As an applied science, social work practice and research is interdisciplinary and draws from a range of disciplines including psychology, sociology, medicine, gerontology, public administration, policy studies, and economics.
Social Work is part of the University of South Dakota's School of Health Sciences. Social work students, staff and faculty can find several research resources in the University Libraries. The University library includes the Wegner Health Sciences Library in Sioux Falls.
The NASW Code of Ethics is a set of standards that guide the professional conduct of social workers. The 2021 update includes language that addresses the importance of professional self-care. Moreover, revisions to the Cultural Competence standard provide more explicit guidance to social workers.
All social workers should review the new text and affirm their commitment to abide by the Code of Ethics. Also available in Spanish.
First published in 2009, The Social Work Ethics Casebook was the first ethics casebook, including extensive cases
and commentary, written exclusively for social workers. The second edition was published in 2018. This revised second edition reflects changes made in the 2021 Code of Ethics of the National Association of Social Workers and includes discussion of new and updated ethics standards, especially pertaining to cultural competence and practitioner self-care.
This book’s realistic ethics cases provide a useful tool for discussing ethical dilemmas and ethical decision making. Following each set of cases, author Frederic G. Reamer includes commentary highlighting key ethics concepts and references to relevant standards in the Code of Ethics. Earn CEUs with this book.
Have you wondered how to channel your passion for change into not only your professional success but also a lasting legacy? Social workers, often referred to as “agents of change,” join the profession with the intention of making the world a better place. However, most social workers do not learn a systematic approach to fostering change in their own career advancement.
By focusing on your personal and professional growth, you can build a legacy that extends beyond immediate impacts, ensuring that your contributions endure and inspire future generations of social workers, clients, and communities. This interactive guidebook, by Jennifer Luna, Cindy Snell, and Michelle Woods, will provide you with useful tools and inspiration for every stage of your social work career journey. Earn CEUs with this book.
Clinical case studies are a fundamental tool for developing “practice wisdom,” the intuitive understanding of client dynamics and core issues in a
case. This collection of 80 real-world-based clinical vignettes, by Liz B. Johnston, offers a diverse range of clinical counseling cases, covering all the major DSM-5-TR diagnostic categories.
Working through the clinical vignettes in this book, you will build your familiarity with the major DSM-5-TR diagnoses and the wide variety of cases that may be found in exam questions, licensing tests, or your social work practice. For each case, the answer key provides possible risk factors, diversity considerations, ethical and legal concerns, treatment issues, and possible diagnoses.
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Learn more about all NASW Press titles, including books, eBooks, CEU books, reference works, journals, brochures, and standards by visiting the Press website. If you have questions, please email NASWPress@BrightKey.net or call 1-800-227-3590.
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Fuel your passion for social work at the NASW National Conference, June 15–19 in Chicago! Enjoy inspiring keynotes, interactive workshops, and networking with social work professionals nationwide.
Don’t miss this chance to learn, connect, and advance your career!
By Brandie Reiner, NASW Arizona Chapter Executive Director
According to the legislative tracker maintained by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), a total of 456 anti-LGBTQ+ bills have been introduced during the current year. President Trump has enacted eight executive orders specifically aimed at individuals identifying as LGBTQ+. The level of hostility fostered by federal and legislative policies has escalated to such an extent that the United States Department of Homeland Security issued a warning regarding domestic terror threats directed at LGBTQ+ individuals as early as 2023.
The Rise of Political Violence Through Discriminatory Policies
When the stroke of a pen becomes as lethal as a bullet from a gun, political violence transcends physical assaults to include legal and policy-driven measures that undermine the rights and well-being of marginalized populations. Recent federal actions exemplify this by redefining sex and gender based on biological characteristics, effectively negating legal recognition of transgender and intersex individuals; restricting access to gender-affirming care by instructing the Department of Health and Human Services to remove protections for transgender health care; enforcing discriminatory educational policies that prohibit transgender students from participating in sports and utilizing restroom facilities corresponding to their identity; and diminishing protections for LGBTQ+ individuals in the military and federal employment by eliminating diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.
Federal and legislative policies impacting LGBTQ+ individuals lead to severe consequences, worsening existing inequalities and discrimination. Recently, law enforcement in Tucson, Arizona, tried to arrest a cisgender Black female while she was using a Walmart restroom because, to them, she appeared to masculine to use a women’s restroom. As reported by the GLAAD ALERT Desk, incidents of violence against LGBTQ+ individuals, fueled by public misinformation and false police reports, have surged since June 2022, totaling over 2,242 incidents nationwide.
Our transgender youth, who already confront disproportionately high rates of anxiety, depression, and suicidality due to systemic discrimination, face intensified mental health risks because of these measures. Restrictions imposed on gender-affirming care neglect established medical consensus, compelling many individuals to pursue unsafe or unregulated alternatives. LGBTQ+ youth experience increased bullying, discrimination, and obstacles to affirming environments within educational institutions, which contribute to elevated dropout rates and homelessness, thus further entrenching their social and economic marginalization.
Research conducted by The Trevor Project emphasizes the significant influence of state policies on the well-being and mobility of LGBTQ+ youth, thereby highlighting the urgent necessity to address these policy assaults. Their findings indicate that 45 percent of LGBTQ+ youth reported adverse effects on their mental health due to restrictive state laws, while 35 percent contemplated relocation as a result of these policies. This observation corresponds with wider concerns regarding the mental health crisis, health care inequities, and social marginalization experienced by LGBTQ+ individuals.
When discriminatory policies establish hostile environments, they not only exacerbate mental health outcomes but also disrupt stability, compelling numerous young individuals to leave their homes in pursuit of safety and acceptance. These findings accentuate the imperative for policies that affirm and safeguard LGBTQ+ individuals rather than perpetuate harm.
The emergence of discriminatory policies targeting LGBTQ+ individuals constitutes a direct manifestation of political violence. Further exacerbating our country’s mental health crises, health care disparities, and social marginalization. These policies provoke such inhospitable conditions that numerous LGBTQ+ youth endure profound distress, with some contemplating relocation as a means of escaping potential harm.
By institutionalizing discrimination through legislation, policymakers effectively weaponize legal frameworks to systematically undermine the rights, dignity, and safety of marginalized communities. This entrenched harm highlights the pressing necessity for advocacy and policy reforms aimed at mitigating political violence, safeguarding LGBTQ+ individuals, and fostering a society grounded in equity and inclusion.
How can social workers help?
As social workers, we hold a professional and ethical obligation to participate in political advocacy, given that systemic policies have a direct effect on the individuals and communities we serve. Challenges encountered by the clients and communities we serve, including access to health care, inadequate social safety nets, lack of anti-discrimination protections, and issues in criminal justice reform, largely arise from legislative shortcomings.
Through engagement in policymaking, be it voting, lobbying, holding public office, or rallying grassroots support, social workers can influence legislation that fosters social justice, equity, and human rights. Political involvement is integral to social work; it is a vital component of the profession’s goal to confront oppression and champion systemic changes that benefit our clients and communities.
Now, more than ever, we call upon you to join us in meeting the country in this pivotal moment, to rise against injustice and to create the “good trouble” necessary to dismantle oppressive systems and build a more just and equitable society.
While it’s common knowledge that tobacco use increases the risk of cancer, under half of Americans are aware that even low amounts of alcohol use are a leading preventable cause of at least seven types of cancer.
Every year, alcohol use contributes to nearly 100,000 cancer cases and about 20,000 cancer deaths, according to a recent advisory from the former U.S. Surgeon General. Notably, drinking even small amounts of alcohol increases the risk of breast cancer. Another study found that men and women who have one drink a day were 40% more likely than those who did not drink to develop mouth cancer.
For women, alcohol use poses the additional risk of prenatal alcohol exposure, a leading preventable cause of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs). People with FASDs can have lifelong effects, including problems with learning, behavior, and physical development. Similar to alcohol and cancer risk, there is no known safe amount of alcohol to consume if a woman is pregnant or might be pregnant. Alcohol can cause problems for a developing baby throughout pregnancy, including before a woman knows she’s pregnant. In addition, all types of alcohol are harmful, including wine, beer, and liquor.
This Alcohol Awareness Month, social workers can dispel common myths about drinking, including the belief that there is a safe time, amount, or amount of alcohol to drink while pregnant. For a healthy pregnancy, avoiding alcohol and other substances is the safest thing to do. And if a client is drinking while pregnant, every day counts. The sooner the drinking stops, the better for the baby.
The National Association of Social Workers (NASW) and NASW Foundation are partners with the Health Behavior Research and Training Institute at The University of Texas at Austin Steve Hicks School of Social Work in a national initiative to prevent alcohol- and other substance-exposed pregnancy. This Centers for Disease Control and Prevention effort puts social work at the center of prevention practice, along with cross-discipline partners, in the FASD National Partner Network.
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Article by Diana Ling, MA, Senior Program Manager; and Anna Mangum, MSW, MPH, Senior Health Strategist; Health Behavior Research and Training Institute, Steve Hicks School of Social Work, The University of Texas at Austin.
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This initiative, Engaging Social Workers in Preventing Alcohol- and Other Substance-Exposed Pregnancies, is supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services as part of a financial assistance award totaling $913,610 with 100 percent funded by CDC/HHS. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement by, CDC/HHS, or the U.S. Government.