Reference no: EM133745678

Assignment:

One of the foundational principles of social work is policy advocacy. It is through this lens that social workers improve lives by increasing social justice. It is a core piece of the NASW Code of Ethics. This role is fulfilled by:

• Knowledge of existing policies. If social workers want to create new policies, they must first understand why existing policies were developed. They must be able to identify problems in these policies, find ways they could be improved, and design concrete proposals toward this end.
• Knowledge of political and legislative processes. Social workers engaging in policy advocacy must understand how local, state, and federal policies are created and changed. Legislation is developed in line with the democratic process; knowing how governments from federal bodies to city councils change laws is crucial.
• Knowledge of service delivery. Service delivery refers to how resources, including goods and services, are provided. Social workers must understand how policies are implemented to create actual results and must be able to identify bottlenecks in the path from policy to tangible change.

• Research skills. Research skills are necessary to gain deeper insights into existing policies and their historical creation. Research can also be used to discover and evaluate alternative policies that may exist in another jurisdiction.
• Analytical skills. Social workers assess existing policies' effectiveness and proposed policies' viability.
• Communication skills. The ability to write detailed policy drafts and present policy proposals verbally is essential to argue for one policy's potential efficacy over another.

Tulane University. (2021, January 27). Social work policy advocacy: The path to societal change.

Are you proficient or are approaching proficiency in any of these skills? Please explain.