ecomap paper
Rationale: In social work, our primary tool is ourselves, and knowing ourselves is an essential first step for learning about others. Ecomaps help us understand ourselves. They illustrate our relationships with our families and the world around us and define our culture, and context, and patterns of interaction. The purpose of this assignment is to demonstrate your knowledge and skills in constructing an eco-map to analyze important connections between systems in one’s social environment, using yourself as the focal system.
Directions: Create an ecomap of yourself and write a paper following the guidelines below.
- Construct an eco-map diagram of yourself using the standard format covered in class PowerPoint lecture and readings. Your eco-map should cover you and at least six different systems. Use different lines to show differences in the nature of the relationships of each system (i.e., conflicted, strong, tenuous) and arrows indicating the energy flow between systems. Provide a key that indicates what each type of line represents. Your eco-map may be computer- generated or hand-drawn. However, it must be readable with all sections visible to earn assigned points. (4 points)
- Second, prepare a narrative summary (3-4 pages) that includes the following:
- A description of yourself including your demographic characteristics (1 point)
- A written narrative that describes your eco-map (3 points)
- A reflection about your experience of creating an ecomap (1 point)
- A description of at least three ways an eco-map could be used in social work practice and at least three questions (or concerns) that you have about using eco-maps (3 points)
- The assignment will also be evaluated for grammar, spelling, writing quality, professional presentation, etc. (3 points).