Social Change, Leadership, and Advocacy

Three core concepts are relevant to members of human and social services professions: social change, leadership, and advocacy. Broadly speaking, social change has to do with righting the wrongs in society; leadership means being a guiding force in fostering social and professional change; and advocacy refers to sponsoring or promoting such change. Because these concepts are intrinsic to human services professionals, it is imperative to explore each of these core concepts more deeply, evaluate their meanings, and consider how they are alike and different.

To prepare:

• Review this week’s Learning Resources. Think about similarities and differences among the concepts of social change, leadership, and advocacy.

With these thoughts in mind:

By Day 3

Post a brief explanation of two similarities and two differences between each pair of concepts (i.e., social change vs. leadership, social change vs. advocacy, and leadership vs. advocacy). Provide examples to illustrate your points. Then, explain 2–3 conclusions you drew or insights you had as a result of doing the comparison.