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  • Job Satisfaction of Child Welfare Professionals

Job Satisfaction of Child Welfare Professionals

Job satisfaction can mitigate some of the stress that comes with working in a high-pressure and sometimes overwhelming environment. Use these resources to understand more about the factors that influence the job satisfaction of child welfare workers and find ways to improve agency policy and leadership to increase job satisfaction and help retain professionals.

Caring for Our Child Welfare Workforce: A Holistic Framework of Worker Well-Being (PDF - 1,471 KB)
Lizano, He, Leake (2021)
Human Service Organizations: Management, Leadership & Governance, 45(4)
Presents a framework of child welfare worker well-being that covers physical well-being, psychological well-being, and social well-being. The framework includes a discussion of topics such as secondary traumatic stress, workplace safety, job satisfaction, inclusion and equity, peer and supervisory support, and more.

Championing the Role of Child Welfare Professionals (PDF - 362 KB)
Capacity Building Center for States (2017)
Provides information on how States and agencies can proactively champion the positive impact that child welfare professionals have on children and families by structuring systems to support job satisfaction and commitment and by working to engage the community in a deeper understanding of the child welfare system.

Impact of Public Perceptions on Child Welfare Workers (PDF - 188 KB) 
National Child Welfare Workforce Institute (2019) 
Summarizes in a one-page document an article that describes the influence public perception can have on child welfare workers by highlighting what the resource is, its findings, and the implications for practice.

Organizational Climate, Job Satisfaction, and Turnover in Voluntary Child Welfare Workers
Li, Huang, & Chen (2020)
Children and Youth Services Review, 119
Examines the effects of organizational climate on job satisfaction and turnover in the field of child welfare.

Professional Quality of Life and Intent to Leave the Workforce: Gender Disparities in Child Welfare
Prost & Middleton (2020)
Child Abuse & Neglect, 110(3)
Presents the results of a study that showed improving quality of life for child welfare workers would help to reduce turnover and maintain a more stable child welfare workforce.

Retaining Social Workers: The Role of Quality of Work and Psychological Safety Climate for Work Engagement, Job Satisfaction, and Organizational Commitment
Geisler, Berthelsen, & Muhonen (2019)
Human Service Organizations: Management, Leadership & Governance, 43(1)
Investigates how psychological safety climate, job demands, job resources, and assessments for quality of work relate to social workers’ job satisfaction and organizational commitment.

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Spotlight On

Child Welfare Workforce Development Month

Episode 30: Casework: What It Really Takes [Podcast]

Child Welfare Information Gateway (2018)

Related Content

Improving Worker Performance and Retention Through Supervision

Developing Leadership in Child Welfare

Appreciating, Celebrating, & Honoring the Workforce

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