As an extension of the 5th question on your self assessment, please complete a 5 page paper on the following:

What do you consider to be on the of the most pressing social problems in America today? How pervasive is this problem? What, in your opinion, causes this problem (document scope, causes, implications, etc., as presented in the social work literature)? What does the social work profession have to offer to solve this problem (document from social work or other social science literature)? (USE AND PROPERLY REFERENCE AT LEAST THREE ACADEMIC JOURNAL)

As an elaboration of the previous paper, please use literature from academic journals to describe the scope, causes and implications of the problem more in depth.  Please utilize the material discussed in class to describe how this social problem affects micro-level practice and how social workers have aided in the solution of this problem and how we can further help. Use research, evidence based practice, statistics and class material to discuss the social problem and solutions in depth.

Some questions to ask when writing the paper: 

1. What is the problem? Who does it affect and why? History of the problem. 

2. Cultural implication of the problem. Is there a vulnerable population or specific demographic that the problem affects? What are the current statistics in literature at this point? 

3. What has been previously done to solve the problem? Are there any applicable laws or policies that address the social problem? 

4. What can social workers do on a micro-level to address this social problem? macro-level? What skills can be applied in the solution to this social problem? Fundamental and from the social work process?