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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 24 February 2017
The history of social work education reflects the dilemmas of a profession which promises simultaneous attention to the social well being of individuals and of society as a whole. Necessarily social work is affected by society's value system, by the country's socio-political structure, and by economic and technological conditions. All contribute to changing definitions of “social well being” and lead to decisions about ways in which well being will be sought at any one time. Schools of social work have recognized a dual obligation: They have undertaken to educate professionals to the complexities of both individual and institutional change processes. Writing in 1945 one leading educator put the matter this way:
Social work has peculiar characteristics, in that workers must understand the interaction between personality and environment, between internal strains and external pressures. This means a real grasp both of psychological and cultural forces in the socio-economic scene. In addition, social workers need to have a very clear knowledge of the network of social institutions and of the agency patterns of service.
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