s you learned in Discussion: Dilemmas, a dilemma is a difficult decision - a choice that is
difficult because no matter your decision, things may not always work out for all involved. What creates
this difficulty is the tension between competing values. In the helping professions, dilemmas can occur
when one or more of the six core social work values given in the NASW Code of Ethics compete against
one another. Often, a helping professional is faced with a decision that can be supported of either side by
a social work value. For example, perhaps one side of the decision may be supported by dignity and
worth of a person; however, the alternative side of the dilemma may be supported by integrity. The
easiest way to conceptualize this would be framing it like this - If I do _____________, that decision
would be supported by (social work core value). On the other hand if I do_____________, that would be
supported by (social wok core value). For reference sake, the core values are service, integrity, social
justice, dignity and worth of a person, importance of human relationships, and competence. These are
outlined and defined in Read: NASW Read the Code of Ethics, found in the Learn section of this
module: week.
