SWK 602 - Working with Court-Ordered Clients

Due to legal, familial, and other societal consequences of mental illness and addiction, social workers need to be equipped to address co-occurring disorders with clients who are referred by the court system and who may not necessarily have internal motivation for change. Moreover, social workers need to be prepared to deliver appropriate interventions that address both client and referral source needs to, ultimately, improve client functioning and well-being. Social workers need to fulfill the aforementioned goals while adhering to social work values and ethics. Both actual and potential complexities associated with effectively working with court-ordered clients presenting with a range of psychosocial problems, addressing the needs of referral sources, and managing associated ethical dilemmas necessitate a formal graduate social work course to address the unique needs of court-ordered clients. This course assists graduate social work students in working with court-ordered clients and the referral source to address addiction, mental illness, domestic violence, anger management, and sexual aggression issues in accordance with the reasons for client referral to treatment. Graduate social work students build upon assessment and intervention knowledge gained in their foundation and concentration courses to engage, assess, intervene, and evaluate outcomes associated with court-ordered clients. The course will provide students with opportunities to demonstrate knowledge and skills regarding assessment of motivation to change and the tailoring of appropriate interventions for a particular stage of change. Students will apply motivational interviewing skills and cognitive-behavioral interventions to address resistance and change, respectively. The course will aid social work students in building client self-efficacy and internal locus of control beyond simply fulfilling court mandates.