Human Service Worker: Exploring Domestic Violence Counseling in an NGO

This report explores the multifaceted role of a human service worker as a domestic violence counselor, specifically within the context of a local NGO. It begins by defining the broad scope of the human service professional and highlighting the significance of addressing domestic violence, a prevalent societal issue. The report outlines the domain and field of practice, emphasizing the counselor's responsibilities in providing support and education to victims, often women, who are frequently unaware of the abusive nature of their experiences due to cultural normalization. The target population is identified as primarily women, who are disproportionately affected by domestic violence across all socioeconomic and ethnic backgrounds. The practice approaches employed, including counseling and shelter provision, are detailed, underscoring the importance of client interviews to identify and assist victims in improving their situations. References to relevant literature are included to support the analysis.

Running head: HUMAN SERVICE WORKER
HUMAN SERVICE WORKER
Name of the student:
Name of the university:
Author note:

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Human service professional is a generic term which has a broad role in the social service
sector. The term implies to people who hold professional qualification and jobs and worked
towards meeting the needs of humans such as group homes, intellectual disability, correctional
homes and many related sectors (Garbarino, 2017). Domestic violence is a significant issue of
our society and it is one of the major sector of human service professional. The paper will aim to
highlight the workings as a domestic violence counselor in a local NGO and address some of the
critical aspect associated with it.
Domain and field of practice associated with domestic violence counselor in an local NGO:
As a domestic violence counselor, my work was focused on shelters and organizations
that provide domestic violence advocacy groups and social services groups in order to counsel
and support victims of domestic violence. I work with the people who are a victim of domestic
violence to help them get access to services that they require. It often requires educating the
victims since many a time it is considered as a normalized behavior. Due to the culture existing
for decades, often domestic violence is considered normal behavior (Hackett, McWhirter &
Lesher, 2016). Also, there are times when in order to save the reputation of the family, the issue
is not spoken or revealed by the victim. Therefore, it is one of the crucial parts of my job to
educate people, specifically women about the issue.
The target population of the practice:
The target population for the practice is mainly women. Domestic violence is violence or
any other forms of abuse done on one person in their domestic setting. Domestic violence can
happen to any relationship regardless of their any social background, income level or ethnic
group. However, women are much more likely than men to be the victim of domestic violence or

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be at the risk of severe domestic violence (Holder & Daly, 2017). It is not only physical
violence, but it is the way of gaining power in any relationship. In most of the cases, it is found
the male partner using violence on their partner in order to gain control or power due to jealousy,
isolating behavior and many more.
The practice approaches in domestic violence:
The practice approaches in domestic violence would include domestic violence
counseling and offering woman’s shelter. As the domestic violence counselor, it is my job to
provide my service to the victims of domestic violence victim. This process also involves
interviewing the clients in order to find out whether that client is a victim of domestic violence or
at risk of becoming a victim (Bouffard & Zedaker, 2016). Through the interview and the
counseling, the clients who are faced with domestic violence challenges are helped to improve
their situation and get out of the problem.

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Referencing:
Bouffard, L. A., & Zedaker, S. B. (2016). Are domestic violence offenders specialists? Answers
from multiple analytic approaches. Journal of Research in Crime and
Delinquency, 53(6), 788-813.
Garbarino, J. (2017). Children and Families in the Social Environment: Modern Applications of
Social Work. Routledge.
Hackett, S., McWhirter, P. T., & Lesher, S. (2016). The therapeutic efficacy of domestic
violence victim interventions. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 17(2), 123-132.
Holder, R. L., & Daly, K. (2017). Sequencing Justice: A Longitudinal Study of Justice Goals of
Domestic Violence Victims. The British Journal of Criminology, 58(4), 787-804.