Summary Report for:
21-1023.00 - Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers
Assess and treat individuals with mental, emotional, or substance abuse problems, including abuse of alcohol, tobacco, and/or other drugs. Activities may include individual and group therapy, crisis intervention, case management, client advocacy, prevention, and education.
Sample of reported job titles:
Social Worker, Case Manager, Clinical Therapist, Mental Health Therapist, Psychotherapist, Clinical Social Worker, Community Support Worker, Counselor, Probation Agent, Probation Officer
Tasks | Tools & Technology | Knowledge | Skills | Abilities | Work Activities | Work Context | Job Zone | Interests | Work Styles | Work Values | Related Occupations | Wages & Employment
Tasks
- Counsel clients in individual and group sessions to assist them in dealing with substance abuse, mental and physical illness, poverty, unemployment, or physical abuse.
- Interview clients, review records, and confer with other professionals to evaluate mental or physical condition of client or patient.
- Collaborate with counselors, physicians, and nurses to plan and coordinate treatment, drawing on social work experience and patient needs.
- Monitor, evaluate, and record client progress with respect to treatment goals.
- Refer patient, client, or family to community resources for housing or treatment to assist in recovery from mental or physical illness, following through to ensure service efficacy.
- Counsel and aid family members to assist them in understanding, dealing with, and supporting the client or patient.
- Modify treatment plans according to changes in client status.
- Plan and conduct programs to prevent substance abuse, to combat social problems, or to improve health and counseling services in community.
- Supervise and direct other workers who provide services to clients or patients.
- Develop or advise on social policy and assist in community development.
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Tools & Technology
Tools used in this occupation:
| Desktop computers |
| Notebook computers |
| Personal computers |
Technology used in this occupation:
| Data base user interface and query software — Command Systems ComServe; Database software |
| Desktop publishing software — Adobe PageMaker; Microsoft Publisher |
| Internet browser software — Microsoft Internet Explorer; Netscape Navigator; Web browser software |
| Medical software — Client records software; James Frazier Associates DataStart; Social Solutions ETO Software; Social Work Software ClientTouch |
| Presentation software — Information presentation software; Microsoft PowerPoint |
| Spreadsheet software — Microsoft Excel |
| Word processing software — Corel WordPerfect; Microsoft Word |
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Knowledge
| Psychology — Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders. |
| Therapy and Counseling — Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance. |
| Customer and Personal Service — Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction. |
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Skills
| Active Listening — Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times. |
| Social Perceptiveness — Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do. |
| Critical Thinking — Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems. |
| Speaking — Talking to others to convey information effectively. |
| Reading Comprehension — Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents. |
| Writing — Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience. |
| Active Learning — Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making. |
| Coordination — Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions. |
| Judgment and Decision Making — Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one. |
| Service Orientation — Actively looking for ways to help people. |
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Abilities
| Oral Comprehension — The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences. |
| Oral Expression — The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand. |
| Speech Clarity — The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you. |
| Inductive Reasoning — The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events). |
| Problem Sensitivity — The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem. |
| Speech Recognition — The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person. |
| Written Comprehension — The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing. |
| Deductive Reasoning — The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense. |
| Selective Attention — The ability to concentrate on a task over a period of time without being distracted. |
| Written Expression — The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand. |
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Work Activities
| Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships — Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time. |
| Getting Information — Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources. |
| Assisting and Caring for Others — Providing personal assistance, medical attention, emotional support, or other personal care to others such as coworkers, customers, or patients. |
| Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates — Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person. |
| Performing for or Working Directly with the Public — Performing for people or dealing directly with the public. This includes serving customers in restaurants and stores, and receiving clients or guests. |
| Documenting/Recording Information — Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form. |
| Judging the Qualities of Things, Services, or People — Assessing the value, importance, or quality of things or people. |
| Making Decisions and Solving Problems — Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems. |
| Communicating with Persons Outside Organization — Communicating with people outside the organization, representing the organization to customers, the public, government, and other external sources. This information can be exchanged in person, in writing, or by telephone or e-mail. |
| Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events — Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events. |
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Work Context
| Face-to-Face Discussions — How often do you have to have face-to-face discussions with individuals or teams in this job? |
| Telephone — How often do you have telephone conversations in this job? |
| Contact With Others — How much does this job require the worker to be in contact with others (face-to-face, by telephone, or otherwise) in order to perform it? |
| Letters and Memos — How often does the job require written letters and memos? |
| Freedom to Make Decisions — How much decision making freedom, without supervision, does the job offer? |
| Frequency of Conflict Situations — How often are there conflict situations the employee has to face in this job? |
| Deal With Unpleasant or Angry People — How frequently does the worker have to deal with unpleasant, angry, or discourteous individuals as part of the job requirements? |
| Frequency of Decision Making — How frequently is the worker required to make decisions that affect other people, the financial resources, and/or the image and reputation of the organization? |
| Work With Work Group or Team — How important is it to work with others in a group or team in this job? |
| Time Pressure — How often does this job require the worker to meet strict deadlines? |
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Job Zone
| Title |
Job Zone Five: Extensive Preparation Needed |
| Overall Experience |
Extensive skill, knowledge, and experience are needed for these occupations. Many require more than five years of experience. For example, surgeons must complete four years of college and an additional five to seven years of specialized medical training to be able to do their job. |
| Job Training |
Employees may need some on-the-job training, but most of these occupations assume that the person will already have the required skills, knowledge, work-related experience, and/or training. |
| Job Zone Examples |
These occupations often involve coordinating, training, supervising, or managing the activities of others to accomplish goals. Very advanced communication and organizational skills are required. Examples include librarians, lawyers, aerospace engineers, physicists, school psychologists, and surgeons. |
| SVP Range |
(8.0 and above) |
| Education |
A bachelor's degree is the minimum formal education required for these occupations. However, many also require graduate school. For example, they may require a master's degree, and some require a Ph.D., M.D., or J.D. (law degree). |
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Interests
Interest code: SI
| Social — Social occupations frequently involve working with, communicating with, and teaching people. These occupations often involve helping or providing service to others. |
| Investigative — Investigative occupations frequently involve working with ideas, and require an extensive amount of thinking. These occupations can involve searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally. |
| Artistic — Artistic occupations frequently involve working with forms, designs and patterns. They often require self-expression and the work can be done without following a clear set of rules. |
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Work Styles
| Concern for Others — Job requires being sensitive to others' needs and feelings and being understanding and helpful on the job. |
| Integrity — Job requires being honest and ethical. |
| Dependability — Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations. |
| Self Control — Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations. |
| Cooperation — Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude. |
| Adaptability/Flexibility — Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace. |
| Stress Tolerance — Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high stress situations. |
| Attention to Detail — Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks. |
| Independence — Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done. |
| Social Orientation — Job requires preferring to work with others rather than alone, and being personally connected with others on the job. |
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Work Values
| Achievement — Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment. Corresponding needs are Ability Utilization and Achievement. |
| Independence — Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employs to work on their own and make decisions. Corresponding needs are Creativity, Responsibility and Autonomy. |
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Related Occupations
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Wages & Employment Trends
National
| Median wages (2006) |
$17.02 hourly, $35,410 annual |
| Employment (2006) |
122,000 employees |
| Projected growth (2006-2016) |
Much faster than average (21% or higher)
|
| Projected need (2006-2016) |
62,000 additional employees |
State & National
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics 2006 wage data
and 2006-2016 employment projections
.
"Projected growth" represents the estimated change in total employment over the projections period (2006-2016). "Projected need" represents job openings due to growth and net replacement.
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