Competent Social Work Research Articles

Strengthening Social Work Skills and Competency Through Exposure to Diversity

ABSTRACT One hundred and fourteen (N=114) Master of Social Work students completed an online survey to explore whether demographic characteristics, prior international travel, and learning abroad program experience were associated with levels of CSWE competencies, racial attitudes, and attitudes toward mental health. Results indicate that multilingual students and students with prior international travel experience self-reported lower levels of policy skill development and lower overall competency development. Age and race were associated with students’ attitudes toward those experiencing mental health concerns, with younger or non-Hispanic White students reporting lower stigma toward those with mental health concerns. No association was found between demographic characteristics, learning abroad participation, prior international travel, and racial attitudes. Implications for social work education, practice, and research are offered.

Examining the influence of colleges’ and universities’ religious affiliation on graduate social work education in the United States

ABSTRACT Throughout social work’s history, scholars have debated the impact religiously affiliated colleges and universities have on social work education. Some have viewed religious affiliation as an asset contributing to training in values and ethics, while others question whether institutions’ religious commitments conflict with professional values. To date, no national study has examined the perceived influence that institutions’ religious affiliation has on Master of Social Work (MSW) programs. Drawing upon data from a national survey of MSW faculty across the United States, we begin to address this gap. Results reveal several ways faculty perceive their institutions’ religious cultures influence education and training on social work competencies.

Professional Pledge in Social Work: Implications for Professional Identity and Value Integration

The social work profession lays a strong emphasis on internalizing and reinforcing core social work values and ethical standards in order to create a cadre of social workers who can withstand the criticalities of any crisis and commit themselves to firmly stand with those whose survival and well-being is fragile and “on the brink”. The performance of this role not only requires a dynamic and contextual knowledge base and evolving skills set, it mandates a deep rooted acquiescence with a fundamental set of values that shape the profession’s vision and mission, and establish the goals and priorities of the practitioners. The transition from an entry level neophyte to a competent social work professional entails a journey which is characterized by the assumption and bolstering of a professional persona that grounds the incumbent within the functional niche of social work. The present paper looks at the integration of a social work pledge as a viable means for social work incumbents to establish identification with social work values, don a professional identity, and assimilate with professional peers. It looks at the existing practice of pledge taking by highlighting the experience of a distinguished school of social work. It envisions the ‘pledge’ and the tradition of ‘taking the pledge’ evolving as a strong and more universal medium for creating an emotional connect of social work students with the value driven profession of social work. Keywords: Pledge, values, ethics, social work, profession

Narrative discussions to support social work competence

ABSTRACT Few studies examine the relationship between instructional approaches and required social work competencies in graduate social work education. Further, effective social work education programs must infuse and address issues of social, racial, economic and environmental justice, creating opportunities for reflexive education. To enhance the integration of field and practice class, and support the development of core social work competencies, we developed a novel teaching method using nonfiction health narratives (memoir excerpt, article, newspaper editorial, etc.). Through engagement with written narratives, students enhance skills of critical self-reflection, deep listening, and analysis of social inequities. Using a qualitative approach we asked open-response questions about students’ experience of nonfiction narratives in supporting their acquisition of social work competence and quantified the extent to which the use of nonfiction narratives aligned with students’ development in the selected competencies. Overall, four themes emerged from student responses: cultivating empathy, deepening listening skills, fostering appreciation for diversity, and developing a professional identity, and quantitative data identified strong alignment between the use of nonfiction narratives and developing social work competence.

Core competencies in disaster management for social workers in China: A modified e-Delphi study

A modified e-Delphi study was conducted to identify the core competencies required by social workers for disaster management in China. A list of competencies was compiled through an integrative review and in-depth interviews. We then conducted a three-round e-Delphi survey with 25 experts including social work practitioners and academics, government officials and other professionals. After a 4-month period of data collection and analysis, we proposed a specific social work competence framework for disaster management in the unique context of China. A total of 87 competencies were identified and categorised into knowledge, values and skills needed for the mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery phases of disaster management (a total of 15 categories). Through a further thematic analysis, we identified four interconnected themes related to disaster resilience building and social justice in various phases. This ground-breaking competence framework can inform Chinese social work practice and training in disaster management, thus enabling social workers to better identify their specific professional roles and tasks in disaster contexts. The framework can also enhance transdisciplinary collaboration among social workers and the various disaster management stakeholders, and can also be of value when developing social work core competencies outside of China.

"Am I the Only One Who Feels Like This?": Needs Expressed Online by Abortion Seekers.

In the United States, abortion is safe and common, but highly stigmatized and frequently targeted by legislation that aims to restrict access. Numerous obstacles impede access to abortion care, including logistical barriers like cost and transportation, limited clinic availability, and state-mandated waiting periods. Accurate abortion information can also be hard to access. To overcome these barriers, many people seeking abortion turn to anonymous online forums, including Reddit, for information and support. Examining this community provides a unique perspective on the questions, thoughts, and needs of people considering or undergoing an abortion. The authors web scraped 250 posts from subreddits that contain abortion-related posts, then coded deidentified posts using a combined deductive/inductive approach. The authors identified a subset of these codes in which users were giving/seeking information and advice on Reddit, then engaged in a targeted analysis of the needs expressed in these posts. Three interconnected needs emerged: (1) need for information, (2) need for emotional support, and (3) need for community around the abortion experience. In this study map the authors reflected these needs onto key social work practice areas and competencies; taken alongside support from social work's governing bodies, this research suggests that social workers would be beneficial additions to the abortion care workforce.

Knowledge Test Development for Use in Social Work Student Outcomes Assessment

Purpose: This article describes the process used to develop and pilot the Social Work Education Assessment Project (SWEAP) Curriculum instrument, a standardized multiple-choice test developed to assess student knowledge as it relates to each of the nine generalist practice competencies of the 2015 Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards (EPAS). Method: An expert panel evaluated instrument construct, content, and face validity. Test–retest reliability analysis was conducted on nine pilot instruments. Further reliability analysis was conducted on 2382 instruments. Results: Analyses support the validity and reliability of the SWEAP Curriculum Instrument. Discussion: Knowledge is one of the four dimensions that relate to each of the nine generalist practice-level social work competencies identified in EPAS 2015. Therefore, the evaluation of student knowledge is a vital component of social work program assessment. The SWEAP Curriculum Instrument is just one possible method for measuring student competency related to the knowledge dimension.

Measuring Competence in Social Work: A Tribute to the Contributions of Marion Bogo

ABSTRACT Professor Marion Bogo’s stellar academic career was distinguished by her long-standing advocacy for high quality assessment of social work students. Her work was a driving force behind the development of meaningful, authentic and relevant field assessment that incorporates specific, definable, observable skills with higher-order thinking. This article briefly describes assessment of competencies and two conceptual issues identified as limitations in assessing social work students in the field: 1) effective clinical performance involves not merely a set of isolated skills but also broader conceptualizations of practice (meta-competencies); and 2) field instructors’ relationships with students introduce limitations on the use of available assessment tools. We then describe efforts to develop authentic tools intended to capture field instructors’ observations of their students.

ROLE OF SOCIAL WORK EDUCATION IN TEACHING: A CASE STUDY OF KARACHI

Social work is a professional service which based upon knowledge and skills in individuals in society. The social work education is basically compulsory for every person in a society. This study explore the social work education and their importance in Pakistani society. It is significant to consider some of the difficulties that need to be addressed, as well as the path whither a competent social work education might be formed. This research highlights the historical progress of social work education in Pakistan. Moreover, overall research discuss about job satisfaction, job scale, job occupation of a professional social workers, how many social workers want to provide social education to their children, they can easily get job and value of school social work in Pakistan. The present research was descriptive in nature, researcher’s selected quantitative method for data collection. The multiple sampling techniques that were simple random and snowball used for this research. It was found that lack of knowledge and resources regarding social work education are present and it is important for every person because it helps to resolve social issues and it is the basis of development and happiness of the individuals and the society.

Geriatric competency and attitudes toward older adults among Turkish undergraduate social work students

ABSTRACT The need for social workers educated about aging and eager to work with older adults will increase significantly as the older adult population rises rapidly. It is essential to determine the attitudes and competencies of social workers prepared to work in this field. This study aimed to evaluate Turkish undergraduate social work students’ attitudes toward older adults and their geriatric social work competency. A cross-sectional descriptive correlational research design was used in the study. The study included 308 fourth-year undergraduate students attending a social work program. Participants were selected by convenience sampling. The results indicated that students had slightly positive attitudes toward older people. As for the geriatric competency, the students rated highest in applying “values, ethics, and theoretical perspectives” and lowest in the “aging services, programs, and policies.” Geriatric social work competence was strongly associated with positive attitudes toward older adults. These findings indicate the need to implement new learning opportunities early in academic programs to improve social work students’ attitudes toward older adults and increase their knowledge and skills to address the aging population’s needs.

Moderating effects of supervision on the relationship between job performance and their geriatric social work competency among social workers in the individualized support service for older adults

Moderating effects of supervision on the relationship between job performance and their geriatric social work competency among social workers in the individualized support service for older adults

Older adults who prefer aging in place and corresponding challenges to social workers: the impact of smartphone-based interventions

ABSTRACT This paper reports a study on the impact of a smartphone meditation app (M-App) in building resilience and competencies among social workers with aging in place (AIP) initiatives. Compared to a control group who used the leisure app (L-App), M-App users reported greater resilience and gerontological social work competencies 6 months posttest (T2). Women social workers, Christians, who specialized in home-based care, and whose core clientele comprised older adults with acquired disability and long-term illness, reported greater resilience at T2. Women social workers and those who specialized in home-based care exhibited greater gerontological competencies at T2. Disciplined M-App usage and self-practice mediated the association between socio-demographic moderators and outcomes. Clients of women and Christian social workers, home-based care specialists and those who diligently adhered to the intervention reported higher satisfaction. The interesting finding was that this satisfaction was reported by Christian clients and those who lived with family members as compared to Hindu and Muslim clients and those who lived alone with formal caregivers. For gerontological social workers with AIP initiatives, the M-App could be used in a continuing education training with some refinements for men, non-Christian social workers and engaged in AIP programs through community and neighborhood support practice.

Lifelong Learning and Development for Social Workers

Aim. In the paper, the authors demonstrate the influence of the education and educational level of social workers on the quality of social work as a profession that helps people in unfavorable situation. They point to the importance of lifelong learning, which is essential for advancing the knowledge and competences of social workers in practice. Concept. Lifelong education for social workers is currently a necessity for their functioning not only on the basis of the rapid, dynamic changes in their problems and social clients, but also for rapid and dynamic changes in the use of methods and techniques of social work. Method. The study deals with the educational development of employees in the profession of social worker. It defines and identifies forms of continuous education of social workers, which can have different methods and which can result in different competencies of a social worker. Results. The study confirms that the lifelong learning of social workers requires constant access to support and information about education, but also to set opportunities and thus facilitate access to the education of social workers. It is necessary to realise that the competences of the social worker must be in accordance with the education that the social worker has. Conclusion. The scientific articles and contributions that we offer in this study point to lifelong learning, which has the effect of expanding the possibilities of a social worker’s work with several types of clients, increases his competences and thus acquires a lot of knowledge and skills that are subsequently applied in practice.

Citizenship and multicultural social work: Challenges and opportunities of ethnic minority youth in political engagement in Hong Kong

This article reports on qualitative research investigating Pakistani minority youth’s political engagement in the 2019 Anti-Extradition Movement in Hong Kong. Some informants’ engagement was inhibited by challenges such as institutional limitations, while others identified various opportunities. This article presents an Asian example from a unique historical context to illuminate the potential role of political engagement in ethnic minority youth’s personal and social development and how the citizenship social work framework enhances understanding of ethnic minority youth and cultural competence in multicultural social work. Furthermore, it advocates social work as an empowering agency to implement citizenship rights for ethnic minority youth.

Enhancing Student Learning and Engagement Using Digital Stories

ABSTRACT To prepare students for competent practice in increasingly technology-enabled settings, social work curricula must provide ample opportunities for developing digital literacy. Incorporating digital stories as course assignments offer educators one promising approach. Despite the fact that digital stories can provide a powerful teaching strategy and meaningful learning experience for students, they have received little attention in the social work education literature. This study explored implementation of a digital story assignment in three social work courses and examined undergraduate and graduate students’ appraisals of the assignment and learning outcomes. Qualitative findings indicated high satisfaction and learning associated with key social work competencies such as digital literacy, group work, and advocacy. Students valued the novel opportunity for creativity and collaboration, and were challenged in positive ways to produce high quality work that could be shared with a public audience. Key challenges identified by students included a steep technology learning curve, some technology resistance, and limitations associated with group projects (e.g., group dynamics). Overall, however, these exploratory findings suggest that digital story assignments can offer a timely and useful tool for social work educators to enhance engagement and learning, foster advocacy practice skills, and build digital literacies needed in the 21st century practice landscape.

Salary and student loan debt for oncology social workers: Findings from the oncology social work competencies, opportunities, roles and expertise (CORE) survey

Purpose To better understand the current salaries and student loan debt levels among oncology social workers (OSWs). Design Cross-sectional study using online survey. Sample OSWs across a variety of cancer care settings in the U.S. (n = 1055). Methods Salary and debt were collected via single ordinal variables. Crosstabs and chi-square tests were used to examine whether salary and debt differ by demographic and work-related characteristics. Findings Median OSW salaries ranged from $60,001 to $70,000. Three-fourths of OSWs reported having student loan debt. Younger and recently graduated OSWs and OSWs of color were more likely to have greater student loan debt than their counterparts. Conclusions Relative low salary and debt burden have important implications for securing a current and future OSW workforce. Implications for Psychosocial Policy Adequate reimbursement and loan repayment opportunities for frontline OSWs will better secure this workforce. Advocacy efforts to identify OSWs qualified for loan forgiveness programs are warranted.

Historical content in the social work curriculum: the value of local history

ABSTRACT Knowledge of the history of the social work profession and of the historical forces that shape the development of social welfare is critical to developing competence in social work. Study of history helps students develop a critical perspective on current controversies within social welfare and the social work profession. The study of local history allows social work students to consider the economic, political, social, and cultural origins of the problems that have shaped and often constrained the lives of people they serve. Using examples from the history of Detroit, Michigan, this paper shows how local history can animate social welfare history, provide students with important context about the practice environment, including relationships between diverse populations, and give specific, meaningful examples of historical trends presented in social welfare history and policy textbooks.

Social work competence in disaster management: an integrative review

ABSTRACT This integrative review provides an overview of the core competencies (i.e. knowledge, values and skills) of social workers in each phase of disaster management (i.e. mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery), using the core competency framework for social work practice. A total of 183 items, including 77 journal articles, 97 book chapters, 8 editorials and 1 dissertation, were retrieved from seven academic databases and their content analysed. This paper shows that reflective practice is an important resource for social work training and provides evidence of social work competencies in disaster management. In addition to supporting disaster response and recovery, social work can contribute significantly to disaster mitigation and preparedness. This paper identifies three important competencies for social work practice in disaster contexts: community resilience building, localisation and environmental sustainability.

Bonds and barriers: Mental health, service provision, and Middle Eastern/North African cultural identity in the U.S.

This exploratory study examined the intersections of Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) American cultural identity and attitudes towards mental health and mental health services. Fifteen in-depth narrative interviews with participants of MENA descent in the United States were analyzed using qualitative thematic content analysis, revealing five primary themes within these data: denial, lack of awareness, stigma/shame, collective identity, and resistance. These results indicate cultural identity plays a unique and significant role in how this population understands and responds to mental health and substance use challenges, in a way that often creates barriers to social service provision and success. Implications and suggestions for how these findings might be used to develop more culturally competent and effective social work interventions for MENA communities are discussed.

A Microchange Process of Activation–Contract–Processing (ACP) Across Treatment Models: A Common Process in Clinical Social Work Practice

ABSTRACT Training social workers to provide competent professional practice is of utmost importance. However, there have been ongoing dilemmas in enhancing practice competence in clinical social work, such as the challenges of selecting treatment approaches among numerous empirically supported approaches. Increasingly, common factors and common elements approaches are incorporated into clinical social work practice to address these issues, yet there is still a gap in addressing how to foster skill building in clinical social work. Using theories of psychotherapy integration and corrective experiences as a transformative change mechanism, we propose a microchange process, Activation–Contract–Processing (ACP), within sessions across various treatment approaches. This common process was developed based on both literatures and widely circulated master-tapes of therapy sessions from four empirically supported treatment models—cognitive therapy, behavioral activation, emotion-focused therapy, and interpersonal therapy. To guide social work students and clinicians, we elaborate on each step in ACP with illustrative examples around therapeutic proceedings, while incorporating core aspects of clinical social work, including but not limited to: person-in-environment perspectives, relationship, social justice and diversity, and evidence-based practice. We conclude by sharing the implications of the proposed common process to clinical social work practice, training, and research.