Key Values, Ethics, and Skills for Working with People ● 57skill, we will consider the core skills required to practice ethically, with social
justice as a main outcome.
The consensus among most writers is that the core skills include com-
municating, building and maintaining meaningful relationships, assessing,
interviewing, empowering, and using the self (Braye and Preston-Shoot
1995; Lymbery and Postle 2007; O’Connor et al. 2008; Trevithick 2012;
Worsley et al. 2013). Trevithick (2012) argued that social work’s distinctive
approach comes from the professional experience of working with people
from deprived and socially excluded sectors of society, as well as the use of
ethics and values to ensure that social justice is achieved. In her influential
text, Social Work Skills and Knowledge, Trevithick explored 80 skills and inter-
ventions (Trevithick 2012), which she grouped into five skill set domains:
● (^) communication, observation, listening, and assessment skills
● (^) interviewing skills
● (^) helping and giving direction and guidance
● (^) empowerment, negotiation, and partnership skills
● (^) professional competence and accountability
She argued that communication skills, the primacy and quality of the
relationship between social workers and clients, and the capacity to support
or grow people’s well-being are fundamental to social work.
The use of self includes being mindful of one’s own values and the
unique approaches that underpin one’s everyday professional decisions and
actions. Use of self is about the ability to integrate thinking and feeling;
it allows for “the exploration of personal experiences, values and political
beliefs” (Harrison and Ruch 2007, 42). Use of self allows a human service
professional to identify areas of skill and value preferences that are either
congruent with or potentially in conflict with professional preferences or
codes (O’Connor et al. 2008). Use of self allows a professional to act in
light of the understanding that plural identities and perspectives exist in the
complex fields of human suffering.
Chapter 2 highlights the need for social workers to be critically reflective
when they approach work with people. This critical reflection complements the
use of self, as critical reflection enables questions to be asked of the self as well
as of others. Critical reflection clarifies and questions “how power is operat-
ing in relationships with others” (O’Conner et al. 2008, 87). Being mindful
to ask, “Why did I do that or why did that happen?” enables practitioners to
challenge their everyday actions (Harrison and Ruch 2007, 44). Being criti-
cally reflective allows professionals to distinguish between their own personal
knowledge and experiences and their professional ones, to understand where