Question:

A social worker in a child abuse center creates a group for abusive parents. During the first session, one of the mothers becomes angry and starts to argue with another parent. What should the social worker do next?

A. Ask the mother to explain what caused her anger
B. Have the parents work through the disagreement in an appropriate manner
C. Insist the mother stop arguing
D. Allow the mother to vent her anger

Answer:

The correct answer is “B” – Having the parents work through the disagreement in an appropriate manner. Asking the mother to explain what caused her anger (answer “A”) is not correct because what created the anger is not nearly as important as learning to resolve conflicts in appropriate ways. Insisting that the mother stop arguing (answer “C”) is not correct because this action does not help her to learn appropriate ways of resolving differences. Allowing the mother to vent her anger (answer “D”) is not correct because the tendency of the parents in the group to vent their anger has been previously problematic for them.