The Public's Perception of Social Work: Is It What We Think It is‪?‬

Social work is still a relatively young profession. In the years since the founding of Hull House and the work done by social work s earliest pioneers, things have changed in this society. Although the current problems of today's disenfranchised people continue to have much in common with the problems of early immigrants settling in large urban areas where modern social work began, much else is different. Today, the areas of practice encompassed by social work are broader. It is possible to find social workers in all segments of the private and public sectors. Only a few decades ago, it would have been the exception to find a social worker in private practice of working in industry; now these are frequent phenomena. Also, other factors have changed the environment in which this practice is carried out. Managed care and sweeping changes to the welfare system have introduced elements into social work that could not have been imagined 20 years ago. Moreover, modern representations of social work and social workers in the popular media often do not compliment or support the profession.