-involves the development and implementation of a strategy for improving or altering some specified condition, patterns of behavior or set of circumstances in an effort to improve a client’s social functioning or well- being (Sheafor & Horesji, 2009).
- also termed an intervention when related to social work practice is a deliberate action intended to alter situation or interfere with an expected or usual course of events (Pincus & Minahan, 1973)
Important Terminologies in Planned Change
- Process- it is the awareness of & attention to process that usually separates the professional from the well- intentioned but often ineffective layperson.
- Conflict- the unavoidable part of the change process.
- Resistance- to change is a characteristic of all human and social system. Resistance can be expected even when the client has demonstrated a strong desire to change.
Actors in Planned Change
- Change Agent System- the change agent and the people who are part of agency or employing organization.
- Client System- people who sanction or ask for the change agent’s services, who are the expected beneficiaries of services, and who have a working agreement or contract with the change agent
- Target System- people who need to be changed to accomplish the goals of the change agent
- Action System- the change agent and the people he/she works with & through goals and influence the target system.
Planned Change Steps in Generalist Social Work Practice
Step 1: Engagement
-The initial period when practitioners orient themselves to the problem at hand and begin to establish communication & a relationship with others also addressing the problem.
Step 2: Assessment
-This is the process occurring between practitioner and client, in which information is gathered, analyzed and synthesized to provide a concise picture of the client and his/her needs and strengths.
Step 3: Planning
-Specifies what should be done.
Step 4: Implementation
-The process whereby client and worker follow their plan to achieve their goals.
Step 5: Evaluation
-The process of determining whether a given change effort was worthwhile.
Step 6: Termination
-The end of the professional social worker- client relationship.
-The end of the professional social worker- client relationship.
Basic Types of Termination
- Natural- goals have been achieved and it is time for clients to take what they have learned and go out on their own.
- Unplanned- other aspects of the client’s life take precedence over the problem he/she originally came to the social worker to help solve.
- Forced- the client might leave the agency or the client might leave an institution for some reason or lose eligibility to receive services.
Elements of Planned Change
Motivation
-Viewed as what people want and how much they want it.
Capacities
-can be thought as the resources that people or clients bring to the change process
Opportunity
-refers to the conditions of the environment that invite and support change.
Three Strategies in Planned Change
Empirical- Rational
-proposed b a person or a group
Normative- Educative
-Change existing norms; develop communities into a new norm
Power- Coercive
- Resistant to change
