A young man separates from his wife and returns to live with his parents, arguing with his mother and making many demands. The social worker would first meet with?

A young man separates from his wife and returns to live with his parents, arguing with his mother and making many demands. The social worker would first meet with?

• A. the man alone
• B. the mother
• C. the wife
• D. the parents

Answer: (A)

The key idea here is starting with the person who presents the problem to establish rapport, gather his perspective, and assess readiness and safety before involving others. In this scenario, the young man is the one experiencing the separation, homelessness back with his parents, and ongoing arguments and demands. Meeting him alone first allows you to hear his side, understand his goals and stressors, set boundaries, and determine what kind of support he needs. It also helps prevent premature triangulation with family members and respects his confidentiality and autonomy as the initiating client. Once you’ve built rapport and gathered baseline information with him, you can decide, with his consent, whether to involve the mother, wife, or parents in further sessions or separate consultations to address family dynamics and boundary issues. Meeting other family members first would not address the presenting client’s viewpoint and could undermine trust or complicate the assessment process.

The key idea here is starting with the person who presents the problem to establish rapport, gather his perspective, and assess readiness and safety before involving others. In this scenario, the young man is the one experiencing the separation, homelessness back with his parents, and ongoing arguments and demands. Meeting him alone first allows you to hear his side, understand his goals and stressors, set boundaries, and determine what kind of support he needs. It also helps prevent premature triangulation with family members and respects his confidentiality and autonomy as the initiating client.

Once you’ve built rapport and gathered baseline information with him, you can decide, with his consent, whether to involve the mother, wife, or parents in further sessions or separate consultations to address family dynamics and boundary issues. Meeting other family members first would not address the presenting client’s viewpoint and could undermine trust or complicate the assessment process.