**Denise MacDermott**

School of Applied Social and Policy Sciences, Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, Magee Campus, Ulster University, Derry-Londonderry BT48 7JL, UK; dj.macdermott@ulster.ac.uk

Received: 3 July 2019; Accepted: 2 September 2019; Published: 4 September 2019

**Abstract:** Public perceptions, increased scrutiny and successive governments' reshaping and attempting to define what is and what is not social work has eroded the progressive and radical force of the profession. This article explores how students' perceive the profession and presents evidence from a small-scale study conducted in a Northern Ireland University with 37 undergraduate social work students and 25 postgraduate student social workers (training-as-practice educators) on their perceptions of the characteristics of a professional social worker. A quantitative research design was used, consisting of a face-to-face survey distributed to respondents following an input on the Place Model, (Clarke, 2016). Respondents also shared their perceptions in relation to Freidson's (2001) three logics: professionalism, bureaucracy and the free market, with Ternary graphs and word clouds used as a novel way to present this data. Several themes emerged as important characteristics of social work professionals including reliability, accountability, ethics and appearance. At the other end of the scale, respondents identified unprofessional, de-personalised and cynical as the least aspirational qualities of the profession.

**Keywords:** social work education; students' perceptions; professional identity; higher education; Northern Ireland

#### **1. Expectations of Being a Professional: Reflections from a Service User Perspective**

Social workers often engage in lone working, meeting clients, completing assessments, risk managemen<sup>t</sup> tasks and making decisions about resources. They are expected to consistently adhere to professional standards and ethics. One wonders how does a professional social worker act when no one is looking? The example below offers an insight into the power dynamics which can exist in the working relationships between social workers and clients.

When I retire I plan to embark on a second career as a 'secret social worker'. My rationale for this second 'career' is grounded in an experience I had several years ago. At short notice, I was asked to accompany a woman who felt anxious about being called to the gateway team for a meeting with a social worker. Gateway is a social work service in Northern Ireland for children and families provided by the Health and Social Care Trusts. It is the first point of contact and is tasked with providing an immediate response to safeguard children. Ms A. had contacted social services following the breakdown of her relationship with her husband following 20 years of domestic violence. They had two teenage children who were currently residing with their mother since leaving the family home. Their father wanted them to return to his care. When we arrived at the office, we were directed to the board room and asked to wait for the social worker. I had been at the gym beforehand and wore a tracksuit. On entering the room, the social worker introduced himself and sat down at the head of the table. The social worker explained the purpose of the meeting was to gather information to help him complete an initial assessment. He then advised the woman that he had meet her husband the

previous day and that her husband was a lovely man. The woman became upset. I leaned forward to speak and the social worker placed his hand in a stop position and stated "I don't want to hear from you. I need to hear from Ms. A." At this point I decided it was time to declare to the social worker that:


The social worker became flustered and was visibly shocked when I shared this information and requested he leave the room to locate his line manager. Shulman [1] suggests in work practice we expect that practitioners can 'tune in' to their sense of self and the 'unique life histories of others' National Occupational Standards, [2]. This skill enables social workers to ge<sup>t</sup> a sense of what the client/ service user/survivor's potential feelings about the interaction with the social worker might be. As professionals, social workers in Northern Ireland must adhere to Standards of Conduct and Practice NISCC [3]. In this example, this did not happen. From the outset, the environment of a board room was not the best place to hold an initial meeting. Furthermore, the information relating to domestic violence was known to the social worker as the woman had referred herself to the gateway team. The statement in relation to Ms A's husband lacked thought or insight into domestic violence or the power dynamics occurring within the interaction. The use of a hand gesture to try and silence someone from speaking was completely unacceptable. When the manager explored the incident with the social worker he referred to the fact that I didn't tell him I was a social worker. He thought I was a friend of Ms A and his focus was to gather the information he needed to complete the assessment. Should that make a difference to the way in which he interacted with Ms A? Where does professional integrity sit within this example? What would have happened had I not called an end to the interview?
