Values and Ethics |
Disabilities |
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Myths and Realities |
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| OVERVIEW: DISBILITY AND SOCIAL WORK VALUES | ||
Myth: People with disabilities have poor quality of life and deservesympathy, pity, and charity Reality: The quality of a person's life depends onthe quality of their livingconditions, their accessto community activitiesand social relationships, and their opportinity tocontribute to society. |
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| Self-Determination | ||
| Social and Economic Justice | ||
| Non-discrimination | ||
| Respect and appreciation for diversity | ||
| Social Work values provide an ethical framework for social work practice related to disabilities. The most | ||
| common value statements relevant to disabilities are self-determination, social and economic justice, non- | ||
| discriminiation, and respect and appreciation for dicersity. Tho Social Work profession generally defines | ||
| these as: | ||
| Social Work Code of Ethics | ||
| In this section you will find severeal activities designed to enliven these values for students as they work | ||
| with peoples with disabilities. Some are in-class activities and some are web or outside resources. You will | ||
| also find handouts and activities that have proven to be helpful. Additionally, these activities may be used to | ||
| inform other content areas sucj as Human Behavior in the Social Environment, Practice, and Policy. | ||
| From a Social Work perspective, disability is a civil rights issue. We cannot simply expect individuals to | ||
| change to fit society, but society must change to accommodate all people. People with disabilities are | ||
| entitled to full and equal participation in society. The American with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) was | ||
| enacted to assure protection of lefal rights and prohibit discrimination on the basis of disabilitiy in | ||
| employment, access to public services, public accommodation, commercial facilities, and requires telephone | ||
| companies to offer telephone relay service for people who use telecommunication services for the deaf | ||
| discrimination or attitudinal barriers for people with disabilities. | ||
| The traditional model of providing services to peple with disabilities places the control over services with | ||
| service providers. Disability rights advocates promote a move to greater self-determination for people with | ||
| disabilties. This is consistent with social work values - even though scuh self-determination has not and is | ||
| not always practiced by social service and other programs serving people with disabilities. Self-determination | ||
| means having the freedom and authority to manage one's own life and make choices. This often means | ||
| having control over where to live and who to live with, what support staff will be hired and the training of | ||
| such support staff, choosing community connections and activities, choosing who will help with planning, | ||
| having authority over resources, and making decisions about employment and education. In other words, | ||
| having the same rights and popportunities as people without disabilities. | ||
| Social workers often serve in the role of advocate. Recognizing that people with disabilities can be self- | ||
| advocates and assisting them in that role, when appropriate, is consistent with empowerment. Social | ||
| workers must recognize that people with disabilities are capapbe people who deserve to be treated with | ||
| respect and held in esteem. Social workers need to identify strenths and abilities and work to remove | ||
| barriers that prohibit full participation in activities of living . Disability is a complex interaction between | ||
| person and environment. One may be considered as having a disabilitiy because of a physical condition, | ||
| however, it is barriers in the enviornment that turn disability into impairment and prevent full participation. | ||
| Read More in the Full Report | ||
Direct 1-304-384-5353 | Toll Free 1-800-344-6679 ext. 5353 |
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