The social support theory is employed to understand the needs and expectations of Levi. The theory hypothesizes that emotional, instrumental, and informational support lower the likelihood of delinquency (Feeney & Collins, 2015). The social support theory focuses on how supportive relationships, networks, and societies can reduce personal delinquency (Kort‐Butler, 2017). This paper develops a conceptual framework to describe how the theory is used to guide the processes of assessment, intervention, and evaluation. The paper also explains how the theory guides social work practice within an at-risk population. Additionally, the paper critiques and applies research-based knowledge and practice wisdom to understand person and environment. Documented examples that support the application of the social support theory to this case study are also provided.
Assessment
The social worker must determine how available social networks can impact on the wellbeing of the client. The social support theory is applied when assessing clients to determine the support network that is available to them. According to Blakeslee (2015), social network assessment is an integral step in the provision of social services to clients because it enables the social worker to understand whether there is adequate social support available to the client and the place from which this social support can be obtained. Multi-dimensional social support can enable Levi to have a positive transition from the stage of anxiety and drug addiction to improved physical and psychological health. Blakeslee (2015) states that the efficacy of the support network is measured in terms of composition, size, and density and actual support provided through the relationships identified. Social workers should use assessment tools such as The Arizona Social Support Schedule (ASSIS) and The Social Network Interview (SNI) to assess the social support that is available to the client and how this support can be utilized (Siette et al., 2015). However, there is no ideal assessment tool that is recommended for use in assessing social service clients. The service provider must, therefore, use critical thinking to employ the best assessment approach. The assessment stage is thus crucial for developing a service provision framework for addressing the needs and expectations of the client.
Intervention
The social support theory can also be applied when developing the best intervention approach to address the challenges faced by Levi. Received support should match the need for support to improve the wellbeing of the client (Melrose, Brown & Wood, 2015). Quality of support is thus much more important than the amount of support received. The social worker should, therefore, assess whether the client would receive quality support from specific parties within the support network. The relationship between received support and the wellbeing of the client is often inconsistent because of the tendency to assume that any type of social support received would improve the wellbeing of the client. Interventions based on the social support theory must, therefore, not assume that increasing the amount of support provided to clients will translate to better health. For instance, social support can increase resilience in individuals exposed to trauma. Several societal factors influence resilience in a person. A person’s resilience is influenced by the resilience of family members, romantic partner, spouse, and friends (Sippel et al., 2015). Social work practice should thus seek to include the client’s social network in the intervention process to enhance psychological wellbeing. Social support can also reduce stress and enhance the psychological wellbeing of an individual (Yusufov et al., 2019). Individuals experience less anxiety when they have emotional support from friends, family members and the society in general. A study conducted by Yusufov et al. (2019) showed that college students experiencing high stress record less stress and anxiety when they receive high-quality social support. A similar intervention can be applied in the case of Levi. The client can use the social support of friends, family members, and society to overcome anxiety and drug addiction. Individuals can thrive through meaningful social relationships (Feeney and Collins, 2015). These relationships have to be caring and close for Levi to benefit from them. There is a need to ensure that the focus is on the quality of support provided and not the quantity.
Evaluation
Intervention strategies should always be evaluated to determine their efficacy. There should be clear goals when designing and evaluating social support interventions, especially when dealing with at-risk populations (Thompson, 2015). Evaluation informs the social work practitioner whether there are areas that require improvement. For instance, Levi might not be obtaining the necessary quality of support from his social support network. The evaluation process will reveal whether there is a need to redesign the intervention strategy applied to improve the physical and psychological wellbeing of the client. For instance, close relationships with family members or certain friends could be enhancing the anxiety experienced by Levi. The client might, therefore, use more drugs to deal with heightened anxiety. The evaluation of the intervention strategy should thus reveal whether it has been beneficial to the wellbeing of the client. Social work practitioners should use evaluation reports to identify problem areas and propose better intervention methods that would enhance the wellbeing of the client. In Levi’s case, relationships that impact negatively on his psychological wellbeing should be avoided. Only those relationships that improve the wellbeing of the client should be reinforced. As suggested by Melrose, Brown & Wood (2015), not all types of support received by individuals based on the social support theory improve their wellbeing. Evaluation is thus necessary to ensure that the social networks being utilized can enhance the wellbeing of Levi. Evaluation criteria should be based on developed goals, an indication that the intervention approach should have SMART objectives.
In the case of Levi, the social work practitioner should evaluate the extent to which the intervention strategy has impacted on his mental health using SMART goals. One goal should be the reduced usage of drugs within one month of the implementation of the intervention. Reduced usage or complete stoppage of drug use will indicate that the social support network available to the client is of high quality. The evaluation of progress will inform the next course of action. A second goal should be the performance of Levi in the workplace within three months. Performance should be measured based on the number of times that Levi reports to work and on time. The target should be 85 per cent within the first three months. Commendations received and disciplinary incidences reported are also performance evaluation areas. Improved job performance will indicate improved psychological wellbeing.
Conclusion
The paper shows that the social support theory can be used to address the challenges experienced by Levi. The theory is applied within the conceptual framework of assessment, intervention and evaluation. The social support theory is applied when assessing clients to determine the support network that is available to them. Social network assessment enables the social work practitioner to understand whether there is adequate social support available to the client and the place from which this social support can be obtained. Evaluation is necessary to ensure that the social networks being utilized can enhance the wellbeing of Levi. Evaluation criteria should be based on developed goals, an indication that the intervention approach should have SMART objectives. Reduced drug usage and improved job performance will indicate that the intervention strategy implemented is effective.