Competency Review and Instructions
Competency 6 – Students will Engage with Individuals, Families, Groups, Organizations, and Communities in Advanced Social Work Practice
Specialty Year Description
Advanced social work practitioners with a clinical emphasis understand theories of human behavior and person-in-environment and use culturally responsive and cognitive and affective skills to effectively engage with individuals and groups. They are equipped to skillfully engage with families in exploring the impact of diversity and difference in shaping their lives in mezzo social work practice. Advanced social work practitioners with a clinical emphasis demonstrate the application of ecosystems, strengths, development, and empowerment perspectives in practice with client systems (knowledge, skills). Advanced social work practitioners with a clinical emphasis possess a high level of self-awareness and understand how their personal experiences, bias, power or privilege, and reactions may impact their ability to effectively engage with diverse clients and constituencies in practice settings. Advanced social work practitioners with a clinical emphasis value and demonstrate skills of relationship-building, empathy, authenticity, the amplification of strengths, and inter-professional collaboration to facilitate engagement with clients, constituencies, and other professionals as appropriate. Advanced social work practitioners with a clinical emphasis apply ethical Christ-like attitudes, values, and worldviews appropriate to mezzo social work practice.
Upon successful completion of the advanced generalist curriculum, students will be able to:
- Apply knowledge of human behavior and the social environment, person-in-environment, and other multidisciplinary theoretical frameworks to clinical engagement with client systems
- Model empathy, reflection, and interpersonal skills to effectively engage in culturally responsive practice with clients and constituencies in clinical practice
- Select best practices for engaging clients and constituencies in a variety of situations.
- Formulate a planned change process that demonstrates cultural humility and responsiveness in clinical social work practice.
- Manage bias, power, privilege, personal values, and/or personal experiences when engaging diverse clients and constituencies.
For each question area below (numbers 2, 3, and 4) provide a two-paragraph response connecting your answers to the competency description and behaviors listed above.
Your responses should be well-written and formulated with no grammatical errors. Your response should demonstrate your thorough justification for why the two pieces of evidence you have submitted in Brightspace are valid in showing your competency in this area and clearly demonstrate your application of knowledge, skills, values, and learning.