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The Power of Circles: Using a Familiar Technique to Promote Culture Change
By LaVrene Norton
Published in the Journal of Social Work in Long-Term Care, Vol. 2, No. 3/4, 2003, 8pp
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Social workers can play a pivotal
role in bringing about culture change in long-term care, but only if they step out of the
narrow confines of case management and client advocacy to use their full spectrums of
skills training. By working one-on-one, with groups and with a focus on institutional
change, social workers can empower nursing home staff and residents to create a better
place in which to live and work. The Learning Circle is a simple and effective
methodology social workers can use for achieving these ends. The Learning Circle is a
common-sense approach for both conducting meeting and facilitating less formal gatherings
in a way that encourages high involvement of all stakeholders in planning and
implementing culture change, engenders mutual respect among participants, builds a sense
of community and facilitates both personal and organizational transformation. It can be
used in all social change models. This article describes how, where and when to use the
Learning Circle.
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