Date of Award
5-2023
Document Type
Project
Degree Name
Master of Social Work
Department
School of Social Work
First Reader/Committee Chair
Levine-Sapozhnikov, Brooklyn
Abstract
High social worker turnover rates have impacted Child Welfare Services (CWS) for many years and remains a consistent issue. Retaining child welfare social workers is important to effectively serve clientele involved with CWS. This study sought to identify factors that increase social worker longevity in CWS. Using a post-positivist approach, the researcher gathered qualitative data from employees who previously and currently work for CWS in southern California through interviews. The researcher interviewed ten participants. Of those participants, four are no longer employed with a CWS agency and six remained employed with CWS, all with different lengths of employment and came from different cultural or educational backgrounds.
This study provides awareness to prospective child welfare social workers on factors that increase longevity in the field and issues that affect the length of stay in child welfare services. While individuals often make a career choice early on in their education, this study provides students with the opinions and experiences of social workers in child welfare and for students to decide if child welfare social work is a job suited for them. This study has the potential to educate the community on the roles of child welfare social workers. In addition, this study provides child welfare organization reasons social workers stay in this line of work in order to retain social work employees.
Recommended Citation
Lovejoy, Heather, "FACTORS THAT INCREASE SOCIAL WORKER LONGEVITY IN CHILD WELFARE SERVICES" (2023). Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations. 1561.
https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/etd/1561