National Association of Social Workers

Putting the Profession in Public Office

Social Workers Are 'Uniquely Trained' for Politics

Social workers in the political arena can have a huge impact on people's lives.

By Lyn Stoesen, News Staff

Illustration: John Michael Yanson

A social work degree offers grounding in many professional skills that allow graduates to go into a wide range of careers: case managers, child welfare workers, private practice counselors.

One career path that is often overlooked, however, is that of politics — even though many social workers say that their skills are ideally suited for working in the political arena.

Social work skills. Nancy Humphreys, director of the Nancy A. Humphreys Institute for Political Social Work at the University of Connecticut School of Social Work, said that by going into politics, social workers are not abandoning their profession.

"I came to understand in the early '80s that everything social workers learn how to do in BSW and MSW programs is exactly what a politician needs to do to be successful," Humphreys said. She realized that "as a profession, we need to make a concerted effort to get social workers into elected office and to challenge the notion that to go into politics is to leave social work."

Humphreys founded the institute in 1995 to work toward that objective. The institute has two goals: increasing the number of social workers who hold elected office and exploring ways for direct service workers to help clients increase their political power.

Humphreys said there is a pervasive myth that law is the profession of politicians. "What you learn in law school is about the law — not about constituent services, coalition-building or compromise. The kinds of things students in schools of social work learn in the natural course of studies are directly applicable to what you need to be a successful politician," she explained.

As an example, Humphreys recalled a conversation she had with U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) in the early 1980s. She asked Stabenow what the most important class she had taken was, expecting Stabenow to tell her about a public policy course. Instead, Stabenow said it was a course on group dynamics.

A publication from Humphreys' institute, "Why Social Workers Should Be Active in Politics," offers three reasons for doing so: the nature of the professional mission, the skills social workers bring to the political process and the preponderance of issues facing legislative bodies that relate to social service and welfare policies.

"Social workers are uniquely trained to serve in the political world," the article states. "Our skills span both working with individuals and families as well as also understanding how change takes place and is shaped in communities and organizations."

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From September 2007 NASW News. © 2007 National Association of Social Workers. All Rights Reserved. NASW News articles may be copied for personal use, but proper notice of copyright and credit to the NASW News must appear on all copies made. This permission does not apply to reproduction for advertising, promotion, resale, or other commercial purposes.