Hello! I am interested in the relationship between people’s needs and professional judgments, like those made by social workers. If the need is a personal evaluation, which may be relative, how does a social worker decide whether this person is in need?

Welcome.

Thank you for the detailed explanation!

Precisely. The need was an expression of particular preferences, expectations, and definitions in particular cultures. However, subjective preferences (that is, the perspectives of individuals and groups) are usually presented by key welfare groups as if they were objective. The need becomes seen as objective because people in power define it. At the legislative level, those powerful people would be legislators. At the practice level, professionals make decisions about individuals. The objective status of ‘being in need’ is ascribed by professionals in positions of power to make such definitions. In reality, however, all such judgments are often subjective and culture-dependent