Abstract
Turnover in the child welfare workforce remains a problem with detrimental consequences. While a robust body of literature has explored the influence of job factors on employee retention, and the presence of secondary traumatic stress and other related experiences in this population, little is known about the impact of such factors on the physical health of the practitioner. This manuscript is a first step in documenting the relationship between worker characteristics, perceptions of their job, and their self-reported health status. Utilizing the Child Welfare Employee Feedback Scale (CWEFS), a Binary Logistic Regression model identified Workload and Job Impact as significant predictors of poorer self-reported health status in a statewide sample of child welfare workers (n=511). Additionally, respondents working in urban areas and outside of their home county were approximately 1.5 times more likely to report a poorer health status. Findings suggest avenues for future research and agency administrator consideration.
Disciplines
Community Health and Preventive Medicine | Medicine and Health Sciences | Public Affairs, Public Policy and Public Administration | Public Health | Social and Behavioral Sciences | Social Welfare
Recommended Repository Citation
Griffiths, Austin G.; Royse, David; Flaherty, Chris; and Collins-Camargo, Crystal. (2020). Perceptions of Workload and Job Impact as Predictors of Child Welfare Worker Health Status. Child Welfare Journal, 98 (3).
Available at:
https://digitalcommons.wku.edu/socwk_fac_pub/48