This work will aim to study the relevance of feminist approaches to social work in today's society. It will first focus on the different types of feminism present in society. It will then trace and highlight the emergence of feminism in society. This essay will then delve deeper into the different types of approaches taken by feminists in the field of social work. He will discuss the effect these approaches have had on society, particularly on women. According to hooks (2000), cited in Considine and Dukelow (2009: 141), “feminism is a movement to end sexism, sexist exploitation and oppression”. We must first explain the different types of feminism present in society. Freedman (2001:5) states that there are many different strands of feminism present in society, but the three most commonly recognized are liberal feminism, Marxist feminism and radical feminism. His explanation is as follows. Liberal feminism is based on the idea that everyone within a state should have the same rights and that women should be treated equally to men. Marxist feminism is based on the belief that the mistreatment of women is linked to capitalism. Radical feminists believe that men's authority over women is linked to patriarchy. The above explanation has been a brief introduction to the different types of feminism present in society. In a later stage of this work, we will examine what effect feminism has had on social work and society as a whole. Now that the meaning of feminism has been determined and the different types of feminism present in society today have been highlighted, it is necessary to examine the emergence of feminism. Considine and Dukelow (2009: 141) argue that it is in the middle of a paper that marriage, employment and social work agencies must relinquish power (ibid: 257). It is obvious that unless there is a reduction in the power that men still hold over women in today's society, feminist theory will not be accepted or recognized. Millet (1971), cited in Slattery (2003: 157), states that “the main institution of patriarchy is the family”. For many decades the Catholic Church in Ireland exercised strict control over members of society. Men and women lived up to what they preached. Women in society were denied their rights due to the establishment of reformatories and institutions by the Catholic Church. When a woman became pregnant and was not married, she was sent to one of these institutions. Society has only recently been informed of the terrible ordeals to which these women had to succumb through the publication of numerous reports carried out.