SOCW 6111

Required Readings

Congress, E. (2013). Assessment of adults. In M. Holosko, C. Dulmus, & K. Sowers (Eds.), Social work practice with individuals and families: Evidence-informed assessments and interventions (pp. 125–145). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.

Cowger, C. D. (1994). Assessing client strengths: Clinical assessment for client empowerment. Social Work, 39(3), 262– 268.

Plummer, S.-B., Makris, S., & Brocksen, S. M. (Eds.). (2014b). Social work case studies: Concentration year. Baltimore, MD: Laureate International Universities Publishing. [Vital Source e-reader].



Mental Health Diagnosis in Social Work: The Case of Miranda (pp. 7–9)



Note: Depending on your concentration, you may not receive a case study book until a later term. Therefore, if you did not receive a copy of Social Work Case Studies: Concentration Year in your previous course, use the linked PDF provided here. If you did receive the book referenced above, you may find the cases there or use the PDF.

Hawkins, R. L., & Kim, E. J. (2012). The socio-economic empowerment assessment: Addressing poverty and economic distress in clients. Clinical Social Work Journal, 40(2), 194– 202.

Plummer, S.-B., Makris, S., & Brocksen, S. M. (Eds.). (2014a). Sessions: case histories. Baltimore, MD: Laureate International Universities Publishing. [Vital Source e-reader].

The Cortez Family (pp. 23–25)

Resources for Discussion

American Psychiatric Association. (2018). Online assessment measures. Retrieved from https://www.psychiatry.org/psychiatrists/practice/dsm/educational-resources/assessment-measures#Disorder

Beidas, R. S., Stewart, R. E., Walsh, L., Lucas, S., Downey, M. M., Jackson, K., ... & Mandell, D. S. (2015). Free, brief, and validated: Standardized instruments for low-resource mental health settings. Cognitive and behavioral practice, 22(1), 5-19. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4310476/ 

National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2019). Screening tools and prevention. Retrieved from https://www.drugabuse.gov/nidamed-medical-health-professionals/screening-tools-prevention 

Optional Resources

Use this link to access the MSW home page, which provides resources for your social work program.

Assignment: Comprehensive Assessment

A comprehensive understanding of a client’s presenting problems depends on the use of multiple types of assessment models. Each model gathers different information based on theoretical perspective and intent. An assessment that focuses on one area alone not only misses vital information that may be helpful in planning an intervention, but may encourage a biased evaluation that could potentially lead you to an inappropriate intervention. When gathering and reviewing a client’s history, sometimes it is easier to focus on the problems and not the positive attributes of the client. In social work, the use of a strengths perspective requires that a client’s strengths, assets, and resources must be identified and utilized. Further, using an empowerment approach in conjunction with a strengths perspective guides the practitioner to work with the client to identify shared goals. You will be asked to consider these approaches and critically analyze the multidisciplinary team’s response to the program case study of Paula Cortez.

For this Assignment, review the program case study of the Cortez family.

By Day 7

In a 3- to 4-page paper, complete the following: 

• Utilizing two of the assessment models provided in Chapter 5 of the course text, provide a comprehensive assessment of Paula Cortez.


• Using the Cowger article, identify at least two areas of strengths in Paula’s case.


• Analyze the perspectives of two members of the multidisciplinary team, particularly relative to Paula’s pregnancy.


• Explain which model the social workers appear to be using to make their assessment.


• Describe the potential for bias when choosing an assessment model and completing an evaluation.


• Suggest strategies you, as Paula’s social worker, might try to avoid these biases.

Support your Assignment with specific references to the resources. Be sure to provide full APA citations for your references.