Introduction
The plot of “The Namesake” deals with identity and assimilation issues faced by various members of a racially and culturally distinct Indian-American immigrant family in the United States and how they adapt to and reshape their host environment (Urdang, 2002, p.156). The aim of this report is to understand how social workers can improve the quality of social services for a targeted client by utilizing the framework of human behavior and the social environment.
Main text
The client’s family comprises Ashoke Ganguly and his wife Ashima, their son Gogol and daughter Sonia. The parents are first-generation immigrants from India and depicted as traditionalists who cling hard to their unique South Asian Indian ways. The children, in contrast, relate to more than one cultural system, leading to a clash of values which becomes even more pronounced as the son comes of age, unsuccessfully trying to assimilate into American culture.
For a social worker, diversity and cultural issues directly affect their social work practice in many ways because they involve the need to resolve complex value conflicts faced by their client (Urdang, 2002, p.157). According to theoretical constructs of human behavior and social environment, social workers can use the following techniques to stay informed and resourceful in their practice of dealing with culturally diverse clients.
Cultural Sensitivity
In order to provide leadership in promoting sustainable changes for service delivery and practice, the social worker must recognize that people may have different values and perspectives and must keep an open mind in learning about the client’s culture (Anderson, Carter & Lowe, 1999, p.138).
To take a leaf from the movie “Namesake”, if a social worker had to deal with the Ganguly family, she would be able to relate with them better only after giving due importance to values and norms prevalent in Asian immigrant cultures e.g. respect for parents, arranged marriages, the pursuit of higher education, etc.
Becoming familiar with the client’s cultural background greatly helps the social worker in understanding their “real need” in order to develop culture-specific contexts and techniques (Urdang, 2002, p.157). For instance, if the Ganguly family was facing discrimination or prejudice due to their ethnic origin, the social worker would be in a better position to recommend appropriate diversity programs that address the social, emotional, and economic well-being of the clients.
Cultural Competence
In order to attend to changing locales, populations, etc. and relate with emerging societal trends for providing relevant service to the client, the social worker must be culturally competent so that they don’t make the mistake of stereotyping the client based on a limited understanding of their background (Urdang, 2002, p.157).
While dealing with the Ganguly family, the social worker would come across slightly different cultural norms that might appear strange or even unacceptable to the Western mindset; for example, the wife (Ashima) never addressing her husband (Ashoke) by his first name which is considered a sign of respect in traditional Asian cultures. Here, it would be incorrect to stereotype the whole family environment as something that oppresses women – that’s barking up the wrong tree!
In this example, the social worker must come to terms with the fact that their client’s behavior is directly related to the original cultural environment they belong to, for which they have to gain competence in order to promote welfare (Urdang, 2002, p.157). The social worker can later counsel the client and provide access to resources that help them navigate their labyrinth of psychological issues because of huge cultural differences, motivating the client to become emotionally stable.
Constructivism
Recognizing that the context of any practice is dynamic and each individual has different needs, the constructivist stance is a great tool for the social worker to relate better with the client, especially when he(she) does not strictly conform to the original cultural environment (Urdang, 2002, p.157).
Basically, in this approach, the social worker is asked to be sensitive to cultural issues while at the same time, become capable of individualizing each client (Urdang, 2002, p.157). This involves exploring the meaning of culture to them, understanding their problem perceptions, and imposing a prescribed treatment agenda (Urdang, 2002, p.157).
For example, while dealing with psychological issues faced by the son Gogol Ganguly, it would be helpful to understand that this client is facing identity issues due to his hybrid upbringing. Although he spent his whole life in the United States, trying hard to assimilate into the ways of the host culture, he’s still not past his Indian identity. Here, the social worker must work directly with the parents to assess the exact nature of psychological care required for the son and recommending appropriate support networks for giving him emotional stability.
Applying a combination of techniques for addressing the diversity-related challenges faced by the Ganguly family in the Namesake should lead to the following summary benefits.
- By being culturally sensitive and competent about the traditional culture of the parents, Ashoke and Ashima Ganguly, the social worker can foster a better integration for them with host American culture. Since, these characters cling to their unique cultural norms, and will not change their perceptions easily, it’s important to provide culturally specific solutions to their problems, thus, advancing care.
- In order to address the identified issues faced by the son, Gogol, the social worker may prescribe a constructivist approach where he/she will have to explore the meaning of culture as it relates to the individual since he was raised in a different environment compared to his parents. It may be followed that Gogol’s psychological issues depicted in the movie can be traced to both his Indian origin as well as upbringing as an American which led to an overall identity crisis.
For example, while growing up Gogol had a problem with his first name because it didn’t sound “very American” so eventually he got it changed. Here, the social worker could recommend interaction sessions for Gogol with other clients who faced problems because of their unusual names. This would help him see the larger picture and resolve his victim mindset.
References
Anderson, R.E., Carter, I.E., Lowe, G. (1999). Human Behavior in the Social Environment: A Social Systems Approach. Aldine Transaction: Washington DC.
Urdang, E. (2002). Human Behavior in the Social Environment: Interweaving the Inner and Outer Worlds. Haworth: New York.