A Financial Social Work Certificate Program for Community and Family Practitioners

A Financial Social Work Certificate program launched, responding to a need for greater financial knowledge and skill development among social workers. Community leaders who were alumni of a social work school partnered with educators and researchers to plan and organize an intensive 7-day training over the course of 7 months, through the School’s Office of Continuing Professional Education. Content focused on understanding personal finance, learning about interventions to address clients’ financial needs, exploring critical and emerging macro issues, and focusing on how these dovetail with clinical practice. Preliminary results on financial social work self-efficacy indicate greater self-efficacy over three evaluation time points. Next steps will include a more robust evaluation and fostering a network of engaged graduates.

Financial Anxiety and Resilience among Rural Poor: An Exploration of Social Work Implication

Purpose of the Study: Financial literacy is the main challenge for the rural population of India. It also plays a vital role in the economic outlook. In India, many poor people do not have a bank account, and only a few understand the concept of financial literacy. Due to lack of financial literacy many rural poor experience financial anxieties hence the present study was taken up to know the financial anxiety and resilience behavior among rural poor. Methodology: The present study adopted the descriptive research design 62 respondents were selected for data collection from poor rural households by adopting the purposeful sampling technique in the Kodigenahalli Gram Panchayat jurisdiction. The present study was carried to assess the level of financial anxiety and its relationship with socio-demographical aspects. Main Findings: The present study found that financial anxiety is experienced by the rural poor, and there is a correlation between education, occupation, number of household members with financial anxiety of the respondents. Implication: The researcher proposed the need for Social Work Intervention to address financial anxiety and financial literacy. The novelty of the study: The present study has described the level of financial literacy and financial anxiety that exists among the rural poor in Karnataka (India) and explored the scope of Financial Social Work in addressing financial literacy and financial anxiety. Financial Social Work changes the conversation about money. It provides a different way of thinking about money and it offers a better way of working with clients around the role of money in their lives, problems and issues.

Financial Social Work

Financial well-being is an individual responsibility in twenty-first century America, even though research reveals a serious inability for many Americans to attain it. Social workers have the education and training to help people modify behavior and a history of working with low-income and minority families, as well as the skills to engage and empower clients, making them the best professionals to help Americans take control of their money and their lives. This article explains how incorporating financial-literacy skills and models of financial behavioral change into the social work curriculum would benefit both social workers and their clients. It describes the financial social work model and an understanding of its relevance to the social work profession.