Week 4 student reply | SOWC 6002 | Walden University

STUDENT REPLY

STUDENT REPLY PLEASE RESPOND BACK USING A 150 TO 200 WORD COUNT USING REFERENCES. THIS IS ONLY FOR 1 STUDENT RIGHT NOW IF I GET ANY MORE QUESTIONS FROM OTHER STUDENTS OR THE PROFESSOR I WILL COME BACK AND DO AN ADD OWN AT THAT TIME. THANKS AND PING ME IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS

STUDENT REPLY #1 Megan Six

Briefly identify and describe your culture.

I was raised in a rural town in Michigan but now live in the South after being in a few different states. I have experienced a number of different cultures and I have adopted different traditions and viewpoints from having those shared experiences with others. I am in my late thirties. I have been below the poverty line before and I have also been a part of the upper middle class. I am a divorcee and I also grew up in a divorced home. I am religious, but not an active part of a church. I’m an abuse survivor and a mental health advocate. I also try to bring attention to health disparities.

Describe your first memory of a cultural difference.

I realized that my family culture was different in middle school. It was the age when my friends all started having sleepovers with friends or group birthday parties. I never knew what parent’s house I would be at in order to ask for permission. So, I was rarely able to go.

Explain the information a social worker would need to know about an individual’s or family’s culture in order to effectively deliver services to them.

A social worker may need to understand the family’s faith, socioeconomic status, their family structure, and even dietary beliefs. In truth, we want to know everything we possibly can about how the family lives, why they live that way, and how they would like to live. Knowing the family can help provide care or resources that are more likely to be accepted by the family. For example, suggesting that the family see a doctor when they are uninsured and low income, may not be likely followed through on. The lack of understanding to even suggest something that does not seem feasible to the client could break the rapport.

Describe the potential consequences of a lack of cultural awareness on the social worker’s part.

I touched on this in the last answer, but essentially, it is important to understand a family’s beliefs and needs so that we can provide or recommend services that will fit their needs. Clients are not likely to be compliant. In fact, it may push them away from trying to seek out care and set them back in their treatment. If missteps with a lack of cultural awareness are big enough, that news may spread and keep further clientele away.

Reference

Barsky, A. (2018). Cultural Competence, Awareness, Sensitivity, Humility, and Responsiveness: What’s the Difference? New Social Worker, 25(4), 4–5.

National Association of Social Workers. (2021). Code of ethics of the National Association of Social Workers. https://www.socialworkers.org