Communication Frameworks, Models and Methods in Social Work Practice - Term Paper Example

How Does Understanding Theoretical Frameworks, Models And Methods Assist You In Developing Effective Diverse Communication Skills, Which Can Be Applied In Supporting Best Social Work Practice? Table of Contents Introduction 2 Communication Frameworks, Models and Methods in Social Work Practice 3 Assistance of Communication Frameworks in Supporting Social Work Practices 5 Limitations of Communication Frameworks in Supporting Social Work Practices 10 Critical Analysis 12 Conclusion 13 References 15 Introduction It has been evident at often instances that the understanding of various potential and comprehensive theoretical frameworks, models and methods largely assist in developing effective communication skills of individuals in diverse cultural settings by way of comprehending different culture-specific conceptions. These conceptions can be associated with thinking, acting, emotion and perception of diversified individuals or people. In this present scenario, the need of developing effective communication skills has become quite a critical concern for various individuals and organisations not only in the corporate sector but also within the paradigm of social services (Greene & Burleson, 2003). As per my personal view, the need of forming efficient communication capabilities is mainly required for understanding the cultural norms as well as traditions of others. It would be vital to mention in this similar concern that the development of effective diverse communication skills through better understanding of theoretical frameworks or models can also be applied in the context of performing best social work practices. Together with the individuals and the modern business organisations, the requirement for continuously developing a diverse set of communication skills is also indispensable for supporting the best practices of social work. This can be justified with reference to the fact that the development of communication skills would certainly support in conducting best social work practices through the acquisition of valuable information, conveying the same to others without distortion and contribute in making effective decisions (Koprowska, 2010). With this concern, the discussion henceforth intends to determine and analyse the procedures based upon which, the development of effective diverse communication skills through the support of theoretical frameworks or models, can be beneficial enough for me in conducting best societal work practices. Communication Frameworks, Models and Methods in Social Work Practice Prior to analysing the communication frameworks, models and methods that are persistent within the social work practice, it is quite indispensable to acquire a brief idea about the notion of communication and its different ways or modes. From a theoretical perspective, “communication is a two-way process in which there is an exchange and progression of ideas towards a mutually accepted direction or goal” (Kaul, 2000, pp. 2). In general, communication is fundamentally regarded as the procedure of conveying information and common understanding from one particular individual to other (Lunenburg, 2010). The key elements of communication can be apparently observed as ‘sender’ or ‘encoder’, ‘receiver’ or ‘decoder’, ‘feedback’, ‘medium’ and ‘message’ (Kaul, 2000, pp. 2). Observably, there are various communication methods, which often act as effective communication frameworks and models in social work practices. In this similar context, the different forms of communication methods can be apparently observed as pre-verbal, verbal and non-verbal communication methods, besides inter-cultural as well as cross-cultural communication, written communication and inter-professional communication among others. Conceptually, pre-verbal communication is regarded as the procedure of communicating messages amid the parties with symbols or signs and any other appropriate forms of non-verbal communication (Crown, n.d.). Verbal communication denotes conveying messages, feelings or any sort of idea between two or more parties through face-to-face interaction, either through speaking or in writing (Dianne, 2006). On the other hand, non-verbal communication denotes the transmission of valuable information through non-verbal modes that include physical appearance, touch and body language among others (Rimondini, 2010). According to Pinto (2000), the notion of inter-cultural communication is principally described as the mechanism of transmitting, sharing, interpreting and communicating messages throughout diverse social groups and/or cultures. As per the observation made by Gudykunst (2003), cross-cultural communication signifies the capability towards successfully establishing and enhancing associations with the individuals belonging to diverse cultures. The idea of written communication is often observed as one of the constituents of verbal communication, wherein messages or ideas are communicated amid the parties in the form of written documents that might comprise letters, reports, memos, journals and notes among others (Griffith University, n.d.). Finally, inter-professional communication generally takes place at the time when the healthcare providers or other professionals communicate with the people along with their respective family members and community in an open, accountable and collaborative manner (Freeth & Copperman, 2009). After acquiring a brief idea about the above-discussed communication frameworks, it can be affirmed that these can be applied in the context of supporting best social work practices to convey information in a distortion free manner and subsequently, to generate awareness amid the participants concerning the social issue in focus. This particular notion can be justified with reference to the fact that the social work practices in this present day context have been developed by a considerable extent and most significantly, these have been transformed into a modernised one from a traditional perspective, necessitating upon developing effective communication skills. Evidences project that transformations in societal conditions, amplified level of globalisation, gaining momentum of liberalisation along with internationalisation and incessant changes in individuals’ perspectives, have certainly contributed in developing a standardised framework for social work practices altogether. Consequently, the aforesaid factors eventually urged the understanding of various communication frameworks, models as well as methods for developing effective communication skills that can be realistic in supporting best social work practices at large (Macmillan Publishers Limited, n.d.). Assistance of Communication Frameworks in Supporting Social Work Practices Prior to analysing the assistance of communication frameworks in supporting best social work practices, it is quite necessary to obtain a comprehensive idea about the notion of such practices. Effective social work practices are often valued to facilitate social transformation along with advancement, empowerment, social cohesion and liberty of people. It would be vital to mention in this similar context that there lay certain significant aspects, which are viewed to be quiet central towards social work practices. These aspects encompass diverse principles relating to social justice, shared responsibility, human rights and respect towards diversity among others. It is worth mentioning that best social work practices involves people and develops structures with the aim of addressing as well as mitigating life challenges ad most vitally, enhancing the wellbeing of the participant population. After acquiring a brief idea about the best social work practice, it can be affirmed that the developed communication skills through the understanding of various relevant frameworks can be applied in supporting such practices to a substantial extent. This can be justified with reference to the fact that the social workers engaged in performing societal work practices might often require adequate understanding of these frameworks or models such as pre-verbal, verbal, non-verbal or written communication in order to communicate and work in cohesion with the social group (Australian Association of Social Workers, 2013). Specially mentioning, in the context of supporting best social work practices, the understanding of verbal as well as non-verbal communication frameworks would assist me in developing communication skills as it permits interacting with individuals of dissimilar cultures. For instance, in order to promote educational programs in rural areas, social workers often require the assistance of other members in order to smoothly conduct the best social work practice. In this regard, the communication framework of verbal and non-verbal communication would certainly aid me as a social worker towards obtaining the idea of conflict management and advancing negotiation skills to accomplish better outcomes. Moreover, the understanding of written and inter-professional communication framework would assist me in developing my communication skills in diverse settings while performing the social work of promoting educational programs in rural areas engaging people at an extensive rate in decision-making procedure. This particular aspect would certainly provide active support to me in efficiently communicating with the other respective members within the social group concerning the details along with the nature of the services that are offered. It is worth mentioning that both inter-cultural as well as cross-cultural communication frameworks or models would also contribute in enhancing my capabilities to attain success in the social work, in the form of establishing teamwork and greater coordination between the social workers and the other team members (Australian Association of Social Workers, 2013). As per my observation, the framework of communicating in early childhood and with pre-school children has also the potential of developing effective diverse communication skills, which can be applied in supporting best social work practices. In this similar context, diversity along with social inclusion in the early childhood educational as well as care setting, can be duly considered as one of the best social work practices to exemplify the significance of understanding theoretical communication frameworks in delivering most effective care to the participants. It has been apparently perceived in this regard that the practitioners tend to develop along with enhance their respective practices in terms of open communication and dialogue while promoting and smoothly performing the above-discussed social work practices. With regards to identify the challenges that might appear while performing the social work practice, the practitioners usually involve themselves in a two-way communication procedure wherein the parents, children as well as the staff members are able to express their respective feelings, emotions or ideas (DECET, n.d.). On the other hand, the understanding of verbal communication framework or model plays a decisive role in developing effective diverse communication skills set that can be applied in supporting best social work practices. This can be justified with reference to the fact that communicating with the people possessing intellectual as well as learning disability, sensory impairment and mental ill-health, is quite composite and challenging. In this regard, the framework of verbal communication plays an imperative role in addressing and mitigating the situation quite effectively. The critical task of communicating with the individuals having mental ill-health, sensory impairment and learning disability and/or intellectual infirmity eventually becomes easier with the use of verbal communication in the forms of symbols, letters and signs among others. With these forms of verbal communication, messages can be delivered as well as conveyed to those individuals in an effectual way, resulting in smoothly executing their ideas, opinions or expressions at large (Kiani & Miller, 2014). It is worth mentioning that the understanding of effective communication frameworks, models and methods largely assists in developing effectual diverse communication skills that can broadly be applied in supporting best social work practices. In this regard, communicating with the patients and complying with their respective requirements can be duly considered as the best social work practices. It would be vital to mention that effective listening along with understanding as a form of communication framework or model would certainly aid in fulfilling the desires and the requirements of the patients. Conceptually, the communication framework of listening and understanding will tend to establish greater patient rapport (American Society of Clinical Oncology, 2008). Such skills of listening and understanding, have further aided me in conveying attentiveness of the healthcare or the medical practitioners towards the patients, resulting in fulfilling their requirements at large. Based on my observation, I can further affirm that the communication framework of effective listening along with understanding also assists in developing efficient diverse communication skills through communicating with the people who lay in the situation of distress or crisis. In this similar concern, various forms of written communication can be apparently observed as applied in supporting this best social work practice. The diverse range of written communication that can be viewed to play a decisive role in communicating with the people who witness the situation of distress or crisis include written summary of recommendations and letters among others (American Society of Clinical Oncology, 2008). In addition, the understanding of one of the effective communication frameworks or models i.e. inter-professional communication might certainly assist in developing diverse communication skills that can be applied in supporting the best social work practice, i.e. promoting education in rural areas. This might be conducted by way of communicating the messages or the ideas and discussion those with various professionals and agencies relating to this particular social work practice, sharing valuable information and maintaining confidentiality. Moreover, the interviewing skills might also aid in developing my communication capabilities in terms of enhancing negotiation, empowerment as well as partnership aspects at large. These skills can be applied in a specific best social work practice such as promoting education in rural areas (Trevithick, 2000). Limitations of Communication Frameworks in Supporting Social Work Practices Based on the above discussion, it can be affirmed from a broader understanding that the communication frameworks of pre-verbal, oral or written communication, cross-cultural along with inter-cultural communication and inter-professional communication among others, assists in developing communication skills. These skills can further be applied in supporting best social work practices such as communicating with people in distress or in crisis situations and supporting the individuals having complexities such as mental ill-health, sensory impairments and learning along with intellectual disabilities. In contrast, certain limitations of the aforesaid communication frameworks can be apparently observed in the context of supporting best social work practices. One of these limitations of verbal communication framework, which might hinder in supporting the best social work practices, is that extreme reliance upon oral communication only, may not be adequate in fully understanding the circumstances based on which, the social work practice would be conducted. For instance, in order to carry out the best social work practice of promoting education in rural areas, depending upon oral communication would not be sufficient in understanding the perspectives of the people belonging to such area regarding the same. This eventually results in executing the other form of communication, i.e. non-verbal communication or written communication apart from verbal communication (Scribd Inc., 2014). On the other hand, non-verbal communication or written communication also possesses certain limitations that certainly results in restricting the support of performing best social work practices effectively. In this similar context, one of the critical limitations of this communication framework, model or method can be identified as that it consumes much amount of time. The framework can consume much amount of time of the social workers towards performing best social work practices such as communicating with people in distress or crisis situation. This may be owing to the reason that the dissimilar forms of written or non-verbal communication, such as reports and letters among others, may not be understandable to the people undergoing a crisis or distressful situation. In this regard, verbal communication may play an imperative role. Apart from the above-discussed communication frameworks, various limitations of inter-cultural communication might also restrict in supporting the best social work practices. These limitations comprise increased level of cultural along with language barriers and gaining momentum of risks relating to discrimination among others (Scribd Inc., 2014). Thus, based on the limitations identified above, it can be affirmed that the diverse communication frameworks or models might restrict supporting the conduct of best social work practices effectively to a certain extent, increasing chances of biases. Critical Analysis Based on my personal observation as well as with reference to the various studies emphasising the significance of understanding how communication frameworks, models or methods assist in developing effective diverse communication skills, it can be affirmed that communication plays a decisive role in evaluating the ideas or the opinions of the individuals. This can further be applied to deliver best social care practices. From a critical point of view, the development in effective communication skills can be identified as one of the prime constituents of the social workers towards performing social practices effectively. This can be justified with reference to the fact that the social workers have to communicate with their respective clients on a constant basis for the purpose of obtaining valuable information as well as conveying any vital information to them and most significantly, making efficient decisions. Thus, it is obvious that the social workers may not be competent enough to obtain or convey such valuable information without possessing effective diverse communication skills, resulting in causing unfavourable effects to the clients. In this regard, it can be argued that the communication framework of effective listening along with understanding might assist me in developing effective diverse communication skills that can be applied in supporting best societal work practices (Koprowska, 2010). As a social worker, one of my key job responsibilities in conducting a best community work practice is to interviewing clients along with other parties engaged in the procedure. With regards to deliver the most effectual services to the clients, the social workers require to develop the capability of listening cautiously and paying utmost attention in executing the process effectively. It would be vital to mention that the notion of effective listening along with understanding plays an indispensable role in making the social workers react upon the responses of the clients. Arguably, ineffective listening and understanding might result in improper understanding about the responses made by the clients, resulting in restricting smooth conduct of best social work practices. However, various communication frameworks, such as pre-verbal, verbal or non-verbal communication, open along with written communication, inter-cultural as well as cross-cultural communication and inter-professional communication among others, eventually assist in developing effective diverse communication skills through various means. These include utilising various forms of written communication such as reports and letters among others for sharing information or ideas and preserving the confidentiality of the information that are obtained from the clients (Koprowska, 2010). Conclusion As per the above analysis and discussion, it can be affirmed that the understanding of various communication frameworks, models and methods, broadly assist in developing an effective set of diverse communication skills that can be pragmatic in supporting best social work practices. It has been apparent that communication plays an imperative role in exchanging messages, ideas or opinions between two or more parties. This facet of communication eventually contributes in broadly supporting best social work practices through developing effective listening and understanding skills. As per my observation and experiences, one of the ways through which diverse communication frameworks assist in developing effective diverse communication skills relating to best societal work practices is communicating with the people undergoing from any distress or crisis situation. Apart from this, the other ways through which diverse communication frameworks can assist me in developing effective diverse communication skills that can be applied in supporting best social work practices include building effective communication with diverse professionals along with agencies and appropriately using various forms of written communication methods. Observably, communication and its various forms impose considerable impact upon supporting the best social work practices through addressing and mitigating critical situations often faced by individuals due to learning disability or sensory impairment. Thus, it can be concluded that the understanding of diverse communication frameworks or models would certainly assist me in developing effective diverse communication skills that can further be applied in supporting best societal work practices at large. References Australian Association of Social Workers, 2013. Communication and Interpersonal Skills. Practice Standards 2013, pp. 1-18. American Society of Clinical Oncology, 2008. Communication: What Do Patients Want and Need? Journal of Oncology Practice. Crown, No Date. Preverbal Communication Schedule (PVCS). Modules. [Online] Available at: http://complexneeds.org.uk/modules/Module-2.4-Assessment-monitoring-and-evaluation/All/downloads/m08p030b/the_pvcs.pdf [Accessed March 06, 2014]. Dianne, B., 2006. Health Communication: Theory and Practice. McGraw-Hill International. DECET, No Date. Open Communication and Dialogue. 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