Emotional Intelligence in Social Work - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 4 Words: 1126 Downloads: 9 Date added: 2019/05/06 Category Psychology Essay Level High school Tags: Emotional Intelligence Essay Did you like this example? Emotional intelligence is described as ones own ability to recognize, understand, and control their thoughts and feelings. It is being able to cope with stressful situations, controls urges, and allowing time to process before responding. In addition, to being conscious of your emotions, we must be able to understand others emotions through observations and non-verbal communication. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Emotional Intelligence in Social Work" essay for you Create order One who is able to demonstrate emotional intelligence has the ability to demonstrate empathetic perspective-taking, self-monitoring in social situations, social skills, interpersonal sensitivity, pro-social tendencies, emotional stability, impulse control, adaptive defense styles, resilience, and the absence of psychopathology (Wang, 2012, p. 1). Having increased emotional intelligence is critical to social workers as it can reduce burnout and stress, create a more positive work environment, and shows resilience to the population we are serving. According to Morrison (2012), before a worker can understand the power of emotion in the life of the client, it is necessary to discover its importance in the workers own experience (p. 251). Without emotional intelligence, social workers can potentially project their own thoughts and feelings onto those they are serving. The following are the five areas viewed under emotional intelligence. Relationships Building a trusting, therapeutic relationship is imperative in the initial engagement stage with clients so it is important that we have the ability to engage, empathize, and effectively communicate with them. In my own experience, I strive to make a first impression with the families I am serving, to inspire them to see there is hope in their situation, and to bring out their resiliency that they have been able to display thus far. I work collaboratively with the children and parents to identify their strengths both individually and as a family unit. It is critical to get families to buy in during the early stages of engagement, so I utilize a wraparound approach to show families that I am working to meet their holistic needs rather than just providing a service. I show the families I am human too and share in their experiences. When I go out into the community, I often dress more casually to connect better with my families and break the barrier of a state worker coming to their hom e. I communicate that I am there to support them and that we are in the process together. Tolerance Tolerance is the ability to interact with others of a different cultural background and varying beliefs or values but yet respect their path and their viewpoint. It is also how one is able to manage their emotions when confronted with stressors. Our responses to stressors are shaped by our experiences from early childhood so we have to learn appropriate self-care skills that will result in planful problem solving as opposed to avoidance, cognitive appraisal rather than wishful thinking, seeking support rather than withdraw, and expressing rather than suppressing emotions (Morrison, 2012, p. 259). Self-care is important as a social worker both within the workplace and outside of the workplace. At work, I receive support from my supervisor during weekly supervision as well as from my co-workers through group supervision. We integrate monthly team building activities into our office to cope with the daily stresses of our families. Personally, I feel that am cultural sensitive to the com munity I serve and try to be aware of the familys beliefs. I will ask clarifying questions to better understand and educate myself. As an agency, I feel that we do not do enough internally to create an atmosphere that is fully inclusive of everyones values and there is stigma associated with the population we serve that management has not broken down thus resulting in high turnover. Flexibility Flexibility is when you are open to integrating new ideas and approaches, share multiple perspectives, and are adaptable. According to Wang (2012), one needs to perceive and comprehend anothers expectations and adjust ones own goals and behavior accordingly in order to showcase flexibility (p. 6). I have to be flexible to achieve all the tasks that I need as crisis can always arise either at work or in my personal life. I prioritize tasks and have developed good time management skills to achieve all my goals. I enjoy hearing others perspective and engaging in healthy discussions and feel that I have the ability to compromise when necessary or support my viewpoint with evidence. Self-Management Self-Management is the ability to identify and manage your emotions as well as to engage in health decision-making. Your decisions should align with your core values and align with ethical standards. I continue to practice my self-management skills by taking responsibility for my actions in situations, knowing when I need to admit fault or apologize, and know when I am not comfortable with a situation. I lean on my supervisor when needed, especially when dealing with a situation that I have not encountered before. After the situation occurs, I will process with her about what occurred and try to learn from my mishaps. Emotional Awareness Emotional awareness is being aware of ones own emotions and how these emotions change in certain scenarios, as well as being aware of others emotions (Wang, 2012, p. 14). One needs to be able to identify the emotion before it comes out and be able to verbalize what they are feeling in an appropriate way. When one is not able to do this as a social worker, we will not be able to fully understand someone elses perspective and miss out on important information that guides the therapeutic process. I continue to grow each day with my emotional regulation across all settings and strive to use my coping skills that I came up with such as deep breathing, taking a 5 minute time out, and going for a walk. I continue to learn my triggers and can identify my warning signs. I continue to work on being able to identify someone elses nonverbal communication and how to handle their emotions in the moment. Conclusion Emotional Intelligence is necessary for social workers to be effective in working with a highly vulnerable population. If we are not able to recognize our own emotions, which directly affect our actions, how are we going to effective treat the vulnerable population. Social workers have to be flexible in their thinking and approaches, tolerant of others viewpoints, and engage in healthy decision-making in order to help others have positive outcomes. We all can continuously work on our own emotional intelligence and be conscientious of others emotions. References Morrison, T. (2007). Emotional intelligence, emotion, and social work: context, characteristics, complications, and contribution. British Journal of Social Work, 37, 245-263. doi:10.1093/bjsw/bc1016 Wang, N., Wilhite, S. C., Wyatt, J., Young, T., Bloemkerm G. (2012). Impact of a college freshman social and emotional learning curriculum on student learning outcomes: An exploratory study. Journal of University Teaching Learning Practice, 9 (2), 1-20 Emotional Intelligence in Social Work - Free Essay Example Sample details Pages: 4 Words: 1215 Downloads: 10 Date added: 2019/03/16 Category Society Essay Level High school Tags: Social Work Essay Did you like this example? Emotions are feelings and behaviors that can be observed. They guide how people act and react to everyday situations. Emotional intelligence is described as someones ability to control impulses dealing with emotions, acknowledge their own emotions and acknowledge emotions in others, and help create better relationship skills (Morrison, 2007). Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Emotional Intelligence in Social Work" essay for you Create order The higher ones emotional intelligence, the better equipped they are to deal with disagreements and cope with stressful situations. In high stress careers involving working with people, it is important to understand ones emotional intelligence to see where one stands, and to lessen the level of burden that stress takes (Ogi?„ska-Bulik, 2005). In the career of Social Work, it is vitally important to have a high degree of emotional intelligence to make a positive impact and become a competent mentor (Morrison, 2007). The worker must be able to recognize their own emotions and how they can impact their life before helping solve a clients emotional stressors. A lack of self-awareness can result in personal biases affecting their observations, as well as crucial information not being picked up on (Morrison, 2007). Not only must a worker be able to have emotional awareness, they also need to understand the impact that empathy has on the helping relationship. They must be able to recognize where someone else is coming from to better understand how to help them cope with hardships or sadness. For my understanding of emotional intelligence, I will distinguish between the different domains and assess the areas to understand my level of emotional intelligence. Domains of Emotional Intelligence Relationships Definition of relationships. The first domain involves relationships and social skills. This skill is involved with the ability to have strong connections with others, to find common ground with others, to motivate and guide others, and the ability to resolve difficult situations or conflicts using negotiation or persuasion (Wang, Wilhite, Wyatt, Young, Bloemker, 2012). Self-evaluation of relationships. When I look at my level of skill involving relationships, I believe I have moderate to high levels in this area. I believe I am skilled in finding common ground with others and being a positive resource for others. In my personal life, my friends always come to me for support because they appreciate the advice I give them, and they know I can help them solve problems. In my professional life, I believe I stand at moderate levels because I am less confident in my skills to resolve conflicts and dispute. I do not enjoy confrontation and would much rather have everyone get along. If coworkers need help though, I am always there for extra support. Tolerance Definition of tolerance. Having skills of tolerance includes the ability to understand others emotions and points of view, respecting and valuing the difference another person brings, as well as positively accepting and handling negative critiques of oneself (Wang et al., 2012). It also involves being interested in another persons problems or values, even if they are opposite of yours. Self-evaluation of tolerance. I believe I have high levels of tolerance in both my personal and professional life. I understand the value diversity brings to every situation and I always choose to respect someones opinion, no matter how much it differs from my own. I also have grown up with high levels of diversity all around me and I believe it has helped shaped me into the person I am today. I try to understand that someones background and beliefs are different from mine, but that does not mean they have less value as a person. I have always believed in treating someone with the same respect as I would want them to treat me, and that is key in any relationship, but especially in a helping relationship. Flexibility Definition of flexibility. Flexibility involves the ability to adapt to changing situations, as well as having perseverance in the face of adversity. It is being able to change your lifestyle depending on the situation that comes up (Wang et al., 2012). It also involves being flexible in the way one thinks, which creates a more mature and emotionally competent individual. Self-evaluation of flexibility. I believe I excel in this area of emotional intelligence. Having grown up in a home dealing with poverty, and attending a boarding school for 10 years, I have mastered the areas of adapting to life situations and perseverance in the face of adversity. I do contribute a lot of that success to my external protective factors, but I also understand my internal protective factors such as my positive mindset that helped make that happen. Not only do I have those characteristics, but I also believe I can be highly flexible when needed. When I work with children, the schedule can change frequently, and therefore, I have to come up with new ideas on the spot. I understand the importance of routines, but I also understand the importance of having back-up ideas in case things change. Self-Management Definition of self-management. Self-management skills are involved with the ability to control ones impulses, responding appropriately to others actions even when aggravated, how well someone considers their actions before they react, as well as how someone maintains a clear head when under pressure (Wang et al., 2012). Self-evaluation of self-management. When I think of my level of self-management, I think I have improved greatly over the years. In one area in particular I would always catch myself trying to control my feelings of anger, were situations involving road rage. I have been trying to create a more mindful life and part of that is thinking before you react and not allowing yourself to get worked up over something small. I now understand someone elses actions do not necessarily have an impact on my life, and there are other things I should focus my attention on. Emotional Awareness Definition of emotional awareness. The final area of emotional intelligence involves emotional awareness. This domain involves someone being able to correctly identify how they are feeling, as well as how those feelings can impact others. They are confident in how they express their emotions and are able to use the right emotions in the right place and context. Self-evaluation of emotional awareness. When I reflect on my level self-awareness regarding emotions, I think I have not mastered this area, but I have shown growth over the years. Previously, I would be afraid to talk about how I am feeling with others and did not want to think it is okay to be sad or mad sometimes. It has taken a lot to understand any emotion is valid, it is just how you respond with that emotion. By teaching preschoolers their emotions, it helps me to reflect on how I can do better, or react differently in front of the students, and even with family and friends. Conclusion In conclusion, emotional intelligence involves the ability to understand ones own emotions and in others, acknowledge how to react when dealing with certain emotions, and to learn how to create better relationships skills at the same time. In the role of social work, it is also important to understand ones own emotions to better help the clients. If a person cannot understand their emotions and effects, they are not able to help their clients cope with their issue, and not able to help their clients understand their own emotions.