Exploring Beliefs: A Deconstruction Essay for Social Work Students

This essay delves into the process of deconstructing personal beliefs, particularly within the context of social work. The author reflects on their upbringing, which instilled a strong belief in independence, and how this belief evolved through educational experiences and interactions. The essay examines the influence of family, friends, and societal norms on shaping these beliefs. It details how classroom discussions, workplace interactions, and personal experiences led to a transformative shift in perspective, embracing the value of both independence and dependency. The author highlights the benefits of this change, both for their personal growth and their future practice as a social worker, emphasizing the importance of open-mindedness and the ability to integrate diverse perspectives to provide effective client care. The essay concludes by outlining strategies to maintain this balanced approach and assessing indicators of its success.

Running head: DECONSTRUCTION OF BELIEFS 1
Deconstruction of Beliefs
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation

DECONSTRUCTION OF BELIEFS 2
Introduction
Individuals come from different backgrounds which harbor different teachings and
upbringings. The lessons from parents and the one’s experience before attending school enable
the person to develop beliefs (Burman, 2016). Some individuals find out that their beliefs concur
with the education system at school. However, others find education to be contradicting their
norms and culture. The teachers have an easy time training students with similar beliefs as the
educational syllabus (Petrovici, & Ciobanu, 2016). However, the trainers must deconstruct the
undesirable beliefs and impact the right knowledge unto the students. The process begins with
the teacher allowing the student to narrate their cultural stories. Afterward, the teacher explains
why the belief is archaic and proposes an alternative route of knowledge. However, the trainer
must appreciate and respect the views of the students before initiating transformative learning.
The trainers of social work and welfare should encourage interaction to discover the
beliefs of the trainees before starting their lessons. The deconstruction can occur in the classroom
or small student groups. Some students are shy and cannot share their beliefs in the open places.
The teachers should engage the shy students in article or assignment writing exercise
(Carrington, Mercer, Iyer, & Selva, 2015). Therefore, the students can explain their feelings in a
confidential and effective method. This essay evaluates my beliefs before starting school and
how the feelings changed as I progressed with education. Furthermore, the paper examines the
historical process that enabled me to share my beliefs. The essay also explores how
deconstruction introduced transformative learning hence making me abandon my previous stand.
2. There are values that are undesirable and the bearers must discard them to lead a
fulfilling life. In the school scenario, the teacher must allow the student to narrate their beliefs.
Secondly, the trainers should appreciate the knowledge of the student before starting the process

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of deconstructing the belief (Notara, 1998). The deconstruction should begin with questioning
and end with persuasive discussions to enable the student to drop the undesirable belief.
Experience also helps in deconstructing outdated values and ethics.
3. The value that I had regarding social work and helping others. I believed that
individuals should be independent to guarantee success in life. Furthermore, dependency on
others for survival is laziness.
4 (a). The belief originates from my upbringing. My parents encouraged us to strive hard
and depend on our efforts for survival. There is a day I snatched a toy from my younger sister
when we were playing in the neighborhood. The girl cried and reported me to our father who
slapped me before offering pieces of advice. He told me that I should have asked him to buy me
my toy instead of snatching one from my sister. Furthermore, he demanded that I become
independent and stop snatching other children's toys. That is the day I learned that independence
is the true path to a successful life.
(b) The belief has affected my way of life and existence. Firstly, the independency belief
has affected the way I home-train my children. I encourage them to be independent and stay
away from borrowing from their fellow young ones. At the workstation, I try as much as possible
to be independent. I work hard to gain my needs in life; hence, I report to work early and leave
late in the evening. The belief has also affected my spiritual life. I pray to God every morning to
provide me with my needs so that I become independent. In my relationship, I encourage my
spouse also to follow my example and principles in life.
(c) My close friends and siblings had an interest in maintaining these beliefs. I am born in
a family of five children, three boys, and two girls. The three boys and a girl still maintain the
beliefs to the present date. The siblings prefer to suffer rather than seeking for help from their

DECONSTRUCTION OF BELIEFS 4
peers (Fook, 2017). My friends acquired the belief from me, and some of them still hold them
although others dropped them halfway in life. Those that abandoned them seek for help when
they run out of finances.
(d) In my society, my father and mother had a vested interest in maintaining the belief.
The notion originated from my father who passed it on to the wife and eventually to the children.
The father is an individual who worked hard during his youthful days to remain independent. He
instituted numerous business enterprises and investments to gain financial freedom. My mother
followed the same suit by starting her restaurant in town. Therefore, the two rarely ask their
children for financial support. They only call to find out how we are fairing on in life.
(e) The belief would have barred me from numerous opportunities as a social worker if I
was to continue holding the norm. Social work is an interactive field where individuals share
opinions to arrive at reasonable conclusions (Turner, 2017). Independence closes one to their
own though; hence, an individual is reluctant to seek for help. Therefore, a social worker should
depend on self and others for opinions to assist in daily activities. Independence can make an
individual hold on to improper thoughts that can hamper professional growth.
5a. I moved away from my beliefs due to my experiences in school and at the
workstation. The teachers created a lesson of sharing beliefs with the entire class. The fellow
students and the trainers would applaud those with popular beliefs. However, the class
appreciated my position on independence and assisted me to deconstruct the thoughts. At the
workplace, individuals are open and share their stories openly as they seek for other opinions.
The culture has helped me to share and deconstruct my beliefs.
b. The ability to change my beliefs on independence originates from my interactions and
experiences. There was a day I could not solve a mathematical problem few hours to the math

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lesson. The teacher was strict and disciplined students who failed to complete their assignments
on time. I tried by all means to solve the puzzle to no avail. Ten minutes to the lesson, I asked
my desk mate to assist me in solving the sum which he gladly did with a smiling face. From that
scenario, I learned that no man is an island and that dependency is not laziness.
c. Apart from the homework scenario, I helped my friend an impending accident. We
were from work and wanted to cross the road to reach the bus station. Unfortunately, my friend
did not notice an approaching lorry and opted to cross the road since he was in a hurry. I noticed
the approaching vehicle and pulled my friend back to allow the lorry to pass. Therefore, I learned
that one could not be independent on all occasions (Taylor, 2017).
d. My teachers and my colleagues at work sensed that I would abandon my belief and
turn on a new leaf. Furthermore, my desk mate realized that I was a changed person since I
shared my knowledge with him. At the workplace, I started to share my life experiences and seek
for other people's opinions. Therefore, people around me noticed my change in attitude and
behavior.
e. My teachers, fellow schoolmates, and colleagues supported me to acquire
transformative knowledge. Furthermore, my experiences in life made me make a U-turn on the
independency norm. The tutors insisted that independence is a good belief but could not hold on
every situation. My deskmate encouraged me to share my ideas with him so that we gain
collective knowledge. The workmates created a culture of sharing an individual's problem and
seeking a solution through interactive meetings. Therefore, the experiences and people around
me have helped to shape my life.
f. The fact that I changed from my total independence belief indicates that I am dynamic
and can accommodate any positive influence, my friends. The changes that I have undergone

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have taught me that independence is good but not in every situation. The transition has made me
a better social worker than before embracing the changes (Baldwin, 2016). Furthermore, I can
now share my ideas with others and accept correction on certain matters.
6a. The alternative way of thinking makes me a better social worker in the future. A
social worker should open up to people on suggestions that can change the society. Furthermore,
the worker should accept other people’s opinion to gain extra knowledge. As a social worker,
independence is a critical value as it encourages people to work hard and lead a comfortable life
(Rubin, & Babbie, 2016). However, a social worker should remind the public that no individual
can survive only on one's effort and knowledge. Some scenarios necessitate us to seek for help
from our colleagues. Asking for help does not mean that one is weak; rather, it strengthens an
individual.
b. The difference in my beliefs benefits my clients as it changes their views of themselves
and the society. The clients learn about the importance of independence and at the same time
discover that dependency is not laziness (Ho, Liao, & Rosenthal, 2015). I would encourage my
customers to put more effort into their jobs to gain independence and comfort in their lives.
However, I would encourage them to seek help from others when they can no longer depend on
their knowledge. Therefore, my transition is beneficial to my clients.
c. Yes. I prefer to maintain my change in beliefs and attitude in my future development as
a social worker. Firstly, dependency on others has enabled me to acquire additional knowledge.
There are many issues that I now know from interaction with my colleagues at the workstation.
Furthermore, I have shared my knowledge with my clients and my fellow workers. Therefore,
people have learned important life skills from me. Independence and dependency make an

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individual lead a complete and fulfilling life (Christie, Carey, Robertson, & Grainger, 2015).
Therefore, I plan to maintain my transition into the future.
d. There are numerous strategies that I have put in place to ensure that I embrace both
dependency and independence. The first strategy is to improve interaction with workmates.
Colleagues are knowledgeable, and their engagement improves one's understanding of key issues
in the society (Axelrod, Naso, & Rosenberg, 2018). Secondly, I plan to train my clients on the
need to embrace both virtues of independence and dependency. The third strategy is to attend life
skill meetings to learn more about the essence of human interactions. Fourthly, I plan to conduct
teaching sessions to explain the essence of sharing ideas with one another.
e. Some pointers indicate whether the transition is operational or otherwise. The first
indication is the level of interaction (Derks, van Duin, Tims, & Bakker, 2015). An increased
amount of engagement shows that I have embraced dependency alongside independence. The
second pointer is my lessons to teach others on the essence of individual consultation. The ability
to conduct such classes indicates that I have embraced the transition. The third pointer is to
gauge the level at which I help others at their point of need. The number of individuals I assist
should be directly proportional to the level of changes in my behavior.
7a. Answering the above questions is informative and entertaining. The answers have
enabled me to open up about my past beliefs. Furthermore, I have realized the source of my
beliefs and how it affected my way of life. I have learned that dependency is not laziness from
the questions. I have also learned about the essence of both dependency and independence.
Dependency on others is not laziness as it assists in acquiring additional information and
necessary life inputs (Dickinson, & Sullivan, 2014). Independence is also good although cannot
hold in all scenarios. The later helps an individual to work hard and lead a comfortable life.

DECONSTRUCTION OF BELIEFS 8
b. The process of cross-examining self-brings about confidence and self-fulfillment. The
power and the sense of control enable one to open up. The session has enabled me to disclose my
secrets in a detailed and open manner. Furthermore, I have learned about various life skills in the
process of self cross-examinations. I have discovered the routes of personal beliefs and how the
society helps in deconstructing undesirable beliefs. The teachers have an essential role to play in
shaping the beliefs of the students (Lee, & Brett, 2015). Moreover, workmates also have their
work cut out in assisting an individual in shaping their outlook on life.
c. The process of self-assessment enables a social worker to improve the working
relationship with clients (Holden, Barker, Kuppens, & Rosenberg, 2017). Dependency calls for
interaction hence clients get quality services from the social workers. Moreover, the client learns
about the essence of maintaining independence alongside dependency (O'Sullivan, Berner,
Taliaferro, & Rassel, 2016). Therefore, the clients, in turn, live a fulfilling life due to the
interactions with the workers. The social worker should encourage the clients to narrate their
beliefs to enable them to deconstruct the improper norms. However, the workers should
appreciate the clients before deconstructing the beliefs.
d. Dependency involves sharing ideas and asking for help in dead point situations.
Moreover, the virtue enables individuals to interact and form a strong opinion force (Chui et al.,
2014). Dependence unites people; hence they can fight to address and end oppression in a given
country. Moreover, a united people can advocate for systematic and regime change in a nation.
Therefore, it is ethical to embrace dependency and independence as they brood beneficence and
nonmaleficence (Hammersley, 2015). The unity of a people ensures justice and equal distribution
of resources to the people. Therefore, the transition of beliefs is ethical and advocates for the
rights of individuals.

DECONSTRUCTION OF BELIEFS 9
e. Some beliefs are appropriate, and the society should encourage the carriers to uphold
them. However, some norms are archaic, and the stakeholders should deconstruct them through
transformative learning (Beckett, Maynard, & Jordan, 2017). Narrative deconstruction is
appropriate in ensuring that individual drop undesirable beliefs and take up the appropriate ones.
The society should allow each to narrate their beliefs. Afterward, the teachers should appreciate
the beliefs and plan for an effective deconstruction procedure (Brunstein, Sambiase, &
Brunnquell, 2018). Proper beliefs improve the thinking of individuals hence elevates the living
standards of individuals.
Conclusion
The childhood belief that I had is that independence is appropriate, and that dependency
is a sign of laziness. My parents impacted the belief in me when I snatched a playing toy from
my younger sister. The parents worked hard to ensure that they remain independent and lead a
comfortable life. The belief affected my life as I viewed dependency as a weakness and an
undesirable trait. The teachers at school helped in changing my belief through transformative
education. The tutors allowed me to narrate my beliefs before deconstructing it. They
appreciated the sentiment but reminded me that I could not be independent at every point in life.
I later learned that dependency accompanies independence.
Apart from classroom teaching, my experiences helped me to embrace dependency on
others. I prevented my colleague from involving in an accident. Furthermore, my classmate
enabled me to solve a mathematical problem that I could not tackle in the class. The experiences
and the lessons have helped to improve my life as a social worker. My colleagues at the
workstation have created an environment of sharing ideas at work. Therefore, we both strive to
gain independence and dependence in our line of duty. I have embraced dependency by training

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my clients on the life skills. Moreover, reliance has both ethical and advocacy importance in the
modern day society.

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