The Helper’s Spirituality:

Revitalizing the Strengths-Based Helping -From the family caregivers’ experience

April 2nd, 2021

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Jung Hee Lee PhD, MSW

Department of Social Work

Fort Hays State University

jhlee3@fhsu.edu

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Spirituality in Social Work

⚫ Indigenous social welfare

⚫ precolonial period

⚫ Sectarian origins

⚫ colonial period through early 20th C

⚫ Professionalization and secularization

⚫ 1920s through 1970s

(Canda & Furman, 2019)

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Spirituality in Social Work

⚫ Resurgence of spirituality in social work as

“the heart of helping” (Canda & Furman, 2019)

✓ Understanding client from;

1) the perspective of cultural diversity

2) the holistic view of personhood

✓ Positive relationship between spirituality and health in

a broad range of disciplines

Integration of spirituality into practice

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Spirituality?

A process of human life and development focusing on

the search for a sense of meaning, purpose, morality,

and well-being in relationship with oneself, other

people, other beings, the universe, and ultimate

reality however understood (e.g., in animistic,

atheistic, monotheistic, polytheistic, theistic, or other

ways); orienting around centrally significant

priorities; and engaging a sense of transcendence

experienced as deeply profound, sacred, or

transpersonal (Canda & Furman, 2019)

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Two approaches to spirituality

• Mainly focus on the role of spirituality as a

coping resource

• Less attention to “helper’s spirituality” in

relation to their practice with clients

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Spirituality of Helper

Strengths

-based

Helping

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Strengths perspective in social work practice

⚫ Guiding assumptions (Saleebey, 2002)

✓ Every individual, group, family, and community

possesses strengths

✓ Even trauma, abuse, illness, and struggle may be

sources of challenge and opportunity.

✓ No one knows the upper limits of client’s capacity to

grow and change. One must hold high our

expectations of clients and make allegiance with their

hopes, visions, and values.

✓ Every environment is full of resources and

opportunities.

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Criticisms/limitations

✓ Questions on uniqueness

✓ Doubts on effectiveness

(McMillen et al., 2004; Staudt et al., 2001; Taylor, 2006)

◼ “Painfully hard to give up the idea of problems and problem-

solving” (Saleebey, 2004,p. 589)

Essence of the strengths perspective

✓ Importance of helper’s trust and genuine belief in the

possible and potential of clients

(Chapin, 1995; Koenig & Spano, 2007; Saleebey, 2002)

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Dilemma of Strengths Perspective

⚫ Helping relationship based on the genuine

trust for growth and change... But I can’t.

⚫ “New eye” which helps practitioners see/trust

the strengths and capacities of clients

including and transcending their rational

understanding and empirical evidence or

assessment of clients’ reality.

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Transpersonal Approaches

⚫ Spirituality considered essential to an

understanding of the whole person

✓ People have potentials to achieve a

developmental level beyond the ego-focused

level; thus, human experiences must be

conceived of in ways that extend the view of

consciousness beyond conventional ego

boundaries (Robbins et al., 2015)

⚫ Spirituality (the spirit domain) is the area

where matter, body, mind and soul are

included and transcended. (Wilber, 1998; 2001)

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Helper’s

spirituality

Recognizing

& genuine

belief in full

strengths and

potential

Building up

strengths-based

relationship

Achieving more

deep, sustainable outcomes

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Helper’s Spirituality:

Implications from Caregivers’ Experience

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Impacts of Spirituality on Helper’s Well-being

⚫ Positive impacts

✓ Minimized the strain of the task, increased positive

psychological well-being (e.g., Lebalnc, Driscill & Pearlin, 2004; Lowis et al.)

✓ Lessened the need for formal support (e.g., Choi, Tirrito, & Mill, 2008)

✓ Positively related with physical health, optimism, longevity(e.g., Van Hook & Aguilar, 2001; Sadler & Biggs, 2006)

⚫ Spirituality and meaning-making

✓ CGs use their religious beliefs to bring meaning and purpose

to their circumstances (Farran, et al., 1991; Kaye & Robinson, 1994; Pargament & Mahoney, 2005)

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Spirituality and Caregiving relationship

• Spiritual bonding b/w CG + CR (Forbes, 1994)

• Possibly leading to better caregiving outcomes

• CGs who use spiritual or religious beliefs

• have a better relationship with CR,

• associated with lower levels of depression and role

submersion (Chang et al., 1998)

• Spirituality gave a positive attitude which helped

with role as CG and CR (Theis et al., 2003)

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Transforming Role of Spirituality (Lee, 2015)

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Motivating Sustaining Transforming

Motivating role

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• Motivating CGs to take the caregiving role by pr

oviding meaning, or purpose or sense of respon

sibility.

Sustaining role

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• Helping CGs to sustain their caregiving roles

for older family members despite difficulties

• By interpretation, self-reflection, and

emotional or physical supports.

• Religiosity was most prevalent.

Transforming role

⚫ Experienced significant changes of their

caregiving experience (e.g., attitudes, perception,

relationship with CRs)

⚫ Spiritual experiences

⚫ Three mechanisms:

⚫ Healing

⚫ Empathizing

⚫ Transcending

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Implications for Professional Helpers

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⚫ Genuine trust in client’s possibility and potential for

growth and change matters.

⚫ Helper’s spirituality matters.

⚫ Helps to see beyond empirical/rational dimensions

⚫ Providing a means of connectiion

⚫ Spirituality is not only for clients but for helpers.

⚫ Nurturing the nurturer.

Selected references

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Canda, E. R., & Furman, L. D. (2019). Spirituality Diversity in Social Work Practice: The heart of helping, third

edition. New York: Oxford University Press.

Chang, B., Noonan, A., & Tennstedt, S. (1998). The role of religion/spirituality in coping with caregiving for disabled

elders. Gerontologist, 38, 463-70.

Forbes, E. J. (1994). Spirituality, aging and the community-dwelling caregiver and care receiver. Geriatric Nursing, 15,

297-302.

Hilgeman, M.M., Allen, R.S., DeCoster, J., & Burgio, L.D. (2007). Positive aspects of caregiving as a moderator of

treatment outcome over 12 months. Psychology and Aging, 22, 361–371.

Koenig, T., & Spano, R. (2007). The cultivation of social workers’ hope in personal life and professional practice.

Journal of Religion & Spirituality in Social Work, 26(3), 45-61.

Lee, J. H. (2015). A qualitative inquiry into the spirituality of Korean family caregivers of older adults and its role in

their caregiving experience. [Doctoral dissertation, University of Kansas].

McMillen, J. C., Morris, L. Sherraden, M. (2004). Ending social work’s grudge match: Problems versus strengths.

Families in Society, 85, 317-325.

Pargarment, K. I., Mahoney, A. (2005). Sacred matters: Sanctification as a vital topic for the psychology of religion.

International Journal for the Psychology of Religion, 15(3), 179-198.

Saleebey, D. (Ed.). (2002). The strengths perspective in social work practice. New York: Longman.

Staudt. M, Howard, M., Drake B. (2001). The operationalization, implementation, and effectiveness of the strengths

perspective: A review of empirical studies. Journal of Social Service Research, 27, 3, p.1-21.

Theis, S. L., Biordi, D. L., Coeling, H., Nalepka, C., & Miller, B. (2003). Spirituality in caregiving and care receiving.

Holistic Nursing Practice, 17(1), 48-55.

Wilber, K. (1998). The marriage of sense and soul: Integrating science and religion. NY: Broadway Books.

Wilber, K. (2001). A Theory of everything: An Integral vision for business, politics, science and spirituality. Boston,

Shambhala.

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