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Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers
Assess and treat individuals with mental, emotional, or substance abuse problems, including abuse of alcohol, tobacco, and/or other drugs. Activities may include individual and group therapy, crisis intervention, case management, client advocacy, prevention, and education.
Also Known As:
Case Manager
Clinical Social Worker
Clinical Therapist
Clinician
Counselor
Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW)
Mental Health Therapist
Social Worker
Therapist
Wages
Annual wages for Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers in United States
Job Outlook
Bright
New job opportunities are very likely in the future
United States
2034 Projected Employment
150,100
10% Change From 2024
Explore Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers video
Tasks you might complete in a day.
- Counsel or aid family members to assist them in understanding, dealing with, or supporting the client or patient.
- Modify treatment plans according to changes in client status.
- Educate clients or community members about mental or physical illness, abuse, medication, or available community resources.
- Interview clients, review records, conduct assessments, or confer with other professionals to evaluate the mental or physical condition of clients or patients.
- Counsel clients in individual or group sessions to assist them in dealing with substance abuse, mental or physical illness, poverty, unemployment, or physical abuse.
- Interview clients, review records, conduct assessments, or confer with other professionals to evaluate the mental or physical condition of clients or patients.
- Refer patient, client, or family to community resources for housing or treatment to assist in recovery from mental or physical illness, following through to ensure service efficacy.
- Develop or advise on social policy or assist in community development.
- Plan or conduct programs to prevent substance abuse, combat social problems, or improve health or counseling services in community.
- Counsel clients in individual or group sessions to assist them in dealing with substance abuse, mental or physical illness, poverty, unemployment, or physical abuse.
- Supervise or direct other workers who provide services to clients or patients.
- Assist clients in adhering to treatment plans, such as setting up appointments, arranging for transportation to appointments, or providing support.
- Increase social work knowledge by reviewing current literature, conducting social research, or attending seminars, training workshops, or classes.
- Collaborate with counselors, physicians, or nurses to plan or coordinate treatment, drawing on social work experience and patient needs.
- Interview clients, review records, conduct assessments, or confer with other professionals to evaluate the mental or physical condition of clients or patients.
- Increase social work knowledge by reviewing current literature, conducting social research, or attending seminars, training workshops, or classes.
- Monitor, evaluate, and record client progress with respect to treatment goals.
- Monitor, evaluate, and record client progress with respect to treatment goals.
Subject areas you may need to master.
- Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
- Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
- Personnel and Human Resources - Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
- Building and Construction - Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
- Telecommunications - Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
- Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
- Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
- Administrative - Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
- Food Production - Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
- Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
- Fine Arts - Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
- History and Archeology - Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
- Philosophy and Theology - Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
- Communications and Media - Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
- Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
- Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
- Economics and Accounting - Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
- Transportation - Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
- Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
- Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
- Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
- Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
- Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
- Geography - Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
- English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
- Foreign Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
- Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
- Physics - Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
- Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
- Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
- Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
- Sales and Marketing - Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
- Chemistry - Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
Strengths you may need in this role.
- Management of Material Resources - Managing equipment and materials.
- Systems Analysis - Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
- Management of Financial Resources - Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
- Reading Comprehension - Reading work-related information.
- Critical Thinking - Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
- Persuasion - Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
- Negotiation - Bringing people together to solve differences.
- Instructing - Teaching people how to do something.
- Repairing - Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
- Science - Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
- Coordination - Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
- Operation and Control - Using equipment or systems.
- Speaking - Talking to others.
- Operations Analysis - Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
- Technology Design - Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
- Equipment Maintenance - Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
- Service Orientation - Looking for ways to help people.
- Mathematics - Using math to solve problems.
- Social Perceptiveness - Understanding people's reactions.
- Equipment Selection - Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
- Writing - Writing things for co-workers or customers.
- Learning Strategies - Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
- Quality Control Analysis - Testing how well a product or service works.
- Systems Evaluation - Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
- Time Management - Managing your time and the time of other people.
- Complex Problem Solving - Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
- Operations Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
- Installation - Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
- Judgment and Decision Making - Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
- Management of Personnel Resources - Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
- Active Listening - Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
- Active Learning - Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
- Troubleshooting - Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
- Monitoring - Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
- Programming - Writing computer programs.
- Arm-Hand Steadiness - Keeping your arm or hand steady.
- Manual Dexterity - Holding or moving items with your hands.
- Wrist-Finger Speed - Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
- Trunk Strength - Using your lower back and stomach.
- Peripheral Vision - Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
- Speed of Limb Movement - Quickly moving your arms and legs.
- Fluency of Ideas - Coming up with lots of ideas.
- Problem Sensitivity - Noticing when problems happen.
- Auditory Attention - Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
- Depth Perception - Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
- Multilimb Coordination - Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
- Flexibility of Closure - Seeing hidden patterns.
- Visual Color Discrimination - Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
- Reaction Time - Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
- Gross Body Coordination - Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
- Night Vision - Seeing at night or under low light.
- Glare Sensitivity - Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
- Information Ordering - Ordering or arranging things.
- Rate Control - Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
- Speech Recognition - Recognizing spoken words.
- Speech Clarity - Speaking clearly.
- Category Flexibility - Grouping things in different ways.
- Response Orientation - Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
- Perceptual Speed - Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
- Inductive Reasoning - Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
- Control Precision - Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
- Speed of Closure - Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
- Static Strength - Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
- Finger Dexterity - Putting together small parts with your fingers.
- Memorization - Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
- Time Sharing - Doing two or more things at the same time.
- Originality - Creating new and original ideas.
- Oral Comprehension - Listening and understanding what people say.
- Written Comprehension - Reading and understanding what is written.
- Deductive Reasoning - Using rules to solve problems.
- Stamina - Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
- Near Vision - Seeing details up close.
- Dynamic Strength - Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
- Extent Flexibility - Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Far Vision - Seeing details that are far away.
- Oral Expression - Communicating by speaking.
- Sound Localization - Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
- Number Facility - Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
- Selective Attention - Paying attention to something without being distracted.
- Mathematical Reasoning - Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
- Visualization - Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
- Hearing Sensitivity - Telling the difference between sounds.
- Explosive Strength - Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
- Dynamic Flexibility - Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Gross Body Equilibrium - Keeping your balance or staying upright.
- Spatial Orientation - Knowing where things are around you.
- Written Expression - Communicating by writing.
Average Education Attained
Highest level of education earned by people in this career.
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Content sourced from United States Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration ("DOLETA") and the Minnesota Department of Employment & Economic Development ("DEED")