339
Views
1
CrossRef citations to date
0
Altmetric
Research Article

Improving Retention in Child Welfare: Comparing Needed Support for Supervisors and Caseworkers

ORCID Icon & ORCID Icon

References

  • Augsberger, A., Schudrich, W., McGowan, B. G., & Auerbach, C. (2012). Respect in the workplace: A mixed methods study of retention and turnover in the voluntary child welfare sector. Children and Youth Services Review, 34(7), 1222–1229. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2012.02.016
  • Ausbrooks, A. (2011). Why child welfare supervisors stay. Journal of Religion & Spirituality in Social Work, 30(4), 358–384. https://doi.org/10.1080/15426432.2011.619901
  • Bandura, A. (1977). Self-efficacy: Toward a unifying theory of behavioral change. Psychological Review, 84(2), 191–215. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-295X.84.2.191
  • Barbee, A., Rice, C., Antle, B. F., Henry, K., & Cunningham, M. R. (2018). Factors affecting turnover rates of public child welfare front line workers: Comparing cohorts of Title IV-E program graduates with regularly hired and trained staff. Journal of Public Child Welfare, 12(3), 354–379. https://doi.org/10.1080/15548732.2018.1457589
  • Birkeland, M. S., Nielsen, M. B., Hansen, M. B., Knardahl, S., & Heir, T. (2017). Like a bridge over troubled water? A longitudinal study of general social support, colleague support, and leader support as recovery factors after a traumatic event. European Journal of Psychotraumatology, 8(1), 1302692. https://doi.org/10.1080/20008198.2017.1302692
  • Blanco-Donoso, L. M., Garrosa, E., Demerouti, E., & Moreno-Jiménez, B. (2017). Job resources and recovery experiences to face difficulties in emotion regulation at work: A diary study among nurses. International Journal of Stress Management, 24(2), 107–134. https://doi.org/10.1037/str0000023
  • Bogo, M., & Dill, K. (2008). Walking the tightrope: Using power and authority in child welfare supervision. Child Welfare, 87(6), 141–157. https://www.jstor.org/stable/48623141
  • Brimhall, K. C., Lizano, E. L., & Mor Barak, M. E. (2014). The mediating role of inclusion: A longitudinal study of the effects of leader–member exchange and diversity climate on job satisfaction and intention to leave among child welfare workers. Children and Youth Services Review, 40, 79–88. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2014.03.003
  • Burns, D. D., Langenderfer-Magruder, L., Yelick, A., & Wilke, D. J. (2023). What else is there to say? Reflections of newly-hired child welfare workers by retention status. Children and Youth Services Review, 144, 106731. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2022.106731
  • Butler Institute for Families. (2009) . Job satisfaction [unpublished measure adapted from workforce retention survey and job satisfaction survey]. University of Denver.
  • Butler Institute for Families. (2014a) . NCWWI COHA intent to stay [unpublished measure]. University of Denver.
  • Butler Institute for Families. (2014b). Supervision quality and frequency [unpublished measure]. University of Denver.
  • Butler Institute for Families. (2017). NCWWI COHA peer support [unpublished measure adapted from Psychosocial Working Conditions Questionnaire]. University of Denver.
  • Cahalane, H., & Sites, E. W. (2008). The climate of child welfare employee retention. Child Welfare, 87(1), 91–114. https://www.jstor.org/stable/48623098
  • Carpenter, J., Webb, C. M., & Bostock, L. (2013). The surprisingly weak evidence base for supervision: Findings from a systematic review of research in child welfare practice (2000–2012). Children and Youth Services Review, 35(11), 1843–1853. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2013.08.014
  • Chen, S.-Y., & Scannapieco, M. (2010). The influence of job satisfaction on child welfare worker’s desire to stay: An examination of the interaction effect of self-efficacy and supportive supervision. Children and Youth Services Review, 32(4), 482–486. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2009.10.014
  • Claiborne, N., Auerbach, C., Zeitlin, W., & Lawrence, C. (2015). Climate factors related to intention to leave in administrators and clinical professionals. Children and Youth Services Review, 51, 18–25. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2015.01.007
  • Clark, S. J., Smith, R. J., & Uota, K. (2013). Professional development opportunities as retention incentives in child welfare. Children and Youth Services Review, 35(10), 1687–1697. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2013.07.006
  • de Guzman, A., Carver-Roberts, T., Leake, R., & Rienks, S. (2020). Retention of child welfare workers: Staying strategies and supports. Journal of Public Child Welfare, 14(1), 60–79. https://doi.org/10.1080/15548732.2019.1683121
  • Demerouti, E., & Bakker, A. (2011). The job demands–resources model: Challenges for future research. SA Journal of Industrial Psychology, 37(2), 1–9. https://doi.org/10.4102/sajip.v37i2.974
  • Dickinson, N. S., & Claiborne, N. (2020). Supporting the child welfare workforce: The National child welfare workforce institute. Journal of Public Child Welfare, 14(1), 1–4. https://doi.org/10.1080/15548732.2020.1683942
  • Dill, K., & Bogo, M. (2009). Moving beyond the administrative: Supervisors’ perspectives on clinical supervision in child welfare. Journal of Public Child Welfare, 3(1), 87–105. https://doi.org/10.1080/15548730802695105
  • Dormann, C., & Zapf, D. (1999). Social support, social stressors at work, and depressive symptoms: Testing for main and moderating effects with structural equations in a three-wave longitudinal study. Journal of Applied Psychology, 84(6), 874–884. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.84.6.874
  • Drake, B., & Yadama, G. N. (1996). A structural equation model of burnout and job exit among child protective services workers. Social Work Research, 20(3), 179–187. https://doi.org/10.1093/swr/20.3.179
  • Ellett, A. J., Ellis, J. I., Westbrook, T. M., & Dews, D. (2007). A qualitative study of 369 child welfare professionals’ perspectives about factors contributing to employee retention and turnover. Children and Youth Services Review, 29(2), 264–281. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2006.07.005
  • Fluke, J. D., Corwin, T. W., Hollinshead, D. M., & Maher, E. J. (2016). Family preservation or child safety? Associations between child welfare workers’ experience, position, and perspectives. Children and Youth Services Review, 69, 210–218. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2016.08.012
  • Folkman, S. (2013). Stress: Appraisal and coping. In M. D. Gellman & J. R. Turner (Eds.), Encyclopedia of behavioral medicine (pp. 1913–1915). Springer New York. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-1005-9_215
  • Grau, R., Salanova, M., & Peiro, J. M. (2001). Moderator effects of self-efficacy on occupational stress. Psychology in Spain, 5(1), 63–74. http://www.psychologyinspain.com/content/reprints/2001/7.pdf
  • Griffiths, A., Collins-Camargo, C., Horace, A., Gabbard, J., & Royse, D. (2020). A new perspective: Administrator recommendations for reducing child welfare turnover. Human Service Organizations, Management, Leadership & Governance, 44(5), 417–433. https://doi.org/10.1080/23303131.2020.1786760
  • Griffiths, A., Desrosiers, P., Gabbard, J., Royse, D., & Piescher, K. (2019). Retention of child welfare caseworkers: The wisdom of supervisors. Child Welfare, 97(3), 61–84. https://www.jstor.org/stable/48623658
  • Griffiths, A., Murphy, A., Desrosiers, P., Harper, W., & Royse, D. (2020). Factors influencing the turnover of frontline public child welfare supervisors. Journal of Public Child Welfare, 14(5), 553–569. https://doi.org/10.1080/15548732.2019.1652719
  • Griffiths, A., Royse, D., Culver, K., Piescher, K., & Zhang, Y. (2017). Who stays, who goes, who knows? A state-wide survey of child welfare workers. Children and Youth Services Review, 77, 110–117. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2017.04.012
  • Hayes, A. F. (2013). Introduction to mediation, moderation, and conditional process analysis: A regression-based approach. Guilford Press.
  • Hayes, A. F. (2022). PROCESS macro for SPSS. In (version 4.1) [computer software]. http://processmacro.org/download.html.
  • Hopkins, K. M., Cohen-Callow, A., Kim, H. J., & Hwang, J. (2010). Beyond intent to leave: Using multiple outcome measures for assessing turnover in child welfare. Children and Youth Services Review, 32(10), 1380–1387. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2010.06.006
  • House, J. S., Robbins, C., & Metzner, H. L. (1982). The association of social relationships and activities with mortality: Prospective evidence from the Tecumseh community health study. American Journal of Epidemiology, 116(1), 123–140. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a113387
  • Jacquet, S. E., Clark, S. J., Morazes, J. L., & Withers, R. (2008). The role of supervision in the retention of public child welfare workers. Journal of Public Child Welfare, 1(3), 27–54. https://doi.org/10.1300/J479v01n03_03
  • Johnco, C., Salloum, A., Olson, K., & Edwards, L. (2014). Child welfare workers’ perspectives on contributing factors to retention and turnover: Recommendations for improvement. Children and Youth Services Review, 47, 397–407. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2014.10.016
  • Jolly, P. M., Kong, D. T., & Kim, K. Y. (2021). Social support at work: An integrative review. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 42(2), 229–251. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.2485
  • Jones, L. P., & Okamura, A. (2000). Reprofessionalizing child welfare services: An evaluation of a Title IVE training program. Research on Social Work Practice, 10(5), 607–621. https://doi.org/10.1177/104973150001000504
  • Julien-Chinn, F., & Lietz, C. (2016). Permanency-focused supervision and workers’ self-efficacy: Exploring the link. Social Work (New York), 61(1), 37–44. https://doi.org/10.1093/sw/swv043
  • Kadushin, A., & Harkness, D. (2014). Supervision in social work (5th ed.). Columbia University Press.
  • Kim, H., & Kao, D. (2014). A meta-analysis of turnover intention predictors among U.S. child welfare workers. Children & Youth Services Review, 47, 214–223. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2014.09.015
  • Kim, J., Park, T., Pierce, B., & Hall, J. A. (2018). Child welfare workers’ perceptions of supervisory support: A curvilinear interaction of work experience and educational background. Human Service Organizations, Management, Leadership & Governance, 42(3), 285–299. https://doi.org/10.1080/23303131.2017.1395775
  • Landsman, M. (2007). Supporting child welfare supervisors to improve worker retention. Child Welfare, 86(2), 105–124. https://www.jstor.org/stable/45400394
  • Leake, R., de Guzman, A., Rienks, S., Archer, G., & Potter, C. (2015). NCWWI traineeships: A national cross-site evaluation of child welfare stipend programs for ethnically diverse students. Journal of Social Work Education, 51(sup2), S299–S316. https://doi.org/10.1080/10437797.2015.1072419
  • Leake, R., Rienks, S. L., de Guzman, A., He, A. S., & Stahlschmidt, M. J. (2021). National Child Welfare Workforce Institute (NCWWI) comprehensive organizational health assessment [data set]. National Data Archive on Child Abuse and Neglect. https://doi.org/10.34681/qfeh-dg67
  • Lee, J., Forster, M., & Rehner, T. (2011). The retention of public child welfare workers: The roles of professional organizational culture and coping strategies. Children & Youth Services Review, 33(1), 102–109. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2010.08.019
  • Lieberman, A. A., Hornby, H., & Russell, M. (1988). Analyzing the educational backgrounds and work experiences of child welfare personnel: A national study. Social Work, 33(6), 485–489. https://doi.org/10.1093/sw/33.6.485
  • McCrae, J., Scannapieco, M., & Obermann, A. (2015). Retention and job satisfaction of child welfare supervisors. Children and Youth Services Review, 59, 171–176. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2015.11.011
  • McFadden, P., Campbell, A., & Taylor, B. (2015). Resilience and burnout in child protection social work: Individual and organisational themes from a systematic literature review. The British Journal of Social Work, 45(5), 1546–1563. https://doi.org/10.1093/bjsw/bct210
  • Mor Barak, M. E., Travis, D. J., Pyun, H., & Xie, B. (2009). The impact of supervision on worker outcomes: A meta-analysis. Social Service Review, 83(1), 3–32. https://doi.org/10.1086/599028
  • National Child Welfare Workforce Institute. (2017). Why the workforce matters. https://ncwwi.org/files/Why_the_Workforce_Matters.pdf
  • New York Social Work Education Consortium. (2001). Workforce retention survey instrument. New York Social Work Education Consortium.
  • Nielsen, M. B., Johannessen, H. A., Christensen, J. O., & Finne, L. B. (2023). Emotional dissonance and burnout among child welfare workers: The moderating role of social support from colleagues, supervisors, and organization. Journal of Social Work: JSW, 23(4), 615–635. https://doi.org/10.1177/14680173221143649
  • Potter, C. C., Leake, R., Longworth-Reed, L., Altschul, I., & Rienks, S. (2016). Measuring organizational health in child welfare agencies. Children and Youth Services Review, 61, 31–39. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2015.11.002
  • Quinn, F. (2017). Factors affecting perceptions of self-value among employees of child welfare agencies. Child Welfare, 95(5), 39–58. https://www.jstor.org/stable/48625514
  • Radey, M., & Stanley, L. (2018). “Hands on” versus “empty”: Supervision experiences of frontline child welfare workers. Children and Youth Services Review, 91, 128–136. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2018.05.037
  • Renner, L., Porter, R., & Preister, S. (2009). Improving the retention of child welfare workers by strengthening skills and increasing support for supervisors. Child Welfare, 88(5), 109–127. https://www.jstor.org/stable/45400441
  • Rittschof, K. R., & Fortunato, V. J. (2016). The influence of transformational leadership and job burnout on child protective services case managers’ commitment and intent to quit. Journal of Social Service Research, 42(3), 372–385. https://doi.org/10.1080/01488376.2015.1101047
  • Salloum, A., Kondrat, D. C., Johnco, C., & Olson, K. R. (2015). The role of self-care on compassion satisfaction, burnout and secondary trauma among child welfare workers. Children and Youth Services Review, 49, 54–61. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2014.12.023
  • Sedivy, J. A., Rienks, S., Leake, R., & He, A. S. (2020). Expanding our understanding of the role of peer support in child welfare workforce retention. Journal of Public Child Welfare, 14(1), 80–100. https://doi.org/10.1080/15548732.2019.1658020
  • Sewell, K. M., McMenemy, C., van Rensburg, M. J., & MacDonald, H. (2023). Organizational outcomes of supervision within human services: A scoping review. Human Service Organizations, Management, Leadership & Governance, 1–24. https://doi.org/10.1080/23303131.2023.2226197
  • Shier, M. L., Graham, J. R., Fukuda, E., Brownlee, K., Kline, T. J., Walji, S., & Novik, N. (2012). Social workers and satisfaction with child welfare work: Aspects of work, profession, and personal life that contribute to turnover. Child Welfare, 91(5), 117–138.
  • Spector, P. E. (1985). Measurement of human service staff satisfaction: Development of the job satisfaction survey. American Journal of Community Psychology, 13(6), 693–713. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00929796
  • Strand, V., & Dore, M. (2009). Job satisfaction in a stable state child welfare workforce: Implications for staff retention. Children and Youth Services Review, 31(3), 391–397. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2008.09.002
  • Strolin-Goltzman, J. (2010). Improving turnover in public child welfare: Outcomes from an organizational intervention. Children and Youth Services Review, 32(10), 1388–1395. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2010.06.007
  • TCU Institute of Behavioral Research. (n.d.). Self-efficacy ( unpublished measure). TCU Institute of Behavioral Research.
  • Weiss-Dagan, S., Ben-Porat, A., & Itzhaky, H. (2018). The contribution of role characteristics and supervisory functions to supervision effectiveness. Clinical Social Work Journal, 46(4), 341–349. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10615-018-0675-4
  • Widerszal-Bazyl, M., & Cieslak, M. (2000). Monitoring psychosocial stress at work: Development of the psychosocial working conditions questionnaire. International Journal of Occupational Safety and Ergonomics, 6(sup1), 59–70. https://doi.org/10.1080/10803548.2000.11105108
  • Wilke, D. J., Radey, M., King, E., Spinelli, C., Rakes, S., & Nolan, C. R. (2018). A multi-level conceptual model to examine child welfare worker turnover and retention decisions. Journal of Public Child Welfare, 12(2), 204–231. https://doi.org/10.1080/15548732.2017.1373722
  • Williams, S. E., Nichols, Q. L., Kirk, A., & Wilson, T. (2011). A recent look at the factors influencing workforce retention in public child welfare. Children and Youth Services Review, 33(1), 157–160. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2010.08.028

Reprints and Corporate Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

To request a reprint or corporate permissions for this article, please click on the relevant link below:

Academic Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

Obtain permissions instantly via Rightslink by clicking on the button below:

If you are unable to obtain permissions via Rightslink, please complete and submit this Permissions form. For more information, please visit our Permissions help page.