• Areas of Practice
  • Adolescent Health
  • Aging
  • Behavioral Health
  • Bereavement/End of Life Care
  • Children, Youth, and Families
  • Clinical Social Work
  • Diversity & Equity
  • Health
  • HIV/AIDS
  • International
  • Peace and Social Justice
  • School Social Work
  • Violence
• Special Features
  • NASW Practice Standards
    
  • Practice Research Network
  • PIPPAH
    Partners in Program Planning for Adolescent Health
  • HIV/AIDS Spectrum: Mental Health Training and Education of Social Workers Project
  • Bereavement Curriculum
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  • Click here for a larger copy of the Genetics Standards Poster

• NASW Assurance Services, Inc. (formerly NASW Insurance Trust)
  • Types of Insurance
  • Understanding Risk Management
  • Frequently Asked Questions

Practice

Social work practice consists of the professional application of social work values, principles, and techniques to one or more of the following ends: helping people obtain tangible services; counseling and psychotherapy with individuals, families, and groups; helping communities or groups provide or improve social and health services; and participating in legislative processes. The practice of social work requires knowledge of human development and behavior; of social and economic, and cultural institutions; and of the interaction of all these factors.

NASW Standards

• NASW Guidelines for Social Worker Safety in the Workplace (2013)
• NASW Standards for Social Work Case Management (2013)
• NASW Standards for Social Work with Service Members, Veterans, and Their Families (pdf file)
• NASW Standards for School Social Work Services (pdf file)
• NASW Standards for Social Work Practice with Family Caregivers of Older Adults (pdf file)
• NASW Standards for Social Work Practice with Clients with Substance Use Disorders (pdf file - Revised 2012)
• NASW and ASWB Standards for Technology and Social Work Practice (pdf file)
• NASW Standards for Social Work Practice in Health Care Settings (pdf file)
• NASW Standards for Clinical Social Work in Social Work Practice (pdf file)
• NASW Standards for Social Work Practice in Child Welfare (pdf file -- Revised 2012)
• NASWStandards for Social Work Practice in Palliative and End of Life Care
• NASW Standards for Social Work Services in Long-Term Care Facilities (pdf file)
• NASW Standards for Continuing Education and the Social Work Profession (pdf file)
• NASW Standards for the Practice of Social Work with Adolescents (pdf file)
• NASW Standards for Integrating Genetics into Social Work Practice (pdf file)
• NASW Standards for Cultural Competence in Social Work Practice (pdf file)
• NASW Standards for Indicators For Cultural Competence in Social Work Practice (pdf file)