Part A (Q4): What is Feminist Social Work?

Feminist Social Work is an approach to social work practice that integrates feminist theory and principles into its methodology. It emerged as a critique of traditional social work, which often pathologized women's problems without recognizing the systemic, patriarchal roots of those problems.

Key Features:

• "The Personal is Political": Feminist social workers help female clients realize that their personal struggles (like domestic violence, depression, or poverty) are not personal failures, but are deeply connected to broader, systemic gender inequality.
• Egalitarian Relationship: It rejects the traditional "expert-patient" hierarchy. The social worker and the client work as equals, recognizing the client as the expert of her own life.
• Empowerment Focus: Instead of merely helping a woman adapt to an oppressive environment, feminist social work aims to empower her to challenge and change that environment.
• Intersectionality: It recognizes that a woman's experience of oppression is compounded by other factors like race, class, caste, and sexual orientation.