We Feel, Therefore, We Learn: Assessment of Affective Domains in Diversity and Social Justice Graduate Social Work Syllabi

ABSTRACT

Within social work education, the literature on affective learning processes is, for the most part, poorly conceptualized and minimally researched. Affective processes that engage students’ values, beliefs, and emotions are valuable resources supporting students’ development of self-reflection skills, stamina for discomfort, and curiosity for people who hold identities that differ from their own. Using a nationwide sample of syllabi in the United States, this study measures the extent to which the Krathwohl and colleagues' affective domains are incorporated into MSW diversity-related social justice syllabi. Content analysis of 48 syllabi was used to analyze affective domains at the levels of (A1) Receiving, (A2) Responding, (A3) Valuing, (A4) Organization, and (A5) Characterization. Findings provide a model for differentiating the levels of affective learning and how they can be operationalized throughout the syllabus within diversity-related social justice

KEYWORDS:

• Affective learning
• diversity and social justice
• teaching research
• oppression
• ethics courses

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).