ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses some of the models used in social work to conceptualize and address macro-oriented issues that affect clients. Although not an exhaustive discussion, it examines several fundamental perspectives that are frequently used in the field and that can be combined with other theoretical approaches. The chapter examines prominent theories that focus on the macro-level forces of race, discrimination, and oppression. With the growth of biologic and scientific fields in the 19th century, race became associated with biological factors and evolution. Race as a biological construct became the basis on which to subjectively judge people’s social status and to classify members of certain races as superior to other races. In general, cases of institutional, cultural, and environmental racism present greater challenges for social work intervention than individual acts because transforming an entire system is more difficult than modifying individual behavior.
