Fall 2026 SOWK 486w Class 04 Weekly Email

MyHeritage Syllabus Presentations Emails

Hey, I hope you are all well and looking forward to class on Wednesday!

Unit Introduction and What You Will Learn

Week four is a continuation of laying the groundwork for this course. It provides an overview of the helping process. Hepworth et al. (2023) categorize the helping process into three phases.

• Phase I: Exploration, Engagement, Assessment, and Planning
• Phase II: Implementation and Goal Attainment
• Phase III: Evaluation and Termination

During the session, we will examine an overview of the considerations we should have in each phase. We will also examine how we establish the environment with our clients and what the interview process entails. Finally, we will spend some time discussing some potential ethical dilemmas. The agenda is:

• Overview of the three phases of the helping process
• Setting the environment
• Interviewing clients
• Practice with ethical dilemmas

The Learning Objectives this week include:

• Describe the three phases of the helping process and identify key tasks associated with each phase.
• Demonstrate strategies for creating a supportive environment during client interviews, including setting, preparedness, and rapport-building.
• Practice and evaluate techniques for starting the interview, engaging clients, and initiating assessment.
• Identify behaviors and communication styles that enhance or inhibit client trust and motivation.
• Analyze ethical dilemmas using professional values and guidelines to inform decision-making in complex situations.

Unit Assignments

Read

• Read Hepworth et al. (2023) Chapter 3 Overview of the Helping Process
• Read Hepworth et al. (2023) Chapter 4 Operationalizing Social Work Values and Ethics

A-01: Class Engagement and Attendance

Attend class

A-02: Chapter Reading Quizzes

Complete the reading quiz, W-04 A-02 for Chapters Hepworth et al. (2023) 03 and 04, before class.

Unit Resources

You can listen to a podcast episode for this week’s reading Deep Dive on Chapters 3 and 4: The Mechanics of Ethical Social Work Practice, or see the entire series Deep Dive: Hepworth et al. (2023).

In talking about rapport and connection with clients, we review Leach (2005) to understand some of the strategies and behaviors that improve client trust. You can read the paper if you are interested.

I will embed the slides closer to class

The Lecture Videos tab in the MyHeritage course is where you will be able to find class recordings. The video this week is at [Fall 2026 SOWK 486w Week 04]().

I'll embed the video after the class session.

Reference

Hepworth, D. H., Vang, P. D., Blakey, J. M., Schwalbe, C., & Evans, C. (2023). Empowerment Series: Direct Social Work Practice Theory and Skills (11th ed.). Cengage Learning, Inc.

Leach, M. J. (2005). Rapport: A key to treatment success. Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice, 11(4), 262–265. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ctcp.2005.05.005

To-Do List

• A-01: Class Engagement: Participate in Class Wednesday at 5:30 PM
• Read Chapters three and four of the Hepworth et al. (2023) text.
• Optionally Read: Leach, M. J. (2005)
• Reading Quiz for W-04 A-02 for Hepworth et al. (2023) Chapter(s) 03 and 04 is due at 5:30 PM before class via MyHeritage