University of Phoenix Material

Foundations of Human Services Worksheet

Answer, in a 50- to 100-word response, each of the following questions:

1. Identify the four themes of human services. The first theme of human services is problems in living and it is an individual who is having difficulty interacting with their environments. The second theme is the growing number of problems in the modern world. As the technology gets better in the modern world it means people would have to learn it or else they will lose their job. The third theme is self-sufficiency and it means to provide clients or consumers with opportunity and support to be independent. The last theme is social care, social control and rehabilitation. Social care is assisting clients in meeting their social needs on those who cannot care for themselves. Social control is clients that are able to care for themselves, but have either failed to do so or have done so in a matter that violates society’s norms for appropriate behavior. Rehabilitation is the task of returning a client to a normal living function.

2. Identify professional disciplines that influence human services. Sociology, psychology, and anthropology are three of the professional disciplines that influence human services. Sociology helps human services understand the element of life that affect living, such as family living, roles, gender, race, and poverty. Psychology focus on the human experience and how human interact with each other. Anthropology is studies the culture, physical, and social development of humans.

3. How have societal viewpoints concerning mental illness or health influenced human services over the past three centuries? At the beginning, society thought a person with mental illness had to do with an evil spirit or a demon. As time goes on Dr. Benjamin Rush was the first to start a proper treatment on mental patients. He treated them with occupational therapy, amusements and exercise. By 1854, the U.S congress declared financial care of people with mental illness with the reasonability of the state. As the population grew, the more needy people there were. The colonists used the Elizabeth Poor Law as a model of how to meet the needs of needy people and almhouses was the solution for the needy people.

4. How have societal viewpoints concerning child welfare influenced human services over the past three centuries? Many institutions didn’t improved because it was overcrowded and poorly care for. The public demanded children to be removed from almhouses and put into juvenile institutions. Many people believed that children were the most vulnerable and most deserving group in the society. Besides children were consider to be the most neglected and needy one. These entire problems influenced human services to have a better child welfare support system over the past centuries.

5. How have societal viewpoints concerning incarceration and probation influenced human services over the past three centuries? The society’s viewpoint of incarceration and probation is influenced by human services because people who always get in trouble with the law need more of a sympathetic approach to their problem. A well-known organization call Salvation Army was created for that needed shelter, care, and assistance.

6. Explain how political and legislative changes have affected client care. California passed the proposition 13 which cut most of the support social services with tax. The voters felt some of the services were useless, but it created more problems. Workers had work load of cases and the number of needy people did not decrease. Soon after that the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act was signed by President Bill Clinton which ended the federal government’s six decade guarantee of aid to the poor. Client care was also affected by the Medicare Prescription Drug Improvement and Modernization Act (MMA). It was passed to provide outpatient prescription drug benefits for individuals on Medicare. .