What drove me to select this topic for my blog post was not only my passion for my major in social work, but also my surprise at how social workers are presented in film. The following films are from IU Media Services’ collection. It is important to me to write about these movies so that I can disprove any misconceptions about the roles of a social worker.
Lilo & Stitch (2002)
A classic Disney movie, Lilo & Stitch explores the lifestyle of Lilo and her older sister and guardian, Nani. Nani’s custody of Lilo is threatened by the home evaluation of a Child Protective Services (CPS) social worker. While this character’s name is lighthearted (Bubbles), he is portrayed as cold, physically intimidating, and judgmental. A typical family social worker would work with the family to help solve their problems, yet Bubbles is a disapproving voice who has the power to take Lilo away from Nani. He sets expectations that the sisters must meet (Nani must get a new job and Lilo must control her dog) but does not help them achieve either of these goals. If Lilo & Stitch were to portray a more accurate social worker, Bubbles would collaborate with Nani so as to improve the sisters’ quality of life and preserving the family unit.
Gaslight (2022)
The 2022 film Gaslight was inspired by the 1944 play Gaslight, and has all of the essential elements of the original story. Protagonist Brooke’s father just passed away, leaving her with his large inheritance. As Brooke grieves the loss of her father and struggles to get her life on track after several personal issues, she begins seeing a therapist. The therapist, Natasha, is the social worker in this film; at first, she seems to be guiding Brooke through her challenges well. However, it’s slowly revealed throughout the film that “Natasha” is not who she says she is, and actively places doubt in Brooke’s mind to distance her from her support systems. Social workers aim to strengthen their clients’ support systems, and they certainly do not purposely foster distrust in the client’s life. What’s more, Natasha begins meddling in Brooke’s work life too, threatening her employment. The “Ah-Hah” moment of the film is when Natasha is revealed to be a previously convicted criminal, posing as a therapist to steal Brooke’s inheritance and her husband, whom she had been having an affair with. The intrusive, malicious representation of a social worker who uses their profession to manipulate and steal is damaging to the public’s perception of social workers, who are really there to help.
Precious (2010)
Precious is a 2010 film about a teenage girl, nicknamed Precious, who lives in an abusive home with her physically abusive mother. Precious is pregnant and has another kid, both fathered by her sexually abusive father. Precious sees a social worker so that her mother can receive welfare checks for Precious and her daughter, who is taken care of by Precious’ grandmother. While Precious is the first movie in this blog post to accurately portray social work, as a social work student I do have critiques on the social worker, Ms. Weiss. Ms. Weiss does not develop a trusting relationship with Precious, as she urges her to speak about her home life simply to prove her need of the welfare checks. Furthermore, Ms. Weiss suggests Precious put her babies up for adoption. Precious was infuriated when Ms. Weiss offered this alternative, thinking to herself “Social worker has never helped me, now she wants to take my kids away from me? I could kill her.” Clearly, Ms. Weiss is pushing for choices that go against her client’s wishes, leaving no room for self-determination. Additionally, when Precious stole her case file from Ms. Weiss’s office, she discovers Ms. Weiss wants Precious to find a job despite her desire to finish school and get her GED. What’s more typical of social work values and ethics would be if Ms. Weiss worked with Precious to connect her to teenage pregnancy resources, housing resources so she can move out from her mom’s house, and educational resources to assist Precious in receiving her GED.
Short Term 12 (2013)
Grace is a social worker who works at a group home for troubled teenagers called “Short Term 12.” When the home takes in a new teenaged girl, Jayden, Grace is forced to relive her own trauma as she discovers Jayden is being abused by her father. Some social work values that are reflected in this movie are creating a safe environment for the client(s), prioritizing safety by conducting regular room checks, and de-escalating crisis situations with the teens. Grace and the other staff at Short Term 12 treat the kids with respect, recognizing their dignity and worth as persons and talking to them like equals. Grace also uses an advanced social work skill multiple times: self-disclosure. Self-disclosure is when the helping professional discloses something from their life to help the client in the current moment. Grace also advocates for her client Jayden’s best interests– arguing with her supervisor about letting Jayden return to her father. Grace represents the common social worker, someone who uses ethical skills to help clients discover what the best choices are for them while also dealing with her own challenges.
Valerie Terew is a junior in her BSW (Social Work) program and minoring in Political Science. This is her fourth semester working at IU’s Media Services and she plans to return for the next school year before she graduates in May.
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