Why Students Choose Social Work: Career Motivations Explored

Introduction

Do modern-day social work students have different career objectives and goals than early 20th-century social workers? Researchers have examined social work idealism and other factors that influence BSW and MSW students. Study instruments have covered a broad range of ideals to determine levels of idealism as well as influential factors such as altruism, professional concerns, and the influence of others (Csikai & Rozensky, 1997). Other studies produced unclear findings, though their focus differed as well. Varley (1963, 1968) measured students' attitudes on specific social work issues. The Wagner (1989) study measured social workers' commitment to social idealism and social change. The Abell and McDonnell (1990) study showed that MSW students typically chose social work education to enhance professional skills and their commitment to working with the disadvantaged.

These results differed from those of Rubin and Johnson (1984), who identified an MSW trend toward private practice. Rompf and Royse (1994) determined that social work majors tended to come from families who had suffered psychosocial trauma and concluded that this background influenced their career choice of social work.

Methodology

A study was conducted with the purpose of determining whether the university curriculum program for BSW and MSW students aligned appropriately with the career ideals of those students (Csikai & Rozensky, 1997). The hypothesis was that social work idealism correlates with the types of reasons students select a social work career. The study involved 73 BSW students and 72 MSW students enrolled in their first semester in the School of Social Work. Questionnaires were distributed and completed in class, with researchers present to explain the purpose of the study and answer questions. The researchers then left the room as participants completed the survey.

Results of the Study

The findings revealed that both BSW and MSW students possess high levels of idealism and that students with the highest levels of idealism tended to select a social work career for altruistic reasons. The findings further supported other studies showing that students' traditional social work values typically prevailed over any desire to enter private practice. No additional statistical tests were conducted. According to the article, the use of a convenience sample and a self-reporting survey limited the generalizability of the findings. In addition, because the questionnaire was administered six weeks into the semester, it was possible that students had already been influenced by course content.

Critique and Conceptual Framework

The idealist individual can be characterized as someone who feels a need and desire to find purpose in life — to achieve self-actualization through a unique personal identity, to be part of something larger while retaining individual meaning, to communicate authentically, and to make a genuine difference in the world. Such individuals tend to be deeply sensitive to the experiences of others and are motivated by a desire to reform society from a perspective grounded in care and idealism.

It is widely held in the fields of sociology and psychology that the family is a major influence on a child's development, and this belief is reflected in social work practice, psychological treatment of children, and educational theory. Although direct evidence documenting the family's role in career choice specifically is limited, the techniques and practices used by professionals working with developmentally disadvantaged children implicitly affirm this connection. In attempting to understand what motivates someone to choose social work as a career, researchers must ask what historical experiences or situational stresses inclined that individual toward helping others through transformative work.