Critical Social Work Theories: Addressing Disadvantage and Oppression

This essay critically examines various social work theories, including Marxist critique, structuralism, feminism, and race theory, to understand the structural nature of poverty, inequality, disadvantage, and marginalisation. The author reflects on the importance of addressing political values, economic structures, and social constructs that perpetuate these issues. The essay explores how critical theories like post-colonialism and de-colonialism challenge universal supremacy and how social workers can address social injustice. It analyzes policies and programs introduced by organizations like the Australia Council of Social Service and ACTU to address disadvantage and promote equality. The author emphasizes the need for a social worker to speak on social injustice rather than individual societal disadvantages, highlighting the significance of group strength and social support. The essay concludes by advocating for a critical approach to societal issues and for social workers to align with service users to combat marginalisation, poverty, and inequality through welfare advocacy, policy, and a rights-based approach.

Running head: CRITICAL SOCIAL WORK THEORIES
CRITICAL SOCIAL WORK THEORIES
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author note:

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Introduction
Critical theory is regarded as the reflective evaluation and analysis of societal
activities and cultural patterns by using knowledge from wide range of social sciences in
order to explore and encounter power structures. Critical theory refers to social theory that is
oriented towards critiquing and bringing changes to the society as a whole. However, in the
view of Schmid (2018), critical theory aims to delve into the foundation of social life and
expose the assumptions which keep individuals indulged into comprehensive and true
understanding of the way the society is functioning. Rehbein (2018) has noted that critical
theory currently as it is known can be traced to have its origin from the critiques of Marx
regarding economy and society. As a social worker, by delving into critical theories like
Marxist critique, structuralism, feminism and race theory, I have gained the ability to
understand the structural nature of poverty, inequality and marginalisation along with
disadvantage in the society. The following paper will reflect my understanding of structural
nature of poverty, inequality, disadvantage and marginalisation and critically assess current
policies and programs which are developed in order to address disadvantage and oppression
in the society.
Discussion
The discussion on poverty and the ways of eliminating or reducing it has seen years of
speculating. There are a number of approaches to comprehend this phenomenon. These
approaches can be peculiar or structural in nature. According to Miller, Bazzi, Allen,
Martinson and Salas-Wright et al. (2017), poverty is not only conceived as an economic
concept but also tends to be political. There has been found several dynamics to the
perseverance of poverty and there are several conditions and non-state actors involved in it.
However, as a social worker, I have to shed light on the queries whether only individuals are
accountable for such underprivileged living standards or there lies a structural problem which

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has been resulting in these poverties. While understanding poverty from the perspective of
structuralism, it has been seen that there is an essentiality of addressing political values on
which society’s institutions are established (O'Campo, Molnar, Ng, Renahy and Mitchell et
al., 2015). The financially affluent class considers the manifestations of poverty to be
unbearable rather than poverty in its own form (Schmid, 2018). To my understanding, the
slums in metropolitan areas are perceived as antagonistic to the aesthetics of the dominant
class. Therefore, the impression of abolition of poverty changes itself into indiscernibility of
underprivileged to create their lost aesthetics. However, as a social worker while speaking
about structure, I have implied that political, social and economic constructions which have
particular values and ideologies. However, this range of values and principles can be
substantial, neoliberal, capitalist or socialist. Under structuralism, the notion of either
complete or relative poverty has been structurally determined even though the former
category requires to be addressed at precedence since the relative poverty cannot be handled
on immediate manner (Krumer-Nevo, 2016). As a social worker, I have probed into programs
introduced by the Australia Council of Social Service such as reducing child poverty by
assessing social and financial developments and improving the integrity and equality of
taxation services.
While exploring critical theory, I have gained the understanding that critical theory
has been particularly limited by euro-centrism. However, it is further distorted by its attention
towards capitalism and the economy. Majority of critical theorists have asserted that
inequality in the society is embedded in the unequal distribution of resources and economic
capital. Gillborn (2015) has argued that economic resources are vital as compared to other
aspects of the society. However, from a perspective of a social worker, I have understood that
inequality is more fundamental in comparison to the economy. Moreover, the economy is
referred as the most vital aspect of inequality besides its reproduction in capitalist

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societies. Hence, inequality in economic capital is the fallout of structural inequality and not
the contrary. Potter (2018) has noted that post-colonialism and de-colonialism as critical
theoretical understanding condemn the structural nature of universal supremacy that had been
deep-rooted in colonialism. However, by analysing theoretical aspects of post colonialism, I
have developed the insight these critical theories do not reveal class structure of their
individual societies and discuss the lower classes rather than being responsive to them. Like
Marxism which underline inequality shed light on economic inequality. In that way, they
misinterpret the fundamental implication of authority or social inequality.
By evaluating the policy introduced by ACTU organisation in 2019, it has been found
that Australia is seen as the two worst nations in the OECD in terms of occupational mobility.
As per the report, the OECD has reported that considering income mobility from one
generation to the subsequent along with the level of income inequality in Australia, it has
been found that, 4 generations of children born in a household positioned at the bottom of the
pay distribution to attain the mean income. However, this shows detrimental financial, social
and political outcomes (McManus, 2019). Significant lack of generational mobility implied to
the condition that many of the high skilled Australian youths are deprived of the prospect to
fulfil their potentials. For example, the wage policy will restructure the cooperative
bargaining system in order to augment the accessibility of every citizen and practical for
workers, comprising of options for multi-employer settlements.
`At this juncture, it is vital to note that as a social worker engaged in the field of
critical social work, I must seek to speak on social injustice rather than emphasizing on
individualised societal disadvantages. While evaluating various critical theories, I have
gathered the competence of shedding light on social issues which have been instigating from
severe oppression and lack of justice in the globalised capitalist societies. One such critical
social disadvantage is marginalisation. In the view of Hall and Carlson (2016), marginalized

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populaces are susceptible to health dangers causing due to discernment, ecological
vulnerabilities, unmet survival needs, severe illness, suffering in addition to limited access to
healthcare. To my understanding Marxist theory as a foundation of critical social theories has
not only underlined the financial misuse, but further focused on the dehumanizing neglect for
the worker's involvement as well as contribution to the society. However, economic
oppression was not prioritized as a property of marginalisation, rather viewed as a
consequential of social domination and repression. As a social worker, I perceive that
individual resilience approaches will result in individual exhaustion and potentially serious
health problems. Thus, group strength and unpretentious social support are indispensable for
survival and health. However, there are major uncertainties in assumptions of critical theories
as well as aspects of marginalization. According to Diemer, Rapa, Voight and McWhirter
(2016), critical theories rely on ideas of domination and societal repression. While, critically
understanding aspects of marginalization from various resources, I have attained this insight
that newly migrating populations are likely to be socially isolated by emigrants in the United
States who consider themselves as ‘majority’ population. In consequence, immigrants
observe undesirable stereotypes and popular tendencies toward racism. This potentiates
suffering created on a convergence of additional factors like age or gender.
As a social worker, I have attained the comprehensions that critical theories support
the essential properties of marginalisation and also tend to point towards social activism that
is necessary for social transformation. To my understanding, a critical approach towards
societal issues like marginalization, poverty and inequality will provide me a consistent
evaluation of a core disadvantages like the aforementioned and help my social work practice
by aligning with service users and working to successfully combat issues like
marginalization, poverty and inequality. By delving into critical theories, I have gathered
insights of its historical development and comprehend their significance in facilitating anti-

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oppressive practice with service users. As a social worker, I have understood that poverty is
not a character flaw. Rather, it is the repudiation of resources as well as opportunities to
others and subsequently we have a role to play in fair-minded and rational redistribution.
However, this can be accomplished through welfare advocacy, policies in addition to a rights-
based approach towards anti-poverty practice. In the domain of social work practice, the
value positioning of social work encourages stimulating and developing policies that defend
and uphold equal rights in addition to enhanced opportunities and concurrently disassembling
policies which support uphold systems of oppression. The role of social workers in using
policies and programs developed to address disadvantages and oppression of the
disadvantaged groups and supporting equality must take place by means of social
redistribution of income and wealth. Homan, Valentino and Weed (2017) have claimed that
these policies tend to provide added universal welfares as compared to targeted programs
which have the possibility of defaming beneficiaries through earnings assessments or
additional mechanisms.
Conclusion
Thus to conclude, through a social worker perspective I believe that to completely
eradicate poverty, aspects of poverty must be perceived from the structural perspective.
Majority of critical theorists have emphasized that inequality in the society is embedded in
the unequal distribution of resources and economic capital. Moreover, I have accomplished
the conceptions that critical theories support the important properties of marginalisation and
also tend to indicate that social activism is required for social transformation. Additionally, as
a social worker involved in the arena of critical social work, I must pursue to speak on social
disadvantage instead of laying emphasis on individualised societal disadvantages.
Furthermore, while considering poverty from the perspective of structuralism, it has been

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understood that there is an essentiality of addressing political standards on which society’s
foundations are established.

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