Question
What do sport social workers do?
Answer
Sport social workers seek to enhance the capability of athletes to address their own behavioral health and psychosocial needs. Our overall goal is getting clients to the point of self-autonomy and allowing them to feel empowered. We want them to make strides in their life without needing constant intervention from social workers. Sport social workers believe that if we are able to deliver excellent services, then we will be able to quickly address the needs of individuals. We can then set them up for not only short-term success, but for long-term success as well. Short-term and long-term success applies both in and away from competition. Sport social workers care about competition because we understand how important it is. However, we also understand that there is more to life than sports. Sports are only one portion of an athlete’s identity and we have to make sure that we are looking out for that.
We also want to talk about encouraging athletes to advocate for change because they often have large platforms. If a famous athlete steps up and shares information about the challenges going on in our world, it catches attention. They have the ability to help others move in the directions that we need to go.
Sport social workers also encourage athletic organizations, communities, and other institutions to recognize athletes as a vulnerable population. Part of what sport social workers do is bring awareness to the specific challenges that are facing athletes. Administrators understand that athletes have needs. It is their responsibility to help them address those needs and get them the interventions that they need. This way, they can be supported both athletically and in their long-term lives.
This Ask the Expert is an edited excerpt from the webinar, Introduction to Sports Social Work, presented by Matt Moore, PhD.
