Crisis Theory and Resilience Theory

Social workers often confront crises that are brought to them—a crisis experienced by a client, a family, a community, or an organization. The goal of crisis theory is to intervene to help restore equilibrium and to reduce long-term psychological and social distress. Given the nature of social workers meeting clients at the point of crisis, interventions are short-term with very concrete outcomes.

In times of adversity or crisis, clients, families, communities, or organizations frequently forget that they have strengths, both intrapsychic assets and environmental resources, to assist them through the crisis. Resiliency can be viewed as a trait, a process, or the outcome of intervention, which may help a client adapt to a crisis, trauma, or adverse event. Resiliency theory emphasizes the environmental, psychological, social, and individual factors that minimize the risk that stems from problems that arise.

This week, you examine two theories that can be used to complement each other—crisis theory and resiliency theory.

Learning Objectives

Students will:

• Apply crisis theory and resiliency theory to social work practice
• Critique instruments to measure outcomes when evaluating effectiveness of interventions
• Evaluate the strengths and limitations of crisis theory and resiliency theory as they apply to social work practice

Photo Credit: [Gearstd]/[iStock / Getty Images Plus]/Getty Images

Learning Resources

Note: To access this week’s required library resources, please click on the link to the Course Readings List, found in the Course Materials section of your Syllabus.

Required Readings

Turner, F. J. (Ed.). (2017). Social work treatment: Interlocking theoretical approaches (6th ed.). New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
Chapter 7: Social Work Theory and Practice for Crisis, Disaster, and Trauma (pp. 117–130)
Chapter 29: Resiliency Theory and Social Work Practice (pp. 441–451)

Smith-Osborne, A. (2007). Life span and resiliency theory: A critical review. Advances in Social Work, 8(1), 152–168. Retrieved from https://advancesinsocialwork.iupui.edu/index.php/advancesinsocialwork/article/view/138

Smith-Osborne, A., & Whitehill Bolton K. (2013). Assessing resilience: A review of measures across the life course. Journal of Evidence-Based Social Work, 10(2), 111–126. doi:10.1080/15433714.2011.597305

Note: You will access this article from the Walden Library databases.

Document: Theory Into Practice: Four Social Work Case Studies (PDF)

Optional Resources

Bradshaw, B. G., Richardson, G. E., & Kulkarni, K. (2007). Thriving with diabetes—An introduction to the resiliency approach for diabetes educators. Diabetes Educator, 33(4), 643–649. https://doi.org/10.1177/0145721707303808

Dombo, E. A., & Ahearn, F. L. (2017). The aftermath of humanitarian crises: A model for addressing social work interventions with individuals, groups, and communities. Illness, Crisis, & Loss, 25(2), 107–126. https://doi.org/10.1177/1054137315606830

Discussion: Instruments Measuring Resiliency

Social workers strive to make informed decisions about the interventions they implement. These decisions should be driven by what the research data say. As a result, social workers have been called to systematically evaluate the effectiveness of the interventions they implement. A common way to evaluate interventions is to use a single-subject design. This involves monitoring an outcome for an intervention implemented for one client. After a social worker works with the client to determine the outcome to be measured, the following steps to the evaluation might look like this:

• Administer the instrument before the intervention is implemented
• Implement the intervention
• Administer the same instrument, after a specified time period
• Monitor to determine if there have been any changes in the outcome

In this Discussion, you use the lens of resiliency theory when reflecting on a case from your fieldwork, and then you consider how to measure the effectiveness of a possible intervention.

To prepare, read this article listed in the Learning Resources:

• Smith-Osborne, A., & Whitehill Bolton K. (2013). Assessing resilience: A review of measures across the life course. Journal of Evidence-Based Social Work, 10(2), 111–126. doi:10.1080/15433714.2011.597305

By Day 3

Post:

• Reflect on your fieldwork experience, and identify a case where it would have been beneficial to employ resiliency theory. Describe the case in 2 sentences.
• Describe the presenting problem in one concise sentence.
• Describe an intervention you would implement to promote resiliency.
• Identify an instrument from the Smith-Osborne and Whitehill Bolton’s article that would be appropriate when employing a single-subject design to evaluate how effective the intervention is in increasing the client’s level of resiliency.
• Explain why you selected the instrument.
  • In other words, why would the instrument be appropriate? (Consider the age of the client and for whom the instrument was designed, how feasible it would be to administer the instrument such as cost, time to administer it, etc.).

By Day 5

Respond to two colleagues:

• Discuss how you would use the data collected by your colleague to guide the next step in the planned change process or to inform future work with clients.

Application of Crisis Theory and Resiliency Theory to a Case Study

It is common for social workers to be presented with a crisis situation brought forth by clients, families, communities, and/or organizations. The ultimate goal is to restore the client to equilibrium. The five stages of the crisis are (1) the hazardous event, (2) the vulnerable stage, (3) the precipitating factor, (4) the state of active crisis, and (5) the reintegration or crisis resolution phase.

There are times when a social worker will use more than one theory to assist in conceptualizing the problem and intervention, particularly if the theories complement each other. For example, resiliency theory can be used alongside crisis theory.

To prepare: Review and focus on the same case study that you chose in Week 2.

By Day 7

Submit a 1- to 2-page case write-up that addresses the following:

• Map the client’s crisis using the five stages of the crisis.
• Describe the client’s assets and resources (in order to understand the client’s resilience).
• Describe how you, the social worker, will intervene to assist the client to reach the reintegration stage of the crisis. Be sure that the intervention promotes resiliency.
• Evaluate how using crisis theory and resiliency theory together help in working with a client.

Be sure to:

• Identify and correctly reference the case study you have chosen.
• Use literature to support your claims.
• Use APA formatting and style.
  • Remember to double-space your paper.
  •  Tiffani Bradley Identifying Data:
  •  Tiffani Bradley is a 16-year-old Caucasian female. She was raised in a Christian family in Philadelphia, PA. She is of German descent. Tiffani’s family consists of her father, Robert, 38 years old; her mother, Shondra, 33 years old, and her sister, Diana, 13 years old. Tiffani currently resides in a group home, Teens First, a brand new, court-mandated teen counseling program for adolescent victims of sexual exploitation and human trafficking. Tiffani has been provided room and board in the residential treatment facility for the past 3 months. Tiffani describes herself as heterosexual. Presenting Problem: Tiffani has a history of running away. She has been arrested on three occasions for prostitution in the last 2 years. Tiffani has recently been court ordered to reside in a group home with counseling. She has a continued desire to be reunited with her pimp, Donald. After 3 months at Teens First, Tiffani said that she had a strong desire to see her sister and her mother. She had not seen either of them in over 2 years and missed them very much. Tiffani is confused about the path to follow. She is not sure if she wants to return to her family and sibling or go back to Donald. Family Dynamics: Tiffani indicates that her family worked well together until 8 years ago. She reports that around the age of 8, she remembered being awakened by music and laughter in the early hours of the morning. When she went downstairs to investigate, she saw her parents and her Uncle Nate passing a pipe back and forth between them. She remembered asking them what they were doing and her mother saying, “adult things” and putting her back in bed. Tiffani remembers this happening on several occasions. Tiffani also recalls significant changes in the home’s appearance. The home, which was never fancy, was always neat and tidy. During this time, however, dust would gather around the house, dishes would pile up in the sink, dirt would remain on the floor, and clothes would go for long periods of time without being washed. Tiffani began cleaning her own clothes and making meals for herself and her sister. Often there was not enough food to feed everyone, and Tiffani and her sister would go to bed hungry. Tiffani believed she was responsible for helping her mom so that her mom did not get so overwhelmed. She thought that if she took care of the home and her sister, maybe that would help mom return to the person she was before.  Sometimes Tiffani and her sister would come downstairs in the morning to find empty beer cans and liquor bottles on the kitchen table along with a crack pipe. Her parents would be in the bedroom, and Tiffani and her sister would leave the house and go to school by themselves. The music and noise downstairs continued for the next 6 years, which escalated to screams and shouting and sounds of people fighting. Tiffani remembers her mom one morning yelling at her dad to “get up and go to work.” Tiffani and Diana saw their dad come out of the bedroom and slap their mom so hard she was knocked down. Dad then went back into the bedroom. Tiffani   remembers thinking that her mom was not doing what she was supposed to do in the house, which is what probably angered her dad. Shondra and Robert have been separated for a little over a year and have started dating other people. Diana currently resides with her mother and Anthony, 31 years old, who is her mother’s new boyfriend. Educational History: Tiffani attends school at the group home, taking general education classes for her general education development (GED) credential. Diana attends Town Middle School and is in the 8th grade. Employment History: Tiffani reports that her father was employed as a welding apprentice and was waiting for the opportunity to join the union. Eight years ago, he was laid off due to financial constraints at the company. He would pick up odd jobs for the next 8 years but never had steady work after that. Her mother works as a home health aide. Her work is part-time, and she has been unable to secure full-time work. Social History: Over the past 2 years, Tiffani has had limited contact with her family members and has not been attending school. Tiffani did contact her sister Diana a few times over the 2-year period and stated that she missed her very much. Tiffani views Donald as her “husband” (although they were never married) and her only friend. Previously, Donald sold Tiffani to a pimp, “John T.” Tiffani reports that she was very upset Donald did this and that she wants to be reunited with him, missing him very much. Tiffani indicates that she knows she can be a better “wife” to him. She has tried to make contact with him by sending messages through other people, as John T. did not allow her access to a phone. It appears that over the last 2 years, Tiffani has had neither outside support nor interactions with anyone beyond Donald, John T., and some other young women who were prostituting. Mental Health History: On many occasions Tiffani recalls that when her mother was not around, Uncle Nate would ask her to sit on his lap. Her father would sometimes ask her to show them the dance that she had learned at school. When she danced, her father and Nate would laugh and offer her pocket change. Sometimes, their friend Jimmy joined them. One night, Tiffani was awakened by her uncle Nate and his friend Jimmy. Her parents were apparently out, and they were the only adults in the home. They asked her if she wanted to come downstairs and show them the new dances she learned at school. Once downstairs Nate and Jimmy put some music on and started to dance. They asked Tiffani to start dancing with them, which she did. While they were dancing, Jimmy spilled some beer on her. Nate said she had to go to the bathroom to clean up. Nate, Jimmy, and Tiffani all went to the bathroom. Nate asked Tiffani to take her clothes off and get in the bath. Tiffani hesitated to do this, but Nate insisted it was OK since he and Jimmy were family. Tiffani eventually relented and began to wash up. Nate would tell her that she missed a spot and would scrub the area with his hands. Incidents like this continued to occur with increasing  levels of molestation each time.  The last time it happened, when Tiffani was 14, she pretended to be willing to dance for them, but when she got downstairs, she ran out the front door of the house. Tiffani vividly remembers the fear she felt the nights Nate and Jimmy touched her, and she was convinced they would have raped her if she stayed in the house.  About halfway down the block, a car stopped. The man introduced himself as Donald, and he indicated that he would take care of her and keep her safe when these things happened. He then offered to be her boyfriend and took Tiffani to his apartment. Donald insisted Tiffani drink beer. When Tiffani was drunk, Donald began kissing her, and they had sex. Tiffani was also afraid that if she did not have sex, Donald would not let her stay— she had nowhere else to go. For the next 3 days, Donald brought her food and beer and had sex with her several more times. Donald told Tiffani that she was not allowed to do anything without his permission. This included watching TV, going to the bathroom, taking a shower, and eating and drinking. A few weeks later, Donald bought Tiffani a dress, explaining to her that she was going to “find a date” and get men to pay her to have sex. When Tiffani said she did not want to do that, Donald hit her several times. Donald explained that if she didn’t do it, he would get her sister Diana and make her do it instead. Out of fear for her sister, Tiffani relented and did what Donald told her to do. She thought at this point her only purpose in life was to be a sex object, listen, and obey—and then she would be able to keep the relationships and love she so desired. Legal History: Tiffani has been arrested three times for prostitution. Right before the most recent charge, a new state policy was enacted to protect youth 16 years and younger from prosecution and jail time for prostitution. The Safe Harbor for Exploited Children Act allows the state to define Tiffani as a sexually exploited youth, and therefore the state will not imprison her for prostitution. She was mandated to services at the Teens First agency, unlike her prior arrests when she had been sent to detention. Alcohol and Drug Use History: Tiffani’s parents were social drinkers until about 8 years ago. At that time Uncle Nate introduced them to crack cocaine. Tiffani reports using alcohol when Donald wanted her to since she wanted to please him, and she thought this was the way she would be a good “wife.” She denies any other drug use.  Medical History: During intake, it was noted that Tiffani had multiple bruises and burn marks on her legs and arms. She reported that Donald had slapped her when he felt she did not behave and that John T. burned her with cigarettes. She had realized that she did some things that would make them mad, and she tried her hardest to keep them pleased even though she did not want to be with John T. Tiffani has been treated for several sexually transmitted infections (STIs) at local clinics and is currently on an antibiotic for a kidney infection. Although she was given condoms by Donald and John T. for her “dates,” there were several “Johns” who refused to use  them.
  • Strenghts: Tiffani is resilient in learning how to survive the negative relationships she has been involved with. She has as sense of protection for her sister and will sacrifice herself to keep her sister safe. Robert Bradley: father, 38 years old Shondra Bradley: mother, 33 years old Nate Bradley: uncle, 36 years old Tiffani Bradley: daughter, 16 years old Diana Bradley: daughter, 13 years old Donald: Tiffani’s self-described husband and her former pimp Anthony: Shondra’s live-in partner, 31 years old John T.: Tiffani’s most recent pimp
• Responses

Angelica Wiggins RE: Discussion – Week 5COLLAPSE

Reflect on your fieldwork experience and identify a case where it would have been beneficial to employ resiliency theory. Describe the case in 2 sentences. 

Unfortunately, I have not completed my field experience yet but plan to do so during the Fall 2019 quarter. For this discussion, I chose the case of Tiffani Bradley to reflect on. This is the case that I identified at the top of Week 2 and have become very familiar with the client.

In the case of Tiffani Bradley, the resilience theory would be very beneficial. Tiffani is a 16-year-old female who has been a victim of prettification from the age of eight.  Tiffani is a prime example of the resilience theory because she consistently copes with stress and adversity to achieve functional outcomes and beat the odds in her environment.

Describe the presenting problem in one concise sentence.  

Tiffani is 16-year-old female who has overcome trauma/high stress levels in her family dynamic and environment due to her ability to adapt to negative external factors surrounding her.

Describe an intervention you would implement to promote the resiliency.

The strength-based approach would be an intervention I would implement to promote resiliency in Tiffani’s life. I would also use solution-focused therapy as it would help Tiffani to focus on what she wants to personally achieve and minimize the emphasis on past failings and problems. Tiffani and I would focus on her strengths and prior accomplishments.

Identify an instrument from the Smith-Osborne and Whitehill Bolton’s article that would be appropriate when employing a single-subject design to evaluate how effective the intervention is in increasing the client’s level of resiliency.

An instrument from the Smith-Osborne and Whitehill Bolton’s article that would be appropriate when employing a single-subject design to evaluate how effective the intervention is in increasing the client’s level of resiliency would be the “RSCA” method by (Prince-Embury, 2008). The RSCA instrument consists of 3 scales: Emotional reactivity, sense of mastery, and sense of relatedness. The sense of relatedness monitors the individual’s ability to trust others and the capacity to accept others. Emotional reactivity monitors the individual’s sensitivity level and their behavior when upset. Sense of mastery measures the individual’s adaptability, and how they perceive uncontrollable factors in life.

Explain why you selected the instrument. In other words, why would the instrument be appropriate? (Consider the age of the client and for whom the instrument was designed, how feasible it would be to administer the instrument such as cost, time to administer it, etc.).  

I believe that the RSCA instrument would be appropriate being that Tiffani is 16 years old and falls into the age range for RCSA sampling. The RCSA validation sampled adolescent’s ages 9 to 18 years old. The sample measures the resilience in children and adolescents. It is also free of cost and would not cause any financial burdens on Tiffani or her support system.

Second response

Jennifer Ford RE: Discussion – Week 5 COLLAPSE

In my tenure as a librarian, I had the pleasure of meeting a young boy who had parents who did drugs in the home (CYS was already alerted and actively working on his case).  I was kind to this kid, because I knew of his plight outside of the library.  One day I offered him a Klondike, because my kids were there, and I had bought Klondikes for them.  He smiled, and came up to me and then his face got dark, and he asked “are you serious?” I didn’t even think about his previous experiences., and I said “of course, what do you take me for?”

An intervention that might be effective would be working on family strengthening and developing a plan to have the family use talk therapy to sort out differences and to strengthen the family unit.  I worked with an art therapist when my own marriage was failing, and it was wonderful to work on our individual parts of a painting, and put them all together.  I think this may be a starting point for this boy’s family.

I also agree with the previous post, the RSCA method from Smith and Osborne, would have done me well in this articular case.  It would have allowed me to see how he applied a sense of relatedness, emotional reactivity and sense of relatedness.

Jamiah Cruz RE: Discussion – Week 6COLLAPSE

The reference I used for my search was Foster, J. M. (2017). The Fears and Futures of Boy Victims of Sexual Abuse: An Analysis of Narratives. Journal of Child Sexual Abuse, 26(6), 710-730. doi:10.1080/10538712.2017.1339223.  According to the text Foster, J. M. (2017). The centers for disease control and prevention in 2005 asserts that 1 in 4 girls and 1 in 6 boys are sexually abused before the age of 18.  Mostly 50 percent of women and 28 percent men who sees counselors have history of sexual abuse. Most individual turn down help because they aren’t ready to talk about the trauma. They would always need to seek help to cope with others because of their fear. Sexual abuse clients will always have a issue coping with others and they will always see the world is unsafe. Tiffani recieved helped at the home she resigned in and she decided to try and cope with her parents and the world.  I say I would use cognitive Behavior therapy because it’s a process they go by step by step to see if you can improve off the steps they are going by. She couldn’t cope with the individuals that hurt her but she ended up coping with her sister.

Angelica Wiggins RE: Discussion – Week 6COLLAPSE

Provide the reference for the study you found using APA guidelines.

Boone, M. S., Mundy, B., Morrissey Stahl, K., & Genrich, B. E. (2015). Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Functional Contextualism, and Clinical Social Work. Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment, 25(6), 643–656.

Briefly paraphrase, in 2 to 3 sentences, the methodological context (i.e., research method, how data was collected, and the instruments used) of the study and the findings.

This article discusses the fit between social work and acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), a mindfulness-based cognitive behavioral therapy that meets all of these criteria. As of 2011, approximately two thirds of ACT studies had included mediation analyses, statistical tests that determine whether changes in measured outcomes (e.g., degree of depression, quality of life) are driven, at least in part, by the processes theorized by the treatment model (Hayes et al., 2011). This kind of analysis is important because when a treatment works, it is often difficult to determine the primary mediating.

Evaluate the findings in terms of its applicability or appropriateness for the client in your case study.

ACT ultimately offer social workers useful tools for supporting growth and change in their clients. ACT uses metaphors, mindfulness, and experiential exercises to help clients contact experientially what it is like to simply notice their internal experiences (e.g., thoughts, feelings, memories) rather than trying to change them.

Determine whether you would use or not use the therapy you selected for the client in your selected case study (consider how culturally relevant it is, how aligned it is with social work ethics, etc.) and explain why.

I would indeed use ACT in Tiffani’s case as ACT undermines the power of socially and verbally constructed ways of relating by helping clients become more present to their moment-to-moment experience (Boone et al., 2015). Through this form of therapy Tiffani’s feelings and experiences are still there, but her relationship to them are different. Her thoughts and feelings will become more like what she experienced, rather than representations of how the world is.

Week 9: Solution-Focused and Task-Centered Models

Solution-focused and task-centered models fall into the tradition of therapies that are structured, focused, and brief. Both models lend themselves to working with individuals, families, groups, and communities. In addition, both models lend themselves well to utilizing other theories for implementing solutions or tasks.

As the name implies, the solution-focused model emphasizes that solutions can be found within the clients themselves. In other words, the client has the answers, and the role of the social worker is to help them find the answers or solution to the problem. Because of the emphasis on finding solutions, the focus is on the present rather than the past. The question becomes, What is the current problem, and what solutions can be implemented to resolve the problem? This is very different from theories such as psychoanalytical theory where the social worker focuses on the past. For instance, theories that focus on the past emphasize the social worker helping the client figure out what in the past triggered the current problem.

Similarly, as the name connotes, the task-centered model emphasizes assisting clients to clarify what the problem is and to identify and break down the tasks that need to be implemented to resolve the problem (Reid, 1997). For each stage of the helping process, there are tasks to be identified and covered.

This week, you apply these two additional models—solution-focused and task-centered—to practice.

Learning Objectives

Students will:

• Apply the solution-focused model and the task-centered model to social work practice
• Evaluate the strength and limitations of the solution-focused model and the task-centered model to social work practice

Photo Credit: [ismagilov]/[iStock / Getty Images Plus]/Getty Images

Learning Resources

Note: To access this week’s required library resources, please click on the link to the Course Readings List, found in the Course Materials section of your Syllabus.

Required Readings

Turner, F. J. (Ed.). (2017). Social work treatment: Interlocking theoretical approaches (6th ed.). New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
Chapter 35: Solution-Focused Theory (pp. 513–531)
Chapter 36: Task-Centered Social Work (pp. 532–552)

Westefeld, J. S., & Heckman-Stone, C. (2003). The integrated problem-solving model of crisis intervention: Overview and application. The Counseling Psychologist, 31(2), 221–239. https://doi-org.ezp.waldenulibrary.org/10.1177/0011000002250638

Note: You will access this article from the Walden Library databases.

Document: Theory Into Practice: Four Social Work Case Studies (PDF)

Document: Kaltura Personal Capture – QuickStart Guide (PDF)

Required Media

Sommers-Flanagan, J., & Sommers-Flanagan, R. (2014). Counseling and psychotherapy theories in context and practice [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.psychotherapy.net.ezp.waldenulibrary.org/stream/waldenu/video?vid=277

This week, watch the “Solution-Focused Therapy” segment by clicking the applicable link under the “Chapters” tab.

Note: You will access this video from the Walden Library databases.

Optional Resources

Johnson, S. D., & Williams, S.-L. (2015). Solution-focused strategies for effective sexual health communication among African American parents and their adolescents. Health & Social Work, 40(4), 267–274. https://doi.org/10.1093/hsw/hlv056

Myer, R. A., Lewis, J. S., & James, R.K. (2013). The introduction of a task model for crisis intervention. Journal of Mental Health Counseling, 35(2), 95–107. https://doi.org/10.17744/mehc.35.2.nh322x3547475154

Reid, W. J. (1997). Research on task-centered practice. Journal of Social Work Research, 21(3), 132–137. https://doi.org/10.1093/swr/21.3.132

Discussion: Solution-Focused Model: Asking Questions

Social workers who utilize the solution-focused model are mindful of how their conversations with their clients, families, groups, or even community members facilitate their thinking about solutions. The client is always the “expert,” and therefore social workers ask questions to explore how the client perceives the problem and situation.

Social workers may use solution-focused questions such as the miracle question. For example, “Suppose you woke up one morning and by some miracle everything you ever wanted, everything good you could ever imagine for yourself, had actually happened—your life had turned out exactly the way you wanted it. What would be different in your life?” When clients are asked this, it forces them to reflect on what they want or would like to achieve. By projecting themselves into the future, clients are more likely to imagine what is possible rather than focusing on the past and their failures. This allows for the possibility of developing solutions.

In this Discussion, you apply the solution-focused model and solution-focused questions. You provide other solution-focused questions, similar to the miracle question that was provided for you.

Although the textbook provides actual examples of solution-focused questions, always think about your client—you may have to modify the question a bit to take into account the client’s age, cognitive and developmental stage, culture, etc., so that the question makes sense to the client.

To prepare:

• Recall a case from your fieldwork experience to use for this Discussion.
• Review and focus on pages 520–521 in your textbook.

By Day 3

Post:

• In 1 to 2 sentences, briefly identify and describe the problem as perceived by the client, family, or group that you dealt with in your past fieldwork experience.
• From the list of solution-focused questions on page 520 (e.g., exception questions, coping questions, scaling questions, and relationship questions), identify two different types of questions, and ask each question as if you were actually asking the questions to the client. (Remember, do not use the miracle question.)
  • Remember that the goal of these questions is to assist clients in identifying a solution
• Explain how asking these two questions would help the client in coming up with the solution.
• In 1 to 2 sentences, reflect and explain how asking these questions made you feel and perhaps how the client might feel.

By Day 5

Respond to two colleagues:

• Identify a barrier that might make it difficult to implement the solution-focused model with the client described.
• Discuss how a social worker could help a client re-focus on the present, rather than on their past.

Submission and Grading Information

Grading Criteria

To access your rubric:
Week 9 Discussion Rubric

Post by Day 3 and Respond by Day 5

To participate in this Discussion:
Week 9 Discussion

Final Case Assignment: Application of the Problem-Solving Model and Theoretical Orientation to a Case Study

The problem-solving model was first laid out by Helen Perlman. Her seminal 1957 book, Social Casework: A Problem-Solving Process, described the problem-solving model and the 4Ps. Since then, other scholars and practitioners have expanded the problem-solving model and problem-solving therapy. At the heart of problem-solving model and problem-solving therapy is helping clients identify the problem and the goal, generating options, evaluating the options, and then implementing the plan.

Because models are blueprints and are not necessarily theories, it is common to use a model and then identify a theory to drive the conceptualization of the client’s problem, assessment, and interventions. Take, for example, the article by Westefeld and Heckman-Stone (2003). Note how the authors use a problem-solving model as the blueprint in identifying the steps when working with clients who have experienced sexual assault. On top of the problem-solving model, the authors employed crisis theory, as this theory applies to the trauma of going through sexual assault. Observe how, starting on page 229, the authors incorporated crisis theory to their problem-solving model.

In this Final Case Assignment, using the same case study that you chose in Week 2, you will use the problem-solving model AND a theory from the host of different theoretical orientations you have used for the case study.

You will prepare a PowerPoint presentation consisting of 11 to 12 slides, and you will use the Personal Capture function of Kaltura to record both audio and video of yourself presenting your PowerPoint presentation.

To prepare:

• Review and focus on the case study that you chose in Week 2.
• Review the problem-solving model, focusing on the five steps of the problem-solving model formulated by D’Zurilla on page 388 in the textbook.
• In addition, review this article listed in the Learning Resources: Westefeld, J. S., & Heckman-Stone, C. (2003). The integrated problem-solving model of crisis intervention: Overview and application. The Counseling Psychologist, 31(2), 221–239. https://doi-org.ezp.waldenulibrary.org/10.1177/0011000002250638

By Day 7

Upload your Kaltura video of you presenting your PowerPoint presentation that addresses the following:

• Identify the theoretical orientation you have selected to use.
• Describe how you would assess the problem orientation of the client in your selected case study (i.e., how the client perceives the problem). Remember to keep the theoretical orientation in mind in this assessment stage.
• Discuss the problem definition and formulation based on the theoretical orientation you have selected.
• Identify and describe two solutions from all the solutions possible. Remember, some of these solutions should stem from the theoretical orientation you are utilizing.
• Describe how you would implement the solution. Remember to keep the theoretical orientation in mind.
• Describe the extent to which the client is able to mobilize the solutions for change.
• Discuss how you would evaluate whether the outcome is achieved or not. Remember to keep the theoretical orientation in mind.
• Evaluate how well the problem-solving model can be used for short-term treatment of this client.
• Evaluate one merit and one limitation of using the problem-solving model for this case.

Your 11- to 12-slide PowerPoint presentation should follow these guidelines:

• Each slide should be written using bullet points, meaning no long paragraphs of written text should be in the slides.
• Include a brief narration for each slide (i.e., the narration takes the place of any written paragraphs, while the bullet points provide context and cues for the audience to follow along).
• Record both audio and video for presentation.

Question related to this discussion

How do folks think that technology is impacting the field as it relates to our discussion question this week?

Responses

Angelica Wiggins RE: Discussion – Week 9COLLAPSE

In 1 to 2 sentences, briefly identify and describe the problem as perceived by the client, family, or group that you dealt with in your past fieldwork experience.

As previously mentioned, I have not completed my fieldwork experience. I plan to complete it in the Fall. I will use the client in the case study that I have used throughout this course, the case of Tiffani Bradley.

The presenting problem in this case is the fact that Tiffani, a 16-year-old Caucasian female, has a history of running away due to past experiences of molestation and emotional, physical, mental and sexual abuse.

From the list of solution-focused questions on page 520 (e.g., exception questions, coping questions, scaling questions, and relationship questions), identify two different types of questions, and ask each question as if you were actually asking the questions to the client. (Remember, do not use the miracle question.). Remember that the goal of these questions is to assist clients in identifying a solution.

Coping questions attempt to help the client shift his/her focus away from the problem elements and toward what the client is doing to survive the painful or stressful circumstances (The Pennsylvania Child Welfare Resource Center, n.d.).

A coping question for Tiffani would be: You say that you’re not sure whether you want to return home with your family or Donald. What have you found that is helpful in managing this situation?

Scaling questions invite the clients to put their observations, impressions, and predictions on a scale from 0 to 10, with 0 being no chance, and 10 being every chance. Questions need to be specific, citing specific times and circumstances (The Pennsylvania Child Welfare Resource Center, n.d.).

A scaling question for Tiffani would be: On a scale of 0 to 10, with 0 being no chance and 10 being every chance, how likely is it that you will be able to say “No” to Donald when he asks you to come back home with him?

Explain how asking these two questions would help the client in coming up with the solution.

These questions would help Tiffani in coming up with the solution because they will force her to identify and address her feelings and experiences. They would also hold her accountable for her outcomes.

In 1 to 2 sentences, reflect and explain how asking these questions made you feel and perhaps how the client might feel.

These questions helped me to reflect on personal experiences and to view them in the light of a client.

Reference

The Pennsylvania Child Welfare Resource Center. (n.d.). Solution-Focused Interviewing Skills & Questions. Retrieved online from http://www.pacwrc.pitt.edu/Curriculum/301EngggClntsFrmAnSBSFPrspctv/Hndts/HO_9_Solu

Seantelle Hill RE: Discussion – Week 9COLLAPSE

Briefly identify and describe the problem as perceived by the client.

For this discussion, I will still apply my previous case from the Hispanic American family that I encountered. Both parents, immigrants from Mexico, faced challenges in finding work that suits their academic qualification. Each of them had a bachelors degree. This made it hard for them to sustain their family from rare manual jobs besides other challenges that they faced as immigrants.

Solution-focused questions

The questions that I would ask these parents are;

Scaling question: On a scale of 1-10,  how optimistic are you that you will find a job here in the US?

Coping question: How are you managing life to be who/where you are now in this country?

Explain how asking these two questions would help the client in coming up with the solution.

In the scaling question, I would ask the clients the reason behind choosing their number. This question will help understand the current optimism state of the clients and thus learn what needs to be changed to move up the scale. To get to this point, I would engage the client in dialogue and for instance, if they chose a level of three, suggest if they moved higher with .5 how they feel, more hopeful? More optimistic? The scaling question and the consequent ones that would follow would help the clients feel more motivated, more hopeful, and more optimistic about finding work in the US (Turner, 2017). The main aim would be to help the clients move up the scale as small changes would contribute to a bigger change.

In the coping question, it would aid in reducing tension and acknowledge the approach (resources and skills) that the clients are using to make it currently (Turner, 2017). This question will help map the way forward to prevent the situation from getting worse while working towards a better solution.

In 1 to 2 sentences, reflect and explain how asking these questions made you feel and perhaps how the client might feel.

Asking these questions made me feel that I focused on the solution to the problem rather than dwelling on the problem itself. The clients will feel that they have imagined a possible future of finding relevant jobs by, for instance, scaling up. This would make them feel motivated to enhance realistic goals to attain employment within the country.

References

Turner, F. J. (Ed.). (2011). Social work treatment: Interlocking theoretical approaches (6th ed.). New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

Read the below scenario and imagine you are having THREE sessions with the client below. Write the case notes for each session that you have with the client one in each format PIE, DAP, and SOAP.

PIE notes, which means the note will cover section that include (Problem), (Intervention), and (Effectiveness or Evaluation).

DAP is an acronym for Data, Assessment, and Plan. It is a simple and comprehensive template to help organize your notes. It is important to recognize that a DAP note is a progress note, not a personal psychotherapy note.

The SOAP note (an acronym for subjective, objective, assessment, and plan) is a method of documentation employed by healthcare providers to write out notes in a patient’s chart, along with other common formats, such as the admission note

Jack or Jackie?

Jack is a 15-year-old white male. He is a freshman at the local high school. He doesn’t normally get into any trouble at the high school. He plays the guitar. He used to be in the band, and he used to sing choir when he was in grade school, but when he left middle school he left all school activities behind. He has been referred to you because he was suspended from school for possession of pot and smoking pot in a car on the parking lot school. When you meet him, his mother brings him. She reports that she and her husband have been married for 20 years. They have Jack, and they have Jack’s older brother named David. David is 19 and attending school at a community college learning how to be a mechanic. Jack has no plans on going to college at this point. Mom is a school teacher. She teaches English as a second language at one of the local public school districts different from the one she lives in and that Jack goes to, and her husband is an auto mechanic working in someone else’s garage but is trying to save up enough money to start his own garage. There have been no problems at home before this, there have been no problems at school before this, and mom just thinks that Jack has just had common experimental issues with pot. In talking with Jack, you recognize that he has been smoking pot since he was 12, he’s been drinking alcohol since he was 11.

When his mother was teaching summer school, and his dad was working, he and his friends would go in the backyard, and they would go into the woods behind the house, and they would get drunk and get high ever since the middle of sixth grade. Jack has been using a lot more than mom believes she has been, but Jack reports that he is very unhappy with his life. So as you start to talk to Jack about his drug and alcohol use, you try to contract with him for decrease use and definitely no use at school and no possession of alcohol or pot at school. He’s agreed to do this as he and his friends have already made a plan for where they can high marijuana and alcohol and how they can get high before going to school. This was a good plan for Jack, because they started to bring in dogs snooping in lockers and one of the places they were checking regularly was Jack’s locker.
Over the months that you’re seeing Jack, you realize that he’s somewhat defiant and rather angry. He has a problem with authority, and he is not concerned about any of the consequences that he may receive over the behaviors at school. He would like to disregard them, but his mother, as a school teacher wants him to abide by them and not cause any problems in school. Jack does not talk much to his father or his brother, and at some point while very drunk on a Friday night, Jack calls his mother and asked to get picked up. That was an ongoing agreement they had that she would ask no questions, and she would come pick him up no matter where he was and what he was doing if he called, and he needed a ride. Mom picked him up from the party where Jack was drunk, he was so compulsively sobbing about the fact that he didn’t fit in his body.

He didn’t feel comfortable with his body, and he really thought that he should have been born a girl. Jack’s mother was upset, didn’t know really how to help him, talked to his father about it; his father wanted nothing to do with it. His father believed that if he were supposed to be born a girl, he would have been born a girl, and this was very early on in transgendered world in the mid-1990s. There were a few hospitals, one being John Hopkins in Maryland, that were doing the successful transgender surgeries and they have requirements that Jack sees somebody and talks about his desire to be a female. He wanted to already call himself Jackie, and he also wanted to wear female clothes to school. His school was uncooperative with these issues, and you were out of your area of expertise as a social worker.

So the NASW code of ethics says that you need to refer out when you do not have knowledge of the topic, a practice that is sound advice for your client’s benefit as well as your own. So you found somebody in the geographical region who does specialize in helping kids transition and transgender issues. Mom asks you to stay on and talk with her through the issues and helping dad understand what’s going on. Fast forward, four years later, mom shows up again and asks to speak with you. She took Jack through the preliminary stages which were getting him hormones, getting him female clothes, getting him ready to talk to a new therapist. He dropped out of school and maintained a full time job waiting tables in a restaurant. While he was working, he did try to see some of his old friends. They were giving a hard time, and it he didn’t feel like he fitted in. Jack started talking to a girl online who lived in Florida. He announced that he was bisexual. He was going to date this girl, and he goes to Florida to meet her. While in Florida, he decides to get married to her and stay down there. So now, 19-year-old Jack is now married and has a wife in the state of Florida and mom is at a loss as to how to help him. She still feels like his transgender issue is not the only issue, and neither was substance abuse. She thought he had ADHD and a learning disability, but Jack refused to get tested by anybody while he was in high school. Jack is calling weekly asking mom for money. He reports that his girlfriend is pregnant, and mom is quite surprised because he’d been taking hormones that would have him be impotent and so she was stunned that this happened, but in further research, although Jack was filling his prescriptions, he wasn’t always using them.

Mom is at a loss for what to do. She’s worried about the baby, she’s worried about the girlfriend, she’s concerned about Jack, but she also doesn’t want him to return home. While he was living at home and dressing and acting female, it put much strain on her relationship with her husband because she was trying to support Jack when Jack’s father was not willing to support Jackie. His brother also was not willing to support and recognize that he has a sister now instead of a brother.
So your question here is, how do you support mom to get her to be able to keep relationship with her son, keep him at bay in terms of distance, but also get along with the family? Side stressor is that mom’s having a hard time at work. They keep changing the English as a second language laws, and she has more and more responsibilities, more and more students, and not as much help. She is really not liking the school district that she’s in, and she’s trying to figure out how she can leave, but she really needs the excellent pension plan that’s offered if she stays in that school district. Mom is struggling with a couple issues now, but the main point that we want to look at here is how do you support mom in supporting her adult child in Florida, both financially, emotionally, and socially?