Associations of Physical and Emotional Aggression Among a Sample of MSW Students

Background: There has been minimal focus on physical and emotional aggression among MSW students in the research literature. While research such as Perkins et al. (2021) has tried to fill the gap in knowledge about MSW students’ experiences with ACEs, no literature examines broader factors influencing physical and emotional aggression among MSW students. An understanding of aggression in MSW students has implications for both social work education and social work practice. This study seeks to contribute to the lack of literature in this area by exploring various psychosocial factors that may influence physical and emotional aggression in a sample of MSW students.

Methods: Upon IRB approval, a link to a survey in Qualtrics was sent to all MSW program directors in all accredited MSW programs in the U.S. The study examines data (n=468) collected from MSW students who reported on several factors such as aggression, family and personal history of mental illness, family and personal history of substance abuse, personal history of arrest, protective and compensatory experiences (PACEs), adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), and physical and emotional sibling violence (PESV). Data analysis included frequencies of demographics, correlations, t-tests, ANOVAs, and two regression models examining physical and emotional aggression.

Findings: Of the sample, 89.1% were female, 66.5% identifying as heterosexual, 68.6% were Caucasian, 66.5% grew up in a nuclear family, and 82.7% had a household income in childhood at $100,000 or below. Physical aggression, ACEs, PACEs, and PESV were all significantly correlated, however emotional aggression was correlated with physical aggression and ACEs, but not with PACEs or PESV. Independent t-tests, found no differences between those that did and did not have a family and personal history of mental illness, a family and personal history of substance abuse, or a personal history of arrest. ANOVAs also found no differences between mean scores of physical or emotional aggression by community type in childhood, childhood income, or family type in childhood. For physical aggression, the model was significant (F(4,446)=16.74, p<.001), with both emotional aggression (p<.001) and PESV (p<.001) being significant. For emotional aggression the model was significant (F(4,446)=7.97, p<.001), with both physical aggression (p<.001) and ACEs (p=.013) being significant.

Conclusion: This study examined factors associated with physical and emotional aggression in a sample of MSW students from across the U.S. It appears that those factors associated with physical and emotional aggression may be different thereby warranting further examination of physical and emotional aggression as separate types of aggression in MSW students. Instances of ACEs and PESV in childhood were significant in understanding aggression in this sample and should be topics of discussion in both social work education and social work practice as they relate to future influences on working with clients in social work settings. It is essential that MSW students as eventual social workers learn how their past experiences with ACEs and PESV may influence their work with clients to become more self-aware and cognizant of the dynamics associated with their work.