Transcript

THERESA LILLIS

Hello, Lisa. Thank you for joining me. We’re talking about and thinking about analysis. And clearly, analysis is absolutely crucial to everything that social workers are doing in their day to day practise. Can you say something about the kind of analysis that social workers do?

LISA LEWIS

Yeah. I think analysis is absolutely crucial to the work that social workers do. And it’s threaded throughout all aspects of the work, whether you’re working with children and families, the elderly, working with people with mental health problems and assessing them for services that they might require. And I think what can be challenging is that social workers will do this instinctively every day and talk it. But sometimes when it comes to writing it, people can find that really challenging.

THERESA LILLIS

I think from all the different texts I’ve seen, there’s different kinds of analysis going on in writing. I think it would be useful to look at some examples at the level of words. So example one says, ‘Her previous relationship had been abusive’.

LISA LEWIS

OK, so the fact that the social worker has chosen to use the word ‘abusive’ demonstrates her ability to analyse. The fact that this particular word has been chosen demonstrates a negative analysis of the relationship in question.

THERESA LILLIS

Example two, ‘She was dressed appropriately and appeared well’.

LISA LEWIS

This is more of a positive aspect in terms of the assessment from the social worker.

THERESA LILLIS

And example three, ‘She struggles to motivate herself’.

LISA LEWIS

That signals the challenges that somebody is facing.

THERESA LILLIS

So even at the level of the single words that social workers are using, they reflect the analysis that’s going on.

LISA LEWIS

Yeah. I agree. Yeah.

THERESA LILLIS

And of course, analysis is going on not just at the level of words but at larger statements and claims, I think, which are really important. If we look at example four, we can see how claims are explicitly linked to and based on descriptive evidence.

So example four, ‘David becomes agitated if his wife Alice leaves the room, and David goes in search of her. As such, David cannot remain safely on his own in his apartment, even for short periods. David also attempts to leave his premises unsupported to return to town. And therefore, he requires close monitoring to maintain his safety. Without Alice’s support, David cannot safely return home. And therefore, it’s my opinion that he requires 24 hour residential to meet his needs and maintain his safety’. Can you say something about what’s going on in that description and analysis there?

LISA LEWIS

So there are a number of things happening here. Firstly, we can see the description of the specific person and the situation. Secondly, we can see the claims made by the social worker based on the evidence. And thirdly, we can see a judgement by the social worker about what is needed. So the consequences are clearly based on the description and analysis.

THERESA LILLIS

Thank you, Lisa. So we’ve been looking at analysis and in example four, we saw explicit analysis. And of course, it’s the case that some forms or documents have sections called ‘Analysis’. So I think it be useful to have a look at an example of one of these sections.

So example 5 is from a child’s plan. And the social worker is required to write analysis. And you have that there in the heading, analysis, are we achieving good outcomes.

And it says, ‘Hannah appears settled within her foster placement and is having her needs met. She has appropriate contact sessions with important family members, which seem to be in line with her current needs and wishes and feelings. Hannah continues to struggle with her emotions and will be offered further support through the school doctor and court psychologist.’

LISA LEWIS

OK, so all of the comments here are analytical. She is making claims about whether the child is settled, whether she has appropriate contact with family members, and about her overall emotional state and well-being.

THERESA LILLIS

Yes, and I think what’s important to note here is that this is analysis, and the social worker is clearly reaching conclusions. But she’s not being categorical. We can see that she’s hedging some of her comments. She’s using ‘appears’, ‘seems to be’. So she’s being quite cautious. And presumably, we don’t know, because we don’t have the documentation, that’s because that’s what the evidence allows her to say.

I think it would be useful if we looked at a contrasting example. So if we look at example 6, and this is from a single assessment, it says, ‘The chronology indicates that there is a pattern of domestic violence and concerns around alcohol use. The risks include the children witnessing domestic disputes, which would harm the children’s emotional well-being and place them at risk of physical harm, especially if the violence and aggression took place in front of them. The children are vulnerable and need to have a home that is safe where the adults are not stressed and where their carers can prioritise their needs at all times’.

LISA LEWIS

OK, so here there is no hedging at all. But the use of words such as ‘include’ and ‘indicates’ are categorical statements used by the social worker. And I think we assume here that these statements will be evidenced elsewhere in the report. However, if they haven’t been evidenced, then there will be a problem.

THERESA LILLIS

So that’s a really important point about evidence. Let’s have a look at example 7. This is from a prospective adopters report. And it’s in a section entitled ‘Analysis’. We’ve been looking at these specific analysis sections.

And it says, ‘Carolyn’s childhood was stable and consistent, with adults providing care and warmth. And she will draw on this experience in her role as a parent’.

LISA LEWIS

OK, so if we were to take this extract just in isolation, we aren’t able to tell if the social worker’s analysis is based on evidence. However, for this specific example, we have been able to read the full report. And we know there’s evidence missing. Specifically, there’s an example from this applicant’s childhood that should have been included in the final analysis.

THERESA LILLIS

Let’s have a look at how the analysis might be revised to include that specific incident. So ‘Carolyn’s childhood was for the most part stable and consistent, with adults providing care and warmth. And she will draw on this experience in her role as a parent. The one specific incident which shocked her as a teenager was when her mother hit her for staying out late. Carolyn reflected that whilst this was not a way she would parent, she saw this as a one-off incident within an overall relationship of warmth and trust’. To what extent do you think inserting those comments changes the analysis?

LISA LEWIS

I think by adding that additional nuance of information you are creating a more robust rapport overall, which is a lot better.

THERESA LILLIS

Thank you very much, Lisa.