Cultural Competence In Social Work

To be an effective and competitive social worker, you will have to advocate for people with no voice, focus on their strengths and abilities instead of problems, serve and uphold the population but at the same time take care of well-being. During introduction to social welfare, we heard from numerous social workers and the areas of social work they practice. They each gave us feedback of skills we should either have or need to obtain. That includes developing time-management, communication and writing skills, relationship building with our peers, and enhancing our cultural competence. The most important skills for social workers in this field are having interpersonal skills so you can appropriately interact with a wide range of people, be
Cultural competence has the ability to understand, value and interact with people across cultures other than your own. To develop a positive attitude, you have to be aware of of the cultural differences and gain the knowledge of these different practices. Shane Sangrey described cultural competency as working with people who are drastically different from you, but at the same time you will learn about yourself you never thought you knew. It’s important to be culturally competent because you will have to respond effectively and respectfully to people of all diversity groups in a way that affirms and values their worth. This helps build an understanding between your clients and
I consider myself an active listener because I can engage myself in a conversation with people knowing that I understand where they are coming from. I’m known to be a trustworthy person who wants to make you feel comfortable when you talk to me. Engagement is important and if you don’t engage the importance of the conversation will decrease. When you don’t understand the importance of what is being said your response will not be clear and concise. So make sure you understand the body language they are sending out because people send out signals with their bodies by facial expressions, fidgeting and posture so beware of the signals your body language is sending out. Also being non-judgmental helps the client feel more comfortable, making the communication between the both of you more open and honest. Setting boundaries is another skill I have obtained while I was in high school. Although it took courage, patience and practice I’ve learned to not feel guilty by speaking up and stating my opinion. I begin by setting small boundaries that weren’t as challenging and intimidating to me