Some indications for professional development in social work: a study of theoretical interest and attitudes towards research among Icelandic social workers

This study among Icelandic social workers generally showed positive attitudes towards research activity in the field. Most respondents, whereof half were practice teachers, saw the practicum as an important tool for the integration of theoretical application and research activity to practice. Almost all saw research activity as a feasible way to empower social work as a profession. Simultaneously, a relatively small percentage report their own research activity. Besides this discrepancy some interesting differences were found according to number of years after graduation, field employment and experience as practice teachers. It is argued that the theme in focus is a critical indication of professional development and highly relevant for the educational discourse as for future professional development.     

Motivations to become a master in social work: a typology of students

ABSTRACT

In the field of social work education, many studies address students’ motivations to become social workers. Most of these studies focus on bachelor‘s students in social work and confirm that altruistic and expressive motivations underlie students’ decisions to enter the social work profession. However, few studies focus on students earning a Master in Social Work (MSW). The purpose of this paper is to explore why students want to earn a master’s degree in social work. An online questionnaire was developed, and the results of six focus group discussions were used. The sample includes 116 graduates from the past 8 years and current students from the MSW programme at the University of Antwerp. We use exploratory factor analysis and identify two types of motivation. In line with earlier studies, we find that the first type is an expressive motivation. These students want to learn more about poverty and social justice and are motivated to improve the life conditions of vulnerable target groups. The second type is an instrumental motivation. These students are oriented towards the development of their professional careers.     

A Report on the Use of Open Access Podcasting in the Promotion of Social Work

Open access podcasting or podcasts on the internet on specific disciplinary topics are gaining prominence but are not well researched. This paper explores the usefulness of a new podcast series for social workers freely available on the internet that aims to: promote the profession of social work and contribute to a social work identity; make connections between theory, research, and practice; introduce students to real-life practice issues much earlier than often occurs in undergraduate degrees; and provide practitioners with opportunities for ongoing professional development. The evaluation was based on social media and website statistics, a survey of 22 students and nine educators, and a content analysis of listener feedback. While the evaluation provided limited evidence that all the aims had been met, the findings revealed very positive attitudes towards the initiative.     

Attitudes of social work students towards older people

Demographic ageing is a challenge for many countries. Even though Turkey has a relatively younger demographic composition, the proportion of the older people (65+) within the population is rapidly increasing. Within this framework, older people are becoming more important clients for both social work students and social workers in Turkey. This study aims to reveal the attitudes of social work students towards older people and determine the various factors that affect their views on older persons. In the scope of the project, Kogan's Attitude Towards Old People Scale was applied to 419 social work undergraduate students at a university located in Central Anatolia. The findings showed that social work students scored a mean of 130.96 and they generally had positive attitudes towards older people. The correlation between year of study, gender and age was not statistically significant. However, having lived mostly in urban areas was positively correlated with the mean Kogan scores and this finding was found to be statistically significant. Exposure to personal contact with older people at both the personal and professional levels was influential in shaping attitudes about the older people.     

Learning from service users’ involvement: a research about changing stigmatizing attitudes in social work students

Abstract

Stigmatizing attitudes can create barriers to forming partnership with service users and to developing people’s empowerment. So, social work education must help students overcome their stigmatizing attitudes. A useful strategy for bringing about changes is service users’ and carers’ involvement in social work education, providing students with direct exposure to stigmatized people in roles that emphasize their humanity and strengths, rather than their deficits. The present study assessed the impact of a one-day meeting with service users and carers members of self-help and mutual-aid groups on freshman social work students. Students completed an adapted version of Attitudes to Mental Illness Questionnaire before and after the meeting, and answered several qualitative questions. Data comparisons suggest that after face-to-face contact with service users and carers, social work students showed reduced stigmatizing attitudes. Implications for further research and social work education are discussed.     

Effects of an Educational Unit About Lesbian Identity Development and Disclosure in a Social Work Methods Course

This article describes an investigation of the effects of a short-term educational intervention on graduate social work students’ attitudes toward lesbians and gay men, their knowledge about lesbian identity development and disclosure, and their anticipated professional behavior with lesbian clients. The author describes the importance of reducing homophobia among social work students and presents a theoretical framework for the educational intervention used in this study. Although knowledge acquisition significantly increased among students in both of the study’s treatment groups relative to the comparison group, and although students from one treatment group showed significant improvement in their attitudes toward gay men relative to the comparison group, neither treatment group significantly improved in their attitudes toward lesbians or their anticipated professional behavior with lesbian clients relative to the comparison group.     

Educating for cross-disciplinary collaboration: Present trends and future possibilities

Abstract

Like other service providers, social workers periodically seek to harness different professional skills and insights in order to make a more comprehensive response to client needs. Unfortunately, cross-disciplinary relationships are hard to establish and maintain, due to structural and cultural barriers. Education and training programs can be used as tools to inculcate the knowledge, skills and attitudes on which successful collaboration depends. The targeting of undergraduate students is controversial. Since they have yet to develop a sense of professional identity, these students may resist pressures to trust and share. This paper contends that it is reasonable to begin instruction at the undergraduate level, and explores possibilities for curriculum development and research.

In summary

Like other human service providers, social workers must come to grips with industrial realities of the early 21st century. As part of this process, they must reappraise their role relationships with other service providers. On some matters at least, it may be possible to transcend traditional rivalries, and develop new forms of partnership and alliance. Education and training programs have a useful role to play in developing the knowledge, skills and attitudes on which successful cross-disciplinary work depends.     

An Exploratory Study on Attitudes Toward Persons with Disabilities Among U.S. and Japanese Social Work Students

ABSTRACT

This exploratory study was conducted to understand and compare attitudes among social work students in the United States and Japan toward people with disabilities. The Modified Issues in Disabilities Scale (MIDS), designed to measure attitudes toward people with physical disabilities, was implemented on convenient samples of 92 U.S. and 73 Japanese social work students. The findings suggest that social work students in both countries hold moderately positive attitudes. Other similarities as well as differences among the sampled students from the two countries, and their implications to social work education, will be discussed in this paper.     

Attitudes and Behaviors of Social Work Students Toward Lesbian and Gay Male Clients

Abstract

Since the requirement of the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) to integrate theoretical and practice content about the oppression of gay and lesbian persons into the curriculum, few studies have assessed the effectiveness of various methods of incorporating the content. This paper reports the results of a study examining the effects of a panel presentation on social work students' attitudes, their anticipated professional practice, and the relationship between their attitudes and anticipated professional behavior. It also compares the results from the panel presentation with the results from other intervention methods. Results indicated that the panel presentation had little influence on the attitudes or anticipated professional behavior of students. Intervention methods integrated into the classroom setting influenced the attitudes and anticipated professional behavior of students significantly more than the panel presentation.     

Student Knowledge of and Attitudes toward Psychotropic Drugs

Abstract

Expanding social work roles in medication management and psychoeducation, especially in mental health, clearly require that students possess an enlarged knowledge base and a set of enlightened attitudes regarding psychotropic medications and their use. This article reports the results of a survey that investigated the knowledge of and attitudes toward psychotropic medications among a population of social work students. If the survey results were scored like a school exam, then the average student surveyed scored a “C !.” The article also suggests that both personal and professional experiences in the mental health field apparently influence knowledge of and attitudes toward psychotropic drugs. It is recommended that social work course content be expanded to include relevant information on psychotropic drugs.     

Personal Growth Towards Intercultural Competence Through an International Field Education Programme

Abstract

An international social work field education programme at the University of South Australia provides social work students with the opportunity to develop intercultural skills and intercultural sensitivity. The programme is conceptualised within a developmental framework that enables the identification of stages of personal growth and professional development from ethnocentrism to ‘interculturality’ or intercultural sensitivity. This framework, alongside the use of a clear ethical perspective and the reflective practice process, is a useful resource to assist students to identify their level of sophistication of cross-cultural competence and to respond to them in ways that facilitate their growth and development towards competent social workers working with difference and across cultures.     

Social Work Students' Attitudes toward Homosexuality and Their Knowledge and Attitudes toward Homosexual Parenting as an Alternative Family Unit: An Australian Study

Attitudes have become increasingly more accepting toward homosexuality, yet negative attitudes toward homosexual parents continue. There appears to be no research specifically examining Australian social work students' attitudes towards homosexuality and homosexual parenting. This article reports on a study of final year social work students in the undergraduate social work programme at one university in the State of Victoria. This study investigated student attitudes to homosexuality, and their knowledge and attitudes toward homosexual parenting as an alternative family unit via the administration of a questionnaire containing a number of scales and questions, some in response to a case vignette involving couples of different sexual orientations (lesbian, gay and heterosexual). It was found that most of the students had liberal attitudes toward homosexuality and homosexual parenting, and had high levels of knowledge about homosexual parenting. Students were generally favourable towards all three couples in the vignettes, but rated lesbian parents followed by gay parents most highly. It was found that the inclusion of the topic of homosexuality within the social work curriculum was extremely minimal. These findings are discussed within the context of previous research. The implications of the findings for curriculum development and directions for future research are also discussed.     

Attitudes to child care reform in Romania: Findings from a survey of Romanian social workers

This paper presents the findings of a survey of Romanian social workers' attitudes towards two key aspects of child and family social work in their country: namely, the development of foster care, and the regulation of inter-country adoption. Major changes to the law on these matters were introduced in Romania in 1997, and the paper links the research findings with discussion of the progress, and difficulties, of putting the new legislation into practice. The research was undertaken in spring 1999, by means of a self-completion questionnaire for social workers and workers in related occupations. Comparisons between the attitudes of the two groups, and analysis of differences within the social work group, generate insights into the ways in which the new approaches to child and family welfare are taking hold in Romania. The research highlights the wide range of opinions and beliefs within the social services workforce in Romania, and draws attention to the complex interaction of professional education, workplace culture, and government policy in shaping those attitudes. The conclusion offers some thoughts on ways forward for child care policy, practice, research, and training in Romania.     

Developing social work students’ professional identity: the role of England’s Professional Capabilities Framework

ABSTRACT

Developing professional identity is a key aim of social work education. This paper argues that the Professional Capabilities Framework (PCF) – a holistic, capability approach to student assessment used in England’s social work education programmes – is ideally placed to promote the development of students’ professional identities. The paper discusses two research studies, each of which was stimulated by significant policy changes in England’s social work profession. The author draws out the implications of both studies for supporting social work students to develop their professional identities. It is concluded that the PCF is valued by practice educators as an assessment and teaching tool, while acknowledging that its future is uncertain due to the lack of continuity impacting on England’s social work profession. This paper is equally of relevance for social work educators outside the UK who may be developing and evaluating their assessment approaches and also for those experiencing the impact of rapid policy changes in their own countries.     

Field Note—From MSW to J-O-B: Using Field Seminar to Prepare Students for Employment

ABSTRACT

Social work field education is expected to help students transition from the classroom to the practice setting. Yet, few social work programs adequately provide career development support to increase students’ employability. This Field Note presents practical, relevant and immediate strategies for implementing the MSW to J-O-B curriculum innovation in the field practicum seminar. The purpose is to help students clarify professional goals and successfully obtain employment or career advancement opportunities following graduation. Formative evaluation results for this professional development curriculum are presented.     

Learning to be interprofessional through the use of reflective portfolios?

Learning portfolios are used extensively in health and social care. There is evidence of their value as a tool to consolidate learning although limited information is available regarding their use in social work education. This study explores the use of a portfolio to encourage social work students to reflect on their interprofessional learning (IPL). The portfolio offers a means of demonstrating professionalism concerning knowledge, skills and attitudes in the context of collaborative practice. The findings of this research suggest that qualifying students were largely capable of reflecting on their development of interprofessional competence after attending specific IPL events, which were part of a wider programme. Social work students found reflective writing difficult, although this improved over time. In particular students struggled to write about skills and attitudes. Students perceived the portfolio to be a good way to assess their progress and believed this helped them to engage with their learning and make meaning through reflection and analysis. They appreciated that IPL and feedback from their assessments had advanced their abilities for self-analysis; despite needing help with reflective writing, they felt better prepared for ongoing use of reflection in their professional development, and in ‘working together’.     

Winnicott’s “Potential Space” and the Jewish Study Hall for social work students,faculty and practitioners

Abstract

The article addresses the potential interface and dialogue between academic and quasi-academic spaces. In particular, it examines the space of the Jewish Study Hall (Beit Midrash) as facilitative of the professional as well as personal development of social work students and practitioners in an Israeli college. We examine how Winnicott’s potential space concept contributes to understanding the Study Hall’s uniqueness as an extracurricular learning space within the School of Social Work. Twenty participants in the Beit Midrash for Judaism and Social Work took part in the study. Thematic analysis of transcribed sessions revealed three themes: (1) The Beit Midrash as a peaceful, safe and inclusive physical space; (2) The Beit Midrash as a space for playing out different realities; and (3) The Beit Midrash as contributing to social work training. Findings indicate that potential spaces that embrace the metaphysical world can help students engaged in religion and spirituality to complement and expand their academic training. We conclude by recommending that Winnicottian potential spaces that embrace the metaphysical world be integrated in social work programmes.     

Research Training and Professional Social Work Education: Developing Research‐Minded Practice

The movement towards developing practice more firmly grounded on empirical research has, arguably, been one of the most significant international trends in social work during the past decade. However, in the UK the implications of this trend for pedagogical practices and the design of educational programmes have still to be fully explored. This paper reports on the findings of a repeated cross‐sectional survey of MSW students in Queen's University Belfast which focused on their perceptions of the value of research training to professional practice. The study, conducted over a four year period, explored students' awareness of the relationship between research and practice and their readiness to engage with research training. The findings suggested that the majority of students perceived research training as a valuable component of professional development. However, the study also found a level of scepticism among students about its practical utility along with some resistance towards actively embracing a research agenda. The paper evaluates the significance of these findings for developing research and evidence‐based practice as integral components of the new degrees in social work in the UK and for social work education programmes in other countries aiming to develop research‐minded practice.     

Social Work Admissions and Academic Accommodations for Students with Disabilities

ABSTRACT

The Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) protects students wth disabilities from discrimination by academic and professional programs in higher education. A student with a disability cannot be denied admission to an educational program because of his or her disability if the student is otherwise qualified. This means that a student with a disability who is qualified for an academic or professional educational program cannot be denied admission to a program based solely on the student&s disability. This educational requirement mandated by the ADA applies to all educational fields including social work education. The purpose of this study was to explore how social work programs are dealing with these requirements in their admission and academic accommodation procedures. Twelve social work programs located in the mid-western United States participated in the study. Representatives of each of these programs were given an in-depth interview focusing on their admissions process, academic accommodations, and general topics related to social work education and disabilities. All programs taking part in the research were accredited by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE). The CSWE is the national accreditation body for social work education within the United States.     

Current Manifestations of Racism: An Exploratory Study of Social Distance and White Racial Identity

Abstract

White racial identity theory postulates that White individuals differ in their psychological orientation to race. However, the racial attitudes research has not examined how these differences impact the degree of social contact an individual is likely to have with members from other racial groups. The authors assessed participants' White racial identity and social distance towards White, Asian, Black, Native, and Latino Americans. The nature of the relationship was examined with a canonical correlation analysis. The analysis revealed a significant canonical variate, which indicated that more developed White racial identity status attitudes were related to less social distance towards members of other racial groups, while less developed racial identity status attitudes were related to greater social distance preference. The authors discuss the results in terms of the implications for psychology and offer recommendations for future research