SOCIAL WORK VALUES
AND ETHICS
SUBJECT CODE: SWT04102
PREPARED BY MADAM NELLY
DEFINITIONS OF TERMS
• Values: these are believes that a person, society or community hold dear.
• Values serve as a compass for our actions and describe how we behave in
the world.
• Values are ideas and beliefs that people have about what desirable and
worth striving.
• Ethics: behavioral conduct informed by individuals values.
• Principles: foundation for someone's beliefs.
• Diversity : differences between individuals due to a range of reasons such
as cultural background, age, sex, race, etc.
Personal values in relation to social work values.
• Personal values are general expression of what is important for you. It
expresses the worth of something. Personal values herd by the individual and
are strongly influenced by culture, religion, national origin and other valuable
like families, community, marriage, faith etc.
• Social work values are professional values that encompass everything from
integrity to individual dignity to compassionate services to social justice to
human relationship
• Therefore, social workers must be attuned to their personal values and be
aware of when those values engage or clash with those espoused by the
profession as a whole.
• Beyond this, social workers must recognize that their clients also have
personal values that shape their beliefs and behaviors, these may conflict with
the social worker‘s own values or with those of the profession.
• Further, the larger society has values that are articulated through cultural
norms, policies, laws and public opinion. These can also conflict with social
workers‘ own beliefs, their clients‘ values, or the profession‘s values.
SIX CORE SOCIAL WORK VALUES
The following Social work values are inherited from the American
Nationals Social Workers Association (NASW- 2017)
1. Services; the provision of help, resources, and benefits so that
people may achieve their maximum potential.
2. Social justice: An ideal condition in which all members of society
have the same basic rights, protection, opportunities, obligations,
and social benefits.
3. Dignity and worth of the person: Holding in high esteem and
appreciating individual value
4. Importance of human relationships: Valuing the dynamic
interpersonal connections between two or more persons or systems
that involve how they think about, feel about, and behave toward
each other.
5. Integrity: Maintaining trustworthiness and sound adherence to
moral ideals
6. Competence: Having the necessary skills and abilities to perform
work with clients effectively
DESCRIPTION OF THE SOCIAL WORK CODES OF ETHICS
Code of ethics represents the official ethical standards of the social work
profession; it is the most likely standard to be used in judging whether the social
worker‘s actions are appropriate OR not appropriate.
NASW was formed in 1955 through a merger of seven predecessor social work
organizations to carry out three responsibilities which are:
• strengthen and unify the profession
• promote the development of social work practice
• advance sound social policies.
Promoting high standards of practice and protecting the consumer of services are
major association principles.
NASW CODE OF ETHICS
• NASW code of ethics is a set of standards that guide the professional conduct of social workers.
• The first section is the Preamble, it summarizes the social work professions mission and core
values.
• The second section, Purpose of the NASW Code of Ethics, provides an overview of the codes main
function and a brief guide for dealing with ethical issues or dilemmas in social work practice.
• The third section Ethical Principles, presents broad ethical principles based on social work values,
that inform social work practice.
• The final section Ethical Standards, to guide social workers conduct and to provide a basis for
adjudication.
The following is the summary of six codes of ethics according to NASW
1.Social worker ethical responsibilities to clients.
2.Social worker‘s ethical responsibilities to colleagues.
3.Social worker‘s ethical responsibilities in practice settings.
4.Social worker‘s ethical responsibilities as professionals.
5.Social worker‘s ethical responsibilities to the social work profession.
6.Social worker‘s ethical responsibilities to the broader society.
THE PURPOSE OF CODE OF ETHICS
• The Code identifies core values on which social work's mission is
based.
• The Code summarizes broad ethical principles that reflect the
profession's core values and establishes a set of specific ethical
standards that should be used to guide social work practice.
• The Code is designed to help social workers identify relevant
considerations when professional obligations conflict or ethical
uncertainties arise
• The Code provides ethical standards to which the general public can
hold the social work profession accountable.
• The Code socializes practitioners new to the field to social work's
mission, values, ethical principles, and ethical standards.
• The Code articulates standards that the social work profession itself
can use to assess whether social workers have engaged in unethical
conduct
QUIZ
• What is a code of ethics?
• What are the social work values?
• What is the purpose of a code of ethics?
THANKYOU
