Human Service Professionals Research Articles

Paradigm Shift of Social Work Profession: In Context of Indian Social Work Education

The social work profession is founded on a scientific understanding of human relations and aims to support individuals or groups in exercising their freedom and satisfaction within society. It began as a charitable endeavor and developed into a way to shed light on social issues and give people the confidence they needed to deal with life’s unexpected turns in a positive way. As a human services profession, social work addresses micro-to-macro-level societal issues and works to implement necessary reforms. The distinctive core values of social work education, along with its own methodological technique known as the basic along with the auxiliary methods, contribute to the creation of new opportunities for humankind. The development of a PSW (Professional Social Workers) competent cadre through social work education holds the potential to effect tangible changes in society and human existence. However, the main issues with social work education are the lack of originality in curricula and moral guidance for educators and practitioners. The PSWE (Professional Social Work Education) System is primarily related to training methodology, but there have been other issues with social work education as well, like outdated curricula, specialized courses that aren’t relevant, and improper fieldwork components. In order to prepare the next generation of PSW having the necessary knowledge, abilities, and attitudes, the current paper offers insights into the challenges facing PSWE. In order to produce more capable change agents, the paper attempts to shed light on the requirement to update the professional social work education training methodology. This paper also gives an overview of the PSWE development in India, sheds light on the true issues facing the field, and offers solutions for improving the field’s responsiveness to societal demands.

Using and Measuring Motivational Interviewing in a New Setting: Experiences From a Project Highlighting Relationship-Building Skills in the Process of Recruiting New Staff

Relationship-building skills, with empathy and empathic abilities as crucial ingredients, are described as central in human service professions. These professions usually require training on relationship-building skills. However, in many professional groups, with support or care functions, rather than functions specifically oriented towards treatment, the level of education and training required varies. Empathic skills are central in the concept of Motivational Interviewing (MI). It has been suggested that for the ethical reason that treatment staff should not harm clients, workplaces should assess staff members’ empathic skills and ability to refrain from harmful behaviours, and these capabilities should be investigated when recruiting new staff. In accordance with this suggestion, the residential homes at the Swedish National Board of Institutional Care (SiS), which provides compulsory care for young people, initiated a project to develop and trial a work test based on the concept of MI. The aim of the article is to, based on 59 interviews with stakeholders in the SiS-project, add to the discussion on the balancing act required in evidence-based practise of maintaining psychometric stringency versus making contextual and situational adjustments. Focus is on exploring the possibilities for using and interpreting measures of MI in a new setting as well as the possibilities for assessing relationship-building skills in the recruitment process. The results suggest that tinkering is often necessary when using standardised measures for complex skills like relationship building. The study proposes that a nuanced understanding of the method, measurement, and organisational context is essential even with well-established methods.

The role of social work practitioners and human service professionals in long-term disaster recovery after the 2016 Alberta wildfires in Canada.

The 2016 Alberta wildfires resulted in widespread destruction of property and displacement of residents. Research aimed to identify the roles and responsibilities of social work practitioners and human service professionals in long-term disaster recovery. This article presents the findings from interviews, focus groups, and a survey with a total of 140 participants in Alberta, Canada. Implications for disaster social work planning, and response and recovery efforts in Canada and internationally, will inform the development of programs and policies to support and make visible the contribution of social workers and human service professionals in long-term disaster recovery.

How adverse childhood experiences impact the professional quality of life of residential care workers: resilience as a mediator for burnout, secondary traumatic stress, and compassion satisfaction

IntroductionThe well-being of trauma-affected children and youth in residential care settings is contingent upon the well-being of the workers who care for them, who are increasingly expected to provide care in a trauma-informed manner. The well-being of residential care workers (RCWs) may be impacted by their own histories of adversity, their capacity individually and collectively to navigate to resources that sustain their well-being (resilience), and current perceptions of their professional quality of life.ObjectiveThis study aimed to fill a research gap by canvassing the perspectives of RCWs to determine what and how they need to be supported in their work. We sought to better understand what personal (adverse childhood experiences, resilience) and professional (compassion satisfaction, burnout, secondary traumatic stress) experiences and capacities they bring into their work that might impact the quality of care they provide to children and youth.MethodA sample of 226 residential care workers from four residential care organizations across three Canadian provinces completed a self-report questionnaire to provide a portrait of their history of adverse childhood experiences as measured by the ACE questionnaire, which included two additional questions reflecting the more nuanced and expanded understanding of potential adversity in childhood in the Canadian context; their resilience, as measured by the Adult Resilience Measure; and compassion satisfaction, burnout, and secondary traumatic stress, as measured by the Professional Quality of Life Measure. Mediation was conducted to examine whether and how resilience mediated the relationship between ACEs and professional quality of life indicators.Results(1) RCWs reported experiencing ACEs at rates much higher than general population and norm samples, especially regarding the experience of 4–5+ ACEs, known to be a threshold for increased severity in negative outcomes; (2) RCWs experienced levels of resilience and indicators of professional quality of life similar to those in other human services professions serving trauma-impacted individuals; and (3) RCW resilience significantly mediated the relationship between ACEs and compassion satisfaction, burnout, and secondary traumatic stress, and had a significant total effect for the relationship between ACEs and secondary traumatic stress. These results suggest the importance of enhancing RCW resilience in multiple ways, mainly in their professional contexts. Recommendations for resilience enhancement and suggestions for future research are provided.

Prevalence of Burnout Among Health Workers in Iran: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Introduction: Burnout significantly impacts human service professions, reducing the sense of competence and successful performance of duties. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of job burnout among healthcare workers in Iran. Methods: A systematic search was conducted according to the PRISMA checklist in databases such as PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, PsycINFO, Magiran, Scientific Information Database (SID), and IranDoc from the inception of each database until December 30, 2023. Studies that used the Maslach burnout inventory to investigate the prevalence of burnout in health workers and had an observational design (including cross-sectional studies) were included. The selection of relevant studies was performed independently by two researchers at all stages of study selection, including screening, full-text review, and qualitative evaluation using the modified version of the HOY tool. Data implementation was done in Excel, and data analysis was conducted using STATA version 12. Results: A total of 63 articles were included. About 62.2% of the studies had a low risk of bias. A meta-analysis was performed using the random-effects method to calculate the prevalence of job burnout, and the average score of burnout was calculated as ES: [95% Conf interval = 0.38 (0.30 - 0.46)]. The degree of heterogeneity was reported as I2 = 99.66%, which is significant (P = 0.000), indicating high heterogeneity among the studies. Subgroup analysis was conducted to reduce heterogeneity. The results showed that the average burnout score increases with the sample size increase in the study, which is statistically significant (P < 0.001). Conclusions: To minimize burnout, it is suggested that supportive approaches, including access to psychosocial support, web-based services, psychological first aid, psychological support hotlines, and self-care techniques, be considered for healthcare workers during their service years.

Australian perspectives on environmental practice: A national survey with human service professionals

Australian perspectives on environmental practice: A national survey with human service professionals

Human service professionals’ observations of suboptimal parenting: Barriers to intervention and potential solutions

This study was designed to learn about the types of sub-optimal parenting observed by human service professionals and the barriers they faced in moving from being a bystander to an intervenor on behalf of children. Twenty-four human service professionals participated in an in-depth audio interview about the types of poor parenting they observed and the barriers they perceived to their intervening. Using an inductive grounded theory approach, a set of themes were identified based on the content of the interviews. Teams of coders independently coded statements extracted from the transcripts according to these themes and subthemes (average kappa = 0.80). Seven types of problematic parenting were mentioned (physical aggression, verbal aggression and rejection threats, lack of supervision, poor parental coping, interfering with a child abuse investigation, and imposing their own needs on the child) along with five main categories of barriers to intervention (role constraint, behavior not bad enough, bad timing, uncertain what to do, and fear of parental response). Human service professionals are in a position to observe parents engaging in behaviors that if persistent or severe would qualify as child maltreatment. Many do not intervene even though they are concerned about the impact of these parental behaviors on children. Agencies that provide human services to parents and children can benefit from providing their workers with enhanced training, support, and practice in intervening in ways that can feel helpful and respectful. In addition, they could engage in efforts to improve the environments and culture of their agencies to reduce parental stressors which are significant triggers for poor parenting.

Promoting Older Adults’ Engagement in Disaster Recovery Through Supportive Relationships, Partnerships, and Collaboration: Perspectives of Social Work Practitioners and Human Service Professionals

Shifting demographics—that is, the growing number of older adults in Canada and internationally—and intersecting climatic risks create a complex landscape of aging in place in disaster contexts. Some older adults are vulnerable due to their underlying health conditions and limited physical mobility. Yet they also exhibit resilience in a distinct manner, owing to their wealth of knowledge, wisdom, and ability to navigate adversities. This article elucidates potential avenues for promoting the involvement of older adults in disaster recovery efforts. Our intention is to recognize and foster older adult resilience and mitigate vulnerability by drawing upon insights from the study titled “In the Aftermath of the 2016 Alberta Wildfires: The Role of Social Work Practitioners and Human Service Professionals in Long-Term Disaster Recovery.” Employing a qualitative research approach, that study recruited 51 participants for semistructured interviews and focus groups. A thematic analysis of the collected data unveiled the pivotal roles played by social workers and human service practitioners in facilitating recovery from the 2016 wildfires in the research. Notably, three overarching themes emerged concerning the promotion of older adults’ involvement in disaster recovery: fostering supportive relationships, building partnerships and enhancing collaboration, and addressing ongoing challenges. These findings offer valuable insights into how social work practitioners and human service professionals can effectively facilitate the engagement of older adults in disaster recovery initiatives. This article emphasizes the significance of actively promoting the participation of older adults in disaster mitigation efforts, thereby fostering greater resilience within communities.

Peer Group Clinical Supervision: A Viable Approach for Improved Practice in Recreational Therapy

Clinical supervision is the systematic interaction between professionals to promote reflection on action in practice to improve competence in the helping relationship (Anderson & Heyne, 2021). Clinical supervision between practitioners is accepted as a norm in other health and human services professions and has been shown to provide benefits for improved clinical competence. However, in therapeutic recreation, clinical supervision does not occur on a routine basis for most recreational therapists (Anderson et al., 2022). The primary reasons for the lack of clinical supervision in the field are lack of support and availability of clinical supervision at their agencies and being the sole recreational therapists on site. Group-based peer supervision is one approach that may address barriers and provide support and structure for clinical supervision. This paper provides a conceptual overview of peer supervision and presents a data-driven case study that documented the process and outcomes of a peer clinical supervision group.

Family as a Pathway to Suicidal Behaviors Through Depression Symptoms and Internalized Homophobia.

Research consistently highlights how systemic and social factors can adversely impact mental health, and the potential buffering effects of family support, yet raced sexual minorities are vastly underrepresented among these studies. As rates of suicide increase among Black people and remain high among men and those in gender and sexually diverse communities, this study sought to examine to relationships between family dynamics and suicidality among young Black men who have sex with men (MSM) in young adulthood. We used an online survey to conduct a logistic regression to examine family factors (family support, open family communication, other adult support, and other adult value), depression symptoms, and internalized homophobia on suicide attempts. The conceptualization of the study's design and interpretation of the results were informed by minority stress theory and the phenomenological variant of ecological systems theory. The results indicate that higher levels of family support and open family communication were associated with lower levels of suicidality. Implications for future research and applications for healthcare providers and human services professionals who support young Black MSM in emerging adulthood are discussed.

Implementation Model for Motivational Interviewing Training in a Community College Human Services Program

Motivational interviewing (MI) is an evidence-supported style of communication used across many fields of human services, including addiction treatment, social work, healthcare, education, and criminal justice. MI can be utilized by a variety of human service professionals and requires no special licensure or educational degree. In 2016, our Human Services program at LaGuardia Community College, CUNY began to implement MI training as a core part of our curriculum to provide students with this micro-credential to increase their career readiness. This paper outlines our ongoing approach for implementing MI in a community college human services program, including the training model we used for preparing faculty and staff to implement this approach, as well as some reflections from graduates.

Introducing LADER: A Structured Approach to Effective Professional Interactions for Behavior Analysts.

Applied behavior analysis (ABA) is a human service profession using the science of behaviorism to promote meaningful changes in the lives of clients. However, misconceptions, misunderstandings, and false information have plagued our field since its inception and challenge the efficacy of our continued dissemination efforts. Effective science communication skills, especially for fields with a highly technical language such as ABA, promote marked improvements in client outcomes. Herein we introduce LADER, a structured and scaffolded approach to effective professional interactions for behavior analysts. The five components of LADER (listen, ask questions, determine misconceptions, engage, and reflect and evaluate) support analysts in navigating complex and potentially challenging conversations with clients, caregivers, collaborative professionals, and other stakeholders. The experiences and insights of current behavior professionals, and empirical research on effective science communication, underpins the components of LADER. Following a description of LADER, a hypothetical scenario provides readers with a vignette on how to apply LADER in practice.

Predicting burnout based on metacognitive beliefs and ‎ alexithymia mediated by optimism in nurses

Introduction: The commitment of nurses to their jobs and patients has made nursing one of the human service professions susceptible to burnout syndrome. Therefore, the present study aimed to predict burnout based on metacognitive beliefs and alexithymia with the mediation of optimism in nurses.
 Materials and Methods: The current research was based on applied purpose and descriptive-correlational research design, specifically, structural equation modeling. The statistical population in this research was all the nurses in the hospitals of Qom City in 1401, and 200 nurses were randomly selected to participate in the present research. In this field study, the participants completed 
 Burnout questionnaires by Meslech and Jackson (1986), a metacognition questionnaire by Wells and Cartwright-Houghton (2004), the Toronto dyslexia scale, and the Scheer and Carver optimism scale (1994). Data were analyzed using the Pearson correlation test and structural equation model using SPSS-24 and AMOS-24 software.
 Results: The results showed that the correlation coefficients between the variables are significant (p<0.01) and there is a positive and significant relationship between metacognitive beliefs and alexithymia with burnout in nurses, and there is a negative and significant relationship between optimism and burnout (p<0.01). Also, there was a negative and significant relationship between metacognitive beliefs and alexithymia and nurses' optimism (p<0.01). Also, the results of the path analysis showed that optimism plays a mediating role in the relationship between metacognitive beliefs and alexithymia with nurses' burnout.
 Conclusion: In general, current research emphasizes the importance of optimism in the relationship between metacognitive beliefs and alexithymia with nurses' burnout and optimism is an effective factor in reducing nurses' burnout.

Neurosurgery trainee well-being in a pediatric neurosurgery hospital: baseline data to motivate toward implementing change.

The aim of this study was to obtain aggregated baseline pediatric neurosurgery well-being data at a tertiary care institution. An institutional grant funded the completion of the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) by 100% (n = 13) of the trainees during a 1-year period, including 1 pediatric neurosurgery fellow and 12 residents from 4 regional neurosurgery training programs. Aggregated and anonymized group results included frequency scores ranging from 0 (never) to 6 (every day). The mean ± SD group scores were compared to the general population of > 11,000 people in the human services professions. Burnout profiles were calculated on the basis of MBI scale scores by using established comparisons to standardized normal values. Burnout profile types include engaged, ineffective, overextended, disengaged, and burnout. The mean ± SD score for emotional exhaustion was 2.6 ± 1.1 for trainees compared with 2.3 ± 1.2 in the comparison population. The mean ± SD score for depersonalization was 1.6 ± 1 compared with 1.7 ± 1.2 in the comparison population. The mean ± SD score for personal accomplishment was 4.9 ± 0.7 compared with 4.3 ± 0.9 in the comparison population. Profiles were classified as engaged (n = 6), ineffective (n = 3), overextended (n = 3), and burnout (n = 1). Problematic profiles were present for more than half (7 [53.8%]) of pediatric neurosurgery trainees who cited higher emotional exhaustion than the general population of healthcare providers. Trainees scored lower in depersonalization and higher in personal accomplishment compared with the general population, which are both protective against burnout. Targeting factors that contribute to emotional exhaustion may have an impact on improving the overall well-being of pediatric neurosurgery trainees.

Complex Real-Time Human Resources Scheduling with Web User Interface Using Prioritizing Algorithms

The Institute of Child Development (ICD) at Binghamton University is uniquely complex in its staffing requirements. By offering extensive and personalized services to children with autism spectrum disorder, the ICD must ensure the correct number of properly trained staff are assigned throughout every school day to best serve each student. Since a broad range of human services professionals and paraprofessionals (e.g., psychology, special education, speech pathology, occupational therapy, etc.) all operate in one facility, each room’s accommodations must also be taken into account. Due to these restrictions, the ICD is currently struggling to complete staff scheduling in a timely manner using Microsoft Excel. The team’s main objective is to reduce the workload of this scheduling process by developing a dynamic web interface to integrate with existing related software and communication systems. By designing a more intuitive, assistive, and automated system, the team aims to significantly reduce the valuable senior staff time that could be dedicated to the many other roles they play in the success of students and their families.

The Imposition of a Coerced Autonomy: Suicidal “Bad Girls,” Human Service Professionals, and Gender Bias

Through a thematic analysis of four cases of suicide by young women identified from the National Coronial Information System, I apply a gendered lens to understanding the ways in which human service professionals’ expectations of feminine behavior, led them to view these young women as “bad girls” and imposed a disempowering “coerced autonomy” framework onto them. In this framework, the girls were held responsible for factors that caused their distress but were denied self-determination in their diagnosis and/or treatment. I aim to broaden our understanding of how gendered expectations can have fatal consequences.

Human Service Student’s Preparedness for Assessing Suicidality: Recommendations for Human Services Education

Suicide continues to be a public health concern, with suicide rates increasing. Human service professionals are among the helping professions tasked with assessing and addressing suicidality. Despite the well-documented benefits of suicide assessment and training for those within the helping professions, there remains a dearth of literature specific to suicide prevention in the preparation of human services students. To address this gap, the current study used the SIRI-2 to assess the preparedness of human services students (n = 98) to assess and address client suicidality. Findings indicated that participants’ responses were less competent than area experts. Furthermore, student participants’ responses were more invalidating, unhelpful, and conveyed less empathy. These results suggest that a need for increased or focused training that addresses suicidality within undergraduate human services programs. Limitations of the current study, future directions, and implications are discussed.

Facilitating Learning in Context: Refugee Resettlement Case Management Pedagogy in a Human Services Course

This essay presents a case study of a class design for a course that prepares aspiring human service professionals to practice basic case management skills. The course employed a collaborative learning framework and a community engagement, project-based pedagogy that allowed students to engage in local agencies supporting refugee resettlement. Furthermore, students studied the processes of migration and asylum seeking and designed a project for the university’s campus community to raise awareness about migration and refugee resettlement. The project served to disrupt racist and xenophobic discourses about refugees and immigrants. Students’ final projects on the migration experiences of refugees highlighted here (from 2017 and 2018) became a multi-year campus event adopted and sponsored by a student club focused on global social justice. The essay concludes with guidelines to design successful collaborative learning, community engagement, project-based human services courses.

“If Another Person Says, ‘You’re So Articulate,’ So Help Me”

Few studies have examined the nature of microaggressions experienced by employees of human service agencies. This exploratory study identified the types of microaggressions that women and non-binary people of color experience within their agency settings. Narrative data were collected using a web survey. The survey consisted of two instruments, both developed by the researcher--a non-categorical demographic questionnaire and a survey that asked participants about their experiences of four types of workplace microaggressions. The sample consisted of 52 self-identified women and non-binary people of color employed by non-profit agencies or governmental departments providing human services in the United States. Data were analyzed by applying interpretive phenomenological analysis (IPA) and a constant comparative approach, generating three overarching themes: (a) misperceptions of identity or circumstances, (b) navigating racial stereotypes, and (c) racialized objectification. Findings stress the importance of addressing microaggressions among employees to foster inclusive workplaces and the salience of race/ethnicity as a targeted identity in the human service professions. Recommendations include the development of workplace policies that create clear and effective avenues for addressing subtle discrimination. Individual social workers can effectively implement these policies by acknowledging, validating, and ultimately reducing unintended harm to colleagues.

Cause for concern? The value of practical knowledge in professional education

The aim of this paper is to explore how practical knowledge can enhance higher education and Bildung for the human service professions. The paper sheds light on how governance reforms such as New Public Management have influenced higher education, where we argue that scientific rationality has weakened the professional’s autonomy and responsibility. The paper is based on the three authors’ experiences as university teachers and researchers from three different fields, namely, nursing, social work, and special education. By using Foucault’s theory of the panoptic gaze, the analysis shows what is at stake in professional practice, education, and research and introduces perspectives from practical knowledge as a more functional understanding, highlighting 1) that subjective experiences are not being legitimized, 2) the inherent knowledge of practice, and 3) evidence and valid knowledge.