{"title":"Impact of Substance Use Terminology on MSW Students: A Randomized Vignette Study","authors":"Alex Lee, Douglas C. Smith, Corey C. Campbell","doi":"10.1177/10497315251338224","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/10497315251338224","url":null,"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.","PeriodicalId":47993,"journal":{"name":"Research on Social Work Practice","volume":"99 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-06-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144236798","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Evaluating Standards of Care Training for Social Workers Completing Suicide Risk Assessment","authors":"Michelle Scott, Maureen Underwood","doi":"10.1177/10497315251346037","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/10497315251346037","url":null,"abstract":"Purpose: This study evaluated the effects of a 3h workshop on social workers’ knowledge and utilization of standards of care for suicide risk-assessment. Methods: A nonexperimental, one-group, pre- and post-assessment assessed change in knowledge of standards of care for suicide with 41 social workers. Focus groups and surveys, 6-months postworkshop, described providers’ perceived effectiveness and utilization of the standards of care in practice. >Results: Mean knowledge of standards of care for suicide score increased (pre- to post-assessment and pre- to follow up). Comfort-level and level of concern with malpractice in suicide risk-assessment improved. At follow up, social workers improved use of evidence-based practices and documentation. Discussion: Given social workers provide the majority of mental health services in the United States, it is essential that the National Association of Social Work and Council on Social Work Education endorse social work specific-standards of care for suicide to improve best practice with clients.","PeriodicalId":47993,"journal":{"name":"Research on Social Work Practice","volume":"10 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-06-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144210942","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Ming Hou, Mohammad Reevany Bustami, Xizhao Li, Congwen Wang
{"title":"How Effective Are Professional Social Workers in Chinese Communities?","authors":"Ming Hou, Mohammad Reevany Bustami, Xizhao Li, Congwen Wang","doi":"10.1177/10497315251346043","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/10497315251346043","url":null,"abstract":"Purpose: This study aims to reveal the mediating effect of social workers in improving residents’ well-being index. Methods: A total of 643 questionnaires were collected and the mediating effect was verified by SPSS PROCESS macro. Results: Community activities have a significant impact on residents’ sense of happiness. Social workers play a mediating role in some activities, but their overall explanatory power is limited and the perception of the mechanism is insufficient. It is necessary to enhance the quality of social workers’ intervention and institutional support and improve their professional functions and public recognition in the generation of residents’ happiness. Discussion: The mediating role of social workers varies in different types of community activities, with a relatively weak overall effect. Residents rely more on the experiences brought by the activities themselves to gain happiness, highlighting the issue of the perceivability and mechanism embedding of social work professional functions in practice.","PeriodicalId":47993,"journal":{"name":"Research on Social Work Practice","volume":"47 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-05-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144193197","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Social Network as an Engagement Approach in Child Maltreatment Prevention Programs: A Scoping Review","authors":"Yiran Zhang, Jinyu Chen, Shuting Yuan, Qiuchang Cao, Amanda Cruce, Huajie Gu, Xuemei Xiao, Weizhi Chen","doi":"10.1177/10497315251338478","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/10497315251338478","url":null,"abstract":"While prevention programs improve parenting and reduce maltreatment risks, engaging parents, particularly from marginalized populations, remains challenging. This scoping review systematically examines the implementation of social network strategy as an engagement approach and evaluates its impact on engagement. A systematic search of relevant databases identified 18 eligible studies conducted between 2010 and 2023. These studies utilized social network engagement strategies. A total of 18 studies were identified. Most studies used the social network strategies to target context. Social network strategies demonstrated positive effects on behavioral, attitudinal, and relational engagement. However, few studies applied these strategies in pre- and post-implementation phases, and most lacked social network theoretical frameworks. Most studies used the qualitative methods to evaluate the engagement outcomes. Findings underscore the need for improved theoretical guidance and rigor evaluation of social network strategies. This review offers implications for designing and implementing effective child maltreatment prevention programs.","PeriodicalId":47993,"journal":{"name":"Research on Social Work Practice","volume":"13 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-05-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144193194","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Book Review: Dimensions of Human Behavior: The Changing Life Course by E. D. Hutchison and L. W. Charlesworth 11 HutchisonE. D.CharlesworthL. W. , Dimensions of Human Behavior: The Changing Life Course. SAGE Publications, 2025, 784 pp., $166.00, ISBN: 978-1-0718-3159-5","authors":"Ingrid A. Russo, Joel L. Carr","doi":"10.1177/10497315251345477","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/10497315251345477","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":47993,"journal":{"name":"Research on Social Work Practice","volume":"5 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-05-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144165559","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Book Review: Cognitive Behavior Therapy for Those Who Say They Can’t by Cohen, Elliot CohenElliot. Cognitive Behavior Therapy for Those Who Say They Can’t. New York, NY: Routledge Taylor & Francis Group, 2022. 226 pp. ISBN 9780367473907.","authors":"William John Knaus","doi":"10.1177/10497315251342198","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/10497315251342198","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":47993,"journal":{"name":"Research on Social Work Practice","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-05-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144165325","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Magdalena Hanková, Radana Kroutilová Nováková, Jana Martincová, Alena Hricová
{"title":"Social Rehabilitation to Strengthen the Autonomy and Self-Sufficiency of Disabled People: Pre–Post Study","authors":"Magdalena Hanková, Radana Kroutilová Nováková, Jana Martincová, Alena Hricová","doi":"10.1177/10497315251339628","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/10497315251339628","url":null,"abstract":"Purpose: To assess how social rehabilitation (SR) services in Zlín Region, Czechia, strengthen the autonomy and self-sufficiency of disabled persons by monitoring nine areas: exercising rights, safety, work and self-actualization, social relations, eating, coping with everyday tasks and self-care, communication, autonomy, and health care. Methods: Mixed-methods (Embedded) design was used with two data collection waves (2020-2021), involving structured rating interview with disabled individuals ( <jats:italic>N</jats:italic> <jats:sub>2020</jats:sub> = 105, <jats:italic>N</jats:italic> <jats:sub>2021</jats:sub> = 95) and semistructured interviews with social workers ( <jats:italic>N</jats:italic> <jats:sub>2020</jats:sub> , <jats:sub>2021</jats:sub> = 16). Results: Improvements were quantitatively observed and qualitatively validated across all monitored areas ( <jats:italic>p</jats:italic> < 0.001 for all domains), with the most notable gains in communication (pre <jats:sub>mean</jats:sub> = 2.95; post <jats:sub>mean</jats:sub> = 3.27; Cohen's <jats:italic>d</jats:italic> = .619, <jats:italic>p</jats:italic> < 0.001), less in social relations (pre <jats:sub>mean</jats:sub> <jats:sub>=</jats:sub> 2.82; post <jats:sub>mean</jats:sub> = 3.02; Cohen's <jats:italic>d</jats:italic> = .716, <jats:italic>p</jats:italic> < 0.001). Conclusions: SR enhances autonomy and self-sufficiency, particularly in communication. Improvements were most notable among 25% of participants, who also saw gains in other areas, highlighting abilities interconnectedness.","PeriodicalId":47993,"journal":{"name":"Research on Social Work Practice","volume":"42 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-05-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144113544","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
David Westlake, Philip Pallmann, Fiona Lugg-Widger, Elizabeth-Ann Schroeder, Linda Adara, Kim Munnery, Sharon Ayayo, Verity Bennett, Melissa Meindl, Philip Smith, Jennifer Condie, Shahd Daher, Louisa M. Roberts, Sarah Rawlinson, Donald Forrester, Stavros Petrou, James White
{"title":"A Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial of Social Workers in Schools (SWIS) in England","authors":"David Westlake, Philip Pallmann, Fiona Lugg-Widger, Elizabeth-Ann Schroeder, Linda Adara, Kim Munnery, Sharon Ayayo, Verity Bennett, Melissa Meindl, Philip Smith, Jennifer Condie, Shahd Daher, Louisa M. Roberts, Sarah Rawlinson, Donald Forrester, Stavros Petrou, James White","doi":"10.1177/10497315251338227","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/10497315251338227","url":null,"abstract":"Purpose: “Social Workers in Schools” (SWIS) is a school-based intervention aiming to reduce the need for children to receive child protection services in England. This article reports the findings of a randomized controlled trial (RCT) designed to evaluate SWIS. Method: The study was a two-arm pragmatic cluster RCT with an embedded process and economic evaluation. The intervention physically located social workers within schools. The primary outcome was the rate of child protection inquiries and secondary outcomes included care entry and educational outcomes. Results: 278,858 students in 268 schools were randomized to the intervention (136 schools) or control arm (132 schools). We found no statistically significant effects on primary or secondary outcomes. SWIS was implemented well and positively perceived. Discussion: SWIS appears ineffective in reducing the need for statutory services. The study demonstrates it is possible to conduct a large-scale school-based social work RCT. The study was registered at <jats:ext-link xmlns:xlink=\"http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink\" ext-link-type=\"uri\" xlink:href=\"https://www.isrctn.com/\">https://www.isrctn.com/</jats:ext-link> , ref: ISRCTN90922032.","PeriodicalId":47993,"journal":{"name":"Research on Social Work Practice","volume":"32 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-05-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144113549","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Book Reviews: The Routledge Handbook of International Development, Mental Health, and Wellbeing by Davidson, L. DavidsonL. (Ed.). The Routledge Handbook of International Development, Mental Health, and Wellbeing. London: Routledge, 2019. 433 pp. £36.79(paperback). ISBN 9780367783853","authors":"Siti Makhmudah","doi":"10.1177/10497315251336717","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/10497315251336717","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":47993,"journal":{"name":"Research on Social Work Practice","volume":"277 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-05-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143901552","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Ming Yu Claudia Wong, Stanley Kam Ki Lam, Janet Yuen-Ha Wong, Hong Wang Fung
{"title":"Development of a Shorten Version of the 22-Item Level of Self-Criticism Scale: Using Item Response Theory and Factor Analysis","authors":"Ming Yu Claudia Wong, Stanley Kam Ki Lam, Janet Yuen-Ha Wong, Hong Wang Fung","doi":"10.1177/10497315251335256","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/10497315251335256","url":null,"abstract":"Purpose Excessive self-criticism, along with negative self-evaluation and perceived unfavorable judgments from others, often leads to emotional distress. The Levels of Self-Criticism (LOSC) scale identifies two distinct forms of self-criticism: comparative self-criticism and internalized self-criticism, yet with varying psychometric stability across different populations. Method This study developed a shortened, psychometrically robust version of the LOSC by employing item response theory (IRT) and factor analysis to enhance the practicality and reliability of the scale. Results 415 participants completed the baseline survey, and 232 completed the post-test, engaging 83% of females with Mage = 39.73. IRT analysis eliminated 11 items, with the remaining items demonstrating optimal item performance and significant concurrent validity with related measures. This shortened LOSC showed strong test–retest reliability and construct validity. Discussion This streamlined scale provides a precise tool for assessing self-criticism, contributing to better psychological practice and research.","PeriodicalId":47993,"journal":{"name":"Research on Social Work Practice","volume":"44 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-05-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143901553","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}