As a practicing social worker, I am constantly dealing with people and any presenting problem. These presenting problems can vary from having issues with a spouse, peers, relative or personally dealing with a trauma. These presenting issues are not always clear, cut and dry issues; these things have to be discussed through multiple sessions and building rapport. In the initial intake of a client, a clinician must lead the client through a series of questions that allows the clinician to get to know the client. Like when you are at a new doctors office and you go through a series of questions about who you are and what your profession may be. This is an example of how new information about someone is shared through presenting information through one's own cognitive mapping. My series of questions to set up to lead a client to respond in a way to share new information about themselves that I could use in future sessions.
Clients can choose to share any information or any presenting problem that they would like to communicate with you. It is my job as a clinician to use the information that I have learned through school and experience to help resolve or provide comfort. Now there are downfalls to this, clients can choose to withhold vital information necessary to resolve an issue or as a clinician you may not completely understand the gravity of the problem. Sometimes clients might just want a space to talk rather than address an issue which could lead to them rejecting any help or using any information/resources you may provide. The clinicians' way of providing resources or information may be a fit for the client. When I say this, I am referring to the clinical environment, it may not be a restorative environment that fits the client's preference to make them feel comfortable. Clients may not feel mentally or emotional safe to really receive the information you are giving. This takes an empathetic social worker to provide this space.Information sharing is important in social work because we believe that learning about a client and their social systems it can change behavior through providing information and resources. It is also key to acknowledge that not every client will take the resources and information given, but as long as the opportunity is presented a client has the choice to make the change.
I can imagine how difficult your job can be as a clinician to get your clients to open up to you! I for one have trouble sharing personal information with other people, even people that are professionals. I am happy to hear that social workers make it a goal to genuinely learn about their clients and their problems and to allow their clients the freedom to accept the information and resources offer to them. Helping a client resolve their presenting problems must be a slowing process. According to what we learn in class, there are methods to make the process or environment more conducive to building rapport between the clinicians and their clients. Here I will focus on the design of the physical environment.
ReplyDeleteBased on the preference theories, one feels comfortable in a setting that has both high familiarity and high preference. I am guessing that clinicians usually receive their clients in an office. If a client goes to the office for the first time, he or she will likely have a certain degree of discomfort due to the unfamiliarity, regardless how homely the office space may be decorated. A study suggests that half of our brain may be awake during our first night of sleep at a hotel due to precisely low familiarity of the environment, an effect known as the first-night effect (Masako, et al. 2016). Perhaps then, it’s worthwhile to invite the client back several times so that he or she builds familiarity with the office environment.
In terms of building preference in the environment, the idea is to integrate elements that promote understanding and invite exploration. The decorations in the office space should be simple to avoid distraction or overwhelming the channel capacity but not too simple that they lack complexity. They should hang together and make sense. Good decorations include paintings of the savannah landscape and nature. A window that offers a scenic view of nature would add preference to the environment as it offers a medium of restoration when needed. The layout of the office should be legible, with comfortable seats arranged for social seeking.
In addition, to help foster a sense of safety, perhaps, fill the office with comfortable seats, along with warm blankets, huggable pillows, and objects that clients can play with in their hands during the sessions. By allowing clients to wrap themselves in blankets or hug something, it allows them to “shield” themselves partially from the clinician, thereby creating a temporary refuge in which they can maintain some privacy. Having an object in their hands allows them to explore and to fidget naturally as they talk about uncomfortable things.
I am speculating here with no experience in social work whatsoever, but let mw know what you think.
I definitely can agree with you in term of the preference in environment of the client. Client's depending on the age and the type of therapy need specific setting to feel comfortable. Not every office is going to be the same and while paint the walls may not be an option, the choice to have furniture, sounds, art or even toys is an option to add in the space to provide some sense of comfort and familiarity. Clinicians can ask clients to provide some essential things needed to for them to feel comfortable. I personally have had clients who needed something to play with in their hands to feel comfortable, while others needed to hear music after disclosing information. It is all relative to the client and forming a secure rapport.
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ReplyDeleteMasako, T., Bang, J.W., Watanabe, T., and Sasaki, Y. (2016). Night watch in one brain hemisphere during sleep associated with the first-night effect in humans. Current Biology. 26(9), 1190-1194.
Thanks for sharing your story, Monti; I have many friends and family in the social work field and I realize how challenging this "line of work" is...for everyone involved! Throughout this environmental psychology course, I appreciate how concepts can be applied to various aspects of life-from 'traditional' Natural environments to social and even perceived environments.
ReplyDeleteI think behavior changes only occur when there’s an understanding of a person’s perceived environment-one of the quotes Dr. DeYoung used in lecture; "...changes in our conceptual system do change what is real for us and affect how we perceive the world and act upon those perceptions". So, if there's a shift in perception, than there's a shift in reality, right?!
My Mother, an Art Therapist, has devoted her entire life to implementing a very successful program she designed for domestic violence perpetrators and survivors. The fundamental approach is to "P.A.U.S.E.": Pause...Assess...Use...Skills...Effectively. Essentially this pause is "being in the moment" in order to assess perception of the situation at the time...what's REALly going on. This pause, facilitated by a social worker/therapist shifts perception-allowing for a different perspective. In any intervention with a client – be it court mandated or self-choice- there seems to be disconnect between the assess, the use and the skills part.
People in challenging situations, often find themselves unable to assess overwhelming situations (generally), thus the need for external assistance. They need someone to give a new perspective on their situation. Channel capacity seems completely "maxed out" and I would daresay they're living a chronic stress lifestyle.
The other part of disconnect is many people don't have the skills (tools) to use to fix their situation...people need to be re-skilled in order for them to reshape their environment. A person just can't fix the problem with the same mind that created it! When you mentioned a client "can choose" to make the change, I agree it's about choice. This is a tough one for me-one of the concepts I struggle with this semester is about Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs being "turned upside down" by Viktor Frankel's work. I always believed a person couldn't "grow" and change their situation until their basic needs were met. How does one affect change through effective environmental education, with a socio-economically challenged population, when their only concern might be safe drinking water or the source of their next meal?!
One blog can’t address the many facets of social work but I keep coming back to information sharing. Although I agree preferred environments (safe space) are essential, it seems the way the social worker/therapist relates to clients (shares information) is a super important starting point for effective communication. There seems a fine line between maintaining the "expert" role while not appearing as "just another friend".
The cognitive maps of a social worker must be 'beyond complex' because of the repeated experiences to a variety of traumatic situations presented. Each new experience has the potential for new mapping and increased competency.
I think it's very similar to being a "social worker" for the environment. There are so many personal internal representations...so many different mysteries, it becomes very challenging to change behaviors which prevent or mitigate environmental abuse.
In any case, in order to optimize meaningful solutions, either as a social worker with people or as an environmental ‘social worker’ (steward), it’s important to remember it's ok to care for oneself in order to care for others. The opportunities to explore restoration, throughout this course, have been invaluable!