SOC 150 - Introduction to Human Services

This course will provide an overview of human services and the social welfare institutions. The historical development and the philosophy of the social service will be reviewed as well as the legislative and economic influences.  The diversity and complex spectrum of services and program will be examined. 

The students will learn about the helping relationships, active listening skills, and essential worker attitudes plus values awareness.  Impersonal violence and oppression will be analyzed as well as promoting individual and professional cultural competence.   Special populations will be examined and their special needs.   The NASW Code of Ethics will be examined and its application to the helping services. 

The course will focus upon enhancing the quality of life of the students and society.

Prerequisites/Corequisites: None

Mode(s) of Instruction: Traditional/face-to-face, and online

Credit for Prior Learning: There are no Credit for Prior Learning opportunities for this course.

Course Fees: None

Student Learning Outcomes and Objectives:

Outcome 1: Specify and define human services work and social welfare.

Outcome 2: Appraise the various duties and roles of human service workers and helping professionals.

Outcome 3: Appraise and demonstrate the skills necessary to be an effective human service worker.

Course Objectives:

Outcome 1: Students will be able to classify what is the helping profession, what help is and why it might be needed. They will also be able to contrast different kinds of help and helping professions, social work, and the theoretical foundations.

Outcome 2: Students will be able to explain effective helper practice, attitudes, and values including suspending judgment, supporting choice, using respectful language and being honest, genuine, and trustworthy.

Outcome 3: Students will be able to demonstrate active listening techniques and the importance of being an emphatic listener in the helping relationships, problem-solving and crisis interventions with individuals, groups, or communities.

Outcome 4: Students will explain the need for competence in social welfare. Students will define and understand culture, social justice, interpersonal violence, and oppression and demonstrate an awareness of the special population needs such as of elders, criminal justice, mental health, school settings, addictions, and health care.

Outcome 5: Students will learn about family characteristics and develop an understanding of the family systems approach and be able to identify the developmental stages of the family life cycle.

Outcome 6: Student will differentiate of the needs and vulnerabilities of individuals, groups, and families through key principles and elements of case management and service coordination.