Impact of Substance Use Terminology on MSW Students: A Randomized Vignette Study

IF 1.5 4区社会学 Q1 SOCIAL WORK

Research on Social Work Practice Pub Date : 2025-06-06 DOI:10.1177/10497315251338224

Alex Lee, Douglas C. Smith, Corey C. Campbell

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Purpose Despite recognizing substance use-related stigma as a potential primary obstacle to treatment engagement, there is limited evidence investigating the nuanced intersection of stigma with master's level social work (MSW) education. Method We randomly assigned 322 MSW students to read one of two vignettes differing only in terminology describing a character's substance use condition (“substance use disorder” vs. “substance abuser”). Two Likert scales measured attitudes toward punishment and personal comfort. Results Students exposed to less stigmatizing language perceived lower social threat in individuals with SUD, with no significant difference in punitive attitudes. Discussion Findings reveal that language used by future social workers affects attitudes toward substance use. Terms like “substance use disorder” reduce perceptions of social threat, highlighting the need to educate MSW students on stigma-reducing language. This may foster more empathetic, professional practice. Further research should explore additional methods for reducing stigmatizing attitudes in social work education.

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物质使用术语对城市生活垃圾学生的影响：一项随机研究

尽管认识到与物质使用相关的耻辱感是参与治疗的潜在主要障碍，但研究耻辱感与硕士社会工作（MSW）教育之间微妙交集的证据有限。方法：我们随机分配322名MSW学生阅读两篇描述人物物质使用状况的小短文中的一篇（“物质使用障碍”与“物质滥用者”）。两个李克特量表测量了对惩罚和个人舒适的态度。结果接触污名化语言较少的学生对社会威胁的感知程度较低，在惩罚态度上无显著差异。研究结果表明，未来社会工作者使用的语言会影响对物质使用的态度。像“物质使用障碍”这样的术语减少了对社会威胁的认知，强调了对城市生活垃圾学生进行减少耻辱语言教育的必要性。这可能会培养更多的同理心和专业实践。进一步的研究应该探索在社会工作教育中减少污名化态度的其他方法。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Research on Social Work Practice SOCIAL WORK-

CiteScore

3.50

自引率

11.10%

发文量

105

期刊介绍： Research on Social Work Practice, sponsored by the Society for Social Work and Research, is a disciplinary journal devoted to the publication of empirical research concerning the methods and outcomes of social work practice. Social work practice is broadly interpreted to refer to the application of intentionally designed social work intervention programs to problems of societal and/or interpersonal importance, including behavior analysis or psychotherapy involving individuals; case management; practice involving couples, families, and small groups; community practice education; and the development, implementation, and evaluation of social policies.