Why is it important for social workers to understand the debate between neoliberalism and the world systems perspective? Discuss which perspective is most consistent with social work values and ethics.

What will be an ideal response?


Neoliberalism is based in classic economics and argues that free trade and free markets, with limited government interference, will result in a fair distribution of resources. As suggested earlier, this philosophy has been dominant across the world for the past few decades but is currently being challenged on several fronts. Economists at the World Bank and IMF have been strong voices in favor of neoliberalism, which informed the ideals of their structural adjustmentprogram for dealing with the debts of impoverished nations. Structural adjustment called for poor countries to "clean house" by reducing government spending and bureaucracy and increasing exportation and entrepreneurship. To counter this view, the world systems perspective suggests that inequality is created and maintained by economic globalization. Neoliberalism is inconsistent with social work values. The world systems perspective echoes the general systems perspective that undergirds all of social work. Social work does not favour privatizing social welfare systems, for example.

Counseling

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What will be an ideal response?

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