research studies in social work

The link between social work research and practice

When thinking about social work, some may consider the field to solely focus on clinical interventions with individuals or groups.

There may be a mistaken impression that research is not a part of the social work profession. This is completely false. Rather, the two have been and will continue to need to be intertwined.

This guide covers why social workers should care about research, how both social work practice and social work research influence and guide each other, how to build research skills both as a student and as a professional working in the field, and the benefits of being a social worker with strong research skills.

A selection of social work research jobs are also discussed.

Social workers and research
Evidence-based practice
Practice and research
Research and practice
Build research skills
Social worker as researcher
Benefits of research skills
Research jobs

Why should social workers care about research?

Sometimes it may seem as though social work practice and social work research are two separate tracks running parallel to each other – they both seek to improve the lives of clients, families and communities, but they don’t interact. This is not the way it is supposed to work.

Research and practice should be intertwined, with each affecting the other and improving processes on both ends, so that it leads to better outcomes for the population we’re serving.

Section 5 of the NASW Social Work Code of Ethics is focused on social workers’ ethical responsibilities to the social work profession. There are two areas in which research is mentioned in upholding our ethical obligations: for the integrity of the profession (section 5.01) and for evaluation and research (section 5.02).

Some of the specific guidance provided around research and social work include:

5.01(b): …Social workers should protect, enhance, and improve the integrity of the profession through appropriate study and research, active discussion, and responsible criticism of the profession.
5.01(d): Social workers should contribute to the knowledge base of social work and share with colleagues their knowledge related to practice, research, and ethics…
5.02(a) Social workers should monitor and evaluate policies, the implementation of programs, and practice interventions.
5.02(b) Social workers should promote and facilitate evaluation and research to contribute to the development of knowledge.
5.02(c) Social workers should critically examine and keep current with emerging knowledge relevant to social work and fully use evaluation and research evidence in their professional practice.
5.02(q) Social workers should educate themselves, their students, and their colleagues about responsible research practices.

Evidence-based practice and evidence-based treatment

In order to strengthen the profession and determine that the interventions we are providing are, in fact, effective, we must conduct research. When research and practice are intertwined, this leads practitioners to develop evidence-based practice (EBP) and evidence-based treatment (EBT).

Evidence-based practice is, according to The National Association of Social Workers (NASW) , a process involving creating an answerable question based on a client or organizational need, locating the best available evidence to answer the question, evaluating the quality of the evidence as well as its applicability, applying the evidence, and evaluating the effectiveness and efficiency of the solution.

Evidence-based treatment is any practice that has been established as effective through scientific research according to a set of explicit criteria (Drake et al., 2001). These are interventions that, when applied consistently, routinely produce improved client outcomes.

For example, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) was one of a variety of interventions for those with anxiety disorders. Researchers wondered if CBT was better than other intervention options in producing positive, consistent results for clients.

So research was conducted comparing multiple types of interventions, and the evidence (research results) demonstrated that CBT was the best intervention.

The anecdotal evidence from practice combined with research evidence determined that CBT should become the standard treatment for those diagnosed with anxiety. Now more social workers are getting trained in CBT methods in order to offer this as a treatment option to their clients.

How does social work practice affect research?

Social work practice provides the context and content for research. For example, agency staff was concerned about the lack of nutritional food in their service area, and heard from clients that it was too hard to get to a grocery store with a variety of foods, because they didn’t have transportation, or public transit took too long.

So the agency applied for and received a grant to start a farmer’s market in their community, an urban area that was considered a food desert. This program accepted their state’s version of food stamps as a payment option for the items sold at the farmer’s market.

The agency used their passenger van to provide free transportation to and from the farmer’s market for those living more than four blocks from the market location.

The local university also had a booth each week at the market with nursing and medical students checking blood pressure and providing referrals to community agencies that could assist with medical needs. The agency was excited to improve the health of its clients by offering this program.

But how does the granting foundation know if this was a good use of their money? This is where research and evaluation comes in. Research could gather data to answer a number of questions. Here is but a small sample:

How many community members visited each week and purchased fruits and vegetables?
How many took advantage of the transportation provided, and how many walked to the market?
How many took advantage of the blood pressure checks? Were improvements seen in those numbers for those having repeat blood pressure readings throughout the market season?
How much did the self-reported fruit and vegetable intake increase for customers?
What barriers did community members report in visiting and buying food from the market (prices too high? Inconvenient hours?)
Do community members want the program to continue next year?
Was the program cost-effective, or did it waste money by paying for a driver and for gasoline to offer free transportation that wasn’t utilized? What are areas where money could be saved without compromising the quality of the program?
What else needs to be included in this program to help improve the health of community members?

How does research affect social work practice?

Research can guide practice to implement proven strategies. It can also ask the ‘what if’ or ‘how about’ questions that can open doors for new, innovative interventions to be developed (and then research the effectiveness of those interventions).

Engel and Schutt (2017) describe four categories of research used in social work:

Descriptive research is research in which social phenomena are defined and described. A descriptive research question would be ‘How many homeless women with substance use disorder live in the metro area?’
Exploratory research seeks to find out how people get along in the setting under question, what meanings they give to their actions, and what issues concern them. An example research question would be ‘What are the barriers to homeless women with substance use disorder receiving treatment services?’
Explanatory research seeks to identify causes and effects of social phenomena. It can be used to rule out other explanations for findings and show how two events are related to each other. An explanatory research question would be ‘Why do women with substance use disorder become homeless?’
Evaluation research describes or identifies the impact of social programs and policies. This type of research question could be ‘How effective was XYZ treatment-first program that combined housing and required drug/alcohol abstinence in keeping women with substance use disorder in stable housing 2 years after the program ended?’

Each of the above types of research can answer important questions about the population, setting or intervention being provided. This can help practitioners determine which option is most effective or cost-efficient or that clients are most likely to adhere to. In turn, this data allows social workers to make informed choices on what to keep in their practice, and what needs changing.

How to build research skills while in school

There are a number of ways to build research skills while a student. BSW and MSW programs require a research course, but there are other ways to develop these skills beyond a single class:

Volunteer to help a professor working in an area of interest. Professors are often excited to share their knowledge and receive extra assistance from students with similar interests.
Participate in student research projects where you’re the subject. These are most often found in psychology departments. You can learn a lot about the informed consent process and how data is collected by volunteering as a research participant. Many of these studies also pay a small amount, so it’s an easy way to earn a bit of extra money while you’re on campus.
Create an independent study research project as an elective and work with a professor who is an expert in an area you’re interested in. You’d design a research study, collect the data, analyze it, and write a report or possibly even an article you can submit to an academic journal.
Some practicum programs will have you complete a small evaluation project or assist with a larger research project as part of your field education hours.
In MSW programs, some professors hire students to conduct interviews or enter data on their funded research projects. This could be a good part time job while in school.
Research assistant positions are more common in MSW programs, and these pay for some or all your tuition in exchange for working a set number of hours per week on a funded research project.

How to build research skills while working as a social worker

Social service agencies are often understaffed, with more projects to complete than there are people to complete them.

Taking the initiative to volunteer to survey clients about what they want and need, conduct an evaluation on a program, or seeing if there is data that has been previously collected but not analyzed and review that data and write up a report can help you stand out from your peers, be appreciated by management and other staff, and may even lead to a raise, a promotion, or even new job opportunities because of the skills you’ve developed.

Benefits of being a social worker with strong research skills

Social workers with strong research skills can have the opportunity to work on various projects, and at higher levels of responsibility.

Many can be promoted into administration level positions after demonstrating they understand how to conduct, interpret and report research findings and apply those findings to improving the agency and their programs.

There’s also a level of confidence knowing you’re implementing proven strategies with your clients.

Social work research jobs

There are a number of ways in which you can blend interests in social work and research. A quick search on Glassdoor.com and Indeed.com retrieved the following positions related to social work research:

Research Coordinator on a clinical trial offering psychosocial supportive interventions and non-addictive pain treatments to minimize opioid use for pain.
Senior Research Associate leading and overseeing research on a suite of projects offered in housing, mental health and corrections.
Research Fellow in a school of social work
Project Policy Analyst for large health organization
Health Educator/Research Specialist to implement and evaluate cancer prevention and screening programs for a health department
Research Interventionist providing Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for insomnia patients participating in a clinical trial
Research Associate for Child Care and Early Education
Social Services Data Researcher for an organization serving adults with disabilities.
Director of Community Health Equity Research Programs evaluating health disparities.

No matter your population or area of interest, you’d likely be able to find a position that integrated research and social work.

Social work practice and research are and should remain intertwined. This is the only way we can know what questions to ask about the programs and services we are providing, and ensure our interventions are effective.

There are many opportunities to develop research skills while in school and while working in the field, and these skills can lead to some interesting positions that can make a real difference to clients, families and communities.

Drake, R. E., Goldman, H., Leff, H. S., Lehman, A. F., Dixon, L., Mueser, K. T., et al. (2001). Implementing evidence-based practices in routine mental health service settings. Psychiatric Services, 52(2), 179-182.

Engel, R.J., & Schutt, R.K. (2017). The Practice of Research in Social Work. Sage.

National Association of Social Workers. (n.d). Evidence Based Practice. Retrieved from: https://www.socialworkers.org/News/Research-Data/Social-Work-Policy-Research/Evidence-Based-Practice

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In This Article Expand or collapse the "in this article" section Social Work Research Methods

Introduction.

History of Social Work Research Methods
Feasibility Issues Influencing the Research Process
Measurement Methods
Existing Scales
Group Experimental and Quasi-Experimental Designs for Evaluating Outcome
Single-System Designs for Evaluating Outcome
Program Evaluation
Surveys and Sampling
Introductory Statistics Texts
Advanced Aspects of Inferential Statistics
Qualitative Research Methods
Qualitative Data Analysis
Historical Research Methods
Meta-Analysis and Systematic Reviews
Research Ethics
Culturally Competent Research Methods
Teaching Social Work Research Methods

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Abolitionist Perspectives in Social Work
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Social Work Research Methods by Allen Rubin LAST REVIEWED: 14 December 2009 LAST MODIFIED: 14 December 2009 DOI: 10.1093/obo/9780195389678-0008

Social work research means conducting an investigation in accordance with the scientific method. The aim of social work research is to build the social work knowledge base in order to solve practical problems in social work practice or social policy. Investigating phenomena in accordance with the scientific method requires maximal adherence to empirical principles, such as basing conclusions on observations that have been gathered in a systematic, comprehensive, and objective fashion. The resources in this entry discuss how to do that as well as how to utilize and teach research methods in social work. Other professions and disciplines commonly produce applied research that can guide social policy or social work practice. Yet no commonly accepted distinction exists at this time between social work research methods and research methods in allied fields relevant to social work. Consequently useful references pertaining to research methods in allied fields that can be applied to social work research are included in this entry.

This section includes basic textbooks that are used in courses on social work research methods. Considerable variation exists between textbooks on the broad topic of social work research methods. Some are comprehensive and delve into topics deeply and at a more advanced level than others. That variation is due in part to the different needs of instructors at the undergraduate and graduate levels of social work education. Most instructors at the undergraduate level prefer shorter and relatively simplified texts; however, some instructors teaching introductory master’s courses on research prefer such texts too. The texts in this section that might best fit their preferences are by Yegidis and Weinbach 2009 and Rubin and Babbie 2007 . The remaining books might fit the needs of instructors at both levels who prefer a more comprehensive and deeper coverage of research methods. Among them Rubin and Babbie 2008 is perhaps the most extensive and is often used at the doctoral level as well as the master’s and undergraduate levels. Also extensive are Drake and Jonson-Reid 2007 , Grinnell and Unrau 2007 , Kreuger and Neuman 2006 , and Thyer 2001 . What distinguishes Drake and Jonson-Reid 2007 is its heavy inclusion of statistical and Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) content integrated with each chapter. Grinnell and Unrau 2007 and Thyer 2001 are unique in that they are edited volumes with different authors for each chapter. Kreuger and Neuman 2006 takes Neuman’s social sciences research text and adapts it to social work. The Practitioner’s Guide to Using Research for Evidence-based Practice ( Rubin 2007 ) emphasizes the critical appraisal of research, covering basic research methods content in a relatively simplified format for instructors who want to teach research methods as part of the evidence-based practice process instead of with the aim of teaching students how to produce research.

Drake, Brett, and Melissa Jonson-Reid. 2007. Social work research methods: From conceptualization to dissemination . Boston: Allyn and Bacon.

This introductory text is distinguished by its use of many evidence-based practice examples and its heavy coverage of statistical and computer analysis of data.

Grinnell, Richard M., and Yvonne A. Unrau, eds. 2007. Social work research and evaluation: Quantitative and qualitative approaches . 8th ed. New York: Oxford Univ. Press.

Contains chapters written by different authors, each focusing on a comprehensive range of social work research topics.

Kreuger, Larry W., and W. Lawrence Neuman. 2006. Social work research methods: Qualitative and quantitative applications . Boston: Pearson, Allyn, and Bacon.

An adaptation to social work of Neuman's social sciences research methods text. Its framework emphasizes comparing quantitative and qualitative approaches. Despite its title, quantitative methods receive more attention than qualitative methods, although it does contain considerable qualitative content.

Rubin, Allen. 2007. Practitioner’s guide to using research for evidence-based practice . Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.

This text focuses on understanding quantitative and qualitative research methods and designs for the purpose of appraising research as part of the evidence-based practice process. It also includes chapters on instruments for assessment and monitoring practice outcomes. It can be used at the graduate or undergraduate level.

Rubin, Allen, and Earl R. Babbie. 2007. Essential research methods for social work . Belmont, CA: Thomson Brooks Cole.

This is a shorter and less advanced version of Rubin and Babbie 2008 . It can be used for research methods courses at the undergraduate or master's levels of social work education.

Rubin, Allen, and Earl R. Babbie. Research Methods for Social Work . 6th ed. Belmont, CA: Thomson Brooks Cole, 2008.

This comprehensive text focuses on producing quantitative and qualitative research as well as utilizing such research as part of the evidence-based practice process. It is widely used for teaching research methods courses at the undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral levels of social work education.

Thyer, Bruce A., ed. 2001 The handbook of social work research methods . Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

This comprehensive compendium includes twenty-nine chapters written by esteemed leaders in social work research. It covers quantitative and qualitative methods as well as general issues.

Yegidis, Bonnie L., and Robert W. Weinbach. 2009. Research methods for social workers . 6th ed. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.

This introductory paperback text covers a broad range of social work research methods and does so in a briefer fashion than most lengthier, hardcover introductory research methods texts.

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Social Work Research Methods That Drive the Practice

A social worker surveys a community member.

Social workers advocate for the well-being of individuals, families and communities. But how do social workers know what interventions are needed to help an individual? How do they assess whether a treatment plan is working? What do social workers use to write evidence-based policy?

Social work involves research-informed practice and practice-informed research. At every level, social workers need to know objective facts about the populations they serve, the efficacy of their interventions and the likelihood that their policies will improve lives. A variety of social work research methods make that possible.

Data-Driven Work

Data is a collection of facts used for reference and analysis. In a field as broad as social work, data comes in many forms.

Quantitative vs. Qualitative

As with any research, social work research involves both quantitative and qualitative studies.

Quantitative Research

Answers to questions like these can help social workers know about the populations they serve — or hope to serve in the future.

How many students currently receive reduced-price school lunches in the local school district?
How many hours per week does a specific individual consume digital media?
How frequently did community members access a specific medical service last year?

Quantitative data — facts that can be measured and expressed numerically — are crucial for social work.

Quantitative research has advantages for social scientists. Such research can be more generalizable to large populations, as it uses specific sampling methods and lends itself to large datasets. It can provide important descriptive statistics about a specific population. Furthermore, by operationalizing variables, it can help social workers easily compare similar datasets with one another.

Qualitative Research

Qualitative data — facts that cannot be measured or expressed in terms of mere numbers or counts — offer rich insights into individuals, groups and societies. It can be collected via interviews and observations.

What attitudes do students have toward the reduced-price school lunch program?
What strategies do individuals use to moderate their weekly digital media consumption?
What factors made community members more or less likely to access a specific medical service last year?

Qualitative research can thereby provide a textured view of social contexts and systems that may not have been possible with quantitative methods. Plus, it may even suggest new lines of inquiry for social work research.

Mixed Methods Research

Combining quantitative and qualitative methods into a single study is known as mixed methods research. This form of research has gained popularity in the study of social sciences, according to a 2019 report in the academic journal Theory and Society. Since quantitative and qualitative methods answer different questions, merging them into a single study can balance the limitations of each and potentially produce more in-depth findings.

However, mixed methods research is not without its drawbacks. Combining research methods increases the complexity of a study and generally requires a higher level of expertise to collect, analyze and interpret the data. It also requires a greater level of effort, time and often money.

The Importance of Research Design

Data-driven practice plays an essential role in social work. Unlike philanthropists and altruistic volunteers, social workers are obligated to operate from a scientific knowledge base.

To know whether their programs are effective, social workers must conduct research to determine results, aggregate those results into comprehensible data, analyze and interpret their findings, and use evidence to justify next steps.

Employing the proper design ensures that any evidence obtained during research enables social workers to reliably answer their research questions.

Research Methods in Social Work

The various social work research methods have specific benefits and limitations determined by context. Common research methods include surveys, program evaluations, needs assessments, randomized controlled trials, descriptive studies and single-system designs.

Surveys involve a hypothesis and a series of questions in order to test that hypothesis. Social work researchers will send out a survey, receive responses, aggregate the results, analyze the data, and form conclusions based on trends.

Surveys are one of the most common research methods social workers use — and for good reason. They tend to be relatively simple and are usually affordable. However, surveys generally require large participant groups, and self-reports from survey respondents are not always reliable.

Program Evaluations

Social workers ally with all sorts of programs: after-school programs, government initiatives, nonprofit projects and private programs, for example.

Crucially, social workers must evaluate a program’s effectiveness in order to determine whether the program is meeting its goals and what improvements can be made to better serve the program’s target population.

Evidence-based programming helps everyone save money and time, and comparing programs with one another can help social workers make decisions about how to structure new initiatives. Evaluating programs becomes complicated, however, when programs have multiple goal metrics, some of which may be vague or difficult to assess (e.g., “we aim to promote the well-being of our community”).

Needs Assessments

Social workers use needs assessments to identify services and necessities that a population lacks access to.

Common social work populations that researchers may perform needs assessments on include:

People in a specific income group
Everyone in a specific geographic region
A specific ethnic group
People in a specific age group

In the field, a social worker may use a combination of methods (e.g., surveys and descriptive studies) to learn more about a specific population or program. Social workers look for gaps between the actual context and a population’s or individual’s “wants” or desires.

For example, a social worker could conduct a needs assessment with an individual with cancer trying to navigate the complex medical-industrial system. The social worker may ask the client questions about the number of hours they spend scheduling doctor’s appointments, commuting and managing their many medications. After learning more about the specific client needs, the social worker can identify opportunities for improvements in an updated care plan.

In policy and program development, social workers conduct needs assessments to determine where and how to effect change on a much larger scale. Integral to social work at all levels, needs assessments reveal crucial information about a population’s needs to researchers, policymakers and other stakeholders. Needs assessments may fall short, however, in revealing the root causes of those needs (e.g., structural racism).

Randomized Controlled Trials

Randomized controlled trials are studies in which a randomly selected group is subjected to a variable (e.g., a specific stimulus or treatment) and a control group is not. Social workers then measure and compare the results of the randomized group with the control group in order to glean insights about the effectiveness of a particular intervention or treatment.

Randomized controlled trials are easily reproducible and highly measurable. They’re useful when results are easily quantifiable. However, this method is less helpful when results are not easily quantifiable (i.e., when rich data such as narratives and on-the-ground observations are needed).

Descriptive Studies

Descriptive studies immerse the researcher in another context or culture to study specific participant practices or ways of living. Descriptive studies, including descriptive ethnographic studies, may overlap with and include other research methods:

Informant interviews
Census data
Observation

By using descriptive studies, researchers may glean a richer, deeper understanding of a nuanced culture or group on-site. The main limitations of this research method are that it tends to be time-consuming and expensive.

Single-System Designs

Unlike most medical studies, which involve testing a drug or treatment on two groups — an experimental group that receives the drug/treatment and a control group that does not — single-system designs allow researchers to study just one group (e.g., an individual or family).

Single-system designs typically entail studying a single group over a long period of time and may involve assessing the group’s response to multiple variables.

For example, consider a study on how media consumption affects a person’s mood. One way to test a hypothesis that consuming media correlates with low mood would be to observe two groups: a control group (no media) and an experimental group (two hours of media per day). When employing a single-system design, however, researchers would observe a single participant as they watch two hours of media per day for one week and then four hours per day of media the next week.

These designs allow researchers to test multiple variables over a longer period of time. However, similar to descriptive studies, single-system designs can be fairly time-consuming and costly.

Learn More About Social Work Research Methods

Social workers have the opportunity to improve the social environment by advocating for the vulnerable — including children, older adults and people with disabilities — and facilitating and developing resources and programs.

Learn more about how you can earn your Master of Social Work online at Virginia Commonwealth University . The highest-ranking school of social work in Virginia, VCU has a wide range of courses online. That means students can earn their degrees with the flexibility of learning at home. Learn more about how you can take your career in social work further with VCU.

From M.S.W. to LCSW: Understanding Your Career Path as a Social Worker

How Palliative Care Social Workers Support Patients With Terminal Illnesses

How to Become a Social Worker in Health Care

Gov.uk, Mixed Methods Study

MVS Open Press, Foundations of Social Work Research

Open Social Work Education, Scientific Inquiry in Social Work

Open Social Work, Graduate Research Methods in Social Work: A Project-Based Approach

Routledge, Research for Social Workers: An Introduction to Methods

SAGE Publications, Research Methods for Social Work: A Problem-Based Approach

Theory and Society, Mixed Methods Research: What It Is and What It Could Be

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The Current State of Evidence-Based Practice in Social Work: A Review of the Literature and Qualitative Analysis of Expert Interviews

While there is recent movement toward Evidence-Based Practice (EBP) in social work, criticisms subsist regarding the profession’s translation of research into viable practices. Evidence describing effective interventions exists, but research that addresses dissemination and implementation is generally lacking. This paper highlights existing literature on dissemination and explores the barriers, themes, and trends in EBP through eight expert interviews. The interviews reflect the issues described in the literature and provide additional insight to the process of implementation and dissemination of EBP. Findings from the literature and interviews are synthesized into research and practice recommendations.

While there is a call for Evidence-Based Practice (EBP) in social work and mental health services, there have also been a number of criticisms about the implementation of research findings into viable methods of practice. These barriers range from the egregious lag-time between research development to dissemination of evidence to practice settings to a veritable lack of support and training for community practitioners. There is a growing body of evidence describing effective interventions, but there is not a substantial body of work addressing the dissemination of these programs and other research findings for use in the field. This paper highlights some of the work around dissemination of EBPs in the field of social work with an emphasis on mental health services including an overview of the barriers to the use of evidence in practice and proposed models of conceptualization and implementation of EBP. To further highlight the current barriers, themes, and trends in EBP eight experts in the field of EBP were interviewed. The goal of the interviews was to survey the opinions of expert researchers in the area of EBP to supplement knowledge described in the literature. The experts’ responses reflected many of the same issues described in the literature as well as additional information regarding their efforts toward determining the most viable options to address the barriers to implementing and disseminating EBP. Findings from the literature review and interviews are synthesized into recommendations for future research and practice efforts.

INTRODUCTION

Practice decisions based on research evidence have increasingly become an identified need in the treatment of mental illnesses. Three of the most influential reports on mental health services policy in recent years, The President’s New Freedom Commission on Mental Health Report (2003) , The World Health Organization Report on Mental Health (2001) , and Mental Health: A report of the Surgeon General (1999), emphasize the need for research and evidence-based practices (EBPs) in mental health services. Even more broad health policy reports, such as Healthy People 2010 (2000) from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), point to “an emphasis on translating new knowledge into clinical applications” in the mental health arena. The President’s New Freedom Commission on Mental Health (2003) recently released a final report calling for evidence based and recovery focused interventions in the treatment of mental illness; and the National Institute of Mental Health echoes this approach (Insel, 2003). Goal five of the President’s New Freedom Commission on Mental Health Report (2003) stresses the need to deliver excellent mental health care by accelerating research to promote recovery, resilience, prevention, and a cure for mental illness, advancing evidence-based practice dissemination and demonstration, expanding the workforce providing evidence-based practices, and developing a knowledge base in mental health disparities, long term medication effects, trauma, and acute care.

These national and international health and mental health reports are important to social work, not only as signposts of current trends in policy thought, but also as frameworks for future policy and funding activity. Federal agencies like the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), and National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) are beginning to link grants and contracts to EBP themes such as research-based interventions and the translation of research into practice as well as hosting conferences dedicated to EBP. These and other agencies are also outlining science-based program standards and rating systems. For example, the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP) and SAMHSA recently constructed a comparison matrix of science based prevention programs examining the standards and effectiveness ratings of 150 different programs sponsored by five different federal agencies (2002).

According to Thomas Insel (2004) , director of the National Institute of Mental Health, social workers are doing the majority of front line work treating individuals with mental illnesses. Citing a 1998 SAMHSA report, the current psychotherapy workforce is dominated by social work consisting of 192,814 social workers, 73,014 psychologists, 33,486 psychiatrists, and 17,318 psychiatric nurses ( Insel, 2004 ). Despite social worker dominance in the field of mental health and the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) code of ethics emphasis on research based service, the majority of social workers do not appear to draw on research findings to inform their practice ( Gibbs & Gambrill, 2002 ; Kirk & Rosenblatt, 1981 ; Mullen & Bacon, 2004 ; NASW, 1996 ; Rosen, 1994 ). Social workers, including researchers, educators, agency administrators, and practitioners, are therefore challenged with an important question: “How can the profession better disseminate the rich and growing body of research and evidence based interventions in social work and mental health services to practitioners providing direct services to individuals with mental illnesses?” This paper contains a review of the current literature around the dissemination of EBP, current social work models for dissemination of EBP, interviews with experts in the field, and a synthesis of this combined knowledge into recommendations for future dissemination of research and EBP efforts.

LITERATURE SEARCH METHOD

For this project, research was conducted through a review of the literature, including both books and scholarly articles, on EBP in mental health services in social work as well as other relevant professions and by interviewing a convenience sample of experts currently conducting research related to the development and dissemination of evidence based interventions for mental illnesses. Relevant literature was identified through a search of local social work and public health library holdings and by searching electronically using the following databases: Social Work Abstracts, PsychLit, and Medline. Additional citations were collected via the reference lists of identified sources and through the draft reference list of EBP dissemination literature collected by the Research Unit for Research Utilization (RURU), a part of the Evidence Network of Great Britain ( RURU, 2003 ). This review was limited to published literature that directly describes the use of research in social work practice specifically.

LITERATURE REVIEW

The call for evidence-based practice.

The first widespread push for EBP in social work came out of a series of studies that began to appear in the 1970s and called into question the effectiveness of existing social work interventions ( Fisher, 1973 ; Reid, 1994 ). The 1970s and 1980s witnessed a movement to develop evidence based models of practice in mental health and further the development of well researched psychosocial intervention models such as the behavioral, cognitive, interpersonal, and social approaches, as well as the biological and biopsychosocial theories of mental illness ( Turnbull, 1991 ). Evidence-based researchers in many disciplines pioneered models used in social work practice including: psychology, psychiatry, and social work. In the late 1980s and early 1990s substantial evidence regarding the treatment of common mental health disorders were high-lighted by the publication of the results of studies such as the National Institute of Mental Health Treatment of Depression Collaborative Research Program ( Elkin, Shea, Watkins et al., 1989 ). Over the past decade, the proportion and number of articles referring to EBP published in professional journals has risen in the disciplines focused on mental health services, health, and social welfare ( Shlonsky & Gibbs, 2004 ). For a more detailed description of the history of the development and use of EBP in social work see Kirk and Reid (2002) .

Today, New York State’s Office of Mental Health, identified as a progressive program by NIMH (Insel, 2003), is promoting the use of the following EBP for adults with serious mental illnesses. These EBP interventions include: Assertive Community Treatment (ACT), supported employment, intensive case management, wellness self-management, family psychoeducation, integrated treatment for co-occurring substance abuse and mental health disorders, medication (and guidelines for practitioners to promote optimal prescribing practices), self-help and peer support services, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) treatment ( New York State Office of Mental Health, 2001 ). The President’s New Freedom Commission (2003) report identified the following additional EBPs for the treatment of mental health disorders: cognitive and interpersonal therapies for depression, preventive interventions for children at risk for serious emotional disturbances, treatment foster care, multi-systemic therapy (MST), parent-child interaction therapy, and collaborative treatment in primary care. The commission also recommended emerging best practices including: consumer operated services, jail diversion, and community re-entry programs, school mental health services, trauma-specific intervention, wraparound services, multi-family group therapies, and systems of care for children with serious emotional disturbances and their families ( New Freedom Commission, 2003 ).

Translation and Implementation

The wider field of social science knowledge utilization is just beginning to build a theoretical framework that explains why research evidence, such as the EBPs listed above, is or is not utilized in social work practice ( Landry, Amara, & Lamari, 2001 ). While researchers have identified evidence-based mental health services, the translation and implementation of these services into practice has been problematic. One of the greatest complaints has been the lag of nearly 15 to 20 years between the identification and incorporation of EBP interventions into routine care ( Balas & Boren, 2000 ). Moreover, social work is a profession that claims expertise and specialized knowledge, values, skills, and professional ethics aimed at addressing difficult human problems, including mental illness ( Gambrill, 1999 ); however, licenses, experiences, and training are not supported by evidence as necessarily related to helping clients through the use of evidence ( Dawes, 1994 ).

Gambrill (1999) describes two different strategies for addressing the problem that social work is a profession based on “claimed rather than demonstrated effectiveness” in assisting clients in obtaining targeted outcomes. The first strategy, and arguably the most common historically, has been to ignore the contradiction between claims and reality and to censure this information from the academic and practice community ( Gambrill, 1999 ). The second strategy is to investigate the values, skills, and knowledge needed to achieve certain outcomes and then to identify who has these resources and the capability to provide them ( Gambrill, 1999 ). Social workers can, in this way, become integral participants in the process of shaping and delivering supported and needed interventions for clients and communities.

Perhaps the most common subject described in the EBP literature has been the concrete and psychological barriers that impede dissemination and implementation of EBPs. These barriers, outlined by practitioners, researchers, and administrators alike, have generally revolved around four major themes: knowledge, lack of fit, suspicion, and resources.

Knowledge barriers are those that speak to the general lack of awareness of available EBPs and the difficulty in processing or understanding research findings when they are identified ( Anderson, Cosby, Swan, Moore, & Broekhoven, 1999 ; Mullen & Bacon, 2004 ). This Includes practitioners’ lack of knowledge about how to best access, critically evaluate, and translate evidence for appropriate use with their clients. Gray, one of the foremost thinkers in evidence based healthcare and policy, likens research-based facts to uncut diamonds, which are valuable but of little use in their raw form (1997). Few practitioners access traditional outlets for research findings, such as scholarly journals ( Kirk & Reid, 2002 ) and the information found in these journals is not easily digested or translated into practice ( Anderson, Cosby, Swan, Moore, & Broekhoven, 1999 ; Bartels, Haley, & Dums, 1998). Even when evidence is identified in journals, much journal evidence is three-to four-years-old by the time it is published ( Thyer, 2004 ). The lack of knowledge also includes arguments that are based on a misunderstanding of what constitutes an EBP. For example, some have argued that social work is already using and teaching EBP, that effectiveness is a matter of personal opinion, or that no clear evidence is available for the questions social workers pose ( Gibbs & Gambrill, 2002 ).

Even if practitioners are able to identify and understand research they may still discredit its value. The lack of fit theme includes the reasons why practitioners feel that available evidence or research is not often helpful. Some feel that the EBPs are cookbook approaches that are too broad and do not speak to the unique contextual or cultural needs of clients (Bartels, Haley, & Dums, 1998; Gibbs & Gambrill, 2002 ; Mullen & Bacon, 2004 ). Others have noted that the methodology of treatment may not be applicable within the confines of their practice. For example, many EBPs emphasize short-term treatment, but this format is not appropriate to all clients across diverse settings ( Mullen & Bacon, 2004 ). Moreover, practitioners have noted that research and current policy are often at odds. Research findings are slow to develop, and once findings are presented, it may take considerable time before policies are aligned with new knowledge. As a result, policy and agency requirements and technology frequently do not support current evidence ( Anderson, Cosby, Swan, Moore, & Broekhoven, 1999 ; Gibbs & Gambrill, 2002 ). Finally, the culture of knowledge transmission within social work has been historically unsupportive of the use of research evidence in practice ( Barratt, 2003 ).

Related to the idea of the lack of fit between research findings and practice is the theme of suspicion . This includes a basic distrust for evidence, based on objections related to political, ethical, or control issues. Gibbs sites a natural resistance to innovation (including EBPs) as one of the main barriers of teaching EBP to practitioners ( Gibbs, 2003 ). Some practitioners feel that research evidence is simply a cost-cutting tool, politically motivated, guided by efficiency, or otherwise influenced by something other than the client’s best interest ( Anderson, Cosby, Swan, Moore, & Broekhoven, 1999 ; Gibbs & Gambrill, 2002 ). Other practitioners feel the experts are more often guided by their own view or model rather than an objective examination of the evidence ( Barratt, 2003 ). Landry, Amara, and Lamari (2001) point oat that there is an inherent disconnect between the goals and needs of researchers and practitioners. Practitioners need and want guidance that is tailored to clients and practice. However, the degree to which research results are customized to only one or two users increase costs to the scholars. Their work becomes less generalizable to the wider world and they must reformat or repackage it if they want others to utilize their work. It becomes a catch-22 where researchers are pushed toward developing broad applications and their work becomes likewise less useful for the individual practitioner. Moreover, as Barnes and Clouder (2000) point out, the determination of what is disseminated is largely dependent upon the researcher’s judgment of what is significant or worth sharing. Others believe that EBPs exclude the practitioner’s professional judgment, clinical expertise, or the judgment, values and preferences of the client ( Gibbs & Gambrill, 2002 ; Mullen & Bacon, 2004 ). An argument has also been made that those who advocate EBP want only to set trends, be first, be controversial, or further their reputations and that evidence can be found to support any favored point of view or that all methods are equally valuable in arriving at the truth ( Gibbs & Gambrill, 2002 ). The idea that research is suspect seems also, in part, due to the generally poor relationship that researchers and scholars have had with community agencies and practitioners in the past. Administrators have described a lack of communication and a disjoint between the goals of the agency and that of researchers ( Anderson, Cosby, Swan, Moore, & Broekhoven, 1999 ; Barratt, 2003 ). Furthermore, practitioners’ may collaborate in creating or testing interventions with researchers, but their participation in building and sharing knowledge with the wider profession has generally been limited ( Kirk & Reid, 2002 ). The chasm between research and practice is further widened by practitioners’ inability to contribute to the formal body of social work knowledge that they are expected to employ. “Thus, knowledge production and dissemination is largely in the hands of a small number of academics, while expectations for use have often been placed on the vast number of practitioners” (p. 205, Kirk & Reid, 2002 ).

Even practitioners and agencies that understand, appreciate, and want to use research evidence in their work may find themselves incapable due to a lack of resources ( Anderson, Cosby, Swan, Moore, & Broekhoven, 1999 ; Barrett, 2003; Mullen & Bacon, 2004 ) and reluctance to ask more of an overextended staff ( Barratt, 2003 ). Without the necessary training, materials, time and staff dedication to researching the evidence, EBPs cannot often be employed. Interventions may be shaped instead by limitations rather than knowledge. A lack of technology is particularly troublesome in a day and age where most cutting-edge information is accessed through computers and the Internet. Many agencies do not have access to these resources. The issue is not only what resources are realistically available, but also beliefs or policies about who can have access to these resources. Some administrators feel that not all social workers should have access to computers and the Internet ( Barratt, 2003 ). The issue of a lack of resources is partly a result of generally poor or inconsistent funding for many social work agencies. However, funds that are available are rarely routed toward identifying, instituting and maintaining research, technology, or EBPs.

Growing Body of Evidence-Based Services and Programs and Arguments for Use

Despite the numerous barriers to dissemination outlined above, social workers in the mental health services arena do have a number of compelling reasons to implement evidence into their practice with mentally ill individuals. Practitioners have cited advantages of using EBPs such as: (1) conceptualizing, planning, and guiding treatment, (2) increasing knowledge and skills, (3) improving treatment outcomes for clients, (4) integrating and supplementing, not supplanting, clinical judgment and knowledge, (5) complying with current practice, values, and professional consensus, and (6) satisfying grant or managed care reimbursement requirements ( Mullen & Bacon, 2004 ). Overall, the basic tenet of EBPs is that clients should receive the benefit of the best technology that social work has to offer.

It is, however, difficult to imagine the basis on which structured, fact-based and well-informed decision making and planning referenced to the best available published research can be viewed as counter either to the provision of effective outcomes for service users, or to the ethos of the social work professional, (p. 144, Barratt, 2003 )

There are many questions as to what exactly should be used as evidence to identify the best technology possible. Undoubtedly this argument will, and should, continue within the field. However, if some agreement upon what is a validated intervention can be secured, the question becomes one of dissemination and implementation.

Current Strategies for Dissemination and Implementation

Until recently the prevailing approach to dissemination has been to report evidence in journal articles and published or unpublished practice manuals or to provide limited didactic trainings (Gibbs & Gambrill, 2003). Additionally, in recent years some masters programs have offered limited numbers of courses on some EBPs, such as cognitive behavioral therapy ( Gibbs & Gambrill, 2002 ). However, evidence suggests that these strategies have been largely unsuccessful in social work, as well as in the other professions treating individuals with mental health needs, as few mental health professionals are basing practice decisions on research evidence ( Gibbs & Gambrill, 2002 ; Kirk & Reid, 2002 ; Kirk & Rosenblatt, 1981 ; Mullen & Bacon, 2004 ; NASW, 1996 ; Rosen, 1994 ). To facilitate implementation of EBPs in the community, “… it is increasingly recognized that simply improving the content and availability of the evidence base is not sufficient to secure such changes. Explicit and active strategies are required to ensure that research really does have an impact on policy and practice” (p. 2, Walter, Nutley, & Davies, 2003 ). In order to flourish, efforts to implement evidence-based practices must be “multifaceted, broad-based and carefully targeted” (p. 144, Barratt, 2003 ).

Many researchers, program developers, and others have employed a cornucopia of what Walter, Nutley, and Davies (2003) term “mechanisms” to disseminate research findings. These authors reviewed over one hundred papers that evaluated or described efforts to facilitate the use of research. Nearly two hundred individual practices or packages were identified through this review. Based on these, the authors developed a taxonomy of approaches by both intervention type (format through which the information flows) and mechanisms employed, as well as a brief description of the research or theory that lends support to the specific approach. For example, one category of mechanisms described by the authors is incentives. The adoption of desired behaviors or information is encouraged through reward, or perhaps linking funding to specific practices. This mechanism is supported by learning theories, economic models of rational behavior, and power theory. Using such taxonomy to organize and understand dissemination research could potentially prove useful.

A number of researchers have taken the process a step further than individual mechanisms or approaches and proposed more developed frameworks for the delivery of research evidence into practice. While no single best method has been identified, there are a number of emerging social work implementation strategies described in the literature. The following is a brief overview of this work.

Anderson and colleagues

Based on interviews with community organization leaders, Anderson and colleagues suggest a model based on a relationship between researchers and community organizations that moves through three different stages. In the first stage, awareness , both researchers and community organizations are educated about the needs of one another ( Anderson, Cosby, Swan, Moore, & Broekhoven, 1999 ). In many cases both researchers and community-based organizations have little contact and are generally ignorant of the other’s work. In the second stage, communication , mechanisms are built to facilitate the transfer of information. Both community organizations and research stakeholders come together to formulate a plan for sharing skills and knowledge. A variety of methods may be employed such as: workshops, databases, and open houses. Finally, in the last stage, interaction , mutual activities toward common goals are shared and negotiated. In this model, a relationship is built to facilitate communication and knowledge transfer between community organizations and researchers allowing each to inform the other’s work. This model is general, offers some specific recommendations, but seems to focus largely on encouraging local groups to work together in order to find the methods that match their shared needs, abilities, and resources.

Gambrill and Gibbs

Leonard Gibbs and Eileen Gambrill propose a model defining EBP as the ‘conscientious, explicit, and judicious use of current best evidence to make decisions about the care of clients’ ( Gibbs & Gambrill, 2002 ). The aim of their model is to create lifelong learners who, in collaboration with clients, draw on practice related research findings to make practice related decisions ( Gibbs & Gambrill, 2002 ). In this model, EBP is a process that results from the careful consideration of practitioner’s individual experience, best available evidence, and client values and expectations ( Shlonsky & Gibbs, 2004 ). EBP is characterized by: (1) becoming motivated to apply evidence to practice decision making, (2) an individual assessment and well formulated question, (3) an external electronic search for practice findings related to practice questions, (4) decision-making regarding the evidence’s fit with the individual client, (5) using individual expertise to integrate the best external practice evidence, (6) evaluating the outcome (7) and sharing what is learned with others ( Gibbs, 2003 ; Gibbs & Gambrill, 2002 ). These authors propose a method of dissemination heavily focused on the education of practitioners in this model of EBP at the master’s level ( Gibbs, 2003 ; Gibbs & Gambrill, 2002 ).

Outside of the implementation of EBP as core curricula in master’s level social work programs and continuing education, Gibbs and Gambrill offer little advice on implementation suggesting that practitioner’s ‘obey your own conscience and implement EBP into your own practice however you feel it most appropriate to do so’ ( Gibbs, 2003 ). The following suggestions are offered, (1) consider the quality and applicability of evidence, (2) consider the context or organizational environment, and (3) consider the process of implementing change ( Gibbs, 2003 ). However, a clear design for implementation, outside of teaching, master’s level education, and continuing education, is not offered.

Rosen and Proctor

Aaron Rosen and Enola Proctor have devised an implementation strategy that relieves the practitioner of the burden of formulating and identifying the relevant research, locating, and assembling the information, critically evaluating the relevancy and validity of the evidence with regard to their practice decisions with an individual client, and adapting that knowledge to the client’s particular needs and situation ( Rosen, Proctor, Morrow-Howell, Auslander, & Staudt, 1993 ). The strategy proposed involves the use of Systematic Planned Practice (SPP), a tool for treatment planning and evaluation that includes the planning and recording of critical elements of practice such as the presenting problem(s), desired outcomes, interventions, and observed results ( Rosen et al., 1993 ). Application is guided by forms that serve two functions: to prompt and guide the worker in laying out the treatment plan and as a rationale for decisions made and to provide documentation for treatment planning decisions, what is actually implemented, and the outcomes obtained ( Rosen et al., 1993 ). A dissemination plan is proposed that combines SPP with components of practice guidelines to facilitate practitioner use and knowledge of evidence in practice (Rosen, 2002). According to Proctor, the adoption of EBP consists of multiple distinct outcomes whose attainment requires “systematic, targeted efforts by many players, at multiple levels of influence” ( Proctor, in press ). These include the following provider outcomes necessary for evidence based practice; identifying and accessing EBPs, accepting and adopting EBPs, implementing EBPs and evaluating EBPs (Proctor, 2004). As in the Gambrill and Gibbs model, Rosen and Proctor place much of the burden of utilization on the practitioner to locate and implement research knowledge. While Anderson and colleagues frame the process as more of a partnership between researchers and practitioners, it lacks specificity in terms of implementation.

Tool Kit Method

Another approach to the dissemination of EBPs is the tool kit method. Tool kits are materials constructed from original research and translated for use by practitioners, agencies, or institutions. In this model, specific tools rather than a framework or mandate are provided to support social workers’ efforts toward using EBPs. Resources, such as the Sociometrics Program Archives, have taken up the business of culling through research with the help of expert panels to develop a collection of tools such as: user’s guides, teacher or facilitator manuals, student or participant workbooks, videos or other supplemental media, and homework or exercises ( Card, 2001 ). Practitioners can order such tool kits from for profit and nonprofit enterprises at a cost. The idea is that the necessary research evidence is distilled into an attractive user-friendly format that is ready for implementation in the community. Evaluation processes are also sometimes included to provide a conduit for user feedback and further refinement of the toolkit package ( Card, 2001 ).

Practice Guidelines

Instituting practice guidelines, which have often been employed in using practice theory and wisdom since the beginning of the profession, has been another method recommended for the dissemination of EBPs ( Kirk & Reid, 2002 ). Using this format, treatment is directed by an outline of acceptable practices in specific areas of treatment. These practices would be determined by a professional body-charged with surveying, evaluating, and choosing both prescribed and proscribed interventions. Researchers have made arguments against such guidelines including: (1) the paucity of research needed to support good guidelines, (2) the lack of agreement on what constitutes evidence, (3) too little flexibility for practitioners, (4) little agency support, (5) and the fear of the use of guidelines as de facto standards in litigation against practitioners (Howard & Jensen, 1999). Despite these objections, Howard and Jensen (1999) argue that practice guidelines can go a long way toward improving social work interventions (for an excellent discussion of the potential problems and benefits of practice guidelines in social work please see the May 1999 issue of the journal Research on Social Work Practice ).

Other models

Historically other models have been explored to marry research and practice. Kirk and Reid (2002) describe efforts that grew out of industry and technology beginning in the 1960s and 70s such as the Research Development and Diffusion (RD&R) and Design and Development (D&D) models. These models describe a paradigm by which research and practice can be mutually informative in a constant feedback loop. However, as Kirk and Reid point out, these efforts would be enhanced if they were to be exposed to the same processes that they propose in order to become more flexible and useful across diverse social work contexts.

General recommendations

Beyond the more developed models described above, several researchers have made general recommendations for dissemination of evidence into practice. First, it is essential to secure organizational and practitioner buy-in ( Anderson, Cosby, Swan, Moore, & Broekhoven, 1999 ; Lewis, 1998 ; Mullen, 2004 ). Before any real progress is made toward dissemination stakeholders must both agree that EBP is valuable and important enough to merit a commitment of time, training, and other resources. Leadership is a crucial ingredient for change in this area ( Barratt, 2003 ). Although the dissemination of EBPs must occur at all levels, important issues such as protecting practitioner time for research and training as well monitoring and following up on implementation activities must be guided by administrators and other persons or agencies with authority. Also, some authors have described the importance of establishing a network of local organizations and practitioners so that they can pool resources such as training and research, become actively involved, and develop broad community goals ( Anderson, Cosby, Swan, Moore, & Broekhoven, 1999 ; Howard & Jensen, 1999). McKay and colleagues stress the importance of training and the establishment of an “engagement team” consisting of intake workers, clinical and administrative staff, and supervisors who oversee the implementation of interventions at each site ( McKay, Hibbert, Hoagwood, Rodriguez, Murray, Legerski, & Fernandez, 2004 ). Agencies and practitioners cannot be realistically expected to “go it alone” on tight budgets, timelines, and a research base that is a moving target. A much more efficient approach seems to be one of networking and sharing with other social workers, community organizations, educational institutions, and other stakeholders.

Unfortunately, the authors found few studies testing the efficacy of these approaches to the dissemination and utilization of research in practice. In essence, the research evidence on the use of EBPs has not been well developed. “Researchers have been relatively oblivious to the processes by which knowledge, once developed, might be effectively disseminated and used” ( Kirk & Reid, 2002 ).

QUALITATIVE INTERVIEWS

Based on themes identified in the literature review, the authors conducted qualitative interviews with experts in the field of EBP. The goal of the interviews was to survey expert researchers in order to explore current strategies, struggles, and observations about EBP to supplement and speak to the themes described in the literature.

Interviews with expert researchers experienced in mental health services research and evidence-based clinical interventions were conducted using open ended questions related to the topic of the dissemination and implementation of evidence based practices. Because this research is exploratory in nature, a convenience sample of interview candidates was selected on the basis of reputation and body of work in the field of EBP. In addition, a snowball method of interviewee selection was employed where respondents referred the authors to other experts for further data collection. All participants were researchers trained at the doctoral level. In total eight experts were interviewed including: five social worker professors, one professor of psychiatric epidemiology, one psychiatrist who directs a children’s mental health research program, and one national policy organization researcher.

Human Subjects Protections

Each potential respondent was invited to share thoughts and opinions regarding the use of EBP in mental health services and was provided a copy of the questions before the interview. Interviews were voluntary and the experts were not compensated for participating. Any identifying information regarding the individual interviewees was not included in the analysis and confidential interviews were maintained on password-protected computers in a locked office. Participants were given copies of the data collected in order to edit or make any additions to their responses.

Interview Schedule

The three authors interviewed all of the participants in the participants’ offices. For six of the eight interviews all three authors were present. For two of the interviews, only two authors were present. Each author took detailed notes during the interview highlighting major themes. Participants were provided with the following list of questions prior to the interview:

What is your experience with Evidence Based Practice (EBP)?
Have you done research around topics of EBP?
What do you see as the barriers to implementing EBP in practice settings?
What means of disseminating EBP have you seen employed?
What are some of your ideas about how to improve the dissemination of EBP?
Why do you think more practitioners don’t use EBP?
What are the results of not using EBP?
Where do you see gaps in EBP?
How would you characterize the future of EBP?
Do you know of any existing models or tools for the implementation of EBP? What are your thoughts about their usefulness?

Transcription

Authors took notes to highlight major themes in the interviews from each respondent. Following the interviews, the authors compiled notes for content analysis. To ensure inter-rater reliability the three interviewers transcribed all interviews separately. Transcription reports were compiled into one report for each participant to generate the most accurate representation of their comments.

Content analysis was conducted for each interview. Krippendorf (1980) defines content analysis as “a research technique for making replicable and valid inferences from data to their context” (p. 21). Janis (1965) defines it as:

Any technique (a) for the classification of the sign-vehicles (words that carry meaning), (b) which relies solely upon the judgment (which theoretically may range from perceptual discrimination to sheer guesses) of an analyst or group of analysts as to which sign-vehicles fall into which categories, (c) provided that the analyst’s judgments are regarded as the report of a scientific observer, (p. 55)

For the purpose of this analysis, semantical content analysis was conducted to classify sign-vehicles according to their meanings. The interviewers reviewed protocols for three types of semantical content analysis; designations analysis , which determines the frequency with which certain objects are mentioned, attribution analysis , which examines the frequency with which certain characterizations or descriptors are used, assertions analysis , which provides the frequency with which certain objects are characterized in particular ways. Assertions analysis involves combining designation analysis and attribution analysis. Such an analysis often takes the form of a matrix, with objects as columns and descriptors as rows.

Because assertions analysis is the most comprehensive form of semantical analysis, the authors employed this method of examination. Past experience with EBP, levels of dissemination, barriers to dissemination, gaps in dissemination, methods of addressing barriers, results of not using EBP, and the future of EBP were designated as objects and 70 items were designated as descriptors.

Past Experience with EBP

The majority of participants had experience with EBP program design including; running an intervention, evaluating the effectiveness of interventions, the process of forensic evaluation of children referred for sexual abuse, adapting interventions, and coordinating advocacy, policy, technical assistance, and research synthesis efforts at the state level. Beyond program design, participants had developed evidence based interventions, taught EBP in the classroom, and developed tool kit models of EBP.

Levels of Dissemination

The experts had experience with tool kits, literature, and training as methods of disseminating evidence based practice. Inclusion of practitioners in design, developing programs in the communities where they will be implemented, state and agency dissemination, norm changing, appropriate targeting of stakeholders, Requests for Proposals (RFPs) for models, supervision, national networks, quality assurance, and masters education programs were mentioned as means of dissemination they have seen employed. One interviewee said that when evidence based practices are disseminated and implemented they look like “rocket science” in comparison to standard care because standard care is so poor. However, as one expert stated, “there is a lot more ‘talk’ about EBP than actual implementation.”

Interviewees mentioned training time and funding policies as the biggest barriers to implementing EBP. They cited lack of consumer input, lack of practitioner input, lack of translation research, and lack of EBP training in master’s level education as barriers. For example, one expert described how clients may not like interventions based on EBP because practitioners who employ EBPs tend to approach treatment as if they are the experts. However, practitioners need to use EBP and remain open to the idea that the consumer has something to teach.

A lack of practitioner involvement, testing EBP in research labs, limited provider skills, training time, and belief that EBP is too restrictive were each described by the experts as problems. “Most agencies are reactive and just trying to get by. EBP isn’t part of the culture.” Also mentioned were dissent among stakeholders, a lack of education across systems, lack of agency staff, misunderstanding of what EBP is, and professors who do not apply their EBP research to their teaching as ultimate barriers to implementing EBP.

There was less variation in responses to gaps in implementing EBP than in respondents’ description of barriers to implementation. Experts mentioned both the limited research of EBPs and unclear methods of training in EBP as gaps in the system of dissemination. Also cited was a lack of consumer input and the limited number of EBPs, a reluctance to over generalize interventions, and the difficulty of transferring programs from research into practice as limitations. Respondents claimed that lack of education and training in EBP were major problems that keep EBP from being disseminated and implemented in the practice community. One respondent suggested:

The language is off when we talk about dissemination. There is an assumption that development happens in one place and then it is rolled out elsewhere. You can get into trouble with this. You need to include practitioners and support staff. How do they integrate services? Roll-out is rejected by providers because there is no ownership. You need key constituents to sit around the table and create something that will fit–knowledge about practice outside of practice. You have to get practitioners invested in the process of adaptation. Without early involvement of administrators and practitioners, the treatment will not be sustained after the researcher leaves the setting.

Addressing Barriers

To address barriers the respondents recommended ongoing training, EBP in master’s level curriculum, stakeholder buy-in and consumer buy-in. For example, the Gibbs model that incorporates EBP, client preference, and practitioner expertise allows enough flexibility for all parties to feel invested in the intervention. Manualized treatments and beginning research in agencies, as well as tool kits, technical assistance on site, and systemization were identified as effective strategies to overcome the hurdles of disseminating and implementing EBP. According to some of the experts interviewed, state involvement in EBP curriculum for universities has proven to be a good method to address the barriers for disseminating EBPs.

Results of Not Using EBP

Research experts agreed that interventions may not be helpful, and may even be harmful, if they are not backed by research evidence. Some felt that in the future agencies will not be reimbursed if they fail to practice from an evidence base and the field of social work will fail to progress in the absence of EBPs. Social work will continue to be viewed as a second-class citizen in comparison to other professions that are more willing to embrace research evidence.

Respondents offered diverse views of the future of EBP. Some respondents stated that there will be more funding for EBP in the future. On the other hand, other respondents felt that EBP is a buzz term that will probably die out with time. The experts interviewed described the future of EBP moving toward more qualitative methods, training in EBP at the master’s level, incorporation of the art of clinical practice, diverse EBP models, well-developed research on EBP, studies in actual practice settings, and more sophisticated and informed implementation and dissemination efforts.

Strengths, Limitations, and Recommendations

This analysis is limited due to its sample size as well as by the lack of variation of professional affiliation. However, it does provide a starting point for future analysis. It is clear that experts in the field are indeed aware of the gaps and barriers to EBP dissemination. Future efforts would benefit from the incorporation of larger and more varied interview samples that include researchers and educators as well as agency administrators, direct service providers, and consumers of mental health and social work services. Additionally, future researchers should focus their attention on addressing barriers to dissemination and on the opinions and recommendations of other mental health services stake-holders such as clients, community members, and policy makers. Future EBP research needs to focus greater attention on strategies of effectively disseminating the programs that constitute the best practice standards.

The original aim of this study was to build a framework for the dissemination of evidence based mental health practices for social workers in community agencies through a review of the literature and interviews with experts in the field. Both the literature reviewed and the respondents offer similar observations and themes regarding EBP. The greatest agreement between the different researchers was found in the description of gaps and barriers to implementing and disseminating EBP. Problems include poor funding, a lack of training and support for agency staff and practitioners, a lack of consumer involvement, a failure to translate research into practice, and a lack of EBP education, particularly at the master’s level. Interviewees also described efforts to identify the most viable options to address barriers to implementing and disseminating. They, along with other researchers, have identified needs that must be addressed to move EBP forward. If social work does not meet these challenges, practitioners, and community organizations will not be best serving clients and will be in danger of losing competitive funding for services.

Some of the misconceptions about EBPs must be addressed in order to facilitate dissemination and implementation of evidence based interventions. EBPs are not promoted by the experts interviewed in this study as the final draft of best practices for mental health services. Rather, they are being promoted as efficacious treatments for specific disorders in certain populations of individuals suffering from mental illnesses. While further testing is needed to validate findings regarding EBPs for additional mental health disorders and different cultural groups, the information currently available regarding EBPs may be a best beginning practices guide in treatment planning for individuals with mental illnesses. Empirically validated EBPs are not recommended as a ‘magic bullet’ for the treatment of all mental illnesses. Research has, and continues to, explore the populations and disorders that are responding to specific EBPs, develop approaches to the flexible and practical employment of EBPs, and acknowledge that it is equally important to understand when the utilization of EBPs in treatment planning is or is not indicated.

IMPLICATIONS

Perhaps the most important finding of this study with regard to future research is the paucity of studies testing and validating implementation and dissemination strategies. No such studies have been conducted in social work (Gibbs, 2002). This research is needed to meet the growing demand for practitioners to base decisions on evidence. Researchers must also face the challenge of developing collaborative relationships with agencies, practitioners, communities, and clients. If research is not tailored to the questions posed by these stakeholders as well as researchers, the likelihood of its implementation into everyday practice is greatly decreased. The challenge to researchers in academic settings has the added component of focusing on incorporating research on EBPs into teaching curriculum.

Any successful effort toward the dissemination of EBP will have to address the four areas of barriers described in the literature and by respondents: knowledge, lack of fit, suspicion, and resources. Efforts that are not active and multifaceted seem unlikely to succeed. Organizational, practitioner, community, and client buy-in are also essential to a well-formed dissemination approach. Leadership backed by the power to effect change will be crucial. It takes more than an individual practitioner, agency, or educational institution to effect a cultural change within social work mental health services.

Existing frameworks offer a step in the right direction. However, they do not appear to provide a comprehensive and united approach to improving the dissemination of EBPs. Anderson and colleagues’ framework highlights the importance of developing shared goals between community organizations and researchers to combat problems inherent in poor relationships and communication and thus has the potential for impacting all four barriers by increasing coordination, understanding, and efficiency. However, this framework seems overly general. More detailed solutions would assist researchers and community organizations in efforts toward translating research into practice and constructing common goals. Additionally, the question of leadership is not addressed. Forging networks and consensus building can take a heroic effort and consume a considerable amount of time and energy. Strong leadership is needed to catalyze this process of change. Gibbs and Gambrill similarly offer useful approaches, such as involving social work education in the process of change and helping individual workers to be flexible and skilled in processing and applying new research. However, a large burden is placed on the practitioner and the problem of resources in particular is not addressed. Many social workers do not have the time or access to needed resources such as the internet. Rosen and Proctor’s model is more specific than either Anderson and colleagues or Gibbs and Gambrill, however they do not offer solutions to the problems of resources, translation of research into practice, or needed professional and cultural buy-in. While the industry-inspired D&D models offers important insights into how researchers might form a feedback loop with practitioners in the field to form more user-friendly tools, these approach seems limited in its application, particularly in the absence of a sophisticated infrastructure to support activities. General methods such as toolkits and practice guidelines are potentially useful strategies, and may supplement any of the other models. While each framework offers important insights into the best approaches toward the dissemination of EBP, none stands alone or above the rest.

CONCLUSIONS

To encourage practitioners to implement EBPs a unified approach that incorporates the best of all of the strategies outlined above and addresses the major barriers identified in this paper:

Increase EBP education (particularly at the master’s level) as well as access to high quality continuing education based on EBPs.
Build partnerships toward sharing EBP resources, including technology, training, and technical assistance, between agencies and practitioners.
Facilitate buy-in and ownership of EBPs at all levels of stakeholders including practitioners, administrators, researchers, policy makers, and community members.
Translate research into user-friendly, digestible, and specific approaches, providing tools such as tool kits, guidelines, and technical support to both support and encourage the use of EBPs.
Improve the communication, feedback loop and relationship between researchers and practitioners.
Increase the number of EBPs available to the field.
Test the different types and mechanisms of dissemination, perhaps through analyses based on a taxonomic framework like the one proposed by Walter, Nutley, and Davies, to organize future research efforts.

The most important factor in facilitating change toward the use of research in professional practice is whether or not the profession wants to change ( Naylor, 1995 ). As the call for EBP in mental health services grows, social workers will benefit by being more research-minded and thereby improve services for their clients. The call for the use of research evidence in practice is not limited to a trend of policy, but is also aligned with the professional code of ethics ( NASW, 1996 ) and meeting the expectations of an increasingly savvy consumer movement in mental health ( Mowbray & Holter, 2002 ). Major national reports, which often shape federal and private funding streams, continually call for the use of research-supported interventions. However, policies that encourage, if not require, the use of EBPs cannot succeed without adequate training, resources, technical assistance and other infrastructure support necessary to deliver evidence based mental health interventions, Even if social workers endorse the value of EBP, practitioners and administrators may not have the knowledge or the resources to implement research based practices. The search for research evidence alone is difficult, and the more complicated the decision the less available the evidence ( Gray, 1997 ). Additional demonstration projects, and research and policy efforts aimed at moving EBPs into community-based organizations there-by building professional and organizational capacity are needed to address these and other barriers. Social workers are poised to move this work forward by transferring the increasingly broad and sophisticated body of research mindfully into the hands of the community agencies and practitioners.

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank Edward J. Mullen and Sandra Nutley for their assistance with this project. In addition, the contributions of all experts interviewed for this project are gratefully acknowledged.

This work was supported by the National Institute of Mental Health Grant 5T32-MH014623-24.

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This work was presented at the AcademyHealth 2004 Annual Research Meeting, San Diego, CA; the National Service Research Award (NSRA) Trainee Conference, San Diego, CA; and the Fourth International Conference on Social Work in Health and Mental Health, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada.

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Theses/projects/dissertations from 2024 2024.

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COMPASSION FATIGUE IN SHORT TERM RESIDENTIAL THERAPEUTIC PROGRAM SETTINGS , Sandra Gallegos

A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW ON THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE GUN VIOLENCE RESTRAINING ORDER , Bonnie Galloway and Yasmeen Gonzalez-Ayala

STRESS AND HELP-SEEKING IN FARMWORKERS IN THE COACHELLA VALLEY , Alexis Garcia and Daniela Mejia

THE EFFECTIVNESS OF FEDERAL PELL GRANT PROGRAM , Maria Delcarmen Garcia Arias and Ashley Hernandez

PARENT INVOLVEMENT AND EDUCATIONAL OUTCOMES AMONG LATINO FAMILIES , Diana Garcia and Gabriela Munoz

IMPACT OF SCHOOL-BASED MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES ON STUDENT ATTENDANCE AT A SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA SCHOOL DISTRICT , Johanna Garcia-Fernandez and Morgan Stokes

BARRIERS TO GENDER-AFFIRMING CARE , Gloria Garcia

THE CONTRIBUTING FACTORS OF PLACEMENT INSTABILITY FOR PREGNANT FOSTER YOUTH , Amanda Garza and Shayneskgua Colen

PROGRESSION OF BLACK WOMEN IN TENURE RANKED POSITIONS , Unique Givens

Child Maltreatment Primary Prevention Methods in the U.S.: A Systematic Review of Recent Studies , Maria Godoy-Murillo

Assessing and Meeting the Needs of Homeless Populations , Mitchell Greenwald

Parity In Higher Education In Prison Programs: Does It Exist? , Michael Lee Griggs and Vianey Luna

SURROGACY AND IT'S EFFECTS ON THE MENTAL HEALTH OF THE GESTATIONAL CARRIER , DayJahne Haywood

SUBSTANCE USE TREATMENT WITHIN THE US PRISON SYSTEM , Timothy Hicks

LGBTQ+ College Students Hopeful Future Expectations , Savannah Hull

EFFECTS OF VOLUNTARY REMOVAL ON AN IMMIGRANT FAMILY , Miriam Jimenez

THE MOTIVATING FACTORS AFFECTING THE CONTINUANCE AND COMPLETION OF SUBSTANCE USE TREATMENT FOR MOTHERS , Jacquetta Johnson

FACTORS AFFECTING THE ENROLLMENT AND GRADUATION RATES AMONGST AFRICAN AMERICAN MALES IN THE UNITED STATES , Tracie Johnson

SUPPORTING FORMERLY INCARCERATED INDIVIDUALS IN HIGHER EDUCATION: A QUANTITATIVE STUDY , Lisa Marie Jones-Wiertz

PROTESTANT CHURCH WORKERS' KNOWLEDGE OF CHILD ABUSE REPORTING AND REPORTING BEHAVIOR , Rachel Juedes

Social Media Told Me I Have A Mental Illness , Kathleen Knarreborg

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ROLE MODELS, SOCIOECONOMIC MOBILITY BELIEFS, AND ACADEMIC OUTCOMES , Christian Koeu and Marisol Espinoza Garcia

CULTURAL AND STRUCTURAL BARRIERS OF UTILIZING MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES IN A SCHOOL-BASED SETTING FOR LATINX POPULATIONS , Silvia Lozano and Bridgette Guadalupe Calderon

EDUCATIONAL OUTCOMES FOR YOUTH THAT PARTICIPATED IN EXTENDED FOSTER CARE: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW , Kassandra Mayorga and Roxana Sanchez

NON-BINARY IDENTITY WITHIN COMPETENCY TRAINING FOR MENTAL/BEHAVIORAL HEALTH PROVIDERS: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW , Alexis McIntyre

Childhood Neglect and Incarceration as a Adult , Marissa Mejia and Diana Gallegos

IMPACT OF RESOURCE SCARCITY ON UNDOCUMENTED STUDENTS IN HIGHER EDUCATION , Sebastian Melendez Lopez

STUDY EXPLORING FEELINGS OF SELF-BLAME AND SHAME AMONG INDIVIDUALS RAISED BY SEVERELY MENTALLY ILL CAREGIVERS , Joanie Minion

THE OBSTACLES FACING HOMELESS VETERANS WITH MENTAL ILLNESS WHEN OBTAINING HOUSING , Melissa Miro

STUDENTS OF HIGHER EDUCATION RECEIVING SUPPLEMENTAL NUTRITION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM AND ITS IMPACT ON MENTAL HEALTH , Cristina Palacios Mosqueda

COMMERCIALLY SEXUALLY EXPLOITED CHILDREN TARGETED WITHIN SOCIAL SERVICES , Britny Ragland

ART THERAPY FOR BEREAVED SIBLINGS AFTER PEDIATRIC CANCER DEATH , Daniela Ramirez-Ibarra

HOW DID THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC IMPACT EXTENDED FOSTER CARE SOCIAL WORKERS WHILE PROVIDING SOCIAL SERVICES , Omar Ramirez and Victoria Lopez

A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF BODY MODIFICATION BIASES IN THE MENTAL HEALTH FIELD , Lonese Ramsey

Bridging Training Gaps: Assessing Knowledge and Confidence of Mental Health Interns in Opioid Misuse Intervention for School-Aged Children and Adolescents , Carolina Rodriguez and Gabriela Guadalupe Gonzalez

PERCEPTIONS OF YOUTH ATHLETE SAFETY PARENTS VS DIRECTORS , Nicole Anais Rodriguez

SPIRITUALITY AND RECOVERY FROM ADDICTION: EXPERIENCES OF NARCOTICS ANONYMOUS MEMBERS , Elizabeth Romberger

ADVERSE CHILDHOOD EXPERIENCES AND ALTRUISM: THE IMPACT ON SOCIAL WORK AS A CAREER CHOICE , Nancy Salas and Brittany Altuna

MAJOR FACTORS OF SUSTAINING RECOVERY AFTER RELAPSE FROM A SUBSTANCE USE DISORDER , Amanda Tei Sandhurst

UNDERSTANDING THE PERSPECTIVES AND ATTITUDES OF 12-STEP PARTICIPANTS TOWARDS MEDICATION-ASSISTED TREATMENT , Christopher Scott

THE UTILIZATION OF MUSIC AND AUTONOMOUS SENSORY MERIDIAN RESPONSE IN REDUCING STRESS , Robert Scott

THE AFTERMATH OF THE PANDEMIC’S EFFECT ON COLLEGE STUDENT DEPRESSION , Lorena Sedano

Exploring the Experiences of Minority Former Foster Youths During and Post Care: A Qualitative Study , Caithlyn Snow

Factors that Contribute to Disparities in Access to Mental Health Services within Hispanic Adults , Jasmine Soriano

THE CHALLENGES TO THE IMPLEMENTATION OF ADMINISTRATION FOR CHILDREN AND FAMILIES MEMORANDUM: FOSTER CARE AS A SUPPORT TO FAMILIES , Rebecca Joan Sullivan-Oppenheim

RESILIENCE IN FATHERHOOD: EXPLORING THE IMPACT OF ABSENT FATHERS ON BLACK AMERICAN MEN'S PARENTING NARRATIVES AND PRACTICES , Ericah Thomas

FACTORS THAT IMPACT FOSTER YOUTHS’ HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATION , Esther Thomas

EXAMINING A RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SEXUAL SATISFACTION AND CHILD MALTREATMENT , Amanda Titone

THE PRESENT STRUGGLES OF IMMIGRANT FARMWORKERS IN CALIFORNIA , Leslie Torres and Angelica Huerta

PROGRAM EVALUATION OF SCHOOL-BASED MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELING SERVICES , Yvette Torres and Emily Ann Rodriguez

Stressors, Caffeine Consumption, and Mental Health Concerns among College Students , Stacey Trejo

DISPARITIES SURROUNDING THE AVAILABILITY OF FEMININE HYGIENE PRODUCTS IN THE WORKPLACE , Marlene Ventura

MENTAL HEALTH TREATMENT HELP SEEKING ATTITUDES AND BEHAVIORS AMONG LATINX COMMUNITY , Nancy Vieyra

JUSTICE-INVOLVED STUDENTS: EFFECTS OF USING SUPPORT SERVICES TO OVERCOME BARRIERS , Gabby Walker and Sofia Alvarenga

MANDATED REPORTERS’ KNOWLEDGE AND REPORTING OF CHILD ABUSE , Alexis Reilly Warye

THE COMMUNITY RESILIENCY MODEL (CRM) APPLIED TO TEACHER’S WELL-BEING , John Waterson

Addressing Rural Mental Health Crises: An Alternative to Police , Faith Ann Weatheral-block

Theses/Projects/Dissertations from 2023 2023

PROLONGED EXPOSURE TO CONGREGATE CARE AND FOSTER YOUTH OUTCOMES , Tiffany Acklin

YOU CALL US TREATMENT RESISTANT: THE EFFECTS OF BIASES ON WOMEN WITH BORDERLINE PERSONALITY DISORDER , Cassidy Acosta

EXAMINING SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH OF FORMERLY INCARCERATED CALIFORNIA STUDENTS WHO GRADUATED FROM PROJECT REBOUND , Ashley C. Adams

ALTERNATIVE APPROACHES TO POLICE INTERVENTIONS WHEN RESPONDING TO MENTAL HEALTH CRISES INCIDENTS , Karen Rivera Apolinar

Understanding Ethical Dilemmas in Social Work Practice , Arielle Arambula

IS THERE A RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PROFESSORIAL-STUDENT RACIAL MATCH AND ACADEMIC SATISFACTION OF AFRICAN AMERICAN SOCIAL WORK STUDENTS , Ashlei Armstead

NON-SPANISH SPEAKING LATINOS' EXPERIENCES OF INTRAGROUP MARGINALIZATION AND THE IMPLICATIONS FOR ETHNIC IDENTITY , Marissa Ayala

SERVICES AVAILABLE IN THE MIXTEC COMMUNITY AND THE BARRIERS TO THOSE SERVICES , Currie Bailey Carmon

IMPACT OF OUTDOOR ADVENTURE ON THE SELF-ESTEEM, SELF-CONFIDENCE, AND COMFORT LEVEL OF BLACK AND BROWN GIRLS , Nathan Benham

THE ROLE UNDOCUMENTED STUDENT RESOURCE CENTERS PLAY IN SUPPORTING UNDOCUMENTED STUDENTS IN HIGHER EDUCATION , Cynthia Boyzo

Program Evaluation of Teen Parent Support Group , Brianne Yvonne Irene Brophy

THE IMPACT THE JOB STRESS OF A CHILD WELFARE SOCIAL WORKER HAS ON THE QUALITY OF THEIR RELATIONSHIP WITH THEIR INTIMATE PARTNER , Nadine Cazares

Adverse Effects for Siblings Who Witness Child Abuse , Leslie Chaires

ASIAN DISCRIMINATION: IN THE FIELD OF SOCIAL WORK , Sunghay Cho

PERCEIVED FINANCIAL STRAIN AND ITS EFFECTS ON COLLEGE STUDENTS’ WELFARE , Monica Contreras and Clarissa Adrianna Martinez

The Media and Eating Disorders , Diane Corey

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Social Work Research Topics & Tips on Finding and Distinguishing Good Ones

Updated 01 Jul 2024

Social work research is the systematic investigation of problems pertaining to the social work field. Alternatively, it can be defined as the application of research methods for addressing/solving problems confronted by social workers in their practice.

Major research areas include studying concepts, theories, principles, underlying methods, employees’ skills and their interaction with individuals and groups as well as internal processes, functioning principles within social entities. For a more specific selection of social work research topics, go to the appropriate section within this article.

Social work is ultimately focused on practical application, hence, the ultimate goal of social work research is understanding the efficacy of various intervention methods aimed at alleviating the conditions of people suffering from social deprivation – this highlights the importance presented by both the field and its associated research. For such difficult topics, you may ask yourself "can I pay someone to write my research paper " - and our professional team is here to help you.

Signs of Good Research Topics

Of all social work research questions, how could one distinguish the ones holding the greatest value or potential? Considering these signs could increase the chances of picking higher quality or more productive social work topics:

Chosen topics are backed up by one or more published studies by research teams from the US or from abroad with solid article-related citation metrics, typically published in prestigious peer-reviewed academic journals (journals with high impact factor).
Social work research topics in question are related to practice – theoretical research is very important, but nothing beats practical knowledge and efficient practical intervention methods and strategies. However, this aspect might depend on other circumstances as well (for students, for instance, theoretical topics are fairly acceptable). To ensure a successful research proposal in the field of social work, consider utilizing research proposal writing services .
Social work research topics are breaking certain stereotypes. People are inclined towards topics that break preconceived notions – such topics naturally receive greater attention. If they bring solid evidence and reasonable arguments while providing/promising real benefits, such topics can simply revolutionize the field.
Chosen social work research topics match current trends. Don’t understand us wrong – not everything that is trendy deserves attention (many things are overhyped). However, trends do have a sound reason for emerging (there is normally value behind the forces driving them). Moreover, delving into a field/topic that has only been recently established often gives significant advantages (career-wise). So watch out for trends in your research field closely, but always scrutinize them for what they are worth.

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Where Can You Find Perfect Topics?

When exploring education research topics or searching for social worker research topics, it might prove useful to follow a few proven strategies (which are equally valid for many other occasions):

Skim through your study literature (e.g. handbooks, course notes) – this is material you already studied, but going through it might help you to systematically visualize all studied topics or subtopics (these can suggest new ideas).
Brainstorming. Access your knowledge base – chances are you have a few interesting topics stored in mind that you’d like to explore in greater detail.
Browse through published article titles in social work journals or, even better, study newsletters/highlights on journal websites. Alternatively, one could search on platforms aggregating field-related news from multiple journals.– while some articles/topics might be overly complicated or specific, these still offer an immense choice.
Browse online for ready research topics for a custom research paper from our research paper writing service – skimming through such lists would bombard you with topics of appropriate complexity and scope /broadness or would inspire new related ideas (e.g. by combining elements from different topics).

Yet another way to pick a good topic is to get research paper writing help from our professional writers – they would manage all aspects, including that of choosing an original and solid topic (obviously, you might be willing to confirm it, before proceeding with your writing project).

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100 Social Work Research Topics

Below is a comprehensive social work research topics list to help get you started with your project.

50 Controversial Research Topics

Group therapy vs individual therapy for increasing autistic children adaptability
Impact on parents having children with autism spectrum disorder.
Role play vs group discussion efficiency in increasing knowledge regarding drug abuse among high-school students.
Addressing the stigma associated with depression.
Measures to counteract condemning stereotypes with regard to depression (explaining and highlighting the biological mechanisms underlying it)
Identifying individuals with suicide predisposition serving in military units.
Life events role in PTSD onset in veterans.
Strategies to prevent PTSD onset in US army veterans.
Social inclusion measures for war veterans.
Most efficient strategies for suicide prevention in academic setting.
Categories are most vulnerable to drug abuse.
Most efficient educational measures to prevent future drug abuse in children
Myths about substance abuse among adolescents.
Family support importance for alcohol addicts rehabilitation.
Workaholics – new type of addicts. Impact on personal and family lives.
Mental retardation in Alzheimer’s disease – how to cope with it as a family member?
Promoting integration for children with Down syndrome.
General considerations for working with children with developmental disabilities.
Educating society with regard to dyslexic children (all target groups could be considered: parents, classmates, teachers, etc.)
Dyslexia cases combined with ADHD – how to approach it?
Dismounting common myths about dyslexia.
Counteracting bullying aimed at dyslexic children.
Early intervention benefits to address language difficulties in case of dyslexic children.
What role should educators, parents, schools, mental health centers, private practice have in addressing dyslexia?
Key prerequisites for building resilience to adverse life events in children
Strategies for building resilience in welfare workers.
Who is responsible for developing resilience in social workers?
Self-help guidelines for social workers to become resilient.
Most common problems encountered by LGBT youth in US schools.
Arming LGBT individuals with coping strategies to face discrimination.
The situation with juvenile delinquents across various US states.
Rationale behind separating juvenile delinquents from adult delinquents.
Factors contributing to high youth incarceration rate in certain US states (Wyoming, Nebraska, South Dakota).
Most efficient reeducation strategies for juvenile delinquents.
Society inclusion measures for people that served in prison.
Coping with the stigma of having served in prison.
Attitudes of welfare workers towards incarcerated individuals.
Attitudes of correctional officers towards mental health of incarcerated individuals.
Gender differences relevance when working with incarcerated people.
Factors increasing the risk of recidivism in released prisoners.
Incarceration impacts on parent-child relationships.
Incarceration effects on mental health.
Social inclusion role and family support in preventing recidivism by former prisoners.
Circumstances associated with the highest risk of becoming a human trafficking victim.
Ethical rules important when working with human trafficking victims.
Trauma characteristic depiction for human trafficking victims.
What is considered neglecting a child in child welfare?
Prerequisites of a safe childhood and a functional family.
Dealing with child abuse in orphanages.
Types of child maltreatment/abuse.

50 Hot Research Topics for Social Work Students

Difference in approaching children vs adolescents suffering from domestic violence.
Success stories in preventing child abuse in certain regions/states.
Strategies to encourage women to report domestic violence cases.
Damage to families with ongoing domestic violence.
Healing steps for victims of domestic violence.
Effects of child neglect on later academic performance and career.
Removing a child from a setting – when is it justified?
Guidelines on providing testimony in court as a social worker
Peculiarities of social work in health care assistance.
Grief counseling for families that lost a loved one.
Understanding the symptoms of grief.
Risk factors for dangerous grief.
Conduct/communication rules with persons in grief.
Types of elder abuse. Which are the most common ones?
Predictors of elder abuse (related to relationships within families, financial, status).
The integrative concept of human services.
The utility of mentoring programs in social care.
Work with elders experiencing cognitive impairment.
Peculiarities of working with immigrants in social care.
Considerations for working with HIV positive people.
Social research topics about homeless people.
Primary factors contributing to homelessness.
Challenges faced by social care assistants in working with sexually exploited clients belonging to the opposite gender.
Meeting unique needs of sexually exploited children.
Compassion fatigue experienced by welfare worker.
Challenges experienced by single parents and support strategies
Problem of getting medical help when belonging to vulnerable categories
Is there place for spirituality in welfare worker?
Religious beliefs obstructing welfare worker.
Support strategies for low-income families having children with impaired development.
Retrospective views and youth opinions on foster care facilities they have gone through.
Key wishes/demands expressed by foster care facility residents
Strategies employed by welfare worker to avoid burnout.
Importance of building emotional intelligence as welfare worker.
Discussing sexual health with mentally ill or retarded clients.
Spirituality and faith as an essential element in many addiction rehabilitation programs.
Attitude towards older people among welfare workers.
Factors responsible for reluctance to benefit from mental health services among certain population groups.
Differences in working with adolescent and adult drug abusers.
Factors affecting foster youth that impact their higher education retention rate.
Language barrier as an obstructing factor for minorities in benefiting from mental health services.
Cultural competence as social work research topic
Pre and post birth assistance to surrogate mothers. Evaluating impact on mental health.
Challenges and issues arising in families with adoptive children.
Play therapy interventions effectiveness in school-based counseling.
Mental health in hemodialysis patients and corresponding support strategies.
Importance presented by recreational activities for patients with Alzheimer’s.
Intimacy impact on the outcome of group therapy practices for alcohol addiction.
Mental health care outcomes in pedophilia victims.
Alternative practices in social work.

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Clients can choose their preferred writers freely by evaluating their ranking and performance on the platform. Later, they can communicate with these writers as their projects progress, being able to request intermediary results and providing feedback, additional guiding. If results are not satisfying and don’t match provided instructions, you can request unlimited revisions – all for free. In the unlikely situation in which revision attempts fail, you are guaranteed to get your money back. Given these low risks and guaranteed outcome, you should definitely give it a try!

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Research studies and their implications for social work practice in a multidisciplinary center for lupus care

Affiliation.

1 Department of Social Work Programs, Hospital for Special Surgery, New York, New York 10021, USA. [email protected]
PMID: 22905980
DOI: 10.1080/00981389.2012.683711

The complexity of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and its psychosocial impact creates management challenges that require a multidisciplinary team approach for optimal patient care and outcomes. This article provides a brief report on current lupus-related research studies at the Mary Kirkland Center for Lupus Care at Hospital for Special Surgery. Studies and their social work implications highlight a comprehensive, integrated model for research, education, and patient care emphasizing interdisciplinary collaboration. Both basic science and clinical research are discussed, with a focus on the role of social workers as an integral part of the health care team in providing assessments and interventions and as support for patients in research studies.

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YCSC 2024 graduates share plans and next steps

At an annual Yale Child Study Center (YCSC) commencement event honoring trainees in the class of 2024 on June 21, 2024, some of the graduates’ future plans and next steps were shared. Highlights are included below, listed by training program. Several will be staying at Yale in new positions, while others are pursuing opportunities both near and far.

Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Fellows

Brittany Atuahene Robinson, MD will be an attending psychiatrist in the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at Cooper University Healthcare in Camden, New Jersey. She is also joining the faculty at Cooper Medical School of Rowan University and will primarily be working with adolescents and transitional age youth.

Matthew C. Johnson, MD will be a psychiatrist at the Medical Psychiatric Integrated Care Unit (IC5) at Connecticut Children’s Hospital in Hartford, Connecticut. He will be engaged in clinical and teaching duties on the unit and will hold academic appointment responsibilities as a member of the faculty of the Department of Pediatrics of the University of Connecticut School of Medicine.

Joseph Albert Knoble, MD will work with Frontier Psychiatry, a physician led tele-psychiatry company that is focused on serving rural, underserved families. He will also remain connected to the YCSC as a clinical instructor, exploring topics involving the gut-brain-axis, metabolic health, and the use of technology for communities with limited access to care.

Allison Lawler, MD, MEdT will be in a dual position as associate program director at the University of Hawaii, John A. Burns School of Medicine, General Psychiatry Residency, as well as a child psychiatrist at the Queen’s Medical Center in Honolulu, Hawaii. She will also remain connected to the YCSC as a community faculty member.

Jelena G. MacLeod, MD, MHS is exploring multiple job opportunities, from academia to industry and government, all on the leading edge of digital psychiatry and informatics. She will be taking the summer off to study for two boards exams (Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Clinical Informatics) while she weighs her options.

Maria Motlagh, MD will be working part-time at Fair Haven Community Health Center as a consultant for the pediatric refugee population and at Elmport Group in Westport, Connecticut. She will also remain a part of the YCSC as a community faculty member.

Onyi Okeke, MD will be embarking on a professional journey at Community Health Center Incorporated, where she will serve as a child psychiatrist. Her role will span school-based mental health programs in Middletown and New Britain schools and psychiatric consultations for outpatient pediatricians. She is also eager to cultivate a harmonious work-life balance, allowing her to devote more quality time to her husband and son.

Sherab Tsheringla, MD will continue at Yale University as faculty in the Interventional Psychiatry Service. He plans to continue his clinical and research efforts to develop and provide novel interventions for what has been called treatment refractory conditions. He hopes to develop further a robust interventional psychiatry service for pediatric populations and also for autistic individuals who often have significant co-occurring conditions including catatonia and severe self-injurious behaviors.

Child and Adolescent Psychology Fellows

Saja Almusawi, PhD will join Bellevue Hospital Center, part of the NYU Langone Health System and NYC Health + Hospitals, as a clinical psychologist at the Frances L. Loeb Child Protection and Development Center. Additionally, she will be appointed as a clinical assistant professor in the Department of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry at NYU Langone.

Dani Novick, PhD will be joining the faculty in the Department of Psychiatry at Georgetown University School of Medicine as an assistant professor. Her role will encompass providing early childhood, adolescent, and perinatal outpatient services, alongside research focused on developing and evaluating community-based programs to enhance child mental health. Additionally, she is thrilled to pay forward the knowledge and skills she gained through her fellowship training as a clinical supervisor.

C. Teal Raffaele, PhD will join the psychology faculty at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center within their Center for Autism and Developmental Disorders. She will also be collaborating with the Regulation of Emotion in Autistic Adults, Children, and Teens research program.

Cara Tomaso, PhD will remain at the YCSC in the role of assistant professor of clinical child psychology, embedded in the Section of Pediatric Orthopedics and Rehabilitation at Yale New Haven Hospital. She will split her time between the Yale Limb Restoration and Lengthening Program and the Female+ Athlete Program. She will be joining multidisciplinary treatment teams to provide behavioral health consultation to physicians, nurses, social workers, and other allied professions.

Child and Adolescent Social Work Fellows

Christian D. Edwards, MSW, LCSW will be relocating back to his hometown of Brooklyn, New York, where he will serve his community by working with VNS Health on their children's mobile crisis team. He looks forward to incorporating and utilizing the clinical skills he developed during his social work fellowship. Additionally, Christian plans to apply for doctoral studies this upcoming fall, aiming for a PhD in social work.

Stephanie Salazar, LMSW will be working at Southwest Key Programs in Houston, Texas where she will provide clinical services to at-risk Latinx children and adolescents under their unaccompanied minors program, a program that provides round-the-clock services and clinical care to youth pending reunification with vetted sponsors.

M.Res. in Developmental Neuroscience & Psychopathology, Anna Freud Centre and University College London

Erin Basol, BA will work as a research assistant at the Harpaz-Rotem PTSD Lab at Yale.
Jade Bouffard, BSc will pursue opportunities in clinical psychology sectors in Europe.
Satvika Char, BSc will work as a postgraduate associate in the Stover Lab at the YCSC.
Yulan Chen, BA will be working as a postgraduate associate in the Cho Lab at the YCSC.
Olivia Cuevas Geiger, BSc will be pursuing opportunities in clinical, public, and private sectors.
Bethan Gilligan, BSc will pursue clinical and research opportunities in the U.K.
Maisha Hossain, BA will be working as a postgraduate associate in the Before and After Baby Lab at the YCSC.
Zoe Howell, BSc will be working as a postgraduate associate in the Before and After Baby Lab at the YCSC.
Maria Jelen, BSc will begin working on a PhD at the MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit at University of Cambridge.
Gihyun Kim, BA will work as a postgraduate associate in the YAY Lab at the YCSC.
Danai Ioakeimidou, BSc will be pursuing opportunities in clinical settings and academia.
Tara Ramsay-Patel, BA will pursue clinical and research opportunities in the U.K.

Featured in this article

Joseph Knoble
Allison Lawler, MD, MEd
Maria Motlagh, MD
Sherab Tsheringla, MD, MBBS
Cara Tomaso
Jade Bouffard
Satvika Char
Olivia Cuevas Geiger
Maisha Hossain
Maria Jelen
Danai Ioakeimidou

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Chiu DT , Hamlat EJ , Zhang J , Epel ES , Laraia BA. Essential Nutrients, Added Sugar Intake, and Epigenetic Age in Midlife Black and White Women : NIMHD Social Epigenomics Program . JAMA Netw Open. 2024;7(7):e2422749. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.22749

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Essential Nutrients, Added Sugar Intake, and Epigenetic Age in Midlife Black and White Women : NIMHD Social Epigenomics Program

1 Community Health Sciences Division, School of Public Health, University of California, Berkeley
2 Osher Center for Integrative Health, University of California, San Francisco
3 Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of California, San Francisco
4 Department of Human Genetics, University of California, Los Angeles
Original Investigation Sociodemographic and Lifestyle Factors and Epigenetic Aging in US Young Adults Kathleen Mullan Harris, PhD; Brandt Levitt, PhD; Lauren Gaydosh, PhD; Chantel Martin, PhD; Jess M. Meyer, PhD; Aura Ankita Mishra, PhD; Audrey L. Kelly, PhD; Allison E. Aiello, PhD JAMA Network Open
Original Investigation Telehealth Parenting Program and Epigenetic Biomarkers in Children With Developmental Delay Sarah M. Merrill, PhD; Christina Hogan, MS; Anne K. Bozack, PhD; Andres Cardenas, PhD; Jonathan S. Comer, PhD; Daniel M. Bagner, PhD; April Highlander, PhD; Justin Parent, PhD JAMA Network Open
Original Investigation Socioeconomic Status, Lifestyle, and DNA Methylation Age Alika K. Maunakea, PhD; Krit Phankitnirundorn, PhD; Rafael Peres, PhD; Christian Dye, PhD; Ruben Juarez, PhD; Catherine Walsh, PhD; Connor Slavens, BSc; S. Lani Park, PhD; Lynne R. Wilkens, DrPH; Loïc Le Marchand, MD, PhD JAMA Network Open
Original Investigation Epigenetic Age Acceleration and Disparities in Posttraumatic Stress in Women Alicia K. Smith, PhD; Seyma Katrinli, PhD; Dawayland O. Cobb, MS; Evan G. Goff, BS; Michael Simmond, BS; Grace M. Christensen, PhD, MPH; Tyler Prusisz, BS; Sierra N. Garth, MPH; Meghan Brashear, MPH; Anke Hüls, PhD, MSc; Erika J. Wolf, PhD; Edward J. Trapido, ScD; Ariane L. Rung, PhD, MPH; Nicole R. Nugent, PhD; Edward S. Peters, DMD, SM, ScD JAMA Network Open
Original Investigation Childhood Maltreatment and Longitudinal Epigenetic Aging Olivia D. Chang, MSW; Helen C. S. Meier, PhD; Kathryn Maguire-Jack, PhD; Pamela Davis-Kean, PhD; Colter Mitchell, PhD JAMA Network Open
Original Investigation Familial Loss of a Loved One and Biological Aging Allison E. Aiello, PhD, MS; Aura Ankita Mishra, PhD; Chantel L. Martin, PhD; Brandt Levitt, PhD; Lauren Gaydosh, PhD; Daniel W. Belsky, PhD; Robert A. Hummer, PhD; Debra J. Umberson, PhD; Kathleen Mullan Harris, PhD JAMA Network Open
Original Investigation Obesity and Early-Onset Breast Cancer in Black and White Women Sarabjeet Kour Sudan, PhD; Amod Sharma, PhD; Kunwar Somesh Vikramdeo, PhD; Wade Davis, BS; Sachin K. Deshmukh, PhD; Teja Poosarla, MD; Nicolette P. Holliday, MD; Pranitha Prodduturvar, MD; Cindy Nelson, BS; Karan P. Singh, PhD; Ajay P. Singh, PhD; Seema Singh, PhD JAMA Network Open
Original Investigation Psychosocial Disadvantage During Childhood and Midlife Health Ryan L. Brown, PhD; Katie E. Alegria, PhD; Elissa Hamlat, PhD; A. Janet Tomiyama, PhD; Barbara Laraia, PhD; Eileen M. Crimmins, PhD; Terrie E. Moffitt, PhD; Elissa S. Epel, PhD JAMA Network Open
Original Investigation Epigenetic Aging and Racialized, Economic, and Environmental Injustice Nancy Krieger, PhD; Christian Testa, BS; Jarvis T. Chen, ScD; Nykesha Johnson, MPH; Sarah Holmes Watkins, PhD; Matthew Suderman, PhD; Andrew J. Simpkin, PhD; Kate Tilling, BSc, MSc, PhD; Pamela D. Waterman, MPH; Brent A. Coull, PhD; Immaculata De Vivo, PhD; George Davey Smith, MA(Oxon), MD, BChir(Cantab), MSc(Lond); Ana V. Diez Roux, MD, PhD, MPH; Caroline Relton, PhD JAMA Network Open
Original Investigation Prenatal Maternal Occupation and Child Epigenetic Age Acceleration Saher Daredia, MPH; Anne K. Bozack, PhD; Corinne A. Riddell, PhD; Robert Gunier, PhD; Kim G. Harley, PhD; Asa Bradman, PhD; Brenda Eskenazi, PhD; Nina Holland, PhD; Julianna Deardorff, PhD; Andres Cardenas, PhD JAMA Network Open
Special Communication Advancing Health Disparities Science Through Social Epigenomics Research Arielle S. Gillman, PhD, MPH; Eliseo J. Pérez-Stable, MD; Rina Das, PhD JAMA Network Open

Question Are dietary patterns, including essential nutrients and added sugar intakes, and scores of nutrient indices associated with epigenetic aging?

Findings In this cross-sectional study of 342 Black and White women at midlife, higher added sugar intake was associated with older epigenetic age, whereas higher essential, pro-epigenetic nutrient intake and higher Alternate Mediterranean Diet (aMED) and Alternate Healthy Eating Index (AHEI)–2010 scores (reflecting dietary alignment with Mediterranean diet and chronic disease prevention guidelines, respectively) were associated with younger epigenetic age.

Meaning The findings of this study suggest a tandem importance in both optimizing nutrient intake and reducing added sugar intake for epigenetic health.

Importance Nutritive compounds play critical roles in DNA replication, maintenance, and repair, and also serve as antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agents. Sufficient dietary intakes support genomic stability and preserve health.

Objective To investigate the associations of dietary patterns, including intakes of essential nutrients and added sugar, and diet quality scores of established and new nutrient indices with epigenetic age in a diverse cohort of Black and White women at midlife.

Design, Setting, and Participants This cross-sectional study included analyses (2021-2023) of past women participants of the 1987-1997 National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Growth and Health Study (NGHS), which examined cardiovascular health in a community cohort of Black and White females aged between 9 and 19 years. Of these participants who were recruited between 2015 and 2019 from NGHS’s California site, 342 females had valid completed diet and epigenetic assessments. The data were analyzed from October 2021 to November 2023.

Exposure Diet quality scores of established nutrient indices (Alternate Mediterranean Diet [aMED], Alternate Healthy Eating Index [AHEI]–2010); scores for a novel, a priori–developed Epigenetic Nutrient Index [ENI]; and mean added sugar intake amounts were derived from 3-day food records.

Main Outcomes and Measures GrimAge2, a second-generation epigenetic clock marker, was calculated from salivary DNA. Hypotheses were formulated after data collection. Healthier diet indicators were hypothesized to be associated with younger epigenetic age.

Results A total of 342 women composed the analytic sample (mean [SD] age, 39.2 [1.1] years; 171 [50.0%] Black and 171 [50.0%] White participants). In fully adjusted models, aMED (β, −0.41; 95% CI, −0.69 to −0.13), AHEI-2010 (β, −0.05; 95% CI, −0.08 to −0.01), and ENI (β, −0.17; 95% CI, −0.29 to −0.06) scores, and added sugar intake (β, 0.02; 95% CI, 0.01-0.04) were each significantly associated with GrimAge2 in expected directions. In combined analyses, the aforementioned results with GrimAge2 were preserved with the association estimates for aMED and added sugar intake retaining their statistical significance.

Conclusions and Relevance In this cross-sectional study, independent associations were observed for both healthy diet and added sugar intake with epigenetic age. To our knowledge, these are among the first findings to demonstrate associations between added sugar intake and epigenetic aging using second-generation epigenetic clocks and one of the first to extend analyses to a diverse population of Black and White women at midlife. Promoting diets aligned with chronic disease prevention recommendations and replete with antioxidant or anti-inflammatory and pro-epigenetic health nutrients while emphasizing low added sugar consumption may support slower cellular aging relative to chronological age, although longitudinal analyses are needed.

Epigenetic clocks powerfully predict biological age independent of chronological age. These clocks reflect altered gene and protein expression patterns, particularly those resulting from differential DNA methylation (DNAm) at CpG (5′-C-phosphate-G-3′) sites. DNAm that accumulates over time is a testament to the toll social, behavioral, and environmental forces can have on the body. 1 - 3 These alterations often result in pathogenic processes (eg, genomic instability, systemic inflammation, and oxidative stress) characteristic of aging and chronic disease. 1 , 4 , 5 As such, myriad clocks reflecting epigenetic age have been developed for a range of age- or disease-related targets. 4 , 6 The GrimAge series contains second-generation markers of epigenetic aging that account for clinical and functional biomarkers, and is most notable for its robust associations with human mortality and morbidity risk, including time to death and comorbidity counts. 6 , 7 The recently developed version 2 of the GrimAge clock (hereafter, GrimAge2) improved on the first’s predictive abilities and confirmed its applicability for people at midlife and of different racial and ethnic backgrounds. 1 , 6

Epigenetic changes are modifiable and efforts to counter epigenetic alteration in humans have centered on lifestyle factors including diet, inspiring concepts of an “epigenetic diet” and “nutriepigenetics.” 8 , 9 So far, 2 epidemiological studies have found inverse associations between higher diet quality and slower epigenetic aging using clock measures related to mortality, including the first version of GrimAge. 7 , 10 In those studies, diet measures were reflective of healthy dietary patterns (eg, the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension [DASH] diet, the Alternate Mediterranean Diet [aMED] score) emphasizing consumption of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts and seeds, and legumes. 8 , 11 For example, the Mediterranean-style diet is largely plant-based with emphasis on extra virgin olive oil and seafood. This makes it replete with bioactive nutrients and phytotherapeutic compounds and low in highly processed, high fat, and nutrient-poor foods, a mixture hypothesized to be protective against low-grade chronic inflammation (“inflammaging”), oxidative stress, intracellular and extracellular waste accumulation, and disrupted intracellular signaling and protein-protein interactions. Thus, such a pattern is likely effective in preventing and reversing the epigenetic changes and pathogenic processes associated with aging, disease, and decline. 4 , 8 , 12 - 14

Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs) are an established set of nutrient-specific reference values determined by experts that guide population intakes for adequacy and toxic effects. 15 Recent thinking, however, suggests that diets may not always adequately supply nutrients and other bioactives, particularly relative to the amounts necessary to fully condition gene expression or counteract epigenetic alterations to ensure optimal physiological metabolism. 8 Macronutrients and micronutrients play crucial roles in DNA replication, damage prevention, and repair, whereas nutrient deficiencies (and excesses) can cause genomic damage to the same degree as physical or chemical exposures. 16 Given that (1) progenome effects of some micronutrients have been observed at different and higher levels than the established DRIs and (2) determination of DRIs does not solely consider genomic stability (ie, lesser susceptibility to genomic alterations), experts have called for refining the DRIs to be better aligned for genomic health maintenance. 14 , 16 - 18 Diet quality inventories, such as those for Mediterranean-style diets, have not generally incorporated DRIs, although such considerations could clarify how food-based indices compare against requirements for related nutrients (eg, those with epigenetic properties) and refine epidemiological and intervention efforts. Accordingly, for this study, a novel nutrient index theoretically associated with epigenetic health was created and its associations with epigenetic aging were tested alongside established diet quality indices.

To date, nutriepigenetic work has mostly involved older White populations and focused on healthy dietary aspects. It is therefore important to examine the associations between nutrition and epigenetic aging in more diverse samples and to better understand what specific dietary aspects could be underlying the observed associations. Nutrients with established epigenetic action should be examined, especially considering intakes relative to amounts set forth in the DRIs and nutritional recommendations. Similarly, sugar is an established pro-inflammatory and oxidative agent that has been implicated in cancer as well as cardiometabolic diseases. 19 - 21 However, in diet quality indices often studied in the epigenetic context (eg, the aMED), sugar is noticeably unaccounted for, and it has also yet to be examined alone. Given the high consumption of sugar globally and the demographic variations within, 22 - 24 elucidating this association could motivate future dietary interventions and guidelines as well as health disparities research. This study sought to examine associations of diet with GrimAge2 in a midlife cohort comprising Black and White US women. The central hypothesis was that indicators of a healthier diet may be associated with decelerated epigenetic aging, and added sugar intake with accelerated aging.

This cross-sectional study used data from the original National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) Growth and Health Study (NGHS) (1987-1999) and its follow-up (2015-2019), which studied a cohort of Black and White females aged from 9 or 10 years into midlife (age 36-43 years), examining cardiometabolic health and related determinants. The participants were recruited based on biological female sex at age 9 or 10 years. The follow-up study re-recruited women from the California site. 25 , 26 Participants (and/or their parent[s] or guardian[s]) provided demographic data and completed online or paper surveys and new assessments. Participants received remuneration and provided informed consent. The institutional review board of the University of California, Berkeley, approved all study protocols. This study followed the Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology ( STROBE ) reporting guideline.

For inclusion in current analyses, the participants needed valid diet records and epigenetic data at midlife along with age and race and ethnicity information (participant self-reported); after excluding 5 women with epigenetic data quality issues, 342 individuals were included in the analytic sample. Complete case analyses were done. Among the 624 women who were followed up, the women composing the analytic sample were younger (39.2 years vs 39.9 years; P < .001) and had greater body mass index (BMI, calculated as weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared) compared with women without complete diet and epigenetic data (32.5 vs 30.7; P = .02) ( Table 1 ). No differences were otherwise observed.

Participants provided saliva samples used for DNAm analyses performed by the University of California, Los Angeles Neuroscience Genomics Core (UNGC) of the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior using the Infinium HumanMethylation450 BeadChip platform (Illumina, Inc). DNAm profiles were generated by Horvath’s online calculator, 27 which provided (1) estimates of epigenetic age based on GrimAge2 estimation methods; and (2) assessments of data quality (again, 5 observations did not pass quality checks). GrimAge2 uses Cox proportional hazards regression models that regress time to death (due to all-cause mortality) on DNAm-based surrogates of plasma proteins, a DNAm-based estimator of smoking pack-years, age, and female sex. It was updated from GrimAge, version 1 6 by including 2 new DNAm-based estimators of plasma proteins—high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (logCRP) and hemoglobin A 1c (log A 1c )—beyond the original 7. Linear transformation of results from these models allows GrimAge2 to be taken as an epigenetic age estimate (in years). Further information can be accessed from studies on DNA treatment and isolation and advanced analysis options for generating output files 28 or GrimAge2. 1

The participants were instructed by the NGHS study staff to self-complete a 3-day food record at follow-up for 3 nonconsecutive days. 29 Data were entered into and analyzed by the Nutrition Data System for Research (NDSR) software, version 2018 (University of Minnesota Nutrition Coordinating Center).

Mean nutrient and food intakes were calculated across valid food records for each woman based on the NDSR 2018 output. These values were used to calculate the scores of 2 overall diet quality nutrient indices (aMED and the Alternate Healthy Eating Index [AHEI]–2010) and a novel index (Epigenetic Nutrient Index [ENI]) score as described below. The aMED (Mediterranean-style diet) followed published scoring methodology 30 reflecting the degree of adherence to 9 components of an anti-inflammatory, antioxidant-rich diet. The AHEI-2010 was assessed following published scoring instructions 31 and reflects the degree of adherence to 11 dietary components associated with decreased risk for chronic disease.

This study developed a novel nutrient index (ENI) after the Mediterranean-style diet, but via a nutrient-based approach rather than a food-based one. Nutrient selection was done a priori based on antioxidant and/or anti-inflammatory capacities as well as roles in DNA maintenance and repair documented in the literature. 16 , 32 , 33 Scores can range from 0 to 24, with higher scores reflecting higher DRI adherence ( Table 2 ). 34 The internal consistency of the ENI was acceptable (Cronbach α = 0.79). The ENI also demonstrated convergent validity with r = 0.51 ENI-aMED correlation as well as higher ENI scores in women from childhood households with higher annual incomes (13.9 vs 11.7, for ≥$40 000/y vs <$10 000/y, respectively) and parental educational attainment (14.7 vs 12.3, for ≥college graduate vs < high school graduate, respectively), corresponding to the literature. 36 Pearson correlations between the ENI and diet scores and added sugar intake were also calculated. The ENI score was moderately correlated with the AHEI-2010 score ( r = 0.44) but not correlated with added sugar intake. The aMED and AHEI-2010 scores were highly correlated at r = 0.73. Added sugar intake had moderate correlation with the AHEI-2010 score ( r = −0.44) and low correlation with the aMED score ( r = −0.28).

Added sugar intake was calculated as the mean across valid food records using NDSR output. The NDSR defines added sugar intake as the total sugar added to foods (eg, as syrups and sugars) during food preparation and commercial food processing. Monosaccharides and disaccharides naturally occurring in foods are not included. 35

To maximize internal validity and minimize confounding, several covariates were included. Age and sample batch were controlled for as well as naive CD8 and CD8pCD28nCD45Ran memory and effector T-cell counts, thus accounting for normal cell count variation. To control for baseline factors and their potential influence on diet and epigenetic age over time, the following parameters assessed at age 9 or 10 years (mostly parent or caregiver reported) were further adjusted for annual household income, highest parental educational attainment, number of parents in household, and number of siblings. Additionally, self-reported race (Black or White) as well as the current health and lifestyle factors of self-reported chronic conditions (yes to any of the following ever: cancer, diabetes [including gestational, prediabetes], hypertension, or hypercholesterolemia) or medication use (currently yes for any of the following conditions: diabetes, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, or thyroid), BMI (measured), having ever smoked (yes or no), and mean daily total energy intake (as higher diet quality scores might result from higher energy intake) 37 were also included.

Descriptive analyses provided summary statistics. Linear regression models estimated unadjusted and adjusted cross-sectional associations between each of the 4 dietary exposures with GrimAge2. Per expert recommendations, unadjusted models controlled for women’s current age, sample batch, and both naive CD8 and CD8pCD28nCD45Ran memory and effector T-cell counts. Adjusted models controlled for those variables in addition to relevant sociodemographic and health behavior–related covariates already listed. To examine the association between healthy diet measures together with added sugar intake and GrimAge2, aMED, AHEI-2010, and ENI scores were each separately put into the same fully adjusted multivariable linear regression model. The threshold for statistical significance was 2-tailed (α = .05) and all statistical analyses were conducted from October 2021 to November 2023 with Stata15 SE, version 15.1 (StataCorp LLC).

The analytic sample of this study comprised 342 women (mean [SD] age at follow-up, 39.2 [1.1] years; 171 [50.0%] Black and 171 [50.0%] White participants; mean [SD] BMI, 32.5 [10.0]; 150 [43.9%] ever smokers; 164 [48.0%] ever diagnosed with a chronic condition; and 58 [17.0%] currently taking medication) ( Table 1 ). The participants were well distributed across socioeconomic status categories at baseline (9-10 years old). The participants presented with low to moderate levels of diet quality; the mean (SD) scores were 3.9 (1.9) (possible range, 0-9) on the anti-inflammatory, antioxidant Mediterranean-style pattern (aMED); 55.4 (14.7) (possible range, 0-110) on the AHEI-2010 for chronic disease risk; and 13.5 (5.0) (possible range, 0-24) on the ENI for intakes of epigenetic-relevant nutrients relative to DRIs. The participants also reported mean (SD) daily added sugar intake of 61.5 (44.6) g, although the score range was large (2.7-316.5 g).

Table 3 provides the overall unadjusted and adjusted associations between each dietary exposure of interest and GrimAge2 resulting from multivariable linear regression models. In both unadjusted and adjusted models, all dietary exposures were statistically and significantly associated with GrimAge2 in the hypothesized, anticipated direction. In adjusted models, the associations observed for each dietary exposure were slightly attenuated. Each unit increase in the scores was associated with year changes in GrimAge2, as follows: aMED (β, −0.41; 95% CI, −0.69 to −0.13), AHEI-2010 (β, −0.05; 95% CI, −0.08 to −0.01), and ENI (β, −0.17; 95% CI, −0.29 to −0.06), indicating that healthier diets were associated with decelerated epigenetic aging. Each gram increase in added sugar intake was associated with a 0.02 (95% CI, 0.01 to 0.04) increase in GrimAge2, reflecting accelerated epigenetic aging.

Table 4 illustrates the associations of healthy diet measures (aMED, AHEI-2010, and ENI scores) and added sugar intake with epigenetic aging and gives the adjusted results for each healthy diet measure and added sugar intake with GrimAge2 in the context of each other. In all instances, healthier diet measures and added sugar intake appeared to maintain their independent associations with GrimAge2 in the expected directions. Associations were statistically significant for added sugar intake in all models as well as for aMED scores; 95% CIs were more imprecise for AHEI-2010 and ENI scores.

The findings of this cross-sectional study are among the first, to our knowledge, to demonstrate the association of added sugar intake with an epigenetic clock. Further, to our knowledge, it is the first study to examine the associations of diet with GrimAge2 and extend the applicability of such results to a cohort of Black and White women at midlife. As hypothesized, measures of healthy dietary patterns (aMED, AHEI-2010 scores), and high intakes of nutrients theoretically related to epigenetics (ENI) were associated with younger epigenetic age, while a higher intake of added sugar was associated with older epigenetic age. Additionally, this study examined indicators of healthy and less healthy diets in the same model, allowing simultaneous evaluation of each in the presence of the other. Although the magnitudes of associations were diminished and some 95% CIs became wider, their statistical significance generally persisted, supporting the existence of independent epigenetic associations of both healthy and less healthy diet measures. This approach is informative, as dietary components are often examined singularly or in indices, which can lead to erroneous conclusions if key contextual dietary components are not accounted for or are obscured. From these findings, even in healthy dietary contexts, added sugar still has detrimental associations with epigenetic age. Similarly, despite higher added sugar intake, healthier dietary intakes appear to remain generally associated with younger epigenetic age.

The number of published nutriepigenetic studies, particularly on examining second-generation epigenetic clock markers, is still relatively small. However, the results of the present study are consistent with the literature. Two other studies 7 , 10 have examined GrimAge1-associated outcomes and found higher diet quality scores, including the DASH and aMED, were associated with slower epigenetic aging. However, those studies were limited to older (>50 years) and White populations, limiting their demographic generalizability. Analyses of epigenetic aging and added sugar intake are new, but findings are consistent with the larger body of epidemiological work that has drawn connections between added sugar intake and cardiometabolic disease, 19 , 20 perhaps suggesting a potential mechanism underlying such observations. Granted, point and 95% CI estimates for the added sugar–GrimAge2 associations were close to zero, suggesting a smaller role for added sugar compared with healthy dietary measures; however, more studies are needed. Nevertheless, their statistical significance was persistent.

Nutrient-based inventories can provide epidemiological contributions for genomic health studies. The idea of epigenetically critical nutrients is important for 2 reasons. First, it supports the notion that epigenetic nutrient intakes above DRI levels could boost epigenetic preservation and potentially motivate updates to nutritional guidelines, an outcome advocated for by nutriepigenetic experts. 16 - 18 In the novel ENI constructed for the present study, points were awarded based on comparisons of average daily intakes with: (1) estimated average requirements, or the requirement considered adequate for half of the healthy individuals in a population, and (2) recommended dietary allowances or adequate intakes, or where 97% to 98% or essentially all of a population’s healthy individuals’ requirements for a nutrient are met. 15 Future iterations could test varying ENI scoring parameters relative to DRIs for epigenetic benefit. Second, taking a nutrient approach suggests that any dietary pattern rich in vitamins, minerals, and other bioactives could be useful for preserving epigenetic health. This is helpful because dietary patterns are socioculturally influenced, but a nutrient focus rather than a focus on foods could help bridge cultures, class, and geography. 9 The Okinawan diet, for example, is nutritionally similar to the Mediterranean-style diet but more aligned to Asian tastes. 38 In general, the sociodemographic determinants of diet should not be discounted. Across the US population, for instance, it is known that overall diet quality is mediocre and relatively low while added sugar intake is considerably high, as also observed in the sample of the present study. However, specific nutrient intakes will vary based on the particulars of dietary patterns. 22 , 36 As dietetics and medicine progresses into the era of personalized nutrition and personalized medicine, the role of social factors including diet will be important to consider in epigenetic studies and could figure prominently in work on health disparities.

Strengths of this study are its inclusion of a diverse group of women as well as use of robust measures of diet and DNAm. It was also possible to control for several potential sociodemographic confounders.

This study also has limitations. As a cross-sectional study, it is not possible to infer causality without temporality, and therefore longitudinal studies are needed. Additionally, diet was self-reported via 3-day food records, which may lead to underestimates and overestimates of intakes depending on the nutrient. Therefore, augmenting dietary assessment with food frequency questionnaires and/or biomarkers could be helpful. 39 Also, other nutrients with pro-epigenetic properties were not included in the current ENI. Still, the Cronbach α for this first ENI version was acceptable at 0.79 and it demonstrated good convergent validity with customary socioeconomic and demographic characteristics. The tolerable upper intake levels of the DRIs were not considered in constructing the ENI. Future work should assess the prevalence of intakes beyond upper limits to assess whether toxicity could be a concern.

To our knowledge, the findings of this cross-sectional study are among the first to find associations between indicators of healthy diet as well as added sugar intake and second-generation epigenetic aging markers and one of the first to include a cohort of Black women. Higher diet quality and higher consumption of antioxidants or anti-inflammatory nutrients were associated with younger epigenetic age, whereas higher consumption of added sugar was associated with older epigenetic age. Promotion of healthy diets aligned with chronic disease prevention and decreased added sugar consumption may support slower cellular aging relative to chronological age, although longitudinal analyses are needed.

Accepted for Publication: April 29, 2024.

Published: July 29, 2024. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.22749

Corresponding Author: Dorothy T. Chiu, PhD, Osher Center for Integrative Health, University of California, San Francisco, 1545 Divisadero St, #301D, San Francisco, CA 94115 ( [email protected] ); Barbara A. Laraia, PhD, MPH, RD, Community Health Sciences Division, School of Public Health, University of California, Berkeley, 2121 Berkeley Way, Berkeley, CA 94720 ( [email protected] ).

Author Contributions: Drs Chiu and Laraia had full access to all of the data in the study and take responsibility for the integrity of the data and the accuracy of the data analysis. Drs Epel and Laraia share co–senior authorship on this article.

Concept and design: Chiu, Hamlat, Epel, Laraia.

Acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data: All authors.

Drafting of the manuscript: Chiu, Hamlat, Laraia.

Critical review of the manuscript for important intellectual content: Hamlat, Zhang, Epel, Laraia.

Statistical analysis: Chiu, Hamlat, Zhang.

Obtained funding: Epel, Laraia.

Administrative, technical, or material support: Chiu, Laraia.

Supervision: Epel, Laraia.

Conflict of Interest Disclosures: Dr Chiu reported receiving support from grants from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD); the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI); the National Institute on Aging (NIA); and the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) during the conduct of the study. Dr Hamlat reported receiving grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) during the conduct of the study. Dr Laraia reported receiving grants from NIH NICHD during the conduct of the study. No other disclosures were reported.

Funding/Support: The research reported in this publication was supported by grant R01HD073568 from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver NICHD (Drs Laraia and Epel, principal investigators [PIs]); grant R56HL141878 from the NHLBI; and grants R56AG059677 and R01AG059677 from the NIA (both for Drs Epel and Laraia, PIs). The participation of Dr Chiu was supported by the University of California, San Francisco Osher Center research training fellowship program under grant T32AT003997 from NCCIH.

Role of the Funder/Sponsor: The funders had no role in the design and conduct of the study; collection, management, analysis, and interpretation of the data; preparation, review, or approval of the manuscript; and decision to submit the manuscript for publication.

Data Sharing Statement: See the Supplement .

Additional Contributions: We recognize the past and present NHLBI Growth and Health Study (NGHS) staff for their talents and dedication, without which the study and these analyses would not have been possible. We also thank the Nutrition Policy Institute for providing consultation and support with historical study data. Additionally, we express immense gratitude to Ake T. Lu, PhD, and Steve Horvath, PhD, now of Altos Labs, for their epigenetic clock expertise and consultation. Neither was financially compensated for their contributions beyond their usual salary. Of note, we thank the NGHS participants for their time and efforts over the years.

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The University of Michigan-Flint, Social Work Department is seeking a Research Assistant I (Temporary). This candidate will assist in a NIH funded project examining the associations between parental violence and child socioemotional development using data from the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) and World Health Organization (WHO).

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Undergraduate student in good standing with the University of Michigan-Flint

Modes of Work

Mobile/remote: This work allows for the majority or all of the work to be completed offsite. On occasion, you may be required and must be available to work onsite if necessitated by the department leadership or designee and/or your job requirement, but is generally scheduled on a recurring basis.

Additional Information

University of Michigan-Flint - Plan for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

The University of Michigan-Flint's DEI plan can be found at: https://www.umflint.edu/dei/?

The University of Michigan-Flint exhibits its commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion through enacting fair practices, policies, and procedures particularly in support of the equitable participation of the historically underserved. UM-Flint recognizes the value of diversity in our efforts to provide equitable access and opportunities to all regardless of individual identities in support of a climate where everyone feels a sense of belonging, community, and agency.

Diversity is a core value at University of Michigan-Flint. We are passionate about building and sustaining an inclusive and equitable working and learning environment for all students, staff, and faculty. The University of Michigan-Flint seeks to recruit and retain a diverse workforce as a reflection of our commitment to serve the diverse people of Michigan, to maintain the excellence of the University, and to offer our students richly varied disciplines, perspectives, and ways of knowing and learning for the purpose of becoming global citizens in a connected world.

Background Screening

The University of Michigan conducts background checks on all job candidates upon acceptance of a contingent offer and may use a third party administrator to conduct background checks. Background checks are performed in compliance with the Fair Credit Reporting Act.

Application Deadline

Temporary job openings are posted for a minimum of three calendar days. The review and selection process may begin as early as the fourth day after posting. This opening may be removed from posting boards and filled anytime after the minimum posting period has ended.

U-M EEO/AA Statement

The University of Michigan is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer.

IMAGES

(PDF) A Case for Case Studies in Social Work Research
The Practice of Research in Social Work
Studies in Clinical Social Work: Transforming Practice, Education and
Social Research
Social Work Research Methods
Research for Effective Social Work Practice (New Directions in Social

COMMENTS

Social Work Research
Social Work Research publishes exemplary research to advance the development of knowledge and inform social work practice. Find out more. ... Conducting a content validity study in social work research . An Updated Measure for Assessing Subtle Rape Myths . Differential effects of support providers on adolescents' mental health
Research on Social Work Practice: Sage Journals
Research on Social Work Practice (RSWP), peer-reviewed and published eight times per year, is a disciplinary journal devoted to the publication of empirical research concerning the assessment methods and outcomes of social work practice. Intervention programs covered include behavior analysis and therapy; psychotherapy or counseling with individuals; case management; and education.
Journal of Social Work: Sage Journals
The Journal of Social Work is a forum for the publication, dissemination and debate of key ideas and research in social work. The journal aims to advance theoretical understanding, shape policy, and inform practice, and welcomes submissions from all … | View full journal description. This journal is a member of the Committee on Publication ...
Practice Research in Social Work: Themes, Opportunities and Impact
Practice research in social work is evolving and has been iteratively defined through a series of statements over the last 15 years (Epstein et al., 2015; ... can undertake practice research of the rigour required for peer-reviewed publication and provide new knowledge for social work practice. The studies are necessarily modest, but each ...
How to Bring Research Into Social Work Practice
Some of the specific guidance provided around research and social work include: 5.01 (b): …Social workers should protect, enhance, and improve the integrity of the profession through appropriate study and research, active discussion, and responsible criticism of the profession. 5.01 (d): Social workers should contribute to the knowledge base ...
Journal of the Society for Social Work and Research
ABOUT THE JOURNAL Frequency: 4 issues/year ISSN: 2334-2315 E-ISSN: 1948-822X 2022 CiteScore*: 1.9 Ranked #500 out of 1,415 "Sociology and Political Science" journals. Founded in 2009, the Journal of the Society for Social Work and Research (JSSWR) is the flagship publication of the Society for Social Work and Research (SSWR), a freestanding organization founded in 1994 to advance social ...
Social Work Research
Social Work Research publishes exemplary research to advance the development of knowledge and inform social work practice. Widely regarded as the outstanding journal in the field, it includes analytic reviews of research, theoretical articles pertaining to social work research, evaluation studies, and diverse research studies that contribute to knowledge about social work issues and problems.
Back to the Future: Using Social Work Research to Improve Social Work
In 2002, the Society for Social Work and Research (SSWR), in conjunction with the Brown School of Social Work at Washington University in St. Louis, established the Aaron Rosen Lecture to fulfill a dual purpose: (a) to honor the lifetime achievement of Aaron Rosen, and (b) to provide SSWR members with an annual scholarly lecture 1 intended to advance the integration of social work practice and ...
NASW Journals' Most Cited Articles
Widely regarded as the outstanding journal in the field, it includes analytic reviews of research, theoretical articles pertaining to social work research, evaluation studies, and diverse research studies that contribute to knowledge about social work issues and problems. 2021 Journal Impact Factor™: 1.844. Social Work in the Age of a Global ...
Social Work Research Methods
Introduction. Social work research means conducting an investigation in accordance with the scientific method. The aim of social work research is to build the social work knowledge base in order to solve practical problems in social work practice or social policy. Investigating phenomena in accordance with the scientific method requires maximal ...
Social Work Research Methods
Research Methods in Social Work. The various social work research methods have specific benefits and limitations determined by context. Common research methods include surveys, program evaluations, needs assessments, randomized controlled trials, descriptive studies and single-system designs.
(PDF) Practising Social Work Research: Case Studies for Learning
Practising Social Work Research: Case Studies for Learning, second edition (ToC) May 2017. Publisher: University of Toronto Press. Authors: Rick Csiernik. King's University College. Rachel ...
The Current State of Evidence-Based Practice in Social Work: A Review
Perhaps the most important finding of this study with regard to future research is the paucity of studies testing and validating implementation and dissemination strategies. No such studies have been conducted in social work (Gibbs, 2002). This research is needed to meet the growing demand for practitioners to base decisions on evidence.
(PDF) Social Work Research and Its Relevance to Practice: "The Gap
Second, studies of practice research in social work remain scant in Asia and Singapore Webber 2020 Ho et al. 2023;Teo, Koh, and Kwan 2023), with limited insights into organisational contexts ...
Research & Data
Research & Data. > News > Research & Data. Research & Data. NASW's Center for Workforce Studies and the Social Work Policy Institute conducted research that examined the social work workforce and issues that related to the work of social workers, including serving people with multiple and complex needs.
Social Work Ethics Resources and Research
Social Work Ethics Resources and Research. Below is an overview of social work research related to the profession's ethical standards and values, including examples of publications that provide an overview of: Issues in Research Ethics - examples of pre-study conceptualization of research issues related to ethics.
A Case for Case Studies in Social Work Research
Case study research is a good fit with many forms of social work. practice. Although disparaged as uncontrolled and uninterpretable, the case study has great potential for building social work knowledge for assessment, intervention, and outcome. This article defines case study research, presents guidelines for evaluating case studies, and shows ...
(PDF) A Case for Case Studies in Social Work Research
In the case study, the researcher is interested in the case and aims at its in-depth investigation (Bryman, 2016). Gilgun (1994) argues that a case study can be an effective method in social work ...
Social Work Theses, Projects, and Dissertations
what is the readiness of social work students to work with autistic individuals?, ignacio aguilar pelaez. pdf. examining experiences among social workers working with parents who suffer from substance use disorder, alicia alvarado and eleno zepeda. pdf. covid-19, social isolation, and msw students' mental health, cassandra barajas. pdf
100 Social Work Research Topics and Tips on Choosing One
50 Hot Research Topics for Social Work Students. Difference in approaching children vs adolescents suffering from domestic violence. Success stories in preventing child abuse in certain regions/states. Strategies to encourage women to report domestic violence cases. Damage to families with ongoing domestic violence.
Work-life balance, social support, and burnout: A quantitative study of
Social work is acknowledged to be a high-stress profession that involves working with people in distressing circumstances and complex life situations such as those experiencing abuse, domestic violence, substance misuse, and crime (Stanley & Mettilda, 2016).It has been observed that important sources of occupational stress for social workers include excessive workload, working overtime ...
Research studies and their implications for social work practice in a
Studies and their social work implications highlight a comprehensive, integrated model for research, education, and patient care emphasizing interdisciplinary collaboration. Both basic science and clinical research are discussed, with a focus on the role of social workers as an integral part of the health care team in providing assessments and ...
College of Social Work
The University of South Carolina offers CSWE-accredited BSW and MSW degrees as well as a PhD in social work that leads the profession in teaching, research, innovation, collaboration and service. Built on a foundation of social justice, students gain real world experience through hands on field practice through a variety of internships and research opportunities.
Writing about group work and for social work with groups
Many of the papers published in Social Work with Groups are research articles that typically report on the results of a research study. These types of papers may contain figures and tables that show a map of qualitative analyses or a table of quantitative results, demographic characteristics of a population, and/or descriptions of group activities.
Child Welfare Education for Leadership
The Child Welfare Education for Leadership (CWEL) program is a cooperative effort among the United States Administration for Children and Families, the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services, the Pennsylvania Child and Youth Administrators and thirteen accredited schools of social work in Pennsylvania. Its goal is to strengthen public child welfare services in Pennsylvania by providing ...
Act 31 Online Training
For Social Workers and Other Licensed Health-Related Professionals licensed under the Pennsylvania Department of State: The School of Social Work at the University of Pittsburgh through its Child Welfare Resource Center and Continuing Education Program offers Act 31 On-line Training for LSW/LCSW, LPC, and LMFT professionals in Pennsylvania.
Why your help is unhelpful: A multistage mediation model exploring
Recent occupational health research has begun exploring unhelpful workplace social support (UWSS). UWSS refers to actions taken by a colleague that the recipient believes are intended to be helpful but are perceived as ineffective. For example, a colleague may provide help that is not wanted or do something incorrectly while providing aid. Despite the perceived good intentions of UWSS ...
YCSC 2024 graduates share plans and next steps
At an annual Yale Child Study Center (YCSC) commencement event honoring trainees in the class of 2024 on June 21, 2024, some of the graduates' future plans and ... social workers, and other allied professions. Child and Adolescent Social Work Fellows. Christian D. Edwards, ... BA will work as a research assistant at the Harpaz-Rotem PTSD Lab ...
Essential Nutrients, Added Sugar Intake, and Epigenetic Age in Black
However, specific nutrient intakes will vary based on the particulars of dietary patterns. 22,36 As dietetics and medicine progresses into the era of personalized nutrition and personalized medicine, the role of social factors including diet will be important to consider in epigenetic studies and could figure prominently in work on health ...
Research Assistant I
The University of Michigan-Flint, Social Work Department is seeking a Research Assistant I (Temporary). This candidate will assist in a NIH funded project examining the associations between parental violence and child socioemotional development using data from the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) and World Health ...