I’m a Social Worker, What’s your Superpower
July 28th, 2015
By Megan Ferguson
Dr. Anna Scheyett, Dean of the College of Social Work for the University of South Carolina discusses the concept of “social workers as superheroes” in her TED Talk. Social workers are social change agents and fight for social justice. Everyone will meet a social worker in some point of their lives as we all experience turmoil at various points of our lives. Additionally, social workers wear a variety of “hats” and work in a variety of settings such as addictions, child welfare, corrections, community development, gerontology, healthcare, mental health, public assistance, disability services, immigrant and refugee services, social policy and many other areas.
Connecting this article to its title, “I’m a social worker, what’s your superpower”, we operate from the strengths perspective and focus on individuals’ strengths, abilities and talents rather than deficits. Social workers’ roles may not be prescriptive, but we fill in the gaps wherever the filling is needed.
Dr. Scheyett’s TED Talk can be found by searching YouTube.
