Practicing up: Teaching social workers how to influence authority figures

Abstract

ABSTRACT Social workers often practice in challenging organizational contexts that hinder the ability to uphold social work values and ethics and empower clients. This article introduces the concept of ‘practicing up,’ defined as the ability to communicate effectively and persuasively with people in power, and to act with courage on behalf of clients. The article presents an argument that social work education should intentionally include content on practicing up, distinguishes practicing up from other forms of social work advocacy, and describes prerequisites and example skills it can require. The role of social workers’ intersectional identities when practicing up are discussed. The article concludes by considering how learning to practice up could help to shift conceptualizations of how social workers use power.