Reflective Essay: Social Work Practice with Diverse Cultures

This essay is a reflective exploration of social work practice within diverse cultural contexts. It delves into personal experiences and beliefs, connecting them to the author's developing professional identity as a social worker. The reflection identifies visible and invisible forms of oppression and privilege, particularly concerning race, ethnicity, gender, class, and disability. Key concepts such as intersectionality, critical reflection, whiteness, and cultural competency are examined through real-life experiences, including observations of discrimination within a healthcare setting. The essay highlights the importance of cultural sensitivity, understanding various forms of oppression (institutionalized, internalized, racism), and recognizing the impact of privilege and intersectionality on individuals' experiences. Ultimately, the reflection underscores the author's growing awareness and respect for diverse cultures and the challenges faced by marginalized communities, shaping their approach to social work practice.

Running head: SOCIAL WORK PRACTICE WITH DIVERSE CULTURES
SOCIAL WORK PRACTICE WITH DIVERSE CULTURES
Name of the student:
Name of the university:
Author note:

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Refection or composition of self-reflective writing can become extremely helpful in any
aspect or field of study. Due to the capability of reflection writing, it is increasingly being used
to any form of study or learning (Van Manen, 2016). Social workers use it as a tool that lets us
explore our qualities, capabilities, and potentials which is in many ways form a central part of
social work education and practices. It is specifically crucial for social workers while they get
into working in new settings. Reflection helps us understand ourselves with the opportunity for
exploring our thought process. The opportunity lets us review our perspective of situations and
decision making. Social workers do not have any concrete boundaries apart from the ethics when
it comes to social practices which makes it essential for social workers to be aware of their own
strengths, weakness, and limitation (Redmond, 2017). A reflection is a form of critical reflective
practice that helps in reflecting on past experiences and understanding the behavior patterns.
There have been decidedly fewer researches that actually focused on the way reflection can help.
However, several social workers use this method too and explore the possibilities and limits in
every aspect such as approach, results and other areas. In this essay, I will discuss one of my
lived experience, personal beliefs, values, and their connections to my growing professional
identity as a social worker. The refection will help me develop a critical self-awareness. The
essay will also aim to identify visible and invisible forms of oppression and privilege that shapes
our values. Also, the essay will be inclusive of approaches to issues of racial and ethnic
oppression, social and economic disadvantage, gender and disability.
Cultural competency: Social work is a form of career that involves working with a
diverse population. It is one of the main characteristic of this particular field and therefore it is
essential to have a broader spectrum of cultural diversity (Mareno & Hart, 2014). Cultural
competence can be defined as the process through which people and groups effectively respond

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to the people belonging to another cultural background with respect and affirmation. People
across the world belong to a different culture, classes, races, ethnic backgrounds, religions and
speaking different languages (Isaacson, 2014). It is vital to ensure people despite their cultural
background to be treated equally with the protection and preservation of dignity. It is an essential
element for the social workers while delivering service to be aware and make it a priority. When
a social worker respects, honor, and values diversity in theory and practice, cultural competency
occur in social work (Bailey, 2015). As a social worker, I would require the same to have within
me in order to deliver my best services. To be sensitive to their values which are indeed different
than mine is the kind of behavior that is required in my field. There are incidents that I have
come across in my past which have let me understand the importance of cultural competency.
Reflecting on my experience: My hometown is in a nation that has diverse ethnic groups
and communities. There are several diverse ethnic groups. As a part of the nation and being
brought up in the country that is multicultural by characteristic, I have had the scope of
broadening my thinking about people from different culture and get the idea of understanding
their perspective. I have grown up with people from different cultural background however there
were no profound discrimination. Although it could be due to being limited to a small society.
While I was working with a healthcare institute in one of the cities in my nation I was able to
witness situations that showed concepts we only learn theoretically. As I was the part of those
situations, it added valuable experiences to my career. While I was working in the healthcare
institution as an assistant teacher, several parents of the children I taught would visit doctors.
Although the doctors were there to help the financially weak parents often, their behavior would
differ. I would often get to listen to the problem faced by the parents when they visited the
doctors in my class. It was a bothersome practice that was going on in the healthcare institution. I

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began noting down the issues that were faced by the parents when I discovered that it was only a
section that mainly met the problems. It was not surprising that the obstacles they faced were in
reality discrimination. It was primarily the aboriginal female mothers who would face such
discrimination. On various grounds, discrimination was made, and treatment to the poor
children’s parents was provided on the basis of their race, gender, ethnicity, cultural background
and the region they belonged. The entire experience was common and only very few people were
concerned about it. When the matter would go to the higher administrative department, the most
common answer would be related to their social position and cultural background. The surprising
part was the way we can see the powerful people, powerful in the aspect of wealth and position,
can act in an arbitrary way to ensure their positions.
The experience of a few months has thought me several concepts of society with
examples. Therefore, reflecting on this particular experience, I can explain the concepts it
becomes easy to explain the concepts that are perceived in society.
Privilege: the term privilege can be explained as an exclusive right or advantage that is
granted to only a specific person or group (Letwin, 2013). The unique advantage lets the person
or group enjoy that may not be available to other section of the society. In this particular context,
the granting of a privilege can be noted to the doctors. The doctors who are in a dominant
position and the people visiting the doctors are the people are oppressed section. It was not hard
to find the cause of mistreatment. The term ‘privilege’ is well associated with oppression (Cho,
Crenshaw & McCall, 2013). Not necessarily the oppression has to be with consciousness and
willfully. The oppression of the weaker section can be overt, convert, deliberate as well as
unconscious. There are different forms of privilege in the society experienced by various groups,

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however in this particular experience it was the doctors who were from the dominant culture
seemed to oppress the suppressed group unconsciously.
Oppression: Various types of oppression can be noted in the society, and they are
institutionalized and internal. Institutionalized oppression is when a person acts or policy is
enacted unjustly against an individual or to a specific group (Omi & Winant, 2014). Internal
oppression is when the majority of the group tend to believe and act the way the dominant group
has portrayed values and lifeways as the best form despite reality. Internal oppression deals with
self-hate, self-censorship, shame and cultural realities. Internal oppression occurs when the
dominant group continues practices an act until it is generalized (David & Derthick, 2014). In the
same way, the women who were repeatedly ignored and not treated by the doctors on the very
first visit believed that by belonging to the low-class families they were supposed to be treated in
that way. Continuous avoidance, mistreatment, and ill-treatment were considered normal by
those women.
Racism: A very common practice in many places where people are treated and respected
on basis of their ethnicity, color or cultural background. It is the most common cause of social
inequality noted in the place where I have been practicing my teaching assistants (Cloward &
Ohlin, 2013). Since the women belong to aboriginal sources, they were seen as a group who are
meant to lack behind. Not only in healthcare, but in every aspect they are faced with challenges.
The discriminations were not addressed by the healthcare, and the women who belonged from
aboriginal background faced discrimination. They faced longer days of awaiting, higher prices of
medicines that were often not affordable or even not allowed to visit doctors on first
appointments (Bailey et al., 2017).

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Whiteness: this is an invisible factor that has been normalized in society for the most
number of days. Whiteness is a factor that is deeply enrooted as the factor of dominance
tendency. Whiteness is the permanence skin color that is presumed as a mark of superiority
(Noble, 2013). For years it has been seen as a salient feature of power and position, especially in
the regions where people with different skin color existed. The definition provided by Walter for
whiteness is a norm that is invisible and works against the ‘other’ races. It has aided in the
construction of identity, representation, subjectivity, nationalism and the law (Habibis et al.,
2016). The perception of this superiority is still implemented implicitly in many places, and
people with different skin color are deprived of their fundamental human rights. The similar
discrimination has been observed in the behavior of the healthcare workers who were responsible
for providing treatment top the mothers of the children. A sense of oppression and discrimination
could be easily understood when the priority of their treatment was given to the non-aboriginal
mothers.
Intersectionality: the argument of intersectionality presents that every individual and their
lives are impacted and defined by the status that they hold. The way an individual lives his or her
life is highly influenced by his or her statuses in society. Also, his or identity has a significant
part to play in it (Carastathis, 2014). A person can face challenges only for the reason of holding
just a specific position in society that other people may not encounter (King, 2016). A good
example would be a working woman who is faced with gender and economic discrimination.
When there are cumulative disadvantages of one’s identity, it is referred to as intersectionality.
Reflecting on my experience, the women who were faced with discriminations had
several social positions related to their identity that society makes it a reason for discrimination.
Looking at the women, it was prominent that the profound discriminations were based on race,

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gender, and economic status. The skin color was a determinant based on which discrimination is
made. Belonging from lower economic classes they are also suppressed under the dominant
group. Also, the gender discrimination is a major social issue that is observed in this specific
experience. Combining the three aspects, the situation is hard to deal and make differences.
People suffering are faced with several challenges resulting from discrimination, including
education, healthcare and financial.
The ways reflecting on my experience has helped me: The experience with the
underprivileged children and interaction with their mother have certainly given an insight into
the aboriginal’s life and the challenges they face on a daily basis. Working in that atmosphere, I
developed the respect for the people with other cultural traits and cultural practices. Values and
norms from different culture helped me understand that the way I grew up amidst multicultural
society, it should be in the same way. Although I grew up among people belonging to different
backgrounds, I was not aware of the discrimination and challenges they go through. Also, the
discrimination reaches to a great extent leading to severe social issues that need immediate
attention. Looking at the experience, I was able to use my skills of getting along with people
quickly. Since I was already familiar with people from different culture, there was no scope for
me to experience culture shock. However, there was more learning. I developed a system of
looking at situations from different perspectives. In a better way, the experience has built the
ability to utilize and acquire values, knowledge, and skills in the means through which diversity
can be made a competent practice. A system of feeling, acting and thinking that opens the door
in order to actively seek knowledge and develop values consistent in identifying and addresses
issues that are sensitive in nature. Also, the experience has developed within me the interest to
integrate new ideas which might be uncomfortable however much needed. To be a true

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professional by giving up my comfort zone was one of the hard work that I learned and now feel
comfortable performing it. Often it is necessary to reach out and learn things that are required
even when it is not within my professional area. I have learned that it is essential to the same in
order to be better and do increase my limit of capabilities.
Moreover, I have gained the ability to solve and work out people’s problems. There are a
couple of ways one can learn several things while helping people solve a problem. Since every
individual is different from one another. Dealing with people with different cultural background
has given me the opportunity of exploring my capabilities of understanding people’s psychology
to a great extent. Before the experience, I was a person with some degree, knowledge, and skills
however the chance of implementing those knowledge was only when I was into the field
working with the underprivileged children. The sight of discrimination taught me the need to
become a social worker and encourage more people to do so as well. The social issue of racial
discrimination is not something that appeared within a few years. The injustice has been
occurring since a very long period, and the damage is too significant to be controlled in few
years. The experiences have given me the clarity that I want to make a difference in the world,
especially for the aboriginals of the state.
There is a need for professionals to develop their skills and practices continuously.
Reflection is a method through which social workers can learn from their own experiences. It is
now a universally stated goal that social workers will need to use reflection to learn and develop
their practice. There have been decidedly fewer researches that actually focused on the way
reflection can help. However, as stated above, several social workers use this method too and
explore the possibilities and limits in every aspect such as approach, results and other areas.
Reflection is a way of evaluating own minds. The experience that I have discussed above helps

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me to figure out the benefits of practicing reflection. Social work is a kind of career that involves
working with a diverse population. It is one of the main characteristic of this particular field and
therefore it is essential. The practices I have performed, the interaction I had with several people
during that time has let me implement my theories into practice. Also, reflecting on it gives me a
better understanding of situations. If there is any way that could have produced a better result is
what the aim of reflection writing. In the end, I can conclude that the reflection writing of past
experience is undoubtedly one of the best tools of evolving as a social worker. It is also a way to
explore an individual's capabilities and potentials.

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racism and health inequities in the USA: evidence and interventions. The
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Cloward, R. A., & Ohlin, L. E. (2013). Delinquency and opportunity: A study of delinquent
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