AN INTRODUCTION TO

SOCIAL CASEWORK
AN INTRODUCTION TO
SOCIAL CASEWORK

GRACE MATHEW

TATA INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL SCIENCES

BOMBAY
 ® Tata Institute of Social Sciences, 1992

ISBN: 81-86458-47-2

Price: Rs. 65/-

Published on behalf of the Tata Institute of Social Science, Bombay, by Sheilu Sreenivasar,
Head of Publications, and printed at India Printing Works, 42 G. D. Ambekar Marg,
India Printing House, Wadala, Bombay-400031.
 FOREWORD
I have great pleasure in writing this brief foreword to the
book written by my friend and colleague Dr. (Miss) Grace
Mathew. As a long-standing and respected teacher in the field
of medical and psychiatric social work, Miss Mathew has brought
to her work a maturity of outlook and directness of expression
which is rare to come by. This work on Social Casework
is intended for students — Indian students. They will of course
find it useful. But so will it be useful to many a young
teacher who is called upon to teach casework to students
of professional social work.
The book is immensely readable. It has also been written
with great care and comprehension. Miss Mathew has succeeded
in making the core ideas of social casework easily accessible
to student and professional alike. I hope she can go on to
write an equally lucid book on the present status of medical
and psychiatric social work practice in India.

T.I.S.S., Bombay M. S. GORE

31 August 1991
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Attempting to write a book is like embarking on a journey

through unknown seas. There are times when the sailing is
smooth; at other times, it is rough and bumpy, making one
wonder whether it was worth the trouble. When the shore
is reached finally, there is a sigh of relief, a recognition
of the worthwhileness of the project and an appreciation of
other people's help. There is one profound realisation which
is that, there are some people without whose timely help,
the trip would not have been undertaken at all, and there
are some others who helped all along the way.
First of all, I am thankful to the University Grants Commission
for the fellowship they granted me for the book writing project,
and for their tolerance of my slow pace of progress. I am
deeply indebted to Dr. A. S. Desai, the Director of the Tata
Institute of Social Sciences who besides recommending me
for the fellowship, made available all the facilities of the Institute.
Mrs. V. Nadkarni, Head of the Department of Medical and
Psychiatric Social Work, and the other faculty members of
the Department, who were formerly my colleagues, also need
to be thanked for their help which was always there in the
form of encouragement and practical help in a countless number
of ways. The reality of my being a retired person was
expeditiously underplayed by them to my advantage, and I
was made to feel that I was still a part of their group,
which was both heartwarming and stimulating. Dr. (Mrs.)
P. Mane, a Reader of the Department has been particularly
accommodating in that, she kindly allowed me to use her
office, an arrangement that occasionally caused inconvenience
to her. I am thankful to her for her generosity.
The staff of the Library, Accounts Department and
Establishment also need to be mentioned for their helpfulness.
They were always responsive to my requests.
My special thanks to Mr. K. V. Rajan who typed the drafts
of the handwritten manuscript. I thank Miss Olive D'Souza,
the steno-typist of the Department of Medical and Psychiatric
Social Work for her occasional secretarial assistance.
At this moment I remember warmly my students whose
records provided material for the book. The Indianness of
the book is a contribution of these students and their clients.
I record here, my deep sense of gratitude to the clients,
the social work students, the agencies, and the supervisors
who were supervising the students.
There are two social work practitioners, Mrs. Harsheela
Mansukhani (Social Work Consultant, KEM Hospital, Pune)
and Mrs. Sulabha Warde (Head, Dept. of Medical and Psychiatric
Social Work, LTMG Hospital, Bombay) who gave me their
time to relate to me their notable experiences with some
of their clients. My thanks to them.

September 1991 GRACE MATHEW

 CONTENTS

Chapter Page

1 Introduction 1
2 The Knowledge Content in Casework — Basic
Elements 7
3 Behavioural Concepts for Understanding
Clients 22
4 Problems of Living — the Focus in
Casework 44
5 Casework Tools 78
6 Techniques of Helping I 101
7 Techniques of Helping II 127
8 Casework Process 152
9 Some Theoretical Systems used in Casework 168
10 The Social Worker 183
Bibliography 198
Index 201
1. Introduction

S ocial casework is a method of helping people

individually through a one-to-one relationship.
It is used by professionally-trained social workers
in social work agencies or organisations to help people
with their problems of social functioning. Problems
of social functioning refer to situations concerned
with social roles and their performance.
The major social roles are those associated with
being a spouse, a parent, and a wage earner. And
connected with these, there are many other roles,
like roles pertaining to being a daughter or son,
brother or sister. Apart from these roles that emanate
from the family, there are other social roles linked
with one's membership in larger social groups —
roles as a neighbour, inhabitant of a city or village,
and citizen of a country. Every person carries various
roles, and in a way, life is nothing but a dynamic
network of roles and role relationships. There are
people, who for one reason or other, cannot perform
one or more of their social roles adequately, and
for helping these people, the profession of social
work has come into being. The earliest and oldest
method of social work is social casework which
constitutes the topic of this book.

Though social work as a profession is a product

of the twentieth century, social work as a helping
activity is as old as mankind.

There have been always in every society, though

in small numbers, people who were interested in
helping others. There were individuals who were known
to be receptive and responsive to the needs and
2 Introduction to Social Casework
difficulties of their fellow human beings. These helpers
who existed in every period of human history were
the precursors of the modern social worker, who
uses casework to help people in trouble. The literature
of every religion contains the names and activities
of teachers and sages who gave of themselves and
their resources to help others. The ancient Hindu
Shastras and the Buddhist philosophy emphasise the
activity of dhana or giving. There were three types
of giving: that of wealth and material goods,, that
of religious knowledge and wisdom and of friendliness.
The recipients of these gifts were priests and monks,
relatives and friends, and those in trouble, including
the sick and the afflicted, the destitute and the helpless
who could not help themselves. There are stories
of Gautama Buddha which tell of his kindness and
understanding of the individual which led to the
transformation of a prostitute and a murderer. Thus,
one can see that casework, in its limited meaning
of a helping activity existed from time immemorial.
But casework as a professionalised activity is an event
or happening of the twentieth century, and in this
development, the focus of concern has been people
in some kind of distress and who cannot help
themselves.
Tracing the evolution of an age old activity —
which some persons undertook in the process of living
their lives — from a personal activity into a professional
pursuit is a fascinating exercise. The casework of
the pre-professional period depended very much on
the qualities of the heart of the helper — generosity,
kindness and willingness to be of service to others.
But modern social casework as a professional method
requires besides qualities of the heart, sound
knowledge and skills. Knowledge in this context is
not something steeped in mystique and profundity,
but knowledge of human beings and human behaviour
at various levels — as individuals and as members
of groups and societies. Skills refer to proficiency
 Introduction 3
in procedures of helping that have been developed
through the years and Much can be used deliberately
aiming at specific goals. The term casework will be
used in this book to mean the professionally evolved
social work method of working with individuals, as
distinct from the helping activity that has been in
existence always and in operation through the kindness
of some people who wanted to help, for reasons
other than professional.

The chief landmark in the development of casework

showed up in the context of urbanization and
industrialization in the western countries, especially
in the United Kingdom and U.S.A. The origins can
be found in the Charity Organisation Society's
appointment of paid workers for "friendly visiting".
This Society, as its name implies, was founded by
the charitably inclined citizens of England with the
objective of helping the poor people. They had funds
at their disposal, to help the poor and the needy.
Originally, these social workers were friendly visitors,
drawn from kind hearted volunteers, who visited the
poor to assess their needs and to provide for the
needs in a limited way. These friendly visitors made
their visits in an act of charity, not expecting any
monetary reward. But in the course of time, their
numbers proved inadequate, thus creating a need
for employing people for the task. Consequently, paid
workers came on the scene. The next feature of
development stemmed from the realisation that
persons engaged in tasks of helping people would
become more competent, provided knowledge and
practice abilities could be imparted to them through
training programmes. Subsequently, training schemes
were initiated to equip the workers with knowledge
and procedures of helping. Since these early social
workers handled cases of families in need, they were
called caseworkers in the U.S.A. This was in the
early decades of this century. At the present time,
4 Introduction to Social Casework
the general term, "Social Worker", is used
irrespective of the specific method he or she is using.

The next step in the history of casework was the

introduction of social work education in universities
in the U.S.A., in the second decade of this century.
Meanwhile, the content of social casework in terms
of knowledge and practice was also growing.
In India, social service as a helping activity existed
in one form or other through the ages. Gouri Rani
Banerjee, one of the pioneers in professional social
work and social work education in India, has written
lucidly about social welfare in ancient India and the
various forms of service that were adopted to help
people in distress (1967). Social work as a learnt
activity as conceived in the West, came to India
in 1936, when the Sir Dorabji Tata Graduate School
of Social Work was started to impart training to
those who had a university degree and who were
inclined to a career in social service. However, even
before the year 1936, Bombay City had short term
training programmes in Social Work. N. M. Joshi,
one of the founders of the trade union movement
in India, had established in 1911, an organisation
called the Social Service League in Bombay. The Social
Service League conducted training programmes for
volunteers, whose services were later utilised for relief
work among people suffering from famines, epidemics,
floods and such other disasters, and also for welfare
programmes among the poor and the destitute (Karnik
V. B., 1972). With the establishment of the Sir
Dorabji Tata Graduate School of Social Work, the
training for social work was changed into a full time
career oriented, educational programme. Casework
figured, both as a theoretical course and also as
a method of practice in the academic programme,
from the year 1946. The other methods of social
work were incorporated into the curriculum later.
During the last five decades, social work as a profession
 Introduction 5
and as an academic programme has been enlarged
and enriched by new perspectives, ideas and theories.
Casework still continues to be taught in schools of
social work and used as a method of social work
in different organisations.
During her experience of teaching social casework
and other social work courses in a school of social
work in Bombay, the author had found that the
social work students broadly fell into three categories
with reference to academic performance. The first
group consisted of students who were from good
schools, had a good education and also a good fluency
of expression in the English language; they were
capable of garnering and ingesting knowledge from
a wide range of books. The second group consisted
of students who needed some basic or foundational
books, as a preparation for reading on their own.
The third group consisted of a few who were really
below the average level of performance. Their academic
backwardness was found to be arising mainly from
their lack of adequate knowledge of the English
language. This book on casework is intented to meet
the academic needs of the second and third groups
of students of social work. It was felt that a book"
on social work, written in simple English and
introducing terms and concepts with clearly stated
meanings, would go a long way in bringing knowledge
closer to their reach and making it available for
assimilation and application. If this book serves that
purpose, it will be a matter of great gratification
to the author.

A brief outline of the organisation of the contents

of the book is presented here for the benefit of
the reader.
The second chapter gives the basic elements in
the conceptual framework of casework. It includes
the philosophical values and principles, and concludes
with a few concepts on human behaviour.
6 Introduction to Social Casework
The third chapter is a continuation of the second.
It is devoted to a discussion of the psycho-analytical
theory of the structure of personality. The chapter
also presents the sociologically conceived formulations
on the social role:
The fourth chapter gives a classification of the
problems to which casework is addressed. The
classification is based on the cases drawn from a
survey of 200 casework records. The causative factors
of problems are classified and discussed.
The fifth chapter is on casework tools — listening,
observation, interview, home visit and relationship.
The sixth and seventh chapters deal with the
techniques of helping, which as a topic takes up
more space than other topics in the book.
The eighth chapter reviews the casework process
— social study, social assessment and planning,
casework help and evaluation. There is also a discussion
on record writing.
The ninth chapter presents some theoretical systems
used in casework. Existentialism, Reality Therapy,
Cognitive Therapy, Rational Emotive Therapy and
Behavioural Modification are included in the discussion.
The tenth chapter is on the social worker. Qualities
desirable in the social worker are discussed. Then
a working definition of casework is developed. Finally,
the limitations of casework are examined and the
chapter closes with a note on the concept of the
casework approach.

REFERENCES
Banerjee G.R., : "Social Welfare in Ancient India", The
1967 Indian Journal of Social Work, Vol. XXVII,
No.2
:
Karnik V.B., N.M. Joshi, Servant of India, Bombay:
1972 United Asia Publications
 2. The Knowledge
Content in Casework:
Basic Elements

O ne of the characteristics of a profession is its

body of knowledge which gets moulded and shaped
over a period of time and goes on increasing
in content in a never-ending process of growth and
development. The expansion of knowledge in social
Knowledge work entails generating ideas and concepts, adapting
content of
casework useful ideas from the social sciences and
conceptualising practice experience. The knowledge
content of casework may be broadly divided into
four categories: (1) philosophical assumptions (2)
principles (3) theoretical formulations and (4) tools
and techniques of practice.

PHILOSOPHICAL ASSUMPTIONS
There are certain assumptions which constitute the
foundational structure of social work in general, and
casework in particular. They are the basic values,
the solid pillars without which the edifice of social
Basic work cannot stand. The word "assumptions" implies
assum-
-tions that, they are concepts which cannot be proved through
scientific methods, which, nonetheless, are basic and
vital to social work. They are philosophical in their
connotation, having been generated out of collective
thinking in response to fundamental questions that
have occurred to humankind in its march towards
civilisation. Questions like "What is the worth of
a human being? Can he live for himself or does
he have any duty towards his fellow human beings ?
What is the purpose of human life?" might have
8 Introduction to Social Casework
occurred to every human being at one time or other.
Religious philosophers, humanistic thinkers and others
have been pondering on these questions and have
provided some answers, which, though not acceptable
to all as regards every aspect of the question, offer
some guidelines linked to the core idea that life is
worth living. These philosophical assumptions are:
1. Every human being has to be considered as
a person with dignity and worth.
2. Human beings are interdependent. The condition
of interdependence indicates that there is a right-duty
matrix which governs human interactions in. social
groups.
3. There are common human needs that need to
be met for growth and development of individuals.
The existence of common needs does not negate the
uniqueness of the individual. Every individual is like
all other human beings in some aspects, like some
other human beings in some other aspects and like
no other individual in certain aspects.
4. Every individual has within him/her, the potential
for growth and achievement and (s)he has a right
to the realisation of this potential. From this, it
follows that people have the capacity to change.
5. Society has an obligation to help those who do
not have the means for the realisation of their
potentials.
There have been some sensitive and humane
Internalising individuals who had internalised these values. Their
these values
is conviction that society had a duty towards those
fundamental
to social
who could not help themselves led to action that
work generated organisations of helping activities for the
benefit of people in distress of various, kinds.

It is important to note that the philosophical values

listed here constitute the core beliefs for social work.
Among those who go for social work training, there
are some who want to do social work mainly because
 The Knowledge Content in Casework: Basic Elements 9
of these values. Within their conviction about the
significance of these values, lies their motivation for
social work. There are some others who go for social
work training, prompted by their desire for a
post-graduate degree rather than by a desire to help
people. They are not particularly concerned about
human needs and problems, and they may find to
their dismay, that they are unable to accept these
assumptions as core beliefs. Non-acceptance of these
values is untenable in social work practice and a
social work career is not meant for those people
who reject them.

PRINCIPLES
Equally important as philosophical assumptions are
casework principles. Principles are rules of action
for guiding performance.
The first principle is that of individualisation. Each
client** has to be perceived as a unique individual,
with a separate identity and not as one of a mass.
Human beings are not born in a mass nor do they
die in a mass, except in a catastrophe. Suppose
a man who comes for help to the social worker
is a Hindu and an unemployed pavement dweller.
Individuali- It is likely that, the social worker has certain ideas
sation
about Hindus as a religious sect, about unemployed
persons and about pavement dwellers. Instead of
attributing these pre-conceived ideas to the particular
client, and giving labels to his condition or behaviour
or put him into a category, the social worker should
view him with an open mind and a freshness of
approach. The ability to see the client as a distinct
individual, by being perceptively observant of the
distinctive features, and a visible readiness to respond
to his particular needs are essential in individualisation.

* This listing is based on the list of principles of the casework relationship

developed by F.D. Biestek in his book, "The Casework Relationship"
London: Unwin University Books, 1967 (Fourth impression).
** Client is the person whom the social worker helps.
10 Introduction to Social Casework
The second principle in casework is acceptance
acceptance of the client with all his good and bad
qualities, strengths and weaknesses, regardless of
his behaviour. The nearest meaning is that of the
appropriate attitude taught by most religions and
Acceptance implied in the exhortation "Love the sinner and hate
of the
client the sin". It indicates a favourable disposition towards
the client characterised by friendliness and benevolence
and a desire to be of help. The concept of acceptance
is rather abstract, but can be translated into action
by the use of techniques. Techniques of casework
will be discussed in Chapters 6 and 7 of this book.
Acceptance entails receiving a client, both in the
figurative and literal sense, uncalculatingly, without
any reservation and without making any mental verdict
as regards his behaviour. Underlying the principle
of acceptance is the philosophical assumption that
every individual has innate worth, irrespective of
his social position or behaviour. The client is entitled
to notice and recognition as a person, even though
he may have committed a crime. Acceptance does
not mean condoning socially unacceptable behaviour,
but it means concern and goodwill towards the person
behind the behaviour.
Acceptance is akin to the next principle, the principle
of a non-condemning attitude. In social work literature
and practice, the term "non-judgemental attitude"
is used by some to portray the same meaning. A
non-judgemental stance towards the client may not
Non- be always appropriate, because the social worker is
condemning
attitude expected to make tentative judgements in the sense
of forming estimates, or sensible opinions regarding
situations, relationships and consequences of
behavour. These are tentative, non-moral judgements
which need to be verified or tested in course of
time, as the process of helping continues, but these
are not to be disclosed to the client at any time.
A non-condemnatory attitude implies refusal to
express disapproval of the person, to insinuate blame
 The Knowledge Content in Casework: Basic Elements 11
through arguments of cause-effect connection, or to
pass judgement indicating that the person deserves
to be punished for his/her behaviour. In common
parlance, a condemned building is one that has been
declared by the housing authorities as a house unfit
for use. That means the building is beyond repairs.
Illustration Likewise, a condemned criminal, in legal terms, is
one whose guilt has been established and for whom
punishment is inevitable. But there is no condemnation
of the criminal by the social worker when (s)he
becomes a social work client. Though society has
already judged the criminal through its legal
machinery, the social worker assumes a posture of
a non-condemnatory acceptance and helpfulness,
affirming the individual as a person worthy of
attention.
The term 'condemnation of an individual' and the
underlying attitude are anathema in social work.
However, it does not mean that the social worker
advocates acquittal for the criminal. The social worker
as a representative of society, has to uphold the
laws of the land and is not expected to do anything
that will condone or encourage criminal activities.
But from the social work perspective, there is emphasis
on the idea that there are areas in which the wrongdoer
needs help, before, during, and after the process
of punishment. The major tenet implicit in such
situations is that, the person who perpetrates the
crime is acceptable as a person, though his crime
is disapproved. This attitude of acceptance, untouched
by elements of judgement and condemnation, may
ultimately help him/her to turn away from crime.
Criminals have been cited here for illustration because
they naturally evoke condemnatory feelings. Since
attitudes of acceptance and non-condemnation are
not automatically aroused with reference to criminals,
the social worker has to consciously and deliberately
exercise or apply these attitudes. Not all casework
clients are wrongdoers. In general, casework clients
are those who have difficulty in coping with problems
12 Introduction to Social Casework
of living. They are under stress in one form or
the other. When the social worker talks and behaves
in such a way that the client feels fully accepted,
the stage is set for the client to talk about his
problem.
Acknowledgement of the client's right to
self-determination is another principle in casework.
Self-determination refers to self-direction and is a
derivative of the philosophical assumption on the
Client's dignity and worth of the human being. The principle
right to states that an individual has the right of making
self-deter-
mination decisions about matters pertaining to his/her life,
and that, other people's decisions about directing
his/her life should not be imposed on him/her. In
the casework situation the social worker should not
make decisions, choices or plans for the client; the
client, however, can be guided and enabled to make
his/her own decisions.
Self-determination, like freedom, has its own limits.
It is not an absolute right. The decision made by
the client has to be within certain constraints imposed
by the social obligation which states that the
consequences of the decision should not be detrimental
to others. Nor should it be harmful to oneself.
Furthermore, the self-determined act should be within
the socially acceptable standards of behaviour. In
addition, every self-determined decision implies that
the decision maker, the client, takes upon
himself/herself the responsibility of carrying out the
decision and handling the consequences. When the
principle is viewed from this perspective, one can
see that people vary in their capacity for
self-determination. What follows is that the principle
has to be exercised in accordance with the client's
capacity for self-determination.
Closely associated with the principle of
self-determination is that of client's participation in
the handling of the problem that (s)he is confronted
with. In a way, self-determination is a form of
 The Knowledge Content in Casework: Basic Elements 13
participation as it entails decision-making by the client.
The process of helping and being helped does not
Client's stop at the point of decision-making by the client,
parti-
cipation but it goes much further in terms of plans pursued
and actions taken. According to the principle of
participation, the client becomes the main actor in
pursuing plans and taking action, whereas, the social
worker is only an enabler.

The social worker is also expected to maintain

confidentiality regarding the information received from
Keep the the client, which is yet another principle. During
client's
case the process of casework, there are many things about
confidential which the client talks to the social worker. In view
of the attitudes of acceptance and non-condemnation
required of the social worker, who has to individualise
the client depending upon the latter's personality
and needs, it is important that the information which
the client gives and the statements (s)he makes be
treated seriously. It is necessary that they are not
disclosed to others, except with the client's
permission, where the situation warrants sharing of
information with a third person, like the client's
family members, or another specialist and such others.

It follows from the preceding discussion that the

social worker initiates a relationship with the client,
characterised by acceptance and affirmation, devoid
of hints at condemnation or fixing of blame. Such
a relationship can hardly be mechanical. It has to
be built up through emotional involvement on the
Controlled part of the social worker. Emotional involvement is
emotional needed to the extent that the social worker can move
involvement
to the emotional level of the client, and view the
situation as (s)he sees it. The social worker, however,
should have a perspective of objectivity, lest (s)he
gets blinded by the emotional onslaught of the
situation. Like an artist who captures on the canvas
the feelings of the subject, the social worker should
be able to capture on his/her own mental screen,
14 Introduction to Social Casework
the feelings of the client, without allowing those
feelings to affect adversely his/her thinking process.
It is possible, therefore, as it is also necessary,
that the social worker maintains a certain degree
of detachment, side by side, with an appropriate
level of emotional involvement in order that (s)he
may enable the client to view his/her problem
objectively and to plan realistically. Hence the idea
of controlled involvement by the worker becomes
a principle.
It can be seen that acceptance, a non-condemning
outlook, individualisation and controlled emotional
involvement are various aspects of the approach that
the social worker adopts in relation to the client.
Self-determination and client participation pertain to
the responsive behaviour which is desirable for the
Gist of all client to handle his/her difficulties. The social worker
principles
should direct his/her own activities, of which the
major element is communication, towards promoting
self-determination and participation in the client.
Confidentiality is the rule the worker should observe
vis-a-vis the information given by the client. Just
knowing these principles is not sufficient nor is it
possible to put them into action without the help
of systematised procedures, called techniques.
Techniques are particular ways of doing and speaking
in relation to the client and his/her problem, keeping
in view specific goals. The principles become
practicable by means of techniques. (See chapters
6 and 7).

THEORETICAL FORMULATION IN CASEWORK

One of the pre-requisites of effective helping is
that the helper makes efforts to understand the person
and develops a sort of conceptual sketch, based on
his/her understanding of the person who needs help.
A body of theoretical knowledge is available to the
social worker, in the form of behavioural sciences
which deal with fundamental characteristics of human
 The Knowledge Content in Casework : Basic Elements 15
behaviour. The range of characteristics are known
and every human being's behaviour can be explained
in terms of one or the other of behavioural variations.
Behaviour of individuals and groups become
understandable to some extent in the light of the
knowledge of behavioural sciences*. Hence, behavioural
sciences are an essential part of the theoretical courses
required for a post-graduate programme in social
work.

A theory is a statement about the interrelatedness

of a set of facts that have been empirically verified
or are capable of being verified (Turner, 1974). The
simplest unit in the building of a theory is a concept.
Concepts The word 'concept-' has two meanings. The first
are basic to
theory refers to words that indicate in abstract terms, objects,
situations, conditions, qualities, characteristics, etc.
Concepts may be simple or complex. For example,
'table' is a simple concept, meaning a specific type
of furniture. C©ncepts in casework are more complex.
'Client' and 'agency' are two basic concepts in
casework. 'Client' is the term for the individual
whom the social worker helps or who receives social
work services. 'Agency' is the office or the locale
of the organisation which employs social workers
through whom social work services are provided. It
does not mean that social work activities are operative
only in an office or in a particular physical space.
Agency is the centre, meant for organising and
administering the activities, which may be carried
out at the centre or elsewhere. The second meaning
of concept refers to a generalised idea on the nature
and qualities of objects, situations, relationships or
characteristics. With reference to this meaning, the
philosophical assumptions discussed. earlier may be
termed philosophical concepts.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
* Behavioural Sciences in this context refer to psychology, anthropology,
sociology, some parts of psychiatry, social geography and, behavioural
parts of economics, political science and law.
16 Introduction to Social Casework
Propositions are relationships between concepts that
are established and accepted as facts. Propositions
are theoretical statements. A few fundamentals of
human behaviour drawn from behavioural sciences
Propositions will be presented as propositions here. For beginners
are in casework, these propositions constitute a convenient
theoretical
statements conceptual framework for understanding human
behaviour.

Proposition One: An individual's behaviour is conditioned

by his/her environment and his/her life experiences.

Behaviour refers to feeling, thinking, talking and

doing. Feeling and thinking are covert, because they
are not visible to others, whereas, talking and doing
are overt behaviours. The simplest meaning of
environment is the surrounding of the person, that
has both physical and human aspects. The members
of the individual's family, the house in which (s)he
lives, its space and contents in terms of facilities
and furniture are all components of his/her
Environ- environment. His/Her work place with the people
ment and working there who have contacts with him/her, is
experience
also to be considered as his/her environment. There
are less visible, yet equally significant elements of
environment like the socio-economic conditions and
the socio-cultural factors that influence his/her life.
In other words, all the human, animal and inanimate
elements, the conditions and influences surrounding
the person constitute his/her environment. The
implication of this proposition is that when two people
behave differently in the same situation, the
differences in their behaviour may be attributed to
the differences in their environments and
life-experiences. From among the general population,
many turn out to be honest citizens, while some
become criminals. It is, therefore, possible to explain
a person's criminal behaviour, at least partially, by
probing into his/her environment and life experiences.
 The Knowledge Content in Casework: Basic Elements 17
Proposition Two: For human growth and development it
is essential that certain basic needs be met.
The basic needs pertain to the physical, emotional
and intellectual development of human beings and
they have to be fulfilled in an ongoing manner and
at appropriate times, in order that a child may develop
normally towards physical, emotional and intellectual
Basic needs maturity. The basic physical needs refer to the human
— physical
body's needs for food, shelter and clothing. The
emotional and intellectual needs, instead of dealing
with them as two separate categories, can be discussed
under the more comprehensive term ' 'mental needs",
that is, the needs for mental growth.
Every child needs to be loved by parents, or in
their absence, by parental substitutes for emotional
security. Deprivation of love for long periods can
have crippling effects on the child's emotional growth.
Living in a family with loving adults creates for
the child a sense of belonging and confidence in
Basic needs the self and others around him/her. The basic trust
— mental
(s)he develops for persons immediately around
him /her is an important ingredient, facilitating the
process of growth towards maturity. Physical activities
are necessary for the development of the body;
likewise, there should be such activities as engage
the child's thinking and reasoning faculties, which
foster his/her intellectual growth. Opportunities for
mental growth are an essential requirement for
personality development. Mental growth, including
the emotional and intellectual aspects cannot take
place in a sterile atmosphere. On the other hand,
a live atmosphere with stimuli for physical and
intellectual activity, scope for the exercise of curiosity,
opportunities for experience and experimentation is
required. Furthermore, interactions with children of
one's age group are also necessary in order that
the child may learn to relate to people and to cooperate
with others in group activities. We expect every child
to develop into a law-abiding citizen. While growing
18 Introduction to Social Casework
up, it is important, therefore, that (s)he learns
to distinguish between right and wrong, what is socially
acceptable and unacceptable, and what is realistic
and unrealistic. Only with guidance and discipline
can such qualities be imbibed and there is a need
for such guidance and direction from parents.
Proposition Three: Emotional needs are real and they cannot
be met or removed through intellectual reasoning.
This proposition is, in a way, a corollary to the
second proposition, but is being considered a separate
proposition, in view of its significance to human
lives. When uncomfortable feelings are provoked in
an individual by a particular situation, rational
explanation of the situation by a second person may
not suffice for the removal of the feelings. The rational
explanation may emphasize the inevitability, the
advantages, the transitoriness, or the lack of
significance of the situation. Whatever the explanation
may be, it may not be of immediate help. Feelings
are provoked as the particular situation touches some
area of the person's emotional needs.
As a simple illustration, take the example of a two-
year-old child crying for his/her mother who has
gone out of the house for a couple of hours. Mere
factual explanations for the mother's absence are
not sufficient to pacify the child. Other strategies
of reassurance and cajoling may have to be used,
because emotional needs are as real as physical needs
When obstacles thwart emotional fulfilment, persons
going through the experience are not going to be
satisfied with explanations of the obstacles, however,
rational the explanation may be. In an extreme case,
one may consider the event of suicide that occurs
in a specific situation like a frustrated love affair.
Client needs A woman unable to marry the man she loves attempts
emotionally suicide. An objective observer who knows the case
supportive
stance from is likely to remark that self-destruction is not the
social
worker solution to the woman's problem. This person may
 The Knowledge Content in Casework: Basic Elements 19

argue that life is too important to be impulsively

destroyed in a context like this, and that, if the
suicidal person going through a severe emotional crisis
can hold on for some time, the suicidal impulse
will pass off, the intensity of the crisis will diminish
and that she will be able to cope with the situation.
But such a rational view will not occur to a person
in the emotionally-charged context of contemplating
suicide. What the person needs as a countermove
to the suicidal thought is timely emotional assistance,
strongly sustaining and supportive of the person,
so that the person may be able to think and plan
clearly a course of rational action subsequently.

Proposition Four: Behavour is purposeful and is in response

to the individual's physical and emotional needs.
Much of human behaviour is explainable as long
as the physical and emotional needs are observable.
But some of the ramifications of emotional needs
are not easily known and, therefore, it may not
be easy to establish a need-behaviour linkage Ramu,
a six-year-old boy is well-behaved and happy in his
Illustration: kindergarten class. He is active, responsive and
Ramu's
changed bubbling with energy. One morning he appears to
behaviour be a different person: he is cranky, sulky and unhappy.
What is the reason for a change in his usual behaviour ?
His perceptive teacher investigates and finds out
that Ramu's mother has been in the hospital for
a few days, and that, he is staying with some relatives
with whom he is not very familiar. The father divides
his time between the workplace and the hospital
and does not have any time for his son. Ramu is
full of anxious questions, but no adult has sat with
the child to answer his queries. He is the only child
to his parents. The sudden change in Ramu's behaviour
is obvious to those who know and understand his
current situation.
An implication of the proposition under discussion
is that when the reasons for a person's behaviour
20 Introduction to Social Casework
are not obvious, the social and emotional factors
associated with the behaviour have to be explored
and identified before an explanation can be given.
It is also likely that, some of the motivating factors
Explore may be the hidden elements operating from the
reasons for unconscious part of the human mind. A derivative
person's
behaviour of the proposition is that a particular behaviour may
be prompted by one or more factors, some of which
are known to the individual and the rest not known,
the unknown factors operating from the unconscious
part of the mind.

Proposition Five: Other people's behaviour can be understood

only in terms of one's own emotional and intellectual
comprehension.
When we see people behaving in a socially
unacceptable manner, we make our own guess ,of
the reasons for their behaviour. Our guesses are
not based on a serious consideration of the social
and emotional factors. Besides, we categorise persons
and attach labels. This process leads to judging
individuals and not to understanding their behaviour.
Emotional Our efforts towards understanding should be preceded
and
intellectual by a stance of openness, devoid of pre-conceived
under- notions and a readiness to learn with the help of
standing
facts. We have to start from a point of assumption
of ignorance and move towards understanding. An
attitude suggesting 'I know it already, there is nothing
more to learn' will be a major block in understanding
and knowing about behaviour. Knowledge assimilated
from already existing facts about behaviour can be
a helpful asset in this process of understanding. A
high level of comprehension of the client's behaviour
can be achieved through keeping an open mind.
The propositions discussed briefly in the preceding
paragraphs are the basic elements of the knowledge
content of casework. There are additional theoretical
formulations, which will be described in Chapters
3 and 9.
 The Knowledge Content in Casework: Basic Elements 21

REFERENCES
Biestek, J.P., 1967 : The Casework Relationship London: Unwin
University Books
Turner, F.J. (Ed.), 1974 : Social Work Treatment New York: The Free
Press, p. 5
 3. Behavioural Concepts for
Understanding Clients

T his chapter is a continuation of the previous

chapter and it will deal with additional concepts
on human behaviour — concepts that are relevant
and significant with regard to their usefulness and
applicability in casework. Theories related to the
structure and development of the personality will
also be discussed.

HUMAN NEEDS
The gr©wth and development of every living organism
takes place through fulfilment of needs. Human beings
have two sets of needs: biological (physical) and
psychosocial. The human infant needs air, water,
food, shelter and clothing for physical growth. In
What are adulthood (s)he develops the sexual need also. The
human
needs? human child's psychosocial needs, which animals do
not have are: (1) love and security (2) a sense
of belonging to a group (3) feelings of self-esteem
(4) opportunities for physical and mental growth
(5) guidance and direction. It must be noted that
the term "mental needs" used in a similar context
in the second chapter, has been replaced here
by the term, 'psychosocial needs'. The word
"psychosocial" refers to a larger concept that
indicates that, psychic (mental) needs have a social
dimension. The nature and content of the social
dimension will be made clearer by the explanation
in the following paragraphs.
The environment is a factor that needs to be
considered with reference to fulfilment of needs. An
 Behavioural Concepts for Understanding Clients 23

individual's environment is his/her surroundings which

include the physical set up, the animate and inanimate
things, conditions and circumstances that affect
his/her life one way or other. Fulfilment of needs
is effected through means provided by the
environment. The environment, while providing
resources for meeting needs, also makes demands.
Consequently, every organism develops adaptive
behaviour or ways of meeting its own needs and
demands of the environment. The adaptive behaviour
of animals is most frequently through instincts,
whereas, for human beings the adaptive behaviours
depend to a great extent on learning. It is on the
learning process and the maturation process that the
development of human behaviour is anchored. The
maturation process pertains to the sequential
development of the body's abilities and skills; it begins
earlier than learning. Though parts of the body and
functions grow at different rates, a biological pattern
of sequential development takes place.
The biological pattern is predictable. For example,
by the time a child is five years old, (s)he is expected
to develop certain motor skills. The process of
Illustration sequential development, which is maturation, will
proceed more or less smoothly, provided the body
is well endowed without any defect or deficiency.
Any defect or deformity in the body is likely to
disrupt the maturation process. Though some of the
earlier physical skills like crawling, standing, walking,
etc. are through maturation alone, human skills like
dressing oneself, speaking a language, reading, writing
and abilities for daily living do not occur in the
child without the influence of other human beings.
For acquiring mental skills and many of the physical
skills, learning is necessary and this learning occurs
through the help of other people. The process called
'socialisation' refers to the early learning period in
which infants and young children become aware of
society and their relationships with others, through
24 Introduction to Social Casework
the influence and teaching of the people in his/her
environment. The child's parents, teachers, and to
some extent, his/her peers may be considered the
socialising agents.
As far as the child is concerned, the family is
very important because it is the source of such supplies
as meet his/her needs — both physical and
psychosocial. The parents have the responsibility for
providing these supplies. Immediately after birth, the
satisfaction of needs for the infant comes through
his/her mother. In the course of time, the father
and siblings also become sources for need-fulfilment.
For a child who is physically healthy and whose
environment is favourable, growth and development
will progress without much hindrance. By the term
"growth and development", one refers to both the
physical growth and development, and the growth
and development of the personality.

STRUCTURE OF THE PERSONALITY

Personality is the overall picture of the
characteristic behaviour of the individual. Behaviour
includes, thinking, feeling, speaking and doing. To
know an individual's personality means to inform
oneself about the usual way the individual thinks,
feels, speaks and does things. Physical growth in
children can be easily observed and assessed. Besides,
steps to be taken for promoting physical growth
are concrete, and hence, easy to comprehend. The
concept of personality, however, is complex and
personality growth is not easily assessable. It requires
special knowledge and skills to identify the different
aspects of personality growth.
Sigmund Freud's theory on the personality structure
is helpful in understanding the complex phenomenon
that is known as the personality. According to Freud,
the human personality is an entity consisting of three
systems — the id, ego, and the superego. One may
 Behavioural Concepts for Understanding Clients 25
find an analogy between the personality structure
and the structure of the human body divided into
different systems. The human body is divided into
different parts or systems, like the digestive system,
nervous system, circulatory system, where each
system denotes and carries out a distinctive set of
functions. Similarly, the three parts of the personality,
the id, ego and the superego perform different sets
Freud's of functions. Unlike the body's systems, the three
conceptuali- parts of the personality cannot be illustrated through
sation: the
id, ego and photographs or sketches, because the division into
superego
three parts is a conceptual abstraction. But the idea
is comprehensible in view of the differentiated and
definable sets of functions.

The id is the most primitive part of the personality

— the part that we share with animals. It is the
seat of instincts and is said to operate on the pleasure
principle or the principle of instant gratification.
Fulfilment of biological needs is the main concern
What is id of the id. When a person is hungry, his/her id
is activated in the sense that (s)he is driven to
make efforts to get food. The ego and superego
evolved during the process of human civilisation, as
the human being gradually progressed from the level
of the primitive savage. The superego constitutes
the individual's values, moral codes and considerations
of what is right and wrong. The ego maintains the
What is ego balance between the id and the superego in relation
to the demands of the environment. When a person
is hungry, (s)he satisfies his/her hunger through
socially approved ways and not through, say, stealing
food. That food should not be stolen, comes as a
behavioural check from the superego. The ego is
influenced in this context, by the prohibitions
proceeding from the superego and also by
considerations of reality, like the risks of getting
caught and punished. Understandably, the ego is said
to operate on the reality principle. Extending the
analogy of hunger to the world of animals, one finds
26 Introduction to Social Casework
that a hungry animal will find food some way or
other, regardless of any system of values as to what
is right and wrong, because animals do not have
an ego or superego.
The ego has various functions: impulse control,
tolerance of frustration, postponement of gratification,
tension management, reality testing, object relations
and integration and synthesis. Impulse control refers
to the function of controlling the id impulses in
relation to reality. The id impulses pertain to body's
needs, and they operate for immediate satisfaction
of these needs. The ego controls the impulses and
directs them along socially approved channels.
Tolerance of frustration and postponement of
gratification are operative in human life in day to
day living. For example, a child who gives up learning
in the face of frustrations of learning and looks
for immediate satisfaction will not get educated. The
great human achievements would not have been
possible had it not been for the effective performance
of these functions. The achievers were those people,
who instead of getting crushed under frustrations,
proceeded ahead with their efforts for attaining their
goals by trying new strategies of problem solving
when the old strategies failed. Nor did they deviate
from their long term goals by considerations of
immediate satisfaction.
Ego, Tension is a part of human existence and tension
superego
controls management which is a function of the ego, entails
the containing of tension so that it does not affect
the person's total functioning. A. school boy, for
example, awaiting examination results is under
tension. If he is not able to eat or sleep or perform
his share of the household Chores because of his
tension, it means that his ego is rather weak with
regard to tension management.
Reality testing means assessing the reality pertaining
to oneself and the environment as it is, and taking
 Behavioural Concepts for Understanding Clients 27

appropriate actions to deal with reality. If an

unemployed man, for instance, applies for jobs for
which he is not qualified, instead of jobs that are
compatible with his qualifications, it indicates
inadequate reality testing.
Human beings are interdependent and, relationships
are an essential component of human life. Object
relations as an ego function are concerned with this
matter and refer to forming relationships at different
levels and varying in nature and intensity.
The function of synthesis performed by the ego
is a complex phenomenon involving the integration
of different experiences of living, positive and negative
feelings, happy and unhappy events, threats and fears,
joys and sorrows. Just as the digestive system of
the body digests the food, and then separates the
nutrients needed for the body from the different
types and forms of food, contributing finally to the
Synthesis nourishment of the body, the ego performs a synthesis
by ego
function for the personality by making it possible
for the personality to assimilate the different
experiences. For example, a boy who nearly died
in a drowning accident transcends the event and
his fear of water, by learning swimming and by
becoming a skilled swimmer. The positive
developments after the bad experience indicates the
successful functioning of his ego with regard to
integration and synthesis. Another person may survive
a similar accident, but may develop a horrible fear
of water that (s)he is not able to overcome. In
this context, his/her ego is deficient in the matter
of synthesising a negative experience. The fear
producing accident has not been assimilated; it has
remained as an isolated offending fragment in his/her
personality.

Thinking, remembering, judging and all the higher

faculties of the mind, like conceptualisation, analysis,
computing, and such others are in the domain of
28 Introduction to Social Casework
the ego at the service of the personality for growth,
development and survival.
Ego functions are geared to adaptation to the
environment without which survival and growth is
not possible. Adaptation involves change — change
of the self or change of the environment. An individual
emigrating to a new country, for example, is required
to change his/her life style in some ways in order
to be integrated with the new place and its people.
It is through the change of the self that adaptation
Adaptation is possible here, because (s)he cannot change the
is key to life style of the people of the place where (s)he
growth
is an immigrant. Consider the situation of a man
who is very rigid in his food habits and he goes
to a new place where the food he likes is not available.
If he refuses to eat the food that is available, he
will have to starve. Many examples can be cited
of individuals in crises whose inability to change caused
harm to themselves. In the example cited earlier,
of the boy who has been able to integrate the negative
experience of falling into the river, adaptation is
evident. Whereas, in the contrasting example, the
man's fear of water remaining with him all his life
indicates an area of non-adaptation. Adaptation
through changing the environment is another
possibility and the process started with the first
primitive men who made crude shelters to protect
themselves from the natural elements and who started
to grow food crops, began using fire to cook food
and do such things out of their environment and
made living more comfortable.

Factors Influencing Personality Development

In a well-developed personality there is a balanced
operation of the three systems — the id, ego and
superego. An adequately functioning personality means
fulfilment of needs and adaptation to environment.
There can be, however, obstacles to adequate
functioning of the personality. For the child, its parents
 Behavioural Concepts for Understanding Clients 29
Parental are the suppliers for need fulfilment. There are some
failure
parents who do not love their children. They reject
their children and reject also their role as suppliers
for children's needs. The inability of parents to provide
for children's needs due to lack of material resources,
lack of knowledge, or other reasons, and the absence
of parents or parent substitutes are factors that can
impair personality development.
Most of the ego functions of growth develop through
the process of socialisation at home. Parents who
have some understanding about children's needs and
their development are able to rear children in such
a way that fosters the operation of ego functions.
Every stage of the child's maturing process has its
own agenda of possibilities of growth. There are
Socialisation activities (s)he can do on his/her own, those (s)he
is crucial
can do with help, and activities which are above
his/her age-appropriate capacities. There are things
which (s)he needs and should have, and many things
(s)he does not need, possession of which may have
adverse effects. This agenda has to operate within
a structure of legitimate freedom and restraints. Doing
for children what they can do themselves, giving
them materials which they do not need, though they
may want them or demand them, and giving in
to their whims out of a desire to please them at
any cost, are manifestations of over-protection.
Over- Over-protection prevents the progressive development
protection
of ego functions. When children have everything going
for them smoothly, as though having a comfortable
life is their absolute right without their having to
flex their own physical, intellectual and emotional
muscles, there is very little scope for the operation
of ego functions like impulse control, tolerance of
frustration, postponement of gratification, reality
orientation and the like. Personality malfunctioning
will set in as a consequence.
An environment characterised by love, under-
standing, responsiveness to needs, supervision and
30 Introduction to Social Casework
guidance is, therefore, necessary for the development
of the personality of the child.
The content of the superego varies from individual
to individual, depending upon the values of society
and the child-rearing practices of the parents. A
strong superego means that the person is guided
Strong by certain principles and standards of behaviour. A
superego is strong superego generates guilt feelings in the
conducive
to growth individual when his/her behaviour does not concur
with the superego's injunctions. If the parents
themselves have a well developed superego, that,
by itself, is a favourable condition for the formation
of a strong superego in children. Conversely, when
parents have a defective superego, the children are
at a disadvantage. In families, where parents hold
strict norms and codes of behaviour, but try to
inculcate their values in children through intimidation
and punishment, the likely result is that the children
may accept the parental teachings in a superficial
way, reject them, or develop a superego which is
very rigid and punitive. In a healthy ego-superego
combination, the guilt feelings generated from the
superego are handled effectively by the ego, so that
the other functions of ego are not affected by the
Superego - guilt feelings. When the superego is rigid and punitive,
ego balancethe superego-ego duo becomes ill-matched, creating
situations in which guilt feelings overwhelm the ego,
thus affecting the personality as a whole. There have
been instances of individuals who were driven to
suicide by their own guilt feelings. It is, doubtless,
an extreme situation. Nevertheless, it illustrates the
ego's total inability for adaptation to the environment
against the onslaught of guilt feelings in certain
individuals in particular situations.
From the preceding discussion, one may surmise
that certain attitudes and practices on the part of
parents obstruct the normal process of personality
development in children. They are briefly summed
up and listed in the following pages.
 Behavioural Concepts for Understanding Clients 31
Factors Obstructing Personality Development
1. Lack of love towards children
Lack of love results in rejection of children which
means that the needs of children are neglected. The
agenda of growth possibilities, mentioned earlier, is
disregarded by the rejecting parents whose failure
is mainly due to omission of performing things essential
to parenting. Coupled with the omission of performing
appropriate deeds, may be the commission of
inappropriate deeds in the form of physical and
psychosocial ill-treatment of children.
2. Severe child-rearing practices
In some families, the problem is not lack of love,
but love is overshadowed by the parents' inclination
to be unduly strict and punishing towards their
children. The probable result is that the children
begin to fear their parents more than love them.
A fear-based relationship is inimical to growth.
3. The attitude of over-protection
In contrast to the rejecting parents, the
over-protecting parents' failure is that of commission
or overdoing, that is, extending their parenting
deeds to levels unfavourable for growth. They are
unable to apply with discretion the limits or checks
to children's behaviour.
4. Inadequate or defective role modelling
Learning is an important mechanism of growth
and one of the early forms of learning is through
identification. Through identification with their
parents, the children learn appropriate ways of
behaviour and thus parents become models for
children's learning. Parents who have inadequately
or defectively functioning ego and superego are poor
models for their children.
5. Inconsistencies in child-rearing practises
Effective parenting means having a consistent
pattern of bringing up children. Some parents are
32 Introduction to Social Casework
not consistent; at times, they are very firm and
strict and at other times, very lenient and tolerant.
The problem lies in handling the same types of
behaviour differently at different times; this can be
very confusing to children. Inconsistency can occur
also between the attitudes of the two parents.
Situations where one of the parents is too strict
and the other too lenient, are not helpful for growth,
because in course of time, children learn to take
advantage of the inconsistencies and manipulate the
behaviour of parents.

THE CONCEPT OF THE UNCONSCIOUS

In common parlance, the word, 'unconscious' is
used as an adjective, meaning, "not aware", and
unconsciousness is a condition where a person becomes
unaware of himself/herself and the surroundings and
is irresponsive to physical sensations. When used
as a noun, the word 'unconscious' refers to the
psychoanalytical term denoting the unconscious part
of the mind, where forgotton feelings, thoughts and
experiences are stored. Though the thoughts lying
buried in the unconscious cannot be recalled and
remembered by the individual by an effort of the
will, they can affect current behaviour. According
to the psychoanalytical theory, the human mind
Three levels operates at three levels: the conscious, the
of the mind pre-conscious and the unconscious. Mind as a concept
is contained within the larger concept of the personality
which includes besides mental behaviour, motor and
verbal behaviours as well. There is a connection
between the conscious-unconscious levels of the mind
and the three structural parts of the personality.
The id, ego and superego are operative both in the
conscious and unconscious. What we call conscience
is the conscious part of the superego. Most of the
ego functions are operative in the conscious. When
the conscious level of the mind is active, there is
the thinking process, including the sorting out of
 Behavioural Concepts for Understanding Clients 33
the various stimuli that enter the mind through the
senses, together with awareness of the surroundings.
The pre-conscious level is the storehouse of memory.
It contains thoughts, feelings and images of 'past
events' that can he brought to the conscious level
by an effort of the will. The thoughts, feelings and
images contained in the unconscious are materials
that were once in the conscious, but are now forgotton
and untransferable to the conscious by an effort of
the will, but transferable through psychoanalytical
methods. When a person is asleep, the conscious
is inactive, whereas the unconscious is active.
Dreams are the expressions of bits and pieces of
the content of the unconscious. Similarly, people who
walk or talk in their sleep are doing so under the
influence of the unconscious.
There are two life energies in the human being:
the sexual energy or the libido, and aggression. These
are instinctual forces that all living organisms have.
The first is meant for the preservation of the species
and the second for the preservation of the self. Being
biologically related, these forces emanate from the
id, but in the human personality they are controlled
and directed by the ego under the influence of the
superego, in relation to the demands of the
environment.

DEFENSE MECHANISMS
In relation to the operation of ego functions, the
mind experiences, occasionally, the phenomenon of
anxiety which is a subjective feeling of uneasiness
Earlier in this chapter, there was a reference to
tension, which is a sharp, situation-specific form
Coping with of anxiety. But anxiety occurs very often in a hazy
anxiety
indistinct form. From the psychoanalytical point of
view, there are three types of pressures on the ego,
leading to anxiety — from the id, from the superego
and from the demands of environment. Human beings
34 Introduction to Social Casework
use various behaviours to be able to cope with anxiety.
These are simple coping strategies used in everyday
life at the conscious level, distinct from defense
mechanisms which are used mostly at the unconscious
level. Some commonly seen behaviours which can
also occur in response to anxiety are the following:
1. Swearing, cursing, using abusive language,
crying, laughing, etc.
2. Eating, drinking, smoking. Some people who
initially resort to cigarette, alcohol or drugs to deal
with the anxiety caused by some problem become
addicts to these substances, in course of time.
3. Indulging in any vigorous physical activity.
4. Sleeping.
5. Talking to others.
6. Thinking through the anxiety causing situation,
planning action and taking action.
There are times when the anxiety provoked by
external circumstances or by inner forces is so
unmanageable that the ego represses it, or in other
words, pushes it to the unconscious. Repression is
Repression a defense mechanism of the ego. Some people's
abnormal fears of certain commonplace things may
have antecedents in the past that were repressed
along with the anxiety generated at that point of
time. In ordinary forgetfulness, the disappearance
of thoughts from the conscious is not absolute.
Generally, the memory of the event, or at least,
some elements of the event are liable to reappear
in the conscious. Let us assume that a novel we
read long ago is forgotton now. If the story is narrated
again, it is most likely that we may remember a
few aspects, which indicates that we are aware of
our forgetfulness of some other parts of the book.
In repression, there is no awareness of forgetfulness.
It looks as though the repressed material has vanished
without leaving any trace or clue by which it can
be brought to the conscious.
 Behavioural Concepts for Understanding Clients 35
Denial, rationalisation, displacement, identification
with the aggressor, compensation, fantasy and
Forms of projection are some of the other defense mechanisms.
defense
mechanisms Defense mechanisms are more complex than the coping
devices described earlier, though they are both aimed
at adaptation.
Denial is the shutting off of reality, in contexts
where reality causes excessive anxiety. Suppose a
denial sick man, who has no inkling of the seriousness
of his condition is told by the physician that he
is suffering from an incurable disease, one of the
probable reactions is that he may not accept the
diagnosis. His refusal to believe the diagnosis is denial,
and there can be some factors behind this denial.
It is these factors which cause unmanageable anxiety,
leading to a defensive manoeuvre of the mind. There
have been instances concerning mentally retarded
children whose parents deny the fact of mental
retardation, despite strong indications of its positive
presence. It is possible that the ideas that these
parents have regarding the condition of mental
retardation are such that they cause unmanageable
anxiety for the ego, leading to the use of denial
in a defensive way.
Rationalisation refers to finding a justifiable cause
or causes or excuses for doing something not approved
by society. In rationalisation, the individual attributes
to his/her unacceptable behaviour only the socially
Rationa- approved motives, when in reality, there are other
lisation
not-so-good motives as well. Suppose a man who
makes money through dubious ways spends a part
of the money for charitable purposes. If he says
that he is using bad means to make money only
to help the poor, he is rationalising his behaviour.
When the object or nature of instinctual forces
is changed, the mental operation involved is
displacement. For example, one may imagine the
situation of a boy, who after being beaten by his
36 Introduction to Social Casework
mother reacts instantly by kicking his pet dog. The
boy experiences feelings of anger towards his mother
Dis- who has beaten him. Beating the mother is not socially
placement acceptable nor is it expedient, because he is weaker
and smaller than the mother. By kicking the dog
he is discharging the angry feelings he feels towards
the mother. He is displacing on the dog the aggression
that was originally aimed at the mother.

When displacement leads to a socially valued practice

or activity, it is called sublimation. A young man,
dedicated to the service of the poor, fighting
incessantly for the removal of social injustice inflicted
on the poor, may have originally started experiencing
anger towards key people of his life, like his parents.
Sublimation In course of time his aggressive instinct has
transformed itself into a fighting force directed against
certain aspects of the society, and the fighting is
meant to bring redress to the poor people. Here,
we see sublimated aggression or aggression aimed
at socially valued goals. Likewise, an unmarried woman
who turns out to be a competent and understanding
house mother in a children's institution illustrates
sublimation of the sexual energy, with reference to
her role as an effective mother substitute for the
orphans.

While confronting an aggressor, the ego experiences

anxiety. Identifying with the aggressor is a defensive
way of handling the anxiety. Street gangs thrive
in some of the urban localities and they are generally
held in fear and are also avoided by the young people
of the surrounding area. The gang members do not
hesitate to use bullying tactics on some of the
vulnerable adolescents. If this happens over a period
of time, it can cause excessive anxiety in the victims.
There is a probability that the victim may join the
gang gradually. Thus, by becoming a bully himself,
he avoids the inner stress. In other words, his ego
holds the anxiety at bay and enables the personality
 Behavioural Concepts for Understanding Clients 37
to function, though in a socially unacceptable way.
Those victims who feel secure with the support of
their families and of others, will not find the anxiety
unmanageable. Identification is a growth mechanism.
Identi- But when the object of identification is an aggressor
fication
with the whose behaviour is copied for psycho-social survival,
aggressor the identification in action is a defense mechanism.
There have been stories of prisoners in the Nazi
concentration camps who sided with the prison guards
against their fellow prisoners — a phenomenon
resulting from the identification of the oppressed with
the oppressor.
Regression Regression refers to reverting to less mature
behaviours that are characteristic of earlier stages
of development. For instance, it can happen that
a child, say, of eight years, regresses to bed wetting,
which means that the child who has been toilet-trained
and who has acquired appropriate toilet habits is
now showing inappropriate toilet behaviour by wetting
his/her bed. Take another example, a six-year-old
boy who could speak clearly started blabbering like
a two-year-old baby, after the death of his favourite
grandmother.
Compensation is the ego's device against the pressure
of excessive guilt feelings. A mother, who feels guilty
of the angry feelings that her child provokes in her,
Compen- may over-protect the child by way of compensation.
sation
Compensation is at the service of the ego, also for
counteracting feelings of inadequacy. Many examples
can be given of people who have made up for some
inability or disability of theirs, by acquiring competence
in a particular activity or occupation.
Day- Daydreaming, that is, indulging in thoughts of
dreaming
fantasy, is resorted to by the mind as an escape
device to run away from anxiety-ridden contexts.
A child who is backward in his studies and who
is unable to understand what the teacher is teaching,
will not find learning or class situations enjoyable.
38 Introduction to Social Casework
(S)He may escape into his/her fantasies from which
(s)he derives some pleasure, by daydreaming.
Under the surveillance of a rigidly strict superego,
handling one's own undesirable feelings or traits can
be painful to the ego. Therefore, awareness of such
thoughts is avoided by attributing (projecting) the
feelings or traits to others. An individual brought
up on a strict code of sexual behaviour based on
wrong notions of human sexuality will have difficulty
in accepting his/her own sexuality. When (s)he
experiences sexual feelings, (s)he is unable to accept
projection them, with the result that, (s)he may project them
on to the person who has caused the arousal of
his/her feelings and may complain that the other
person is trying to seduce him/her, thus presenting
a mental cover-up for his/her own feelings. This
process is called projection, which is also one of
the defense mechanisms. It will be useful to remember
that an unconscious process is operative here, entailing
both denial and repression.
Denial and repression are present with almost all
the other defense mechanisms. The functioning of
defense mechanisms is mostly unconscious. If they
are used consciously as safeguards, they are simply
coping devices used by the mind, as illustrated earlier.
Defense mechanisms as protective devices of the ego
are healthy and functional, to a certain degree. Beyond
limits, however, they can become harmfully pervasive,
causing defective functioning of the personality. A
child who is scolded by the teacher for not doing
Illustration his/her home work may drift into fantasies of pleasant
experiences. It helps him/her to maintain his/her
self-exteem on the current situation, for the time
being. If (s)he uses daydreaming always to escape
difficult situations, instead of dealing with the
difficulty, it will affect his/her social functioning badly.
A man in his sixties may find it difficult to accept
the fact of his advancing age, and that he will not
 Behavioural Concepts for Understanding Clients 39
be able to do many of the physically and mentally
Second strenuous activities that he used to do at a younger
example
age. He uses now denial to deny the reality of old
age. A moderate degree of denial enables him to
remain active and thus lead a useful life. If he is
unduly afraid of getting old, he is likely to use
denial to a high degree, and thus attempt to do
things that are beyond his mental and physical
capacity. The end result will be ill-health. Denial
in such contexts leads to the exercise of will power;
but will power stretched to the utmost against realistic
conditions will lead to disastrous results.
CONCEPTS OF SOCIAL ROLE
In the preceding pages some of the psychological
theories that are of relevance to social work were
presented. Some sociological theories also have to
be considered. In this context, some theoretical
formulations connected with the concept of social
role constitute an important area of knowledge. The
social role of a person is the pattern or mode of
behaving, related to the position in the social group
to which (s)he belongs. There are, thus, the roles
Concept of of the father, mother, husband, wife, son, daughter,
second role brother and sister in the family. In the school, for

example, there are roles of the teacher, student,

principal etc. A role is always in relation to another
person or persons, and the relationship creates role
partners. Thus, father and son are role partners
associated with the father-son relationship. Every role
implies certain function and privileges; in other words,
a role carrier has certain duties and rights. Regarding
the functions of a role carrier, there are expectations
from others shaped by cultural traditions and customs.
The practical aspects through which the role is visible
are the tasks which the role carrier is expected to
perform. A woman, for example, in her role as
a mother, is expected to perform the nurturing tasks
for the children, along with other tasks in the home
pertaining to the management of the household.
40 Introduction to Social Casework
Traditionally, the role of wage earning is assigned
to man, who is expected to earn a living for the
maintenance of himself and the family through the
performance of this role.
Three Social roles can be analysed mainly along three
aspects of
social role aspects : (1) the actions (the doing of tasks) (2) the
prescriptions and expectations that govern the actions
and relationships. Prescriptions stipulate how and why
the actions should be carried out (3) the evaluation
or assessment, which is mainly of the performance
of tasks.
Most of the problems of social functioning are with
reference to role performance, and the major roles
in this context are those of being a spouse, a parent
and a worker or wage earner. In partnership or
connection with these major roles are those of sibling,
a student, a trainee, and such others. An individual's
performance of one or more of the major roles may
be defective, inadequate or impaired by various factors
which are listed below: (Atherton et al., 1971)

Reasons for Poor Role Performance

1. Non-fulfilment of needs
A man who is debilitated by destitution and poverty
may have difficulty in adequately performing his role
as a father to his children. The individual who was
deprived of love in his childhood may have blocks
in expressing love to others.
2. Divergent role expectations
Discrepancies occur between the expectations that
one has of one's role and the expectations that others
have of the same role: For example, a woman may
not be aware of her husband's expectations of her
role as his wife, or perhaps, she does not accept
his expectations. When conceptions of one's role differ
from the expectations that the role partner or others
have of the role, the former's performance of the
role will not be to the satisfaction of the latter.
 Behavioural Concepts for Understanding Clients 41
3. Physical and mental illness
Illnesses are severe obstacles to role performance.
Sick persons are unable to perform their role tasks
during the period of illness.
4. Lack of material and non-material resources
Material resources like money and goods and
non- material resources like information and knowledge
may not be adequately available to some persons
to perform effectively their social roles.
5. Mental and physical disabilities
Mentally and physically ill people are unable to
perform their social roles in an adequate manner.
Similarly, mental and physical defects also impair
the individual's role performance.
6. Lack of preparation for role performance
Those who do not have occupational skills are likely
to be unemployed or they remain in the lowest level
of wage earners. For successful performance of tasks
in the wage earner's role, learning- cum -training is
necessary. Thus, we have different modes of
occupational training ranging from training on the
job for a few days, to professional training requiring
years of study and practice. Similarly, for the roles
of a spouse and parent also, preparation is necessary,
though not of the nature of job training but of
another type, in terms of emotional understanding
and readiness, and intellectual comprehension and
awareness.
7. The occurrence of conflict between two roles
It can happen that the nature of tasks pertaining
to one role is such that it obstructs the performance
of tasks pertaining to another role. If a man's job
keeps him away from his family for a long period,
his absence from home is likely to affect some aspects
of his familial roles. Take another context. Suppose
a school teacher has his son as one of his pupils
in his class. If he is unable to separate his role
42 Introduction to Social Casework
as a teacher and his role as a father in relation
to his son, the outcome will be impairment in role
performance. One possibility is that he will show
favouritism to his son. The other possibility is that
he will be more strict with his son than with other
pupils, in order to avoid the criticism of favouritism.
When one or the other of these possibilities becomes
a reality, his role performance as a teacher will
be affected. Further, if at home he is not able to
shift to his role as a father to his son, that will
affect his role performance as a father.
The seven factors presented above are not necessarily
exclusive of each other.
The concept of socialisation borrowed from sociology
is also a very relevant term for understanding human
Socialisation behaviour with reference to casework. Socialisation
is the learning of social roles that leads to the
individual's performance of social roles. Family is
the primary unit where the child's socialisation begins
and progresses during childhood and hence, the
parental role is important in socialisation. Aspects
of successful socialisation discussed in sociological
terms, correspond to the factors that were discussed
earlier with reference to personality development. (See
pages 28-32).
Sociological constructs on culture, social institutions,
social control etc. are also relevant to social work.
Sociology as a discipline which studies social groups
theorises on interactions within social groups.
Other Psychology (of personality) also studies these
sociological
constructs interactions in order to conceptualise the effects that
are also these interactions have on the personality of the
relevant
individual. (Johnson, 1966) It can be seen that
sociology and psychology are not isolated bodies of
knowledge. They are connected at many points, and
this is of importance to the social worker who tries
to understand human beings for the purpose of
effecting changes in human behaviour.
 Behavioural Concepts for Understanding Clients 43

Only the psychoanalytical theory of personality, from

the discipline of psychology was earlier discussed in
this chapter. There are other theoretical systems
developed by behavioural scientists, which have been
found to be useful in casework. It appears to us
Other that these other systems offer tools and techniques
psycho-
logical of changing inappropriate behaviour without adding
constructs substantively to the knowledge on human personality.
It is advisable that the application of these theoretical
systems is deferred to a later point of time in casework
practice. Some of these theoretical systems are
described briefly in the ninth chapter.

REFERENCES
Atherton, C.R.; Mitchell : "Locating Points for Intervention" Social
S.T.; Schien E.B.; 1971 Casework, Vol. 52, No. 3 March 1971.
Johnson, H.M. 1966 : Sociology: A Systematic Introduction,
Bombay: Allied Publishers, originally, New
York: Harcourt Bruce and World Inc. 1960.
4. Problems of Living —
the Focus in Casework

uman beings face difficulties in day-to-day

H living, many of which are handled adequately

with resources at hand. These are difficulties
of living that fall within our coping abilities and
strategies. When difficulties assume dimensions that
strain our coping capacity and go beyond our
competence in handling, they become problems. People
who seek casework service are those who encounter
problems.
Problems of living may be caused by unmet physical
or psychosocial needs or by the inability to perform
one's social roles owing to any one of the causes
referred to in the earlier chapter. Physical needs
pertain to the biological needs of food, shelter,
clothing, and the psychosocial needs pertain to love,
recognition, security, opportunities for not only
intellectual and emotional growth but also for
fulfilment of one's potential. The major social roles,
as mentioned earlier, are those connected with being
a parent, a spouse, and wage earning worker, the
latter indicating the individual's social position in
terms of carrying on an occupation for earning a
living. A problem which defies an individual's coping
skills may be the end result or derivative of other
problems or difficulties that remain unsolved from
an earlier point of time. A human problem cannot
be considered an isolated happening or an entity in
itself. It is usually the end point or one point in
a. chain of cause-effect relationships. To derive a
classification of the problems to which casework is
 Problems of Living — the Focus in Casework 45

addressed, the best method is to undertake a survey

of social work agencies that offer casework services
and thus collect information about the clientele. It
was not possible for this author to use this method
because of shortage of time and for the reason that
casework records maintained by the agencies did not
have detailed information. Therefore, an easier and
less precise method had to be adopted to. get
information about casework clientele. The method
adopted by the author is described in the next section.
The data thus collected provided valuable information
about various aspects of the practice of social
casework.
THE SURVEY OF CASEWORK RECORDS*
There are many books on casework written by
authors in the West based on the experiences of
social workers who rendered casework services to
their clients. However, the context is 'problems of
living' in a western culture. In order that this book
may be indigenous in its form and content, the writer
Indian undertook a survey of 200 casework records (SOCR)
casework
records which are actually the reports of casework services
rendered for clients in India. The documents surveyed
were casework summaries prepared by the First Year
M.A. Social Work students of a post-graduate
programme of Social Work, offered in an academic
institution in Bombay. It is a practice in this institution
that every student prepares, at the end of the first
year, as an academic assignment, a summary of
the casework report of a client whom the student
had helped during the year. The summaries prepared
by the four batches of students during the period
1978-82 were reviewed for the purpose, and 200
summaries were selected, after discarding those with
inadequate information and those which were illegible.
Since the list of students' placements covered a wide
range of agencies, the clients about whom the

* The Survey of Casework Records will hereafter be referred as SOCR.

46 Introduction to Social Casework
summaries were compiled represented a broad
spectrum of human service organisations as shown
in Table 1.
Table 1: Frequency Distribution of Clients in SOCR

Service Organisations No. of

Clients
1. Social service depts. of hospitals 19
2. Community centres 63
3. Residential institutions for the
physically and mentally handicapped 13
4. Social service Departments of
schools 33
5. Correctional institutions for
adolescents 21
6. Mental health centres 10
7. Family welfare centres 10
8. Homes for destitute children 19
9. Organisation for the after-care of
youths discharged from correctional
institutions 4
10. Institution for girls in moral danger 8
Total 200
The problems for which people sought help were
as varied as the agencies indicated in Table 1. Perhaps,
it may not be right to say that people sought help
from social workers for their problems. Many of
the clients came under the label of "involuntary
clients", having been compelled to receive the
attention of social workers. For instance, the cases
drawn from social service departments in schools,
correctional institutions, mental health centres, homes
for destitute children, after-care organisations, and
the institution for girls in moral danger were of
persons who did not come to the social worker of
their own volition, except a couple of cases of
self-referral. Truly speaking, social work service was
 Problems of Living — the Focus in Casework 47
imposed on these clients. There is no implication,
however, that a service that was not sought voluntarily
and was rendered nevertheless because of referrals,
was a useless one. There were reasons why the clients
did not seek the service on their own. They did
not generally perceive themselves as having problems.
Granting that there were some who acknowledged
to having problems though somewhat vaguely, they
did not imagine that there would be a social worker
in the role of a helper. People are generally not
aware of the professional services of a social worker.
The problems reported by clients to the agency,
or in other words, problems for which help was
Kinds of sought, may be classified in different ways. From
problems
the sample obtained from SOCR, the problems can
be categorised as follows:
1. Problems related to illness or disabilities
2. Problems due to lack of material resources
3. School related problems
4. Problems related to institutionalisation
5. Behaviour problems
6. Problems of marital discord
7. Problem situations needing a follow-up service
8. Needs related to rehabilitation of people
handicapped by disabilities
9. Predicaments and difficulties of clients caught
up in problems that have been regarded as social
problems like gambling, prostitution, alcoholism, drug
addiction and unmarried motherhood.
Though one may view a problem as a single entity
conceptually, in life a problem hardly occurs in
isolation; it is more often than not associated with
other problems or difficulties. From this perspective,
the problems listed may be considered as the ' 'initially
stated problems" or the problems for which they
were referred for social work service. Other problems
which surfaced subsequently or which the social worker
identified later may be viewed as "associated
problems".
48 Introduction to Social Casework
For understanding the client and his/her problems,
the social worker obtains information and makes an
assessment about the social situation, taking into
consideration the causative factors. Based on the
assessment, a plan of action is drawn up and helping
activities carried out. This fourth chapter, however,
is devoted to a discussion of problems and the causes
of problems only. But there will be brief references
to helping activities so that, the discussion may not
read as a prosaic list of problems. Besides, references
to casework help in some contexts will initiate in
the mind of the reader the idea that for the social
worker, the question, "What can be done?" follows
close on the heels of the question, "What is the
problem?" The answer to the former question will
emerge fully from the contents of the chapters on
tools, techniques, and the process of casework.

PROBLEMS DISSECTED
Problems Belated to Illness and Disability
Conditions of ill health and disease cause disturbance
to the individual as well as the family. Besides
disrupting the rhythm of living of the people
concerned, it also causes them considerable anxiety.
Some people need help and information to go and
seek appropriate medical services, to understand the
nature of illness, the procedures of treatment and
to accept the necessity of continuing with the
treatment. Some of the patients who have already
Patients reached the hospital voluntarily, impelled by the
need help
with onset urgency to be cured of the disease, still need a
of illness helping hand to be able to understand the implications
and its
problems of the disease, the mode of treatment and to comply
with the treatment procedures. Tuberculosis is a
manageable disease nowadays, and curable. However,
it is not an uncommon occurrence that patients,
heartened by the disappearance of symptoms, give
up treatment before they are fully cured. Or, take
 Problems of Living — the Focus in Casework 49

the case of a leprosy patient, Ram*. His only symptoms

are a few patches on his back and he is sadly misled
into taking it lightly because of the inconspicuous
appearance of the disease. He feels inclined to ignore
medical advice and cannot by himself realise the
medical necessity to continue treatment for a prolonged
period of time.
Some cannot handle the feelings of anxiety, fear,
shock or panic that are unleashed when a disease
strikes unexpectedly. One can imagine the mental
horror of Raju, a young healthy industrial worker
who became unconscious after being knocked down
by a vehicle. He regained consciousness hours later,
only to find himself in a hospital bed and to know
that his leg had been amputated. With the
disappearance of his leg, his will to live also vanished.
His self-image was now reduced to that of being
an incomplete human being, "a half-man, who should
die rather than live". Then there are those who,
for one reason or other, are so hopelessly resigned
to their illness that they do not want to seek medical
treatment. Very often, social workers will come across
Resignation people who attribute their disease to an unavoidable
to fate and pre-determined fate, who continue to live with
the disease without making any effort to remedy
the situation. Coupled with an attitude of fatalism,
the sense of hopelessness prevents action.
In all these contexts, the frame of reference for
help is not only the patient, but also his/her immediate
family. The case of the patient, Maria, who was
in an advanced stage of cancer, is illustrative of
the context. She was a widow and mother of two
children. Her relatives were not in a position to
care for her children. The situation demanded a few
practical steps of action Like: (1) providing for some
palliative measures to the patient for reducing her

* Cases mentioned in this book are from the SOCR records unless otherwise
stated. The names have been changed to disguise the identities of persons.
50 Introduction to Social Casework
pain and discomfort as much as possible. (2) involving
the patient in the planning of her children's future.
She herself was distressed as to what would happen
to them after her death. Hence, she needed help
and so too her children.
The adult members of the family become particularly
important in the context of child patients and
psychiatric patients of all ages, because the burden
of decision making falls on the responsible adults.
The SOCR includes a considerable number of
Apathy of polio-affected children whose parents showed apathy
responsible
adults in and disinterest in getting their wards medically treated.
family This situation was totally unwarranted, because
treatment facilities did exist, and sometimes there
was excellent prognosis if detected early and treated.
Improvement of the medical condition is well within
the reach of most urban population. When treatment
is prolonged entailing regular visits to the hospital,
patients begin to show tardiness in attendance and/or
lack of interest in course of time. Without extraneous
supports and encouragement their motivation cannot
last long.

When distressful events occur in quick succession,

they can be so overwhelming and overpowering that
they can immobilise the person. The individual becomes
mentally paralysed, not knowing what to do next.
Such was the case of Rashida who had to face the
deaths of three members of her family within a
Frequent short period of three months — her husband and
calamity
two children. She lived in a locality which was served
by a community centre. In the absence of a
breadwinner in the family she was instantly reduced
to a destitute and when another child fell seriously
ill, she was too dazed and miserable to be able to
take any action. It became necessary for the social
worker of the community centre to step in, to provide
economic and emotional props to Rashida and also
to deal with the problem of her child's illness.
 Problems of Living — the Focus in Casework 51
A social worker could also come across totally
unproductive and impractical ways of handling illness
conditions in certain situations. In cases of fatal illness,
like the terminal stage of cancer for example, it
is sometimes seen that the patients' relatives impose
Impractical on themselves severe hardships, deprive to themselves
over-
stretching comforts, sell even their properties to be able to
spend every paisa for the patient, not realising that
nothing can save the patient. Through casework
service, the family members can be prevented from
taking steps which, in the long run would prove
to be unrealistic and which will jeopardise the welfare
of the whole family. The family can, nevertheless,
be encouraged to do such things for the patient
as are realistic and sensible.

There are many factors which become stumbling

blocks in the patient's handling of situations and
his/her progress towards restoration of health, for
which (s)he needs professional help. Those factors
are intensified when the patient is suffering from
a mental handicap or disorder. Take, for example,
the situation of mentally retarded children. Most
Removing parents of the retarded are reluctant to accept the
stumbling
blocks disclosure by a professional, for the first time of
the low level of intelligence of their children. The
social worker, through continuous contacts with the
parents and by use of his/her communication skills,
will be able to help them in most cases accept reality
and adopt a helping attitude towards the child. This
is only the beginning phase. The parents have to
be guided further and referred to other resources
of a non-medical nature. Like the cases of mentally
retarded children, there are other conditions of illness
and disability in children and adults which require
carefully planned referrals to other services.

The preceding discussion should not be construed

to mean that every patient or disabled person requires
the services of a social worker. When an illness strikes,
52 Introduction to Social Casework
the person concerned may have within his reach,
human and material resources in order to meet the
situation effectively without the assistance of any
social worker. Only with those who lack the coping
resources that the social worker is concerned. There
are a number of patients who require help to deal
competently with the psycho-social factors, described
above, that are connected with or arising out of
the situation of illness.

Lack of Material Resources

It is easily conceivable how problems of living
orginate from poverty, destitution, unemployment and
related factors. Poverty and mass unemployment are
problems that have to be dealt with at the national
level and it is unrealistic to expect the social worker
to deal with this seemingly hopeless situation through
Poverty, casework services. Nevertheless, social workers do
also a
problem to handle individual cases of poverty, as is evident in
be handled the SOCR pertaining to community centres and family
service centres. There were also cases from school
social services pertaining to children who could not
afford school fees. The cases of this type from
community centres manifested almost typical
profile of characteristics — absence of the father,
indebtedness and the unemployable condition of the
clients due to lack of skills. The absence of the
father may be due to death, desertion or separation.
In such cases, the mother, often without any skill
or training, had to fend for herself and the children.
There were cases of disabled persons who could not
find jobs in spite of their having been trained in
vocational rehabilitation centres.
Housing
problem
The problem of housing is another serious situation
causing distress to many. The SOCR contained a
few cases of persons who had no roof over their
heads. The problem of housing had the same magnitude
for newcomers to the city, regardless of whether
they were of the middle classes or lower classes on
 Problems of Living — the Focus in Casework 53

the socio-economic plane, with the only difference

that the poorest ended up on the pavements, having
nowhere else to go. Among the clients covered by
the SOCR, there were people who shared the huts
in slums or tenements in chawls* of their relatives
and other unemployed persons who were under the
threat of eviction because of their inability to pay
rent.
Apart from the clients whose 'initially stated
problem' is that of economic distress, there are many
others for whom lack of material resources is a very
serious 'associated problem'. For instance, a patient
who is well-disposed to the treatment procedure may,
however, be unable to comply with the physician's
instructions because (s)he does not have sufficient
money to purchase drugs, appliances or special/dietary
food prescribed for him/her. Or perhaps, (s)he may
not have the money for transport to the hospital,
and for the same reason, relatives may not visit
their hospitalised patients. Likewise, in all the other
eight categories of problems, poverty or economic
deprivation may be present as an associated problem.
This is an inescapable fact in India in view of the
extensive poverty and economic hardships confronting
the people.

School Related Problems

The clients falling within this category are, generally,
children and adolescents not exclusively confined to
school social service departments, though school social
services are specifically geared to helping such clients.
The problem is prevalent in one form or other in
correctional institutions, homes for destitute children
and institutions for the disabled. Further, children
with such problems are among the referrals to family
welfare service centres and community centres. School
related problems are of the following types:
* Brick and concrete buildings providing one-room housing for the poorer
sections of the people are called chawls.
54 Introduction to Social Casework
— Frequent absence from school or truancy
— Conduct that disturbs the academic atmosphere
Behaviour of the classroom or of a generally withdrawn
Problems in or non-communicative disposition
school
— Poor academic performance
— Dropping out of school before completing the
requirements of any certificate
There can be situations, though not very common
or frequent, where a child or adolescent seeks the
help of a social worker with reference to something
he or she perceives as a problem. In the SOCR
there was an adolescent, Maya, who approached the
social worker of her own volition for help to
concentrate better on her studies. In another case,
a school boy, Chandra, wanted very much to attend
a boys' camp but did not have the wherewithal to
fulfil his desire. He sought financial help from the
social worker.
Problems Related to Institutionalisation
Here the problems are those which have reference
to institutions for children. 'Children', according to
the legal definition, are persons below eighteen years
of age. Children's institutions are of two types —
those which admit court committed children and those
where children are placed without the intervention
of the court. The commitment through juvenile courts
takes place when children indulge in anti-social acts
like stealing, aggressive squabbles and destruction
of public property, and for those who wander around
Juvenile aimlessly. The latter expose themselves easily to the
delinquents
wiles of bootleggers, drug pedlars and smugglers.
Wandering female adolescents face the additional
danger of sexual abuse who are sent to residential
institutions through the court.
Some destitute children who have no parents or
parent substitutes to take care of them may also
be placed in children's institutions by the court.
There is another group of children, who on account
 Problems of Living — the Focus in Casework 55

of unfavourable family circumstances find their way

into residential care homes. Among the lower
socio-economic sections of society, there are many
single parent families unable to provide for the care
of their children owing to reasons like, absence of
the parent for many hours from home for earning
a living, lack of housing, condition of sickness or
disability of the parent or inadequate income. There
are residential homes that take care of such children.
There are then children who are abandoned by their
own parents and children with disabilities. There are
residential homes meant for all such children.
When we take into consideration the lamentable
backgrounds of some of the children, the urgent
need to give them assurance, love and security becomes
Susheela, a imperative. Susheela, a girl of 17 came from a middle
runaway
class family in Bengal. She was a plain looking girl
while her sister evoked considerable admiration from
the family members for her good looks. The frequent
comparison of the two sisters in which Susheela figured
adversely was painful to her since the parents also
made such comparisons, apart from other people.
Eventually, however, there was a marriage proposal
leading to an agreement between the two families
and the date of marriage was also fixed. The marriage,
however, did not materialise for some reason or other,
and the blame fell on the girl. The situation became
worse when the family happened to suffer a heavy
loss of money and materials through a house burglary.
Further, the paternal grandmother who lived with
the family and who had till then provided the badly
needed emotional support to Susheela, left the house
to live with relatives elsewhere. Finding the home
environment unendurable, Susheela left home,
travelled by train without a ticket to Bombay, where
she was caught by the police and sent to a girl's
institution.
Changing residence from one's home to an institution
is a major event in an individual's life and considerable
56 Introduction to Social Casework
Children's emotional pain is likely to occur as a result. It is
traumatic
experiences possible to lessen the pain by explaining the reasons
for the drastic change and by providing opportunities
for emotional expression for the person who is
compelled to submit to the change. But there are
cases of children who are packed off to residential
care institutions unceremoniously, mainly to suit the
convenience of the adults around them. These children
do not get even a word of explanation from the
adults who manipulate the event quite mechanically.
Salim was a boy of eight who was longingly waiting
Salim for a father whom he would never see. The father
had died three years earlier but the child was never
told about it. And one day, Salim found himself
in a children's institution not knowing the reason
why he was there. Nevertheless, he continued to
wait for his father. In addition to the pain inherent
in the situation, there was the teasing and mocking
from other boys who made fun of his appearance.
One can easily imagine his feelings of insecurity,
inadequacy and rejection. The boy was naturally
withdrawn and uncommunicative.

Some of the children in these homes have witnessed

violence in their families. Many fathers have been
alcoholics and seeing the father beat the mother is
a routine event in their homes. Removal from such
homes is not a matter of relief for these children
who worry continuously about their mothers. In some,
the burden of hate that they harbour against their
parents is an emotionally unbearable pain. In a few
cases of SOCR, the children were witnesses of murders
that took place in front of their eyes. So varied
are the traumatic experiences of children who finally
land up in institutions.

Children are in no position to accept the reality

Children's
institutional of their stay in institutions away from familiar
stay has surroundings and away from their families. The
many
problems situation could become more tolerable when the
 Problems of Living — the Focus in Casework 57
monotony of existence in such an alien environment
is occasionally broken by visits from family members
or relatives. Some children never get visitors, and
for them, to see the happiness of their fellow-residents
who have the good fortune of being visited by relatives,
is not a matter of comfort but of envy and sadness.
When parents are separated and remarried, the
emotional tie that the parents had earlier experienced
towards their institutionalised offspring becomes
weaker and the offspring is waiting in vain for parental
love. It is, therefore of salutary importance that
the social worker assumes and discharges effectively,
the role of befriending the children who do not easily
comply with the demands of institutionalisation. As
described above, they are all under varying phases
of stress.
Behaviour Problems
The category of behaviour problems is with reference
to children's and adolescents' problems. In the SOCR,
the cases of behaviour problems were reported from
community centres, institutions for the disabled,
school social service departments, correctional
institutions, mental health centres, family welfare
centres, homes for destitute children, the organisation
Common for after-care and the institution for girls in
flaws in
behaviour moral danger. The problems were of the following
among types:
children
— Telling lies, changing the entries in the mark
sheets issued by the school
— Stealing money or things
— Rude and abusive talk
— Disobedience and defiance of authority
— Running away from home, school or the residential
institution
— Aggressive behaviour
— Bed-wetting.
An interesting phenomenon of trans fixing of roles
by the children can create complications in casework.
58 Introduction to Social Casework

This is how it happens. Normally, children's behaviour

problems are referred by the parents, teachers, or
house parents in residential institutions. Consequently,
the children concerned may tend to identify the social
worker with these adults with whom they are
apparently or really in conflict. Therefore, reluctance
on the part of the children to have interaction with
the social worker can be expected. It is up to the
social worker to project a likeable image to the children,
that is, an image which is different from the
stereotyped image of an adult that these children
carry in their mind, an image characterised by
authority, officialdom, unapproachability and as a
dispensor of punishment.
Problems of Marital Discord
Marital discord refers to the situation of conflict
in the husband-wife relationship. When the conflict
is of a persistent nature, spreading over a large
part of the relationship with the result that, all
concerned — the spouses and the children — are
unhappy, it becomes a problem.
In the SOCR, there were only a few cases with
the initially stated problem of marital discord. But
marital discord emerged as an associated problem
Husband- in many other cases. Apart from the fact that people
wife
relationship are uncomfortable either to acknowledge the problem,
or to talk about it, there is the possibility that
the problem lies submerged under other problems
and difficulties more openly discussed. For instance,
fifteen-year-old Santosh's uncontrollable behaviour is
a matter of deep concern for his parents, who give
graphic descriptions of Santosh's bad deeds. But it
does not take much time for the social worker to
discover that the father and mother adopt diametrically
opposite ways in dealing with Santosh, and this
discrepancy in parental handling has its roots in a
state of conflict that is impairing the relationship
between the parents.
 Problems of Living — the Focus in Casework 59

The problem of marital disord is generally observed

to be linked with one or more of the following factors:
— Alcoholism of the husband
— Extra-marital relationship of the husband or wife
— Unemployment of the husband
In some cases the wife seeks social service as
a last resort, for advice and assistance in the matter
of obtaining legal separation.
Situation Needing Follow-Up Services
Problems arising in specialised follow-up services
rendered by certain organisations constitute another
category of commonly seen problem situations. Though,
in most social work cases, there is a stage of follow-up,
this category denotes cases of altogether a different
type. For instance, there are organisations which
Sponsored 'sponsor' children directly or through welfare agencies.
children's
problems Sponsorship means undertaking to provide financial
assistance on a monthly or yearly basis to poor
children, to meet their needs related to schooling,
health, and such others. The organisation's selection
is based on needs and the undertaking is for a specified
period only. During the period of sponsorship, the
agency keeps in touch with the child and the child's
family, and keeps records consisting of information
about the contacts maintained with the child, his/her
academic progress, personality development and
significant life events during the period. The
sponsoring organisation obtains its funds from Indian
and foreign donors with whom regular correspondence
is kept, whereby, the donors get periodical reports
of the children whom they sponsor. The process
of the social work service involving interactions
between the agency and the clients, and between the
agency and the sponsors, is designated by the term
"follow-up". The term applies to another group
of clientele as well. There are organisations specially
interested in the welfare of adults and children who
are discharged from correctional institutions. The goal
60 Introduction to Social Casework
is occupational and social rehabilitation, to ensure
which the social workers follow up the cases. Implicit
within these goals is a concern for prevention of
further problems. Nevertheless, problems do crop
up during the follow up period despite the social
worker's vigilance, and help ought to be made
available.
No life is a smoothly going forward movement;
nor is it so for a sponsored child. (S)He may show
lack of academic progress, fall ill, provoke complaints
from the teachers or parents for bouts of bad
behaviour, get into scrapes, feel anxious about illness
in the family or face any such predicament or crisis
some time or the other. On such occasions, the
child's social worker's involvement will go beyond
the routine activities of follow-up. Judy's case is
an illustration in point. Judy was eight years old.
Her father was dead and her mother, Teresa, had
gone away to Dubai abandoning her. Teresa's mother,
Judy Mrs. Lobo, took Judy under her care. Not having
the means to support a grand child, Mrs. Lobo
approached a sponsorship organisation for financial
help. Thus Judy became the client of a sponsorship
agency. There was no letter from Teresa, but Mrs.
Lobo came to know through other sources that Teresa
was working as a typist and that she got re-married
in Dubai. Judy gradually got accustomed to her
circumstances. She had detached herself emotionally
from memories of her mother and had become very
fond of her grandmother. She was doing well in
school. One day, after four years, something happened
to disturb the smooth run of Judy's life. Teresa
returned unexpectedly, met her mother and daughter,
Judy, and initiated plans of taking Judy back with
her to Dubai. Judy did not want to go to Dubai
with her mother and consequently, she became very
unhappy and depressed. Her social worker studied
the situation well and intervened to support her
decision not to go to Dubai. The social worker helped
 Problems of Living — the Focus in Casework 61

Teresa to understand her daughter's resentment

towards her and suggested ways and means of winning
her confidence and affection slowly and steadily.
Needs Related to Rehabilitation of People Handicapped
by Disabilities
In this context, the disabilities include physical,
mental and social impairments. The categorisation
has reference to initially stated problems and the
presupposition is that, the social worker takes over
the case at a stage, prior to which, some hurdles
were already crossed. If the social worker were to
take over the case earlier with reference to the
disability itself, the case would have then fallen in
the very first category of problems we had described
(in pages 47-51).
The case of John was referred to the social worker
when he was approaching the date of discharge from
a correctional institution. The problems connected
Problems of with his institutionalisation were past history and
rehabi-
litation what he needed now was social and occupational
rehabilitation. He became literate while staying in
the institution and was also trained in carpentry.
What he needed at the time of discharge were plans
for job-placement and a smooth process of
readjustment to his family and community. Different
John from problems arising from John's social disability
was Renu's problem with physical disability. Renu
was a blind girl who passed her S.S.C. (Secondary
School Certificate) examination, obtaining moderately
good marks. She lived in an institution for blind
girls during the period of her schooling. Desirous
of working for a university degree, Renu approached
the social worker of the institution for help. The
social worker had to initiate action on a number
of fronts and draw up future plans along with the
client — exploring resources for financial assistance,
making a decision to pursue a specific career, carefully
choose a college for higher education, search for
62 Introduction to Social Casework

hostel facilities and search for potential readers. Clients

who have mental disability like mental retardation,
and clients who have recovered from an episode of
mental illness, both have to struggle against many
odds before they can be rehabilitated, because of
the social stigma attached to mental illness and
retardation. Social work help is very essential in
getting them to cope with situations with a positive
outlook.
Predicaments and Difficulties of Victims of
Social Problems
The social problems under discussion are gambling,
prostitution, alcoholism, drug addiction and unmarried
motherhood. Though, in reality poverty is one of
the biggest social problems in this country, poverty
is not included in this category, mainly because the
scope for exercising personal choice in relation to
poverty is much less than with reference to the
other social problems. Besides, the problem of poverty
Clients and related aspects have been discussed under the
caught up second category of problems, titled, Lack of Material
in practices
of vice Resources. One can counterpose the valid point that
there are occurrences of unmarried motherhood and
prostitution where there is no scope for the victim's
exercise of freedom of choice. This is certainly true
and highlights the reality of how difficult it is to
classify human predicaments into neatly and precisely
demarcated categories.
Gambling as an initially stated problem occurs in
a couple of cases in the SOCR. Gambling among
adolescents causes concern to parents; they report
it to social workers known to parents. Otherwise,
it is not generally noticed as a problem.
In a city like Bombay, prostitution is considered
a social evil more because of the threat it poses
to public health, in terms of the spread of sexually
transmitted diseases. The law on the prevention of
traffic in women and girls makes brothel keeping
 Problems of Living — the Focus in Casework 63
Prostitution punishable by law but prostitution per se is not
punishable. Prostitutes come into contact with social
workers in clinics where patients suffering from
sexually transmitted diseases are treated, and in the
institutions run for the protection and care of
prostitutes rescued from brothels. Though in clinics,
the primary focus is on treating the disease, there
is potential scope for dealing with the patients' status
as a prostitute. Prostitutes rarely go to a residential
institution of their own volition. Some of them only
"happen to be" in these institutions, having been
brought there by the police, who rescue them from
brothel areas. Not all want to be rescued. A few
may want to escape from the brothels but the rest
do not experience any such desire. The first group
may be viewed as potential help-seekers, whereas,
the label of 'involuntary clients' fits the second group.
Both groups need social work services, though the
second group can be expected to put up a harder
resistance that is likely to cause a severe strain
on the social workers' resources. But the challenges
are worthwhile and the social worker can make a
positive contribution in this area.
With reference to unmarried motherhood, there are
cases resulting from rape, or instances where the
Unmarried girl has been a willing partner. The factor of age
motherhood
is also important and, therefore, the case has to
be viewed from the legal dimension as well. The
general experience of social workers is that the client
comes escorted by relatives who become the decision
makers in the situation. Usually, the relatives feel
inclined to coerce the client to accept their decision
which is specially true in the case of girls who are
minors. Evidently, the situation is complex, riddled
with many interwoven factors — social and psycho-
logical — interacting with each other.
Alcoholism is a problem that causes concern to
social workers mainly because, in its trail many
undesirable consequences follow. Though the SOCR
64 Introduction to Social Casework
has only a few cases of alcoholism as the initially
stated problem, it was an associated problem in many
cases. About eight per cent of the 200 cases covered
by the SOCR revealed alcoholism as a characteristic
Alcoholism habit of the father in the family. The social context
of alcoholism consists of poverty, indebtedness,
violence and neglect of children, and somehow these
factors always appear to come together at a time.
An alcoholic rarely acknowledges his problem. Even
his family members who suffer from the consequences
of his alcoholic behaviour seek help only occasionally
and that too more with reference to the unpleasant
consequences of the problem than the actual problem.
Chellappa was once a hard working industrial worker.
On becoming an alcoholic he began to neglect his
wife, and his wife was forced to earn and she took
up the job as a domestic help. Since the lion's share
of Chellappa's moderately good salary found its way
to the liquor shop, his debts began to increase. So
did the arrears of his house rent.
Under the threat of eviction, Chellappa's wife came
to a family welfare centre. Her problem, calling for
social work intervention, is not a simple, straight
forward one, but one which demands arranging for
a sustained flow of material resources, of effecting
a change in behaviour, of safeguarding the clients
from eviction and loss and such other drastic fall
in living standards.
Drug addiction is similar to alcoholism in its negative
ramifications and more young people are susceptible
to it. The condition of young drug addicts deteriorates
Drug rapidly and steadily, often leading to premature and
addiction
ignominious death, unless there is effective
intervention and rehabilitation. Drug trafficking is
banned by law but the menace only seems to be
spreading.
Though the list of problems presented here covers
a wide range, it cannot claim to be exhaustive because
 Problems of Living — the Focus in Casework 65

the clients were exclusively from the city of Bombay.

It has also to be acknowledged that the problems
described are those of an urban population. Some
of the problems may be common to both urban and
rural settings. But there are some problems that
are particularly characteristic of villagers.
Casework intervention is required in those situations
where the subjects are unable to handle them unaided.
The causative factors are many and in the discussion
of the categories of the initially stated problems in
the first section of this chapter, a few causative factors
were discussed. In each case situation there is a
configuration of contributing elements or trouble
causing features which need to be explored and studied
as a first step in helping. A brief analysis of these
elements which in different combinations obstruct
the coping efforts of people, is relevant and necessary
here. These causative factors may be grouped under
the sub-heads presented in the following pages.

CAUSATIVE FACTORS
Diseases, Defects or Deficiencies of the Human Body
or Mind
The matter under discussion is linked to the
description of problems related to illness and disability
which appeared earlier in these pages. Here, the
focus is on the psychological effects of physical
impairment resulting from diseases or disabilities and
on the social components of the impairments. The
SOCR contained a good number of cases in this
category. There was the case of Radha, an epileptic
patient of 35 years, who was a life dependent on
her married brother and his wife, because she got
recurrent fits. The personality changes, a derivative
of her condition, made her socially maladjusted at
home. Or, take the case of Ramesh. He was deaf,
but the condition of deafness being invisible was
undetected by his parents. They found Ramesh unable
66 Introduction to Social Casework

to cope with his studies in a school, which was

a school for normal children. Ramesh was,
consequently, an unhappy child. The parents' lack
of knowledge about deafness and the scope for remedial
treatment was the contributing factor, although the
main problem feature was deafness as a defect.
Thomas, a partially blind boy in an institution for
the blind was reported as a problem boy because
of his resistance to learning Braille. After a few
contacts, the boy's social worker was able to get
at the root of the problem. His resistance to learning
Braille was caused by his inability to accept the fact
that his vision was below the normal level and that
it was insufficient for normal school work. So casework
in his case initially aimed at helping him to accept
reality.
Deprivation with reference to the Basic Physical and
Psycho-social Needs

Human beings, for their survival as living organisms,

need food, shelter and clothing. As distinct from
animals, they have also a psycho-social life, for the
nourishment of which, appropriate nutrients have to
be supplied. Love and security, a sense of belonging,
feelings of self-esteem, opportunities for intellectual,
emotional and physical development, guidance and
direction in the various aspects of living are all required
for the gradual development from childhood to
adulthood, through appropriate age-related stages of
growth. There are many children in India whose
physical and psycho-social needs are not adequately
met. These unfulfilled needs lead to problems later
on that result in precipitating situations that warrant
Unfulfilled the intervention of social workers. Shankar, a boy
needs
born in a poor family, was often without food.
At the age of eight, he was made to work for a
man in the business of embroidery work. Shankar
had to do long hours of work, doing simple stitching
of a repetitive nature and what he got as wages
 Problems of Living — the Focus in Casework 67

was a pittance. He ran away from the workplace

and lived on the street, where he took to stealing
money. One day he was caught by the police and
sent to a correctional home. There are many children
like Shankar in residential institutions coming from
backgrounds where the predominant feature was
physical and emotional deprivation.
Suresh was a deaf child, attending a school for
the deaf and was often absent from school, because
he had no bus fare. He did not wear clean clothes
either. His classroom appearance in dirty clothes often
provoked critical comments from the teacher. As
though all these were not enough to make him feel
Disability unhappy and inferior, the father's obnoxious behaviour
made worse added considerably to his sense of distress and
by social
factors humiliation. Couple of times, the father came to
Suresh's classroom in a drunken state, mouthing
abusive words. One can imagine Suresh's plight and
the damage his life's depressing circumstances caused
to his self-esteem as an individual. Non-fulfilment
of needs, both physical and psychosocial, when it
is persistent or continuous over a long period of
time, can become a serious matter leading to socially
unacceptable, anti-social or self-destructive behaviour.
Often among the prostitutes, there are girls who
are driven to prostitution on account of poverty,
rejection by the family or ill-treatment in the family.
Deprivation can also be of a situational nature and
not necessarily long-drawn. Sandeep was a
thirteen-year-old boy, referred to a school social
service department for his lack of concentration in
the classroom. Very often it was observed that he
slept during classes. The social worker did not have
Deprivation much difficulty in finding out the reason behind
~- Sandeep
Sandeep's drowsiness in the class. Sandeep attended
the first shift in the school, from 7.30 a.m. to
12.30 p.m. He came to school on an empty stomach.
At home, there was no practice of having breakfast
in the morning, and consequently, he remained without
68 Introduction to Social Casework
food for a long period of time till 1.30 p.m. It
was suggested to his parents that Sandeep might
improve if he was given breakfast before he went
to school every day. The suggestion was as simple
as that, and when it was followed, nothing more
was needed to rectify the situation. He was reported
to be more alert and attentive in school thereafter.
Those who are deprived of opportunities for
education also fall into this category. Illiterate people
do not have the information and knowledge that one
generally comes to possess through education. Thus
the illiterate are deprived of a very important
non-material resource essential for effective social
functioning, and are more liable to become victims
of wrong information and superstition. There were
clients in the SOCR cases who did not seek treatment
when diseases like epilepsy and mental illness afflicted
members of their families. They adopted measures
harmful to the patients, because they believed that
these diseases were caused by the possession of the
devil. There were many clients who were illiterate
and they were dependent on others when it came
to understanding official notifications and filling blanks
on formal documents. Some of them did not know
their dates of birth. Moneylenders and landlords took
undue advantage of the illiterate state of some of
the clients. Illiteracy also reduced the chances for
employment. For example, women who were good
at needlework were not able to appear for any
certificate course in tailoring because this required
the ability to read and write.
Inadequate Development of Personality
Some people get into predicaments because of the
inadequacies of their personality. Some are unable
to carry on their roles as wage-earners because of
reasons of non-commitment to work, laziness, or
inability to accept authority. Among the unemployed,
there are some whose unemployment is due to their
 Problems of Living — the Focus in Casework 69
inability to stick to any job. The same fact applies
to other roles like the marital and parental roles
and there is a marked incapability for role performance.
Some become parents biologically, long before they
Inadequacy attain psychological maturity, with the result that,
of coping
abilities they shirk the responsibilities of parenthood. Cases
of children who suffer from the deeds of commission
or omission of their irresponsible parents are not
rare. In the SOCR, there was Chandra, a
thirty-year-old father of two children, who refused
to take his two-year-old injured child to the hospital.
The child had fallen from a tree and was hurt badly.
The father argued that the child ought not to have
climbed the tree and that he should bear the
consequences of his disobedience. Though this could
be an extreme case of irresponsibility and immaturity,
lesser variants of the same attitude are not unusual
among some people who have an inadequate
personality. In terms of the theory on personality
structure, 'inadequately developed personalities' are
those characterised by deficient egos, weak super-
egos, and uncontrolled id impulses.
Internal Processes Adversely Influencing People
Only a part of human behaviour is visible to others.
The part that is hidden refers to the mental activities
of feeling and thinking and all their attendant mental
operations. Thinking and feeling are different
processes, though they are connected. Thinking
indicates an exercise of the will, whereas, in feeling
there is an experience of emotions and hardly any
exercise of the will. Take for instance, the activity
of going to see a play (drama). There is thinking
involved in deciding to go for it. Witnessing scenes
of a tragic denouement on stage, the spectator may
Inner experience feelings of sadness, and tears may well
feelings and
thoughts up in his eyes. His shedding of tears is not something
he has willed to happen. It has happened without
his volition. He may even feel embarrassed about
the fact that he cannot control his tears.
70 Introduction to Social Casework
Feelings aroused by sudden and shocking happenings
may overpower temporarily, the person's capacity
for thinking and acting. The case of Rasheeda
mentioned earlier, (who was bereaved thrice in a
short period and who did not know what to do for
her seriously sick child), illustrates the incapacitating
effect of emotions.

The emotional hang-overs following unhappy events

may persist for years after the occurrence of the
event. Sunanda, who was five years old was very
ill with diarrhoea. She was nearly dying, because
of her condition of dehydration and she needed
immediate hospitalisation. But her mother refused
to hospitalise her for the reason that Sunanda's father
had died as an in-patient in a hospital, four years
earlier.
The human mind holds dear certain beliefs which
are imbibed from one's parents or social groups to
which one belongs. There are also beliefs that are
derived from one's own thinking. Attitudes are one's
pre-dispositions, of likes or dislikes, approval or
Early disapproval, preference or non-preference, or when
beliefs and
attitudes none of these is applicable, one's predisposition can
be of neutrality or even indifference towards persons,
things or situations. Attitudes are shaped by one's
patterns of thinking and feeling, as also one's beliefs.
They are influenced greatly by social and cultural
factors and one's living experiences. Similarly,
attitudes that are already formed may become rigid,
affecting one's way of perceiving new situations and
people, and thus, cripple one's thinking for
decision-making. Kumar was a paraplegic patient,
who was unhappy about everything in the hospital,
where he was an in-patient. When he came to Bombay,
Kumar seeking work, he had brought with him very strict
norms of the sub-cultural group to which he belonged
in the village, determining, for instance, what he
should eat and should not eat. Living in Bombay,
 Problems of Living — the Focus in Casework 71

he had gradually relaxed his food habits and even

ate meat. Then came the shock of the onset of
paraplegia, that was subsequently viewed as a
punishment for having broken the food norms in
the past. As a reaction, Kumar adopted, once again,
an attitude of strict adherence to socio-cultural rules
about diet. He refused to eat the food cooked in
the hospital kitchen, on grounds that it was not
prepared by people of his caste.
A person who has an optimistic attitude towards
life, while facing a difficult situation is likely to
think and hope that (s)he will be able to cope with
the situation. On the other hand, a pessimistic attitude
dampens one's thinking, making it impossible for
the person to plan for fruitful actions. Lalita had
ten hospitalisations before she was fifteen years old.
Her legs were paralysed as a result of tuberculosis
Negative
attitudes of the spine. Since her twelth year of life she had
obstruct been continuously staying in a children's hospital
rehabili-
tation plans for medical treatment. On account of Lalita's long
periods of hospitalisation, the parents drew the wrong
conclusion that Lalita would be unable to live outside
the hospital. If at all she was ever to be discharged
from the hospital, the parents thought that their
home would not be the right place for her. She
would be better off in an institution for the disabled,
they concluded. They stopped visiting Lalita in the
hospital, and this engendered in the girl a feeling
of being unwanted. This feeling was more intensified
by her father's undisguised rejection of Lalita. He
was nursing a sense of helplessness with regard to
his inability to give her the care and protection that
she needed. The father insisted that Lalita be placed
in an institution. The mother could not visit her,
because she lived in a village miles away from Bombay.

Feelings affect thinking and can also be affected

by thinking. Ten-year-old Jehangir was reported as
an uncontrollable child. His mother said that he was
72 Introduction to Social Casework

conceived following a failure of contraceptives.

Jehangir was thus an unwanted child, and after his
Deep-seated birth, the mother developed guilt feelings for having
feelings in
parents used contraceptives earlier. As a result, she became
over-solicitous about the child's needs, and gave in
to his whims and fancies. Overindulgence of this
nature could not but have some undesirable results
and the gradual development of Jehangir's
uncontrollable behaviour was possibly a result. The
parents needed to change their behaviour towards
the boy. The mother needed help to handle her feelings
of guilt for which a change in her thinking was
also necessary.
The attitude of fatalism was referred to earlier,
and one saw how it prevented people from taking
appropriate actions to deal with difficulties. Fatalism
means adherence to ideas of pre-determined fate and
is associated with the belief in the concept of karma,
which means that one's pains, sorrows or sufferings
are the consequences of one's actions of this life
or of the life of a previous birth. The individual
entrenched in these beliefs generally gets resigned
to what he considers as his fate. The fatalistic attitude,
besides being a defeatist outlook, prevents remedial
action when such action is possible. Diseases that
can be cured or disabilities that can be arrested
and improved upon, are neglected to the point of
allowing the situation to get worse. Polio is a disease
of short duration, but its after effects may last
a lifetime in the form of orthopaedic impairments
and crippled capacities, unless medical treatment is
resorted to as early as possible. It was stated before
that parents of some of the polio-affected children
show apathy and disinterest with regard to getting
the children treated without delay. In such cases
one can often see undercurrents of fatalism and
associated resignation. The fatalistic attitude which
is present in many situations that confront a social
worker gets further complicated and strengthened
 Problems of Living — the Focus in Casework 73

under the combined impact of poverty and lack of

material resources.
A person who is capable of experiencing different
types of feelings, who at the same time can separate
his feelings from his thinking and can use unclouded
thinking for making decisions and judgements, may
be viewed as a person with inner resources.

External Processes that Affect People in an Adverse

Way
All the external processes that have a positive or
negative impact on a person are generally referred
to as the individual's environment. The physical,
human and socio-cultural components of the
Physical environment may be viewed separately, though they
surro-
undings are interconnected. The physical environment refers
to housing, the layout of the house, neighbourhood,
the physical amenities and utility services available.
Whether the house is a hut in a slum, a room
in a chawl, a flat with two rooms or more, or
a bungalow; whether there is congestion and crowding
or comfortable space around — all these aspects are
included in the concept of the physical environment.
The physical environment extends beyond the
individual's residential unit which is the proximate
environmental setting. There can be non-proximate
distant settings of physical environment like the
workplace, school, etc., which are also included in
the term 'the environment' of a person.
The human environment refers to the human beings
who are in meaningful contact with the individual.
The family constitutes the proximate human
environment. The non-proximate environment consists
of teachers, fellow-students and friends as far as
children are concerned and for adults, it consist
of people of the workplace, like fellow employees
supervisors, bosses, etc. Within the human
environment what is very significant for people is
74 Introduction to Social Casework
Human what takes place between people. Responses, reactions,
environ-
ment interactions and relationships make the human
environment alive and significant to individuals.
Response is an individual's behaviour expressed in
words or actions towards another individual or
situation. Reaction is the same as response, except
that the former connotes a stronger emotional content.
There is a pre-supposition that the first person is
the cause for the response from the second person.
He provides the stimulus for the response, with or
without any verbal utterance. When responses move
back and forth between two people it is interaction.
Interactions taking place repeatedly lead to
relationships and depending upon the emotional
content, a relationship is positive or negative.
Relationships, tinged with feelings of affection, respect
or appreciation are positive. On the other hand,
hostility, fear, disrespect, dislike and such other
feelings sour relationships, thus colouring them with
a negative hue.
The third factor, the socio-cultural component of
the environment, refers to features connected with
the persons' educational level, occupation, religious
background, ethnicity, socio-economic class and
related aspects. How far the individual is
Socio - knowledgeable with regard to matters of health,
cultural education, services and amenities in the community,
environ-
ment etc. is also a part of this component. People's tendency
to cling on to superstitions is a socio-cultural lack.
Tappu was a four-year-old polio-affected boy. He
could not walk and was being carried daily to school.
His father assumed that no medical treatment would
make Tappu walk because he believed firmly in the
boy's horoscope that predicted that he would be
affected by a serious disease.
Though the human environment and the
socio-cultural environment are presented here as two
separate sets of factors, they cannot be sifted so
neatly in actual life, because they are interspersed
 Problems of Living — the Focus in Casework 75

in human lives. If individual A has B as a part

of his human environment, we cannot think of B
as an entity set apart from his (B's) socio-cultural
environment. B's behaviour towards A (responses,
reactions, etc.) is very much influenced by B's
socio-cultural environment.
Parents confronted with behaviour problems in
children may not know how to handle the problem.
They use physical punishment as a remedial measure
and come to grief when their strategy does not produce
the expected result. Laji was thirteen years old, and
was uncontrollable at home. His father used to punish
him by restricting his movements by means of a
chain, one end of which was fixed around his ankle
and the other end secured on a tree. One day Laji
freed himself and ran away, joining subsequently
a gang of teenagers who indulged in petty thefts.
He was apprehended later by the police and sent
to a correctional institution.

A person's socio-cultural possessions are yet another

category of environment. Housing, with amenities
of water supply and electricity, hygienic surroundings,
accessibility to convenient public transport,
membership in a family consisting of a network of
positive relationships, affiliation to the middle or upper
Socio - socio-economic classes, advantageous educational
cultural
poss- qualifications, a satisfying job — all these constitute
essions one's socio-cultural possessions. On the other hand,
lack of or deficiencies in one or more of these is
a disadvantage, which by itself, or in combination
with other adverse factors, can create problems of
living. A poor person is handicapped in many ways :
because of his/her poverty, (s)he and his/her family
are without many of the environmental resources
mentioned above; (s)he is likely to be illiterate and
without cultural possessions such as knowledge about
health matters and information about services. With
reference to the case of Ramesh (the deaf child
76 Introduction to Social Casework
who was attending a school for normal children)
mentioned earlier, there was considerable ignorance
about deafness as a problem and about the availability
of medical and other services for deaf children.
Distressful Life Events with Blighting Effects
Dhamu, aged fourteen, had witnessed violence at
home since the days he was an infant. His father
was physically and verbally abusive towards every
member of the family. Dhamu was terribly frightened
of the father. Eventually, the most grievous incident
happened: the father killed the mother in front of
the children. The father was arrested and sent to
prison and the children to a children's institution.
Dhamu and his siblings' food and shelter were taken
care of in the institution. But food and shelter alone
could not quench their mental anguish nor could
it provide emotional security. Dhamu was naturally
aggressive towards everybody in the institution and
would declare openly that he would kill his father
when he came out of the jail.
Little Suman was in her mother's arms when the
mother jumped out of a running train in an attempt
Suman to kill herself. Suman was barely two years old at
that time and she survived, though her mangled
arm had to be amputated. The mother died in the
hospital and Suman, after her recovery, landed in
a children's institution. At the institution her sleep
was often disturbed by nightmares and she was
mortally scared of cars, buses and trains.
Lakshman, 30, was a married man. He was well
educated and had a good job. He was, however,
Lakshman unhappy at home. He was often displeased with his
wife for no apparent reason. There were frequent
quarrels between them and they were both unhappy
and dissatisfied with their married life. They were
referred to a social worker who came to know, through
her interviews with Lakshman, about his unhappy
childhood. When he was six years old, his mother
 Casework Tools 77

had eloped with his father's friend and never came

back. The father who could not forgive his mother
had continuously told him that women were bad and
that he should never trust a woman. Lakshman thus
grew up with a pre-disposition against women and
gradually he developed an attitude of hatred towards
women in general.
It can be seen that these six sets of causative
factors are interlinked in the light of the theoretical
concepts on human behaviour discussed in Chapter
3. Physical defect or deficiencies occurring at birth
or in childhood or non-fulfilment of needs in childhood
can disrupt the process of personality development
in children. Such disruption triggers off a chain
reaction of unfavourable behavioural operations: the
id-ego-superego systems do not proceed harmo-
niously, the ego functions are not effective and defense
mechanisms may become pervasive. The final outcome
in the individual is lack of ability to cope with problems
of living or occurrence of maladaptive behaviours.
 5. Casework Tools
tool is anything that serves as a means of

A operation in the practice of a trade, occupation

or a profession. The tools of an occupation like
carpentry, being concrete, tangible and determinate
lend themselves to sensory perception. Casework tools,
on the other hand, are abstract concepts, and not
concrete instruments or things that can be handled
by one's limbs. The tools used in casework are:
listening, observation, interview, relationship and
home visit. The word "tool", which immediately
produces the mental image of concrete things, cannot
be easily explained when it is used as an intangible,
non-material entity.

Two common meanings of the word "tool" may

be adapted to explain the term "casework tools".
(1) A means of contact with something or a means
of access to something. Casework tools are means
of contact with clients. They are also means of access
to information about the client, his family and his
Descriptive problem. This meaning is applicable to all the five
definition of casework tools. Observation and listening may be
casework
tools considered as tools within tools as they are components
of interview, relationship and home visit. (2) A means
for transmitting energy or force towards something.
Here the word "tool" refers to a channel, medium
or venue for the transmission of energy or force.
This meaning is applicable only to three of the casework
tools, interview, relationship and home visit, which
serve as channels for the transmission of information,
knowledge and help. They are the channels through
which casework techniques become operative.
Casework techniques are systematic procedures of
 Casework Tools 79

helping.) There are many techniques which will be

"described in the next two chapters. One of the
techniques, say for example, acceptance of feelings,
may be taken up here to show the distinction between
casework tools and casework techniques. Acceptance
of client's feelings can be shown only during the
social worker's contacts with the client, that is, within
the space of the interview, relationship or home visit.
Listening, observation, interview, relationship and
home visit are all human involvements that also take
place in many situations besides the casework
situations. But there is one difference: in the casework
situation the involvements are geared to only one
goal, that of rendering help to the client. Casework
tools thus become the contexts for the application
of techniques. Though casework tool is not a tangible
thing, the literal implication of the five casework
tools is active involvement by the social worker —
an exercise of his/her mental and physical faculties.

The utility of casework tools is along three

dimensions: (1) getting information directly about
clients (2) getting information indirectly about clients
Utility of (3) giving help to clients. Direct information is from
casework
what the client says and getting direct information
is a characteristic of all the five tools. It will be
seen that indirect information is obtained through
client's non-verbal communication and sometimes
from what the client omits to say. Getting indirect
information, as a dimension, applies mostly to
observation and in some contexts to listening. The
third dimension — giving help to clients — applies
only to interview, relationship and home visit. As
implied earlier, these three tools function as conveyors
for the transmission of help.

LISTENING
Listening is a basic casework tool. Active, attentive
listening is purposeful. The purpose is to understand
80 Introduction to Social Casework

the speaker's words and feelings as accurately as

possible, for which mental concentration is necessary.
The listener has to pay attention to what is said,
what is not said, and what is suggested. Listening,
therefore, becomes a consciously performed activity
for the social worker. It is also an aspect for the
practice of the principle of acceptance.

There are some common obstacles to active listening,

knowledge of which, is necessary for one who wants
to train himself/herself as an effective listener.

Obstacles to Listening
(1) Distraction of various kinds take a listener off
the path of active listening. There can be external
distractions in the form of noises in the environment
and other people's talking. Internal distractions are
one's own thoughts, connected or unconnected with
the speaker or the subject matter of his/her speech.
Sometimes, the speaker's statements may bring to
the listener's remembrance similar experiences, and
set the mind off, away from the path of listening.

Distractions It is likely that preconceived ideas about the speaker

or about the materials he is talking about may occupy
the centre of attention in the listener's mind, thus
disrupting the listening activity. Here is an example.
C is a person who is known among his friends as
a frequent borrower of money. Today C is approaching
his friend D for help with an emotional problem
and not for money. But D wrongly assumes that
C has come for a loan. While C is talking, D is
not listening but formulating in his mind a polite
reply of refusal to any request for loans. By the
time D realises that C has not come for money,
he also becomes aware that he has not been listening
properly to Cs problem. So he asks C to repeat
his story. It is clearly seen here that D's preconceived
ideas about C as a frequent borrower of money
 Casework Tools 81

prevents him from listening to C when he is talking

about his current problems.
(2) The listener's anxiety or fear concerning the
speaker can become a block to good listening. Also,
when the listener is unduly anxious that his/her
response to the speaker should be appropriate, his/her
mind gets pre-occupied with the formulation of a
response. This obstacle occurs frequently in the social
worker -client contact, where the social worker is
anxious that (s)he should be able to win the client's
confidence and that (s)he should use the "correct"
words for the client. A social worker who is anxious
about empathising with the client, may be turning
over in his/her mind the different words and ways
of showing empathy, while the client is speaking.
So, instead of focusing attention on the client's speech,
the listener is focusing attention on how (s) he should
respond. When this happens, the social worker's
response may not necessarily suit the context. Though
statements, "I understand your feelings", "It is
natural to have such feelings", "It is not wrong
to feel that way" are indicative of empathy, they
cannot be repeated parrot fashion without listening
carefully to what the client is saying.
Selective (3) Selective listening which refers to the mental
listening
tendency of hearing only what one likes to hear,
prevents effective listening. In ordinary conversation,
considerable amount of spoken matter gets tuned
out of hearing because of selective listening. An
individual may tune out of a conversation consciously,
or not so consciously, when emotionally painful or
unpleasant things are being spoken.
There are a few guidelines which will help the
social worker to develop the habit of effective listening.
Guidelines (1) It is important to maintain eye contact with
J? effective
listening the client during conversations. Eye contact helps
the social worker to direct his/her physical and mental
attention towards the client.
82 Introduction to Social Casework
(2) The social worker must ensure, though it may
not always be possible, that the place where the
interviews with the clients take place, is quiet, with
minimum external distractions.
(3) As a preparation for interviews with the client,
the worker should clear his/her mind of internal
pre-occupations and preconceived ideas or opinions
of the client. Anxieties or apprehensions about the
interview must be brought to the level of awareness
and should be resolved. If they cannot be resolved
immediately, they should be consciously kept aside
for the time being.
(4) The ears should be trained to listen to everything
that the client says. Mental habits of wool gathering
and selective listening should be got rid of.
(5) What the client says or what (s)he appears
to be, cannot but evoke thinking in the mind of
the social worker. But thinking in this context should
not deflect or sidetrack from the client. In other
words, the social worker should be capable of
disciplined thinking that helps him/her to understand
what the client says, to make a mental note of
what the client does not say and to ask appropriate
questions. There are certain bits of information which
the social worker expects the particular client to
talk about in the course of the conversation. If the
client fails to mention these or even avoids talking
about these, despite the social worker's queries, then
it is probable that these "ignored details" are
significant, knowledge of which may be necessary
to understand the client and his/her problems. Raju,
an amputee-patient whose case has been mentioned
earlier, was found to be talking more about his parents
living in Mysore, than about his wife and children
living in Bombay. The wife who was in Bombay
was not coming to visit the patient The social worker
suspected a strained relationship between the patient
and his wife, which subsequently proved to be correct
 Casework Tools 83

The social worker visited the wife and came to know

more about the patient. Though he had a regular
job before the accident, he was not providing
sufficiently for his family. Consequently, his wife
and children had shifted to the house of the wife's
parents. As a result of the social worker's efforts,
the patient's wife and her father began to visit the
patient and actively got involved with plans for his
rehabilitation.

OBSERVATION
Observation is the practice of noticing features about
people, things or situations, and in the context of
casework, the purpose is to use the observed data
for understanding the client and his situation. The
caseworker has to take cognizance of the following
with reference to the client:
1. The general outward appearance
2. Facial expression, posture, gestures, etc.
3. The characteristics, particularly the emotional
nuances of interactions that take place between clients
and others, including their family members.
The social worker should not have any difficulty
in paying attention to the client's personal appearance
— his/her clothes, level of cleanliness, and such
Appearance like. In the case of Ramesh, referred to earlier,
matters
his disability of deafness was not the main problem.
He went to school in dirty clothes, without having
a bath and for this reason, his classmates and teachers
avoided him. Generally, the clothes are indicative
of the client's socio-economic class, but there are
exceptions. There have been instances where the
relatives of patients have appeared in shabby clothes
with the intention of hiding their real socio-economic
status in contexts where certain payments to the
hospital were to be fixed according to the patient's
or his/her family's income. There are also cases
of clients who are more concerned about their clothes
84 Introduction to Social Casework
than about giving nutritious food to their children.
Some of the poorest clients present a neat and tidy
appearance though their clothes may be almost
threadbare with repeated washing.
The human face occasionally reflects the feelings
within and to the social worker facial expression is
Facial a matter for observation. Feelings like sadness, anger
expression and hostility do not need verbal expression to indicate
matters
their presence; there will be tell-tale signs on the
face that bespeak the unexpressed feelings. Similarly,
the individual's postures, gestures, tone of voice and
body movements are also meaningful.
The client who sits on the edge of the chair may
be doing so because of his/her feelings of strangeness
or nervousness. Many of our clients do not feel
comfortable on their first day of visit to a social
work agency. They may be ignorant about what a
Other social worker does and what they can expect from
symptoms
of the agency. The pressure of their problems and their
uneasiness having to talk to a stranger about it add to their
discomfiture. The confusion and tension that the client
experiences within is likely to make him fidgety and
restless. The way (s)he sits, and the manner in
which (s)he participates in the conversation with
the social worker should be observed carefully for
indications of his/her emotional state of mind —
whether (s)he is tense or relaxed, trusting or
suspicious, receptive or inattentive. Knowing what
the client feels or getting at least some clues to
his/her feelings is helpful in that the social worker
can prime himself/herself to respond appropriately.
For instance, a client who feels ill at ease can be
helped to feel more comfortable.
The clients themselves may be putting on a facade
to test the social worker's attitude. It is not a rare
experience for social workers working with adolescents
of correctional institutions to see nothing but boredom
and indifference in the demeanour of the young clients
 Casework Tools 85

with whom they are trying to hold a conversation.

It may turn out that the client's indifference is
put on, in an attempt to test out the social worker's
authenticity, insofar as his/her declaration of interest
in the client is concerned.
Mannerisms Mannerisms and habitual body movements are also
are also to
be watched significant. Thampi, a disabled client was often seen
covering his deformed hand (the fingers were turned
inwards and twisted) with a handkerchief. Since the
social worker knew about the client's disability, there
was no need to hide the hand from the view of
the social worker. It was a pointer towards his self
consciousness, which exceeding normal limits, was
becoming a formidable block to his vocational
rehabilitation. The disability in itself was not the
problem but what the client felt about it was veritably
a problem. When there is an open expression of
emotions like shedding tears, the pathos behind the
action is understandable. However, when a person
weeps repeatedly over the same event or situation,
there is a possibility that the individual, besides
expressing sadness, is also using the occasion for
an additional purpose, though not on a conscious
level. There is the case of Bhargavi who was weeping
over her problem of marital discord, every time she
talked to the social worker. The social worker
discovered that Bhargavi was using her tears as a
cover for her reluctance to face the problem squarely
and to take efforts to solve it.

The body-mind relationship is manifest in the body

movements which give expression to feelings. This
phenomenon is appropriately called body language or
organ language and may or may not be accompanied
by verbal expression. What happens in the case of
body language is that it is non-verbal communication,
but it is involuntary communication or transmission
Watch the of messages, without any volition on the part of
body
language the communicator. The message of information
86 Introduction to Social Casework
mostly about feelings. The speaker may want to
conceal information about the feelings that he
experiences, nevertheless, the information leaks
through. For instance, tears may gush out depending
on the intensity of the feelings, regardless of the
fact that the person does not want to be seen weeping.
Likewise, the emotional material that seeps out of
the mind on to the face of the individual is clearly
Involuntary visible to others, though invisible to himself/herself.
facial Since gestures and facial expressions are involuntary
expression
of feelings in real life situations, in a play the actors have
to simulate them, while portraying the characters
in the story. The actor enacting a role on the stage
does not experience in real life the feelings of the
person who is being portrayed in that role, but (s)he
can imagine the feelings and consequently, project
himself/herself as having those feelings. On occasions,
when congruence is lacking between verbal and
non-verbal communications, it may be surmised that
the person is deliberately hiding his/her feelings behind
words. Take, for instance, the context in which a
man is talking about the business failure of another
man who has been his rival in business. The speaker
is expressing verbally his sympathy for the man and
his sadness that such adversity had befallen him.
What appears on the speaker's face is however, a
mischievous smile and some signs of gratification.
The discrepancy between his verbal assertion and
non-verbal communication is due to the fact that
he does not want to reveal the feelings of gratification
that he experiences within. Since the feelings are
quite strong, signs of them appear on the face,
and he does not realise that his face is reflecting
the feelings.
Subash There is the case of Subhash (15 years) who was
a resident in an institution for blind boys. His parents
used to bring him things during their visits to the
institution. The social worker noted the blank
expression on the boy's face while meeting his
 Casework Tools 87
relatives. Though he indicated in his talk about being
grateful to his family for the things he received
from them, it appeared as though the gratitude was
superficial and that it was not coming from his heart.
What he was experiencing inside were unpleasant
feelings. Subsequently, he was able to talk to the
social worker about his feelings of rejection. His
perception was that the family did not want him
at home, that their life with him being away at
the charitable institution was more comfortable and
that they did not want the status quo to be disturbed
by his presence at home. Subash believed that his
parents were trying to make up for their reluctance
to take him home by bringing him things which,
in his view, were a poor substitute for being cared
for at home.
Observe The social worker's observational precincts extend
beyond the
obvious far beyond what (s)he sees in the client and hears
from him/her to what takes place between the client
and others, including his/her family members. It is
possible to glean attitudes from people's patterns
of communication. Megan (13 years) was a mentally
retarded boy needing rehabilitation. His father was
dead and he was under the care of his mother and
older brother. The mother, despite her deep concern
for the boy, could not do much for him because
of the thoroughly negative attitude of the brother
and his wife. The social worker observed that the
brother's conversations with Megan and also about
Megan contained nothing but scorn and ridicule, and
a lack of understanding of the boy and his needs
was clearly evident.

INTERVIEW
|The casework interview refers to the meeting of
the social worker and the client in a face to-face
conversation. It is not a casual conversation but a
Purposes of
professional activity on the part of the social worker,
interview because the conversation is geared to specific or general
88 Introduction to Social Casework
purposes. The purposes may be one or more of
the following: (1) to obtain information from, or
impart information to, the client (2) for studying
and assessing the client's problem and related situation
(3) to give help.
Obtaining Information and Imparting Information
Generally, the client is a perfect stranger to the
agency on his/her first visit. (S)He may or may
not bring a note of referral from a third person
indicating the reason for referral. The social worker
has to gather data regarding the problem, how the
client perceives it, what (s)he has done about it,
some data about the client himself/herself, his/her
family and his/her resources. When a client is not
able to furnish the required information, members
of his/her family are interviewed for the purpose.
Interviewing Interviewing is a two-way process. Just as
is a
two-way information is received by the social worker, so also
process information is impartedto the client* regarding official
procedures and other matters about himself/herself,
his/her role as a social worker, and about the function
of the agency. Information about the self is all the
more important for those clients who come to the
social worker not of their own volition but through
other people's coercion. The client is also informed
about other services.

Study and Assessment of the Client's Situation

Data gathered from and about the client are sorted
out and analysed, from which relevant aspects are
linked to form a verbal picture of the problem situation
with clear indications of cause-effect relationships.
Assessment In this process the social worker applies the knowledge
of social sciences for understanding the behaviour
of clients and others in the problem situation. Every
case record of the SOCR had a social assessment
* Giving information as a technique will be discussed in Chapter 6.
 Casework Tools 89
that was simple and straightforward or quite
complicated. Ordinarily, a few interviews are necessary
before an assessment of the situation can be made.
Social assessment is also tentative and is bound to
change depending upon the new social data that emerge
as time goes on. Furthermore, there is no stipulation
that social assessment should end before the helping
process begins. There are types of help that can
be and should be rendered early enough — so much
so that the action of providing help and efforts at
formulating a social assessment occur side by side,
at the same time.

Interview as a Direct Tool for Giving Help

With reference to the two purposes mentioned above,
interviewing serves as an indirect tool of help. The
information that the social worker elicits and the
social assessment that (s)he evolves serve as a blue
print, based on which (s)he decides suitable modes
of help. But the interview can be used as a direct
medium of help as well. It is during the interview
that many of the casework techniques (which are
described in the next two chapters) are used. Similarly
the principles also come into play in the interview.*
Casework clients can be broadly divided into long
term and short term cases, the latter group including
even such cases as require only one contact and
only one interview. Casework interview is operative
Help as long as the individual is a client of the agency.
intrinsic in
the manner The case records of the SOCR covered periods ranging
of
interviewing
from two months to seven months, with the contacts
with each client taking place once or twice a week.
In emergencies, clients were met more frequently.
The interview is a channel of direct help even at
the first contact between the social worker and the
client. The cordial way the client is received at the
agency and made to feel accepted is itself a, form
* For an understanding of interview as a tool of direct help a perusal
of Chapter 6 (on techniques) is necessary.
90 Introduction to Social Casework

of help and it encourages the client to continue with

the agency in order that (s)he may receive other
kinds of help. Those clients who do not seek help
on their own, some of whom do not even acknowledge
having problems are, however, compelled to come
to the social worker by those exerting authority over
them. They come to the social worker with a built-in
dislike for the latter and for such clients the first
contact is crucial. It can be effectively used by the
social worker for dispelling the client's pre-conceived
notion and prejudices and for getting him/her
favourably disposed to social work help.
Interviewing as a professional activity requires that
the social worker prepares himself/herself for the
occasion. After reviewing the previous interview or
interviews with the same client, the social worker
should make note of the gaps in information, the
ambiguities that need clarification, and one's own
lapses and shortcomings that need to be replaced
with skills of handling. Keeping these points of review
in mind, the next interview should be planned for
eliciting fresh data, clearing doubts, testing
assumptions, assessing facts and for using techniques
appropriately.

HOME VISITS
Conducting the interviews in the office of the agency
has certain advantages. It provides for privacy and
prevents distractions.. It invests a certain degree of
formality and professionalism in the conversation,
to the extent that the clients are encouraged to view
Place of the interviews seriously. But to some clients, the
interview
formality of the office may be threatening, provoking
them to put on masks that hide their real selves
and feelings. For such people, having one or two
interviews at home will be a welcome relief. There
are also some other considerations which make home
visits an important and necessary casework tool. First
of all, there is the likelihood that the client perceives
 Casework Tools 91

the social worker's visit to his/her home as an

indication of the social worker's interest in his/her
welfare. A recognition by the client of the social
worker's interest and concern is desirable as far
as the progress of the casework process is concerned.
Furthermore, there are clients whose fatalistic attitude
to life's problems and the resultant resignation to
problems prevents them from doing anything. Social
workers have to go to them rather than wait for
them at the agency. One or two home visits may
not bear any fruit; more visits will be necessary.
Repeated home visits by social workers are recorded
in some of the SOCR cases, the social worker's
persistence paying off in the end.
Home visit is definitely advantageous in that it
enables the social worker to observe the home
environment of the client. Importantly, the
interactions which take place among the family
members lend themselves to the social worker's
Home visit, observation from which the social worker is able
can be very
revealing to make useful inferences about the attitudes and
relationships within the family. There was the case
of Lakshman (15 years) who was referred to the
social worker for poor academic performance and
aggressive behaviour. Lakshman lived in a one-room
tenement with his parents who asserted that they
loved Lakshman very much, that they gave him
everything he wanted and that they expected him
to do well in school. Even the T.V. set was bought
for him, they declared. During every visit, the social
worker found the whole family in front of the T.V.,
including Lakshman, who had his school books open
in front of him but his eyes on the programme.
On one visit, the social worker was talking to Lakshman
about his school report, and suddenly and
unexpectedly, the father began to beat Lakshman,
scolding him loudly for his failure in the examination.
The contradictions in parental handling could be easily
seen by the social worker during home visits.
92 Introduction to Social Casework
Vilas (8 years) was an illiterate blind boy whom
the social worker was helping to get admitted to
a school for blind children. The parents were not
doing much beyond stating that they were desirous
of getting their son educated. On a visit to Vilas's
home, the social worker found Vilas begging on the
Vilas road. It was quite evident that Vilas was being
encouraged by his parents in his begging activity.
What the social worker observed during the home
visit was a piece of relevant information that turned
out to be very useful in the formulation of social
assessment.
Tappan* (30 years) was a paraplegic undergoing
treatment as an in-patient in a public hospital. His
disability being the result of an accident at his work,
Tappan Tappan was entitled to compensatory benefits from
his employer for which proceedings had been initiated
by the hospital social worker. While he was in the
hospital, his wife Mala indulged in extra-marital affairs
as a result of which she had an illegitimately born
baby. Mala continued to show interest in her disabled
husband, and said that she regretted her extra-marital
relationships. She was found eager to have Tappan
discharged to her care. While planning discharge,
the social worker made a visit to Mala's house,
which according to Mala was kept ready to receive
her disabled husband. But, what the social worker
saw belied what Mala had stated and assured. The
house, a hut, was empty and dilapidated that gave
the impression that it was not a lived-in habitation.
Then it dawned upon the social worker that Mala's
concern for her husband might not be genuine and
that she might be conniving to get hold of Tappan's
compensatory benefits under pretenses of wanting
to take care of him. Eventually, the social worker's
suspicions proved to be correct and the plan of
discharging him to the care of his wife was dropped;
* This case is not from the SOCR. This was narrated to the author by
a medical social worker.
 Casework Tools 93

and the compensation that he received from his

employer was safely deposited in a bank. Thus, a
timely home visit prevented the social worker from
taking steps which would have been detrimental to
the client's welfare.
RELATIONSHIP
The worker-client relationship is another casework
tool that needs to be delineated. Relationship between
any two people is the condition of their being connected
in a significant way. We experience various kinds
Kinds of of relationships in our lives. First of all, there are
relation-
ships the relationships derived from being members of one's
family and kinship groups. Parent-child, sibling-sib-
ling, uncle-niece relationships are examples. These
are permanent and unalterable, lasting as long as
one lives. On the other hand, relationships between
two friends, neighbours or classmates are temporary.
The doctor-patient, teacher-student, supervisor -
supervisee, lawyer-client are examples of professional
relationships. One can broadly classify relationships
according to quality also. A relationship between two
people, characterised by hatred is a negative
relationship; nevertheless, it is a relationship.
Likewise, a relationship marked by affection is a
positive one.

It follows from the above discussion that the social

worker-client relationship is a professional
relationship, and that it has to be positive in nature.
Only a positive relationship can serve as a means
towards the desirable end of helpfulness, the type
of helpfulness that provides scope for the exercise
of casework principles.
Professional Professional relationships have some common
relationship
is for characteristics. They are bound by time to specific
specific
purposes
purposes. When the purpose is met, the relationship
comes to an end. Unlike family relationships which
are diffuse and permeate many areas of human life,
94 Introduction to Social Casework
professional relationships pertain only to the areas
surrounding specific purposes. For example, take the
teacher-student relationship. The student's academic
life is a matter of legitimate interest and attention
for the teacher, who thereby assumes responsibility
regarding how the student spends his/her time in
school. The teacher is not concerned what the student
does after school hours. The parent-child relationship,
on the other hand, is all inclusive. There is hardly
any aspect of the child's life that is not pertinent
to the parents' view. In family relationships, mutuality
is also implicit in one form or other. Parents take
care of children, and when parents grow old the
children, who are adults by that time, are expected
to take care of the ageing parents. The dyadic pair
in a professional relationship, however, are not bound
by any consideration of mutuality. There, the
mutuality concept is replaced by market economy,
in the sense that, the professional service gets paid
through some kind of monetary arrangement.

In a professional relationship, as between a doctor

and patient or a social worker and client, the
professional person uses two types of authority, one
Authority based on his/her knowledge and the other sanctioned
implicit in by society for the practice of one's profession. Because
the
professional of his/her knowledge and skills (s)he is able to
relationship
apply suitable procedures for helping the patient or
client. The possession of knowledge and skills is
instrumental in obtaining a certain amount of conferred
authority for the practice of his/her profession.
Apart from the characteristics stated above, the
worker-client relationship has some special
characteristics. Though it is attached to a specific
purpose or purposes, it is more diffuse than the
doctor-patient relationship. The diffusion in the former
Social occurs as a result of the different areas of life, the
worker's relationship touches. It entails dealing with the tangible
relationship
is diffuse and concrete areas of living as well as the intangible
 Casework Tools 95
area of emotions. Janardhan (32) was an industrial
worker living in a slum. He lost an arm in an
accident. After discharge from the hospital he was
referred to the social worker of a community centre
of the locality. The social worker arranged for his
vocational training in a rehabilitation centre.
Meanwhile, his wife died and his five-year old child
was placed in foster care with the help of the social
worker. After the training, Janardhan could not get
a job and he turned to illicit distillation of liquor
Janardhan as a means of livelihood. The social worker, however,
dissuaded him from carrying on illicit distillation and
encouraged him to look for legitimate ways of earning
a living. Subsequently, Janardhan decided to put up
a vegetable stall for which an official licence was
necessary. There were formal procedures to be
completed and officials had to be approached for
the licence. In all these activities the social worker
guided him and supported him.
As is evident in the above case, the social worker
entered more than one area of his life: in arranging
for his vocational training, the placement of his child
under foster care, in turning him away from an
illicit occupation, in helping him to decide to put
up a stall of vegetables and in getting financial
resources. The social worker being involved in so
many things connected with the client's life is likely
to be looked upon as a close friend or almost like
Diffuse a member of the family. To say that it is a professional
relationship friendship is not easily comprehensible to the
builds
strong uneducated client, nor is he prepared for the
bonds
termination of the relationship that has to occur
sooner or later. An emotional bond comes into the
relationship which is stronger than the bond that
occurs in other professional relationships. The
emotional bond is very satisfying to some clients
and they find it difficult to terminate the relationship.
It can happen that a client's social worker leaves the
agency, and another takes over the case long before
96 Introduction to Social Casework
the termination stage. The emotional tie that has
already developed between the client and the first
worker makes it difficult for the client to adjust
to the second worker.
Since the social worker comes to know of many
aspects of the client's life through a relationship
that is positive, the client may be inclined to give
the relationship a tone of mutuality by wanting to
know more about the social worker's personal life:
(s)he may ask for the worker's residential address
and may want the relationship to continue on a personal
level.
There has been a discussion in Chapter 2 of
the principle of controlled emotional involvement on
the part of the social worker. In that context the
need for a degree of detachment in the social worker's
emotional involvement with the client was pointed
out. The difficulties that have been referred to here
in this chapter, in relation to the worker-client
relationship arise when the client is not able to
comprehend fully the professional nature of the
relationship. But these difficulties can be handled
effectively by the use of helping techniques. The
difficulties have been cited just to highlight the special
nature of the relationship.
The relationship between the worker and the client,
besides being a medium of help, can sometimes be
a form of help by itself. For a client who is confused,
anxious and without hope, to be treated with courtesy
and to be listened to with patience and without any
censure, can itself be an experience of being helped.
The worker client relationship is expected to foster
growth in the client. Not all human relationships
are growth producing. Suppose A and B are bound
Fostering by a relationship in which B is excessively dependent
client's
growth on A, and B obeys A's orders or instructions
unthinkingly. Such connectedness cannot be growth
producing to B. The exercise of casework principles,
 Casework Tools 97
specially those related to client's self-determination
and participation, is intended to infuse growth
fostering elements in the worker-client relationship.
Helping a person to participate actively in
understanding his/her problems and in making
decisions to find solutions cannot but engender growth
in the person who is being helped. In the application
of techniques also, this goal for client's growth is
adhered to.
The concept of communication is the process of
transmitting information and messages between two
people or more. In social work it is related to the
concept of worker-client relationship, although they
are two distinctly different phenomena. They are
interdependent in the sense that, communication skills
on the part of the social worker initiate a positive
Relationship relationship and, a positive relationship facilitates
has to be
positive constructive communication between the worker and
the client. Though relationship is an evolvement
depending on two persons, it is incumbent on the
social worker to use his/her expertise to start a
positive relationship with the client.
Verbal communication may not be always effective
to start a relationship with reference to some cases
of children, adolescents or mentally ill adults. When
Communi- a child is non-communicative, giving him/her play
cation other materials, or materials for drawing and painting will
than verbal;
help in removing his/her initial resistance to the
social worker. Participating with the child in a game
or other activity can be useful too in starting a
relationship which, in course of time, will lead to
verbal communication, in most of the cases. Mental
health agencies provide for games and work activities
which are useful in initiating connections between
the social worker and the mentally disturbed clients
who are reluctant to talk.
Granting that the social worker makes the correct
approach, it does not always follow that the client
98 Introduction to Social Casework
responds positively. There are people who for some
reason or other are unable to relate to people. Perhaps,
their life experiences are such that they are unable
to trust other people. There are some who have
been repeatedly let down by the important people
of their lives. There are others whose meaningful
relationships could be cut short through death or
other circumstances. Clients whose personality has
been marred by unhappy events related to their
personal relationships may be unable to respond to
the social worker's overtures of friendship. Their
self-defeating type of behaviour is understandable
in the light of discussions presented in earlier chapters
on the theory of ego function. As regards the
personality of these people, unfavourable events of
life have obstructed the smooth development of their
ego functions, particularly the functions of object
relations and synthesis of life's experiences.
Rapport Rapport is an important phenomenon in social
indicates
positive casework. The word "rapport" is used to refer to
relationship the positive nature of the worker-client relationship.
The social worker may look for the following signs
of rapport with reference to his/her relationship with
the client.
1. The client shows interest in meeting the social
worker and keeps appointments
2. The client expresses his/her feelings in the course
of interviews
3. The client participates adequately in the
interviews, talking about himself/herself, his/her
experiences, relationships, etc.
4. The client indicates a degree of commitment
to his/her own decisions for action.
In the SOCK cases, the depth of the worker-client
relationship varied from case to case. In many cases
Levels of there was rapport. In a few cases the rapport did
rapport as not improve beyond a certain low level. In the case
evidenced
in SOCR of Kumar, the paraplegic patient who was referred
 Casework Tools 99

to earlier, there was not much of a relationship.

The social worker had carried out many tasks for
Kumar the benefit of the patient, tasks that Kumar could
not do himself. She obtained a duplicate Insurance
Card for him to replace the original card that he
had lost, and set in motion the formal procedures
towards the sanction of the monetary benefits to
which he was entitled. She wrote to his family in
the village and getting no response, wrote to the
sarpanch of his village. She established contact with
his factory and secured their cooperation in the
rehabilitative work, to such an extent that the manager
agreed to give him a sedentary job after his discharge
from the hospital. The personnel officer of his factory
visited the patient in the hospital and showed eagerness
to help him. Meetings were arranged between the
patient and other paraplegics, particularly two patients
who were responding well to rehabilitative programmes
and were also willing to help the patient in some
ways. Despite all these efforts on the part of the
social worker, there was hardly any sign of rapport
being manifested on the part of the client. Apart
from an occasional expression of self-pity, there was
no participation or commitment on the part of the
patient.

In contrast, there was the case of Vispy. Vispy,

eighteen years old, was a tenth standard student.
He was referred to the social worker at his school
for poor academic performance and for bad behaviour
in the classroom. He refused to meet the social worker
on the plea that "he was not a problem boy and
that he had no problems". After repeated efforts
made through different channels to meet the boy,
Vispy the social worker eventually had a talk with Vispy
in her office. And gradually, rapport was built up
to the point of Vispy willingly approaching the worker
regarding new problems that surfaced. When he failed
in his unit test, he discussed the matter with the
social worker to find ways of improving his
100 Introduction to Social Casework
performance. Before the end of the year, he began
discussing his career plans with the social worker.
Listening, observation, interviewing, home visit,
and relationship have been described in this chapter
as casework tools. Counselling is often referred to
as a tool. Counselling is a special kind of interviewing
that will be discussed in the chapter on techniques
of helping. The concept of counselling as a tool needs
appreciation in the light of the helping techniques
Casework which are the bricks in the formation of the counselling
compared
to orchestra process. It is important to note that generally two
or more tools operate together, orchestrating like
musical instruments in a symphony. For example,
the social worker while listening to the client with
his/her ears is also working his/her eyes, and mind
to observe and to think. While interviewing, the
social worker is also listening, observing and
communicating. The connection between relationship
and communication has already been pointed out.
To put it in a nutshell, casework tools are interlinked
dynamically to produce certain desirable outcomes.
 6. Techniques of Helping _I

T he purpose of casework is to help people to

handle their problems of social functioning
effectively. The helping process is to be carried
out in such a way that the philosophical values of
social work as well as the principles are adhered
to. That it is a professional activity emphasises the
Social work
difference between indiscriminate, unplanned helping
is planned and thoughtfully planned helping. Take for example,
helping
the commonly observed practice of giving alms to
beggars who beg near places of worship, bus stops
and other locations where people gather. When a
person standing in a bus queue gives money to a
beggar, (s)he does not take into consideration ideas
like dignity of the latter as a human being. There
is no process of individualization nor is there any
participation in its true sense by the receiver of
the help. And probably, the giver gives money to
get rid of the beggar who is perceived as a nuisance.
With this sort of giving and receiving help, the receiver
may remain a beggar all his/her life because there
is hardly any scope for the blossoming of his/her
potentialities whereby (s)he can earn a living. From
the professional point of view, therefore, giving money
to beggars is not a desirable way of helping. The
social worker helps the client through procedures
that draw upon the client's abilities and resources.

The two major goals of casework service are:

(1) rendering help to cope with the problem which
the client cannot handle unaided and (2) enhancing
Two goals the operation of client's ego functions, whereby, (s)he
of casework
moves towards greater ability In handling his/her
life and problems. The two goals are interlinked,
or to be more precise, the second goal stipulates
102 Introduction to Social Casework
the special manner in which the first goal — help
for problem solving — should be achieved.
The social worker, while making the social
assessment of the client's problem, weighs the impact
of all the contributing factors, helps the client to
grasp the significance of the various elements of
the situation and then assists him/her in dealing
with these elements.
The classification of the contributory factors of
problems outlined in Chapter 5 can provide a
thumbnail sketch of the type of solutions needed.
What is The word 'solution' is used here in a limited sense.
'solution' Only a few of the human problems can be solved
fully; some can be solved partially; for some, there
may not be any solution at all. But even in the
face of exigencies and predicaments that defy all
efforts at finding a way out, it may be possible
to find ways of reducing some pressures on the
individual and thus improve the situation a little
bit. Casework efforts in such contexts are, therefore,
aimed at making some changes for the better. Keeping
this meaning of problem solving in mind, namely,
that many situations can be only partially rectified
and for some, only a few changes can be effected
on the periphery without touching the core, the
classification of the contributory causes of problems
may be reconsidered.
With reference to the first type of causative factors,
— diseases, defects and deficiencies of the body or
mind — the clients need help to understand the
disease, defect or disability in question and to avail
themselves of the services instituted in the community.
Furthermore, help is needed to overcome the
psychological effect of diseases, defects and
deficiencies. Regarding deprivations related to physical
and psychosocial needs, the lack or insufficiency may
be confined to a current exigency and then it may
not be very difficult to find ways of meeting the
 Techniques of Helping — I 103
need. For instance, in the case of Sandeep mentioned
in the chapter on problems, there was deprivation
of this type. Sandeep used to go to school without
food. Making arrangements that Sandeep might have
Range, of
solutions to breakfast every day was a manageable matter. When
causative the deprivations are long-standing, they are likely
factors
to produce undesirable effects and these effects cannot
be easily erased. There are children who took to
stealing because they could not rely on their parents
for regular meals. Some of them continue their stealing
habit long after they are transferred to an environment
where they get sufficient food to eat. When there
is a long-standing deprivation in the fulfilment of
psychosocial needs, the consequences may also persist
over a long period of time.
A child who has been deprived of parental love
or who has been hurt emotionally, may show emotional
problems that cannot be removed easily. Some of
the children living in residential institutions who have
experienced emotional deprivation in their own homes,
do manifest behavioural problems, 'to handle which,
emotionally oriented means of helping are required.
Deprivation
may cause
Turning to problems caused by inadequacies in
behavioural personality development, the client's perception of
problems
his/her social roles and the corresponding role
performance has to change. Likewise, with reference
to factors related to thinking and feeling processes
also, the client has to be activated to bring about
changes within himself/herself.
As stated in Chapter 4, external processes which
lead to human problems pertain to the physical and
human environment. When the set up of the physical
environment is disadvantageous or harmful to clients,
efforts should be geared to making appropriate
changes. The trouble creating elements in the human
environment have their origin in interactions and
relationships. For instance, a married woman's
unhappiness may have links with her relationship
with her mother-in-law who stays with the couple,
104 Introduction to Social Casework
and who is perceived by the wife as a disturbing
factor. Casework involves meaningful contacts between
the social worker and the individual and the latter's
family in most of the cases. But the contact with
the family members becomes all the more essential
when the individual's problem is observed to he in
a tangle of relationships within the family. When
the problem is linked with blocks and defects in
relationships and attitudes, casework service has to
be directed to activating all the persons involved,
to set right their relationships, interactions and
attitudes. Those people who are under the psychological
impact of distressful events need to change their
perception and thinking in order that, the feelings
associated with the events may lose their intensity
and cease to influence their lives.

A review of the remedies required with reference

to the categories of causative factors will reveal that
remedial help is of two types — material and
non-material. Material help is for meeting the client's
Two types need for money and things. Non-material help is
of remedial
help provided to meet the client's lack of specific
information and knowledge and also to engender
changes in the client's thinking processes. Counselling
is the tool used to bring about changes in the internal
process. Counselling entails the building up of a close
relationship with the client and the use by the social
worker of communication techniques that facilitate
expression of feelings by the client, promote the
client's understanding of himself/herself and his/her
problem and induce him/her to change the behaviour
so that, the new behaviour may lead to a better
level of social functioning.

SUPPORTIVE TECHNIQUES
Casework techniques are the procedures of helping
the client. They are the wherewithal through which
the client gets the experience of being helped. The
 Techniques of Helping — I 105
client may not perceive the procedures as specific
units or characteristics of his/her contact with the
social worker, but (s)he will generally experience
the fact of being helped.

Acceptance
Acceptance is one of the basic techniques of helping.
The abstract principle of acceptance is made a reality
through the technique of acceptance. It is a way
of approach, an ongoing disposition through which
the client feels that (s)he is welcome to the social
work agency and that the social worker wants to
help him/her. Acceptance by the social worker is
conveyed through words, the tone of the words and
the overall behaviour which is visible to the client.
Further, it is characterised by the worker's warmth
and courtesy to the client, his/her demonstration
of interest in the client, his/her geniality and
cordiality. The way the client is received, given a
seat and listened to, is important in creating an
atmosphere of acceptance.
One may say that acceptance is an attitude, a
stance, a disposition, an outlook or a combination
of two or more of these. Acceptance is more
Illustration experiential than describable as a concept. One may
from the
puranas find stories from the Hindu puranas, illustrating clearly
the various nuances of acceptance. The story of
Sudama from Mahabharatha may be cited here for
illustration. Lord Krishna and Sudama were childhood
friends. When they grew up and went along separate
ways as adults, there arose a wide social gap between
them. Krishna belonged to the affluent nobility and
Sudama remained a very poor man who could not
help himself out of the wretchedness of poverty.
One day Sudama decided to visit Krishna. At the
gate of Krishna's palace, Sudama became fully aware
of the wide disparity between his and his friend's
social status. He became discomfited about his
miserable poverty and its manifestations, like the
106 Introduction to Social Casework
shabbiness of his clothes and the shoddiness of the
token-gift he had brought — a little quantity of
beaten rice wrapped up in a rag. But Krishna's
response to the arrival of his friend was astounding.
He ran to greet Sudama, embraced him and ate
appreciatively the beaten rice which Sudama on second
thoughts had wanted to hide. And Sudama's internal
reaction was also immediate. He felt accepted fully
and there was no longer any scope for feelings of
self-consciousness or embarrassment. The warmth
of Krishna's welcome that was expressed quite clearly
through his words and actions and the spontaneity
with which he gobbled up the beaten rice — all
these elements constituted Krishna's acceptance of
Sudama.

Illustration Stories of this kind are there in the literature

from Bible
of all religions. For another example, take the story
of Christ's encounter with the woman taken in
adultery. The men who brought her to Christ
wished that she be stoned to death. Christ silenced
the accusers and subsequently, impelled them
indirectly to leave the scene by suggesting that, those
among them without sin might start the stoning
process. When Christ and the woman were left alone,
he exchanged a few words with her and sent her
away with his blessings and advice that she might
change over to a new way of life. In Christ's acceptance
of the woman is contained the totality of the various
elements of his interaction — his non-judgemental
attitude, his subtle admonition of her accusers, his
words of kindness and brief advice to the woman.
The social worker's fist contact with the client
has to be particularly utilised by the worker for
conveying his/her message of acceptance. But the
Acceptance practice of acceptance has to continue as long as
is not easy
in all the the individual is a client of the agency, with the
cases underlying stipulation that, when and where acceptance
does not come automatically it has to be used
 Techniques of Helping — I 107

deliberately and consciously. Acceptance of certain

types of clients is easier because they evoke our
sympathy on account of their problems and difficulties
for which they are not responsible. On the other
hand, there are clients who are perpetrators of
anti-social acts where they bring misery to themselves
and to others. Take for illustration, the case of
Radha in the SOCR. She was in an institution for
girls. She used abusive language against the staff
and other girls of the institution, flouted the rules
of the institution and was aggressive. Held in fear
and disliked by everyone, she was a good candidate
for non-acceptance and rejection, if one was to go
by one's natural feelings. The social worker to whom
Radha was referred for casework did not follow her
natural inclinations. She had to demonstrate acceptance
deliberately and consciously. Visible acceptance of
'unlovable' people is all the more important because
they are likely to be people who do not love themselves.
To find out how they reached such a state of affairs,
their earlier life experiences need to be investigated.
A significant person has to start loving them before
they can be convinced that they are lovable and
worthwhile. This role falls on social workers, especially
with reference to clients like Radha.
Three The fact that when acceptance does not come
factors that
facilitate naturally, it has to be consciously used, has to be
acceptance emphasised. There are, however, certain factors which
facilitate acceptance. Firstly, one's rootedness in the
philosophical values of social work can become a
built-in feature that smoothens the path of acceptance.
Secondly, knowledge of human growth and
development, of human behaviour, of how people
can behave in certain ways under the influence of
one's socio-cultural antecedents and experiences, and
of particular conditions of individuals, is helpful.
Intenalisation of such knowledge, covering general
and particular features of people, events and
situations, makes one's mental muscles flexible for
108 Introduction to Social Casework
emotional acceptance of different types of people,
without getting shocked by their behaviour. A person
who is working with leprosy patients is likely to
feel uncomfortable and even disgusted, in the initial
stages, with the deformities and disfigurements of
patients. A firm belief in the dignity of the person
behind the disfigurement and a belief in his/her right
to be helped, as well as some knowledge as to
how the disease has resulted in such ravages on
the patient's body will go a long way in making
acceptance possible. Citing again the case of Radha
from the girls' institution, it is relevant to know
that knowledge of Radha's background, the
deprivations that Radha had gone through in her
childhood and adolescence that made her bitter towards
people, made it easier for the social worker to accept
her, Radha's obnoxious behaviour notwithstanding.
The third factor is the self-awareness of the social
worker. Self-awareness refers to the social worker's
awareness of his/her own mental processes, his/her
biases, and feelings. In situations where acceptance
is difficult and where one has to enjoin acceptance
on the self, the first step is to be aware of one's
own unfavourable feelings that obstruct acceptance.
Secondly, these feelings have to be examined in the
background of one's experience and built-in biases.
The third step is to superimpose on the negative
feelings, elements of acceptance. For a beginner,
these three steps are cumbersome, but when there
is good motivation, the steps will smoothly blend
with one another to form a habitual practice. The
prerequisite for the development of self-awareness
is the social worker's recognition of the importance
of the art of reflection.
Acceptance An important component of acceptance of the client
of client's
feelings is the acceptance of client's feelings. Clients bring
various types of feelings to the agency while wanting
to meet the social worker. There may be sadness,
anger, guilt, despair or other uncomfortable or
 Techniques of Helping — I 109

unpleasant feelings. And there may be, occasionally,

outbursts of feelings, and when that occurs, acceptance
should be the response on the part of the social
worker. This is contrary to the usual reaction to
such emotional expression in human encounters
elsewhere in public places. For instance, one who
weeps in an office may be looked upon as a childish
person, except in certain situation of crisis. Open
expression of feelings in public, even in a verbal
form that is above board, is not approved of, generally.
Expression of feelings is, however, acceptable in social
work contacts and is also necessary on the part
of the client.
The quality of empathy has to be acquired by
the social worker in order that (s)he may be able
to accept the client's feelings. The word 'empathy'
has a meaning distinctly differentiated from the word
Sympathy 'sympathy'. Sympathy is the feeling of concern,
and
Empathy compassion or sorrow for another person. Empathy
refers to the ability of entering into another person's
mental state and to feel the latter's feelings.
Empathising with a person in a predicament involves
the imaginative viewing of the situation as (s)he
sees it, understanding his/her feelings and transferring
to oneself those particular feelings. The social worker
has to guard himself /herself against the tendency"
of mentally transferring to the client, his/her feelings
which the latter does not experience. Suppose A is
trying to empathise with B. If A puts herself mentally
in B's place and tries to imagine what she, A, would
feel in that situation, it is not empathy. It is empathy
only when A putting herself in B's place experiences
B's feelings.
Once a student social worker told this author that
the condition of her client, a leprosy patient, was
Illustration very pathetic. If she was in the patient's place she
would have committed suicide, she added. She was
thinking, rather mistakenly, that she was empathising
with the client. When she was asked whether the
110 Introduction to Social Casework
patient had suicidal ideas, she replied in the negative.
"On the contrary, he is very optimistic. I cannot
really understand his optimism", she added. In this
context, empathising would mean going beyond the
gloom of the situation, understanding the client's
mental state and perceiving the situation as he
perceived it, which the student was unable to do.

Assurance
In certain contexts, the client needs assurance
regarding the authenticity of his/her feelings and
that (s)he will not be judged, or ostracised for his/her
feelings. The client has to be helped to understand
the difference between feelings and doing. One may
feel murderously angry at another person but does
not have to feel guilty as long as one does not
commit the murder or do any other thing that causes
harm to the person against whom (s)he has the
angry feelings. Feelings of any kind are neither wrong
nor blameworthy, but certain acts carried out under
the force of feelings can be unlawful and wrong
because of the harm it causes others. In the SOCR,
there were a few female clients who had told the
social workers at one time or the other that there
were times when they wished that their alcoholic
husbands were dead. The common observation was
that, after making this angry statement they felt
embarrassed and guilty. The social workers were not
shocked at hearing such statements nor were they
inclined to reprimand the client for expressing such
feelings. But they were accepting and assuring in
their responses that conveyed the message: "I can
understand your feelings of anger. It is human and
natural to have these feelings in such circumstances''.

Facilitation of Expression of Feelings

It has been stated before that for the client, the
expression of feelings is necessary; it is now added
that facilitation of expression of feelings becomes
 Techniques of Helping I 111
a technique for the social worker. The accepting
attitude on the part of the social worker does make
it easy for the client to vent his/her feelings. Strong
feelings, when bottled up, can create blocks in thinking
and thus impair one's problem solving abilities.
Feelings like anger, guilt, sorrow, despair, and such
others consume considerable mental energy, leaving
very little for problem solving. Hence, it is necessary
for the client who is carrying a load of emotional
material, to unburden himself/herself. The social
worker by careful listening, by asking appropriate
questions and by refraining from judgemental
statements, facilitates expression of feelings by the
client. The social worker acts as a prompter and
prodder.
The case of Rashida mentioned earlier can be cited
again. When Rashida came to the agency she was
helpless. She was still mourning for her dead husband
and children, and at the same time baffled by the
problems confronting the living members of the family.
Her tears flowed unceasingly. Subsequently, the tears
were replaced by words of anger. She was angry
with God, with the world, and even with her husband
Illustration for dying and leaving her alone with her children.
— Rashida
With the social worker's encouragement, she brought
out her feelings, some of which she was not aware
of, previously. After the three deaths in the family,
she was so overwhelmed with her responsibilities that
she never had the time to let out her emotional
load. She did not find a significant person to whom
she could unburden herself. After having vented the
painful feelings, she felt relieved and relaxed, as
though confident in facing the world, despite the
problems.

Every situation is emotionally charged, to a small

or large degree, as the case may be. The emotional
elements should be attended to, before the client
can be fully involved in handling his problem. Gopal
112 Introduction to Social Casework
was a boy in a correctional institution in Bombay.
His parents living in a village outside Bombay appeared
to be disinterested and had not visited him in the
institution, not even once. The social worker began
sending letters, one after the other, to Gopal's father,
requesting him to visit Gopal. Eventually, the father
came. What happened subsequently was literally an
emotional explosion, an explosion of his pent up
anger and hostility towards the institution. The social
worker listened patiently to his allegations, some of
which were legitimate and the rest, distortions.
Without trying to refute the allegations, the social
worker responded in such a way as to indicate that
it was all right for the father to express his anger.
He was subsequently asked to talk about himself,
his work and his family. Then emerged the story
of his problems, his joys and sorrows, sorrows
exceeding joys disproportionately. Later, the social
worker did not have much difficulty in enlisting the
father's cooperation in doing certain things for Gopal's
welfare. The social worker, instead of blocking the
client's flow of emotion, directed her communication
in such a way as to promote the flow and this
was a major factor that initiated the father's
participation in matters concerning Gopal.

Allaying Feelings that are Overpowering

Stressful events can provoke strong felings in an
individual which affect his/her capacity for thinking
Intensity of and acting appropriately. Satyabhama, a housewife
feelings
reduced at was quite at peace with herself leading a moderately
the nick of happy life, till that day when she learnt that her
time
husband was having an extra-marital affair, and then,
her world collapsed. She went to a social worker
seeking help. After telling her story, she told the
social worker that she was determined to leave her
husband. She had no idea as to where she would
go or what she would do, but she wanted to leave
the place immediately. After her talk with the social
 Techniques of Helping — I 113

worker she realised that her feelings of hurt and

anger were manageable, and that she was able to
think better. She found that there were some things
she could do before deciding to leave immediately.
Narendra was a resident of a children's residential
home. His mother was a pavement dweller who visited
him regularly on Sundays. When she failed to turn
up on three consecutive Sundays, Narendra was upset.
Illustration He stopped eating food and refused to go to school.
The social worker of the institution met Narendra
regularly for a few days after which there was a
change. Though Narendra continued to be sad, he
was able to contain his sadness to the extent of
his being able to go to school. He started taking
his meals after a few days of self-imposed starvation.
When the mind is filled with disturbing emotions,
the individual tends to withdraw into himself/herself
and brood over the matter causing stress. Brooding
causes the stress to expand and occupy the full space
of the mental screen, shutting out possibilities of
rational thinking. When the social worker intervenes,
(s)he is able to arrest the client's mental process
of withdrawing and brooding by helping the person
to verbalise, to perceive the situation realistically,
and by opening to his view, avenues for new thinking.
In allaying overpowering emotions, the social worker
goes a few steps beyond the facilitation of feelings.
The conversation is directed in such a way that the
strength and extent of feelings is reduced and the
stress causing situation is-projected in its true size
for the client's viewing and handling.

Accrediting and Building of Self-Confidence

It has to be remembered that the social worker
cannot take over the client's problem, however helpless
the client may be. All techniques should be directed
towards making the client an active participant in
problem solving, and for that, the client needs to
114 Introduction to Social Casework
Giving develop self-confidence. Pointing out the client's
credit to
client's strengths and giving him/her due credit for the tasks
per-
formance (s)he has been able to perform successfully, is helpful
in building up self-confidence. Surekha was a poor
and illiterate widow, mother of four children whose
only income was the wages she earned from working
as a domestic help in two or three houses. Her
major need was financial assistance to meet the basic
needs of the family. She and her social worker
discussed about the various possibilities and listed
the tasks that needed to be done, some by Surekha
on her own, and other tasks by the social worker
and the client together. A budget was drawn up
and Surekha had to follow it scrupulously. Going
to the children's school to obtain the relevant
information and certificates in connection with
soliciting sponsorship for the children, was also
something that Surekha did by her own efforts though
it meant many visits to the school and much waiting.
Following the budget and maintaining contact with
the school were tasks that Surekha fulfilled adequately,
much to her own satisfaction and sense of achievement.
The social worker commended her for these
accomplishments and thus built confidence in her
and in her abilities to get things done. It is obvious,
therefore, that accrediting (verbally commending or
giving credit) and confidence building are casework
techniques.

Encouragement and Reassurance

Encouragement and reassurance need to be used
to clients' advantage in casework. It is a common
experience of social workers that clients are generally
Buttress reluctant to do unfamiliar things without strong
client's
actions encouragement, albeit doing such things is necessary
to improve the situation. Surekha who has been
mentioned in the preceding paragraph, was not willing
to go to her children's school to make the necessary
contact. Her own embarrassment over her poverty
 Techniques of Helping — I 115
and illiteracy was the main inhibiting factor. The
social worker's encouragement was needed at every
step to make Surekha do things which she was capable
of doing, but afraid of trying. While trying to follow
her stringent budget, she had difficulty in refusing
the children's unrealistic demands for things. She
had to be reassured that her firmness was legitimate
and that it was not unkindness to exercise control
over the children.
While using encouragement and reassurance, the
social worker has to ensure that the situations are
suitable for the exercise of these techniques.
Encouraging a client to do things for which (s)he
does not have the ability, or reassuring a client
about the success of an activity (s)he is going to
undertake which does not warrant certainty of success,
is undesirable. To a patient awaiting a surgical
operation, the social worker cannot give any
reassurance regarding the success of the operation
unless success is warranted by the surgeon.

Being with the Client

Being with the client in a time of emergency,
or accompanying the client, say, to the hospital for
medical consultation or to an office to meet an officer
in charge will be necessary occasionally as a way
of help. Not all situations require the social worker's
Physically presence near the client. There are contexts where
accom - the social worker remains purposely in the background,
Panying the
client leaving room for the client to undertake actions on
his/her own, for the main reason that such a stance
is necessary to help the client grow in independence.
When the client lacks self-confidence or is weighed
down with excessive anxiety regarding carrying out
a necessary action, the social worker's presence will
serve as a support. Therefore, providing one's
nearness appropriately with discretions according to
the need of the situation makes it a technique, distinct
from a mere gesture of friendliness.
116 Introduction to Social Casework

Emotional Support
All the techniques presented and discussed in this
and preceding pages constitute the supportive
techniques in casework. They provide emotional
sustenance to the client and are used with the goal
of making the client fully affirmed and sufficiently
Giving strengthened to take the next step. Giving emotional
emotional
strength to support is a term commonly used in social work
client parlance, with the speaker using the term to mean
as if it were a single technique. Realistically speaking,
the term refers to a cluster of techniques, that is,
a combination of all or some of the techniques discussed
above. Therefore, emotional support may be
considered as a multiple technique. Emotional support,
when effectively used, makes the client hopeful,
bolsters his morale and sets the stage ready for
his participation in problem solving.
Almost all clients need emotional support in order
that they may feel comfortable with the social worker,
the agency and themselves to be able to use help
to handle their difficulties.

Action-Oriented Support
There are also contexts which require social worker's
action-oriented support, as for example, in getting
a ration card for the client, Lalji at an agency.
The social worker went to the ration office with
Lalji, to do the needful for getting a ration card.
With reference to institutionalised children, the social
worker sometimes undertakes the task of searching
Physically for children's relatives whose whereabouts are not
facilitating
client's known. Seven-year old Bhaskar was in a residential
case institution for children. His parents were dead but
he had an aunt with whom he was living before
joining the institution. While wandering in the streets,
he was caught by the police and placed in the
institution. He could not give his aunt's address
but could give the name of the locality, also describe
some signposts near the house. Bhaskar was with
 Techniques of Helping — I 117
the social worker when the latter went to the said
locality searching for Bhaskar's aunt's house. The
boy's directions enabled the social worker to locate
the house.
The social worker may have to do work pertaining
to formal procedures as in writing letters of request
for financial help and in filling the blanks in formal
proformas. Illiterate clients do not understand the
contents of official documents. Nor can they furnish
in writing all the items of information required. The
social workers have to explain the content, clarify
the queries, elicit information and finally transfer
the information to paper. It has been observed with
reference to the SOCR cases that a good deal of
the social worker's time was spent in filling forms
Helping and writing statements for the clients. For certain
with official
formalities requirements, legal affidavits had to be procured which
entailed time consuming trips to the law courts.
There was the case of Ahmed who was an ailing
leprosy patient. He had a meat stall which he could
no longer manage and which had to be transferred
to his wife's name. An affidavit was required and
also some statements and certificates to meet
government requirements. The social worker's direct
involvement in the procedural work however provided
little scope for the common practice of giving and
taking bribes. In some other cases of SOCR, the
social worker had to visit certain offices to which
the clients had made various trips before, and all
in vain.

Illiterate widows found it difficult to get hold of

their deceased husband's insurance money, provident
fund and the like without the direct support of their
social worker. There are many things in this country
Officialese which work against the interests of the poor and
and
bureaucracy illiterate and their attempts to fulfil formalities of
can prove official work. People manning the offices are often
to be
formidible brusque and unresponsive and devoid of sensitivity
118 Introduction to Social Casework
towards the problems of the poor. The applicant
is compelled to repeat the visit to the concerned
office again and again without any fruitful outcome.
If the applicant happens to be a social worker's
client, his/her social worker is obliged, finally, to
go to the office personally to get the work done.
Though the social workers are able to generally expedite
matters, it does not happen like that in every case.
There was the case of Ranjit. Eight-year old Ranjit
was in a correctional home in Bombay. He was
previously in another correctional institution. After
his transfer to the second home, he could not be
admitted to the local school, because the first
institution had not sent the transfer certificate which
was to be obtained from the school that he was
attending before. There was no response to the social
worker's letters, and subsequently, the social worker
made a trip to the residential institution, located
at a distance of 40 miles, away from the present
home. He made two more trips but no certificate
was forthcoming. The long and short of the story
is that, Ranjit lost that year academically.
Advocacy
Social workers do not use coercion or threats for
changing client's behaviour. Nevertheless, the social
worker does have the authority emanating from his/her
own knowledge and skills, from the declared functions
of the agency and from society in general in terms
Intervention of its sanction. Though it is in the form of unwritten
effective
due to authority, it has certain by-products that are
social advantageous. One by-product is the respect that
sanctions
is given to the social worker and the profession.
There are people among the public who acknowledge
the personalised service content of social work and
give credence to the reports and requests of social
workers. There are times when social workers find
it necessary to use advocacy. Advocacy involves making
a request to a third person in support and on behalf
of the client. In the SOCR cases, there were
 Techniques of Helping — I 119
unemployed clients whose major need was
employment. Meeting potential employers and
recommending clients for jobs was a common feature
in all these cases. There were yet other cases where
some children whose names were removed from the
school register because of irregular attendance, were
reinstated with the social worker successfully
persuading the school authorities to give the children
a second chance.
There was the case of Usha, a domestic maid,
who could not take her disabled child to the hospital
for regular treatment, because the hospital timing
clashed with Usha's work schedule. On the social
worker's request (advocacy), Usha's employer was
willing to change the timing to make it convenient
for Usha to take the child for treatment.
TECHNIQUES FOR ENHANCING RESOURCES
Providing or Procuring Material Help
Apart from the support provided through various
techniques, some clients will need material help, that
is, help in the form of money or materials. Some
agencies have provision to provide material help in
a small way. A few clients of the SOCR cases received
Exploring money, food, medicines and medical appliances on
specific
resources in a temporary basis from the funds of agencies. For
the
community
some other clients, money or materials were procured
as aid to from charitable trusts and organisations. There were
clients also instances where material help was obtained from
individual donors and well-wishers. For Maria, the
patient in the terminal stage of cancer, whose case
was referred to in Chapter 4 on page 49-50, the
social worker procured an easy chair from a
well-wisher. Since the patient could sleep only in
a reclining position, the easy chair was very helpful.
Similarly, milk powder was obtained for Maria's family
from the Social Services distribution of the local
church. A private medical practitioner agreed to
provide some drugs free of cost for Maria. This
120 Introduction to Social Casework
way of marshalling help from various quarters for
the benefit of clients becomes useful when it is done
with proper planning. It is termed 'pooling of
resources', for which some spade work needs to
be done by the social worker by way of exploration
of potential resource persons and services and of
interpreting the client's need to them. Bank loans
were obtained for a few other clients. Also, help
was solicited for some cases from sponsorship
organisations who agreed to help some of the needy
children and adolescents.
Though in casework practice the client's material
needs can be met in a limited way for a limited
time, such a service is only a drop in the ocean,
in view of the large scale poverty in this country.
Though in the SOCR cases, those who came specifically
for material help were not many, economic deprivation
was a common feature of many cases. Unemployment,
Pervasive indebtedness, and degrading forms of poverty were
poverty and problems which were overwhelming in their impact.
lack of
state Take the case of Lalji, which was referred to earlier
provisions
are insur- in page 11.6. At the time of referral, he was thirty-five
mountable
years old, and suffering from T.B. With treatment
in a public hospital he was cured. Lalji's two children
were found to be malnourished. The family had no
ration card. With the help of the social worker,
a ration card was procured. But the possession of
a ration card did not improve matters since Lalji's
income was inadequate to buy the full supply of
rationed food grains. In the U.S.A., Canada, and
the welfare states of Europe there are public assistance
programmes which serve to fulfil to some extent,
the basic physical needs of social work clients. But
India, though a welfare state, does not have any
provision for meeting the basic needs of its needy
citizens and this fact is a serious drawback in the
practice of the helping professions. What is often
mentioned as free medical treatment for poor people
in public hospitals is not really 'free' in the strict
 Techniques of Helping — I 121
sense of the word. A fee is charged on the patient
in some form or other and many of the essential
drugs are not supplied free. Poverty prevents many
sick people from seeking help at the appropriate time.
Economic deprivation and destitution of a large part
of the population is a stupendous problem that the
social workers have to contend with, which often
makes their efforts ineffectual and unproductive. This
is a grave limitation to the practice of casework.

Change of Physical Environment

Providing or procuring material help for the client
is often referred to as environmental change in social
work literature. Another aspect is the change of
physical environment which will be necessary for some
Only clients for better functioning. Among the
incremental institutionalised children of the cases of SOCR there
changes in
environ- were a few with adjustment problems who benefited
ment
possible from a change of dormitory in the residential
institution. Some of the children who were referred
to the community centres for poor academic
performance were children who had no facilities at
home for quiet study. Their dwelling places were
often overcrowded with too many persons living in
a small area of space and there was no nook or
corner where they could sit and read. Arranging
a place for them which they could use for a few
hours every day for study was helpful. Even these
small changes demanded persistent efforts on the
part of the social workers. Effecting more substantial
changes like finding a place of accommodation for
clients who were pavement dwellers was beyond the
capacity of the social worker, though in a few cases,
plots for huts could be procured in slums.

Enhancing Information and Knowledge

As stated earlier, included among the resources
required for human functioning is the non-material
Resource of information and knowledge, the lack of
122 Introduction to Social Casework

Mitigate which can create problems or aggravate the problems

lack of
information that are already present. A person can die of thirst
and mis- in the vicinity of the only well in a desert if he
information
has no way of knowing where exactly the well is.
Sometimes, lack of information may be further
confounded by the presence of misinformation or
superstition. There are many wrong ideas about the
causation and treatment of certain diseases. Epilepsy
is a disease caused by a defective functioning of
a part of the brain. But there are people who believe
that epilepsy is caused by the possession of the devil
and that the patient should be beaten at the time
of epileptic fits in order that the devil may be driven
away. Human concern for epileptic patients demands
that the family members of the patient be correctly
informed about the disease. Therefore, enhancing the
knowledge resource of clients becomes a necessary
technique in casework. With reference to the SOCR
clients, the areas pertaining to which information
or knowledge was imparted to the clients were
(1) diseases or conditions associated with the client's
problems (2) professional and welfare services
available for the client (3) human behaviour,
knowledge of some aspects of which was necessary
for the client to understand himself /herself and others.
Imparting knowledge, like any other casework
technique is used according to the needs of the situation
and the client. Among the SOCR cases, the children
with poor academic performance became objects of
worry and concern for the parents, who badgered
and pestered these children for higher levels of
Provide achievement. Some of these children could not reach
new
information the average standards of performance because of their
low levels of intelligence. The parents of such children
were given useful orientation about mental retardation,
and information about special schools where the
children could learn at their own pace. It has been
the observation of the social workers that with
reference to conditions of disability like blindness,
 Techniques of Helping — I 123

deafness and orthopaedic disabilities, the parents need

adequate information regarding the treatment,
facilities of treatment, and about what the parents
can do to prevent further deterioration of the
disabilities.
Knowledge of human growth and behaviour is useful
to all human beings and an understanding of the
basic elements is essential to every human being
in order that (s)he may be able to create healthy
human relationships. Parents should know some
aspects of child development, and the importance
of physical and emotional needs in order that their
child rearing practice may be conducive to the
SOCR's personality development of children. In the SOCR,
recurring in relation to behaviour problems of children, a few
problem
behaviours of the repeatedly occurring features in the handling
of children were as follows:
1. Comparing a child unfavourably with another
2. Holding unrealistic expectations about children's
behaviour and achievements
3. Not giving opportunities for the children to
express their opinions or feelings
4. Inconsistencies in dealing with children, as
between the two parents and between contexts.
In these situations the social worker's role is almost
like that of a teacher, teaching about human needs,
relationships and how parents could involve themselves
in growth producing relationships. But the teaching
in casework practice has to be carried out in an
indirect manner without making the client
self-conscious or uncomfortable about his lack of
knowledge. A part of an interview between a female
social worker and the mother of a client is presented
below:
The client is Susheela (13 years old). The
mother is worried about Susheela's backwardness
in studies and about a new development noticed
in her behaviour. She has become uncom-
municative recently.
124 Introduction to Social Casework

Social Worker: I know you are worried about

Susheela's poor performance in school and
her being very quiet these days.
Mother*: Yes. Susheela is a problem. Sarla
(Susheela's older sister) comes first in her
class. Susheela does not come first. She
even fails often.
Social Worker: I know you are concerned and
want to know how Susheela can be helped.
Mother: I scold her and ask her why she cannot
be like Sarla.
Social worker: Your open comparison of. Sarla
and Susheela, does it help Susheela?
Mother: No, it does not.
Social Worker: Can it be that Susheela is getting
tired of this comparison ? She may be angry
and sad and thus has become quiet.
Mother: (after a long pause) You may be right.
Then, what do you think I should do ?
Social Worker: Let us discuss and find out.
One thing I know from experience. Children,
or adults for that matter, do not like to
be compared with others, all the time. If
my supervisor in this office always compares
me unfavourably with the other social
workers, I will feel terrible. (Says
laughingly), If your mother-in-law always
says that your cooking is not so good as
that of her other daugher-in-law, will you
like it ?
Mother: But Susheela is my daughter and she
knows very well that I love her and that
I scold her for her good.
Social Worker: She may be knowing all that.
But there are other thoughts in her mind
that are stronger: that she cannot please
you, that you like Sarla better, that she,
Susheela is worthless, that she is a failure....
 Techniques of Helping — I 125

Mother: There are times when I feel sorry for

her and at other times I am so angry with
her.
Social Worker: I can very well understand you
feelings. The fact that you get these different
feelings does not make you a bad mother.
That you have come here to seek help shows
that you are a concerned mother. Now let
us see whether we can adopt a new way
of dealing with Susheela. Do you think you
can try some new ways ?
Mother: I will try.
Social Worker: Let us first stop unfavourable
comparison. Experts say that if we want
to help children to grow up properly, we
should avoid comparison. What are some
of the things that you like about Susheela ?
Mother: She helps me in housework, she is
very kind to the younger children.
Social Worker: So she can be given due praise
about these things. If she can be encouraged
to talk about things other than her studies,
it will be helpful. If you think more about
it, you will be able to find out some ways
in which you can demonstrate to her that
there are other things about her than about
her studies in which you are interested.
In the conversation given above, there is teaching
about the undesirability of unfavourable comparison
but it is done in a non-didactic and subtle form,
with the use of empathy and of words that are
non-provocative but supportive. For example, the
use of the word 'we' gives a non-didactic flavour
to the social worker's teaching. It projects the social
worker also as a learner thus bridging the gap between
her and the client.

It is evident that new knowledge is needed to produce

new forms of behaviour. But intellectual knowledge
126 Introduction to Social Casework
alone is not sufficient; along with it there should
be emotional readiness to change. Knowing and doing
are two different things. For example, an expert
in the psychology of child development need not be
a good parent just because (s)he has the relevant
knowledge. His/her competence as a parent will depend
upon his/her emotional readiness to put his/her
knowledge into practice. The techniques, that are
targeted at developing in clients the emotional
readiness for change, will form the content of Chapter
7, which is an additional chapter on techniques. In
this preliminary chapter, some of the basic techniques
have been described, that are helping procedures aimed
at providing psychological support for the client and
at improving the client's material and non-material
resources. It is obvious that communication is the
base for all techniques. The manner and content
of the social worker's speech and non-verbal symbols
are consciously patterned on a design that is geared
to the goal of helping.
 7. Techniques of Helping—II

T he next set of techniques to be discussed are

in relation to bringing out changes in the internal
processes of the client. When the mental processes
which constitute the hidden, unobservable part of
Supportive
human behaviour change, there will be changes in the
techniques external, observable behaviour as well. The social
worker' s role is that of an enabler, preparing the ground,
as it were, for change. The supportive techniques
are indeed necessary, because they obviate the use
of defenses by the client. Take for example, parents'
unwillingness to accept the fact of the condition of
mental retardation of their child, when they get to
know of it for the first time. The usual reaction
is denial, a defense mechanism, through which reality
is rejected mentally. Ignorance about mental
retardation and fear that the mentally retarded
individual is doomed can be the factors that lead
to denial. In most of the cases, with the enhancement
of knowledge of mental retardation comes a positive
outlook. For instance, the removal of guilt feelings
that they are not to be blamed for the birth of
a retarded offspring and the generation of hope that
the life of a retarded person is not useless and
beyond help will be useful for removing denial.
The supportive techniques and the techniques that
cater for the material and non-material needs, thus
remove some of the obstacles for change. Most of
the remaining obstacles can be removed by means
of counselling, unless they are too deeply entrenched
and also complicated by other factors. As stated earlier,
counselling is the tool used by the social worker
for bringing about changes in the client's feelings,
128 Introduction to Social Casework
ideas, patterns of thinking, perception and attitudes.
As a tool, it makes use of communication techniques.
In counselling, emotional support is the groundwork
on which the other techniques are used.

COUNSELLING TECHNIQUES
In a broader sense, counselling techniques are
inclusive of the supportive techniques because in the
beginning phase of the worker-client transactions,
use of supportive techniques is necessary for initiating
a positive relationship. They are presented as two
categories to highlight the fact that with regard to
some clients casework service does not go beyond
the application of supportive techniques and the
techniques for enhancing resources. When they are
considered as two sets of techniques the meaning
becomes clear with the statement that, counselling
techniques are always preceded by one or more of
the supportive techniques. But supportive techniques
are not always followed by counselling techniques.

Reflective Discussion
Reflective discussion is discussion between the social
worker and the client based upon the client's deep
thinking on the different areas of his/her life that
have a bearing upon his/her problem. Most of the
problems of living need thinking through, for finding
constructive solutions. At one point or other, in the
social worker-client relationship, the client has to
Promote be enabled to view his/her problem objectively by
analytical
thinking on separating the actualities of the situation from the
problem feelings and impressions surrounding it. There is
a need to look at the various aspects of the problem,
its antecedents and the likely consequences. It may
be necessary to trace the development of the problem
and be aware of the parts played by self and others,
knowingly or unknowingly. Then, there is the question
of what can be done now ? By means of appropriate
questions, empathetic remarks, and statements linking
 Techniques of Helping — II 129
the various elements of the problem, the social worker
should be able to draw out the client's capacity for
thinking and to help him/her to reflect upon the
different aspects of the situation. Reflective discussion
as a multiple technique may span a part or the
whole of one or more interviews.
Advice
Advice is a technique in counselling. In casework
literature, most of which has originated from the
West, advice is not ranked high in the list of techniques
for various reasons. But it is used considerably, and
with advantage in casework practice in India. In the
Indian socio-cultural tradition, advice is something
Giving which is sought, given and accepted without
advice is
culturally misgivings. Social work clients do ask for advice
acceptable
in India and even at times when it is not asked, it may
be given, provided it is given objectively, is based
on sound knowledge and on the client's genuine need
for it There is also the condition that advice-giving
is not followed by any attempt of coercion or
compulsion to make the client follow the advice.
Advice-giving can avoid the bad flavour that is often
associated with it, by the social worker's thoughtful
act of initiating reflective discussion on the matter
advised. Take the question of family planning. Many
clients with large families struggling with problems
of poverty will need advice on family planning. But
it is not just a message conveyed by the social worker
to clients, it is a matter that has to be discussed.
The client will have queries needing answers and
anxieties that need to be allayed.

In the SOCR cases, advice-giving was present and

it was used in combination with other techniques.
Parents were advised on matters like child-rearing
Giving practices, needs of children, nutrition, health, etc.
advice in A woman who brought her mentally retarded son
combination
With other to a family service agency with a request for help
techniques for institutionalisation was advised as to how she
130 Introduction to Social Casework
herself could do a great deal for the child by teaching
him self-care activities. A client of a mental health
centre was advised against getting into a shady deal
in selling her tenement. She was advised about the
proper procedure of selling property. The father of
a mentally ill son was advised how he could get
some of the household chores done by the son, for
he, the father, was tiring himself out in trying to
do everything in the house. When advice is not sought
by the client but is perceived by the social worker
as necessary, it may be given indirectly. As pointed
out in connection with the imparting of information
and teaching about human behaviour, advice may
also be given indirectly in such a way that it prevents
feelings of self-consciousness or embarrassment in
the client. Advice may be couched in suggestions,
observations, questions, etc.
Motivation
Closely connected with advice is 'motivation', (a
multiple technique) a term which is commonly heard
in the field of family planning in India. One who
advises, guides and finally persuades a man to undergo
Gentle sterilisation operation is called a motivator. In
prodding
and goadingcasework, motivation refers to influencing the client
to take a course of action that is considered good
for him and his family, or that is necessary for
solving the problem he faces. Expectedly, some clients
respond normally to the social worker's techniques
of advising, informing, and imparting knowledge by
doing according to the line of action indicated. Here,
the implication is that the emotional readiness to
act in a new way happens by way of a chain reaction.
There are, however, clients who listen and participate
attentively in the casework interview and even decide
to take up a course of action but fail in the last
step, that is, actually doing. They cannot get
themselves to the doing part. The emotional readiness
to act in a new way is not there. In such cases,
the social worker may have to provide additional
 Techniques of Helping — II 131
stimulation, inducement or spurring to activate the
client. Then the entire process of advising, discussing,
informing, teaching and spurring becomes motivation.
In the SOCR cases, motivation was in action with
reference to disabilities in children, where the parents'
attitude was one of apathy and inaction. Sunil was
eight years old, partially blind, and not attending
any school. His parents' over-protective attitude was
obstructing the processes of his development. He
was not sent to any school for fear that some harm
might befall him when he was out of the sight of
Illustration the parents. When the social worker of the community
- Sunil centre came to know of Sunil, he informed the parents
about a residential school for blind children, which,
he said, was suitable for Sunil, since no such facility
was available in the vicinity. But the idea of the
child's separation from parents, implicit in the social
worker's suggestion, was not palatable to Sunil's
parents. After a series of social work interviews,
the parents were convinced about the child's need
for schooling but were not willing to send him to
the boarding school. Nor did they have the convenience
to register the boy in the school as a non-resident
student. The parents were persuaded to visit the
school; the social worker accompanied them for the
visit. The visit turned out to be educative, informative
and reassuring, particularly because the social worker
pointed out the important aspects of the school's
programme and the school's staff answered their
queries and cleared their doubts. The parents saw
with their own eyes how the blind children were
learning many things and enjoying themselves through
various activities. Eventually, Sunil was admitted to
the school where he adjusted very well and began
showing steady progress in course of time.

For children with other types of disabilities also,

motivation had to be provided to the parents for
effecting changes in their attitude of fatalism and
132 Introduction to Social Casework
Motivating disinclination towards taking remedial steps. Apart
client's
parents and from motivating parents to do certain things with
others far reaching beneficial consequences for their children,
there are situations when adults have to be motivated
to plan and act for their own benefit. Deva was
an orthopaedically disabled adult who had undergone
vocational training but was not successful in finding
a job. Constant motivation regarding searching for
employment was effectively wielded by the social
worker who managed to help the client to get over
his despondency and to prevail upon him to apply
for a bank-loan to start a small trade.
The first step in motivation in the case of Anthony
(17 years old), a school drop-out and a probationer,
after discharge from a correctional institution, was
to plant in his mind a desire for a career. Anthony
said that he wanted to become a technician. The
social worker was able to influence the client to
maintain his ambition aiming towards his goal. All
these contributed to Anthony's steady application to
his studies which had been disrupted earlier during
the period of his institutionalisation.

Clarification
In some contexts, clarification is called for before
the client can be motivated for a particular line of
action. Clarification means conceptually disentangling
the various factors of a situation, to render it more
comprehensible to the client. It would involve
Meaning to explicating one or more elements of the situation
be that are not perceived correctly by the client. There
explained
was the case of Shirin in the SOCR. She was a
prostitute and she was unwilling to go for a medical
test for sexually transmitted diseases. Clarification
of the factors linking prostitution to the disease was
necessary before she could agree to take the test.
There was the case of Mohan (13 years) whose
academic performance was being affected, because
much of his free time was devoted to his work
 Techniques of Helping — II 133
as a hotel boy. When the social worker suggested
that Mohan could apply to a sponsoring organisation
for monetary assistance, the father did not agree
for fear that such assistance might have some negative
impact on his job. All aspects of the sponsorship
programme of a welfare organisation were explained
to the father and his fears dispelled by clarifying
the rules and conditions set by the organisation.
It often happens that TB patients who feel better
during treatment, drop out of treatment before the
Illustration full course is over. The fact that feeling fit does
not mean that the disease is cured and that the
condition of being fully cured will be shown only
by medical tests has to be clarified to the client.
There was the case of Nazir (12 years), a boy
who grew up in slums, who was not attending school
regularly. It was found that during the time the
boy was expected to be in school, he was doing
embroidery work for wages. The mother was keen
that the boy should go to school. Though Nazir's
father wanted Nazir to complete his school education,
he goaded the boy, nevertheless, to work because
of the extra income it fetched for the family. The
situation was clarified to the father with special
reference to the father's contradictory expectations
that were harmful, as far as the boy's need for
education was concerned.

Correcting Perception
Correcting perception is also a technique in casework.
Clarification often leads to the correction of the client's
perception. At other times, new information or
knowledge is required to change perception. In the
cases of Mohan and Shirin mentioned earlier,
clarification helped to change their perception about
To change
the under- the sponsorship programme and the need for medical
standing of tests respectively. When family relationships are
Particular
Situations disturbed, one may expect wrong perception as a
134 Introduction to Social Casework
cause or consequence. Therefore, perceptions have
to be corrected for the mending of parent-child and
husband-wife relationships.

When clients are emotionally upset they need to

have their feelings clarified for them, so that, they
may be able to perceive their own feelings correctly.
For instance, a father who says that he hates his
delinquent son immensely and wants him out of sight
by placing him in a correctional institution, may
not be saying so out of hatred towards the boy.
What he experiences may be more of anger at his
own helplessness in controlling the boy. The social
worker's skill lies in understanding the father's
feelings, disentagling them, helping him to name the
feelings and then guiding him to use his thinking,
and not feelings, for deciding his course of action.

Modelling
Clients do learn from what the social worker says
and also from what (s)he does. Since the social
worker converses purposefully and responsibly, some
clients learn helpful and constructive ways of
communication from their experience of the social
Setting an worker's pattern of communication. When the social
example
through worker presents a prototype of behaviour with the
one's own idea that, the client may learn new forms of speaking
conduct
and doing, it is the modelling technique at work.
There are children between the age of one and four,
who learn to use temper tantrums as a means of
getting what they want, being encouraged initially
by their experiences of observing their parents'
discomfort and anxiety to avoid their temper tantrums.
If the temper tantrums occur in front of the social
worker, his/her modelling is in the way (s)he handles
the child calmly without getting disturbed. When in
the client's family, there is defective communication,
modelling occurs in the social worker's effective
communication with all the members of the family.
 Techniques of Helping — II 135
Anticipatory Guidance
Most people are anxious while awaiting an event,
like a job interview, or in meeting people in
authoritative positions. Anticipatory guidance of clients
by the social worker will, to some extent, dilute
the fear and anxiety surrounding a future event.
The relevant persons of the future event are figured
out in imagination and their possible queries and
statements postulated.,. Then, appropriate responses
to the queries and statements are discussed and
Preparing planned in the casework interview. In SOCR, there
the client were clients who were afraid of job interviews or
for a
formal of interviews and conversations of a formal nature.
event or
meeting Anticipatory guidance was found handy in these
situations. Questions that were likely to be put to
the client by the interviewer were discussed by the
social worker and the client. Mentally and verbally
picturing a future situation in its entirety, is a good
way of handling the anxiety that is currently provoked
by thoughts about the event. It is also a good
preparation for facing the event.
Role Playing
Anticipatory guidance becomes more explicit with
the help of another technique, role playing. The future
event is mentally brought forward to the present,
and simulated by the social worker with himself or
herself and the client assuming the roles of the people
involved in the situation, including the role of the
Enacting client. The event may be enacted again and again
out the
anticipated
with the social worker and the client trying out
event different roles. Role playing is a valuable technique
as a teaching and learning device. Very often, in
role playing, modelling and anticipatory guidance are
implicit. Likewise, some other techniques may also
be operative in role playing. Therefore, role playing
is also a multiple technique.
Reality Orientation
When clients face problems and beat around the
bush without being able to face reality, reality
136 Introduction to Social Casework
orientation is called far Some parents have unrealistic
expectations about their children and problems emerge
when the children are not able to fulfil the expectations.
There was the case of Shiv (12 years)'whose
performance was not upto the mark, according to
the teachers of the Hindi school he was attending.
When the social worker of the community centre
Too high or in the slum where Shiv lived made investigations,
too low
expectations
he found to his surprise that Shiv was attending
of the two schools — the Hindi medium school of the locality
client
family in the morning and a distant English medium school
in the afternoon. Shiv's father who was uneducated
expected his son to become a brilliant scholar by
attending two schools. The reality was that Shiv
found studies so burdensome that he could not do
well in any of the schools. Through casework interviews
the father realised that he was expecting too much
from his son and he agreed to take Shiv out of
the English medium school.
Somi (18 years) was another client who needed
reality orientation. She was placed in a correctional
institution after being rescued from a brothel. She
knew English and was better educated than the other
residents of the institution. Considering herself as
a person of a high social status, she began to look
down upon her fellow-residents of the institution.
Illustration She refused to do any work in the institution and
— Somi
defied the rules and regulations. In brief, she became
a problem both to the staff and the residents. Though
she decided at the rational level to give up prostitution,
the emotional readiness to adjust to the life of the
institution and get prepared for normal life outside
of it and the brothel was not forthcoming. Reality
orientation, as used by the social worker, involved
in helping Somi to accept the reality of her legal
commitment to the institution, to adjust to the people
and to conform to the schedule of the place.
Some clients whose major problem was unemploy-
ment, aspired for jobs for which they were not
 Techniques of Helping — II 137
qualified. In some of these cases the social workers
have been found using reality orientation effectively,
by making the clients to apply for the same and
Illustration go for the interviews. The idea being that at the
interview the realisation will occur that they do not
have the skills that the employer is looking for.
Better acceptance of reality then takes place than
what would have resulted from the mere advice of
the social worker. After this experience the clients
are emotionally prepared to try for lower types of
jobs for which special skills are not needed. It can
be seen that reality orientation is to be used with
clients whose ego-function of reality testing operates
insufficiently. What the social worker tries to achieve
is, to activate and strengthen this ego -function.
Removing Guilt Feelings
Some clients have difficulty in handling the guilt
feelings, whether they be warranted or unwarranted.
Guilt feelings are unwarranted when they are
unrealistic and without substantial reasons. When a
patient dies after a serious illness, the relatives may
feel guilty about many things like not going to the
private hospital because it meant more expenses.
Guilt The case of Jehangir of the SOCR was mentioned
feelings out in Chapter 4, page 71-72. He was born as a result
of place
of failure of contraceptives and the mother had
guilt-feelings later for having used contraceptives.
She reacted to her guilt feelings by developing an
attitude of overprotection towards Jehangir, resulting
in Jehangir living an undisciplined life. Lalitha (15
years) was kidnapped by a hijra* and sold to a
brothel from where she was rescued later by the
police and placed in a residential home for girls.
She was mentally tormented by her own feelings
of guilt for having been sexually used in the brothel.
There were cases of mentally retarded children whose
parents blamed themselves for the condition of mental
* Hijras are eunuchs who wander around in groups asking for alms.
138 Introduction to Social Casework
retardation of the children. Removing guilt-feelings
was essential in all these cases before the clients
could participate in the problem solving process.
Using Guilt-Feelings Constructively
Guilt-feelings are warranted and realistic when they
result from such behaviour as causes harm to oneself
or others and is socially unacceptable. In such contexts,
the client can be helped to use his guilt feelings
constructively for changing his/her behaviour. Deepak
Guilt-feeling (17 years) was in a correctional home. He had run
valid in away from home and while staying in the institution
some
instances there was no contact between him and his parents
for about two years. Since the address he gave was
a false one, the authorities of the institution were
not able to trace the parents. When a social worker
was able to win Deepak's confidence, he gave her
Illustration the correct address, and she made a home visit.
— Deepak The social worker brought to Deepak the news that
his parents were greatly relieved to know that he
was safe and that they were eagerly looking forward
to visiting him. Such an affectionate response from
parents was unexpected and this generated guilt
feelings in Deepak. He regretted having run away
from home and having caused worry to the parents.
The social worker helped Deepak to use his guilt
feelings constructively, through the channel of
(technique of) reflective discussion. From the guilt
feelings arose his decision to turn over a new leaf,
work for a good record in the institution, get
discharged, go home and be of use to his parents.
partialisation
Partialisation refers to breaking up the situation
into its different problematic aspects and then focusing
Deal with on the aspect which needs immediate attention. Subban
most (8 years) was mentally retarded and was referred
immediate
problem to the child guidance clinic of a hospital. Three days
first.
Reserve the
after the referral, Subban's father had detachment
remaining. of the retina of the left eye, a condition that needed
 Techniques of Helping — II 139
immediate medical attention. The father, a taxi driver,
found himself suddenly disabled for his job; he was
so upset that he could not decide whether he should
have surgery. The social worker had to consider the
father's illness as a priority area and do the needful
to ensure that no time was lost to start the urgently
needed treatment.
When there are many problematic aspects of equal
importance, not all requiring urgent attention,
partialisation will help to take up the area which
is straightforward and which can be done without
much difficulty, keeping in view the possibility that
the client will have the satisfaction of attaining
something. In the case of Surekha mentioned earlier,
partialisation helped the client to take over immediately
the things she could do.
Interpretation
Interpretation is the explanation of the client's
behaviour in terms of its psychological meaning. When
a toilet trained child starts bed wetting after the
birth of a sibling, it may indicate a sudden onset
Reveal of insecurity in the child, who perceives the new-born
psycho-
logical basis baby as an usurper of his/her position for the love
for actions and care of members in the family. This may be
explained to the parents, who could also be given
suggestions as to how to make the older child feel
secure.
Keshav (15 years) was lagging behind in his-studies.
He was often compared unfavourably, both, with
his older siblings and his classmates. His parents,
Illustration besides complaining about Keshav's poor academic
— Keshav
performance, had another worry that he was always
seen playing with smaller boys. His wanting to play
with smaller boys could be interpreted as the result
of his inferiority feelings which he experienced in
the company of his brighter classmates and siblings.
Interpretation may be given directly to the client,
or to certain members of the client's family as in
140 Introduction to Social Casework
the above cases. When it is used, whether directly
to the client or indirectly, about the client to certain
others, the social worker should ensure that the
interpreted material is comprehensible to the persons
and that it does not cause any anxiety or
embarrassment.
As a matter of fact, in the cases of the SOCR,
interpretation directly to the client was very sparingly
used. It should be so, taking into consideration the
fact that most of the social work clients do not
have the sophistication to benefit from interpretation
based on Freudian psychology. For instance, when
the social worker observes that the client is using
a defense mechanism, (s)he should try to understand
what purpose it serves for the client. But it is not
advisable to interpret the meaning to the client unless
the client is able to use the knowledge for change
of behaviour.
Universalization
When clients tend to consider their problems as
unique, and thereby, subject themselves to excessive
anxiety or self-pity, it will be helpful to bring to
their awareness the reality that there are many others
facing the same problem. This is universalization.
It is expected that by universalizing the problem,
' 'Others the anxiety may be reduced in intensity, and that,
also have
similar hope may be derived from the knowledge of persons
problems' who are coping better with the same problem. In
the SOCR cases, some parents of polio-affected
children were benefited by getting to know of others
who had their orthopaedically disabled children under
treatment in hospitals. For the use of universalization
as a technique, the timing is important as it should
be used only after the clients have given vent to
their bottled-up feelings, fears and anxieties. It is
important to note that in the use of universalization,
de-individualization should be avoided. It means that
there should not be any indication of a hidden message
 Techniques of Helping — II 141
that the client's problem is not important as there
are others having the same problem. While
universalizing, words have to be used judiciously and
discerningly to generate hope and a desire for
constructive action.
Setting Limits
The concept of acceptance does not imply that
every kind of behaviour has to be accepted or condoned.
The client as an individual has to be accepted
unconditionally, but his behaviour many be approved
Check conditionally, and hence, the need for the technique
undesirable of setting limits to certain types of behaviour. Jeroo
habits and
traits (15 years) was a client of a school social service
department, referred for her use of abusive language.
After a period of time, a good relationship was
established between her and the social worker, and
the social worker was able to exert some influence
on the girl's behaviour. Limit was set on the choice
of words. Socially unacceptable words like 'bitch'
and 'bastard' were replaced by milder words like
'foolish' and 'silly'. The client could be persuaded
to apologise when inappropriate expressions were used
against people. In the case of the probationer,
Anthony, the social worker had occasionally reminded
the client that, the solution to his problem very
much depended upon himself and that, if he went
back to his old ways of wandering aimlessly, his
licence might be revoked. The setting of limits becomes.
necessary while dealing with children, adolescents and
even adults with behaviour problems.

Confrontation
Confrontation is applicable when a client contradicts
himself/herself or retracts from commitments that
Question (s)he had undertaken during his/her discussion with
the client
for not the social worker. When such contradictions or
keeping up retractions cause a worsening of the situation, a
his/her
word confrontation with the client is valid. Confrontation
means bringing the client face-to-face with the lapses
142 Introduction to Social Casework
in his/her own behaviour that have turned out to
be harmful. The aberrations or lapses in behaviour
referred to are those which are subsequent to his/her
earlier commitment to a plan or decision in the
presence of the social worker.
There was the case of Patel (38 years), client
of a mental health centre. He was a cured mental
patient in the process of being rehabilitated
occupational. He was a graduate with some work
experience to his credit., At the centre, he had taken
Illustration up the assignment of getting quotations for the
— Patel centre's purchase of a drawing board. A couple of
weeks elapsed and no quotation arrived. The social
worker reminded Patel about his assignment, and
still nothing happened for another fortnight. Then
the social worker confronted Patel about his inaction
and the harm it was doing to himself and the
inconvenience it was causing the centre. Patel's first
reaction was to shirk off responsibility by saying
that the staff of the centre should do this work
and that they should not expect him to do it. The
social worker pointed out very clearly to him that
he had agreed to do it, that it was something he
was capable of doing and that doing such work was
necessary in view of his desire to take up a job
as soon as he could. The social worker's tone was
matter of fact and serious but without anger. The
client did not argue further and stated his anxieties,
which were later thrashed out through discussion.
Within the next couple of days he managed to get
a few quotations.

Sachin (11 years) was living in a slum and he

was referred to the community centre by his teacher
for irregular attendance at school. The social worker
found out that on some days Sachin was managing
his father's grocery shop, and that, on those days
he could not attend school. The social worker met
the father, who after some argument, agreed to
 Techniques of Helping — II 143
send the boy to school regularly. But the problem
of the boy's attendance at the shop and absence
at the school continued. So the social worker again
met the father who began a tirade against the school
and the community centre. He alleged that the school
was not teaching his son anything.
' 'Sachin does not know how to keep the simple
accounts of my shop", he shouted.
The social worker confronted him with his own
behaviour that prevented the boy from learning
arithmetic.
He asked the father, "How can you expect
Sachin to learn anything, when he is at the
shop most of the time and not in the school ? ' '
The father remained silent and the social worker
continued, "When Sachin makes mistakes in Ms
accounts you beat him and that does not solve the
problem. So, the best thing to do is to encourage
the boy to go to school every day to acquire skills
in the three R's (reading, writing and arithmetic).
Later, with these skills he will be able to help you
in the shop".
After this direct confrontation, there was calmer
discussion, at the end of which the father seemed
to have understood the importance of encouraging
his children to go to school regularly.
For the use of confrontation, timing is important.
It will be effective, as in the use of limit setting,
if there is already a positive relationship between
the social worker and the client. Confrontation cannot
be attempted in the earlier interviews because, time
is required for a positive worker -client relationship
to take shape and for the client to come to the
stage of decision making. When he fails to act according
to his decision, thus obstructing the forward movement
towards his better social functioning, confrontation
becomes necessary.
144 Introduction to Social Casework
Reaching Out
In the preceding discussion, emotional support, role
playing, motivation, reflective discussion, clarification
and correcting perception have been used as multiple
Go a bit techniques. A few more techniques may be covered
out of the
way to by this term. 'Reaching out', for instance, refers
register
your
to clients who really need help, but who for some
availability reason or other do not ask for it or may even
for service
reject it in the initial stages when help is offered.
When the social worker notices such persons in the
precincts of his/her work, s(he) may have to reach
out, or stretch out his/her hand in a friendly gesture
to convey to them the message that (s)he would
be of service.
Balakrishna* (45) was once a prosperous business
man. His business collapsed, so did his health. He
was now sick and on a bed in the ward of a hospital,
Illustration depressed and without any hope for the future. His
— Bala-
krishna sons, Arvind (13 years) and Aran (11 years) were,
by turns sitting near his bed, day after day. One
day the social worker of the hospital made enquiries
why the boys were not going to school. Why was
it that their mother or any adult relative was not
relieving them to make it convenient for them to
attend school ? The reply came from the patient
himself. Arvind and Arun were studying in a public
school previously. With the failure of Balakrishna's
business, the school dues fell into arrears and
consequently, the boys were denied re-admission to
the school for the new academic year. Further, the
transfer certificates were kept pending as long as
the arrears remained unpaid. Without the transfer
certificates, the boys could not be admitted to any
other school, not even to a school where education
was free. The social worker swung into quick action
immediately. She got in touch with the school

* This case is not from the SOCR. The author came to know of it through
oral communication with a medical social worker.
 Techniques of Helping — II 145
authorities, explained the plight of the two boys,
and requested them to consider these cases
sympathetically. As a result of her advocacy, the
school waived the dues eventually, and issued transfer
certificates. The boys were admitted to a government
school subsequently. The social worker's reaching
out was timely and effective in relation to a problem
which the clients found beyond their coping capacity
and which they lived with, while trying to handle
some of the other problems.
In some of the SOCR cases, another type of reaching
out was necessary with reference to institutionalised
children. It was pointed out in the chapter on problems
that these children needed befriending to get over
their loneliness, homesickness and their other
uncomfortable feelings caused by stresses and strains
to which they were exposed in their own homes.
Some of them with histories of ill treatment by parents
or significant others, may be suspicious of all adults
and may not easily respond to the social worker's
overtures of friendship. Hence, the relevance of
reaching out to them.

Renewing Family Links

Efforts at renewing family links may be made.
simultaneously along with reaching out to the children
through persistent befriending. Institutionalisation, in
Re-unite some cases, means a disruption of family connections
ties
and/or the family's failure to keep in touch with
the children. It is thus another emotional injury that
can be prevented, by taking steps to renew the family
ties. Reaching out becomes meaningful when it sets
in motion a three-way communication, between the
social worker and the child, the social worker and
the child's family and between the family and the
child.
Lalitha's case mentioned in the chapter on problems
is an illustration, Lalitha (15 years) was in the hospital
146 Introduction to Social Casework
for tuberculosis of the spine. The father was very
pessimistic about the possibility of Lalitha's
rehabilitation. He rejected her and stopped visiting
her in the hospital. Lalitha reacted to her feelings
of being rejected through indulging in frequent temper
tantrums. The social worker reached out to the girl
despite her bad moods and temper tantrums.
Concurrently, she made visits to the father and made
efforts to revive his affection for his disabled daughter.
He started visiting the girl in the hospital, with
the result that, the latter's behaviour began to
improve. There was gradually a greater willingness
on the part of the father to cooperate with the
hospital. He maintained contacts with the social worker
and was receptive to plans of rehabilitation.
Improving Communication Patterns
Another multiple technique is that of improving
communication patterns in the client's family. Very
often family relationships are strained, because the
members, instead of communicating with one another
Circuit — react to their own feelings aroused in the situational
receiving
trans- context. Thus, communication gets blocked without
mitting serving the purpose of sending and receiving
information. It is functional communication when the
circuit of the process of transmitting and receiving
information gets completed. Disruption in the
transmitting-receiving circuit leads to dysfunctional
communication.
There are two factors which promote functional
communication: (1) complementarity in verbal
transaction (2) use of feedback. Complementarity
refers to the direct connectedness between the
utterances of two people when they are conversing
with each other. It does not mean that one person
is agreeing with the other. Take for illustration,
the context of a conversation between a boy and
his father. Gopi, 17 years old, is asking his father
Illustration to give him Rs. 20/-. The father responds by asking
 Techniques of Helping — II 147

for what Gopi wants the money. There is

complementarity here between Gopi's statement and
his father's response, and the conversation can move
to another functional phase. If the father says that
he does not have money to give, it is also a
complementary response. If on the other hand, the
father without asking anything, says, "Gopi, you
are a waster; why do you want to spend my
hard-earned money on trifles?" His response is
indirectly connected with the theme of Gopi's request,
but directly connected with his evaluation of Gopi's
behaviour in the past. A disruption is caused in
the communication which is likely to diverge along
emotion-laden utterances on both sides, or it can
stop abruptly at some point.
In family conversations, communication turns awry
and becomes dysfunctional when the participants fail
Fill in the to maintain a direct connectedness. They fail to
gaps in maintain connectedness when they are inclined to
communi-
cation make evaluative statements of one another.

Feedback is necessary to straighten out ambiguities

and to prevent misunderstanding that is likely to
occur in conversations. If, for example, a man tells
his wife that her cooking is bad, she should feel
free to ask in what aspect her cooking is bad. And
the husband must be able to qualify his comment
concretely.

The social worker, while dealing with a family having

dysfunctional communication, points out the areas
where the communication process is defective and
helps the members through practical suggestions how
they can improve the patterns of communication.
Further, as a functional communicator, the social
worker demonstrates characteristics of appropriate
communication. By being an effective listener, the
social worker can teach the family members the
importance of listening to one another.
148 Introduction to Social Casework
Changing Attitudes
Changing the attitudes is a complex multiple
technique involving the use of other techniques. It
must be borne in mind that it is not the social
worker who changes the client's attitude; the change
has to be generated by the client himself, within
himself, in which the social worker is the facilitator.
Facilitate In the case of Lalita, there was a definite change
change in
attitude in the father's attitude of pessimism to one of hope
and confidence. He believed that the family would
be able to take care of her and that she would
not be a useless person. As a result of this change,
Lalitha was discharged from the hospital and was
taken home to her village.
In another case, the mother of a crippled child
resisted the social worker's attempts at getting the
child treated in a hospital. The social worker had
to first commence work with the mother in helping
her to shed her fatalism and ignorance before she
Illustration became ready to accept the social worker's suggestions
for helping the child. Eventually, her attitude changed
and she agreed to surgical and other medical treatment
for the child. When she found her own crippled
child walk after the treatment, she became an active
advocate on behalf of the disabled and sick children.
She also began to assist the social worker in motivating
mothers of crippled children to seek treatment for
their children as early as possible. Role-playing that
was introduced as a technique earlier, with reference
to preparing clients for future events, is also of
use in bringing about changes in the thinking patterns
of clients. For example, when a client shows inability
to understand his wife's problem, role-playing may
Technique help him to view the world from his wife's perspective.
of The ability to empathise is a quality that strengthens
role-playing
is useful relationships and reduces occasions for conflict.
for
changing
Role-playing can be used to develop empathy in clients.
attitudes
An understanding of the counselling techniques will
indicate that changes in the internal processes of
 Techniques of Helping — II 149
Changes in the client can produce change in the individual's
internal
behaviour outward behaviour, like speaking and doing.
will induce
other Counselling, therefore, is a tool of helping the client
changes to change his feeling, thinking, knowing, speaking
and overall behaviour. There are contexts when clients
can be given assignments to change deliberately some
specific aspects of their speaking or doing (action)
behaviour even before their feeling and thinking are
changed. Such observable changes will have a benign
effect on their human environment, and consequently,
on their feeling and thinking behaviours as well.
In some cases of a child guidance clinic with which
the author was associated, clients used to be given
assignments of this type. A father who was habituated
to using physical punishment and harsh words towards
his children was given the assignment of refraining
from harsh words and physical punishment for two
weeks. The client who followed the assignment out
of a sense of commitment found to his surprise,
that it had a good effect not only on the children,
but in the general atmosphere of the home. The
good result gradually changed his attitude (that is,
his feeling and thinking) concerning his children.

A very important device that can be used to reinforce

other techniques is the use of the client's cultural
resources, like stories from religious literature,
folklore and proverbs. Stories from the puranas are
well-known among the Hindus. Every religion in India
has its own wealth of literature. There is hardly
Use any human situation that cannot draw a parallel story
illustrations
from from religious literature or folklore. Suitable stories
religious can be used to illustrate courage, hope or any other
texts
attitude that is desirable in the particular client's
context. The social worker should be familiar with
the stories known to different religious groups. His/her
skill lies in choosing a story that forms a part of
the client's cultural heritage, besides aptly fitting
the context. Similarly, proverbs drawn from the
150 Introduction to Social Casework
common parlance of the client's language group can
also be used.
To summarise, Chapters 6 and 7 have been devoted
to a discussion of casework techniques. Casework
help was seen falling into two types — material
and non-material. The techniques of such helping
were seen falling into three categories :
1. Supportive techniques
2. Techniques of improving or enhancing the client's
resources
(a) material resources: money, things, physical
environment, etc.
(b) non-material resources: information and
knowledge
3. Techniques for changing the internal processes
(feeling, thinking, attitude, perception, etc.) . They
are counselling techniques.
Such a classification is not meant for any rigid
application, rather it is meant for elucidation and
clarification. One can identify common features
running through all the three categories. Each has
a significant component or components of non-material
help that is not tangible, but is experiential. Therefore,
it is not advisable to demarcate the techniques into
water-tight compartments. Just like an artist who
mixes colours, creates varying shades, and uses them
for a desired effect, the social worker should blend
and merge techniques in different combinations and
patterns to produce a planned outcome. It may be
difficult sometimes to separate the techniques
conceptually, but it is necessary for professional
purposes.

The list of casework techniques presented in this

book is not exhaustive. It is quite likely that there
are other techniques which social workers have been
using, but have not found mention. That is expected
with reference to a helping method which ought to
 Techniques of Helping — II 151
change and grow in tune with changing contexts
and time.
One possible question needs to be conjectured here
before this chapter is concluded. Social work students
could legitimately raise the question: ' 'Are not these
so-called techniques, at least some of them, just
the means or wherewithal used by any person, not
necessarily a trained social worker, to help another
person? Why should they be called techniques, just
because social workers are using them ? ' ' The answer
is that they are techniques, because they have to
be used consciously and deliberately in appropriate
contexts with specific goals. It is likely that some
of these techniques come naturally to some people;
but that is irrelevant, as social workers have to
cultivate them as an integral part of their professional
kit. When and where a technique should be used
is to be determined by an understanding of the specifics
of the situation and the persons involved. Thinking
and planning should precede the use of techniques,
and evaluation and appraisal should follow, to ascertain
why and how the techniques have been effective or
ineffective.
 8. The Casework Process

asework process is the ongoing movement of

C the continuing development of the case involving

several activities —some carried out by the social
worker alone, some by the client alone and some
by the worker and the client together. The process
entails different steps and operations:

Social Study
Social, study is a systematic study of the client
and his/her circumstances in relation to his/her
problem. Information is collected and organised with
regard to the following:
Problems (the initially stated problem and associated
problems if any)
Age, sex, marital status, etc.
Studying Educational qualifications
various
factors in Nature of employment, income
and around
the client
Health conditions
Personality features
Home and neighbourhood
Family constellation
Family history (significant events, attitudes,
relationships, etc.)
Not all these areas are important in every case.
Nor is it possible to get all the data in one or
two interviews. Material on items like personality
features, attitudes, relationships, etc. can be garnered
only in course of time, as the social worker becomes
more familiar with the client and his/her family.
With reference to cases of children, their school
 The Casework Process 153

history, covering their attitude to school, academic

performance, behaviour and relationships in school
are to be included. When the family is a joint family,
information about the members of the joint family
may be required.
Social Assessment
Social assessment is aimed at finding answers to
three major questions: What is the problem ? How
has it arisen? What can be done to solve it? The
operation underlying social assessment is that of
making a conceptual picture of the problem, leading
to a plan of action. It means linking up the contributory
The factors meaningfully with the help of theoretical
problem knowledge. The theoretical concepts presented in
What ?
Why? Chapter 2 and Chapter 3 concerning problems and
How?
contributory factors will be helpful for formulating
social assessments. While studying personality
features, attention may be given to the functioning
of the systems of the id, ego and superego of
individuals under consideration. Also, deficiencies and
defects in child-rearing patterns may be noted. It
is likely that the theoretical formulations presented
in this book may not be sufficient to formulate a
social assessment in some cases. When that occurs,
new knowledge has to be sought that it may throw
light on the intriguing factors obtained in the case
situation. It is equally important to note the positive
features in every case situation, which may come
in handy as potential resources in the helping process.
Casework Help
This component of the casework process covers
the helping activities undertaken by the social worker
for rendering and making available various forms
of help to the client. From a theoretical perspective,
this component has to blend with the plan of action
Make following social assessment. But it may not be always
available
help in possible to have a perfect blending for the main
various
forms reason that, assessment of social factors is an on-going
154 Introduction to Social Casework

activity and that casework help has to be started

long before the assessment is complete, considering
the possibility that there are gaps in the conceptual
picture created by the available data. Help is made
available based on a tentative assessment, and as
changes occur in the assessment, alterations are
brought about in the helping activities as well. Since
human beings are dynamic and are likely to be in
a state of flux now and then, allowance has to be
made for slight variations from the accepted theoretical
framework.
Clients are helped through one or more of the
following ways:
1. Provision of general assistance in terms of
emotional and concrete support
2. Provision of material things like money, articles,
medicines, etc.
3. Provision of non-material resources like
information and knowledge
4. Changes in the human and physical environment
5. Provision of counselling help to facilitate change
in the feeling, thinking, knowing, speaking and doing
(action) behaviours of clients and members of the
family.
Within the activities of help the techniques are
operative and it is important that the social worker
uses techniques in a planned manner. (S)He should
be clear in his/her mind why a technique is used
in a particular situation.
Every case is a time-bound affair and has to be
terminated sometime or other. The closing of a case
is also a planned activity within the casework process.
A case can be closed for various reasons: (1) The
Case has to client has been helped in the way planned and does
be closed not require further help. Many of the cases improve,
sometime
and a point is reached when the client is able to
manage his/her affairs independently. (2) The client
may entertain higher expectations of the agency than
 The Casework Process 155

what the latter can fulfil, within its legitimate limits

of functioning. (3) In some cases, a positive
relationship between the social worker and the client
may not materialise, with the probable consequence
that, the client fails to have any commitment for
making efforts to solve his/her problem.
Requirements of professional integrity demand that
no case is closed without substantial reasons. If a
client is uncooperative, some efforts have to be
expended by the social worker to reach out to the
client, before a decision is made to terminate the
case. The social worker must be able, at least, to
uncover the reasons for the client's attitude of
non-cooperation, even though he may not have the
wherewithal to eliminate or circumvent the reasons.
Evaluation
Evaluation is the activity of ascertaining whether
casework service has achieved the desired result in
a case. It is the social worker's reviewing of all
the other components of the casework process to
Appraising make an appraisal of the result. Evaluation seeks
results
against a to find answers to some questions: Has the client's
number of problem been solved ? Has the client been helped
factors
in accordance with the philosophical assumptions and
principles of casework ? What tools and techniques
were used and why? If the client's problem is still
unsolved, has there been any forward movement in
the case situation ? If casework help has not produced
any result, what are the reasons?
Evaluation is also an ongoing activity, although
as a component of the casework process, it finds
full scope and expression only after a period of activity.
As the social worker continues to offer the service
or services, evaluative discernment occurs to him/her
at specific points of time regarding the strength,
weakness or gaps in his/her social assessment and
regarding the success or failure of his/her ways of
helpfulness.
156 Introduction to Social Casework

Visulalise A look into the near future should follow evaluation.

immediate Looking into the future serves to formulate some
future
further plans of social work help in the casework
process. As an illustration, the case of Abhay is
presented in the following paragraphs.
CASEWORK PROCESS IN ABHAY'S CASE
(DURATION SIX MONTHS)
Social Study
Abhay was a fifteen-year-old boy studying in the
X standard in an English medium school. He was
referred to the social service department of the school
for problems of lying, stealing and cheating in
examinations.
Family History Abhay's father, Mr. Moreshwar
was a clerk in a government office. Abhay had an
older brother, Subhash (17 years); a younger brother,
Sunil (13 years); and a younger sister, Neela (12
years). They lived in a one-room tenement.
When Abhay was four years old, his mother
underwent an operation for sterilisation, after which
she suffered a mental breakdown. During her episode
of illness, the children were uncared for and the
household was in a state of disorganisation. Mrs.
Moreshwar continued to have her spells of mental
illness, the attacks occurring once in three or four
months. She was also suffering from frequent attacks
of asthma. All things considered, the mother's capacity
for taking care of the children and managing the
house was in a diminished level. Mr. Moreshwar
agreed that his wife's illness had affected Abhay
most. Beyond providing for the material needs, Mr.
Moreshwar could do little to fulfil the children's
emotional needs. Nor could he perceive himself in
such a role.
Relationships Mr. Moreshwar was a strict disci-
plinarian, especially towards Abhay who obeyed the
father's orders when he was around and ignored
 The Casework Process 157

them in his absence. The father did not show any

warmth towards Abhay. He noted the boy's failures
and faults but neglected to appreciate his efforts,
and frequently compared him unfavourably with his
older son, Subhash. Abhay was very scared of his
father but fond of Subhash, who was more tolerant
and understanding towards him.
School History Abhay's performance at studies was
on the borderline in every subject. When his stealing,
lying and cheating in examination came to be known,
he was warned that he would be allowed to finish
the tenth standard only on condition that he did
not get into any further trouble. Both the principal
and the class teacher were rather pessimistic about
Abhay's chances for improvement. The general opinion
was that he was a 'good-for-nothing' boy.
Peer Group Relationships The worker found Abhay
very dependant on his classmates without whose help
he would not even know the day's schedule. In group
activities, like setting up a game, or settling a dispute,
he was a passive onlooker, disinclined to participate
actively. On the other hand, in a simple game like
a ball game, he was overly aggressive; while chasing
a ball he would push his fellow players. Occasionally
he was seen throwing stones at others.
Among Abhay's classmates, there were some whose
parents were rich and in comparison to them he
felt uncomfortable about his father's lower middle
class status. On the whole, he had a poor opinion
of himself and he lacked self-confidence.
Social Assessment
It is obvious that the case is one of behaviour
problem. The major factor that indirectly affected
Abhay's personality development was his mother's
illness when he was four years old. The illness affected
adversely the mother's performance of her roles as
mother, housewife and wife. The material and
emotional deprivation that Abhay went through at
158 Introduction to Social Casework
that time is a significant matter. He had suffered
from feelings of rejection to which can be attributed
his poor self-image. His current environment (father
at home, teachers in school, the low economic status
of the family, etc.) was not very helpful either,
in meeting his emotional needs. His teacher's
disparaging comments, his father's critical attitude
and lack of encouragement, his discomfort about the
family's low economic status were all factors that
reinforced his low self-esteem.
Though the mother's illness was a distressful event,
it did not seem to have caused any kind of deep
damage on Abhay's personality. His behaviour problem
was of a short duration. Subhash's positive attitude
towards Abhay had been a cushioning feature, one
which worked to definite advantage.
Plan of Action Abhay's emotional needs had
remained unmet for a long time, and to remedy
this, he needed a warm and close relationship with
an adult who was genuinely interested in him, and
for whom, Abhay could develop a liking. So the
social worker's first step would be to establish a
rapport with Abhay and to use it as a medium through
which Abhay could experience being loved, accepted
and recognised as an individual worthy of attention,
and feel supported in his life's experiences. This
relationship would also serve as a channel for improving
his self-image. The relationship between Subhash and
Abhay would be strengthened so that it would become
a supportive force for Abhay in the family.
Casework Help
The social worker, Mr. T, set about to establish
a warm relationship with Abhay; but it was not
easy. Mr. T did not know Marathi, Abhay's mother
tongue, and Abhay was not fluent in English. It
was not surprising that the client avoided the social
worker for some days. But through all these, Mr.
T persistently showed his acceptance of the boy as
 The Casework Process 159
a person and conveyed a message of genuine interest
in his welfare. Gradually, Abhay began to relax in
the social work department and began to talk more
freely. Abhay was allowed certain choices, like deciding
the time when he and Mr. T should meet. Abhay
suggested that he would come early before the school
session, so that he might have a "lot of time to
talk". Mr. T agreed to this and in all his contacts,
he indicated that he had confidence in Abhay's ability
to change for the better.
Mr. T made home visits with the purpose of obtaining
information regarding Abhay's development and to
discover the family members' attitude towards Abhay
and his problem (reference has been made to these
observations in the social study). Another purpose
of his home visits was to mobilise support of the
family members for Abhay. Abhay's teachers were
also approached so that, they might change their
pessimistic attitude towards Abhay.
Mr. T could not talk with Mrs. Moreshwar because
he could not speak to her in Marathi, which was
the only language she could speak. Mr. Moreshwer
was also contacted a few times but he showed very
little ability to change. He was so full of self-pity
regarding his problems that he needed professional
counselling himself. Subhash, on the other hand,
seemed to be a much better prospect for help from
within the family. He showed a broader understanding
of the connection between the family situation and
Abhay's difficulties. He showed willingness to spend
time with Abhay and playing and going to places
together.

Abhay met Mr. T regularly twice a week. The

social worker supported Abhay's efforts to become
more independent, and encouraged him to think about
his future and set realistic goals. When small changes
were observed in his behaviour, these were appreciated
and discussed with him in order to help him gain
160 Introduction to Social Casework

insight and also to establish confidence about his

ability to change. This too helped, of course, to
build a more positive self-image. Abhay assured Mr.
T that "he was not doing those bad things any
more". After the first incident of cheating, there
were no further incidents. Abhay seemed confident
that if he decided to do something he could do it.
He stated that he decided to learn T.V. repair and
refrigeration mechanics through courses during the
summer holidays. He expressed that studying a
number of such courses would be very useful in
getting a job in one of the Gulf countries in the
Middle East where he could make good money (and
also get away from his family). This seemed a far
cry from the insecure Abhay who could not see beyond
the menace of school examination. Abhay continued
to see the social worker till the examination after
which the case was closed.
Evaluation
There was a definite improvement; changes were
visible; and there were no further complaints from
the school. Abhay appeared for the SSC examination
at the end of the year.
There was no remarkable change in the environment;
Mr. Moreshwar's attitude towards Abhay did not
register much change. Nor did the teachers change.
But there was sufficient change in Abhay in his outlook
on life and in his self-esteem, and this would sustain
his efforts for adequate role performance. His brother,
Subhash's involvement was very beneficial to the
case situation and it was expected that it would
continue. Counselling techniques, as evidenced in this
case, proved useful. The case ends.
In the discussion of the casework process an
important matter was rather taken for granted,
namely, the necessity of writing down all that goes
into casework — a task that is imperative as far
as the social worker is concerned. The presentation
 The Casework Process 161
of the casework process in Abhay's case was possible
because Abhay's case record was there and available,
in which the social worker had written down everything
that went into the casework process.

THE CASEWORK RECORD

Every social work agency stores printed or
cyclostyled copies of a proforma that is standardised
with reference to some of the aspects of the agency.
It is called the 'intake sheet'. The intake sheet indicates
important areas or items about which information
has to be collected by the social worker. These areas
generally include the client's address, demographic
data, reasons for referral, family background and
the like. Intake sheets of some agencies may have
space allotted for entering the family constellation,
that is, the names and other particulars of all the
family members and each member's role relationship
with the client (father, mother, sibling, etc.)

Besides supplying the information required under

the specific heads or areas indicated in the intake
sheet, the social worker records many other things
writing in as the case progresses. His/her work diary is meant
'work
diary' for jottings on events as they happen. The jottings
cover names, addresses, dates, notes on interviews,
points of importance gleaned from conversations with
people other than clients — collaterals and resource
persons, observations, inferences and elements of
the casework process. The word 'interview' is used
here to indicate to the social worker's conversation
with the client and members of his immediate family.
Collaterals are those, who, because of their special
association with the client, are in a position to furnish
information to the social worker about the client
or help the client in some way. The doctor who
is treating the client, and the teacher of the
school-going client, are some examples of collaterals.
Likewise, there can be other collaterals. The collateral
162 Introduction to Social Casework

connection is between the social worker and the doctor,

or between the social worker and the teacher with
reference to the client, because both the social worker
and the doctor, or, the social worker and the teacher
have interactions with the client in a professional
relationship. Resource persons are those who, on
account of their special position in the community,
are able to help the client by means of material
or non-material resources. From the data which are
in a jumble in the work diary, the social worker
organises systematically the content of the formal
case record, which is a formal or official record
maintained at the agency.

The casework record serves some important

purposes. It is humanly not possible to retain in
mind all the information related to a client. Writing
becomes necessary for formulating the social
Purposes of assessment and plans of action in each and every
case record case. Putting down the events and related aspects
main-
tenance in black and white helps the social worker in evaluating
his/her own work. So the practice of recording
regularly the features of the case along with the
helping activities, facilitates the casework process.
Casework records are necessary from administrative
considerations as well. They provide the data necessary
for reviewing periodically the work of the agency,
from perspectives of quality and quantity of service.
From the content of the case records the administrator
is able to find out how, where, and in what, the
social worker's professional time is spent; and this
kind of reviewing is necessary to assess the
effectiveness of the work of the agency.

Furthermore, case records with adequate substantive

content become valuable resources for research in
social work. The research aspect is very important
Records
most useful with regard to the growth of a profession. Very
in education little research has been done on the various aspects
and
research of casework practice in India, and a major reason
 The Casework Process 163

is that records are often incomplete and of poor

quality, lacking in substantive content. Besides the
usefulness of casework records for casework practice,
administration and research, they fulfil an additional
purpose in the training of social work students. It
is important to remember that social work as a
profession originated in the field of practice, and
case records maintained by agencies, despite their
inadequacies, have been a tool of teaching in social
work education:
Recording is done regularly as the case moves,
and based on this chronologically linked material,
summaries may be prepared periodically, say, at the
end of three or six months. Each day's record contains
the narration of facts and events, together with aspects
of the process involved. For a beginner, particularly,
the reporting of the process is important. Many
ingredients are put together to create a process record.
The ingredients are as follows:
Interview with clients, communication with
collaterals and others, events as they occur and their
significance, personality features, physical
Ingredients environment, noticeable aspects of non-verbal
of process
record communication and those elements of the casework
process which are not covered by the above-mentioned
factors and which emerge as casework proceeds.
Regarding interviews, verbatim presentation or a
summarised version in the reported form can be
written. For a beginner, verbatim presentation of
interviews will be useful in analysing the content
of the responses (both the emotional and factual
content), of the interviewee, the client, and of oneself,
the interviewer.
In this context, a question concerning the criteria
on which the quality of a case record may be assessed
is pertinent. What are the characteristics which
contribute towards making a case record a
164 Introduction to Social Casework
professionally worthwhile document? What a social
worker enunciated about the attributes of a case
record, more than fifty years ago, is still relevant.
Qualities of She states in her book that a good case record is
a good case readable and visible, has clarity, accuracy and
record
objectivity and also a certain degree of uniformity
of standardization (Bristol, 1936).
These qualities need further elaboration.
1. A Case Record should be Readable and Visible
Readability means that the record is written in
such a manner that the reader finds it easy and
comfortable to read the record. Ideas are arranged
in a smooth flow of sentences and words. Visibility
means that certain things can be easily singled out
from the record. For improving visibility, the content
can be organised under appropriate topical headings,
and dates indicated against events. For example,
interviews (with dates), home visits (with dates)
and contacts with collaterals and others are all different
topical headings. When letters and copies of letters,
medical reports and such other documents are filed
with the case record in appropriate places, the effect
is better visibility. In a way, readability and visibility
go together. Factors which add to visibility make
it more easily readable. Furthermore, it is important
that the intake sheet is complete and has only such
gaps that are to be filled later than the point of
time when the recording is done.

2. The Case Record should have Clarity, Accuracy

and Objectivity
Clarity means avoiding ambiguity or vagueness that
makes the reader confused with regard to the meaning.
Accuracy refers to precision, and being precise in
one's statement is a good way of preventing ambiguity-
For instance, clarity will be enhanced if the social
worker mentions the approximate age of the client
instead of saying, "She is middle-aged". The
 The Casework Process 165
statement that the client has four children of school
going age can be meaningfully qualified and made
clearer by indicating the ages of the children.
Expressions like ' 'waited for a long time'', ' 'returned
after many days", are ambiguous and should be
substituted by specific time period. The numerical
notation can be used wherever it is relevant, for
the sake of clarity. While using words that are likely
to be misinterpreted by the reader, care should be
taken to point out what the writer means exactly.
It goes without saying that for ensuring clarity of
expression in recording, the social worker must train
himself/herself in the careful use of words and
language and in the procedure of obtaining precise
information. Getting it with tact and discretion without
causing offence to the informant is a crucial quality
which a social worker should develop.
Objectivity means that the statements are not
coloured by the writer's personal feelings, bias or
prejudices. For maintaining a moderate or high level
of objectivity in recordings, the following guidelines
could be found useful :
1. Separate descriptions of events and situations
from interpretations, inferences and evaluations. For
example, while describing the bad behaviour or the
good behaviour of a client, avoid interspersing
evaluative comments. Such comments can come later.
2. Indicate the sources of information against the
contexts. It is not possible to verify the truth of
every piece of information. However, with the
knowledge of the source of information, the social
worker is able to do the needful in those situations
where additional information is required or where
the reliability of some information needs to be tested.
3. Inferences and evaluations must be substantiated
by facts. For example, the social worker writes,
"The client is in the habit of telling lies". Such
166 Introduction to Social Casework
a statement is expected to emerge as an inference
from the context of the preceding communication
or description of events. If the premises for
substantiation do not appear earlier, they should come
later for the purpose of establishing the truth of
the statement that the client is in the habit of telling
lies.
Learn to use words like "seem", "appear",
' 'perhaps" or such expressions of probability in one's
references, when one cannot vouchsafe for absolute
certainty in the matter.
4. Do not allow one's feelings to affect one's
judgment.
With reference to the discussion of casework
principles and techniques, the concept of
self-awareness was mentioned as well as the need
for the social worker to develop a degree of
detachment. Self-awareness and detachment will
enable the social worker to develop the capacity for
clear perception and attitude of objectivity.
3. A Certain Level of Uniformity of Standardisation
is Desirable in Case Records As between
Agencies.
Standardisation and uniformity refers to the
recognition by all agencies that offer casework as
one of their services, that certain items of information
and details of casework are important and that they
should be included in the case records. Agencies operate
for different objectives and as a result, variations
are to be expected in the pattern of case records.
Making provision for variations does not rule out
the possibility of maintaining a format of uniformity
relating to some points of reference. The intake sheets
of social work agencies have blanks for entries relating
to the client's problem, family profile, and social
assessment. The intake sheet is generally filled in
the initial phase of casework. As the case progresses,
the social worker writes on blank sheets all that
 Some Theoretical systems used in casework 167
happens, chronologically. This narrative is often a
hotchpotch of elements of social assessment,
observations, interviews, evaluation and home visits.
It is worthwhile to prepare periodical summaries with
the different aspects of the casework process
separated, and presented methodically. Such an
exercise, besides being an aid to systematic and
competent performance, contributes towards the social
worker's learning as well. It is advisable to have
as annexures to the intake sheet, casework summary
sheets with the different aspects of the process spelt
out separately. Uniformity in format contributes
towards better and easier communication between
agencies which offer casework service. Where such
uniformity in standardisation is available, the contents
of case records lend themselves as valuable secondary
data for research — the type of research which depends
on more than one agency for data.
There is certainly a close connection between the
quality of a case record and the quality of the social
worker's performance. Material that goes to fill a
case record has to flow from the doing part of
casework. Undoubtedly, a worthwhile record can
evolve only out of competent professional practice.
Nevertheless, there are social workers who are good
performers but bad writers, in the sense, that owing
to a lack of facility of expression in the language
of their writing or for other reasons, they are unable
to produce meaningful case records despite their good
performance. This phenomenon is frequently found
among social workers in India who converse with
their clients in one or the other of the many Indian
languages and write their case records in English.

REFERENCES
Bristol, M.C. 1936 : Handbook of Social Case Recording Chicago :
University of Chicago Press
 9. Some Theoretical Systems
Used in Casework

T he place of theory in casework is not something

which can be indifferently passed over as an
insignificant matter and neither can it be
over-emphasized. Theories form the supportive
structure, providing a sense of intellectual and
emotional security to the professional practitioners
Casework
draws from besides giving them direction and ability to predict
many outcomes. The essence embodied in theories is not
theoretical
systems just knowledge for the sake of knowledge, but
knowledge that enriches and empowers practice.
Furthermore, it is important to remember that theories
are to be applied to different situations, thus lending
themselves as matter to be tested, or improved upon
by other theoreticians or practitioners. In the third
chapter of this book, two theoretical systems that
have influenced casework in India were briefly
discussed. There have been other theoretical
approaches, some of which will be presented in this
chapter.

EXISTENTIAL CASEWORK
Existentialism as an intellectual movement originated
in France and started influencing art, literature,
philosophy and theology. Social workers in the West
who were drawn to existentialism began applying
the philosophy to casework. One of the outcomes
was the emergence of useful literature related to
theory and practice. The major ideas of existential
casework are the following:
1. A human being is not just an existing entity;
 Some Theoretical systems used in casework 169
Major ideas he is also capable of being aware of his existence,
of
existential and of imputing meaning to his existence.
casework 2. External forces can be vicious and menacing;
but the assumption that human beings inevitably
become helpless victims to these inimical forces is
not acceptable. There is within every person,
potentialities for transcending external circumstances.
From this point of view, men and women are creators
of their personalities, though they are partly creatures
of their circumstances as well.
3. Every person is a being, in the process of
becoming, indicating that there are static and dynamic
aspects to his/her existence. Understanding a person
implies that the one who is in the process of
understanding, experiences through his/her
observation, imagination and thinking, the static and
dynamic aspects of the other person, in his
here-and-now living. Understanding is both an
intellectual and emotional process, whereas explanation
is an intellectual process, without any emotional
under-pinning.
4. Freedom is not license to do everything that
one wants to do, but it is a right that has to be
used consciously and responsibly. For many people,
the idea of responsibility is missing from their
conception of freedom as a right, with the result
that, they create problems of social functioning.
Additional Rollo May developed some useful ideas with
ideas, of reference to existentialism. A few of the ideas evolved
May
on the basis of May's psychological theories are
introduced here for their relevance to existential
casework. (May, 1977).
1. To exist means three things: (a) to be aware
of being alive in the world; (b) to allow oneself
to be consciously influenced constructively by the
environment (c) to shape oneself and influence one's
environment through one's creative forces.
2. Instinctual forces are constantly striving to
govern a person's behaviour. Likewise, the social
170 Introduction to Social Casework
system to which (s)he belongs demands that (s)he
comply with its values and norms. (S)He is torn
between the two pressures. It is his/her will which
enables him/her to use freedom in order that (s)he
may not be overpowered by his/her instincts or the
social system.
3. The concept of the will is very important. It
is through the exercise of the will that a person
is able to take responsibility for his/her choices,
actions, limitations and misdeeds.
Goals of Casework help in existential casework is geared
existential
casework to the following goals (Krill, 1969) :
1. Helping the Process of Disillusionment
A person who has distorted perceptions of
himself/herself has to go through a process of
disillusionment about the self in relation to the problem
and others. Wrong assumptions about the self and
others have to be dislodged and in their place, correct
ideas established. Even when the objective fact is
established that the client's problem is mainly because
of his/her doings, the client is most likely to deny
this and may blame others or the environment. (S)He
can see himself /herself only as a person to whom
the problem has happened and not one who is
responsible for the creation of the problem.
Disillusionment here means knowing how the problem
has been caused through one's deeds of commission
and omission. Knowing the self is an uncomfortable
process and, therefore, the social worker's
involvement through application of emotional support
and other counselling techniques is necessary.

2. Confronting the Client with the Freedom to

Act Appropriately and Responsibly
The client is encouraged to use his/her will to
rise above his/her instinctual forces in situations where
(s)he has been a slave to the instinctual demands.
This could have been a process of repetitive submission
 Some Theoretical systems used in casework 171

that has adversely affected his/her social functioning.

The alcoholic, for example, is using his freedom
inappropriately, causing harm to himself and others.
In the casework process of helping, the alcoholic
has to he initiated into a new way of using freedom,
that is, using freedom to refuse alcohol. It would
mean accepting anxiety and tension as facts of
existence, and deciding to handle such facts of life
through thinking and acting responsibly instead of
seeking a temporary escape through alcohol.

3. Helping the Client to make a Commitment to

the Task of Changing Old Habits
With some knowledge of the self as it actually
is, unfettered by distorted images, the next step
for the client is to use his/her will to make a decision
to change the unhelpful behaviour. Changing one's
behaviour, like any other achievement, needs step
by step onward movement in the form of new thinking
and doing. As a distant goal, not achievable in a
day or two, it requires patient plodding day by day,
for which a commitment — both mental and emotional
— is necessary. The social worker provides help by
suggesting assignments for the client and motivating
him/her to carry out the assignments.
In existential social work, the word 'dialogue' is
used to refer to the social worker-client interviews,
indicating a relationship of equals. The social worker
has to be fully involved in the relationship with an
open readiness to share his/her own experiences with
the client. The helper's commitment is to help the
client to release his/her potential for effective social
functioning.

The preceding pages have outlined the fact that

existential philosophy lays emphasis on the client's
creative self, his/her latent potential for growth,
for transcending adverse circumstances and for curbing
the natural tendencies in situations where unregulated
172 Introduction to Social Casework

satisfaction of these tendencies is harmful. That the

client is responsible for his/her life is stressed.
Application of existentialism is suitable to clients prone
to defective thinking, those with behaviour disorders
and those whose personality features need
modification.
REALITY THERAPY
The term 'reality therapy' was coined by William
Glasser (1965) around the useful ideas he developed
in helping people with problems of social functioning.
The ideas presented in the following paragraphs are
drawn from Glasser's book with the same title.
There are three core ideas, labelled as the
three R's of reality therapy — reality,
responsibility and right and wrong. An action
is realistic or unrealistic depending upon its
consequences, both immediate and remote
(Mowrer, O.H. 1965). The immediate result of
an action may be pleasant. If the pleasure or
satisfaction coming out of it is surpassed by
the harm or pain that follows as the ultimate
outcome, then it is unrealistic. The reality of
an action, therefore, is determined through a
comparison of results, immediate and remote.
For example, take the case of a man indulging
in an extra-marital affair. He finds the experience
enjoyable. But the affair is bound to disturb
his family relationships and hurt his wife and
children. From this perspective an extra-marital
affair is unrealistic.
Three R's Responsibility is the ability to fulfil one's needs
help in
evaluating in such a way that others are not deprived of the
one's own means of fulfilling their needs. All anti-social acts
behaviour
are thus irresponsible doings. The concept of right
and wrong refers to values that are more or less
accepted by the society as ethical and moral tenets.
The ideas embodied in the three R's constitute a
relevant conceptual framework, based on which an
 Some Theoretical systems used in casework 173
individual can evaluate his behaviour. Referring again
to the situation of extra-marital affair mentioned
illustratively earlier, the man's behaviour is
unrealistic, irresponsible and morally wrong. But the
social worker does not pass any incrirninatory
judgement on the man if he is a client, but helps
him towards self-evaluation. The helping process
obviously has educative elements through which the
client imbibes values, a sense of responsibility and
the capacity to judge actions, to ascertain whether
they are realistic. The teaching occurs unobtrusively
through the operation of counselling techniques.
The social worker's relationship is geared to helping
the client to fulfil his/her needs in a responsible
way and to give up his/her unrealistic behaviour.
Clients who indulge in anti-social activities are
challenged gently to acknowledge their own values
and are helped to live up to them. If in their outlook
Building on life, values are absent, they are helped to build
cheat's values. During interviews, the social worker does
values
positively not hesitate to discuss his/her own values and their
relevance. Techniques of confrontation, use of guilt
feelings and limit setting are used specially in dealing
with people with behaviour problems, delinquents and
the like. Limits are set as a requirement for discipline.
Discipline is interpreted to mean training for
self-control, character, orderliness and efficiency.
Discipline demands that for going beyond the set
limits of behaviour, there is a price to pay. The
paying of the price becomes punishment when the
person in authority extracts the price with a display
of his/her authority or power, and feelings of
satisfaction for having hurt the transgressor. A social
worker may wield discipline but not punishment.
Necessarily, therefore, a clear message has to be
Enforcing conveyed to the client that it is discipline that is
and
enabling aimed at and not punishment. Clients who perceive
discipline is discipline in this light will be more amenable to the
not
Punishing idea of paying a price as a matter of discipline,
174 Introduction to Social Casework
for disregarding the limits of behaviour than to the
idea of undergoing a punishment for breaking rules
set by persons in authority.
Unfavourable features of the client's past are
underplayed. Stress is laid on the present, on the
client's potential and responsibility for behaving
Reluctant appropriately in the current situations. Clients who
clients have
to be
are reluctant to accept casework help may have to
forced to be compelled in the initial stage to continue meeting
meet the
social the social worker. In the course of the development
worker of a positive relationship, the client will perceive
the social worker's initial gestures of friendship as
a manifestation of his/her interest and concern. Initial
compulsion is necessary for some mentally ill patients
and residents of correctional and non-correctional
institutions. Forceful direction may be necessary, in
the case of depressed persons to enable them to
hold their lives intact, who would otherwise drift
into apathy, inactivity and a world of their own
far removed from the world of reality.
To be effective in the application of reality therapy
in casework, the social worker must be a person
who practices the three R's of reality therapy in
his/her own personal life. Besides being able to fulfil
In reality his/her own needs responsibly, (s)he must be willing
therapy
social to discuss some of his/her needs and values with
worker sets the client. Furthermore, (s)he must be prepared
example
to discuss any aspect of the client's life and to
talk about the possibilities beyond his/her present
difficulties and thus, broaden his/her outlook on life.
The social worker's involvement in the client must
be substantial in terms of his/her concern for, and
interest in the client, and his/her commitment to
the helping activities. At no point of time should
the social worker give in to the client's unacceptable
behaviour or manipulation; nor should (s)he give
up any client as being beyond help.
Reality therapy provides additional ideas to the social
worker for the practice of casework. Techniques like
 Some Theoretical systems used in casework 175
confrontation, are sharpened and the concept of
relationship and involvement are enriched by the added
dimensions. The clientele likely to be benefited by
reality therapy includes people with behaviour
problems, delinquents and trouble-making residents
of correctional and non-correctional institutions.
Both, existential philosophy and reality therapy
consider certain themes important — responsibility,
rights and duties associated with personal freedom,
the importance of values, etc. Using psycho-analytical
terms, one may say that helping involves awakening
the super ego if it is weak. In the Indian context,
it is possible to relate the philosophy of dharma
to the theories of existentialism and reality therapy.
Dharma pertains to one's duty or responsibility. As
a composite theory embodying within itself
self-control, resoluteness of character, endurance in
the face of difficulties and frustrations, the philosophy
makes one's role tasks more amenable and less
burdensome. There will be situations when the social
worker can appeal to the client's sense of dharma
to give up ineffective and troublesome ways of living
for more adaptive ways.

THE COGNITIVE THERAPY

Cognitive therapy is a school of thought with its
major theme centred around the concept of thinking.
An individual's thinking is shaped by his/her society
and the immediate environment and thinking
determines behaviour. Through thinking, (s)he sets
short term, and long term goals in life; life is visualised
as a movement towards the goals. Emotions are said
to proceed from his/her thinking. If his/her social
functioning is defective, it will mean that his/her
thinking is faulty and, therefore, to change behaviour,
the mode of thinking has to change. Like existentialism
and reality therapy, cognitive therapy lays stress
What is on the idea that human beings have latent creative
congnitive
therapy resources which are available for use in effecting
176 Introduction to Social Casework
changes in goals and behaviour. Cognitive therapy
rejects some of the psycho-analytical ideas like the
concept of the unconscious and of the life energies,
postulated to be inherent in aggression and the sex
instinct.
Albert Ellis, a psychotherapist, has developed an
easily comprehensible system of cognitive therapy
under the label 'rational emotive therapy'. According
to Ellis, some ideas are irrational which are held
as rational by people who are thus affected
unfavourably by these ideas. Some of these irrational
ideas are:
Irrational 1. It is necessary for an individual to be loved
ideas
and approved by all in all situations.
2. It is "horrible" or "terrible" when things do
not go according to one's plan.
3. Feelings are caused by external forces and one
has no control over them.
4. One should be thoroughly intelligent, competent
and achieving.
5. What affects one's life adversely once, is going
to do so for the rest of one's life.
6. One should have perfect control over one's life
situations.
7. The world should provide good conditions of
living for human beings.
8. As far as possible, one must get immediate
pleasure in day-to-day living.
9. It is a great tragedy if one cannot achieve one's
goals.
Corres- As against these nine irrational ideas there are
ponding
rational corresponding rational ideas. They are:
ideas 1. It is not humanly possible to be loved and
approved by all in every situation.
2. Nothing is ' 'horrible'' or ' 'terrible''; things may
be rather inconvenient or bothersome. When things
* Ellis's ideas presented here are based on a course of lectures he delivered
in Bombay in July 1980. His therapy is mainly aimed at changing the
thinking patterns of the clients. (See bibliography for his books).
 Some Theoretical systems used in casework 177
do not happen according to plan, one can still put
up with things as they are.
3. Feelings are caused by one's thinking and hence,
controllable.
4. One cannot be thoroughly competent, intelligent
or achieving. One should accept oneself with the
strengths and limitations, and use one's potential
to develop competence in the tasks of life.
5. The impact of an event cannot be everlasting.
The impact of bad events can be transformed by
using the situation as a learning experience.
6. One cannot have perfect control of all situations,
but one can control one's reactions to situations.
7. The world does not owe anything to anybody.
One has to take the responsibility for creating one's
happiness.
8. One has to work long for many things in life
before one can hope for positive results.
9. It hurts if one does not achieve one's goals,
but it is not a tragedy. The feeling of hurt can
be changed through thinking.
In the helping process, the therapist (or the social
worker following the modality of rational therapy)
uses modelling to convey to the client, continuously,
Emphasising the message of rationality in thinking and speaking.
benefits of (S)He helps the client to be as rational as possible
adopting
rational in his/her behaviour and to accept the irrationalities
behaviour
that (s)he sees around and is unable to change. The
client is encouraged to develop a philosophy of living
centred around the concepts of rationality, and to
include in the philosophy, the value of working for
the good of others while making efforts to achieve
comfort and happiness for oneself. Clients are trained
to use words judiciously so that, unfavourable events
may not provoke intense feelings. The theoretical
postulate behind the judicious use of language is
that, by describing events with the use of words
that symbolise a moderate degree or level of feelings,
instead of words that indicate vehemence, one can
178 Introduction to Social Casework
avoid the damaging effect of strong feelings. Though
the expression of feelings is facilitated in the
interviews, clients are trained not to lean heavily
on feelings. Feelings are to be perceived as derivatives
of thinking. Thus, by viewing unpleasant events and
situations in a balanced way without mentally
exaggerating their significance, one is able to control
one's feelings instead of being controlled by them.
BEHAVIOURAL MODIFICATION THEORY*
The basic theme in this approach is that behavioural
problems are mainly the result of previous learning
and that some problems are caused by contemporary
events and some by physiological factors. Dealing
with the physiological factors does not lie within the
professional purview of social workers. The first two
sets of factors — previous learning, and contemporary
events are relevant. The types of learning leading
to problematic behaviour are:
Classical Conditioning
Certain conditions elicit specific responses from living
organisms. The dog-and-the-food situation is often
used for illustration. When food is placed in front
of a dog, the dog salivates. If the food appears
Conditional every time with the accompaniment of the ring of
and a bell, after a considerable number of experiences
uncondi-
tional of the food and the ring occurring together, the
stimulus
—response dog will salivate at the ring of the bell even in
the absence of food. The ring of the bell is the
conditional stimulus here, associated with the
unconditional stimulus, food. Similarly, certain types
of reactions occur in people as the result of conditional
stimuli that are associated originally in some way
or other, with unconditional stimuli. For example,
there are people who are afraid of some harmless
things because in their minds these things are
connected with factors that evoke fear in reality.
* This sub-section is based on concepts discussed in Hardiker, Jehu, et
al., Behavioural Modification in Social Work, Wiley Intersciences, 1972
 Some Theoretical systems used in casework 179
Instrumental Conditioning
The central idea here is that, what a person does
in a particular situation brings consequences, which
subsequently, set a pattern for his/her behaviour.
The consequence is perceived by the person as a
reward for which (s)he repeats the behaviour. As
an illustration, take the case of a child who throws
Whereby a temper tantrum initially out of frustration when
unintended the mother refuses to give him/her what (s)he wants.
pattern of
behaviour The tantrums irritate the mother who tries to stop
gets
reinforced it by giving in to the child's whims. If the situation
is repeated a few times in the same manner—the
child wants something, and the mother refuses to
give it; the child throws a temper tantrum and then
the mother gives what the child wants — the temper
tantrum becomes habitual in the child. What the
mother adopts as a short-cut device to stop the
scene of temper tantrum is perceived by the child
as being a consequence of his/her tantrum, which
(s)he uses again and again to get what (s)he wants.
There is a process of reward-learning on the part
of the child as a result of inadvertent reward-training
on the part of the mother.
Again, take the illustration of a man who tries
alcohol for the first time. Alcohol gives him pleasurable
sensations — a little relaxation and elation.
Subsequently, the man takes alcohol just for the
associated pleasure and it is likely that he may get
habituated to drinking and later become an alcohelie.
as more and more alcohol will be required to produce
the desirable sensations as days pass.
Observational Learning
Children In this type of learning, the learner is the observer
copy
behaviour for whom there is a model to copy from — a model
of adults who has status, power or wealth. Some aspects of
the model's behaviour are likely to be imitated by
the observer who wishes to be like the model. Children
often learn verbal and physical aggression through
180 Introduction to Social Casework
their observation of key adults who figure in their
lives.
Contemporary Events
Contemporary events, most of which relate to
environmental facts, can cause problematic behaviour.
For example, stressful situations can give rise to
anxiety, anger, panic or similar feelings, and driven
by these feelings some persons behave in unacceptable
ways.
The direct ways of helping clients would involve
weakening the process of learning problematic
behaviour and strengthening the process of learning
How to desirable behaviour. It is important to identify the
bring about stimuli that produce or reinforce undesirable behaviour
behaviour
modificationand then to remove these stimuli. Factors that act
as stimuli for reinforcing desirable behaviour should
be strengthened. Incentives may be used to motivate
clients to develop acceptable forms of behaviour. In
order to facilitate observational learning, the social
worker or therapist must serve as good models in
his/her dealings with the client. With reference to
contemporary events, the action needed is in
modification of environmental factors in order that
their damaging effect on clients may be eliminated
or removed. There are social workers who apply
behavioural modification techniques in simpler forms
in some of their case situations. The techniques have
been found effective with reference to clients suffering
from abnormal fears like fear of school, and some
cases of behavioural problems in children.

THE ECLECTIC APPROACH

There are various theoretical systems that present
postulates and techniques applicable to social casework.
Some of these systems have been briefly discussed
No one in the preceding pages to point out that useful
theory to knowledge is at hand for those social workers who
explain all
behaviour are desirous of expanding the horizons of their
 Some Theoretical systems used in casework 181
knowledge. There is no theoretical system that explains
fully and conclusively human behaviour in its manifold
variations. Nor is there any system that provides
a method for handling every problem of social
functioning. Therefore, it is necessary to develop
an eclectic approach, an approach that is characterised
by a solid knowledge of many systems of theories-
and a skill for selecting useful concepts and techniques
with reference to clients.
Eclecticism does not mean that the social worker
chooses casually a methodology of explanation, or
is helping himself/herself to a large basket of
theoretical systems, like the way one chooses from
a cafeteria, items of food according to one's special
taste and inclination. Eclecticism, on the other hand,
means choosing a methodology purposefully with
Purposeful explainable reasons and with a certain degree of
application conviction about its efficacy, with reference to a
of relevant
systems of particular client, or clients. Every school of thought,
thought to
understand has its own strengths and drawbacks. The social
and modify worker's skill will be that of taking advantage of
behaviour
the strengths without ignoring the drawbacks in
relation to clients (Fischer, 1976).
Cognitive theory, reality therapy and rational
emotive therapy have some things in common related
to thinking and they are useful to clients whose
faculty of thinking can be activated. Those clients
who hold some form of religious philosophy or other
may be benefited by an application of the existential
theory. By knowing the theories well and
understanding the clients adequately, it is possible
to use theories appropriately and effectively.

REFERENCES
Fischer, J. 1978 : Effective Casework Practice New York:
McGraw-Hill
Glasser, W. 1965 : Reality Therapy: A New Approach to
Psychiatry, New York: Harper & Row
182 Introduction to Social Casework

Jehu, D; Hardiker, P; : Behavioural Modification in Social Work,

Yelloly, M; Shaw. M, 1972 London: Wiley Intersciences
: ' 'Existential Social Work'' in Frances Turner
(Ed.) Social Work Treatment, New York:
Krill, D.F., 1974 The Free Press pp. 276-314.
: As cited in Clement Reeves, Psychology of
Rollo May, San Francisco: Jossey Bass
May, R., 1977 Publishers
: In the Foreword of Glasser (1965) p. XVBI
Mowrer, O.H., 1965
 10. The Social Worker

T he content of the preceding chapters was meant

to give an understanding of social casework as
a professional discipline, the knowledge content
underpinning practice and its different components.
A student of social work learns from the school
of social work, all this and much more — from
the field of practice, from books and from his/her
own experience. Professional education in a school
of social work facilitates the internalisation of
appropriate attitudes, knowledge and techniques. But
the process of education monitored by the self
continues even after the social work graduate leaves
the professional school. It is a process by means
Professional of which professional growth and development takes
education is
only the place steadily. The growth includes periodical
beginning professional renewal, which is a renewal of professional
ethos involving expansion of knowledge, sharpening
of old techniques, acquiring new techniques and a
revitalization of one's commitment.
Certain personality characteristics are particularly
suitable for the social worker* — characteristics which
ensure learning and continuance of learning and
growth. There has been some discussion in the previous
Qualities chapter regarding what a social worker should be,
and as a person, for the practice of social casework.
sensibilities
have to be The contexts then were with reference to some
cultivated
through theoretical formulations. For instance, while discussing
effort the theoretical system of reality therapy, it was stated
that the social worker should be one who conforms
* Many of these characteristics have relevance to all social workers. But
here, the discussion is particularly intended for the social worker who
works with individuals and applies the method of social casework.
184 Introduction to Social Casework
to the three R's of reality therapy in his/her life.
Contextually, it is worthwhile here in this chapter,
to link together all those qualities, that are essential
for the social worker. These qualities constitute the
inner resources which the individual brings and invests
in the tasks of professional learning. Every one may
not possess all these qualities but they can be acquired
by those who are driven by a desire to enhance
their own personality.
The formulations on personality development which
appear in the third chapter can be aptly used to
delineate a conceptual sketch of the desirable qualities
Some basics of the social worker. The social worker should be
for the
ideal social an adult whose childhood was not marked by severe
worker deprivation of needs. A person whose physical and
emotional needs were fulfilled while growing up is
not likely to have unresolved mental conflicts, and
therefore, (s)he is not likely to use the clients
unconsciously for meeting his/her own needs. It does
not, however, follow that persons who had suffered
in childhood from the ill effects of poverty, loss
of parents and other adversities are not fit for social
work. Not all children who undergo hardship and
deprivations develop warped personalities. There is
a possibility that many of these children may have
compensatory factors that reduce the impact of
unfavourable circumstances and help them to integrate
the negative features into their personalities. Such
integration may engender in some, better social
functioning, better than the average level in some
aspects. For example, there are persons, who, having
undergone unhappy experiences themselves, have
developed remarkable sensitivity to people in trouble.
What, therefore, emerges as an important matter
Capable is not the circumstances per se but the coping
coping behaviour of the individual A well-integrated
behaviour is
vital personality is desirable for the social worker, and
it means that the id, ego, superego systems operate
in a balanced, congruent manner. The superego is
 The Social Worker 185

well-developed and the id operates within socially

defined limits. Considerable ego strength is expected
in the social worker. That means, there are good
levels of impulse control and frustration tolerance
and ability to postpone gratification for the sake
of distant goals.
The social worker deals with people in trouble,
and hence, the ego function of tension management
Effective is often called for. The ability for constructive thinking
ego and action are necessary for tension management.
The function of object relations also has to be
continually in operation. Though the social
worker -client relationship which has been discussed
earlier is very important in casework, it is not the
only relationship with which the social worker is
concerned. There are many other professional
relationships involving the social worker, like the
relationships with fellow professionals,' other
Amicably professionals, non- professional employees and
getting members of governing bodies. The ability to form
along with
colleagues and maintain working relationships at different levels
and with varying degrees of involvement, is innate
in some people, but others have to acquire it.

Critical and objective thinking is important

particularly with reference to assessment of people
and situations. In situations where one is involved
Objectivity emotionally, one is inclined to submerge objective
facts under one's feelings. Social workers are expected
to be objective and an aspect of objectivity is the
ability to separate feelings from facts.

The avenue of learning in some people is so

constricted that they are able to learn only from
their own experiences, (in order to be able to learn
from the experiences of others, a vigorously active
imagination is necessary, which is a requirement for
social workers.) Learning through biographies of
persons can also be rewarding.
186 Introduction to Social Case Work
It has been said before that the social worker is
to be emotionally involved to the level that promotes
understanding of the client but not to the extent
that it obstructs objective thinking. There are occasions
when the social worker faces hostility, anger or
sarcasm from the client which are likely to provoke
unpleasant feelings in the worker. A hostile or angry
outburst is something which the social worker should
avoid. Such automatic responses initiated by the
What is worker's own anger or irritations are likely to damage
appropriate the relationship. It does not, however, mean that
involvement
with the social workers should not have feelings. Social workers
client
should be full-blooded human beings capable of
experiencing feelings, and under no circumstances
should feelings be denied. But expression of feelings
should be consciously directed into such verbal and
non-verbal communication that acts as a corrective,
and not as fuel to a flaming situation.
It is awareness of feelings that serves as an inner
signal on the dividing line between arousal of feelings
and their expression. Awareness of feelings is one
aspect of self-awareness and the ability and practice
of self-awareness is desirable for social workers.
Self Self-awareness is something that can be developed
awareness
is a key by the self by training the mind to look inward.
requirement Once initiated and consistently used, self-awareness
will grow steadily, enriching the personality.
Self-awareness is a component of the reality testing
function of the ego. Reality testing entails knowing
outer reality and inner reality, the former pertaining
to the environment and the latter to aspects of the
personality itself, including the strengths and
weaknesses.
The mental activities indicated by the terms
In 'self-awareness', 'self-acceptance' and 'self-esteem'
combination are interdependent, as they influence and are
with self-
acceptance influenced by one another. All these three exercises
and
self-esteem are important in the shaping of the social worker.
Self-awareness presupposes self-acceptance which
 The Social Worker 187
generates self-esteem. Knowledge of one's own
strengths builds up self-esteem and self-esteem is
necessary for the social worker for building up
confidence and hope with regard to the tasks of
helping. Similarly, a feeling of inner security and
confidence drawn from one's sense of being
comfortable with oneself, is a requisite for the mental
activity of facing the negative features of one's
personality and work. Knowing one's aberrations helps
the social worker to evaluate his/her work objectively
and then to take steps to improve himself/herself
and the work.
It will be worthwhile for social workers to maintain
a written record of their own growth through
Keep self-awareness — a personal document. Some student
personal
notes on social workers include this component in their case
one's own records and thus bring it for discussion with their
growth
supervisors. In some of the records covered by the
SOCR, there were entries connected with the writer's
self-awareness. An extract from a case record is
reproduced here. The social worker was visiting a
client's family for the first time in a slum area.
The father, whom he had met previously, was not
present during the visit. This is what the social
worker writes:
When I met them, I was very much at a
loss as to what to say or do. I kept silent
for a minute or so, then I began to stutter
and stumble over my words. I was more
embarrassed when all of them stood there, staring
at me. Now, pondering over the matter, I can
Extract say that there could be some reasons for the
from a situation: (1) my inability to communicate
diary
properly (2) my being too conscious of this
weakness (3) my anxiety regarding establishing
a rapport (4) my eagerness to get down to
business as soon as possible. In my mental
confusion, I did not realise that certain tendencies
which I displayed were negating each other. For
188 Introduction to Social Casework
instance, by striving to be efficient and business
like I was slowing down the process of rapport
building.
At one stage, I was even frightened when
one of the neighbours asked for my address.
I gave him my address almost mechanically.
Later, I learnt that he asked the address so
that he might tell the head of the family to
meet me. Frustrated and crestfallen, I returned
to the agency by noon. But later reflection
indicated that this encounter was not useless.
It made me aware of some aspects of my
personality and functioning that need to be
improved.
To say that a particular personality is free of
unconscious conflicts does not mean that the individual
has had a very comfortable life. But it means that
his/her life experiences, both positive and negative
have been absorbed and synthesised within the
personality, without leaving any damaging residual
effects. A conflict free personality is not completely
free of defence mechanisms either. Defence
mechanisms may be in operation, but with less
intensity and persistence, so that, they may be brought
to the area of awareness by means of probing within.
An extract from another case record of the SOCR
is presented here to give a glimpse of the manner
in which self-knowledge of her own defence mechanism
unfolded in the social worker's mind:
Today Ramdas (the client) came to see me.
In the course of the interview, he became nasty
and started abusing me hinting that I was of
no help to him. He stood up, put away the
chair noisily and walked out in a huff. Before
I could take hold of my feelings of hurt and
Extract anger, Narayan stepped in. He began to talk
from a
diary about the troubles he had at his workplace,
the previous day. Instead of listening to him,
I blurted out that perhaps he himself was the
 The Social Worker 189

cause of his trouble. He did not proceed further

on that topic. He talked instead about his mentally
retarded child. He said that he wanted a letter
of recommendation from me, for getting the
child admitted to a special school. He left
immediately, saying that he would come after
a week for the letter. After Narayan left, I
began to wonder why I was so brusque with
him. I was full of remorse. I realised that I
had displaced on him my feelings of anger
provoked by Ramdas's outburst. That was indeed
a defence mechanism. I bungled again!!
The social worker should be an authentic person
in terms of possessing warmth and goodwill towards
people and a desire to be of help to people in trouble.
In some persons, love for people occurs almost like
an innate automatic process; nevertheless, what they
need is to harness the quality for effective helping
Natural of people along scientific lines. There are, on the
qualities of
love and other hand, persons who admit that they do not
instant have an inborn warmth towards people. Nevertheless,
warmth
need they consider helping people as an important activity.
harnessing Persons belonging to the second group are not
unsuitable for social work, provided they are willing
to cultivate love for people and other related qualities
that are essential for social work. The professional
nature of social work signifies that the desirable
qualities and techniques required for competent
performance in social work can be acquired, and
well-motivated persons acquire them by learning and
doing.

The need for authenticity has another requirement :

that the social worker necessarily believes in the
philosophic assumptions and principles that were
Need to be enunciated in an earlier part of the book. Further,
authentic a certain level of congruence is expected between
the private life and professional life of the worker,
between what (s)he feels and what (s)he says and
190 Introduction to Social Casework
between verbal and non-verbal communication. There
is no implying, however, that (s)he has to
communicate his/her feelings at all times. But it
does imply that (s)he does not communicate
sentiments contrary to his/her inner-feelings in order
to flatter the client or win his/her favour. If on
the other hand, (s)he realises that the feelings are
inappropriate as far as the client's welfare is
concerned, (s)he may communicate to the client the
attitude that differs from his/her feelings. Then,
there is the additional task of exercising his/her will
to change his/her feelings to make them congruent
with the particular attitude expressed.

Acting towards the client in such a way that is

contradictory to one's immediate feelings, but bene-
ficial to the client, is being neither hypocritical nor
unauthentic. It is important to remember that
acceptance, which is abstract as a principle, lends
itself to practice only by an exercise of the will
A possible on the part of the social worker, on those occasions
dilemma
when acceptance becomes emotionally difficult. One
may say with reference to existential philosophy that,
the social worker is proceeding from "being" to
"becoming" — "being" from the level of a natural
person of automatic responses to "becoming" a
professional person of consciously communicated
responses. A beginner in social work starts with
Conscious a conscious application of techniques, which gradually
cultivation
of the self get transformed into skills through repeated,
meaningful doing. Skill, therefore, refers to the
mastery of a technique, or in other words, to a
high level of proficiency or dexterity in the use of
a technique.
To expect that only people absolutely free of
emotional conflicts be enrolled for social work training
is to ask for the impossible. Moreover, it is very
difficult to detect hidden conflicts in persons at the
time of enrolment to the school of social work. Only
 The Social Worker 191

Suitability during the course of one's studies will tell-tale signs

of of hidden conflicts emerge that hamper the individual's
candidates
cannot be learning and doing of social work. It is not a hopeless
detected
during situation either for the student or for the profession.
admission Professional counselling will set the situation right,
in that, it will release the individual's mental and
emotional energies from the area of conflict, making
them available for competent social work practice.
A deep seated denial of problems and a stubborn
determination not to change will, of course, block
the possibility of resolving conflicts. An important
feature of social work is that, the learning and doing
involved in it, does change the learner-doer. Change
is built into the nature and structure of the profession,
both from the perspectives of the helper and the
Readiness helped. Change is demanded of all, some needing
to change more of it and others needing less. Social workers
alone gives
the right to have no right to gear their activities for facilitating
change
client change in their clients when they themselves are
resistant to change in areas that call for change.
Acknowledgement of this fact is an important factor
in the professional moulding of the social worker.
It is both humbling and exhilarating to know that
one is not superior to one's clients, and that, one
has to work upon oneself while working for others.
The qualities desirable in a social worker who utilises
casework as a method of helping people have been
discussed in the previous paragraphs of this chapter.
The nature and content of the method was delineated
under different topical headings in the other chapters.
It is in the fitness of things that a part of this
concluding chapter be devoted to the presentation
Attempt to of a working definition of casework that can be drawn
define social
casework directly from the material that has gone before.
Social casework is a social work method which
social workers, working in welfare organisations and
agencies use to help people to deal with their problems
of social functioning. It is a personalised service,
192 Introduction to Social Casework
rendered to individuals and their families through
a one-to-one relationship. Problems of social
functioning are caused by social, psychological or
physiological factors, or by a combination of two
or more of these. The process of helping involves
the mobilisation of the inner and outer resources
of the clients, whereby, they are aided to play an
active role in meeting their difficulties. The body
of knowledge that undergirds the method consists
Working of philosophical values; principles; knowledge of human
definition behaviour and society drawn from behavioural
sciences; tools and techniques of helping; and related
processes. Interviewing and relationship are important
tools because, within their nature and structure,
aspects of help are inherent. This is in addition to
the help rendered to achieve the specific goals to
which those tools are directed in relation to the
problems. The two broad objectives of casework are
to help the clients with their problems, and to help
them in such a way that strengthens the clients
as persons by making them as self-reliant and
independent as per their capability.

A drawback of this working definition that has

been attempted here is that, it signifies a
problem-oriented approach and does not include,
notably, the preventive and promotive aspects. One
reason for the exclusion is that the cases of SOCR
did not contain these elements, except in sponsorship
Preventive cases where, material benefits were provided through
and
promotive the medium of a cordial relationship. It was hoped
aspects? that provision of money, materials, information and
knowledge related to health care and education might
prevent the type of problems which emanate from
the lack of these resources. The promotive and
preventive aspects are implied in an inconspicuous
way in the second broad objective of casework,
indicated in the working definition, namely, that of
strengthening the personality of clients in terms of
enhancing their coping skills. With enhanced coping
 The Social Worker 193
skills, they become capable of handling difficult
situations effectively, before the difficulties turn into
threatening problems.

The major reason for not discussing the preventive

and promotive aspects in this book is that casework
as a method does not have strategies that can prevent
problems that occur on a large scale, affecting many
people. When in casework, the social worker comes
across groups of people who are affected by a basic
lack of material and cultural resources, his/her dealing
of the immediate problem of one or two people on
an individual basis does not help in the long run.
The basic lack of resources has to be met at the
Assimilate group, community, state or national level. There
tenets from is no implication, however, that the social worker
other
methods of may withdraw from the scene. Strategies from the
social work other methods of social work, group work, community
organisation and social welfare administration are to
be skilfully assimilated and applied. Many social
workers attached to predominantly casework-oriented
agencies are found to be employing other social work
methods as well, while dealing with this issue. Instead
of functioning as practitioners of casework, they
operate as general practitioners resorting to, what
is known as, the integrated methods of social work.
The model of social work that J. Fischer (1978)
has developed in his book, presenting various areas
of intervention for casework, assigns to the social
worker, roles related to bringing about changes in
the interlocking social systems to which the clients
belong. The topic of 'the use of integrated methods
of social work' is a very broad one, too broad to
be wedged between the pages of a book on casework.

Casework has its limitations. Casework, or for that

matter even integrated methods of social work cannot
Limitations help some clients whose problems defy solutions.
of casework The reason does not always lie in the absence of
194 Introduction to Social Casework
resources, but in the inadequacies of the technology*
or the state-of-the-art of social work. Had it not
been for this factor, the welfare states of the Western
countries would not have had some of the problems
which the social workers are currently handling in
these countries.
It is obvious that casework as described in this
book pertains to urban settings only and that the
book is silent on the scope and relevance of casework
in the rural settings. Since the urban experience
has been the major source of this book, non-reference
to rural settings is unavoidable and this shortcoming
is humbly acknowledged.
Some There have been criticisms against social work:
common (1) that it has borrowed its methodology from the
criticisms
West (2) that it does only patchwork where structural
changes alone can help (3) that it is time-consuming.
It cannot be denied that the casework methodology
has been borrowed from the West, just as the core
of the methodology in medicine or engineering has
come from the West. Nevertheless, in the practice
of casework in India, there is much of Indianness
that needs to be observed, studied and relevance
incorporated. The fact of the lack of indigenous
Creation of literature in casework needs to be attended to not
indigenous by lamentations or despair, but by determined action
literature is
vital for remedying the situation. There is a wealth of
un-written and un-explored experience in the
possession of social workers that needs to be tapped
first conceptualised and developed into useful
literature. Valuable experience that remains hidden
at present, needs to be discovered, and their
professional components distilled and brought to light.
Casework help may be only patchwork in some
cases but not so in many other cases. A type of
service, whatever name one may give it, in which
* Here technology refers to the knowledge and techniques.
 The Social Worker 195
the serving agent listens to people in trouble with
concern, and conveys the message that, individuals
are important to be helped on a one-to-one basis,
is a necessary service. Individuals cannot be dissolved
or drowned in the massiveness of the so called masses.
Casework is One may ask: If every member of the mass has
not to be helped in the same way, will not that be
patchwork
humanly impossible? In such a situation casework
is not the answer. But the types of problems described
in this book and many which one comes across in
one's own life or others, are not happenings that
occur to every person. It is one's contention that
people with problems could be attended to in a helpful
way, to whatever extent that is possible. Some
problems are simple enough; but the clients in their
contexts lack solutions, due to whatever reason. The
social worker with cultivated skills can provide simple
solutions. So long as help is being reached out to
persons in trouble, that is the profession's justification
to exist and grow more and more responsive.
Casework service may be prolonged in some cases
but it is not so in every case. It is possible to
help many persons through short-term service. Very
often casework help results in a saving of time.
It has been shown that in some cases the social
worker's timely intervention prevented wastage of
clients' time at various organisations.

This book is all about casework, but knowledge

alone without practical work does not go far in the
making of a casework practitioner. It is the doing
based on knowing that leads to effective casework
practice. It is important, therefore, that students
of social work practice casework for a reasonable
period of time under the supervision of professionally
trained social workers. For this reason, schools of
social work include field work, that is practical social
work, as an important component of the academic,
programme.
196 Introduction to Social Casework

Besides professionally trained social workers, there

are many functionaries at a non-professional level
who have dealings with people who receive help of
different types from human service organisations.
These functionaries include house parents in resi-
dential institutions, attendants in hospitals, especially
attendants in mental hospitals, community level
welfare workers, and village level welfare workers.
For the convenience of conceptualisation, these
personnel may be covered by the term ' 'care-givers".
The "care-givers", are involved in face-to-face
transactions with clients in the contexts of making
services available to them in human service
organisations. It is advisable that care-givers use
Casework a casework approach towards their clients. Casework
can be used approach refers to a particular attitude, shaped by
by many
care-givers recognising the philosophical values of casework and
by internalising the elementary concepts of casework
relating to human behaviour and the tools and
techniques of helping. Acceptance of clients with their
weaknesses and problems and ability to carry out
transactions not mechanically but in a personalised
manner with sensitivity and understanding are likely
to be the practical aspects of the casework approach.
Even policemen and others who are called to scenes
of accidents and other crises will be better equipped
to deal with people in stress through the casework
approach. In order to enable the care-givers to imbibe
the casework approach, it is necessary to provide
training programmes. They do not require knowledge
of a deeper level about casework theories, tools and
techniques. For instance they do not have to be
taught counselling techniques, but a knowledge of
some of the supportive techniques will stand them
in good stead in their day-to-day work with people.
Casework, as a professional discipline and a form
of service, has taken root in India adapting itself
remarkably to the social and cultural climate of the
country, without manifesting any sign of artificiality
 The Social Worker 197

or incongruity. Undoubtedly, it is viable. It is bound

to grow further in terms of developing new knowledge
and techniques and reaching out to new horizons.
The result will be greater productivity and the
enrichment of a human service.

REFERENCES
: Effective Casework Practice New York:
Fischer, J. 1978
McGraw Hill
198 Introduction to Social Casework
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Atherton, C.R.; Mitchell : "Locating Points for Intervention" Social
S.T.; and Schien E.B. Casework, Vol. 52, No. 3, March 1971
1971
Banerjee, G.R. : "Social Welfare in Ancient India", The
1967 Indian Journal of Social Work, Vol. XXVIII,
No. 2
Banerjee, G.H. 1972 : Papers on Social Work: An Indian
Perspective, Bombay: Tata Institute of Social
Sciences
Berelson, B. and Steiner, : Human Behaviour: An Inventory of Scientific
G.A. 1964 Findings, New York: Harcourt, Brace and
World, Inc.
Biestek, F.P., 1967 The Casework Relationship, London: Unwin
University Books
Biestek, F.P., and Glyde : Client Self-Determination and Social Work
C.G. 1978 — A Fifty Year Study, Chicago: Loyola
University Press
Bristol, M.C., 1936 : Handbook of Social Case Recording Chicago:
University of Chicago Press
Clifford, W. 1966 : A Primer of Social Casework in Africa,
London: Oxford University Press
Egar, G. 1975 : The Skilled Helper and Method of Effective
Helping, Montery California: Brooke/Cole
Publishing Company
Ellis A, 1967 : Reason and Emotion in Psychotherapy, New
York: Lyle Stuart
Ellis A and Greiger R, 1977 : Handbook of Rational Emotive Therapy New
York: Springer Publishing
Ellis A and Abraham E, 1978 : Brief Psychotherapy in Medicine and Health
Practice. New York: Springer Publishing.
Feldman, Y. 1958 : "A Casework Approach Toward
Understanding Parents of Emotionally
Disturbed Children'', Social Work (Journal)
3. July 1958, pp. 23-29.
Fenlason, A.F; Revised by : Essentials in Interviewing, New York: Harper
Ferguson, G.B. & & Row
Abrahamson, A.C. 1962
: Effective Casework Practice, New York:
Fischer, J. 1978 McGraw Hill
: The Ego and the Mechanisms of Defense,
Freud, A. 1946 New York: International Universities Press
 Bibliography 199

Friedlander, W.A. (Ed.) : Concepts and Methods of Social Work, New

1977 Delhi: Prentice Hall of India Pvt. Ltd.
Garrett, A. 1942 : Interviewing: Its Principles and Methods,
New York: Family Service Association of
America
Glasser, W. 1965 : Reality Therapy: A New Approach to
Psychiatry, New York: Harper and Row
Greater St. Paul Community : Casework — Notebook, St. Paul. Minn
Chests and Councils 1957
Hamilton, G. 1940 : Theory and Practice of Social Casework, New
York: Columbia University Press
Hollis, F. 1965 : Casework A Psychosocial Therapy New York:
Random House
Jehu, D; Hardiker, P; : Behavioural Modification in Social Work,
Yellowly, M; Shaw, M 1972 London: Wiley Intersciences
Johnson, H.M. 1966 : Sociology: A Systematic Introduction
Bombay: Allied Publishers, originally, New
York: Harcourt Bruce and World Inc., 1960.
Karnik, V.B. 1972 : N.M. Joshi, Servant of India, Bombay:
United Asia Publications
Kennedy, E. 1977 : On Becoming a Counsellor, Dublin: Gill and
Macmillan
Krill, D.F. 1974 : ' 'Existential Social Work'' in Francis Turner
(Ed.) Social Work Treatment, New York:
The Free Press
Maluccio, A.N. (Ed.) 1981 : Promoting Competence in Clients, A New/Old
Approach to Social Work Practice, London:
The Free Press
Mowrer, O.H. 1965 : in the Foreword of Glasser (1965)
Parad, H.J. 1958 : Ego Psychology and Dynamic Casework, New
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Perlman, H.H. 1957 : Social Casework: A Problem Solving Process,
Chicago: University of Chicago Press
Perlman, H.H. 1968 : Persona: Social Role and Personality,
Chicago: University of Chicago Press
Reeves, C. 1977 : Psychology of Rollo May, San Francisco:
Jossey Bass Publishers
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Roberts, R.W., and Nev : Theories of Social Casework, Chicago:
R.H. 1970 University of Chicago Press
200 Introduction to Social Casework

Stein, H. 1960 : "The Concept of the Social Environment

in Social Work Practice", Smith College
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Timms, N. 1968 : Language of Social Casework, London:
Routledge and Kegan Paul
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Werner, H.D. 1965 : A Rational Approach to Social Casework,
New York: Association Press
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George Allen and Unwin
Younghusband, E. 1967 : Social Work and Social Values, London:
George Allen and Unwin
 INDEX
acceptance casework tools, 79, 100
—as a principle see casework principles —defined, 78
—of feelings, 79, 108 —home visit, 6, 78, 79, 90, 91, 100
—technique of, 105, 106, 107 —interview, 6, 78, 79, 87, 88, 89,
accreditation, 113, 114 90, 100
action oriented support, 116 —listening, 6, 78, 79, 100, 147
adaptation, 30 —observation, 6, 78, 79, 83, 84, 91
—concept of, 28 100
advice, 129, 130 —relationship, 6, 78, 79, 100
advocacy, 118,119 changing attitudes, 148
agency clarification, 132, 133, 144
— social work in, 15 classical conditioning, 178
allaying feelings, 112 client
anticipatory guidance, 135 —defined, 15
assurance, 110 client participation
attitudes — see casework principles
— defined, 70 cognitive therapy, 6
authenticity of the social worker, 189 — described, 175-178
collaterals
Banerjee, Gouri Rani, 4 —defined, 161
behaviour communication, 97, 134, 146, 147
— meaning of, 16, 24 — techniques, 128
behavioural modification, 6, 178 compensation
body language, 85 — see defense mechanisms
building self-confidence, 113, 114 concept
— meaning of, 15
casework conditional stimulus, 178
—goals of, 101 confidentiality
—termination of, 96 — see casework principles
— (social) defined, 1, 191, 192 confrontation, 141, 143, 173, 175
—approach, 6, 196 controlled emotional involvement
casework interview — see casework principles
— purposes of, 87, 88 coping strategies
casework principles, 5, 96 — simple, 34
—acceptance of, 10, 80, 141 correcting perception, 133, 144
—client participation, 12, 97, 101 counselling, 100, 104, 127, 149
—confidentiality, 13 —techniques, 128, 148, 170
— controlled emotional
involvement, 14, 96 day dreaming
—described, 9-14, 175-178 —see defense mechanisms
—individualisation, 9, 101 defense mechanisms, 127, 140, 187
—non-condemning attitude, 10 —compensation, 35, 37
—self-determination, 12, 97 — day - dreaming, 37
casework process, 91, 171 —denial, 35, 38, 127
— meaning of, 152 —described, 34-39
— of a case, 157-161 —displacement, 35, 36
casework propositions —fantasy, 35, 37
— described, 16-20 — identification with the
casework record aggressor, 35, 36
— attributes of, 164-167 — projection, 35, 38
— purposes of, 162, 163 — rationalisation, 35
casework techniques, 78, 79, 89, 90, — repression, 34, 37, 38
96, 97, 114, 129, 130, 133, 140, 144, denial
148, 149, 150, 151 — see defense mechanisms
— defined, 104 dharma
202 Index

—meaning of, 175 human needs, 17, 22

dialogue, 171 —emotional, 184
discipline —mental, 17
—meaning of, 173 —physical, 17, 44, 65, 184
disillusionment —psycho-social, 22, 94, 65, 66, 103
—the process of, 170
displacement id, 24, 33, 68, 184, 185
—see defense mechanisms —concept of, 25
dysfunctional communication, 146, 147 identification with the aggressor
—see defense mechanisms
eclectic approach improving patterns of
—explained, 180-181 communication, 146, 147
ego, 24, 33, 34, 68, 184 impulse control
— concept of, 25
—functions described, 26-28 —see ego functions
—impulse control, 26, 185 individualisation
—integration and synthesis, 26, 27 — see casework principles
—object relations, 26, 27, 185 instrumental conditioning, 179
intake sheet
—postponement of gratification, 26,
185 —described, 161
—reality testing, 26, 27 integration and synthesis
—strength, 185 —see ego functions
—tension management, 26, 185 interpretation, 139, 140
—tolerance of frustration, 26, 185 interview
Ellis, Albert, 176 —see casework tools
emotional needs Joshi, N.M., 4
—see human needs
emotional support, 116, 128, 144, 170 life energies 33, 176
empathy, 109, 125, 148 limit setting, 173
encouragement, 114, 115 limitations of casework, 6, 193
enhancement of knowledge, 121, 127 listening
environment, 29, 30, 33
—defined, 23 —obstacles to, 80-83
—human, 74, 103 — see also casework tools
—meaning of, 16 — selective, 81, 82
—physical, 73, 103, 121
— socio-cultural, 73, 74 material help, 104, 119
evaluation, 6 material resources, 52, 73, 126, 150
— explained, 155 maturation, 23
existential casework, 168-172 May, Rollo, 169
existentialism, 6, 175 mental needs
—as a philosophy, 169, 190 — see human needs
modelling, 134, 135
facilitation of expression of motivation, 130, 131, 142, 144
feelings, 110, 111
fantasy non-condemning attitude
— see defense mechanisms — see casework principles
fatalism non-judgemental attitude, 10, 106
— attitude of, 49, 72 non-material help, 104, 121
feedback, 147 non-material resources, 121, 126, 150
Freud, Sigmund, 24 non-verbal communication, 79, 85, 86,
frustration tolerance, 26, 185 186, 190
functional communication, 146 object relations
— see ego functions
Glasser, William, 172 observation
home visit — see casework tools
— see casework tools organ language, 85
 Index 203

partialisation, 138, 139 self-acceptance, 186

participation self-awareness, 108, 186, 187
—client, 101 self- determination
personality — see casework principles
—characteristics desirable for a social self-esteem, 186
worker, 183-191 setting limits, 141, 173
—defined, 24 simple coping strategies, 34
— structure described, 24-28 Sir Dorabji Tata Graduate School of Social
philosophical assumptions, 7 Work, 4
philosophical values, 5 social assessment, 6, 88, 89, 102
physical needs —explained, 153
— see human needs social role, 1, 6, 42, 44, 103
pooling resources, 120 — defined and described, 39
postponement of gratification social study, 6
—see ego functions — explained, 152
problems of living, 44 socialisation, 23, 29
process records —defined, 42
— ingredients of, 163 SOCR, Survey of Casework Records, 45,
professional relationship, 93, 94, 95 52, 53, 56, 57, 89, 91, 98, 107, 117,
projection 118, 119, 121, 122, 129, 131, 135,
—see defense mechanisms 140, 145, 187, 188, 192
proposition — described , 4 5 - 4 7
—defined, 16 sponsorship, 133
psycho-analytical theory of — meaning of, 59
personality, 44 sublimation, 36
psycho-social needs superego, 24, 30, 33, 68, 75, 175, 184
— see human needs —concept of, 25
supportive techniques, 104, 116, 127,
rapport, 98 128, 150
rational emotive therapy, 6, 181
—described, 176, 177
rationalisation tension management
—see defense mechanisms — see ego functions
reaching out, 144, 145 termination of casework, 96
reality the three r's, 174, 183
— concept of, 172 —explained, 172
—orientation, 135 the unconscious, 176
— (testing) see ego functions —concept of, 32
Reality Therapy, 6, 181 the will
— described, 172-175 —concept of, 170
reassurance, 114, 115 theory
reflective discussion, 128, 129, 138, 144 —meaning of, 15
relationship tolerance of frustration
— see casework tools — see ego functions
removing guilt feelings, 137
renewing family links, 145
repression unconditional stimulus, 178
— see defense mechanisms universalisation, 140
resource persons using guilt feelings constructively, 138,
— meaning of, 162 173
responsibility
—defined, 172
reward learning, 179
reward training, 179 worker-client relationship, 93, 94, 95,
role playing, 135, 144, 148 96, 97, 98, 128, 143