Introduction
This paper is dedicated to the ethical issue of understanding the importance of boundaries in social work. Often, novice social workers do not feel confident enough. Still, their knowledge, desire to help, sincerity, and empathy encourage their ability to be useful to the client.
At the same time, with the beginning of social work, personal and not always simple work with borders begins for the employee. Their own relationships with their borders begin to make themselves felt by the first client. It can manifest as an inability to withhold, an exaggerated desire to take care of the client, feelings of guilt, anger at oneself, misunderstanding, and ignorance of what to do and how to do the right thing. Where the boundary between personal and professional relationships lies is the subject of an ethical issue.
Article Content
The article selected for analysis is “Managing Boundaries and Dual Relationships” by Frederic Reamer, published in Social Work Today on March 4, 2002. She considers three cases where social workers were asked to fulfill requests that were not part of their job responsibilities. In addition, the author of the article lists the motives for which the social worker has a desire to accept or reject such a request.
Interested Parties and Claims
The first interested party is the social worker himself. On the one hand, they understand that professionals need to set boundaries, which will allow them to maintain purely business relations. In addition, the request is unpaid, so they must sacrifice personal time. On the other hand, a social worker is attached to their clients, being emotionally close to them, and can empathize with them and feel guilty for refusing to help.
The second interested party is the social worker’s client. On the one hand, they realize that they use the services of a person doing their job. On the other hand, the troubles experienced may bring them closer to the social worker, and they may decide that the employee has become their friend who does not need to pay for help.
Facts
The first fact given is a retelling of the National Association of Social Workers’ Code of Ethics provisions. Within its framework, unpaid interaction with a client is treated as a violation (Reamer para. 11). At the same time, another fact is the entry of the line “do no harm” in the oath of a social worker (Reamer para. 12). Indifference to the client and lack of participation can harm and lead to irreversible consequences due to unproven professional assistance on time.
Cultural and Historical Bases of Conflict
The cultural basis of the conflict can be considered to be that in some communities, for example, Hispanic communities, the relationship between the members is closer. Due to low income, sometimes members of communities pay not with money but, for example, with products from their own vegetable garden (Vaughn 54). The same attitude can also be applied to a social worker.
Historical bases of conflict are associated with disagreements in the scientific community regarding the definition of personal and professional boundaries (Vaughn 129). Due to the variety of interpretations of these concepts, it is difficult to give an unambiguous answer to the question of the differentiation of professional and personal responsibilities.
Applying Moral Models and Theories
Applicable moral theories are, for example, the theory of Dickman, who calls the establishment of the boundaries of analysis an individual ritual, emphasizing an individual approach to each patient in the matter of establishing analytical boundaries (Vaughn 165). According to his approach, setting boundaries with each client is necessary.
Dickman admits the possibility of allowing border violations for ethical purposes, provided that the social worker really believes that it will benefit the patient (Vaughn 192). Kornberg’s moral theory is to establish very strict boundaries with the client (Vaughn 162). According to her, it is unacceptable for a social worker, for example, to feel sorry for a client and reduce their cost.
Moral Theory That Supports My Opinion
Kornberg’s theory is a moral theory that supports my opinion. I believe that in order to avoid professional burnout, it is necessary to build very clear boundaries between personal and professional life. In addition, clients’ free overtime assistance makes them dependent on outside help and develops a learned helplessness, teaching them to rely on other people even in situations with which they could cope on their own.
Conclusion
My thoughts on the topic are based on statistics provided by Lewis Vaughn, which indicate a high percentage of professional burnout among employees who admitted that they help their clients for free at least sometimes (Vaughn 227). A statement supporting my opinion is that borders are like a wall in a dark room. Knowing that they exist calms and gives a sense of reliability and security to the social worker themselves. In addition, they must withstand if the client wants to test their strength, instilling a sense of security in business relationships.
Works Cited
Reamer, Frederic. “Managing Boundaries and Dual Relationships.” Social Work Today, Web.
Vaughn, Lewis. Doing Ethics. W. W. Norton & Company, 2018. Web.