Week 5 Discussion, Flexner’s Influence on the Social Work Profession The 1915 speech by Abraham Flexner, titled Is Socia

Week 5 Discussion, Flexner’s Influence on the Social Work Profession

The 1915 speech by Abraham Flexner, titled Is Social Work a Profession? was very influential in the transformation of social work. Although Flexner made the conclusion that social work cannot be called a real profession because of a lack of clear and specific body of knowledge and independence, his critique did not weaken the social work field. Instead, it was more of a wake-up call that urged social workers to professionalize their work by formal learning, codes of ethics and methods derived out of research (Flexner, 1915). This gave rise to schools of social work being formed, the standards of licensing were developed and the profession started to be recognized and credible.

A big transformation since the era of Flexner speech has been the transition of the loosely based charitable activities into a structured profession with hierarchies, bases on theory and evidence. Nowadays, social work requires specialized education, national codes, and ethical principles to follow. However, it has a potential to improve. The profession also needs to keep evolving and that requires focusing more on cultural competence, fixing structural injustice, and the implementation of technology in service, in order to address diverse populations in a more suitable manner.

Flexner made a significant speech that brings questions concerning the best relationship between practices focusing on individuals and social reforms. The contemporary social work has adopted a mixed methodology since it has understood that both of them are indispensable. An example is that a clinician working on a client with racial trauma can also plead to a policy change that would take care of systemic racism. This combination allows the profession to heighten its capacity to serve clients as well as advance a more comprehensive change in the greater society (Reamer, 2021).

It is clear that Flexner lightly touched on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) indirectly, but nowadays, these categories have become the focus of social work. The profession is keen on destroying oppressive systems and champion the cause of the vulnerable populations. DEI values have an impact on the recruitment process, program design, and advocacy of the policies, and redouble social work justice and human dignity core values.

References

Flexner, A. (1915). Is social work a profession? Proceedings of the National Conference of Charities and Corrections.

Reamer, F. G. (2021). Social work values and ethics (6th ed.). Columbia University Press.