Search

In the past 2 decades, social work education has increasingly advocated for inclusion of trauma-related content in educational programming. Yet, to date, little is known about the current state of trauma education and training in social work programs. The aim of this study is to describe trauma education and training in accredited, North American social work programs. The data are from an online survey of 192 social work educators from 165 universities with accredited social work programs in the United States (n=151) and Canada (n=14). Participants were asked whether trauma-specific education is offered, and if so, to provide the formats used to deliver the content, the type of curriculum used, and evaluation efforts. Most programs (67.9%) reported integrating trauma education into existing courses, with 61.4% of BSW programs and 65.4% of MSW programs offering some form of trauma education. Results suggest that social work educators are recognizing the importance of including trauma education in their programming. However, more evaluation is needed to identify specific trauma content being presented.

It is well established that successful transitions into adulthood vary greatly by numerous factors (e.g., race, gender); yet, understanding of ways that disability-related factors shape transitions into adulthood are less clear. While individuals with disabilities, generally, often fall short of their non-disabled peers in achieving many early adult milestones, fuller conceptualisations that recognise the diversity among individuals with disabilities are warranted. Informed by recent findings suggesting the variability of experiences of young adults with disabilities by disability type and severity, as well as disability frameworks that focus on 'normative' population outcomes as proxies of activities and participation among individuals with and without disabilities, this study uses data from two waves of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health to describe and compare the success of young people by disability status, type, and severity as they transition from high school, enrol in college, or gain employment. Findings derived from logistic regression models suggest consistent disadvantages for individuals with cognitive disabilities relative to peers with physical disabilities as well as peers without disabilities across important early adult transitions. Policy and practice implications to address these inequalities are discussed.

To contribute to best practices in educating social work students on environmental justice, we report the results of a study evaluating a module that was incorporated into the course Human Behavior and the Social Environment (HBSE). A mixed-methods design was used to examine student attitudes toward environmental justice. Participants were 61 Master of Social Work students from three cohorts. The students provided pre- and posttest responses to the Climate Change Attitude Survey. Students also offered 33 comments in response to an open-ended question about views on climate change. Overall, findings revealed increases in beliefs that climate change is negatively affecting the environment and that this change has a disproportionately negative effect on populations served by social workers. Feedback indicated students viewed the module as contributing to their learning. Results suggest that integrating environmental justice content into core courses like HBSE is a promising approach to strengthening environmental justice education in social work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explores the impact of information and communications technology (ICT) use on rural child welfare practice using a technology‐in‐practice framework to derive the social structures that are instantiated by rural child welfare workers (CWWs) and to examine their agency as actors. ICT use was tracked, and interviews were conducted with rural CWWs who work with children and families to gain an understanding of and describe their day‐to‐day ICT use at the practice level. Findings demonstrate that CWWs enact social structures along four frames: bureaucratic structure, family centricity, ICT context and information–documentation culture. In terms of agency, CWWs not only are constrained by but also exert some influence on the social structures they enact through facilities (material resources), norms and interpretive schemes. These findings have implications for how ICT can be used to facilitate the CWW–client relationship and the need in rural areas for increased infrastructure to support CWWs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A core value in social work is the importance of the worker-client relationship. Communication is a key factor in this relationship. The pandemic, marked by a dramatic, rapid increase in communication through information communication technology (ICT), has underscored both challenges and benefits for the worker-client relationship. Informed by communication theories, this paper provides a conceptual framework for examining ICT interactions between workers and clients at the generalist practice level. The review revealed four challenges (e.g., more permeable worker-client boundaries) and five benefits (e.g., increased opportunities for social presence). Factors to be considered in guiding tool selection are: (1) communication medium "bandwidth", (2) mutual directionality, (3) privacy and confidentiality, (4) message formality, and (5) complexity of message content. Implications for practice, education, and research emerged from this framework. For instance, increased methods of communication via technology can enhance social workers' social presence in relating to clients. However, social workers must know how and when to use which tools. Finally, evidence is needed regarding how ICT use affects the worker-client relationship. Moving forward, we recommend applying communication theories to guide research on the impact of ICT on the worker-client relationship with the goal of establishing best practices for ICT use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using a sample of 705 early-career child welfare workers, client-perpetrated violence (CPV), a form of workplace violence, was examined to determine whether CPV experiences differ by worker responsibilities and demographic characteristics and how CPV influences workers' intent to leave their child welfare positions. Results showed that protective investigators experienced more nonphysical violence (being yelled at or cursed at), while those providing longer-term case management services experienced more physical assaults. Analyses indicated no significant relationships between CPV and intent to leave, although there were significant differences in worker characteristics and the type of CPV experienced. Implications for training and organizational responses are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the past 2 decades, social work education has increasingly advocated for inclusion of trauma-related content in educational programming. Yet, to date, little is known about the current state of trauma education and training in social work programs. The aim of this study is to describe trauma education and training in accredited, North American social work programs. The data are from an online survey of 192 social work educators from 165 universities with accredited social work programs in the United States (n=151) and Canada (n=14). Participants were asked whether trauma-specific education is offered, and if so, to provide the formats used to deliver the content, the type of curriculum used, and evaluation efforts. Most programs (67.9%) reported integrating trauma education into existing courses, with 61.4% of BSW programs and 65.4% of MSW programs offering some form of trauma education. Results suggest that social work educators are recognizing the importance of including trauma education in their programming. However, more evaluation is needed to identify specific trauma content being presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is well established that successful transitions into adulthood vary greatly by numerous factors (e.g., race, gender); yet, understanding of ways that disability-related factors shape transitions into adulthood are less clear. While individuals with disabilities, generally, often fall short of their non-disabled peers in achieving many early adult milestones, fuller conceptualisations that recognise the diversity among individuals with disabilities are warranted. Informed by recent findings suggesting the variability of experiences of young adults with disabilities by disability type and severity, as well as disability frameworks that focus on 'normative' population outcomes as proxies of activities and participation among individuals with and without disabilities, this study uses data from two waves of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health to describe and compare the success of young people by disability status, type, and severity as they transition from high school, enrol in college, or gain employment. Findings derived from logistic regression models suggest consistent disadvantages for individuals with cognitive disabilities relative to peers with physical disabilities as well as peers without disabilities across important early adult transitions. Policy and practice implications to address these inequalities are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent semi-structured interviews with 28 librarians and branch managers on the placement of social workers in public libraries revealed a need for library and information science (LIS) programs to better prepare students for their role as social service information providers and to provide models for working with and supervising social workers in the library. It is clear that libraries are experiencing increasing demands to respond to the social-service information needs that users bring to the library, and the importance of libraries to communities in times of uncertainty and crisis is clear. In response, some libraries are including social workers on staff, but this trend does not completely relieve librarians of the need to serve the public's social-service information needs. LIS students need to understand the professional boundaries of librarianship and social work and to develop the ability to feel confident in their interactions with users who have been traumatized, are in crisis, or are struggling with challenges such as the need for credible health information; home and food insecurity information; legal aid; access to the Internet for individuals and families from low-income situations; accessible adult education programs; and more. Interview participants offered a number of suggestions for how to incorporate social work concepts into LIS education and asked for several specific skills such as training in mental-health first aid, de-escalation techniques, and greater knowledge of social-service resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]