Social workers must show sensitivity and respect to the feelings of the client. There is however a difference between sympathy and empathy. Therefore there is a fundamental skill to achieving empathy not merely expressing sympathy. It is clear from the above information that the failure to achieve efficient communication between the social worker and client can lead to serious consequences. Poor communication can contributed to the harm and inadequate care clients. For example, in recent times such failures of communication among a range of professionals have been highlighted in the public inquiries into the death of several children known to be in the care of social services.(rewrite) Personal Learning

Marital Rape

Marital Rape When she says NO, it's rape†¦ even when she's married to him Every woman has the right to control her own body and to make decisions about having sex, using birth control, becoming pregnant and having children. She does not lose these rights if she marries. These quotes were taken from Stopping Sexual Assault in Marriage published by the Center for Constitutional Rights Much of the attention that has been given to marital rape has emerged from the legal community. This has occurred because throughout the history of most societies, it has been acceptable for men to force their wives to have sex against their will. The traditional definition of rape in the United States most commonly was, sexual intercourse with a female not his wife without her consent Many have argued, this provided husbands with an exemption from prosecution for raping their wives-a license to rape. The foundation of this exemption can be traced back to statements made by Sir Matthew Hale, Chief Justice in 17th century England. Hale wrote, The husband cannot be guilty of a rape committed by himself upon his lawful wife, for by their mutual matrimonial consent and contract, the wife hath given herself in kind unto the husband which she cannot retract. This established the notion that once married, a woman does not have the right to refuse sex with her husband. This rationale remained largely unchallenged until the 1970's when some members of the women's movement argued for the elimination of the spousal exemption because it failed to provide equal protection from rape to all women Approximately 10-14% of married women are raped by their husbands in the United States. In the city of Charlotte, the statistics are rising every year. The following statistics reflect ONLY those spousal rapes that were reported. Keep in mind that most married women do not know about the spousal rape laws. In 1997 the statistics were 1%, 1998, 1. 1% and in 1999 1. 8%. Historically, most rape statutes red that rape was forced sexual intercourse with a woman not your wife, thus granting husbands a license to rape. On July 5, 1993, marital rape became a crime in all 50 states, under at least one section of the sexual offense codes. The definition of sexual assault of a spouse as defined in the North Carolina Code is as follows: A person is guilty of sexual assault of a spouse when that person engages in sexual intercourse or sexual intrusion with his or her spouse without the consent of the spouse and: 1. The lack of consent results from forcible compulsion; or 2. The offender afflicts serious bodily injury upon his or her spouse; or 3. The offender uses a deadly weapon in the commission of the offense. Any person who violates the above provisions shall be guilty of a felony, and, upon conviction, shall be: 1.  Imprisoned in the penitentiary between 2 and 10 years; or 2. Imprisoned in the penitentiary between 2 and 10 years and fined no more than $5,000 In 17 states and the District of Columbia, there are no exemptions from rape prosecution granted to husbands. However, in 33 states, there are still some exemptions given to husbands from rape prosecution. When his wife is most vulnerable (such as, she is mentally or physically impaired, unconscious, asleep, etc. ) and is unable to consent, a husband is exempt from prosecution in many of these 33 states. Women who are raped by their husbands are likely to be raped many times. They experience not only vaginal rape, but also oral and anal rape. Researchers generally categorize marital rape into three types: Force-only rape: This is when husbands uses only the amount of force necessary to coerce their wives. Battering rape: Husbands rape and batter their wives. The battering may happen concurrently or before or after the sexual assault. Sadistic /obsessive rape: Husbands use torture or perverse sexual acts. Pornography is often involved. Women are at particularly high risk for being raped by their partners under the following circumstances: Women married to domineering men who view them as property Women who are in physically violent relationships Women who are pregnant Women who are ill or recovering from surgery Women who are separated or divorced It is a myth that marital rape is less serious than other forms of sexual violence. There are many physical and emotional consequences that may accompany marital rape. Physical effects include injuries to the vaginal and anal areas, lasserations, soreness, bruising, torn muscles, fatigue, and vomiting. Women who are battered and raped frequently suffer from broken bones, black eyes, bloody noses and knife wounds. Gy ne co logical effects include vaginal stretching, miscarriages, stillbirths, bladder infections, sexually transmitted diseases, and infertility. Short-term psychological effects include Post Traumatic Shock Syndrome, anxiety, shock, intense fear, depression and thoughts of suicide. Long-term psychological effects include disordered sleeping, disordered eating, depression, intimacy problems, negative self-images, and sexual dysfunction. Research indicates a lack of responsiveness to marital rape survivors on behalf of service providers – particularly police officers, religious leaders, rape crisis counselors, and battered women's advocates. There is a need for those who come into contact with marital rape survivors to comprehensively address this problem and provide resources, information and support to survivors. In conclusion, despite the fact that marital rape has not been criminalized for long in the United States, it is clearly a serious form of violence against women and worthy of public attention. Marital rape may be even more traumatic than rape by a stranger because a wife lives with her assailant and she may live in constant terror of another assault whether she is awake or asleep. Given the serious effects, there is clearly a need for those who come into contact with marital rape survivors to provide assistance and challenge the prevailing myth that rape by one's spouse is inconsequential. Rape crisis counselors and advocates for battered women are in particularly important leadership positions to address the problem of marital rape in society and to assist survivors of this form of violence. More research on the effects of marital rape, particularly for pregnant women and the children who witness the sexual violence is necessary. Additionally, researchers should investigate the motivations for why men rape their wives and address prevention and treatment strategies. Women who need assistance should contact their local rape crisis center or battered women's shelter. Be forewarned that many rape crisis center and shelters may not have services specifically designed for survivors of wife rape.

Information Use Paper

Information in organization can be used in many different ways depending on the specific job you may have. Some information is used for the public and some is more private than others. Information is used for databases, business analytic s, business records, health records, fax, scanned and many more different ways information is used in an organization. Information is mostly used by sharing it though different levels of a business or sharing it because it is involved with more than just one specific business it’s usually a department. Information can also be used as a way of marketing or advertising.Even though marketing usually only collect certain information like name, address, telephone and maybe an email addresses for different things that benefits their company statistics. Some business ask for your information to send out coupons, special promotion or deal breakers that could get you to purchase products from them again. Database systems which are typically in every bu siness type and level use information to track specifics on what they need and use. Information is a valuable piece of data that can determine the outcome of something. Information flow in an organization can depend on how the organization is setup.The information can either flow up and down or side by side. Up and down is flowing through the different levels or managers. Side by side is flowing of information through departments. Both of their flow ways are common in most organization because it could be tracked by who have it or who had it. When I was active duty military, information flowed from the highest level down to the lowest and from the lowest to the highest depending on who was sending it. It was kind of like sending messaging through carriers to get it to the destination, which made the process slower than it really should be.In this case the information flowed through filters of people, the reason being is because they want you to try to get any situation solved at the lowest level if it is possible to do. The military have several database that stores information for different things for the purpose of tracking data. This different system record data that is inputted by different people depending on the level and skill type of the person. Sometimes we send information between specific departments depending on what the information contains. This way it doesn't get to department who doesn't benefit from it.When you apply for any type of loans this information is processed and sent to different departments and levels of the company. Once this process is started the application is sent to several different approvals to get them to say the big word. The concerns with properly controlling this flow is different information would be exposed to people who shouldn't see it, in other words have the clearance for it or have to correct training for it. When you send information like this it is not classified it is unclassified therefore anyone can see it, k eep it, or even give it to someone else without your authorization.In this particular case if the information is classified enough where certain eyes can only see it, the information would be encrypted for those who have the access to view it. I know for medical information, the doctors or receptionist have you sign a HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) statement for confidentiality and protection from other who should not be seeing it. Only those who are either on the HIPAA form or who have the right to view it such as doctors, nurse and you the patient. Another concern with information is being digital which means it is send over the internet for Wi-Fi technology.Many businesses either scan documents, fax them or email them which puts a big risk every time it is sent, because of cybercrime can occur. The military have several different filters and firewalls this information sent and received for this purpose of cyber-crimes. PlayStation network was hacked a nd all the information that was stored was compromised and some people might even have been a victim of identity theft, depending on how much information they kept of their file. How this happened was someone hacked their database and downloaded all the information was in it.

Definition and Examples of Deep Reading

Deep reading is the active process of thoughtful and deliberate reading carried out to enhance ones comprehension and enjoyment of a text. Contrast with skimming or superficial reading. Also called slow reading. The term deep reading was coined by Sven Birkerts in The Gutenberg Elegies (1994): Reading, because we control it, is adaptable to our needs and rhythms. We are free to indulge our subjective associative impulse; the term I coin for this is deep reading: the slow and meditative possession of a book. We dont just read the words, we dream our lives in their vicinity. Deep Reading Skills By deep reading, we mean the array of sophisticated processes that propel comprehension and that include inferential and deductive reasoning, analogical skills, critical analysis, reflection, and insight. The expert reader needs milliseconds to execute these processes; the young brain needs years to develop them. Both of these pivotal dimensions of time are potentially endangered by the digital cultures pervasive emphases on immediacy, information loading, and a media-driven cognitive set that embraces speed and can discourage deliberation in both our reading and our thinking.(Maryanne Wolf and Mirit Barzillai, The Importance of Deep Reading. Challenging the Whole Child: Reflections on Best Practices in Learning, Teaching, and Leadership, ed. by Marge Scherer. ASCD, 2009) [D]eep reading requires human beings to call upon and develop attentional skills, to be thoughtful and fully aware. . . .Unlike watching television or engaging in the other illusions of entertainment and pseudo-events, deep reading is not an escape, but a discovery. Deep reading provides a way of discovering how we are all connected to the world and to our own evolving stories. Reading deeply, we find our own plots and stories unfolding through the language and voice of others.(Robert P. Waxler and Maureen P. Hall, Transforming Literacy: Changing Lives Through Reading and Writing. Emerald Group, 2011) Writing and Deep Reading Why is marking up a book indispensable to reading? First, it keeps you awake. (And I dont mean merely conscious; I mean  awake.) In the second place, reading, if it is active, is thinking, and thinking tends to express itself in words, spoken or written. The marked book is usually the thought-through book. Finally, writing helps you remember the thoughts you had, or the thoughts the author expressed.(Mortimer J. Adler and  Charles Van Doren, How to Read a Book. Rpt. by Touchstone, 2014) Deep Reading Strategies [Judith] Roberts and [Keith] Roberts [2008] rightly identify students desire to avoid the deep reading process, which involves substantial time-on-task. When experts read difficult texts, they read slowly and reread often. They struggle with the text to make it comprehensible. They hold confusing passages in mental suspension, having faith that later parts of the text may clarify earlier parts. They nutshell passages as they proceed, often writing gist statements in the margins. They read a difficult text a second and a third time, considering first readings as approximations or rough drafts. They interact with the text by asking questions, expressing disagreements, linking the text with other readings or with personal experience.But resistance to deep reading may involve more than an unwillingness to spend the time. Students may actually misunderstand the reading process. They may believe that experts are speed readers who dont need to struggle. Therefore students assume that their own reading difficulties must stem from their lack of expertise, which makes the text too hard for them. Consequently, they dont allot the study time needed to read a text deeply.(John C. Bean, Engaging Ideas: The Professors Guide to Integrating Writing, Critical Thinking, and Active Learning in the Classroom, 2nd ed. Jossey-Bass, 2011 Deep Reading and the Brain In one fascinating study, conducted at Washington Universitys Dynamic Cognition Laboratory and published in the journal Psychological Science in 2009, researchers used brain scans to examine what happens inside peoples heads as they read fiction. They found that readers mentally simulate each new situation encountered in a narrative. Details about actions and sensation are captured from the text and integrated with personal knowledge from past experiences. The brain regions that are activated often mirror those involved when people perform, imagine, or observe similar real-world activities. Deep reading, says the studys lead researcher, Nicole Speer, is by no means a passive exercise. The reader becomes the book.(Nicholas Carr, The Shallows: What the Internet Is Doing to Our Brains. W.W. Norton, 2010 [Nicholas] Carrs charge [in the article Is Google Making Us Stupid? The Atlantic, July 2008] that superficiality bleeds over into other activities such as deep reading and analysis is a serious one for scholarship, which is almost entirely constituted of such activity. In this view engagement with technology is not just a distraction, or another pressure on an overloaded academic, but is positively dangerous. It becomes something akin to a virus, infecting the key critical engagement skills required for scholarship to function. . . .What is . . . not clear is if people are engaging in new types of activity that replace the function of deep reading.(Martin Weller, The Digital Scholar: How Technology is Transforming Scholarly Practice. Bloomsbury Academic, 2011)