A Peer Led Social Support Group for New Employees: Findings of a Pilot Study
By Rick Csiernik, MSW PhD RSW, Carrie Smith, MSW, Jennifer Dewar, MSW, Laura Dromgole, MSW RSW and Arlene O’Neill, MSW RSW

ABSTRACT

It takes upwards of two years for a child protection worker to fully develop the necessary knowledge, skills, abilities and dispositions to work independently. Previous studies have shown child protection workers have substantive levels of stress and it is not uncommon for turn over rates to be high in child welfare. One factor that has been purported to mediate workplace stress is social support provided by peers and more experienced colleagues. This led the Children‘s Aid Society of London and Middlesex to develop a social support group for new child protection workers. Thirteen of 20 child protection workers hired between April and August 2008 participated in an eight session social support group that ran over six months and was led by two senior non-supervisory peers. Topics discussed included preparing and interacting in the court room, healthy stress management, managing work/home life, positive interactions/interventions, self-care, staff interactions and effective use of supervision. During the course of the study, participants reported experiencing a range of stressful incidents inside and outside of work, including perceptions of being verbally harassed and threatened that in turn led to a range of psychosocial issues which effected their wellness. Respondents indicated that the new worker support group was a valuable additional resource to respond to the workplace generated stress they experienced.

INTRODUCTION

It takes upwards of two years for new child welfare employees to learn what needs to be done in their front line positions and to develop the necessary knowledge, skills, abilities and dispositions to work independently. High turnover rates among child welfare workers are common, particularly in the first three years of employment and this becomes a substantive issue in terms of recruitment, productivity and resources (Ellet, Ellis, Westbrook, & Dews, 2007; Griffeth & Horn, 2001). A study by the Children‘s Aid Society of Toronto found that the critical factors leading to turnover among its newer family service and intake staff were the stress of the job and the workload. Staff of the agency had high levels of exposure to traumatic events with 82.7% of respondents having encountered at least one traumatic event on the job. Seventy percent of these workers reported significant emotional distress as a result of the incidents (Howe & McDonald, 2001). Likewise, Anderson (2000) reported that 62% of child protection workers scored in the high range of emotional exhaustion.

In 2007, the rate of turnover among all Ontario Children Aid Societies was 7.7%. Between 2007 and 2008, the Children‘s Aid Society of London and Middlesex alone hired 66 Child Protection Workers with the cost to train these workers exceeding $350,000. Within one year, eight (12.1%) of those new hires had left the agency, none of whom had completed a placement in child welfare and had therefore also required a greater amount of shadowing experience before they began to practice independently. Those leaving within the first year indicated more orientation and job shadowing would have been valuable. (Children‘s Aid Society of London and Middlesex, 2007; 2008). Thus, in an attempt to enhance the workplace environment, to support new workers through decreasing stress and respond to critical incidents of new staff, the training division of the Children‘s Aid Society of London and Middlesex piloted a new worker support group. The goal of the group was to have new workers feel better connected to the agency and to provide another means of social support to decrease their stress, increase their wellness and to respond to issues of trauma, which in turn was hypothesized to increase employee retention over the long-term.

LITERATURE REVIEW

Social support acts as a buffer against stress and a means to enhance wellness (Thoits, 1986; 1995). Social support occurs through the process of developing interpersonal relationships, through the exchange of information regarding resource acquisition, and though the integration of the supported person into a larger social network (Cohen & Wills, 1985). Social support has a facilitating affect upon self-efficacy which in turn promotes better coping with issues relating to physical, mental and social health (Schwarzer & Knoll, 2007). It can ameliorate workplace stress through reducing the strains experienced in the work environment, mitigating perceived stressors, and moderating the stressor–strain relationship (Viswesvaran, Sanchez, & Fisher, 1999). An examination of 314 American social work students found that social support positively influenced resilience, which in turn was related to academic success. The social supports offered by friends in the program played a protective role moderating the negative relationship that arose between academic stress and resilience (Wilks, 2008).

A Canadian study examining the practicum experiences of social work interns found a majority were exposed to at least one critical incident or traumatic event during their practicum. The precipitating incidents included reading files, direct client contact, the political climate of the practicum organization, to the supervisory and peer relationships in the practicum setting. The resulting impacts affected the students physically, socially, emotionally, and academically (Didham, Dromgole, Csiernik, Karley, & Hurley, in press). Of further significance is that a significant minority of these graduates have historically been recruited to work in child welfare settings as new workers. For example, the Children‘s Aid Society of London and Middlesex hired 38 students between 2007-2009 from the institution where the study was conducted along with another 20 students from other social work programs (Children‘s Aid Society of London and Middlesex, 2007; 2008).

The social service staff training and retention literature indicates that access to social support is a critical factor in job satisfaction. When individuals feel supported within their work environment, they experience lower levels of stress (Csiernik, 2005; Davis-Sacks, Jayaratne, & Chess, 1985; Halbesleben, 2006; Regehr & Bober, 2005). Social support has also been found to be a mediating factor, particularly when provided by superiors, in reducing the effects of trauma exposure (Regehr, Hill, & Graham, 2000).

Mentoring support groups offered by peers have been one mechanism through which social support has been offered to newer workers. Mentoring is an intense interpersonal relationship where a more senior individual, the mentor, provides guidance and support to a more junior organization member (Kram, 1985). In addition to providing career guidance and personal support, mentoring can facilitate socialization into the organization and be a mechanism for on-the-job training for newer staff.

Mentoring has also been correlated with job and career satisfaction, salary, and promotion (Allen, Eby, Lentz, & Lima, 2004).

METHOD

All new child protection workers (n=20) hired between April and August 2008 were invited to participate in the New Worker Support and Integration Group. Two senior, female, non-supervisory staff members volunteered to develop and facilitate two groups at two different times. Thirteen of the 20 group participants participated in the study (65%). The group‘s goals were to:

i) offer an opportunity for new workers to connect with each other and begin to build social support;
ii) provide a safe environment to explore the emotional impact of the work and to consider the management of those emotions;
iii) support a positive integration of new workers into the field of child welfare; and,
iv) introduce the idea of mentoring relationships in the workplace.

Eight group sessions were held, one approximately every three weeks, between June and December 2008. The group was a combination of mentoring, social, and peer support. Discussion topics were determined by the group facilitators in conjunction with the interests and needs identified by participants, including preparing and interacting in the court room, Human Resources and union issues, healthy stress management, managing work/home life, managing overtime, effective use of supervision (including expectations of supervision), positive interactions/interventions, self-care and staff interactions. The facilitators also encouraged participants to debrief regarding stressful situations and provided information when participants had specific questions.

Participants completed an instrument containing both open and closed ended questions prior to the initial session and at the conclusion of the group. Study participants were asked about their previous child welfare practicum experience, levels of anxiety regarding clients, the agency, supervision, and personal expectations of oneself prior to and since being employed, critical incidents that occurred during previous practicum situations and since being employed at the agency, sources of social support, and the impact of the incidents since being hired. The Social Support Questionnaire (SSQ), a reliable 12 item instrument that examines perceived number of social supports (n=6) and satisfaction (n=6) with those social supports (Sarason, Levine, Basham, & Sarason, 1983) was also completed by participants as was the 12-item Adult Hope Scale (AHS). The AHS measures Snyder's cognitive model of hope that defines hope as a positive motivational state that is based upon an interactively derived sense of success along two dimensions: (a) agency (goal-directed energy), and (b) pathways (planning to meet goals) (Snyder, Harris, Anderson, Holleran, Irving, Sigmon, et al., 1991). An open ended question regarding their thoughts on the group concluded the instrument.

RESULTS

i) Comparing new workers with and without previous experience in child welfare

Seven of the 13 study participants had previously completed a child welfare practicum. Both those who had completed a practicum in a child welfare setting and those that had not, reported equal levels of pre-employment anxiety regarding working with clients, supervision, and their ability to meet the expectations of their new role. Those who had previously been placed in a child welfare setting were much less anxious about agency protocols and processes than those who had not. After beginning employment, anxiety decreased in terms of supervisor expectations for both groups and it also decreased in terms of working with clients and personal expectations for those with previous practicum exposure. For those who had not previously completed a child welfare practicum, anxiety increased with regards to working with clients and stayed at the same level with respect to their personal expectations. One interesting unexpected difference was that the six participants with no previous child welfare experience had significantly more social supports in place than those with such experience at the beginning of their employment (5.5 versus 3.4) (see Table 1).

ii) Reasons for participating in the group

New workers participated in the group because they were either directed (30.8%) or encouraged (23.1%) to do so by their supervisor. However, five (38.5%) also stated that they believed the group would be beneficial for them as it would allow them to connect with others experiencing the same thing. Two indicated that they participated because of who had been selected to facilitate the group.

iii) Critical work-related incidents

Since being hired, but prior to the commencement of the group, five of the study‘s participants reported having been verbally harassed while three had already been verbally threatened by clients. By the completion of the group, nearly two thirds (n=9) reported that they had been verbally harassed, three had been verbally threatened, two reported being stalked, while one new worker had been threatened with physical harm and another with threats to her property. Table 2 summarizes the incidents new hires reported experiencing prior to group participation, since joining group, during social work placement, as well as outside their social work practice. However, criteria for the terms were not specifically defined in the data collection instrument but rather were left open to individual perceptions. This led to a difference between the number of incidents reported in the study and official incidents reported to Human Resources.

Table 1: Effects of having completed a practicum in a child welfare upon self-reported levels of anxiety (possible responses 1-5)

Pre-employment level of anxiety regarding

Post-employment level of anxiety regarding

a) Impacts of critical work-related incidents

Not surprising the stressful and traumatic incidents experienced by workers inside and outside of work, had negative impacts upon them. Eating, sleep, use of psychoactive substances, and overall health were all reported as having been impacted since beginning employment. The most common concern related to sleep disturbances:

"Since working at CAS, I sleep less, worry more, wake up in the middle of the night."

Other concerns included changes in eating:

"I have gained approximately 19 lbs. since starting at CAS in June – apparently I 'stress eat‘!"


And increases in anxiety (though this was not reported by all new workers):

"I have difficulty remembering things. I went home and forgot it was the night I was supposed to go out to dinner for my anniversary."

"I have more work-related stress but, my personal stress has decreased due to the routine of working."

A key finding of the study was that despite these substantive issues faced by new workers, the majority had not allowed their anxiety, stress, or the traumatic incidents they had experienced impact upon their work performance:

"I have had only one sick day. I always make my deadlines and appointments. My [paper work is] always up to date."

Table 2: issues faced by new child protection workers by setting

b) New Worker Supports

Friends (69.2%), family (53.8%), supervisors (30.8%), and peers (15.4%) were all used in seeking support for stressful and critical incidents faced in the workplace, while three participants (23.1%) had already sought out formal counselling support. Team members were the most frequently used social supports followed closely by friends within the agency, and supervisors though the social supports. Deemed most effective were the professional counselling services and friends outside the agency. While it was not the most important form of social support, the majority of participants (92.9%) indicated that they found the new worker support group of value. Comments included that it was a comfortable and safe environment to discuss work concerns with those who understood and could relate to the issues. The lack of a judgmental atmosphere was stated as being of critical importance, as was the skill of the facilitators. Participants liked having a place to discuss work issues and to learn that other new workers had the same concerns and stresses that they did, thus it served a normalization function. There is no small irony however in the fact that the major concern regarding the group was the inability by several to attend regularly because of the high-demand and pace of their work.

c) Group facilitator reflections

Not to be overlooked is the experience of the two group facilitators who voluntarily added the group to their regular responsibilities. The facilitators were asked to journal regarding their perceptions of the group. They reported that participants often came to group sessions outwardly exhibiting stress and in those situations it would have been very easy to have a support group drift towards only discussing the negative aspects of the role. However, as the group was premised upon a strength-based model, each week participants were provided with the opportunity to discuss positives that they had accomplished since the group last met, which in turn prompted several larger group discussions. By focusing the group upon positive messages, group members were able to visualize some of the excellent work that they were already accomplishing. However, facilitating the group without a corresponding decrease in other responsibilities did become an issue at times. Despite this, the two leaders were not only able to facilitate the sessions but also brought their personal and professional insights to the group. They were able to consistently provide real examples of not only the practice of child welfare but also about structural issues pertaining to the agency itself. It became evident in the group setting that the provision of information along with actual examples from the facilitators‘ own practice regarding what they had done and would have done in specific situations was very much welcomed by the participants. This information often appeared to place the participants at ease regarding their own decisions and actions.

DISCUSSION

Social support is a key dimension of the assistance social workers and other helping professionals provide to their clients and this is no less the case in child welfare. However, the importance of social support for those providing the care in this demanding realm is equally important, particularly for new employees. Social support is a mechanism that can decrease workplace stress in a variety of ways with several recent studies indicating its particular utility with social work students. This is critical given the findings of a recent Canadian study that discovered that some social work students were completing their studies already having experienced substantive stressful and traumatic incidents during their internships that were not fully resolved upon graduation and prior to entering the labour force.

Study participants reported anxiety regarding clients, the agency, their supervisor, and their own ability to do the work prior to beginning their employment. While those who had previous experience in child welfare became less anxious across all areas as they began to actually work with clients, those who had not previously completed a child welfare practicum had increases in anxiety in regards to working with clients, while experiencing no decrease in anxiety with respect to agency or personal expectations. Thus, there are distinct differences in new hires with and without child welfare experience that agency staff, particularly supervisors, need to be aware of and respond to in terms of training and support.

As anticipated, the majority of new practitioners reported experiencing a range of stressful incidents during the course of their work, as well as outside of practice, which in turn led to the development of a range of psychosocial responses, including sleep disturbances, changes in eating and in personal relationships, and increases in stress and anxiety levels. To counter these feelings and responses, study participants used a variety of social supports including team members, friends in other parts of the agency, their supervisors, along with family and friends, and importantly to this study, the new worker support group. The group was viewed as an additional opportunity that could be used to address concerns in a safe, protected environment where the newest employees of the agency would not be judged nor their ability or competency as a novice helping professional questioned. This was particularly important for some respondents who so early in their tenure still felt professionally vulnerable or still had lingering doubts about their ability to perform this very demanding work.

What is also important to note is the level of resilience demonstrated by the study participants despite the critical incidents they experienced. There was great pride taken by several respondents in not having taken any sick time since being hired and of not having any employment related issues despite the intensity of the work. In the eight months between the pre and post-tests there was no significant change in the level of satisfaction with personal relationships. However, what was noted was a slight decrease in the number of social supports group members had. This is even more interesting in that those who had previously interned in a child welfare setting already reported having fewer social contacts than those whose who were placed in other social work settings.

Individuals dedicate years of their lives and tens of thousands of dollars in post-secondary education to be able to become a social worker. Many find this not a job or even a mere career but a calling (Csiernik & Adams, 2002; 2003). It then takes upwards of two years of additional education, training and experience to become a fully independently functioning child protection worker (Ellet, et al., 2007) and during this time the reality of working with vulnerable and needy clients who at times react negatively towards those attempting to support them and be their allies becomes a reality. The response is as would be expected to any traumatic, stressful incident with some individuals responding and thriving, others becoming increasingly distressed, while others simply quit very early in their tenure. The Children‘s Aid Society of London and Middlesex has recognized that new workers need additional support with one response being the introduction of a social support group where new workers could come together to discuss their new role and any issues or concerns they were experiencing. The question that remains to be answered and will be a focus of the agency is will this initiative assist with both worker wellness and with enhanced worker retention.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Rick Csiernik, MSW PhD RSW
Professor, School of Social Work
King's University College at the University of Western Ontario

Carrie Smith, MSW
Supervisor, Quality Management and Research
Children's Aid Society of London and Middlesex

Jennifer Dewar MSW
Child Protection Worker
Children's Aid Society of London and Middlesex

Laura Dromgole, MSW RSW
Social worker
Children's Aid Society of London and Middlesex

Arlene O‘Neill, MSW RSW
Training Supervisor
Children's Aid Society of London and Middlesex

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