Healthy Social Work – Health Risks and Prevention Potential among Social Workers in Germany

Status:

ongoing

Aims:

Social workers are confronted with increasing demands regarding flexibility and increased mental stress. This occupational group has a high risk of burnout and a high sickness rate. It is not yet clear to what extent the changed working conditions have an impact on mental stress and the consequences of stress among social workers. The COVID-19 pandemic and the increasing shortage of skilled workers have exacerbated the situation. The main aim of the study is to systematically record and analyze the work-related mental stress and stress consequences of social workers in Germany and to derive implications for action. The aim is to obtain comprehensive data that will enable a detailed analysis of work-related mental stress and its consequences as well as a comparison with other professions and occupational groups. In addition to providing insight into the specific stress factors and the associated health consequences, the results will serve as a basis for the development of prevention and health promotion measures. These can contribute to the improvement of working conditions in social work.

Activities/Methods:

An explanatory study will be conducted using quantitative empirical methods: Using an online questionnaire, the psychological stress and consequences of stress among social workers in Germany are surveyed via several access points. The use of the Copenhagen Psychosocial Questionnaire (COPSOQ) enables comparisons with reference data for social work/social pedagogy and all other professions from the COPSOQ database. The COPSOQ is designed as a screening instrument for recording psychological stress and the consequences of stress in the workplace. Furthermore, an additional COSPOQ module on sexual harassment in the workplace and items on workplace health promotion measures are integrated into the questionnaire. The following evaluation methods are used to analyze the data: Exploration, descriptive statistics, and inferential statistics (here in particular correlation and difference tests). In particular, mean comparisons are made between the generated sample of social workers in Germany and other reference groups (social services in hospitals and preventive or rehabilitation facilities, social work/social pedagogy, and other professions). The results can provide indications of the potential for prevention. In addition to the scientific findings, implications for practice and policy will be derived.

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