Definitions, Purpose, Functions, Objectives and Assumptions of Social Work

Social Services
https://www.esn-eu.org/about/what-are-types-social-services
https://www.britannica.com/topic/social-service
“Social services” denotes the services catering for special needs of persons and groups who suffer
from some handicap-social, economic, physical or mental and so are unable to avail themselves
of, or are traditionally denied the amenities and services provided by the community”. The
Planning Commission of India, nd.
Social services are also referred to as welfare services and includes any of numerous publicly or
privately provided services intended to aid disadvantaged, distressed, or vulnerable persons or
groups.
Social services are central to creating a caring, inclusive, and productive society. Social services are
person-oriented, designed to respond to human vital needs, generally driven by the principle of
solidarity, they contribute to safeguarding fundamental rights and human dignity, non-
discrimination and to ensuring the creation of equal opportunities for all, enabling individuals to
play a significant part in the economic and social life of the society.
Social Security
Social security is the protection that a society provides to individuals and households to
ensure access to health care and to guarantee income security, particularly in cases of old
age, unemployment, sickness, invalidity, work injury, maternity or loss of a breadwinner.
Social security protection is clearly defined in ILO conventions and UN instruments as a

basic human right – albeit one that a small proportion of the people on our planet actually
enjoy.
Broadly defined as a system of contribution based health, pension and unemployment
protection, along with tax-financed social benefits, social security has become a universal
challenge in a globalizing world.
Only 20 percent of the world’s population has adequate social security coverage, while more
than half lacks any kind of social security protection at all. Those without coverage tend to be
part of the informal economy – they are generally not protected in old age by social security,
and they cannot afford to pay their health care bill.
In addition, many people have insufficient coverage – that is, they may lack significant
elements of protection (such as health care or pension) or what protection they do have is low
or declining. Experience shows that people are willing to contribute to social security benefits
that satisfy their priority needs.
(Read ILO document for further details)
Additional Links for Social Security

http://www.socialsecuritymission.gov.in/about_us.php
https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/how-effective-are-social-security-and-welfare-in-
india/article6823320.ece
Social Welfare
Historically social welfare is related to social work.
Social welfare is defined as
• A nation’s system of programs, benefits, and services that helps people meet those social,
economic, educational, and health needs that are fundamental to the maintenance of society
(National Association of Social Workers) quoted in Zastrow, 2017
• Egs of social welfare progs & services- foster care, adoption, day care, public assistance
programmes, suicide counselling etc (see Zastrow for more egs) .
The term ‘social welfare’ denotes the system of such services which intend to cater to
the special needs of persons, groups and communities who, by reason of some
handicap-social, economic, mental or physical are unable to avail themselves of, or are
traditionally denied the basic amenities or services provided by the society or state. It
implies that, social welfare services are meant to benefit the weaker, dependent or
under privileged sections of the population. Such services basically cover the needy
members of the society, like orphan children, widows and destitute, mentally retarded
persons, the blind, the deaf, the crippled and other economically underprivileged
members of the society.
Social welfare constitutes special services for meeting the special needs of people falling
under special category of the population. Services under social welfare do not include
the general social services those are provided to all the citizens without any special
consideration. For example, public health, education, recreational activities and medical
relief etc, those are general in nature. The services under social welfare aim at enabling
the marginalized people to absorb the general social services to equally share the fruits
of economic development of the society. Shortly speaking, social welfare refers to the
collective responsibility to meet the needs of all the people in general and the needy and
marginalized in particular.
Social welfare institutions
SW institutions include social welfare programmes and social service organizations.
The purposes of social welfare institutions are to prevent, alleviate, or contribute to the solution
of recognized social problems in order to directly improve the well-being of individuals, groups,
families, organizations, and communities.
Social welfare institutions are established by policies and laws, with the programs and services being
provided by voluntary (private) and governmental (public) agencies.(Zastrow, 2017)
Social Action for Social Reform

M.S. Gore while defining social reform said, “Social reform involves a deliberate effort to bring
about change in social attitudes, culturally defined role expectations and actual patterns of
behaviour of people in a desired direction through a process of persuasion and public education”.
It can be said that it is a process of change from inside the minds of people concerned.
In the context of social work, social reform may be referred to as a process of change or
replacement in the institutions, which have totally or partially become irrelevant to the
contemporary social order or causing loss to the quality of life, along with deprivation, unrest and
misery to sizeable section of the society.
Following Gore’s definition, any effort to bring about change in social attitudes, culturally
defined role expectations and actual patterns of behaviour of people in a desired direction through
a process of persuasion and public education needs social action.
A few classic examples are efforts to challenge caste/racial/gender discrimination. At the heart of
all these forms of discrimination is prevailing social attitudes and prejudices. In the case of
gender discrimination, culturally defined role expectations strengthen discrimination and prevent
gender equality.
Social Action is concerned with system change
Seeks to alter the structure of roles and distribution of power, prevent problems, expand
opportunities, enhance the quality of life.
System change can involve revolutionary action, campaigns, confrontations.
Social action is an organized effort to work towards social justice, solving mass social problems by
influencing social legislations or administration of social services.
Social action is therefore one of the important social work methods that helps to achieve the
same.

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Definitions, Purpose, Functions, Objectives and Assumptions of Social Work

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Social Services

Social security protection is clearly defined in ILO conventions and UN instruments as a

Additional Links for Social Security

Historically social welfare is related to social work.

Social welfare is defined as

Social welfare institutions

SW institutions include social welfare programmes and social service organizations.

Social Action for Social Reform

Social Action is concerned with system change

System change can involve revolutionary action, campaigns, confrontations.

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