Ethical decision-making of social work practitioners in organizational settings.
Item
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Title
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Ethical decision-making of social work practitioners in organizational settings.
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Identifier
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AAI9020774
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identifier
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9020774
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Creator
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Kugelman-Jaffee, Wendy Elyse.
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Contributor
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Adviser: Michael Smith
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Date
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1990
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Language
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English
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Publisher
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City University of New York.
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Subject
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Social Work
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Abstract
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This work examined both the ethical and non-ethical (or extra-ethical) elements that come to bear upon the decision-making processes of social workers practicing in agency settings. It specifically focused upon the degree to which agency social workers were aware of, and able to use, the ethical principles of the profession, in resolving on-the-job ethical dilemmas; the impact of various extra-ethical elements on the decision-making of agency social workers confronted with ethical dilemmas; and whether awareness of ethical dilemmas and ethical principles would be effected by exposure to the research design.;In approaching this subject, the author reviewed literature from the fields of organizational theory, power and compliance, ethics, and social work ethics.;The research tool was qualitative, and was developed by the author. The research was conducted through two basically identical interviews, during which twenty participants were asked to reconstruct ethical dilemmas from their practice, and to respond to created case histories. One finding of this study was that there is an uneasy relationship between agency social workers and their employing organizations. Most participants could not articulate or even perceive an obligation to their employing organizations. Instead, the organization was generally seen as a force which provoked resistance or submission. For many of the participants, the organization acted to constrict their cognitive abilities and undermine their other professional obligations.;Although many of the participants felt resigned and helpless when dealing with organizational constraints, several demonstrated that ethically informed positions taken in response to these constraints can support the agency social worker, and, consequently, can support the provision of quality social work services to clients.;This study found evidence of greater awareness of the ethical elements of practice through the process of attempting to reconstruct and to resolve ethical dilemmas. This heightened awareness however, was not accompanied by a greater ability to make decisions based on the ethical content of the dilemmas. Heightened awareness may be the beginning step in the educational process whose end is the application of this awareness in practice.
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Type
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dissertation
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Source
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PQT Legacy CUNY.xlsx
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degree
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D.S.W.
