Human Rights Lens in Social Work: Validating a Measure for Rights-Based Social Work Practice

Background: The United Nations considers social work a "crucial" human rights profession, and social work scholars insist that social work practice is human rights work (Healy, 2008). Still, do U.S. social workers see their work as human rights work? This presentation details the initial validation of the Human Rights Lens in Social Work (HRLSW) scale. The HRLSW gauges social workers’ views on their clients’ vulnerability to human rights abuses, and their views on social problems as reflections of human rights violations on a larger scale. The HRLSW is the first scale to measure rights-based orientation in social workers.

Methods: Following content validation by a panel of experts, a survey was created including the HRLSW, demographic items, and items for construct validation. After an initial pilot, the survey was distributed to Florida’s Licensed Clinical Social Workers (n=6696) of whom 1,104 (16.5%) returned usable surveys. Data analysis examined sample characteristics, as well as factor structure, reliability, and construct validity. The initial sample (N=1014) was randomly split prior to data analysis to accommodate an initial exploratory factor analysis (EFA; n=507) followed by confirmatory factor analysis (CFA; n=507).

Results: This sample, similar to U.S. social workers nationally, was predominantly female (82.7%) and white (81.6%); 90.4% of respondents were currently working, and 83.2% had more than 10 years of social work experience.

EFA resulted in an 11-item, two-factor solution, which revealed a clear structure with each item loading substantially (>0.5) on only one factor. These factors—Clients are seen as experiencing rights violations and Social problems are seen as rights violations accounted for 62.4% of the variability in human rights lens. Factor matrix loadings ranged from moderate to high (.534-.862).

CFA supported the two-factor model, χ2 /df = 1.5, CFI = .99, TLI= .99, RMSEA = .03 (CI .01-.05), SRMR =.03. A higher order model could not be tested due to lack of model identification. The Cronbach's alpha for the HRLSW was solid for both factors: .841 for the client-focused factor; and .891 for the society-focused factor. Previously validated scales and single-item indicators supported accuracy of primary constructs, with moderate effect sizes: client-focused (r2 =.29) and society-focused (r2 = .39).

Conclusion:  The Human Rights Lens in Social Work scale can be used to measure a rights-based orientation to social work practice among social workers in the field. Researchers can use it to explore levels of human rights lens among professional social workers and evaluate our identity as a human rights profession. Educators can employ this scale to evaluate rights-based course content and its effect on students.

 Seeing through a human rights lens reframes social problems by foregrounding discrimination and human dignity, and has the potential to focus our social work practice on social justice and social change (Mapp, 2008); the HRLSW can help us measure our progress.

Healy, L.M. (2008). Exploring the history of social work as a human rights profession. International Social Work, 51,735-748.

Mapp, S.C. (2008). Human rights and social justice in a global perspective. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.