EPAS 2008 CORE COMPETENCIES

COMPETENCY

PRACTICE BEHAVIOR

(1) Identify as a professional social worker and conduct oneself accordingly

(a) Advocate for client access to the services of social work

(c) Attend to professional roles and boundaries

(d) Demonstrate professional demeanor in behavior, appearance and communication

(e) Engage in career-long learning

(f) Use supervision and consultation

(2) Apply social work ethical principles to guide professional practice

(a) Recognize and manage personal values in a way that allows professional values to guide practice

(b) Make ethical decisions by applying standards of the National Association of Social Workers Code of Ethics and, as applicable, of the IFSW/IASSWE

(c)Tolerate ambiguity in resolving ethical conflicts

(d) Apply strategies of ethical reasoning to arrive at principled decisions

(3) Apply critical thinking to inform and communicate professional judgments

(a) Distinguish, appraise, and integrate multiple sources of knowledge, including research-based knowledge, and practice wisdom

(b) Analyze models of assessment, prevention, intervention, and evaluation

(c)Demonstrate effective oral and written communication in working with individuals, families, groups, organizations, communities, and colleagues

(4) Engage diversity and difference in practice

(a) Recognize the extent to which a culture’s structures and values may oppress, marginalize, alienate, or create or enhance privilege and power

(b) Gain sufficient self-awareness to eliminate the influence of personal biases and values in working with diverse groups

(c) Recognize and communicate their understanding of the importance of difference in shaping life experiences

(d) View themselves as learners and engage those with whom they work as informants

(5) Advance human rights and social and economic justice

(a) Understand the forms and mechanisms of oppression and discrimination

(b) Advocate for human rights and social and economic justice

(c)Engage in practices that advance social and economic justice

(6) Engage in research-informed practice and practice-informed research

(a) Use practice experience to inform scientific inquiry

(b) Use research evidence to inform practice

(7) Apply knowledge of human behavior and the social environment

(a) Utilize conceptual frameworks to guide the processes of assessment, intervention, and evaluation

(b) Critique and apply knowledge to understand person and environment

(8) Engage in policy practice to advance social and economic well-being and deliver effective social work services

(a) Analyze, formulate, and advocate for policies that advance social well being

(b) Collaborate with colleagues and clients for effective policy action