Lumen Publishing House

Social Work Techniques

Antonio Sandu — 2021-10-07

The present volume intends an incursion into some key techniques of social work practice. Using arguments of social epistemology, the author introduces an overview of the case work and brings to attention important aspects of social work counseling. The reader is challenged to explore methodological aspects of counseling and is encouraged to practice the use of NLP techniques during the nondirective interview, which is able to lead to a change focused on the strengths of the client. Putting into relation the main occupations used in assistance-work creates the complex context of inter and multidisciplinary approach of social work practice, recognizing the border aspect of the discipline. The whole approach proposed by the author is filtered by the ethical character of social intervention directed towards the promotion of individual rights and having as central concept the quality of life. This is not viewed as an abstract concept, but as a source of operational indicators relevant to individual existence. To validate social work as applied science, the author brings into focus epistemological arguments adapted to the requirements and demands of this field. Review of various theories in social work is used just to emphasize the complexity of the social approach and practice. Changing client's situation is approached from the perspective of needs-resources relationship and represents a successful attempt to combine the two perspectives. The author predicts different relationships that can be made at the level of client's needs and of personal, organizational and community resources. Keeping the line drawn by the case work, the author explores different models of counseling in social work. Seen as a technique and not a purpose in itself, counseling is regarded as a specific form of intervention able to introduce a change through the client's involvement and changing his reference frame. The types of counseling offered by the author managed to capture different intervention models, dependent on different theories of intervention. Focusing on the problem and keeping the focus on the “deficiency paradigm” introduces the classic counseling model presentation that begins with awareness by the client of the existence of the problem and its dimensions, going through successive phases such as exploration of strategies to resolve the problem, choosing strategy, implementing the decision and evaluation of results. To counteract this paradigm, the author presents applications of Neuro Linguistic Programming in counseling, managing to highlight “the perspective of strengths”. With the guidelines from NLP assertions, the author supports the readers through examples of this new guidelines, each time bringing strong arguments of this type of counseling. It is remarkable how these processes of NLP are infused in the counseling technique in social work, representing an opportunity for practitioners to experiment and develop this direction. We can notice the author’s initiative to achieve this synthesis for the reader in Romania, where the bibliography in NLP is fairly low. To complete the practicality of the approach, the author proposes a set of instruments used in social work; even their simple overview is an advantage for social work practitioners who can build significant guiding marks generating social practice. In the last part of the paper, the author switches from individual intervention to the collective or group intervention by approaching social programs so useful in the practice of social work, showing the main phases of such a design programs. Instead of conclusion, we consider that the authorial intent can meet the needs of practitioners in the field of social work and can be a useful reading for opening new approaches to intervention and social change.

Bioethics in crisis or the crisis of bioethics?

Antonio Sandu — 2021-08-26

We will discuss (…) the need for ethics in times of crisis. Many people consider ethics and bioethics and the call for principles to be bureaucratic obstacles to obtaining a rapid response from the population, for example, to achieve vaccines in record time, to immunize the population, to establish unpopular but necessary measures, such as closing borders and non-compliance with fundamental principles of the European Union, establishing public policies aimed at herd immunity or, conversely, closing most activities considered essential in the economy, to ensure social distancing and self-isolation of the population. These measures are understood as derogations from ethics or bioethics when targeting medical research on human subjects performed faster than required by standard procedure, or the implementation of innovative therapeutic practices that have not previously been studied by clinical trials to certify that there are no known side effects. (The author)

Trends and Prospects of the Education System and Educators’ Professional Training Development

Mariia Oliinyk — 2021-06-04

The monograph presents the results of international research activities on the pedagogical education and professional training development in the modern socio-cultural environment. Theoretical and methodological principles of the professional training for future specialists in the field of pedagogy and educational policy strategy during socio-economic changes in Ukraine and EU countries are studied, common conceptual trajectories of the preschool education modernization are offered. Psychological, pedagogical and social aspects of education for children of different age categories and children with special educational needs are substantiated. Particular attention is paid to the use of innovative technologies in the educational process. The progressive ideas of Vasyl Sukhomlynsky’s pedagogical heritage in the practice of a modern educational institution are highlighted.

The work is intended for research and scientific-pedagogical workers in the field of education, graduate students, students, as well as professionals who are interested in modern approaches to pedagogical education and professional training.