Measures for Practice with Families from a Strengths Perspective

This paper identifies and evaluates measurement instruments that can be used in practice with families—from a strengths perspective—and will also enable social workers to document service effectiveness.

Abstract

Social work practice from a strengths perspective is increasingly a preferred mode of practice. In the current environment of managed care in many fields, practitioners are required to measure and document various aspects of client problems and service effectiveness. The problem focus is inconsistent with the strengths perspective, but strengths-based practitioners are not immune from the accountability demands. This paper identifies and evaluates measurement instruments that can be used in practice with families—from a strengths perspective—and will also enable social workers to document service effectiveness.