Levels of Depression in West Massachusetts

Running head: DEPRESSION AMONG OLDER IMMIGRANTS

DEPRESSION AMONG OLDER IMMIGRANTS 32

Summary

The presentation of the findings has focused on the expected study results based on the criteria specified. The researcher expects that they will answer the proposed study questions to uncover why older immigrant African women struggle to access mental health services in West Massachusetts. Armed with the information, the researcher can then propose service modification as recommended by the social workers interviewed in the study. All the interviews were conducted using internet services like GoToMeeting, Skype, or Zoom. The study had a maximum of 12 and a minimum of 10 social workers. This researcher believes that the study population though small is representative of the population under study. All interviews would last 45 minutes, and the participants would be asked ten questions. The recruitment of the study participants was done using social media services like Facebook and LinkedIn, where the researcher posted a flier requesting interested study participants to get in touch with him.

The study will use quota sampling when it comes to selecting study participants from the interested pool of participants. Data analysis will comprise of transcribing the data, coding, and generating themes. Peer debriefer will be used to determine the validity of the study. The researcher will investigate the data to discover anomalies and check for assumptions with the help of graphical representations. Study findings will be based on the data, and the researcher will try to avoid making any unfounded or unsupported assumptions. The findings will demonstrate that social workers struggle to deliver services to the older immigrant African women due to culture. Therefore, we will propose that better cultural competencies training be conducted to increase the social workers' knowledge on the different cultures present in Africa and how the cultures differ. The study will promote social change by encouraging other social workers to embrace cultural competency training and become interested in different cultures. The older African women will benefit in that they will now receive the assistance and counseling they need to overcome their depression.

Section 3: Presentation of the Findings

The purpose of this exploratory qualitative study is to explore the views of social workers regarding depression in older immigrant African women in Metro West Massachusetts. In this study, I will also gain insights into ways the social workers sector can assist to meet the emerging needs of the population. The study findings will enhance access to quality mental health services and ensure the women understand the implications of not seeking mental health services. Armed with the study results. insights will be gained into the issues the women face within the population and solutions directly targeted to the population can be developed (Agbemenu, 2016). In section 3, I will present the findings of this study and I used the data to answer the following research questions:

1. From the perspective and benefits of social workers, what factors influence older immigrant African women’s adaptive capacity in Metro West Massachusetts?

2. From the social work perspective, what mental health services do social workers offer to older immigrant African women in Metro West Massachusetts?

3. How do social workers assess the need for mental health services for older immigrant African women in Metro West Massachusetts?

4. What service modifications can social workers introduce in practice to enhance mental health service delivery for older immigrant African women in Metro West Massachusetts?

I will also discuss the data analysis techniques used to conduct this study, the sample population, and demographics of the sample, thematic analysis and the summary.

Data Analysis Techniques

The data collection process will begin after receiving authorization from Walden University's Institutional Review Board. Thereafter, the study invitation flyer will be posted on Facebook and LinkedIn social media websites to obtain the 10-12 study participants with experience working with elderly immigrant African women in Metro West Massachusetts. During these contemporary times of COVID-19, all the interviews will be conducted using internet services like GoToMeeting, Skype, Zoom, or any other web-based service. The recruitment flyer will be adjusted to indicate this decision.

I have to rely solely on the responses received via email showing interest in participating in the study. For each potential study participant who meets the inclusion criteria and responds to the study invitation, I will explain to them via email the next steps and attach in the response the consent form. I will screen for vulnerabilities since the study targets a population of adults and any minors who respond should not be allowed to take part in the study. Also, the recruitment flyer contains information on who can participate in the study, which will assist in screening for vulnerable populations. My study will not be seeking any individuals in the vulnerable categories to take part in the study. However, my sample might include vulnerable adults if they meet the inclusion criteria. It is anticipated that we will receive enough participants willing to participate in the study within a week of posting the flyer.

The consent form and screening will take place as the emails stream in to ensure that each participant receives communication in timely manner. I will try to respond to each potential study participant within two hours of them sending me an email indicating their willingness to take part in the study. The potential study participants will have to respond to the email with the consent form and indicate they consent to take part in the study. Only those who indicate their consent will be contacted and scheduled for a virtual interview. I will begin scheduling the interviews based on how the study participants respond indicating their consent to take part in the study. I will also be looking for those social workers who have more experience working with older immigrant African women and they have indicated their willingness to take part in the study. These women will be given first priority since they can give us more information than social workers with about three years.

I plan on only having 10 study participants, and I will only include the other two if I feel the data collected is not enough.

Sampling and Sample Characteristics

Quota sampling will be used as I have a specific criterion of the participants I would like to have for this study (Etikan & Bala, 2017). Social workers who show interest in the study will be requested to provide information regarding the number of years worked in the area, the clientele they work with the most, and the vital insights they might bring to the study. I will have to reduce the number of study participants to ensure I will have adequate time to interview the proposed number and get adequate social workers’ information. Since quota sampling will be used, I will select the participants based on the social workers’ characteristics I am looking for. Sample sizes are fixed in quota sampling, and there is no room for increasing the number of participants.

The characteristics being sought in the social workers to be included in the study are:

1. Social worker must have been working in the Metro West Massachusetts area for a minimum of three years.

2. The social worker should be a graduate-level or higher.

3. Social worker is working with older African immigrants.

The study participants will be given the pseudo name Social Worker and assigned a unique number. The use of pseudo names is to ensure privacy and protect the social workers' confidentiality. I will not use the social workers actual names in any of the questionnaires or during the interview. During the virtual interview, the social worker will be requested to not use actual names of clients and they should not mention their name as well. Only after they have agreed and understood this requirement will the interview recording begin. The table below will present the sample characteristics of the potential study population.

Table 1

Study Sample Characteristics

Participant

Education Qualifications

Experience in Years

Social Worker 0021

BSW and MSW

Social Worker 0022

BSW

Social Worker 0023

BSW

Social Worker 0024

BSW and MSW

Social Worker 0025

BSW and MSW

Social Worker 0026

BSW

Social Worker 0027

BSW and MSW

Social Worker0028

BSW

Social Worker 0029

BSW and MSW

Social Worker 0030

BSW and MSW

Data Collection Procedures

Quota sampling will be used to select the study participants. All the recruited study participants will be sent the consent form via email. Once the potential study participants respond to the email with the words "I consent" they will receive a link with calendar dates and times for the virtual interview. The participant will select a date and time slot that is convenient for them. Once they do this, I will receive an email and they will also receive a confirmation email for the scheduled virtual interview.

All the interviews will be conducted using internet services based on the preference of the participant. However, I will limit these choices to Zoom or Skype. I will update the consent form to indicate that all the interviews will be conducted virtually using either Skype or Zoom. For the Zoom interview, I will create a password that will be sent to the study participants for them to join the virtual interview. There will be a unique meeting ID for each study participant to ensure there is no chance of mix up when sending the interview invites. The study participants will be requested to access the interview link in a private and secluded area for confidentiality and privacy.

The projected number of study participants is between 10-12 social workers. I have determined this is a representative number as about 120 social workers work in the area. Due to time restrictions, it is not possible to have more than 12 social workers. The time to code and perform data analysis would prolong the study duration and result in unclear answers. Interviewing the participants will take the bulk of time, and scheduling interviews with more than 12 participants can result in failing to interview them.

Data Analysis and Coding

After each interview, I will transcribe the interview verbatim, protecting against bias and providing a permanent record of what the interviewee said. I will make field notes as the interview progresses, noting the interviewee’s body language, thoughts, and opinions regarding the interview. Body language is vital as it offers a picture of how the interview process was conducted and the interviewee’s feelings, which is vital in data analysis (Farooq & De Villiers, 2017). The study will use semi-structured interviews, and I can use thematic analysis of the data. There were no clear patterns expected or identified before the study commenced. Therefore, using thematic analysis, I can uncover themes to use for the study (Castleberry & Nolen, 2018).

To begin the analysis, I will familiarize myself with the data. Familiarization involves transcribing the audio, reading the text, taking notes, and generally looking through the data. Without familiarization, I will find it hard to understand the data and struggle to perform the analysis. The second step is coding, where I will highlight sections of the text I find interesting or jumps out from the interview. I will create shorthand labels (codes) describing the highlighted phrases or sentences (Castleberry & Nolen, 2018). I have to go through each interview transcript and highlight all those phrases or sentences that seem interesting or relevant to the study. I can continue adding new codes as they go through the text. All the data will be collated into groups based on the identified codes.

The third step is generating themes. I will go over the identified codes, identify patterns, and begin developing themes during this phase. Themes will comprise several codes. Some of the identified codes can be discarded if they are deemed vague or not relevant enough. Some codes might be converted into themes. The themes identified will offer more information about the research data. Next, I will review themes to ensure they accurately represent the data. I will have to return to the data set and compare the identified themes against the data set. The objective is to ensure nothing is missing and all the vital information has been captured. I will have to ensure the themes represent the data. Themes can be modified, discarded, or combined, ensuring they are valuable and accurate (Kiger & Varpio, 2020).

The identified themes will then be defined. Defining involves formulating what each theme means and determining how it assists in understanding the data. After the theme’s definition is done, each theme will be given a succinct name and can be easily understood. Finally, I will write up the report on data analysis.

Study Validity

Credibility and Trustworthiness

Credibility and trustworthiness will reflect simultaneously in the study by examining the data collection and data analysis procedures and methods. The data analysis plan for this study will be structured and reevaluated continuously through the data collection process. Throughout the process of reevaluating the methodology, researcher bias will be examined. Self-awareness is vital when interacting with participants, capturing data, and anatomizing the data once it is collected. It is vital during the data collection process that I capture diverse experiences, so individual interviews are selected as the best way to collect data for this study.

I will use peer de-briefers or peer debriefing to establish the validity of the study (Cheng et al., 2017). Using peer debriefing, I will ensure I collected valid information. I will work with one of my colleagues who is not involved in the study and holds impartial views regarding the study. The peer will examine the study transcripts, general methodology, and final report. They will then offer feedback to myself, enhancing validity and credibility (Cheng et al., 2017). According to Richards and Hemphill (2018), the peer can detect overemphasized points, underemphasized points, vague descriptions, biases made by the researcher, and general data errors. The peer de-briefer can assist the researcher in becoming aware of his views on the data. The researcher will determine the debriefing schedule, and the best schedule will involve sharing of information regularly after vital tasks have been achieved.

Limitations

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the researcher was forced to use internet services to conduct the interviews. With internet services like GoToMeeting, Skype, or Zoom, technical challenges could occur like loss of internet connection or computer problems. I will have no alternative but to persevere through them, and in the worst cases, the interviews could be rescheduled to a later date or time (Mirick & Wladkowski, 2019). It is not easy to gauge body language when conducting an interview online. The main area to see is the face, and this might not offer much information as would have been possible if the interview was conducted face-to-face (Farooq & De Villiers, 2017).

Another challenge is the lack of personal touch available when conducting face-to-face interviews. There might be a general disconnect between the interviewer and the interviewee, affecting the study results. The social workers could find it hard to concentrate on the online interviews since they are not used to them, and the nature of their work requires them to have a physical presence when dealing with a client.

I foresee that some of the social worker might not keep to the scheduled date and time. However, I will try to reschedule the interviews for a maximum of two times. If the social worker does not manage to attend the rescheduled interviews and the data collection timeframe lapses, I will not include their information in the findings. The impact of this is that I might not have adequate responses and will be forced to search for another social worker to fill the gap.

With a focus on older immigrant African women, the study will be limited in data collection since most social workers have a diverse clientele and they might not have enough experience working with the desired population. Also, the study results cannot be transferable to other populations since the major focus is on African elderly women.

Findings

I will look out for patterns and similar characteristics in the datasets. I will investigate the data to discover anomalies and check for assumptions with the help of graphical representations (Luther, 2018; Mortelmans, 2019). Looking out for common patterns within the social workers’ responses to achieve the research objectives and aims. All collected data will be keyed into a computer program, and for this study, I will use SPSS software to analyze the data. Since I shall be using online interviews, all the interview answers will be converted into codes before entering the system. Data analysis will then be conducted by independent analysts who will not be privy to the participant information. I aim to uncover the differences and similarities in the collected data from the interviews. The study results will be presented in tables and figures for ease of reading and presentation. I anticipate the results will answer the research questions proposed, and vital insights will be gained from the data.

The structure of the findings will be done based on each individual research question. Therefore, there will be four categories under findings with headings based on the research question being answered.

I anticipate I will discover that most of the social workers have the same views regarding depression among older African immigrant women, and it would be interesting to uncover why they have similar views. The responses by the social workers will increase our knowledge on why there are higher rates of depression among women, and strategies that could be employed to reduce these rates might be uncovered. Patterns, similarities, and differences will be analyzed to determine how and why they occur since we should explain why something appears as it does to the reader. I have some expectations of the results to obtain from the study, and it is my hope that these will match with the study’s actual results. However, any discrepancy should not be assumed to be a problem. The discrepancy could be due to me having the wrong assumption. Also, the expected results might be informed by past information that is no longer applicable in the current settings.

The study findings will answer the research questions by demonstrating what has been lacking in the field of social work targeting elderly African women. The cultural differences found among the women can hinder access to mental health services, and the social workers can offer better insights into how they have tried or managed to assist the women. The social workers will also reveal the challenges they have faced that are systemic and cultural, preventing them from offering services to the women. With the information they offer regarding the difficulties they face I will request them to make a proposal on what they think can be done to assist them in reaching the women and making accessing services easy for the women.

The research goal is to make recommendations to increase mental health service access and delivery for the women. Other social workers will benefit from the study results since they can use the results to recommend changes in their practice. The study results can be part of the evidence they present to their seniors when proposing the changes.

It might be a challenge to recruit social workers who are not familiar with the researcher since no trust is established. However, this limitation can be overcome by taking the interested social workers through the consent process and informing them of the study’s benefits in the community. Conducting the interviews using online services creates an issue since some of the participants might be using unreliable internet connections that keeps on disconnecting, which can be frustrating to the interviewee and interviewer. Therefore, patience should be exercised, and I should be prepared to calm down the interviewee whenever there is a disruption in the interview.

Summary

The research findings will offer strategies for eliminating the racial discrimination of the African American community by ensuring they receive equal mental health services. From the study, we will uncover methodologies suited to the community that would consider their unique needs. The current strategies were implemented to serve the American White community, excluding the cultural needs of older African immigrant women who find it hard to express themselves to a stranger. The older women suffer even more since they no longer have the social systems they relied upon back home, and they have to adapt to new methods or ways of coping.

Social workers can support and guide these women, and the study results will uncover what other social workers have been doing to reach these older women. Using these insights, social workers can attempt to implement them in their cases and determine if they will receive the same results. The study results will assist the community social workers in better addressing the emerging needs, and challenges older immigrant African women face when accessing mental health services. More specifically, the study will focus on how the target population is affected by depression when there are barriers to receiving support. Findings in the study will equip social workers with the knowledge to develop strategies they can use to treat depression and bring awareness to the unique needs of older immigrant African women. The following chapter focuses on applying the study results to professional practice and the impact it will have on social change.

Section 4: Application to Professional Practice and Implications for Social Change

The purpose of this exploratory study was to uncover social workers’ views regarding depression in older immigrant African women in Metro West Massachusetts. The qualitative study aims to analyze the perspectives of social workers dealing or offering services to the older immigrant African women and insights will be gained on how other social workers can meet the emerging needs of the population. The study will focus on getting the views of social workers working in the Metro West area. The collective experiences shared with me by the social workers during the interviews will offer information on what services are needed for the population, issues the women face and solutions targeting the population. Social workers will offer insights on how they deliver mental health services and their responses from the women. The study results will assist in service modifications and enhancing access to quality mental health services.

The study was carried out since depression among elderly immigrant women stands out as an important phenomenon for study in the context of social work taking into consideration the extent to which the condition affects vulnerable populations. Immigrants will typically face stressors related to their migration experience that will cause mental health problems. Migration can be challenging, and many immigrant women experience challenges that affect their mental health (Foo et al., 2018). It is imperative to determine the views of social workers from West Massachusetts who work with older immigrant African women in Metro West Massachusetts affected by depression. The research questions for this study are: 1) From the perspective and benefits of social workers, what factors influence older immigrant African women’s adaptive capacity in Metro West Massachusetts? 2) From the social work perspective, what mental health services do social workers offer to older immigrant African women in Metro West Massachusetts? 3) How do social workers assess the need for mental health services for older immigrant African women in Metro West Massachusetts? 4) What service modifications can social workers introduce in practice to enhance mental health service delivery for older immigrant African women in Metro West Massachusetts?

The research questions addressed by this study highlight the challenges the women experience and the barriers they encounter or barriers to their accessing mental health services. There are mental health disparities among the women, and most struggle to receive assistance and do not accept a mental health diagnosis. Social workers have had issues when it comes to discussing mental health problems like depression and anxiety with the women, mainly due to culture. The social workers have to be culturally aware and approach the women based on their culture. Therefore, cultural awareness plays a crucial role in the treatment of women. Social work practice has been modified in this location as social workers have to learn different cultures and understand how each culture approaches the issue of mental healthcare. Reducing the causes of depression is beneficial to society as there will be fewer people who need mental health services or are living with mental conditions. The study will benefit the community by reducing cases of depression amongst the older immigrant African women caused by their migration experience.

The themes that emerge from the study will confirm the identified issues. The key findings from this study will address the identified issues, discussed at the beginning of the study. Through the interpretation of the data, I will formulate conclusions indicating the key variables playing a significant role in the experiences of the older immigrant African women. I posit that culture will play a defining role in how the women perceive social workers, and how they deal with a mental health diagnosis.

The increment in social work for this particular community has been rising for the past few decades. Theoretical and practical strategies have been developed with continuous research, design, implementation, and evaluation of several social work practices in this very population segment. Watkins et al. (2015) posit the Afrocentric or Africentric paradigms have been established to discuss the seriousness of the oppression and the prolonged culture of slavery still faced by this community. It travels along the lines of physical and mental health due to loss of identity when they travel to a new region and changed living conditions are experienced. For this purpose, the current study would address the social work interventions for the elderly community among the African American immigrants.

This study’s results can be used by other social workers dealing with a similar population. Based on this study’s results, other social workers will benefit from finding out the strategies they can employ to reach out to such a population and the strategies they should avoid. Cultural influences have been uncovered that will be vital in determining the methods used to treat this population. Being culturally informed is beneficial to the social worker, and it will allow them to reach out to the community members and approach them in a manner that will be acceptable. Social work will benefit the most since the results suggest strategies social workers can use when dealing with older immigrant African women. Considering that women will have different cultures based on their country of origin, it will be vital that a social worker first understand the client’s culture before offering treatment or counseling to the individual.

Application for Professional Ethics in Social Work Practice

The social work problem highlighted in this study relates closely to these two principles of the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) Code of Ethics, cultural awareness, and social diversity and competence of the social worker (National Association of Social Workers, 1996). A social worker should understand the culture of the population they are serving and its role in human behavior and society. Without understanding culture, a social worker will struggle to interact with the clients, which will create a rift between the clients and the social worker resulting in the client not receiving adequate service. The services offered by a social worker should be sensitive to the client’s culture. Cultural sensitivity allows the social worker to understand the client’s culture and offer services that are in line with the client’s culture (Lorenz, 2019). Being culturally sensitive ensures the social worker can offer services that will be acceptable to the client. A social worker must understand the nature of social diversity and oppression as they relate to race, national origin, ethnicity, sex, sexual orientation, color, age, marital status, religion, immigration, and mental health (National Association of Social Workers, 1996). The study will confirm the importance of being culturally sensitive as evidence supports this principle. Social workers who are not culturally sensitive have had a hard time treating older immigrant African women, mainly due to failure to understand their culture. Being sensitive to the client’s culture gives the social worker the added knowledge of approaching the client, interacting with them, and probing them for information (Viola et al., 2018). All these are vital for delivering services to the client. Social workers who understand a client’s culture know the limitations or things they cannot discuss. For example, in some cultures talking about mental health is taboo, and the client might assume the social worker is saying they are mad. Therefore, having adequate information and understanding of the different cultures ensures the social worker does not discourage or chase away the client based on how they approach the delicate issue of depression.

Competence is the second principle focused upon in this study. Social workers should accept the responsibility based on their existing competence (De Kock, 2020). For a social worker to work with older immigrant African women, they need to have the competence needed to assist a diverse population of clientele. Therefore, a social worker who has no experience or desire to gain experience working with a diverse community should not accept employment in such an area. Accepting employment and failing to get the necessary competence would be a disservice to the women as they will not receive the care they need. The study increases the current knowledge regarding the discrepancy in access to mental health by the older immigrant African women, and other social workers would use the results of this study to increase their knowledge. Understanding the barriers older immigrant African women and social workers face regarding mental health access will allow social workers to modify their current practice models to be more accommodating. Social workers have to review the available literature to determine new models and advances in practice they can implement in their practice. The current study should be used as part of this continued knowledge acquisition.

The NASW code of ethics is clear in terms of how a social worker should handle cultural issues, and the requirement of being culturally competent is vital (National Association of Social Workers, 1996). A social worker should not accept employment in an area with a diverse population if they are not prepared to learn about the different cultures present in their work area (De Kock, 2020). Without cultural competence, the social worker will discourage clients from seeking mental health services, which leads to further alienation of the population under study. Already, the women are finding it hard to access mental health services, and the situation should not be aggravated further by employing social workers who are not culturally aware or willing to learn. Social workers have to understand diversity and oppression, which allows them to work with different clients and offer effective services without discrimination. Competence in social work mandates that social workers have ample knowledge in an area before offering their services (De Kock, 2020). Therefore, social workers who are not culturally competent should not attempt to offer their services to clients from different cultures. Familiarization with the different cultures at the base of their client’s area is vital and shows the social worker’s competence.

Recommendations for Social Work Practice

The findings of this qualitative study will reveal service modifications like giving the clients more time since language barriers exist. The additional time will ensure the client can express herself fully and not feel the social worker is rushing them. To enhance quality mental health services, it is vital to ensure clients are not limited to a given timeframe and the social worker is not rushed to finish with each client. The additional time allows the client to have enough time to express herself to the social worker, and the social worker benefits by attending fully to a client’s needs. Increased timeframe for the social worker will give the social worker ample time to diagnose and treat the client.

Action Steps

Cultural barriers can be overcome through increased time spent with a client. The more time a social worker spends with a client, the client will feel comfortable, and they will begin to trust the social worker, which will encourage the client to speak freely with the social worker and express what is bothering her. It is well known that the more time a person spends with another, the more likely they are to trust the person (Saasa, 2019). Therefore, the increase in time should be a policy consideration for social workers working in culturally diverse areas or areas where there are language barriers. Increased time with a client increases the bond between the client and the social worker, making their interactions friendlier and getting acquainted with the social worker. As they continue spending time with the social worker and interacting, the client will be comfortable enough to now disclose to the social worker what is troubling her and how she feels about talking about it. Cultural barriers can be overcome as the client and social worker spend increased time together (Saasa, 2019). The social worker benefits by learning more about the client’s culture, and the client benefits by expressing themselves to the social worker in a way she feels comfortable. The result is the client receives the vital assistance and guidance she needs from the social worker.

The second action step would be strategies social workers can use to reach out to the population under study. Currently, social workers interact primarily with the women who visit the social work facilities. However, other women opt not to visit these facilities due to culture or fear. Reaching out to these women would be vital to reducing mental health cases within the community. Women can be encouraged to visit the facilities to receive assistance with any underlying issue they might have. Taking services to the community removes the stigma associated with mental health services, and more women can start appreciating the services of the social workers. Service modification to have social workers visiting the community will make the social workers familiar with the women, and with time the women will start embracing the services offered. Reducing cases of depression and anxiety in the community is the main agenda, and social workers should ensure they can reach out to the community in different ways.

Impact on Social Work Practice

The chances are that majority of the African immigrant women are not aware of any services they can receive from social workers. Even when they know about hospitals, they might be referred to a social worker, but fear going there since they assume social workers deal only with mental health issues, which goes against their traditions. Another worry the women might have relates to the costs of health care. Coming from an African country where all medical services are charged makes it challenging to seek services even when they are free. The women harbor the notion that they will be charged secretly, preventing them from seeking the vital services they need. All this can be modified by having the social workers visit the community where the women are located and chat with them. The goals of this approach would be to make the women aware of the services they can receive from their local health center or specialized areas. The costs for the services should be discussed to ensure they understand what services are free and those that are charged. The visit by the social worker can serve numerous purposes. For example, visiting the community allows the social worker to perform an overview of the women and determine if any women might need counseling services based on how they interact with the social worker. Secondly, the visit introduces the women to a social worker whom they can approach later when they need social work services.

Transferability

These study findings can be transferable to other populations dealing with older immigrant women from other parts of the world. The issues faced by African immigrants might be similar to other immigrants making the findings transferable. The importance of cultural competence comes to the fore from the study results. Social workers have demonstrated how vital it is to have cultural competence, a skill that can be used for different communities and settings. There should be a push to increase cultural competence training in schools to have more social workers understand how to handle a diverse population. The study results have demonstrated that information is missing since most social workers have expressed they struggled to handle the population. Therefore, they were recommending more training regarding cultures.