With her book Social Diagnosis from 1917, Mary Ellen Richmond (1861-1928) constructed the foundations for the scientific methodology development of professional social work. She searched for the causes of poverty and social exclusion in the interaction between an individual and his or her environment. Mary Richmond can be described as the mother of social casework.
Richmond spent her youth in Baltimore on the American east coast. Aged 4, she became an orphan. She was an intelligent young lady and was raised by her feminist grandmother. After having worked for eight years in a bookshop, she dedicated the rest of her life from 1889 onwards to modernising and professionalising of care for the poor. She started her career with the Charity Organisation Society (COS) in Baltimore, a US branch of the organisation Octavia Hill established in the UK. Richmond’s capacities didn’t remain unnoticed and soon she was offered leading position in COS in Baltimore and Philadelphia. From 1909 until her death, she was director of the charity department of the Russell Sage Foundation in New York, an influential fund supporting social science research.
In modern social work, about everybody agrees there is a need for diagnosis and research to happen before care provision. It was Richmond who systematically developed the content and methodology of diagnosis in the period around 1910. Her first principle was that care had to focus on the person within her or his situation. Building on extensive research, she developed what she labelled ‘social diagnosis’. Her famous circle diagram visualised the correspondence of client and environment. Richmond identified six sources of power that are available to clients and their social workers: sources within the household, in the person of the client, in the neighbourhood and wider social network, in civil agencies, in private and public agencies. This is a precursor of the system theory that was so popular in 1970’s social work.
Through her approach to research, Richmond gave social work clients a voice for the first time. In this way, she opened a new and fruitful area of social research which is up to now a cornerstone of social work. With her broad instructions on how to gather information, interview methodologies, establishing contact and conducting conversations, Richmond gave social casework a strong professional status. In her second big publication What is social casework? (1922) Mary Richmond introduced the methodology of ‘learning from cases’. She provided extensive comments to six elaborately described practice situations. New was her plea to also cover psychological elements. First came however an open and honest communication with clients, without encumbering formalities. Strengthening the resilience of clients is a natural component of this approach. Richmond’s plea to involve clients in the solving of their problems still provides inspiration, even a century later.
The work of Mary Richmond was highly influential in the USA, UK and internationally. There are few countries where current social work has not been influenced by her work and thinking.
This text was written by Jan Steyaert, based on the Dutch version by Maarten van der Linde Date of first publication: 02-2010 Date of latest revision: 04-2013
Originating in volunteer efforts for social betterment in the late 19th century in Europe and North America, social work became an occupation in the early 20th century and achieved professional status by the 1920s. The 1930 census classified social work as a profession for the first time.
Social work is a practice-based profession that promotes social change, development, cohesion and the empowerment of people and communities. Social work involves the understanding of human development, behavior and the social, economic and cultural institutions and interactions.
A client history , also known as a social history, is the relevant background information of a client's life that will be helpful in determining what courses of action need to be taken in providing therapy for the client.
The life and work of Jane Addams (1860-1935), founder of Hull House and Nobel Peace Prize winner, demonstrated the ethics and values that became the basis of the 100-year-old social work profession.
Social work is the helping profession. The primary mission of the social work profession is to enhance human well-being and help meet basic and complex needs of all people, with a particular focus on those who are vulnerable, oppressed, and living in poverty.
Social work's roots were planted in the 1880s, when charity organization societies (COS) were created to organize municipal voluntary relief associations and settlement houses were established.
Social work is a profession in which trained professionals are devoted to helping vulnerable people and communities work through challenges they face in everyday life.
The four components of social case work are person, problem, place and process. The person is called the client in social work terminology. The person may voluntarily approach the social work agency or may be referred by someone else.
Social workers provide over 60% of mental health services. Social work is one of the fastest-growing careers in the US. The average age of male and female social workers is 43.5 and 42, respectively. White (Non-Hispanic) account for 58.4% of all social workers in the United States.
Urban History, Suburban History, Rural History. History of gender (how masculinity, femininity, other gender identities were expressed/socially constructed and enforced) History of racial and ethnic categories. History of Children/Childhood, Adolescence, Aging.
Following the end of World War II, efforts were made to enhance the professional status of social work. The Council on Social Work Education was formed in 1952. The National Association of Social Workers was created in 1955 to further the professional status of social work.
social history, Branch of history that emphasizes social structures and the interaction of different groups in society rather than affairs of state. An outgrowth of economic history, it expanded as a discipline in the 1960s.
Jane Addams, known as the “mother” of social work, was a pioneer American settlement activist/reformer, social worker, public philosopher, sociologist, public administrator, protestor, author, and leader in women's suffrage and world peace.
The World Record Of Youngest Social Worker (Male) is Achieved By Younus Shaikh On 16 January 2023 In Vasco, Goa, India. He is The Youngest To Do Social Activities At The Age Of 20 Years 7 Months 22 Days And Has Set A Record For The Worldwide Book Of Records.
The Mother of Social Work: Jane Addams (1860 – 1935)
By the age of 21, she had graduated from Rockford Female Seminary and set out to find her path toward helping others. In 1889, Addams and her friend Ellen Gates Starr founded Hull House in Chicago.
The inception of the social work profession in the United States can be traced back to the late nineteenth century beginning with charity work performed by local churches and communities hoping to meet the needs of the poor.
Friedlander (1951) defined, “Social work is a professional service, based on scientific knowledge and skill in human relations, which assists individuals, alone or in groups, to obtain social and personal satisfaction and independence”.
According to the secularization narrative, social work's Christian roots were anathema to its continued progress toward professionalization, and thus the histories that were told in the textbooks and journals of the emerging social work profession downplayed its Christian roots.” These tensions and the pressures to “ ...
“Social work is a practice-based profession and an academic discipline that promotes social change and development, social cohesion, and the empowerment and liberation of people. Principles of social justice, human rights, collective responsibility and respect for diversities are central to social work.
Introduction: My name is Margart Wisoky, I am a gorgeous, shiny, successful, beautiful, adventurous, excited, pleasant person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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