Frontline Child Welfare Workers Research Articles

Exploratory factor analysis and reliability of the Child Welfare Employee Feedback Scale: Further revision (CWEFS-R)

Child welfare workers remain dedicated to the service and safety of families and children, despite decades of high rates of turnover and the consequential impact. Developing and obtaining practical tools to proactively engage the workforce and offset these challenges is a necessity. This article will present the development and psychometric analysis of the Child Welfare Employee Feedback Scale (CWEFS-R). Based on a sample of 511 frontline child welfare workers in one midwestern state, an exploratory factor analysis (EFA) yielded a five-factor structure: (1) workload; (2) supervision; (3) organizational climate; (4) peer support; and (5) accomplishment. Further, criterion validity showed statistically significant correlations in the anticipated direction with each of the five subscales and Intent to Leave. Practice implications are discussed.

What else is there to say? Reflections of newly-hired child welfare workers by retention status

BackgroundTurnover among frontline child welfare workers is estimated to be as high as 40 % annually, attributed to factors such as stress, emotional exhaustion, safety concerns, and feelings of depersonalization. ObjectiveThis study evaluates workers’ comments at the end of a survey with the intention of elevating workers’ voices about their frontline experiences. Participants and settingData from wave 3 of the Florida Study of Professionals for Safe Families (FSPSF), a longitudinal study of the child welfare workforce, was used. The final analytic sample size was 192 (stayers n = 113, leavers n = 79). MethodsResearchers applied thematic analysis to a short response question that asked workers for final thoughts at the end of the survey. Given the larger study’s focus on turnover and retention, the researchers assessed for saturation differences between workers who stayed in their baseline agency and role and those who left by wave 3, approximately 1-year post-baseline. ResultsFour primary themes emerged from the data: 1) rewarding, but difficult; 2) unsupported; 3) overworked; and 4) undervalued. Whereas some participants reflected on positive frontline experiences, many identified aspects of the job that created significant professional or personal challenges. Overall, among these early-career workers, there was little difference in the saturation of themes between those who left and those who remained; however, some nuanced differences were noted. ConclusionsOrganizational factors emerged as primary concerns and should be priorities for administrators addressing workforce turnover and retention. Future research should explore longitudinal variation in the pressing concerns of frontline child welfare workers to develop time-sensitive strategies for improving retention.

Extent, trajectory, and determinants of child welfare turnover and exit destinations

PurposeThe high-stakes nature of child welfare work together with hostile clients; high caseloads; and extensive, time-sensitive documentation requirements contribute to high levels of worker turnover. Turnover impacts families through less contact with workers and disrupted worker-client relationships. This study uses an organizational social capital framework to examine extent and trajectory of child welfare turnover and the destinations of those who exit. Method: We used data from the Florida Study of Professionals for Safe Families (FSPSF), a longitudinal cohort study of frontline child welfare workers hired in 2015–16 (N = 1,285). After describing turnover and destinations, we used multinomial logistic regression to examine how organizational supports contributed to exits from child welfare and exit destinations. Results: By three years, almost 60 % of workers had left child welfare with very few returning to the field. Of those staying in child welfare positions, 50 % had switched agencies at least once. One exit path did not dominate. Those who left child welfare were relatively equally divided between exiting to a different health and human service (HHS) field, another employment sector, or without a plan for employment. Relative to staying in child welfare, organizational support decreased odds of exiting to other HHS fields, and supervisory climates emphasizing goals increased odds of exiting to a different industry. Discussion: Findings identify that although child welfare workers exit the field largely due to job- or agency-related reasons, their destinations, including many without plans, suggest agencies can address aspects of workers’ responsibility and support challenges to improve retention.

Audit culture, accountability, and care: A phenomenological anthropology of child welfare

Front-line child welfare workers have long since preoccupied social work, sociological, and anthropological scholarship. This article employs phenomenological anthropology to attend to the embodied, experiential, and sensorial dimensions of front-line child welfare work. However, rather than renew calls to improve casework through increased institutional support, resilience-building, or retention efforts, I draw on caseworkers’ lived experiences to engage in a critical examination of the state’s role as parens patriae. What do caseworkers’ experiences “on the inside” reveal about the state’s capacity to care—both for its own frontline staff and the families in its purview? How do such experiences problematize our understanding of state accountability? Ultimately, how can they shift the scholarly fixation on developing “better” workers who can accommodate the ever-increasing demands of casework, to a larger critique of the state’s ability to serve as “the guardian and ultimate guarantor of child welfare” ( Boyden, 2005 : 195)? By locating caseworkers’ experiences within a larger context of “audit culture”—a climate of suspicion and surveillance that forces workers to constantly account for their productivity and performance—this article problematizes the state’s model of accountability and care ( Shore and Wright, 2000 ). I argue that, in light of the toxic social dynamics it creates, “audit culture” is incommensurable with the state’s role as parens patriae.

Child Welfare Caseworker and Trainer Perspectives on Initial Implementation of a Trauma-Informed Practice Approach

Children involved in the foster care system are at risk of experiencing traumatic events, which can lead to negative outcomes for youth. Child welfare service providers are tasked with providing trauma-responsive services to youth in foster care; yet, the trauma-related needs of youth are often under-identified and undertreated. This study’s purpose was to examine the initial implementation of a trauma-responsive approach from the perspective of frontline child welfare workers and trainers. We sought to further knowledge on how the competency drivers of staff selection/hiring, training, coaching, and fidelity facilitate or inhibit initial implementation. We conducted focus groups with workers (n = 28) and semi-structured interviews with trainers (n = 6) implementing a new trauma-responsive assessment and case planning approach. Transcripts were coded and analyzed using thematic analysis. Using competency drivers as a guide, several facilitators and barriers were identified. Overall, workers and trainers identified each of the four competency drivers as key to the uptake of the new practice approach. Our findings highlight the need for agencies implementing new practices to provide critical supports to frontline workers during implementation, such as specialized support positions and mechanisms for structure and accountability, and emphasize the importance of post-training support (e.g., coaching).

Perceptions of agency leadership and intent to stay: an examination of turnover in the child welfare workforce

ABSTRACT Retention of the child welfare workforce is an ongoing challenge. In this study, we evaluate the association between child welfare workers’ perceptions of agency leadership and their intent to remain at their agencies. The sample included 119 frontline child welfare workers surveyed at three child welfare agencies in a large Northeastern city. Participants who viewed agency leadership more positively were more likely to intend to remain at their agencies than those who viewed it less positively (p = .008). Agency administrators looking to minimize turnover may benefit from engaging in clear and consistent communication with frontline workers and multi-level consensus building.

"Business as Usual": Child Protective Services Workers' Perceptions and Experiences of and Responses to Client-Perpetrated Violence.

Client-perpetrated violence (CPV) against child protective services (CPS) workers is prevalent and problematic for workers and clients leading to psychological distress, physical injury, and compromised service delivery. With accumulating evidence of prevalence and detrimental consequences, few studies examine the characteristics of violent incidents among CPS workers. This study explores how CPS workers perceive CPV through exploring characteristics of incidents that they experienced. We applied components of the stress process model to consider the importance of workers' perspectives when interpreting violence and its effects. We used inductive, thematic analysis to analyze interview data focused on workers' experiences with CPV during their first 3 years as CPS workers. The qualitative subsample (N = 34) was drawn from the Florida Study of Professionals for Safe Families (FSPSF), a statewide, longitudinal sample of recently hired frontline child welfare workers. With few exceptions, workers experienced a variety of physical and nonphysical violence. Some experienced more frequent exposure than others, particularly those who defined yelling as violent. Workers identified predictable patterns of violent circumstances and people, and commonly felt that their agencies treated violence as "business as usual." The high prevalence of violence, often predictable, indicates the importance of promoting a violence-free workplace through agency culture and responding to workers' reports of CPV with empathy and support. In addition, given workers' diverse perceptions of CPV, a manual could provide definitions of CPV, procedures to increase worker safety, and procedures to respond effectively to violence. Skill-based trainings can support workers at all levels to minimize, yet prepare for and handle, violence.

Beginning the “never-ending” learning process: Training experiences of newly-hired child welfare workers

BackgroundQuality pre-service training for child welfare workers is a priority factor to promote child outcomes in the child welfare system. This study combines two theory of transfer frameworks to consider recently-hired workers' training experiences and their perspectives on the conditions that facilitated meaningful trainings that prepared them for their work. MethodologyThe study used qualitative telephone interviews with participants sampled from a statewide cohort of newly-hired, frontline child welfare workers (n = 38). We used thematic analysis to consider participants' training experiences and the conditions that facilitated meaning. FindingsWorkers expressed a variety of reactions to their training with almost one-third describing it in universally positive terms (n = 11, 29%), one-third describing it in universally negative terms (n = 13, 34%), and the remainder describing both negative and positive components (n = 14, 39%). Thematic analysis resulted in five attributes that workers perceive contribute to successful training experiences: structured, non-redundant content relevant to their positions; interactive content delivery; practice with job responsibilities; practice with system protocols; and recognition of the never-ending learning process ConclusionsWorkers' training perceptions can provide valuable feedback to promote theoretically- and empirically-based trainings. Trainings that consider workers' knowledge level and position; offer step-by-step procedural manuals and checklists; and establish agency policies that foster mentorship and support can promote training success.

Direct practice contact: Predicting frontline child welfare workers' time with clients

Understanding how child welfare workers manage their time is an important area of study because of the critical role they play in the lives of vulnerable children and families and because the demands of the job have been indicated as a factor in high rates of undesired turnover. This research identifies worker, client, agency and societal factors that are predictive of the amount of time frontline workers spend in direct practice with their clients. The sample for this study was drawn from a multi-state survey of child welfare workers (n = 3920) in two jurisdictions. Respondents were included in the sample if they worked directly with children and families and had ongoing relationships with their clients in out-of-home care. The final sample consisted of 446 direct care workers. Structural equation modeling (SEM) indicated that a perceived culture of practice improvement moderated the relationship between frontline worker stress and time spent with clients. Additionally, satisfaction with supervision was predictive of both a culture of practice improvement and time spent with clients. Feelings of blame from society when a tragedy occurred was predictive of frontline worker stress, and higher levels of client trauma were predictive of less client contact. Implications for practice and suggestions for future study are discussed.

Client-Perpetrated Violence Among Frontline Child Welfare Workers.

Client-perpetrated violence against child protective services (CPS) workers is common and detrimental to worker wellbeing with consequences including physical injury and psychological illnesses. Despite the impacts of violence, few studies capture violence in a representative sample of CPS workers. This study examines prevalence and applies a structural inequality framework to consider who among CPS workers is most susceptible. This article used the Florida Study of Professionals for Safe Families dataset, a longitudinal panel study of newly hired CPS workers (N = 1,501) to examine the prevalence of violence in the first 6 months of employment and consider the influence of individual characteristics. CPS workers experienced high levels of non-physical violence (75%), threats (37%), and physical violence (2.3%). Age and race were significantly related to instances of violence as were college major and position. Relationships were nuanced and did not uniformly follow a structural inequality framework. The high prevalence of violence within the first months on the job illustrates the importance of conflict and violence training before workers acquire independent caseloads. In addition, institutionalized mandatory reporting procedures with definitions of non-physical violence, threats, and physical violence may promote a culture of safety rather than an attitude that violence is part of the job. Finally, supervisors and peers can benefit from opportunities to support one other. The high prevalence of violence within certain subgroups of workers coupled with its wide-ranging consequences call for additional theoretical and empirical research and responsive policy to prioritize worker safety and wellbeing.

“Hands on” versus “empty”: Supervision experiences of frontline child welfare workers

Quality supervision positively relates to frontline child welfare worker job satisfaction; worker empowerment and self-efficacy; the quality of client outcomes; and worker retention. Despite the importance of supervisory experiences, few studies describe workers' perceptions of their relationships and experiences with their supervisors. The study applied the tenet of self-perpetuating, reinforcing relationships within the social exchange theory to understand newly-hired workers' experiences of supervision. We used inductive, thematic analysis to examine interview data focused on workers' transitions from training to casework including their supervision experiences. The qualitative subsample (N = 38) was drawn from the Florida Study of Professionals for Safe Families (FSPSF), a statewide sample of recently-hired frontline child welfare workers. Approximately one half of workers considered their current supervisory experiences as “hands on” and cooperative while the remaining half, conversely, described them as “empty” and detached. Findings reflect interactions in four domains: supervisor availability and approachability; consistency of provided information; level of micromanagement; and level of support. Workers, regardless of their experiences, expected supervisors to be available, knowledgeable, micromanagers, and supportive. Congruent with self-perpetuating, reinforcing relationships, almost universally, workers with cooperative experiences had their expectations met in each domain while those with detached experiences struggled in each area. Findings yield implications for training to guide relationships between supervisors and newly-hired workers: provide “hands on” supervisors and “check in” with newly-hired workers; provide micromanagement, including periodic accompaniment on home visits; provide an agency-approved checklist to guide workers through case processes; and support workers holistically.

Child welfare workers' sexism and beliefs about father involvement

Research over the last few decades has consistently found that fathers are not routinely included in the provision of child welfare services. The current study examined whether ambivalent sexism on the part of child welfare workers was related to their beliefs about involving fathers. Ambivalent sexism theory posits that gender stereotypes include subjectively positive beliefs in addition to hostile beliefs that both serve to perpetuate patriarchal systems. Participants (N = 490) were currently front-line child welfare workers in the United States who completed an online survey assessing ambivalent sexism and beliefs about father involvement in child welfare cases. Ambivalent sexism was assessed using the Ambivalent Sexism Inventory and the Ambivalence Toward Men Inventory. The Dakota Father Friendly Assessment was modified to assess beliefs about father involvement in child welfare. Latent class analysis was used to empirically derive four sexism profiles. Results indicated that participants with profiles suggesting less sexist beliefs had more positive attitudes about father involvement and had a lower preference for working solely with mothers. Sexism profile was not related to participants' stated father involvement behaviors such as conducting home visits when fathers are present, including fathers in case planning discussions, and recruiting fathers or paternal relatives as placement options. Implications for social work and child welfare practice include developing training that increases knowledge of fathers' importance and increases workers' comfort in providing services to men.

Validating the Job Satisfaction Survey in voluntary child welfare

Job satisfaction has been linked to workforce retention in child welfare agencies. One of the most widely used measures on job satisfaction is the Job Satisfaction Survey (JSS). Although it was validated among workers of public social service agencies, its psychometric properties remain untested in workers of voluntary (private, nonprofit) child welfare agencies. Using exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), this study aims to examine the reliability and validity of the JSS in frontline child welfare workers in voluntary agencies. The sample was randomly split into two subsamples for factor analyses. Based on Sample 1 (N=343), the EFA yields a six-factor structure with 23 items: 1) pay, 2) supervision, 3) promotion, 4) benefits, 5) communication, and 6) nature of work. Using Sample 2 (N=358), the CFA confirms that the six-factor model fits the data well. Except for the communication subscale, the other five subscales have good internal consistency reliability, convergent validity, and discriminant validity. The five subscales also have good criterion validity in that they are strongly correlated with both intent to stay in child welfare and intent to leave the current agency. These findings suggest a short-form version of the JSS (JSS-SF) with 19 items loading on five subscales, which can be used to measure job satisfaction among voluntary child welfare workers. Directions for future research and implications for voluntary child welfare agencies are discussed.

Satisfactions and stressors experienced by recently-hired frontline child welfare workers

• Recently-hired child welfare workers identified helping and making a difference as a satisfaction.

Exploratory Factor Analysis and Reliability of the Child Welfare Trauma-Informed Individual Assessment Tool

This article presents the development and psychometric analysis of the Child Welfare Trauma-Informed Individual Assessment Tool, an instrument designed to measure the extent to which child welfare service providers employ trauma-informed practices with the children and families that they serve. Using the responses of 213 front-line child welfare workers, exploratory factor analysis was used on a seventeen-item scale, resulting in a four-factor model. Based on the results of this analysis, implications for potential uses of the instrument are discussed, and specifications for additional evaluation of the measure's validity are outlined.

Permanency-Focused Supervision and Workers' Self-Efficacy: Exploring the Link.

Child welfare agencies are charged with the mission of establishing timely legal permanency for all children in out-of-home care. National data indicate that the field of child welfare continues to struggle to fulfill this mission. Pragmatic strategies to improve permanency outcomes are essential. This study used cross-sectional data (N = 427) to examine the relationship between workers'self-efficacy in making permanency decisions and the supervision they receive. Child welfare supervisors monitor and mentor their supervisees' work and are responsible for practice outcomes, including establishing timely permanency. Supervision also contributes to the self-efficacy of frontline child welfare workers. Findings suggest that when supervisors focus their supervision on permanency outcomes, workers report a higher level of self-efficacy in making permanency decisions. This finding provides encouraging implications for child welfare agencies in developing innovative approaches to improving permanency outcomes while relying on existing resources.

Change Communication Strategies in Public Child Welfare Organizations: Engaging the Front Line

In public child-welfare agencies, successful organizational change depends on effective internal communication and engagement with frontline workers. This qualitative study examines approaches for communicating planned organizational change among frontline child-welfare workers. Five, 90-minute focus groups were conducted with 50 frontline workers in an urban, public child-welfare agency. Consistent with prior research on change communication in business organizations, two broad categories of communication strategies were described: programmatic (top-down) and participatory approaches. Results suggest that participatory communicative strategies emphasizing employee engagement might be most effective in combination with programmatic approaches that communicate targeted messages about the change.

The Personal Is Professional

Most frontline child welfare workers are female, as are most adult clients. The authors posit that caseworkers who are themselves mothers bring valuable perspectives and expertise to their work; however, their experience and wisdom as mothers is essentially invisible within the profession or at least within the professional literature. This mixed-methods study investigated how the experience of being a mother affects caseworkers’ relationships with client–mothers as well as whether they perceive the child welfare system valuing their unique perspective. Twenty-four participants from diverse positions within the child welfare field completed an interview protocol. Participants overwhelmingly responded that their parenting was informed by their work with families, that their experiences and wisdom as mothers was largely ignored by their agencies, and that their employers’ practices were often not family-friendly. There was variance in participants’ beliefs about whether the client–mothers experienced bias or empowerment within the system. Half of participants identified as feminist. Maternal ambivalence appeared not to be an area of shared experience between workers and clients.

Successful adoption and implementation of a comprehensive casework practice model in a public child welfare agency: Application of the Getting to Outcomes (GTO) model

In recent years, several states have been developing or adopting casework practice models in an effort to shape the thinking and behavior of front line child welfare workers with a commitment to improving the safety, permanency and well-being outcomes of vulnerable children in their care (Antle, Christensen, Barbee & Martin, 2008; Christensen, Todahl & Barrett, 1999; Courtney, 2009; Folaron, 2009). This article presents one framework for approaching the organizational changes that need to be made in order to support a practice model. The Getting to Outcomes” Framework (Wandersman, 2009) is a useful approach for ensuring that all areas to support practice change are addressed.

‘We have very different positions on some issues’: how child welfare workers in Norway and England bridge cultural differences when communicating with ethnic minority families

This article compares how child welfare workers in Norway and England experience and cope with communication problems resulting from cultural differences. This study is based on in-depth, semi-structured interviews with 53 front-line child welfare workers and draws on social theories that understand communication as a social act. We show cross-country variations in child welfare workers' perceptions of the communicative problems and coping mechanisms. In Norway, social workers think that minority parents' perceptions on children's needs and child-rearing and parents' lack of understanding of the child welfare system were challenging. Social workers in England perceive the physical abuse of minority children as problematic. They are also concerned about carers' fears of social workers forcing majority cultural values on minority families. While social workers in both countries spend more time with minority families, their approaches dealing with communication challenges correspond to their different problem perceptions. Social workers in Norway act as cultural instructors: they focus on the needs of the minority child and instruct parents about Norwegian values and the Norwegian welfare system. Social workers in England are cultural learners: they focus on practising in anti-oppressive ways, while protecting ethnic minority children from physical abuse. Both approaches avoid going into real communication about perceived problems and what a child might need. We also discuss the implications of these findings on social work practice.