Why is the Social Work Profession So Important?

I have chosen to do my topic on the importance of the social work profession. Based on the Widener Library criteria I believe that one of my sources would be an appropiate sources to use for my research, and one would not. The naswdc.org site is a very well respected source for professional social workers and one of the leading authorities or voices for social workers in the United States. The information is always up-to-date and accurate when compared to the instruction taught in social work books and related courses. There are also links to other sites that validate the information displayed on the naswdc.org site. My second source is a social work magazine socialworktoday.com. Although the website proclaims that it is the leading social work magazine in the United States, there isn't much information about who the editor and publish of the magazine is in respect to the field of social work. They do provide email addresses and names for these people but it does no indicate if these people are actually social workers. The site also has alot of advertising, which I realize that most magazines do. There are however some links to useful resources that might help those already working in the field. I'm not sure if the articles and information that they provide is up-to-date or not. As far objectivity goes I'm not sure.

My main point sentence be: The social work profession is a very essential profession for the functioning of our society. My preliminary conclusions are that the social work field is a profession that is in high demand in terms of service but is not respected the way that it should be. One of the reasons that it isn't respected is because of the group of people that the profession serves.

I plan to research my topic by using books, journals, articles and websites to gather information.
I will then to a background study on the nature of social work, social workers and the people who benefit from their work. I will also deal with some of the social issues that our society is facing and what the role of a social worker would be in helping solve and prevent that particular issue.

Social Work

• naswdc.org
• socialworktoday.com

There are many things that interest me but the three topics that come to mind are: families(What are they experiencing in the kind of society that we live in?) , social work (How will it change as our society changes?) and divorce ( Why is it such a popular option in the 21st century?) I think that these topics are of interest to me because I am a Human Development major who plans to be a social worker and i want to be able to help my clients as much as I can in maintaining a healthly family ( this definition may change over time) . I am also a mother and wonder how these things will affect my children.

Consequently, I would be intrested in researching how the social work field has evolved over time. What I already know about this subject is that the social work field is fairly new compared to other fields. I beleive that is has only been an actual field since some time between the 1940's -1960's ( I could be wrong, but this is something that I would learn through my research). Also, i know that it is a career that is projected to be in above average demand in the coming years. i also know that it can be a very stressful field and does not pay as much money as some other fields do. i have also learned that social work is all around us, even in places that we least expect it to be. What I don't know about social work can be summed up in three questions:

1. How can a social work student or social worker be creative with their chosen

are of expertise?

2. How can a social work student make his/her degree work for them

financially?

3. What will social work be like five years from now?