The Role of Social Work Education in Relation to Empathy and Self-Reported Resilience: Results from Entry to Exit of Social Work Education on the Island of Ireland during the COVID-19 Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected all aspects of people's lives worldwide, including the work of social workers and the education of social work students. Field placements are a significant part of social work education, but during the pandemic they were cut short and most teachings moved online. The current mixed methods study examined the effects of social work education on social work students' empathy and resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic on the island of Ireland. A matched sample of forty-nine students completed an online survey at the start (T1) of their degree and at the end (T2). A further 229 students who only completed the T1 survey were compared to 70 others who only completed the T2 survey. The results showed improved resilience in the cohort comparison. There were no differences in empathy in the matched sample nor between the cohorts. Thematic analysis of students' narratives showed that they found the switch to online learning difficult, with some reporting negative impacts on their mental health and the abrupt ending of placements impacting their feelings of preparedness for practice. Implications of this study and future research areas are discussed. In this article, we examined the possible effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the education of social work students. The data come from a wider study, in which social work students at six universities in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland completed an online survey. Relevant to the current article were questions about resilience, empathy and how the students' education was impacted by the pandemic. Forty-nine students completed the survey twice: at the start of their education and at the end. This was our matched sample. A further 229 students only completed the survey at the start of their degree and 70 students only completed it at the end of their degree. We compared these two cohorts of students separately from the matched sample. We found that (i) the cohort of final year students was more resilient than the cohort of the first year students;(ii) there were no differences in empathy either in the matched sample or between the cohorts from the beginning to the end of their training;and (iii) students reported that the move towards online learning negatively impacted their education.

Social Work Students' Experiences of Loss and Grief During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Mixed-Methods Study

Objective: The COVID-19 pandemic has been associated with significant impacts to daily life and diverse experiences of loss among college and university students. The aim of the current study is to describe social work students' experiences of loss and grief following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and explore the ways these experiences may have differed by program degree, modality, and background characteristics. Method: A cross-sectional survey (N=354) administered with social work students across degree programs during April–May 2020 provided both quantitative and qualitative open-ended responses. We used a convergent mixed-methods design to merge inductively analyzed qualitative data and quantitative demographic and background data. Results: Key findings highlight students' varied and compounded experiences of loss during the COVID-19 pandemic, with differences in loss experienced by program modality (traditional, hybrid, or online) and age. Conclusion: Findings suggest the need for social work education programmatic responses for students' overlapping experiences of loss and grief from the COVID-19 pandemic and future academic disruptions, with particular attention to students of younger age and differing program modality.

Social work students and COVID-19: Impact across life domains

This study captured experiences of MSW and BSW students during COVID-19 across a number of life domains (i.e., class, field, personal coping and well-being, homelife, and employment). An electronic survey was administered, with a sample size of 65 students from two universities. Descriptive and bivariate analyses were conducted. A majority of students reported trouble staying focused on coursework and maintaining a routine but appreciated faculty flexibility and a sense of connection. A majority reported mental health concerns made worse by COVID-19. Increased caregiving responsibilities for family members and children was a stressor, as well as worry about jobs and licensure postgraduation. Key areas for educator and program self-reflection are offered based on study findings. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Digitalizing social work education: preparing students to engage with twenty-first century practice need

This study, designed to surface student conceptions of digital development throughout their professional training, concluded mid-2019. Whilst mentioned in brief in a previous publication, this paper reports the work in full. The learning from it is important to formulating a response to practice changes driven by Covid19. Practice shifts that forced the profession to do social work at a distance, at speed, and largely through a screen. While not to dismiss efforts to adjust to the restrictions put in place to mitigate the spread of the virus, the lack of digital capabilities across the profession meant that the pivot to online practices presented significant and avoidable challenges. Informed by student descriptions of an educational experience devoid of digital development, this paper offers a solution. The ‘Digitalising Social Work Education Framework' provides a context in which to review the facilitation of digital capabilities development. It is a means to ensuring that curriculum design, content, and delivery equips students to use technologies for their learning and in practice. It avoids reducing digital professionalism to a set of technical skills and promotes the need to engage with the realities of sociotechnical practices, including those that erode people's privacy, rights and freedom from interference.

A telehealth antiracist learning experience for nursing and social work students in the midst of COVID-19

COVID-19 had an impact that was felt globally. The uncertainty of this public health emergency resulted in swift policy changes. Social distancing became a household term with little time to prepare for the social and mental health impact. It was determined early on that social isolation would pose a significant threat to those considered to be "most vulnerable". The most vulnerable included older adults age 65 and older who may have limited capacity to complete their activities of daily living. Baltimore Neighbors Network established an initiative that trained volunteers, including students enrolled in nursing and social work programs in Baltimore City, to provide social support to the older adult population. This support was guided by an Antiracist approach. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Social Work Students’ Self-Efficacy Toward Direct Practice Skills in Field Education Using Virtual Simulations and Scripted Role Plays

Simulations with professional actors and scripted role plays with peers are effective methods to increase direct practice skills. However, little is known about how simulations or scripted role plays conducted virtually can influence social work students' practice self-efficacy. MSW students enrolled in field seminar courses across two universities were invited to participate in an exploratory, repeated measures assessment utilizing the Counselor Activity Self-Efficacy Scales (CASES). One university (n=100) implemented the use of standardized clients, played by professional actors within field seminar;the other university (n=61) implemented scripted, peer-led role plays. Significant differences were found in pre/post scores among MSW students that participated in simulated client experiences within their field seminar. Simulations and scripted peer role plays may need to be more integrated into social work curricula when opportunities for in-person direct practice skill development are limited due to hybrid or fully remote field placements. Applied learning in social work education must be re-envisioned so programs can prepare MSW students to be effective practitioners in today’s rapidly changing environment. © 2022 Authors,.

The Perfect Storm? COVID-19 and Substance Use amongst Social Work Students in the USA

This study examined the associations between substance use and socio-demographic characteristics, mental health and preventive behaviours amongst US undergraduate and graduate social work students. Data were collected via an online survey from 457 social work students studying in various programmes, between July and August 2020. The survey was designed to elicit information on students' use of alcohol, cigarettes, vaping products and marijuana over the previous thirty days. Patterns of substance use and the associated behaviours were assessed using univariate and bivariate analyses. The outcomes revealed that a significant number of the students drank alcohol (71 per cent), engaged in binge drinking (35 per cent) and used marijuana (25 per cent). The outcomes also revealed significant associations amongst socio-demographic characteristics, substance use and mental health. This study's findings could inform the development of social work programmes that assist students in adopting positive coping strategies and mitigating health risk behaviours, both during the current COVID-19 pandemic and beyond. During the COVID-19 pandemic, health risk behaviours related to substance use have been recognised as a significant public health concern amongst university students. Understanding the mechanisms of substance use behaviours, including those used to cope with COVID-19-related stressors, is imperative to curate targeted prevention efforts. To that end, we examined substance use prevalence and its associations with socio-demographic characteristics, preventive behaviours, and mental health amongst US social work students. We collected data from 457 students across all degree levels (BSW, MSW and PhD) from July to August 2020 through an online survey, to examine thirty-day patterns of substance use behaviours related to cigarettes, electronic vapour products, alcohol, binge drinking and marijuana. Univariate and bivariate analyses revealed high rates of substance use behaviours, particularly alcohol use (71 per cent), binge drinking (35 per cent) and marijuana use (25 per cent). Findings also revealed significant associations amongst substance use, socio-demographic characteristics, and mental health. Amongst other implications, our study should encourage social work programmes to promote positive coping strategies amongst students and foster substance abuse prevention efforts, both to mitigate health risk behaviours and to enhance student well-being, both during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.

'Someone to Talk to': A Short-Term Tele-Therapy Intervention with Older People during the Coronavirus Pandemic

The Coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) and its concomitant social isolation have affected older citizens more than any other sector of the population. This article describes the theoretical and practical principles of a short-term tele-therapy intervention model developed and implemented as a pilot project during the Coronavirus pandemic to support older residents of the community, who faced a variety of needs stemming from the lockdowns and social isolation. The intervention was developed and directed in collaboration with faculty members from a university school of social work and social workers from the municipal social services in Israel, and was conducted by first year social work students as part of their first field experience. This intervention combined Perlman's model of problem solving, a telephone crisis intervention model and a strengths-based approach. Participants and students indicated that they benefitted from the programme and felt that the therapeutic relationships were meaningful. These outcomes and reports suggest that this type of intervention is successful and can be applied to older people during other crises or in other populations, communities and countries as part of the field experience of social work students. The 'Someone to talk to' pilot intervention project was designed to support older residents of the community during the Coronavirus lockdowns in Israel. First-year university social work students engaged in phone conversations under the guidance of the university school of social work and public welfare agencies in Israel. The students offered to locate in-kind services and/or provided emotional support to 142 men and women (mean age 76) for about 8 weeks, at a rate of one to two conversations per week. The participants reported enjoying meaningful relationships with the students, suggesting this type of intervention can be extended to other populations during crises as part of social work students' internships.

Sociodemographic characteristics, preventive behaviors, and the mental health status of social work students in the US during the COVID-19 pandemic

Using data from a cross-sectional online survey among social work students (N = 457) in the US, our study explored differences in mental health status based on sociodemographic characteristics and preventive behaviors during the COVID-19 pandemic. Results showed disparate experiences related to anxiety, depression, self-harming thoughts, stress and hopelessness by age, gender, employment status, marital status, education, number of children, living arrangement, and mask-wearing and social distancing preventive behaviors. Findings provide implications to mitigate both the current and prolonged impact of the pandemic among social work students who will be playing crucial roles in the provision and delivery of health and human services. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Social Work in Mental Health is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Canadian Social Work Field Education During a Global Pandemic: A Comparison of Student and Field Instructor Perspectives

The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly affected all aspects of social work education, including field education. The Transforming the Field Education Landscape (TFEL) partnership conducted two national online surveys to determine the impacts of the pandemic on social work field education. The first survey explored the perspectives of students and received responses from 367 Bachelor of Social Work (BSW) and Master of Social Work (MSW) students. The second survey was designed to gather the perspectives of field instructors, with 73 field instructors completing the survey. The article examines the impacts of the pandemic on social work practice, field supervision, practicum flexibility and accommodations in placement, the shift to remote learning, perceptions of future career prospects and the effects on wellness and mental health. This article contributes to an increased understanding of the strengths and challenges facing social work field education, and informs field planning and responses in a pandemic. The findings will be of interest to social work field education programmes, field education coordinators and directors, field instructors, field agencies and undergraduate and graduate social work students. Recommendations for social work field education are offered. © 2021. All Rights Reserved.

Working and learning from home during COVID-19: International experiences among social work educators and students.

This research seeks to explore the experiences of social work educators and students working and learning from home. The findings, from an international survey sample of 166 educators and students, showed that the respondents faced issues with private and personal boundaries, felt the impact of working and learning from home on both physical and emotional levels, and experienced challenges to what was expected of them. The respondents primarily used two types of coping mechanisms to manage these challenges. These findings contribute to a broader discussion of the impact of working and learning from home and are relevant for education administrators responsible for their employees' and students' well-being.

Self-Compassion in Irish Social Work Students: Relationships between Resilience, Engagement and Motivation.

Self-compassion recognises a meaning of life's suffering, aligning with existential positive psychology. Although this construct is known to protect our mental health, how to augment self-compassion remains to be evaluated. Social work students suffer from high rates of mental health problems; however, research into self-compassion in this population remains to be developed. This study aimed to evaluate (i) relationships between self-compassion and more traditional positive constructs-resilience, engagement and motivation, and (ii) differences of these constructs between the levels of studies to inform how self-compassion can be enhanced in social work students. A total of 129 Irish social work students completed self-report scales regarding self-compassion, resilience, engagement and motivation. Correlation, regression and one-way MANOVA were conducted. Self-compassion was associated with gender, age, resilience, engagement and intrinsic motivation. Resilience and intrinsic motivation were significant predictors of self-compassion. There was no significant difference in the levels of these constructs between the levels of studies. Findings suggest that social work educators across different levels can strengthen students' resilience and intrinsic motivation to cultivate the students' self-compassion. Moreover, the close relationships between self-compassion, resilience and intrinsic motivation indicate that orienting students to the meaning of the studies helps their mental health.

"Thanks for hearing me out": Voices of social work students during COVID-19.

As social work educators and students, the COVID-19 pandemic impacted our teaching and learning in challenging ways. We embarked on a qualitative research study to better understand the ways in which the pandemic was affecting the social work students in our program. Three faculty mentors worked collaboratively with five social work students across BSW, MSW, and PhD programs to interview 66 BSW and MSW students about their experiences, challenges, and hopes during the early months of the pandemic. BSW and MSW students led the analysis and early dissemination for the project. This essay describes the unique experiences of social work students by using a research poem to capture the emotional and experiential aspects of the students we interviewed.

Violations of Health as a Human Right and Moral Distress: Considerations for Social Work Practice and Education.

Healthcare professionals may experience moral distress when navigating difficult positions in which acting or providing for their patient's best interest may not be possible due to barriers outside of their control. This phenomenon has primarily been investigated within nursing and other clinical disciplines; however, experiences of moral distress have also been noted in the social work profession. Healthcare professionals, including social workers, may experience moral distress when witnessing violations of their patients' human rights. This article discusses research reporting on experiences of moral distress within the social work profession, a reality social work students may also face during their field placements. Understanding the causes and effects of moral distress within the social work profession is important when preparing social work students as they transition into the workforce. Future research investigating moral distress should include the perspectives of social work field students, as their experiences are understudied. This phenomenon is especially important to investigate, as the current COVID-19 pandemic is expected to exacerbate health challenges.