Social work for all species: consideration of social work ethics and the human-animal bond

Course overview

This course is based upon material published in the Journal Society Register and is available as an open-access article. Abstract: The lives of social work clients can be greatly enhanced by relationships with non-human animals. This paper presents the viewpoint that recognition of the beneficial nature of the human-animal bond and support for clients who seek animal companionship is not only within the scope of ethical social work practice, but also an essential competency in contemporary social work practice. Using the six social work values of the Code of Ethics (service, social justice, importance of relationships, dignity and worth, integrity, and competence) to frame the discussion, the paper presents examples of each value in action as it applies to animal assisted interventions and to clients relationships with their own pets. The authors introduce several real-world clinical examples supporting this viewpoint. Overall, the paper makes recommendations to social workers on how to practice ethically with regard to non-human animals and discusses steps to be taken within the field to promote these practices. This course on ethics and the human-animal bond in social work practice is specifically designed for social workers. It may also be useful for other behavioral health professionals such as professional counselors, psychologists, nurses, and substance abuse counselors, who do clinical work and need continuing education in ethics - a topic that is appropriate for all areas of behavioral health practice. This course is appropriate for beginning, intermediate and advanced level practitioners who wish to enhance their skills in the area of boundries. It may also be useful for licensed clinicians who require ethics continuing clinical education courses for license renewal. Authors: Wenocur, Cabral and Karlovits Learning Objectives: This course will provide the practitioner with detailed information regarding ethics and the human-animal bond, in social work practice. Specifically, a professional will: Describe the beneficial nature of the human-animal bond for clients. Identify the six social work values and how they relate to animal-assisted interventions. Recognize how social work values apply to supporting clients relationships with their own pets. Citation: Wenocur, K., Cabral, R. and Karlovits, J. (2018). Social work for all species: Dual consideration of social work ethics and the human-animal bond. Perspectives-on-social-work_Winter2018.pdf University of Houston Libraries