Community Social Work: A Guide to Resources, Teamwork, and Solidarity Networks
1. Institutional Resources
We refer to the institutions operating in the environment where the intervention will take place. We should highlight the level of development (or lack thereof) of public protection systems in a given area.
It’s important to develop a map of institutions and voluntary organizations that provide resources in the area, facilitating interaction and coordination within the community.
For developed countries, it’s crucial to analyze the types of services offered and funding calls for eligible groups. A clear goal is to organize community action to claim aid from institutions, meeting requirements and fostering potential partnerships. This includes disseminating information about calls and requirements, such as collecting signatures or forming associations to gain leverage with the administration.
2. Available Work Equipment
It’s crucial to assess the professionals available to assist the project staff. Mistakenly evaluating available staff and expecting to achieve goals without an adequate number of specialists in various fields is an initial error that can impact the entire project.
Analyzing the corporate goals of public and private organizations funding community social work is also important. This has a twofold objective: first, to analyze if they match the identified needs, and second, to contribute to a re-prioritization of institutional goals. The community social worker shouldn’t create a docile community subservient to the funding institutions; they must build communities where altruism and gratitude coexist with a critical perspective on their circumstances.
3. Networks of Solidarity, Mutual Support, and Power Structures
Identify existing networks of solidarity, mutual support, and power structures within the intervention environment. These networks can be leveraged to unite the community and encourage collaboration.
Organizational structures shouldn’t be created without considering the community’s dynamics. Only by utilizing existing organizations and participation channels can self-diagnosis, participation, and involvement be fostered to address challenges, opportunities, or problems.
It’s also important to identify the main obstacles derived from existing power structures. For example, organizing women worker cooperatives financed through microcredit in India has empowered women to manage resources traditionally controlled by men, enabling them to define their objectives and allocate resources accordingly. In this case, creating a women’s association movement was necessary to overcome resistance based on gender inequality.
1.1 Community Diagnosis and Self-Assessment
The preliminary diagnosis by the social worker and their team should empower the community to generate its own self-assessment, increasing its self-knowledge, outlining challenges, and identifying available resources.
Two dimensions can be distinguished at this stage:
- Analysis of exogenous risks operating in environments that objectively demand intervention based on community dynamics.
- General characteristics of the population, influencing the specific risk to be addressed.
During this phase, using appropriate methodologies that allow the participation of individuals, organized groups, and institutions is crucial to encourage a proactive attitude and involve everyone in improving their situation.
1.1.1 Identifying Main Community Risks
The risks identified by the community social worker must be validated against the community’s self-perception to achieve a shared understanding that allows for collective action to improve living conditions. Some risks are obvious, stemming from precarious employment, economic hardship, or family or institutional crises. Other risks are invisible, relating to the gradual deterioration of living conditions, even if those affected haven’t yet recognized them.