State hospital social work staff: Role conflict and ambiguity

Abstract

Relatively few social workers want to work in state psychiatric hospitals (Davis, Harris, Farmer, Reeves, & Segal, 1989; Horsley, 1989; Rubin & Johnson, 1984). One possible explanation is that positions are structured in ways that practitioners s e e as inappropriate, thereby making it hard to achieve results they value. Little is known however, about how job structure affects the professionals who are employed in these settings. The present study began when hospital administrators sought assistance in clarifying what they saw as confusing social work functions in the wake of an increased need for accountability and an increasing proportion of chronically impaired patients. In particular, care and therapy roles were problematic. Many staff members seemed unable to perform in a manner commensurate with their training and professional desires; "grumbling" was as common as it was hard to pinpoint. Supervisory staff therefore wanted information about how