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Columbia Social Work Review, Volume IV     92 

The Public and the Profession’s Perception of Social Work 
 
Jeffrey Olin 
 
The social work profession has long been concerned about its 
mission and perception. The two interests go hand in hand, be-
cause to have an effect on how we as social workers are viewed, 
we must be self-aware about who we are and what we do. This 
paper will address how social work periodically reflects upon 
and re-assesses its purpose because of internal considerations, 
such as the profession’s ethics, and external forces, including the 
job market and public perception. Some of the research con-
ducted over the years into public perception of social work—as 
well as that of our clients—will be presented and compared. In 
addition, I review how the media have portrayed the field, and 
how we as professionals have marketed ourselves. Finally, some 
suggestions will be offered, which can be applied at various lev-
els, including direct practice, program development and evalua-
tion, administration, and branding of the profession as a whole. 

 
When counterterrorism police officer Lawrence DePrimo 

bought boots for a homeless man in November 2012, the New 
York Police Department (NYPD) posted a photo to its Facebook 
page. The photo elicited a significant response to NYPD’s new 
online presence, and shortly thereafter DePrimo appeared on the 
“Today” show focusing on his heroism and humanity (Bell, 
2012; Goodman, 2012). The tourist who took the photo works in 
the communications department of the Pinal County Sheriff's Of-
fice in Phoenix (Ruelas, 2012). This was self-promotion to some 
extent, but the action and response demonstrates a profession re-
evaluating its mission as well as seeking to enhance its image. 
Social workers serve the homeless population but are rarely fea-
tured on national television. We can learn from this story on two 
counts: by growing in awareness of our mission and by learning 
how to influence the public perception of social work. 
Many children look up to police officers or firefighters, others 
strive to become doctors or lawyers, and some endeavor to fol-
low in the footsteps of a teacher; few children, however, aspire  



93        Columbia Social Work Review, Volume IV 

The Public and the Profession’s Perception of Social Work 

to be social workers. Culture and gender (Liben, Bigler & Krogh, 
2001) and public image and prestige (Auger, Blackhurst & Wahl, 
2005) influence desirability of a particular career. The perception 
of social work is therefore important in attracting highly commit-
ted, professional individuals. We must first determine if control 
over our profession’s image lies more firmly in the hands of so-
cial workers or in other outlets like the media. Ultimately, “the 
image of social work” is not simply a cosmetic matter: A positive 
image is important to the vitality, effectiveness, acceptance, and 
funding of the profession. “The more that social work is per-
ceived positively, the more likely it is to gain support for its pro-
grammes, to have its services utilized, to maintain morale, to at-
tract recruits and to have its voice heard” (Kaufman & Raymond, 
as cited in Reid & Misener, 2001, p. 194). This article will review 
how the social work profession has reflected upon its mission and 
perception, consider some of the research into public perception 
of its work and clients, examine media portrayal, and look at how 
social work has marketed itself. I will conclude with some sug-
gestions for the profession that can be applied at multiple levels, 
including direct practice, program development and evaluation, 
administration, and branding of the profession as a whole.  

 
The Importance of Defining Social Work 

 
Social work’s concern for its image must begin with a 

clear understanding and definition of its role and mission (Corvo, 
Selmi, & Montemaro, 2003). Since its inception, social work has 
been concerned with “how it is defined, practised and perceived,” 
undergoing many evolutions that have shaped how it is viewed 
(Staniforth, Fouché, & O’Brien, 2011, p. 192). Social workers’ 
activities include “direct practice, community organizing, super-
vision, consultation administration, advocacy, social and political 
action, policy development and implementation, education, and 
research and evaluation” (National Association of Social Workers 
[NASW], 2008, Preamble). Defining parameters of social work 
potentiates artificial limitations on the profession (Gibelman, 
1999). 

In addition, professionals vary across qualifications, ex-



Columbia Social Work Review, Volume IV        94 

Olin 

perience, and training levels. The Bureau of Labor Statistics re-
vealed that 70% of social workers in the U.S. either had no col-
lege degree (27.9%) or a degree in a field other than social work 
(44%) (Gibelman, 2000). Many workers without a social work 
degree—or any degree at all—find a place in the field because of 
needs for staff or population-specific expertise. Consequently, “in 
the public mind, all social workers are lumped together – creden-
tialed or not” (Gibelman, 2000, p. 466), which can perpetuate 
misinformation. 

External factors like the job market or the political atmos-
phere force our profession to evolve, leading to disparate under-
standings of social work’s identity over time (Gibelman, 1999). 
Sometimes, mid-career social work professionals can lose sight of 
their original purpose. Passion and ideals are constrained by the 
resulting stress of unmanageable responsibilities, low wages, and 
little recognition from others. 

 
Professional Self-Awareness  

and Its Relationship with Public Perception 
 

The social work mission changes over time to meet evolv-
ing global needs and establish purpose (Baron, as cited in Gibel-
man, 1999). Consequently, two somewhat opposing pressures 
emerge: (a) fidelity to the core values of empowering vulnerable 
and oppressed populations considering their environmental influ-
ences, and (b) openness to the fluidity and dynamic change inher-
ent within “the expansive and expanding boundaries of social 
work and the difficulty in providing succinct, encapsulated de-
scriptions of a complex and multifaceted profession” (Gibelman, 
1999, p. 301). Staniforth, Fouché, and O’Brien (2011) argued that 
social workers throughout all levels of organizations should en-
gage in critical reflection. They should practice self-awareness 
about the field’s evolving mission, have vigorous discussions 
about it in supervision and at conferences, and pursue it in re-
search and writings. They contend that all professionals “can sit 
within a practice framework which holds social justice as an over-
arching principle” (p. 194). Operating under common ethical 
principles to promote society’s general welfare, empower people 



95        Columbia Social Work Review, Volume IV 

The Public and the Profession’s Perception of Social Work 

and communities, and positively affect the social environment, 
social workers must evaluate performance internally, debate the 
aim of the profession, and externally assess how the public per-
ceives their work. 

Silverman (2012) reflected that without self-awareness of 
our own profession, mission, and professional identity, how can 
we presume that others will understand us any better? Internal 
exploration of how the field should outwardly present itself is 
complex because of pressures to serve clients and communities 
while maintaining confidentiality. Yet perception affects financial 
support of programs and efficacy of our work. A conflict emerges 
over who defines the social work brand: social workers, the pub-
lic, and/or the media. When social workers abdicate their respon-
sibility, it allows others to control their image.  

 
Assessment of the Public’s Perception 

 
The social work profession wants public perception of its 

mission to align with its core values. Despite the profession’s re-
gard for its self-image, there have been few comprehensive ef-
forts to survey public opinion. Condie, Hanson, Lang, Moss, and 
Kane (1978) described early surveys that found little consensus 
about the role of a social worker, but that “a vaguely negative 
connotation of social work seems to have been the stereotype” (p. 
47). Only 6% of respondents perceived social workers as “sources 
of help for emotional problems,” compared with 28% for reli-
gious leaders, 26% for psychiatrists, 22% for physicians, and 11% 
for psychologists (Condie et al., p. 51). Positive takeaways in-
cluded an understanding that social workers were more than just 
caseworkers and showed care for all populations regardless of 
income level. 

LeCroy and Stinson (2004), recognizing changes in social 
work practice in the 25 years since Condie et al.’s (1978) re-
search, sought to reassess public perception. The authors rea-
soned, “if the general public is confused, uninformed or even hos-
tile toward social work, the profession is less able to fulfill its 
mission of helping those in need” (LeCroy & Stinson, 2004, p. 
164). Finding only limited recent studies, they executed a nation-



Columbia Social Work Review, Volume IV        96 

Olin 

wide survey to assess public sentiment toward social work. They 
discovered that the public associates social workers with frequent 
media stories reporting children being taken from their parents, 
indicating little change since Condie et al.’s (1978) study about 
the role of social workers. Strikingly, almost 1 in 5 respondents 
believed the stereotype that “social workers take advantage of the 
government” (LeCroy & Stinson, 2004, p. 169). 

Dennison, Poole, and Qaqish (2007) explored what in-
coming college students from various courses of study thought 
about social work. The authors were curious to learn if the stu-
dents, though smaller in number and younger than those previ-
ously surveyed, reflected more current views of the profession. 
Significantly, students did not completely understand the range of 
social work activities or the levels of training needed. 

Zugazaga, Surette, Mendez, and Otto (2006) described a 
study, commissioned by the NASW, which investigated how the 
public viewed the profession. Participants had little direct experi-
ence with social workers; their perception of the field was shaped 
predominantly by the media. They associated social workers with 
child welfare, the government, and the poor or underprivileged. 
They had an altogether positive regard for the profession despite 
the prevalence of negatively portrayed child welfare cases.  

Fall, Levitov, Jennings, and Eberts (2000) presented five 
case histories of individuals with mental health or relationship 
challenges to a group of subjects who ranked their confidence in a 
range of clinical professions. Participants consistently expressed a 
low level of confidence in social workers, almost always by a 
substantial margin. Hodge (2004) discovered how the public 
might be confused, because the “social worker” title can be pur-
ported by a doctoral, master’s or bachelor’s degree in social work, 
or another degree entirely. If the public is only moderately aware 
of what social workers do, its hazy perception of social workers is 
worsened by association; Trattner (as cited in Tirado, 2006, p. 
27), states, “social workers, through no fault of their own, are dis-
liked by the public because they work with (or are perceived to 
work with) people in society who are feared and/or despised.”  

The limited research conducted shows that the public of-
ten takes a polite view of social workers because of the belief that 



97        Columbia Social Work Review, Volume IV 

The Public and the Profession’s Perception of Social Work 

compassionate work is being done. However, there are also com-
mon negative perceptions: (a) an overall ignorance of the extent 
of social work’s mission (often thought to be predominantly child 
welfare); (b) a lack of understanding of what social work roles 
include (often perpetuated by the profession’s lack of clarity); (c) 
a negative view of social workers’ competence when compared to 
similar helping professions; and (d) an unfavorable view of some 
client populations with which social work aligns itself. 

 
Media Portrayal of Social Work 

 
Much of the public does not interact directly with social 

workers, so a large part of the profession’s perception is attribut-
able to depiction in the media. Zugazaga et al. (2006) discovered 
that most social workers believed the media cast a negative image 
on their profession. Freeman and Valentine (2004) examined 
American movies from 1938 to 1998 with a “social work” charac-
ter. Twenty-nine of the 44 movies focused on child welfare. Most 
social workers were women, white, middle-class, and incompe-
tent. They were caretakers in a subordinate position of authority 
and served as a buffer between oppressed groups and their op-
pressors. Many characters had sexual relationships with a client. 
Overall, the characters reinforced rather than challenged the status 
quo (Freeman & Valentine, 2004). 

Gibelman (2004) reviewed three “social work” television 
characters in the 1990s–2000s. She observed that without consul-
tation from social work professionals, characters reflected no so-
cial work education, questionable ethics, and made a mockery of 
the profession. She argued that in shows featuring lawyers and 
hospitals, professional qualifications were clearly emphasized, 
even if their moral character sometimes was suspect. However, 
social workers were portrayed as “uneducated and bumbling, if 
not outright laughable” (Gibelman, 2004, p. 332), reinforcing 
stereotypes and denigrating social work. She concluded, “We 
should be getting the message. Television is not kind to social 
workers” (Gibelman, 2004, p. 331). 

Although a survey of 60 newspapers and 399 articles over 
a 4 1/2-year period by Reid and Misener (2001) demonstrated a 



Columbia Social Work Review, Volume IV        98 

Olin 

largely positive image of social work, they concluded that more 
could be done. The positive stories portrayed social workers as 
experts, described program innovations and interesting direct 
practice work, and demonstrated the potential impact of positive 
publicity. 

 
Opportunities for Enhancing the  

Public’s Perception of Social Work 
 

If perception does not match the profession’s stated mis-
sion, social workers must learn how to influence public under-
standing. “Social workers themselves are best suited to enhance 
the public’s knowledge and opinions about the profession… 
[because] no one else is likely to step forward” to do so (LeCroy 
& Stinson, 2004, p. 174). In 2005, the NASW set out to raise the 
public’s esteem of social work given the stereotypes the profes-
sion had endured (NASW, 2004a). This goal, developed in con-
cert with the 50th anniversary of the NASW’s founding (NASW, 
2004b), spurred an advertising campaign to increase awareness, 
which included magazine and newspaper ads, press releases, ap-
pearances on radio and television programs, and a new website. 
Moreover, the campaign stimulated efforts to engage social work-
ers in the topic of effecting change in social work’s perception. 

Murdach (2011) cited Mary Richmond’s classic What is 
Social Case Work? and Richmond’s biography of early social 
workers as efforts to develop public appreciation of social work 
(Murdach, 2011, p. 92). Reid and Misener (2001) suggested that 
social workers learn how to place stories in the media; further-
more, collaboration between social work and journalism schools 
could provide social workers with strategies, resources, and con-
tacts to produce more positive portrayals. “[S]uch initiative can 
be directly tied to an important social work function—to educate 
the citizenry about the needs of its clientele” (Reid & Misener, 
2001, p. 200). Then, not only does social work’s image improve, 
but the needs of clients are highlighted and stigmatizing myths 
about certain populations and issues can be dispelled. 

As social workers, we can view efforts to increase self-
awareness and enhance positive public perception as a service to 



99        Columbia Social Work Review, Volume IV 

The Public and the Profession’s Perception of Social Work 

self and clients, not an additional burden. This effort can allow for 
reflection on our original motivation for becoming a social 
worker and open up a variety of opportunities for intervention. 

Learn how you can broadcast your work. Be mindful of 
doing so in a way that does not glorify yourself or jeopardize con-
fidentiality, but calls attention to the empowering work of your 
organization. Research local media and develop contacts across 
various media outlets. Then, learn how to prepare a press release, 
place an Op-Ed, or appear on a local radio or television show. 
Learn from social media experts how your organization can publi-
cize its work through the ever-changing world of social media. 
Most importantly, consider internal and external collaboration, 
recruiting assistance from the NASW if necessary; advocate for 
the importance of these efforts in your organization even if you 
are not the individual to complete the tasks. 

Tower (2000) provided the clearest mandate for action: 
“[S]ocial workers are responsible for debunking myths when the 
public is misinformed about the profession and the people served 
by it” (p. 575). She helped create a Social Work and the Media 
course at the University of Nevada, Reno, that taught students 
about the film production process; students eventually developed 
documentaries to air on local television and public broadcasting 
stations. She argued that social work students and professionals 
need to learn how “to shape the public image of social work 
through effective use of popular media” (Tower, 2000, p. 575). 
College and university programs can offer similar elective 
courses intended to produce documentaries. 

Another perception-changing and image-enhancing possi-
bility is interdisciplinary collaboration where social workers part-
ner with other professions to serve a common population. Caccia-
tore, Carlson, Michaelis, Klimek and Steffan (2011) presented an 
innovative intervention in which social workers formed a crisis 
response team to assist a municipal fire department. Social work-
ers served in a direct practice trauma intervention role either with 
the public or the first responders, allowing for direct engagement 
with individuals who normally would not interact with social 
workers. 

 



Columbia Social Work Review, Volume IV        100 

Olin 

Conclusion 
 

Returning to the example of Officer DePrimo, there were 
two resounding outcomes: (a) police officers and the public re-
considered the role of police officers, and (b) public perception 
improved. Perhaps a few well-placed stories of social work in ac-
tion could attract the same self- and public awareness of profes-
sional mission and image-bending attention that the DePrimo case 
did for the New York Police Department. 

The social work field must regularly reflect on its purpose, 
assessing how its programs and efforts serve clients and commu-
nities. Gibelman (1999) suggested that we should not lament “the 
lack of a durable definition of the profession, its practice, and its 
boundaries,” (p. 308).  Instead, she reasoned that periodic re-
examination reflects positively on the profession’s ability to re-
spond to changing environments.  However, becoming more self-
aware about our mission is not sufficient. We must engage with 
society and culture to reflect on our image. When our efforts are 
poorly received or misconstrued, we must attempt to shift those 
views. Tower (2000) exhorted us: “The image problem is real…
and social workers should be concerned. Educators who are not 
convinced that an image problem exists need only ask students if 
someone close to them disapproved of their decision to enter the 
social work profession” (p. 584). 

Finally, taking an active approach and defining our role is 
better than allowing others to speak for us. As one of the taglines 
from the NASW 2004 campaign proclaimed, “Social workers: If 
you don’t tell your story, who will?” (NASW, 2004a). 

 
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