"I Gotta Get Better at This Research Thing": Perspectives on the Importance of Research Among BSW Students from Disadvantaged Backgrounds

Background and Purpose: Research is an essential aspect of healthcare social work. It involves more than being aware of the various research methods. It encompasses a comprehensive set of skills, attitudes, and knowledge that help social workers understand how to use research to support and improve healthcare outcomes. Yet, research consistently shows that social work undergraduate students are apprehensive about learning and engaging with research. This perspective may be particularly common among students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds because of limited exposure to research. Therefore, pipeline programs focused on growing the undergraduate social work workforce that exclusively train students from disadvantaged backgrounds likely need to center training on the importance of research in providing healthcare. This approach may provide a foundation for inspiring students to learn and use research as they progress through their educational endeavors, which could enhance their self-efficacy in applying research in healthcare settings. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the influence of a workforce development program that emphasized research on undergraduate students' understanding of the importance of research in healthcare, and to gather feedback on areas for improvement.

Methods: This study used qualitative data from allied health community college students and BSW students who participated in a healthcare workforce development program (N = 48). Data were gathered from six focus groups that used a semi-structured interview guide. The guide included questions such as: How did [program name] help increase your understanding of the importance of research in healthcare? And, how could it be better? Qualitative data were recorded and transcribed. Guided by self-efficacy theory, thematic analysis was used to examine the data for patterns of experiences.

Results: All 48 participants were from economically or educationally disadvantaged backgrounds, and about half attended community college. Participants were 22-52 years of age (M = 34.27, SD = 8.35), predominantly female, non-veterans, with 77% representing historically excluded racial or ethnic group. Qualitative findings on students’ understanding of the importance of research yielded the following themes: research is valuable, particularly evidence-informed practice; the usefulness of being exposed to community-based research as part of practicum; and importance of instructor stories about research. For example, one student shared, “I don't like research, but how she [instructor] discussed it [telling personal stories], it just was enlightening...leaving that meeting changed my perspective.” Further, students shared the following themes related to training needs: the impact of individualized mentorship on research; help interpreting research articles; and obtaining experience with APA formatting. As one participant shared, “I gotta get better at this research thing.”

Conclusions and Implications: Programs that center on training students about the importance of research may be an effective approach to encouraging students to engage in research as they continue their educational journey. As the social work profession continues to ensure students to engage in research, instructor experience with research may be an important component to decreasing students apprehensiveness towards research.