Social Work Study Guide

The Effect of Aging on Biopsychosocial Functioning

Human aging is complex and individualized, causing biological, psychological, and social changes. Biological aging is characterized by progressive changes in metabolism, organ functioning, and so on. It is a natural and irreversible process…

Attachment and Bonding

Attachment theory (Bowlby): attachment is a lasting psychological connectedness between humans that can be understood within an evolutionary context in which a caregiver provides safety and security for a child; children come into the world biologically preprogrammed to form attachments…

The Interplay of Biological, Psychological, Social, and Spiritual Factors

Human development is lifelong. At all times, every human being is in a state of personal evolution. Physical changes mainly drive the process as cognitive abilities advance and decline in response to…

The Effects of Physical, Mental, and Cognitive Disabilities Throughout the Lifespan

The impact of disabilities depends on the manifestation of the disability and when it occurs during the lifespan. Some disabilities are short-term whereas others are lifelong. Mitigating…

Theories of Racial, Ethnic, and Cultural Development Throughout the Lifespan

Ethnicity: members of a specific cultural, national, or racial group share culture, religion, race, language, and/or place of origin

Basic Human Needs

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs describes categories of basic human needs. The top of the pyramid is the growth needs, whereas the rest of the pyramid is filled with deficiency needs. The pyramid is arranged as follows (from bottom to top):

Deficiency Needs

Theories of Racial, Ethnic, and Cultural Development

Ethnicity - being a member of a particular group that may share culture, religion, race, language, or place of origin

Race - societal classification primarily based on skin color; not a fixed concept

Theories of Spiritual Development

Models of spiritual development follow the same basic outline of development. They begin as egocentric, move to conformist, and end at integration or universal belief.

1. Individuals are unwilling to accept a will greater…

Theories of Sexual Development

Sexuality in infants and toddlers — Children are sexual even before birth. Males can have erections while still in the uterus, and some boys are born with an erection. Infants touch and rub their genitals because it provides pleasure. Little boys and girls can experience…