Author: Doc. PhDr. Mária Machalová, CSc.
INTRODUCTION
The concept of educational social work and the concept of educational social counseling as innovative components of the system of preventive social work—science, field of study, and social assistance—is the result of our long-term theoretical, research, pedagogical, and practical activity and also of the conviction that:
- poverty of spirit produces material poverty, and therefore social work should manifest its identity as science, field of education, and practical activity by translating its social usefulness into support for people’s social self-help actions, with the aim of elevating their social and psychological maturity and responsibility for their own lives;
- social work should be effective and real (not only declared) support for social health, i.e., demonstrable support ensured by social work tools through social communication and social relationships that help people’s social and psychological integration and adaptation in their living environments;
- social work is not primarily the remediation of social problems and social pathology but should be a real (not only declared) developmental social program supporting the cultivation of people’s social and individual potential.
The monograph is grounded in a holistic approach to understanding the human being, the social environment, and their mutual dynamic relationship; a systemic approach to understanding human development as an individual system that is part of a higher and more complex system of social and educational environment; and a humanistic approach to understanding the content and meaning of education as prevention and social assistance, guiding people toward self-help and the development of individual potential. Preventive social work is defined from the perspective of the educational paradigm in social work, which is why it is described as educational social work.
Contained in the monograph are the outlines of the author’s theoretical concepts: - Educational social work as specialized preventive social work. - Educational social counseling for adults as specialized social counseling. - Individual potential (in the context of educational social work). - Psychological maturity – maturity (in the context of educational social work).
The concept of Educational Social Work and Educational Social Counseling is justified in the context of contemporary society in the first and second chapters of the monograph. The starting point is the search for links between the identity of the postmodern age and the identity of the social client, and the naming of the way social clients can achieve authenticity, who can become the most effective prevention of their own personal and group social burdens (events and problems).
In the first chapter, emphasis is placed on the concept of educational social work, on social assistance, and on the definition of individual potential. At the same time, it also addresses systemic competence to live as a personal resource and a tool for the prevention of social problems. In the second chapter, the dominant concept is educational social counseling, defining its goals and tasks. Attention is paid to the roles of social workers in educational social counseling and also to a systemic and dynamic approach to helping clients, with this setting of educational social assistance: social assistance – self-help – development of clients’ individual/psychological and social potential.
The importance of the relationship between personality systems and social environment systems, and their mutual determination, is emphasized in the third chapter, based on defining a systemic approach to personality in social environment and socio-psychological adaptation of people. The responsibility of groups of people and of society toward the individual is made visible, and conversely the responsibility of individuals toward social groups and society. What happens in society is at the same time a public and a private matter. What happens to individual persons is at the same time a private and a public matter. The mutual relationship between the individual and society is also characterized within the challenges for adult education, which are viewed through the demands of individuals’ employment in the globalized conditions of people’s work and life.
In the fourth chapter, selected concepts of adult education (education and upbringing of adults) in the social context are defined. The importance, content, and process of lifelong learning (adult learning) are highlighted, as well as the identification of target groups in adult education. The issue and idea of upbringing and education, i.e., adult education, are, however, integrated throughout the monograph. It is the red thread that links the individual thematic units presented in its chapters and is also the delimiting context for presenting preventive social work as educational social work.
In the fifth chapter of the monograph, J. W. Goethe’s view is reflected that every theory is gray compared to the eternal tree of life, which is always green. Therefore, the fifth chapter is “animated” with themes concerning social events, situations, and problems of selected groups of people—unemployed people, seniors, and groups of citizens during a transformative social change.
A person in society is confronted with social changes throughout life. Therefore, it is meaningful to provide social assistance to them, but also to lead them to mobilizing their abilities for social self-help and to apply their capacities to become established and improve themselves personally.
The monograph aims to present an innovative concept and support the establishment of preventive educational social work, which can be understood as preventive specialized social work and preventive developmental social work.
CONTENT
-
EDUCATIONAL SOCIAL WORK 1.1 Justification of Preventive Educational Social Work 1.1.1 The Identity of Science and the Discipline of Social Work and the Identity of the Social Client 1.2 Educational Social Work—Educational Paradigm in Social Work—Definition of the Concept 1.3 Educational Social Work as Preventive Developmental Social Work 1.3.1 Social Assistance and Individual Potential and Individuality 1.3.2 Individuality and Psychological Maturity 1.4 Individual Potential in the Context of Educational Social Work 1.4.1 Systemic Competence for Life and the Tasks of Educational Social Work
-
EDUCATIONAL SOCIAL COUNSELING 2.1 Educational Social Counseling for Adults 2.1.1 The Goals of Educational Social Counseling from the Perspective of Quality of Life 2.2 Tasks of Educational Social Counseling for Adults 2.2.1 Social Workers and the Role of the Educational Social Counselor 2.3 Social Assistance – Social Self-Help – Development of Individual Potential in Educational Social Counseling 2.4 Educational Social Counseling for Adults – Definition of the Concept 2.5 Social Context of Educational Social Work and Educational Social Counseling 2.6 Social Workers in Educational Social Work 2.6.1 Competencies of Social Workers in Educational Social Work
-
PERSON AND ENVIRONMENT 3.1 Personality and Social Environment 3.2 Systemic Approach to Personality 3.3 Relationship Between Personality and Environment 3.3.1 Socio-Psychological Adaptation in the Environment 3.4. Challenges for Adult Education
-
CONCEPTS OF EDUCATION IN SOCIAL CONTEXT 4.1 Education and Upbringing 4.2 Lifelong Education and Learning 4.3 Participants and Target Groups of Adult Education 4.4 Success of Personality in Adult Education 4.5 Identifying Target Groups in Adult Education
-
APPLICATION FIELD OF EDUCATIONAL SOCIAL WORK – EXAMPLES 5.1 Unemployment in the Context of Adult Education 5.2 Professional Insertion in Older Age and Discrimination in a Social Context 5.3 Personal Expectations of People in Socio-Political Context
Conclusion The topic of the monograph is preventive social work defined by the concept of Educational Social Work and by the concept of Educational Social Counseling. Both concepts are realizations of the application of the educational paradigm in social work.
The content and tools of social assistance in preventive educational social work relate to the fact that people’s lives have a social dimension and require constant adaptation through learning. This should be encouraged by preventive educational social programs. The impact of social education (upbringing, education, counseling) cannot be avoided. This is because any ways of addressing material and social need intervene in social and psychological adaptation and in the social and personal integrity of social clients.
From a societal perspective, education is systemic social assistance for people and a method of social prevention. Educational social work is characterized by its participation in solving social events and social problems of people in the phases of their identification, prevention, resolution, and evaluation of the effectiveness of problem solving.
Preventive socialization educational social work is support for primary prevention through social education—social upbringing, social education, and educational social counseling.
Preventive resocialization educational social work is support for secondary prevention through social therapy, social education, and educational social counseling.
Preventive rehabilitation educational social work is support for tertiary prevention through social aftercare, social education, and educational social counseling.
Words at the end: A serious disturbance of the dynamic balance of the relationship between individual and society, individual and environment, gives rise to social problems, which are evident in the personal and social failure of individuals and groups. The determination of social problems is varied and complex. Therefore, targeted social assistance should be provided to clients that addresses the main cause of their social imbalance. The concept of preventive educational social work is derived from the educational determination of the people’s social problem. Social assistance is provided to clients through social education and educational social counseling.
The search for consensus in theoretical approaches and practical activities of social work finds its expression in this monograph. The goal is the social benefit of clients, which should result from specialized and targeted social assistance. In this, the meaning of the monograph as a possible contribution to the theoretical portfolio of social work is captured, with defined potential for application in social work practice.
The concept of preventive educational social work and educational social counseling within it is presented as a scientifically and professionally justified formulation of specialized social assistance, with the vision of creating an integrated social assistance strategy for clients of social work in the future.
Title: PREVENTIVE SOCIAL WORK EDUCATIONAL PARADIGM IN SOCIAL WORK
Author: © Doc. PhDr. Mária Machalová, CSc.
Reviewers: Doc. PhDr. Nadežda Krajčová, PhD. Prof. PaedDr. Milan Schavel, PhD. Prof. dr hab. Andrzej Lipczyňski PhDr. Bohuslav Kuzyšin, PhD.
Translation: Mgr. Elena Brtáňová
Number of pages : 272 First edition
Published by: Prešovská univerzita v Prešove Prešov 2013 Print: CUBE consulting, s.r.o., Prešov
ISBN 978-80-555-0932-7 EAN 9 788055 509327