Social Work and Spirituality

According to my Generalist Social Work textbook:

"Spiritual beliefs may affect the client’s response to adversity, the coping methods employed, the sources of support available (e.g., the faith community may form a helpful social network), and the array of appropriate interventions available. Particularly when clients have experienced disaster or unimaginable traumas, the exploration of suffering, good and evil, shame and guilt, and forgiveness can be a central part of the change process. Social workers must be aware of their own spiritual journeys and understand the appropriate handling of spiritual content, depending on the setting, focus, and client population involved (Ellor et al., 1999)" (Hepworth et al, 2010, p. 241).

As I have been at my internship, I have been impressed with the way this issue was handled.  Spirituality came up in many conversations with clients, and the client's perspective was always treated with respect.  The therapists always engaged in a strengths-based perspective, in which they encouraged any ways that a person's spirituality seemed to help them cope with difficult situations.  They were never negative or disparaging about a spiritual belief in the client's presence, no matter what their private, personal perspective on that believe happened to be.  They asked good questions that made clients feel comfortable discussing their spiritual beliefs.

In many ways I appreciate this approach.  I would feel very uncomfortable if I went to a therapist and they were negative or critical of my spiritual beliefs.  In fact, I might have doubts about whether that person could be helpful in addressing my presenting issues.  However, what happens if spiritual beliefs seem to be harmful to a client?  How does a social worker make that determination?  I suppose the correct response would be simply to ask questions that would allow the client to determine whether that was the case.  However, even in the asking of questions, can we really deny that we sometimes have an agenda?  The questions we ask can cause a client to think in one direction or another.  Of course, the beauty of questions is that they do not force anything on a client.  But can our personal perspective really be so thoroughly removed from view?  If so, why do Hepworth et al say it is important for us to be aware of our own spiritual journeys?  Only so that we can keep them hidden? 

When it comes to issues of suffering, good and evil, shame and guilt, and forgiveness, things seem to get even more complicated.  Many religions have very strong perspectives on these issues, but those perspectives may or may not lead to positive change.  Within the religion I practice, Christianity, there are many different views on why suffering exists, and God's relation to it.  I have found some of these to be helpful in my own times of struggle, and others to be decidedly hurtful.  Is there any point in which, as social workers, it is appropriate we express an opinion to a client on something like the importance of forgiveness?  Is there any point that we share what has been valuable in our own lives on these topics?  Clearly, I have more questions than answers.

Works Cited:
Hepworth, D.H., Rooney, R.H., Rooney, G.D., Strom-Gottfield, K.  2010.  Direct Social Work Practice Theory and Skills (9th edition).  Delmont, CA: Brooks/Cole, Cengage Learning. 

Thoughts on Applying What I'm Learning to Brazilian Culture

Over Thanksgiving, I went back to my home city of Sao Paulo, Brazil.  I was full of what I had been learning during my first semester of grad school.  In Sao Paulo, I realized anew that different methods might be needed in different contexts.  One example of this was in the area of listening.  In the US, it seems people feel someone is listening well if the person sits quietly while they are talking and asks good questions.  In Brazil, that did not seem to go over as well.  When I tried to quietly listen, it seemed I was not as engaged in the life issue as others who were more verbal in their response.  When I asked the kind of questions I would naturally ask here, people were sometimes a little taken aback.  For example, when I asked questions to check my assumptions, it came across as if I lacked intuitive understanding of what they were sharing.  It was expected that conversation would happen more fluidly and less formally, and perhaps even that I would have strong opinions and express them.  This was in an informal friendship-based context, but my experience with the counseling professions in Brazil gives me the impression that a strong sense of the "right" direction, of having the answer, is expected from the counselor, also. 

As I have spent more time thinking about my interactions in Sao Paulo, I have wondered what kind of counseling approach I should take if I moved back to Sao Paulo as a therapist.  Could American listening methods be useful, and even liberating, if people were told what to expect from the beginning?  In other words, if a person came in for counseling and I told them that I would not give them advice, but instead was there only to ask clarifying questions that would help them make their own decisions, would that create a greater sense of empowerment?  Or would it simply create estrangement?  Could I adapt to a style more normal in the Brazilian environment without doing harm through foolish advice or jumping to conclusions?  I believe I would have to spend more time in a Brazilian context to reach satisfactory conclusions on these questions. 

Even more challenging, in some ways, in Brazil, was thinking about how to respond to physical needs.  In my current internship in Pittsburgh, although part of the goal has to do with mental health, a significant piece of is to make sure they have the basic resources they need to live stable lives.  On the most immediate level, this includes adequate housing, food, and clothing.  On a longer-term level, it includes goals in employment, education, and healthier relationships.  In every area, except perhaps the last, meeting these goals is more challenging in Brazil.  There is no government food stamps program and food is more expensive relative to an average working class salary.  As far as I know, there is no social security, SSI, or unemployment benefits that can provide an income to people who are not working.  In terms of housing, although there are a few high rise housing projects, I have never heard of anything like HUD or Section 8.  Almost all help in these areas come from the community, non-profits, and religious groups, not from the government. 

So how do I apply Mazlow's hierarchy of needs in that context?  Or should I even try?  In a Brazilian context, sometimes the hierarchy seems to work backwards: encouraging self-actualization (the pursuit of dreams) leads to better esteem and relationships, which in turn provide the necessary community tools for safety and meeting physiological needs.  Once again, these thoughts require further pondering within a Brazilian community.