Social Work Theory Dimension, Its Origins, and Impact - Essay Example

Regional & Rural Services, with focus on Suicide. Name Institution Date Introduction Critical social work is concerned with the work of ensuring social justice, equality as well as ideas that influence the lives of families, individual persons, communities and the wider society nationally and internationally (Healy, 2000). The various dimensions of critical social work theory explain how social work practices are essential in the different aspects. This essay aims at explaining a specific dimension of critical social work theory focusing in a specific topic. Specifically, the essay will look at the origin of the critical social work theory dimension, its origins as well as the impact. The dimension will then be explored from the perspective of the topic area. The selected critical social work dimension discussed in this essay is the regional and rural services with special focus to suicide. Regional and rural services are a critical social work theory dimension that focuses on working with the regional as well as rural communities. In the regional and rural services dimension, social workers are usually more concerned in dealing with the behavioral effects on families, individuals as well as groups (Daley, 2010). It uses an approach of regional and rural population to social work. This suggests that social work in rural and regional population requires different interventions and areas of interest. Historically, regional and rural services dimension of social work began in the 1970’s with the introduction of social work in the rural populations. It is considered as a very different dimension of social work since it focuses on dealing with rural populations (Ginsberg, 2005). It is different based on the services that rural populations require as well as the smaller number of people they deal with. The rural and regional services dimension of social work usually has a positive impact on the populations. Fook (2003) argue that rural social work helps in providing services that are urgently needed by the rural people in various areas including; job as well as economic problems, problems of alcohol and drug problems among adults and the youth, marriage as well as family problems, personal stress, depression as well as anxiety (Fook, 2002). Regional and Rural services and Suicide One major topic that is dealt with by the regional and rural services dimension of social work theory is suicide. In rural Australia, suicide is seen to be more prevalent in rural areas. The suicide rates are high compared to urban areas (Commonwealth of Australia, 2007). The regional and rural social services can play a huge role in reducing the high suicide rates. There are various factors contributing to the high rates of suicide in rural Australia including; economic and financial hardship, social isolation, easier accessibility of means that contribute to immediate death, less in seeking help, reduced access to support services, and combination of suicide risk factors. Hardships in economic and financial capacity like extreme climate changes affect negatively the rural communities in Australia. This status exposes the populations to depression and hopelessness which are suicide risk factors. In rural Australia, it is easy for people to access firearms among other methods of committing suicide which are readily available. Additionally, suicide locations are more available in rural areas where people can easily commit suicide. Additionally, rural people in Australia are more isolated socially. Many of them are found not getting face to face contacts with their families, friends as well as other networks of support. This leads to loneliness as well as depression hence amounting to suicidal behavior. Regional and rural Australians are found to be less help seeking because they are more resilient as well as resourceful. They tend to have a very strong feeling of self-sufficiency. This contributes to them not seeking help from friends, family as well as the community during difficult times. Evidence shows that rural Australians have a reduced access to support services. They are not able to access various community support services like mental health services. Again, support services that may be applicable to urban areas are most like not appropriate for the rural people in Australia. They also don’t have access to technology like the use internet and others telephones. This condition leaves the rural people rely on traditional ways of support as well as care which may be difficult to use in some cases. Rural people also face a combination of suicide risk factors and this increases their risk to having suicidal behavior. For example, rural populations in Australia are faced with a wide range of environmental, social and psychological factors that put them at the risk of committing suicide. Durkheim’s Theory of Suicide The topic of suicide in regional and rural services can be explained in relation to the theory of suicide by Durkheim. In his theory of suicide, Durkheim based his methodological study on social facts within the society context. He argued that suicide does occur in the society and that it can be proved scientifically. Durkheim describes different social causes of suicide and the different types of suicide. The main argument in his theory of suicide was that suicide cannot be termed as an individual act. It is a social act that is usually tied to different social structures. Durkheim made a definition of suicide as a social fact since the driving causes are social in nature. In his research, Durkheim established that suicide rates may vary among individual societies. However, they remain stable for a long time. In his theory of suicide, Durkheim theorized four of suicide that are committed in all societies including; egoistic suicide, altruistic suicide, fatalistic and anomic suicide (Bass, 2011). This theory is relevant in regional and rural social work services based on the topic of suicide. As argued earlier on the major factors that contributes to high suicide rates in Australian rural populations, it is clear that these factors are related to the social causes of suicide as describe by Durkheim’s in his theory of suicide. It is clear that the causes of suicide are not individual but influenced by social structures that surround a person. Key Findings Suicide is a major concern for social workers in rural Australia. The reason is that suicide among the rural population in Australia is considered a huge problem which is increasing the burden of death (Hirsch, 2006). As per the current statistics, the groups with the highest vulnerability are men, farmers, youth as well as Indigenous people. The Queensland Suicide register in 2007 revealed that the population of male suicide in rural areas of Australia was 36.32% for every 100,000 men when compared to 18.25% in urban areas. Regional rates of suicide are also high in Australia (Kolves et al., 2009). Rural populations in Australia were found needing support services. This means that social workers in regional and rural service have a responsibility to understand the cultural and social influences of suicide among rural populations, giving them the required health services as well as encouraging them to seek help during difficult moments. The major causes of suicide that were identified as leading to suicide among rural populations were stress, relationship breakdown, and the greater risk of indigenous people to suicide in rural areas (National Rural Health Alliance, 2009). Alcohol use disorder among rural Australians, relationship conflict, income as well as work problems are among the many causes of suicide among the rural population. Poor health services in the rural areas and stigma that is related to seeking help were other causes of rural suicides (Kolves, Milner, McKathy, & De Leo, 2012). Impact of suicide Suicide among rural Australians has had impact on the nation, communities, families as well as individuals. The nation loses useful workers who can contribute to national building. Families grieve for losing breadwinners and members of the family (Cerel et al., 2008). Essential and reliable members of the society are lost through suicide. Individuals who survive after attempting to commit suicide have social and mental issues to recover from the experience. Strategies to reduce suicide rates In addressing suicide among the rural populations in Australia, regional and rural services social workers have a task of dealing with the social determinants that precipitate to the factors causing suicide among the populations. According to Suicide Prevention Australia (2010), any strategies that are adopted by social workers in rural areas to address the increased rates of suicide must address the major causes. This would reduce social stigmatization, trauma, anxiety, depression and development of suicidal behavior among rural populations in Australia. Social workers in regional and rural services should work towards improve rural mental health and provide literacy in suicide prevention, resources, training, support as well as services. Developing programs like the ‘men’s shed’ can help rural men go for assistance when in stressful situations. This can enable them deal with the suicidal situation they are facing (Australian Men’s Shed Association, 2011). Such kind of programs is essential to provide education to rural people on how to minimize suicide. Through these programs, social workers in regional and rural services are able to create networks within the communities whereby people can meet, socialize and discuss issues. Social workers can work together with local community leaders in rural areas so as to make contacts with the people regularly. This is essential for continuous building of awareness as well as support for prevention of suicide activities and initiatives. Conclusion The regional and rural services dimension of critical social work theory have been proven to be an essential domain in helping the reduction of suicide in Australian rural population. Being a major contributor of many deaths on the Australian rural populations, suicide had major negative impacts to the nation, community, families and individuals. Dealing with the causes of suicide is the best strategy that social workers in rural areas can use to help reduce suicide rates among the rural people. Other interventions have been identified to help reduce suicide among the rural population in Australia. References Australian Men’s Shed Association. (2011). Suicide: What do I say? What do I do? Retrieved from http://www.mensshed.org/suicide/.aspx Baas, M. (2011). Durkheims’ Four Types of Suicide. Word Press. Retrieved from https://chilenabravo.wordpress.com/2011/04/26/durkheims-four-types-of-suicide/ Cerel, J., Jordan, J., & Duberstein, P. (2008). The Impact of Suicide on the Family.  American Psychological Association. Commonwealth of Australia. (2007). Suicide in rural and remote communities. Fact Sheet 18. Living is for Everyone. Department of Health and Ageing. Daley, M. (2010). A Conceptual Model for Rural Social Work. Contemporary Rural Social Work, Vol. 2:1-7. Fook, J. (2003). Critical Social Work: The Current Issues. Qualitative Social Work, 2(2): 123-130. Fook, J. (2002). Social Work: Critical Theory and Practice. London: Sage Publications. Healy, K. (2000). Social Work Practices: Contemporary Perspectives on Change. London: Sage. Hirsch, J. (2006). A review of the literature on rural suicide: Risk and protective factors, incidence, and prevention. Crisis, 27, 189-199. Kõlves, K., Milner, A., De Leo, D. (2009). Suicide risk in different subpopulations in Australia (Queensland). A Report to the Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing. Brisbane, Australian Institute for Suicide Research and Prevention Kolves, K., Milner, A., McKathy, K., & De Leo, D. (2012). Suicide in Rural and Remote Areas of Australia. Australian Institute for Suicide Research and Prevention. Retrieved from https://www.griffith.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0007/471985/Suicide-in-Rural-and-Remote-Areas-of-Australia.pdf National Rural Health Alliance. (2009). Suicide in rural Australia. Fact Sheet 14. Retrieved from http://ruralhealth.org.au/sites/default/files/fact-sheets/fact-sheet-14-suicide%20in%20rural%20australia_0.pdf Suicide Prevention Australia. (2010). Responding to Suicide in Rural Australia. Statement. Retrieved from http://suicidepreventionaust.org/statement/responding-to-suicide-in-rural-australia/ Read More