SOCWORK 3E03 Lecture Notes - Lecture 9: Externalization
31 Oct 2016
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Document Summary
Reality is subjective, there is no objective truth. The way we interpret the event is subjective. Knowledge is constructed through discourse, reality is created through language: we can believe that abuse is our fault, and that it is not our fault. People construct narratives or personal stories that shape our lives. Narratives are constructed through language but also through the meanings that we attach to words that describe our life experiences. Understand the client"s narrative, to understand the meanings that the client attaches to words that describe her or his experiences, and to look for alternative meanings that would challenge the person or the client"s dominant story. Through a collaborative and conversational process, we try to understand the client"s narrative, without trying to interpret it and without trying to intervene. Strategies connote power and private or privileged knowledge that we would be imposing on the client. To the meanings that the client attaches to his/her experiences.
