Narrative discussions to support social work competence

ABSTRACT

Few studies examine the relationship between instructional approaches and required social work competencies in graduate social work education. Further, effective social work education programs must infuse and address issues of social, racial, economic and environmental justice, creating opportunities for reflexive education. To enhance the integration of field and practice class, and support the development of core social work competencies, we developed a novel teaching method using nonfiction health narratives (memoir excerpt, article, newspaper editorial, etc.). Through engagement with written narratives, students enhance skills of critical self-reflection, deep listening, and analysis of social inequities. Using a qualitative approach we asked open-response questions about students’ experience of nonfiction narratives in supporting their acquisition of social work competence and quantified the extent to which the use of nonfiction narratives aligned with students’ development in the selected competencies. Overall, four themes emerged from student responses: cultivating empathy, deepening listening skills, fostering appreciation for diversity, and developing a professional identity, and quantitative data identified strong alignment between the use of nonfiction narratives and developing social work competence.

KEYWORDS:

• social work competencies
• narratives
• health humanities
• social work practice
• nonfiction stories

Disclosure statement

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

Additional information

Funding

This work was funded in part by the College of Health and Human Services, California State University, Sacramento Summer Faculty Fellowship.

Notes on contributors

Sarah C. Reed

Sarah C. Reed, PhD, MPH, MSW is an assistant professor in the Division of Social Work at California State University, Sacramento. Her research focuses on vulnerable populations and issues of health inequities, including the effect of health transitions on mental health, particularly in cancer survivors; and pedagogy and reflective practice in social work education.

Julie Berrett-Abebe

Julie Berrett-Abebe, PhD, MA, LICSW is a social work researcher, educator and practitioner with expertise in interprofessional education and collaborative practice; health equity; and models of care for older adults and cancer survivors. She is an assistant professor of marriage and family therapy in the School of Education and Human Development at Fairfield University.

Melissa Bender

Melissa M. Bender, PhD, MFA is a senior lecturer in the University Writing Program and the University of California Davis. Her research areas include writing pedagogy with special interest in rhetorical approaches to disciplinary composition and source work; rhetoric of health and medicine; and US memoir and life writing.