Discipline aimed at improving the conditions and development of the community in which it operates
Social work is a transdiscipline that deals with promoting social change in a given community, solving problems that arise from human relationships and strengthening the people with the aim of increasing the well-being of the communities.
That is, basically, this area aims to improve the material conditions, health, culture and education concerning the population in which it operates with its action. As a consequence, the work that this sector does does not generate any type of economic benefit is that it is usually developed by the state or by non-profit organizations, such is the case of popular NGOs, as we will see later in the review, that they are the ones that practically agglutinate all this work in their hands. Now, this does not imply that other social actors cannot intervene in this sense, of course they can, but the usual thing is that it is managed in the aforementioned hands.
The objective: marginal sectors and those with unmet needs
The most marginalized social sectors and those with unmet needs at almost all levels are often the recipients of social work. The mission is to assist in meeting demands but also to strive to provide these sectors with a better future.
Based on and using theories about human behavior, social systems, the principles of Human Rights and Social Justice, Social Work intervenes and directs its work towards the very complex relationships that occur in individuals and the environments in which they belong.
That no individual is relegated from development
Basically The mission of Social Work is to facilitate that all individuals achieve their full potential, while enriching their lives and preventing the dysfunctions that can result in this path.
Meanwhile, professionals who work professionally in this discipline are called social workers.
Functions:
The functions of social workers include the following: guiding individuals to develop their capacities, which will help them solve social, individual and collective problems that arise; promote in these the faculty of self-determination, adaptation and development; promote the achievement of services and policies that match the existing socio-economic resources; provide information and social connections with those organisms of socioeconomic resources; offer psychotherapy or family therapy treatments where family conflicts or tragedies overwhelm and limit citizens; project programs in tune with governments to favor the social development of the most limited classes; guide families to solve their problems through dialogue and consensus and not through fighting; analysis of cases in order to fully interpret causes and arrive at effective solutions; follow those sectors that require on-site assistance, among others.
Regarding the contexts in which Social Work operates, they turn out to be highly variable, but attention and emphasis will always be placed on those sectors that require more than anything special attention, such as the elderly, individuals with disabilities, people who suffer from abuse, prisoners, victims of terrorism, immigrants, ethnic minorities, drug addicts and any other individual who is in the category of socially excluded.
The relevance of the third sector: associations, foundations and NGOs
Currently Social Work is very active in what is known as the third sector, associations, foundations, NGOs and also in private companies and in educational contexts. In the latter case, social workers assume the role of mediators in the conflicts that arise between members of the educational community, promoting the performance of therapies with the aim of finding the solution to the problem that causes suffering.
As can be seen from all of the above, it is extremely important that this discipline be developed and promoted in all parts of the world. Where there is a humble needy or a minority who do not have answers to their situation of discrimination, there, they must be activating social work.
