Social Work Intervention Assessment - Coursework Example

Social Work Intervention Assessment Paper These paper on intervention program highlights an intervention program carried out among college students, in Bridgewater state university it discuses some of great scholars who wrote on population and their view of the same subject. Secondly it will also discuss other intervention programs that have been tried by other people with or without success. Additionally, it will evaluate the semester long experience of the Community Intervention Project. In the college where since it picked college students to be its population under study it will find out it will investigate the strengths and weakness of such intervention. The study will find out the relationship and connection between social and academic life together with the macro community contribution to the college students. Lastly it will offer a recommendation on areas for continued growth? A semester long program was mounted on college students who were subjected to substance use awareness and counseling and social therapies in the college. Other college aged young which included students in the college were part of the successful intervention program Analysis of theories related to the population, Thomas Robert Malthus, who is the first theorist to explain characteristics of the population, wrote a book that is entitled an essay on the principle of population that is about 200 years old though still in print for its comprehensive analysis of population. Malthus theory on population is still widely known presently since his ideas have great relevance. According to Malthus whose main objective was to find out the causes that inhibit the progress of mankind to happiness, during Malthus’s time, many people in England were living in abject poverty Malthus suggested that the main source of the poverty that prevailed in Europe was a result of population growing faster than the food supply. He strongly suggested that population will be checked by disease and Famine due to its increase that led to what is now commonly called Malthusian catastrophe. This was an opposition to the very popular view in 18th century that saw society improving and its principle as perfectible (Bowler, 2003). Malthus argued that there are two checks that are responsible for holding the population within resource limits that he classified them as positive checks that according to him raise the death rate as hunger, war and diseases. Secondly the preventive ones are those that lower the birth rate as celibacy, postponement of marriage, prostitution, abortion and birth control that could ensure a higher standard of living of living for all due to less competition of results hence increasing economic stability. However, Malthus argued against solutions to any economy, since he only advocated for decrease of population of human. Malthus argues that effects on human population check are complicated in that the increase of species by equally powerful instinct interrupts careers; he questions the supernatural powers why they bring beings into the world and then fail to provide the means of support. The theme of religion is talked where the society seems to believe that, for human existence, there is a supreme being who controls them. The law of nature that makes food a necessity to human life, therefore, population should be checked where he suggested that a couple should recognize the size of the family they are able to bring up and support effectively without any difficulty. Malthus views are categorized as the most pessimist of all since they ran contrary to the general optimistic view of his time that science were in the process of producing a better world where everybody will live in peace (Hollander, 1997). Today technological and industrial developments have already averted the predicted conflict that Malthus had foreseen that was to be between the increase in population and source of necessities as food among others. Karl Marx a theorist mainly on political and economic development who wrote about population and also the main Malthus’s main nineteenth-century critics. His ideas are more related to the capitalism that existed in the nineteenth century. According to Marx, surplus population of unemployed is a necessary product of accumulation of development of wealth mainly by capitalist basis that is an important condition for the existence of the capitalist mode of production. Connectively, in a situation where a lot of people going to seek employment, the employer shall tend to decrease his wage rate offer, this is mainly because there is a high demand on employment as many people are looking for the same few jobs. With decreased wages to workers, the employer shall be able to amass more profit. Alternatively, when the business is depressed or going through decline, it is highly expected that the works shall be laid off; this is done mainly to balance the profits and cost of labor. Marx suggested that working class produces wealth but due to over supply of labor, the working people are poor this will make their birth rate high that shall ensure high labor surplus (Bowler, 2003). According to the three theorists every population has its own characteristics that are also determined by the age, era and composition. With Thomas Robert Malthus theory of population where he suggests that there should be check that should limit the growth of population. This can be used in a college context where drug abuse can be considered as a check that limits the number of students who graduate from a college. This is because of the adverse effects it has on the student’s lives. Nevertheless, due to time difference the theorist may not have had much to speak on college students thought the characteristics may be borrowed from their work. The college populations which have every representative, this is a venue where people meet and share ideas. Some of these ideas are helpful to ones life while others can be destructive when one decides to practice them. The destructive ideas may be when a student in a college decide to follow drug and substance use which is common in high schools, colleges and universities in the our country. With the three theorists who wrote on population it is evident that every characteristic of population can be found in the college. However how a population will behave and act depends on the people living in it. Students in the college population can decide to make their institution to be a habitable place for them and every one else. (Elwell, 2001). Interventions or programs that have been tried by others and with what success Different programs have been used in communities to try and solve societal programs, a community intervention program, that is aimed at introducing protective factors and ensures the community is well mobilized to a common goal is one of them. Taking the example of mothers against drunk driving (MADD) that is categorized as a non profit making organization that seeks to stop drunk driving and offer support to victims of drunk driving. The organizations successfully, have put in place where it maintains that the minimum legal drinking age to be 21 years. For those within the legal drinking age, it aims to place the (IIDs) that are fitted with an alcohol breath-testing interlock devices MADD also carries out education program which are aimed at advocating and educating the youth on dangers of drunk driving and also offering victim assistance. For those caught driving while MADD advocates using more strong sanctions which includes mandatory jail term. This has significantly reduced ht deaths caused by drinking driving both to themselves and third parties. (Elwell, 2001). Secondly, the mentoring programs that make use of adult mentors who spend time with the youth and also act as role models for individual youth, this mentor programs help address risk factor as low commitment to schoolwork and activities, academic failure, alienation, and association with violent peers and delinquent friends. It offers opportunists for developing social skill as recognition of pro-social involvement, bonds with adults, and other clear standards for behavior. Other programs that have been used are like movie shows and documentaries on substance and drug abuse seminars that are conducted by the narcotics anominous. In this situation, the officer will visit schools, peer groups and another community’s gathering places as churches or mosque then they will educate them on the importance of negating criminal activities. This initiative helps the young generation to have someone to look up to. Connectively, they also create a venue where this young people can air their problems to and have them addressed. (Paroissien, 2008). Evaluate the semester long experience of the Community Intervention Project. What were the strengths? The areas for continued growth? During our community intervention program that we Bridgewater state university where our main population was the college students, our intervention program was aimed at providing substance use awareness by creating a sense of community support. The use of mentor programs in conjunction with the student counseling and chaplaincy department in the university that has helped to deal with students directly by committing to help them overcome the challenge of drug and substance abuse. The venture saw many college students come out in large numbers where they were ready to go through the process of rehabilitation. Carrying out education on peer counseling where college students and the community were educated on best friends selection, this program tracks the individual behavior from the initial stage hence assessing when one went off rails hence enable us to trace their way back and pick up the pace. The ability to learn how to harness my strength with an aim to help other students who are faced with substance use threat, additionally, learning how to work together in a group and every student working individual assignment in the group assigned to them (Paroissien, 2008). How was the Community Intervention Project consistent with social work values? Social work is the professional and academic discipline that seeks to improve and help individuals, families and communities which aims at improving the well being of others in the society. Social work is also concerned with individual and personal problems but more widely on social issues alike domestic violence drug and substance use, poverty and unemployment among others. Social workers are important in our society since they carry out research on the problems the society it facing, it assesses the magnitude of the problem, engagement of social workers with the relevant people and professional which creates a collaborative relationship. During the program we undertook in the college, we were able to help many students to come into terms with their conditions, hence enable them renounce drug addition and substance use. Connectively through student support and community intervention main substance which involved a large awareness event that was aimed to educate the students in the college of drug and substance abuse, together with the fundraising that was held. The funds collected were used in making a livelier event during the vigil walk that took place in the college synthesizing every member of college on substance use. Additionally, all the programs we took in the college together with the social intervention where we mingled with the students in the college with the aim of ensuring that every student was aware of the impeding danger of substance abuse. General humane ethics calls every body to be their brother’s keeper by ensuring that we teach them to do what is right for them and others hence have a conducive social environment in the college. (Hollander, 1997). What are your recommendations for continuing the work started this semester? Discuss both campus related work and broader social policy initiatives. To ensure that the community is all involved a vigil walk shall be taken that will incorporate the school and the community at large this will make everybody aware of the impending venture. Every class shall produce two representatives that shall be trained upon qualification as the student councilors hence help in combating substance use among their peers. The trained counselors and student representatives shall be advised to continue with the work of sensitizing other on drug and substance use in the college. Additionally, a drug awareness club can be created where members can register and offer their services to the college through awareness programs which should be arranged in every semester. A social website page shall be set up where people can seek help from their friends on drug and substance abuse; this will make sure that they keep reminding themselves on substance use. Additionally at the end of the semester a party shall also be organized to mark the importance of substance abstinence especially the hard drugs that continue to haunt our community. However, area as fundraising which were expected for every one to participate would be ideal in the college, other advertising groups who uses the media billboards and other, means would be useful for continued substance use awareness. Connectively, we had to carry out training a support the new generation of trainees who will spearhead the continuity of the already started program. (Bowler, 2003). What did u learn about macro practice from the Community Intervention Project? Discuss fully. Macro practices are those activities that are concerned with social problems in a community, institutions and societal systems they work towards achieving social changes through neighborhood organizing, local development. Community planning, public education, social action and policy development, during the program in the college we were able to come across many things which were previously unknown to us. The ability to understand how students in college associate with others, connectively, it was evident that humans will tend to have a value on the environment they live in therefore working towards its improvement. Through the social action we found out that many students in the college are opposed to drug abuse in the college but fails to find a venue to air and educate others on the problem associated with them. (Elwell, 2001). Reference Bowler, P. J. (2003). Evolution: the history of an idea. Berkeley: University of California Press. Elwell, F.W. (2001). A commentary on Malthuss 1798 Essay on Population as social theory. Mellon Press. Hollander, S. (1997). the Economics of Thomas Robert Malthus.Toronto, University of Toronto Press. Paroissien, D. (2008). A companion to Charles Dickens. U.S.A, John Wiley and Sons. Read More