Assessment in social work

Submitted to: Dr. Anish K R, School of Social Work, Marian College, Kuttikkanam. Submitted by: Bimal Antony, 1st MSW, School of Social Work, Marian College, Kuttikkanam. Date of Submission: 26th October 2010.

Assessment in Social Work

Introduction
Assessment is the first step in the problem solving process in social work. Assessment can be said as the process in which data is collected from the concerned person or group in a systematic way using prescribed methods and skills and is then assembled together for the purpose of analysis, even at a later period. Assessment is the exploration part through which the professional gets an understanding about the clients problems, strengths, inter and intra personal as well as environmental factors that the client is living in. Goal setting and interventions largely depends on what is being assessed or has been assessed. The accuracy level of the assessment determines the practicality and success of goals and interventions. To bring in any clear and positive change there must have been an accurate and complete assessment done on the relevant subject.

Significance of assessment
Professional or organisational assessment represents the entry of an intentionally rational and systematic approach to the encounter between a social worker and people seeking help or services, who may be individuals, couples, families, groups or communities. The assessors role may be conceived as gate-keeping, facilitating or empowering but, whichever is the case, the application of some form of assessment implies that a service does not operate entirely ondemand or that special expertise in defining problems or finding solutions exists or is needed. There is a further realm of assessment, namely user-led assessment, that has emerged to modify aspects of the picture of assessment described above. The confident statement in the preface to SCIEs first knowledge review that social work assessment is a core social work skill (Crisp et al, 2003, p iv), can be summarised as follows: Government and agency policies and practices place great store in effective assessment. The assessment process is significant for service users and carers in both conditioning their experience of the encounter with social care services and in shaping the service they receive. Assessment is widely portrayed in the social work literature as fundamental to social work practice with some accounts defining it as a key part of intervention and others regarding it as the essence of social work intervention. Competence in assessment is a formal requirement of social workers who are completing the degree in social work.

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Assessment in Social Work

Definitions:
Hepworth and Larsen (1986) defined assessment as follows: Assessment is the process of gathering, analyzing and synthesizing salient data into a formulation that encompasses the following vital dimensions: (1) the nature of clients problems, including special attention to developmental needs and stressors associated with life transitions that require major adaptations; (2)coping capacities of clients and significant others (usually family members), including strengths, skills, personality assets, limitations and deficiencies; (3) relevant systems involved in clients problems and the nature of reciprocal transactions between clients and these systems; (4) resources that are available or are needed to remedy or ameliorate problems; and (5) clients motivation to work on their problems. Barker (2003) defined assessment as follows: The process of determining the nature, cause, progression and prognosis of a problem and the personalities and situations involved therein; the social work function of acquiring an understanding of a problem, what causes it, and what can be changed to minimize or resolve it. Crisp and colleagues stated that: Assessment involves collecting and analysing information about people with the aim of understanding their situation and determining recommendations for any further professional intervention (2003, p 3). Two years later, however, their review of textbooks concluded that there is no single definition and the review of assessment frameworks found the same (Crisp et al, 2005). The analysis suggests four types of definitions found in the textbooks and frameworks reviewed by Crisp and colleagues: Process-focused Contingent Contestation-focused Critical social constructionist. This simple, four-part typology conceals variation, especially among process-focused definitions which predominate in the works reviewed by Crisp and colleagues (2005). The process-focused group of definitions concentrates on assessment as an essential, practical function that must be carried out with professional sensitivity and competence. Of all the approaches, process-focused definitions are the nearest to an implicitly technical, even

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Assessment in Social Work

scientific, view of the assessment task as a set of methods to be learned and professionally applied. The contingent type has some similarities with the process approach but is contingent in the sense that the nature and direction of assessment is taken to differ according to particular independent factors. It is implied either that the approach to assessment is determined by a given independent factor, or variable, or that a given approach to assessment is particularly suited to that variable. The contestation-focused type focuses on the conflict or contestation between variables. Hence, the approach defines assessment as an area of contestation between different policies, perspectives and priorities represented, for instance, by: Emphasis on need vs. eligibility Social worker idealism vs. realism Needs vs. risks vs. resources. The critical social constructionist type proceeds from the view that the act of assessment involves the construction of meanings as distinct from the determination of objective facts and causes of problems. The understandings that constitute assessment are socially constructed by those involved, reflect their contexts and may be contradictory. The assessment made by the social worker represents his or her construction of a narrative or story about the situation in question and may, accordingly, reflect the perspective of the social worker more than of the client. In the process, particular people become defined as service users or carers and clienthood is constructed (Hall et al, 2003).

Factors to be addressed in assessment

"What you see depends on what you look for." This saying captures the roles that knowledge and theory play in shaping the questions that are asked in assessment and the hypotheses that result. In order to eradicate this problem the assessments must be done with a problem-specific knowledge. The professional must consider the nature of the problem presented by the client at intake and refer to available research to identify the factors that contribute to, sustain and ameliorate those problems. Factors that are described below must be taken into consideration for obtaining a clear knowledge about the client and the problems presented by him. The three major issues that need to be assessed in all situations: 1.) What does the client see as his or her primary problems or concerns? 2.) What (if any) current or impending legal mandates must the client and social worker consider?

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Assessment in Social Work

3.) What (if any) potentially serious health or safety concerns might require the social workers and clients attention? Apart from these main questions or issues, the following factors must be taken into consideration 01. What specifically are the problems? 02. How does the client view the problems? 03. Who is involved in the problem system? 04. How are the participants involved? 05. What are the causes of the problems? 06. Where does the problematic behaviour occur? 07. When does the problematic behaviour occur? 08. What are the frequency, intensity, and duration of the problematic behaviour? 09. What is the history of the problematic behaviour? 10. What does the client want? 11. How has the client attempted to handle the problem? 12. What skills does the client need to combat the problem? 13. What external resources are needed to combat the problem? 14. What are the clients resources, skills and strengths? 15. What are the recommended courses of action? An accurate assessment should provide answers to a number of key questions like these in order to conduct thorough explorations and to formulate accurate assessments. Guidelines on what factors should be addressed in assessment was compiled by Brown and Levitt in 1979.

The critical role of assessment

Assessment is a critical process in social work practice, for the nature of goals and the selection of relevant interventions are largely based upon the assessment. The following factors also add up to why assessment is so critical in social work: a.) It also enhances the quality of information gathering. b.) It helps even to make the assessment more professional and technical. c.) It helps to understand the determination of eligibility of the professional as well as the client. d.) It helps to provide access to solutions and the most suitable services. e.) It offers sensitivity and support at a time that is often stressful.

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Assessment in Social Work

An assessment does include what is wrong, but the boarder meaning of the term leaves room for evaluating strengths, resources, healthy functioning, and other positive factors that can be tapped not only in resolving difficulties but also in promoting growth, enhancing functioning, actualising potentials and developing new resources.

Assessment as an ongoing process

Assessment is sometimes a product and sometimes an ongoing process. It is said to be an ongoing process when the interaction with the client is from the initial interview to the termination of the case. The length of time a client receives service depends upon the seriousness and depth of the problem the client is in, the processing time required to effectively solve the problem and the time required to initiate his functional areas in a normal way. Sometimes this service period could be weeks, months or even years. When the assessment is an ongoing process, the professional is in a position to continuously receive new information. This helps the professional to analyze and update the informations he has with him and to formulate and implement new methods into the current case. The prime importance of the professional in the initial stages of client contact must be the gathering of information to access the clients problems, resources and about his environment. Once these are clearly understood and listed out, the process of problem solving begins. Solutions are formulated, strategies are planned. These are then conveyed to the client and after discussion one or more strategies are selected and implemented. But even in the problem-solving phase, new information related to the clients difficulties and resources is likely to emerge, necessitating a revision of the assessment. When the rapport between the professional and the client becomes stronger as the process is going, the client may reveal additional information or problems so far he was hiding, which need to be assessed and the resolved. It is quite natural and common in the initial meetings for a client to withhold vital informations from the professional due to the fear of condemnation. For example, a parent who is abusing a child may initially deny that the abuse is occurring. As time passes and if the parent comes to trust the professional then the parent may disclose that he or she at times punishes the child. With this new information, the professional need to re assess the initial assessment and formulate solutions according to that. Hepworth and Larsen noted that assessment continues to occur even during the termination phase.

Strengths in assessment
Clients typically seek social work services for help with problems or difficulties. As a result, the assessment typically focuses on the problems - sometimes with an overemphasis on client pathology and dysfunction at the expense of strengths, capacities, and achievements whose recognition might help provide a fuller understanding of the client. The following list emphasizes strengths that may be taken for granted during assessment:

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Assessment in Social Work

01.) Facing problems and seeking help, rather than denying or otherwise avoiding confronting them. 02.) Taking a risk by sharing problems with the social worker - a stranger. 03.) Persevering under difficult circumstances. 04.) Being resourceful and creative in making the most out of limited resources. 05.) Seeking to further knowledge, education and skills. 06.) Expressing caring feelings to family members and friends. 07.) Asserting one's rights rather than submitting to injustice. 08.) Being responsible in work or financial obligations. 09.) Seeking to understand the needs and feelings of others. 10.) Having the capacity for introspection or for examining situations by considering different perspectives. 11.) Demonstrating the capacity for self-control. 12.) Being able to function effectively in stressful situations. 13.) Demonstrating the ability to consider alternative courses of actions and the needs of others when solving problems.

Conclusion
As assessment is part of the primary or itself is the primary step in the interaction with a client, group, for a project or for drafting a plan, its role is vital and must be done in the most professional and technically prefect way. Assessment is a process to understand, design and employ methods and skills that are necessary, in implementing the solutions to the problems or for projects. Various methods are used in assessment. Learning only that is restricted to technical competence limits the skills of the social worker in adapting and implementing modern methods. Too much technical dependence also limits the use of ones own practical ideas and methods in assessment. For proper assessment one must use both technical and practical knowledge.

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Assessment in Social Work

References:
Dean H. Hepworth, Ronald H. Rooney, Glenda Dewberry Rooney, Kim Strom-Gottfried, Jo Ann Larsen (2009). Direct Social Work Practice: Theory and Skills, Eighth Edition. California: Brooks/Cole. Charles Zastrow (2006). The Practice of Social Work: A Comprehensive Worktext. California: Wadsworth Pub Co. Dr. Colin Whittington (2007). Assessment in social work: A guide for learning and teaching. Great Britain: Social Care Institute for Excellence

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