MSW Students’ Perception of the Professional Identity of the Social Work Practitioner and the Social Work Researcher: Considerations for Educators

ABSTRACT

Social work professional ethics require research-informed practice and practice-informed research. Anecdotal evidence, however, suggests that social work practitioners do not identify themselves with research even though research training is a requirement in social work education. Using Structured Interview Matrix methodology, the study explored MSW students’ (n=188) perceptions of the professional identity of the social worker and the social work researcher. Students drew images of the social worker and the social work researcher and wrote five words that best describe them. Data were analyzed using content analysis and thematic analytical frameworks. We found that participants perceived the social worker and the social work researcher to have distinct identities. The findings reveal implications for innovative pedagogical approaches to teaching social work research.

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Funding

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Notes on contributors

Karun Kishor Karki

Dr. Karun Kishor Karki is an assistant professor in the School of Social Work and Human Services at University of the Fraser Valley, British Columbia, Canada. Dr. Festus Y. Moasun is an assistant professor of social work at the University of Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada. Dr. Nancy Freymond is an associate professor in the Faculty of Social Work at Wilfrid Laurier University, Ontario, Canada. Dr. Sulaimon Giwa is an assistant professor of social work at the Memorial University of Newfoundland, Canada. Amanda M. Zoltek is an MSW candidate in the Faculty of Social Work at Wilfrid Laurier University, Ontario, Canada.