Assignment: Assessment Application

Imagine how terrible it would be to plan a party and no one showed up. As a social worker, you may very well plan a group and no one attends. Why might this happen? In part, it might be due to a lack of proper planning. Prior to establishing a group, there is a great deal of planning that needs to occur. First and foremost, you need to assess the need for the group.

• Why does this group need to be provided?
• Are there enough individuals who would want this type of group?
• Is there a clear identified gap in services at the agency that shows a need for this group?
• Have you chosen a time when many clients could attend this group?
• What are the criteria for being accepted into the group?
• Is there a possible incentive that could be offered for attending the group (bus or gas fare, food, etc)?
• Do you need babysitting services so that clients with children are free to attend the group?
• Is this a task group, an educational group, and or a psychosocial group?
• Is the group open-ended or time-limited?

As you can see, there are many details a social worker needs to address, prior to starting a group. Once these details are finalized, how will you run the group and what intervention skills might you use to meet the need you identified?

For this Assignment, review this week's Resources. Then, select a population with which you might like to build a group. Consider the needs of the population and the type of group you might build to benefit the population. Think about how you might structure this group and what role you, the social worker, might need to assume in order to support the group members. Finally, reflect on what intervention skills this group might require and the potential group dynamics of which you should be aware while running the group.