Introduction:

To be honest, as the novice in the social work field, I found it is difficult and uncertain to deal with most cases. Especially when facing the special population, such as disable people, I am not sure I can face them directly. Actually, to be a real social worker, it is a basic requirement. Maybe, when I face someone suffering personal grief, I would enter into their emotional world and do not know how to support and help them. Therefore, I want to choose disabled people as an object to talk about my difficulties to deal with them.

Literature review:

Working with disabled people is a relatively complex task, because it not only adjusting one to personal individual disasters but also enables them to live better with seeking economic, social as well as community resource. (Oliver, 1995). Sometimes, the misunderstanding and prejudice still exists, even in the social work field. Siller notes that “professionals, like most people, prefer working with the ‘beautiful people’ —those who are most like themselves intellectually and socially” (as cites in Marshak & Seligman, 1993, p.41). Furthermore, the disability serves as a focus of the worker’s attention. Therefore, in worker’s eyes, the disability caused difficulties although they are not related, and disability became the focal point of the whole helping process. (Marshak & Seligman, 1993).

However, the misunderstanding is inevitable. To social workers, it is difficult to balance their own perceptions with the actual situation. After all, to most able-bodied adults’ world, the disabled children are unfamiliar and hidden. Understanding and communicating with these disabled children relatively hard, and workers even will feel difficult to deal with it. (Middleton, 1995). Marshak and Seligman stressed that, we try to view us in the client’s position and can not imagine how to cope with them. Our insight is so limited that we always believe their life is a tragedy. (1993). Social workers are failure to develop a general theoretical and practical skill for interventions. One reason is that lacking of understanding of working with the particular group. The other reason is that when working with disabled clients workers feel inadequate or incompetent (Oliver & Sapey, 1999). From the perspective of psychology, “Most stereotypes of disability are negative and lead, all too readily, too prejudice and discrimination, sine those holding them are unable to perceive the disabled person as an individual.” (Levinson & Parritt, 2006, p.113)

In order to working with disabled people more effective, the social worker should acquire and understand the coping mechanisms of the client. The coping mechanisms include repression, projection, denial, and sublimation. Marshak and Seligman state that the social worker will be the object of the projection or will be blamed by clients because of projection. Denial means that the client refuses to acknowledge disabilities which lead to the delay of the healing process. So social workers will find difficult when their help were rejected by the clients. (1993). Dominelli described that social workers should build a trust relationship with disabled clients that can help them strengthen their willingness to communicate with others and build confidence to do so. (2009).

Actually, many social workers will give unjustified and irrational recommendation and evaluation when facing disabled clients. Oliver and Sapey argued that the record of social work involvement with disabled people is not such a good. Social workers are failure to recognize the real need of their disabled client. According to their nature disability, social workers often do some inappropriate assumptions in their intervention plan. (1999).“Professionals also often erroneously describe clients as needing to accept their disabilities when they are uncooperative with treatment recommendations or are abrasive.”(MArshak & Seligman, 1993, p.25) According to Oliver and Sapey (1999), Disabled people have accused the professionals ignore the disabling conditions, benefits and rights of themselves. Furthermore, professionals ignore the practical assistance and verbal advice to disabled clients in training programs.

As the social worker, what can we do and How to deal with them has become a significant issue. Empathy is most important during the helping process. At the same time, respect, caring and genuine also included in the whole process. (Marshak & Seligman, 1993). Besides, Social workers should encourage autonomy of clients with disability. Working with them is more important than treating them as a recipient passively. (Dominelli, 2009). “Counselors are often involved in multiple roles including empathic listener, advisor, educator, advocate, and intermediary, as well as practitioner-scientist.”(Helms & Ekstrom, 2002, p ?,)

Further, some gesture and body language should be pay attention. Marshak and Seligman argued that Social worker should face the clients and talking with them. Looking at elsewhere will show inattention and unconcern. (1993). “Abolishing stereotypes of disability and dehumanizing or shaming responses are important steps in eradicating oppression and discrimination against disabled people. Another one is treating them with dignity and equality.”(Dominelli, 2009, p.71) Helms and Ekstrom suggested that when working with disabled clients, the existing laws and principles of assessment should be combined with client’s own opinions and concerns. Besides the basic communicating and counseling skills, social workers need acquire particular expertise when working with clients, their family members, education and career institutions, and social services agencies and so on. (2002)

Self – assessment:

To me, I never contact this particular population based on a client-worker relationship. Therefore, I felt uncertain whether I provide correct and effective help to them. On the other hand, I also worried about whether my behavior or expression will hurt them dignity although it is not my original intention. Maybe, all of these feelings and concerns come from my own personal psychological situation and growth background.

I will give myself an analysis and assessment to find the inside available reasons or factors which result in the difficulty. The possible points as follows:

1. Emotional vulnerability

To be honest, the most challenge for me is to face so much grief and miserable experience. Perhaps it is my growth background that brings a