A Study On The Role Conflict Of Social Workers In The Operation Of Social Work Stations In Townships

The growing needs of the people for a better life brought about by economic development and national modernization have made it difficult for the traditional public services,which are oriented towards basic protection and provided by the government,to meet the diversified needs of the current urban and rural residents.In order to enhance the capacity of grassroots public services in China,the government has introduced social work to participate in the provision of grassroots public services through the establishment of social work stations in townships.Township social work stations are an organizational vehicle for the localization and specialization of social work under the leadership of the government.With the construction of township social work stations,the government has,on the one hand,given the professional value of social work to the community service system and promoted the transformation of the concept of community service;on the other hand,it has supplemented the deficiencies of the existing community service system with the professional services of social work and further improved the coverage of community services.The professionalization of social work stations in townships can enhance the refinement of grassroots social services and promote the modernization of grassroots social governance in China.At the same time,however,the current academic community has mostly focused on the medium and macro studies of the construction of township social work stations,and has not paid much attention to the micro level of the township social work stations in concrete operation.Therefore,this thesis selects the social work station in township C of city H as a case study,and uses qualitative research methods to collect the views and attitudes of social workers,community residents,staff of community social organizations,township government leaders and leaders of civil affairs departments on the role conflict of social workers in the township social work station,focusing on a series of issues concerning the role conflict of social workers in the operation of the township social work station.Firstly,the author describes the manifestation of the role conflict of social workers in the operation of the social work station in township C.Firstly,the author describes the operation of the social work station in township C,including the geographical location and internal space of the social work station,the service items and the degree of professionalism;then he presents the current situation of the work of social workers in the operation of the social work station in township C,including the main work flow and time schedule of social workers and other work contents of social workers.It is found that the work content of social workers varies greatly and is characterized by long working hours,a wide range of work,and trivial work matters;finally,the types of role conflict of social workers in the operation of township social work stations are distinguished into the conflict between the expectations of multiple external subjects on the role of social workers and the conflict between the social workers’ own role understanding and role practice.Secondly,the author divides the causes of role conflict into organizational environmental factors,interpersonal factors and personal attribute factors.The external environmental factors in the organizational environment include the lack of policy regulations and professional standards,the lack of experience in the construction of social work stations in townships,the low social awareness of the social work profession,and the slow progress of localization of social work;the internal organizational factors in the organizational environment include the overly strong section hierarchy,the unclear responsibilities of social workers,and the lack of experience of social workers in service practice.The interpersonal interaction factors include low frequency of communication due to the large number of service users and single mode of communication due to low professional level.The factors of personal attributes include the lack of incentive mechanism and the influence of the leaving atmosphere in the township social work stations.Again,the author summarizes the consequences of the role conflict faced by social workers as the lack of professional value,poor service effectiveness,lack of time and energy and widespread burnout,many of which make social workers in the operation of C-township social work stations fall into a role conflict dilemma.Finally,the author classifies social workers in the operation of township social work stations into two types of role positions: direct roles and indirect roles.The direct roles include being a professional service provider who provides social work services,a resource linker who integrates resources within and outside the system,and a relationship coordinator who creates a harmonious community atmosphere;the indirect roles include being a team collaborator who enhances team cohesion,a data collector who makes reasonable work plans,and a service advocate who promotes the concept of serving the disadvantaged.Based on this thesis’ s analysis of the phenomenon of role conflict among social workers in the operation of township social work stations,the author proposes two strategic suggestions for dealing with role conflict.Support from the government includes clarifying the scope of services provided by social workers in township social work stations,establishing a reasonable assessment and evaluation system for social workers in township social work stations,and strengthening the publicity of the services provided by social workers in township social work stations;support from the government includes formulating local codes of practice and setting up targeted professional training courses;support from the academia includes exploring localized social work theories and theories.Support from the academic sector includes exploring the application of localized social work theories,exploring localized social work practice methods and nurturing social workers with both theoretical and practical skills.The internal organizational adjustment strategy requires institutional and supervisory adjustment.Institutional adjustment includes breaking away from the administrative system,establishing a reasonable internal performance system and setting up an effective feedback mechanism for services,while supervisory adjustment includes accepting supervision from the civil affairs department,community social organizations and community residents.