People have unconditional value and are inherently worthy of respect. The idea that there is a general quality behind all differences in ability, value, and circumstance, that qualifies people as having worth and value, is the foundation for the concepts of human rights. The United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) states that, “all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights,” and may claim “equality of opportunity” and “equality before the law.” As social workers, the belief that all people have unconditional value is the basis for other social work values. Because people regardless of their situations have a right to self-determination and equal justice, and they deserve basic respect. Social workers may not approve of their clients’ behavior, may believe a client is an inadequate or selfish parent or spouse, or even a dysfunctional person. Still, the social worker must value the client and show basic respect.

To respect the dignity and worth of each individual means that social workers recognize the humanity within each person regardless of how that person may be judged by others. Social workers are reminded that there are times and circumstances when one individual, or a group of individuals have been judged to be less than fully humans. Social workers must resist accepting such judgments, and must insist that individual clients be treated with dignity and respect in recognition of our common humanity.

An example of social workers need for allocating dignity and worth of every person is if a social worker has opposing views of their clients. If a woman chooses to stay in an abusive relationship and has no children, regardless of the social worker wanting her to leave the situation, then the social worker has to respect the ideas and beliefs of the client about what she thinks is best for herself. The social worker may want to encourage the woman to leave, but the social worker needs to make her aware of the pro?s and con?s of staying in that relationship and allow her to make her own decision. Once the woman has decided what she wants to do, then the social worker should respect her choice.
Dignity and worth of a person is necessary in order to establish social justice. Justice refers to fairness. It is often misconstrued to mean simply equality or humane generosity. However, the concept of justice is much more complicated. The universal recognized symbol for justice, a blindfolded woman holding a balancing scale, symbolizes justice as an objective and fair balancing of competing interests. Social justice aims for the good of the whole community. It requires people to inspire, work with, and organize with others to accomplish together a work of justice.

Friedrich Hayek, who believed that social justice is either a virtue or it is not, coined the term “social justice.” If it is, it can be ascribed only to the reflective and deliberate acts of individual person. However, the term is not ascribed to the individuals, but to the social systems. The term ?social justice? is used to denote a regulative principle of order (Novak, 2000).

Social workers often work with people whose rights have been violated or threatened, whose privacy has been invaded, or whose basic needs are not being met. The most common issues that arise in social work practice include: racism, elitism, sexism, heterosexism, ageism, and handicapism. All of these populations have been discriminated against, are those perceived as less productive, and hence disruptors of the economic order. So they unquestionably need social workers to speak for them in the political realm.

Social justice takes many forms. An example of social worker advocating for social justice is social workers addressing issues such as: poverty and the needs of the poor and working poor within a specific community. The poor, and the working poor, deserve special attention, as poverty cuts across all boundaries and defies any attempt we may make to categorize the poor. People are poor because they lack economic resources needed to meet their basic needs, and they are invisible to many citizens. Advancing social justice means being involved at a variety of levels to create awareness for individuals to move out of poverty and to increase their access to needed economic resources. Since it can be agreed that an underlying bias against the poor exist within our society, advancing social justice also means advocating for the poor in each arena of social work practice.
In conclusion, social workers will need to pay close attention to their values with the advancing of the profession. There has been a decline in social workers in the pubic social services. Such shift suggests important questions about the mission of social work and its value base. To what extent should social work place primary emphasis on the poor and oppressed as opposed to social action, such as advocacy on behalf of the least advantage?

Certain value issues will continue to permeate the future of social work. Although some of these issues will change in response to new trends and developments, the fundamental issues related to social workers’ values will persist, such as the worth and dignity of people and social justice. Therefore, it will always be essential for social workers to examine these issues, which in the end form the very foundation of the profession.
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The Social Structure Theory that is the focus of this essay is the Functionalist approach. Two key theorists in this field are Durkheim – who worked on suicide and religion – and Parsons – who worked with the family. Functionalists view the various institutions of society [Family, education, religion, law] as being reciprocal and thus to understand any single part of society the society as a whole must be studied. Durkhiem and Parsons saw society in the form of a biological analogy, in that each parts of society were seen to be working together to the benefit of the other parts. Also each part of society depended on the other parts of society in order to function. For instance, in the Human body there are many vital organs and vessels that facilitate the continuation of the person’s life. The lungs are useless without the heart, arteries, stomach, brain, liver, kidneys, intestines and so on. In this analogy the human body represents society while the key parts of society [that is, the key institutions such as: Education; Family; Political System, Legal System, Economic Bodies, Media, Cultural Bodies and Religious Bodies] are represented by the vital organs of the body. Each institution relies on the other in order for society as a whole to operate.

The Institutions of society provide and satisfy certain needs while also determining our behaviour within the society through socialisation – the process in which we are adapted and changed to suit the restraints and laws of society. For instance, the family is the primary institution for socialisation and gives it’s members the roles and values that are necessary for social life and order. A typical role and value in a western family may be that of the mother, who must clean and cook for the family. The other institutions also play a part in the transmition and upkeep of these norms, values and roles, and in this way are said to shape and mould those in society and directly affect their behaviour.

The society is said to be one of consensus and harmony, where-by people identify common goals, in the form of shared norms and values, and form a “Value Consensus” with other individuals. In this way people “pull together” in order to attain their common goals. This “Value Consensus” is said to be vital as without it people would follow their own individual needs/wants and conflict would result. This positive view of society explains social order – that society determines, and inhibits, behaviour through its main institutions so that social unity is maintained.

Functionalist theorists do accept that conflict occurs in society and attempt to explain it by arguing that conflict is only a temporary occurrence and soon after the social order of society returns. It is also argued by functionalists that although social groups do have noticeable differences conflict is not the result, infact the outcome is, in the main, competition.

The Functionalist theory of society has been open to much criticism in its time. It has been argued that it underplays the degree of conflict within society, that society is infact not as harmonious as functionalists argue. Also anther major criticism is that the theory sees people as puppets, or creatures, of the society, in that people are not free to make individual choices or thoughts. The theory has gone out of fashion since it’s hey-day in the 1950, where it was the most popular theory of society.

At the opposite end of the scale is the Social Action Theory [Symbolic Interactionism] of society. Key theorists in this field are Max Weber and Goffman. This theory is focused on individuals and small groups within society. To understand action [behaviour] you must discover the meanings, which the “actors” [Individuals within the society] give to their actions.

The behaviour of individuals, according to Interactionists, is not shaped by the institutions of society, but is influenced by the behaviour of others. When going to a party a person, upon arrival, will asses the situation. They will look at the behaviour of others, their age, the number of people, the amount of alcohol and act according to how they see the situation. At first the person may interpret the situation as hostile, and thus may become withdrawn and quiet. This interpretation can be changed during the course of the party and the person may change his behaviour accordingly. As a result an individual’s perception of reality directly affects behaviour.

If a teacher assesses a pupil as a “trouble maker” then the teacher’s behaviour towards the child will differ from the pupils he/she sees as “good”. Also the pupil may adopt this “trouble maker” label and act it out as a result of the teacher’s stance. This is an example of “self fulfilling prophecy”: people are liable to act the way that people see them.

As has been touched upon, roles, interactionists reason, are open to negotiation and are not rigid pre-set moulds for a person to enter. When a couple marry both will have ideas on the roles within such a relationship. The roles of “wife” and “husband” are apparent but not fully defined. The couple negotiate the roles through their interaction. The roles are not “set in stone” but are flexible and open to re-definition.

One of the concepts of symbolic interactionism is that people interact in terms of symbols. Symbols can be many things but the most important is our language. Through language we develop self-conscious thought, talking about “I” and “me”. It enables individuals to “look at” themselves from the outside to see how other see them, giving people their “self-concept”. The basis of “self-concept” is that individuals see themselves how those around him/her see him/her, this “self-concept” effects how the individual behaves. For instance people may see a person as ugly and thus this may result in the individual forming the opinion that they are ugly and make them more reticent to approach people of the other sex. When talking to someone we look for symbols to enable us to find out what the other person may be thinking. The words they use and the way they move their body are symbols for us to interpret. For instance, if someone has prepared a meal for a friend, the friend may say “That was a lovely meal” upon finishing the meal. Although the words themselves were complementing the tone of the person and facial expressions are symbols, which might indicate a different opinion of the friend.

Interactionists are concerned not only with the definitions of situation and self, but also with how exactly those definitions came to be. Many factors affect the definition of someone: the way they dress, use the language, use their body, the area that a person is from, the car they drive, the way they style their hair. These all play a part in the definition of a person, but these definitions are open to change. An initial definition of a police officer may be that he is a power hungry fool, but during interaction with the police officer the definition may change.

The action theory has gained credibility and is a major competitor, along with the Structural theory, for the title of most popular theory. It’s a theory that states that free will is something which individuals all have, people are not the creatures of society, but it’s creators.

One of the major similarities between both the structural theory and the action theory is that both attempt to explain the behaviour of people within society. Both are interested in explaining and interpreting human behaviour and also it’s consequences.

Both theories recognise that people within society adopt roles. For instance within the family there are the roles of mother, father, son, daughter, wife, husband and child. These roles are accepted by both theories but both differ in their interpretation. The structural theory states that roles are rigid moulds that shape behaviour. The action approach sees roles as a more fluid, flexible and open to re-determination.

The most apparent difference between the two theories is that the structural view emphasises wider society as a structure with the institutions linked together and how these institutions shape and mould behaviour. The action theory focuses on individuals and small groups and their interaction. Structural theories are described as “macro sociology” as they focus on large scale social structures and the institutions of society. Social action theories are known as “micro sociology” as they focus on the individual, the core relationships within society.

Furthermore there is a difference in the methods of research that both theories apply. Structural theories use quantitative methods of research. Quantitative methods produce results that are lacking in fine detail but can be generalised to a particular group. Action theories use highly qualitative methods, which produce data that is very detailed and precise but cannot be generalised to a wider population as data is specific to an individual.
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There are four basic elements that are used in studying a discipline. They are conception, material field, methodologies, and subject-matter claims. Conceptions create images for structure and dynamics underlying observable phenomena. A discipline’s material field is the common-sense principality of objects and events that the discipline studies. Methodologies establish images of safe procedure and a clear conclusion by which a material field may be understood. Methodologies prescribe specific methods for collecting data that are used to evaluate a discipline’s conception. Subject matter claims are highly selective pictures of its material field that are made from inferences drawn out of individual methodological rules for the purpose of evaluating particular conceptions.

Eleanor Smith Bowen’s book, Return to Laughter takes a fictional approach to her study of the Tiv culture. She is an Anthropologist who examines the “rules of right behavior” as functions in the Tiv culture of West Africa. The material field of Bowen’s anthropological study is observing the Tiv people’s pattern of behavior in their everyday life. Some limitations to anthropology are that descriptions of the rules are reached with biased emotions, and you can’t do controlled experiments because it is real life. When anthropologists are participating with members of the culture, their own views and opinions become obstacles that get in the way of being objective. The conceptions (or culture) are learned through the rules of right behavior. An example of a rule of right behavior in the Tiv culture was laughing at disabled people. That behavior was extremely appalling to Bowen yet, it is a behavior that was acceptable in the Tiv culture. This is an example of how thick culture really does cut. Bowen learned the patterns of the Tiv people by using the methodology of participant observation. In order to thoroughly understand the culture and its people, Bowen had to assume the role of every possible member in society. She was her own best instrumental tool. In being assigned different names by the tribe, she was able to see what is expected from people of different social positions. As well as how the Tiv people interact with and treat individuals from different social positions. In making inferences from her experiences, Bowen arrived to her subject matter claims that the Tiv cultures focal point was witchcraft. The other was that older is more powerful and that power was cast in the male kindred line. It was a way of explaining the unexplained to the Tiv. It gave the Tiv a sense of hope and control, which showed they seriously, believed that’s the way it is; things happen for a reason. Bowen, in her study, was practicing normal science. She did not seem to be very innovative in her methods.

Peter Berger examines sociology and social structure in his book Invitation to Sociology. Sociologists study the functions of a population that function by specialization, and categorize members into groups that accomplish tasks in society. The material field is the study of a large population of people. This structure of society is thought to be an instrument of human adaptive behavior. The things that make up this structure must be different. Throughout history, structure endures a cycle of repetition. Roles are designed to establish social structure. The role provides a pattern to which the individual acts in a particular situation. Sociology’s conceptions is composed of a collection of like beings of the same kind, whose members live in a high state of interdependency, and who appear to be bent on enduring over time. Members of society find it necessary to seek the behaviors of others in order to satisfy their own wants and needs. They are not able to satisfy these needs on there own as individuals. In order for interdependency to work, it is important for members not to be carbon copies of each other. The limitations of sociology is that interdependency appears to relinquish freedom of choice. However, if freedom of choice were to be utilized by everyone the social system would break down. The methodologies used to study populations are survey research and experiments. This type of methodology can be difficult because it is impossible for every person within the population to be surveyed. Therefore, it is hard to be certain that it is an accurate demographic representation of the large society. The information collected from the surveys and experiments are formulated as the final outcome for the subject matter claims.

Anthropological and sociological sciences share similarities regarding material field and conceptions. The material field is objects and events that the discipline studies. An example of material field in anthropology was the small group of Tiv people that Bowen observed. The material field for sociology is a study of a large population. Conceptions in the study of anthropology consist of culture, which is the set of rules of right behavior that is shared by the people under study. These rules are shared and transmitted over generations. In sociology conceptions include a population in a high state of interdependency, which is built on trust. These studies involve examining people functioning in social systems, with an emphasis on external differentiation.

Anthropology and sociology have differences in the forms of methodologies.

Methodologies are specific methods for gathering data that can be used to evaluate conceptions of a discipline. Anthropology’s method of study is participant observation. The anthropologist observes a culture by participating as a member. Sociology utilizes survey research as a preferred methodology. This type of research includes questionnaires that are administered to carefully selected samples in the society under research.

The social sciences consist of different disciplines in which each studies certain aspects of the human adaptive behavior. Each discipline is geared to look at the pattern and diversity of humans in different ways, by asking different questions and using different material fields and methods. The conceptions, material field, methodologies and subject matter claims help to formulate scientific information as well as ideologies of human adaptive behavior. As has been shown, anthropology and sociology contain similarities as well as differences in their practices.
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