The social environment and social situation where something happens
Reality
Made up of your thoughts, feelings, and experiences
The way that you see things is considered to be your truth, your perception, your personal experience
Anything that exists
State of things as they are, rather than as they may appear or might be imagined
Social Reality
The process by which people creatively shape reality through social interactions (culture)
Conditions in the macro level that has significant impact on the lives of the people in the society
Philippine Social Reality
Focuses on the Philippine socio-political, economic, cultural, spiritual, environment and gender realities in the context of local, regional and global situations, and their implications to social welfare and social work
Social Welfare
Well-being of individual
Social Welfare and Social Work = SOCIAL PROTECTION
Social protection is defined as the set of policies and programs designed to reduce poverty and vulnerability by promoting efficient labor markets, diminishing people's exposure to risks, and enhancing their capacity to protect themselves against hazards and interruption/loss of income
Components of social protection (Philippines)
Social insurance (SSS, GSIS)
Social welfare
Labor market interventions
Social safety nets (subsidies)
Social protection is a human right. It ensures access to health care and income security for all. It provides for you and your family when you're sick, unemployed, injured, pregnant or too old to work. It provides support for your family in case something happens to you.
Three core programs of DSWD
Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (Pantawid Pamilya)
Sustainable Livelihood Program (SLP)
Kapit-Bisig Laban sa Kahirapan-Comprehensive and Integrated Delivery of Social Services-National Community-Driven Development Program (KC-NCDDP)
Focus on understanding the issues and problems present in the Philippines and what are the efforts of the government to respond to the needs of the people
Problems are endless and continuous
Implication of these problems in social work and social welfare
Functions and roles of social worker duty bearers
Philippines
Comprises a blend of traditional Filipino and Spanish Catholic traditions, with influences from America and other parts of Asia
Filipinos are family oriented and often religious with an appreciation for art, fashion, music and food
Aspects of Philippine society
Demography and Health
Politics
Economy and Employment
Demography and Health
Current population of the Philippines is 118,260,910 as of Tuesday, January 9, 2024
Birth Rate (2023): 19.579 births per 1000 people, a 1.01% decline from 2022
Death Rate (2023): 5.6 per 1,000 people
Politics
Republic with a presidential form of government wherein power is equally divided among its three branches: executive, legislative, and judicial
Platform of government: 1. Health and COVID-19 Responses, 2. Anti-Insurgency, 3. Law and Order, 4. Environmental and Climate Change, 5. DRRM
Employment
The 2023 General Appropriations Act authorizes an expenditure program amounting to P5,268.0 billion
768 trillion for year 2024 national budget (allocates the biggest appropriation for the social services and economic services sectors)
Unemployment Rate in November 2023 was Estimated at 3.6 Percent
Underemployment Rate in November 2023 was Estimated at 11.7 Percent
Employment Rate in November 2023 was Estimated at 96.4 Percent
Needs
Things we cannot do without; anything that we are required to HAVE
Problems
Needs that are UNMET
Social Problems
Conditions or situations which members of the society regard as a threat to their values
Not all problems are SOCIAL PROBLEM but ALL SOCIAL PROBLEMS are problems
Problem
A condition of discontentment resented by SOMEONE
Social Problem
A condition or behavior that has negative consequences for large numbers of people and that is generally recognized as a condition or behavior that needs to be addressed
For a problem to be SOCIAL, it must involve a large number of people, groups, and institutions who consider a particular as undesirable and intolerable and want to correct through collective action. Hence, presence of social advocates.
Components of a Social Problem
Objective Social Condition - refers to the existence of a social condition
Subjective Social Condition - refers to the belief that a particular social condition is harmful to society or to a segment of society and that it should and can be changed
Stages of Social Problem
Emergence - emerge/exist
Legitimacy - evidence that a problem is real
Bureaucratization - problem is acknowledged by the government; institutionalized
Development of Alternatives Strategies - responses to the problem
Related Theories of Social Problem
Structural Functionalist Perspective
Conflict Perspective
Symbolic Interactionist Perspective
Structural Functionalist Perspective
Society is a system of interconnected parts that work together in harmony to maintain a state of balance and social equilibrium for the whole
Theories of social problems from structural-functionalist perspective
Social pathology
Social disorganization
Conflict Perspective
View society as composed of different groups and interests competing for power and resources
Symbolic Interactionist Perspective
Emphasizes that human behavior is influenced by definitions and meanings that are created and maintained through symbolic interaction with others
Poverty results from institutional breakdown: economic institutions that fail to provide sufficient jobs and pay, educational institutions that fail to equip members of society with the skills they need for employment, family institutions that do not provide two parents, and government institutions that do not provide sufficient public support.
Karl Marx proposed that economic inequality results from the domination of the bourgeoisie (owners of the factories, or "means of production") over the proletariat
Modern conflict theorists recognize that the power to influence economic outcomes arises not only from ownership of the means of production but also from management position, interlocking board memberships, control of media, financial contributions to politicians, and lobbying
Individuals who are poor are often viewed as undeserving of help or sympathy; their poverty is viewed as due to laziness, immorality, irresponsibility, lack of motivation, or personal deficiency
Wealthy individuals, on the other hand, tend to be viewed as capable, motivated, hardworking, and deserving of their wealth
SPECSEG Framework
Focuses on the Philippine socio-political, economic, cultural, spiritual, environment and gender realities in the context of local, regional and global situations, and their implications to social welfare and social work
Social analysis
The practice of systematically examining a social problem, issue or trend, often with the aim of prompting changes in the situation being analyzed
Social problem
A situation that is viewed by some community members as being undesirable