The Hospital Social Work Self-Efficacy Scale: Initial Development

Abstract

The Hospital Social Work Self-Efficacy Scale (based on Bandura's social cognitive theory) was designed as an outcome measure of social workers'confidence regarding their ability to perform specific hospital social work tasks. The scale was developed during an evaluation of two types of social work field expenence (full-year placements vs. three sequential placements). Data supporting the reliability and validity of the scale are presented. Given continued support of its reliability and validity, the scale may have a variety of uses in studies of hospital social work. In addition, similar assessments of self-efficacy as an outcome may have utility in other fields of practice.

Passage Meditation Improves Caregiving Self-efficacy among Health Professionals

“…Additional research might aim to develop self-efficacy scales to assess efficiency skills that are shared across professions, or use self-efficacy scales tailored to specific professions (e.g. Holden, Cuzzi, Rutter, Rosenberg, & Chernack, 1996).…”

Linking Self-Efficacy Beliefs to Employee Retention in Child Welfare

“…Holden (1991) may have published the first article on self-efficacy within social work using a meta-analysis of health related outcomes in 56 studies. There appears to be a 5-year gap in the appearance of selfefficacy studies in the social work literature between 1991 and 1996 when Holden, Cuzzi, Rutter, Rosenberg and Chernack (1996) and Cuzzi, Holden, Rutter, Rosenberg, and Chernack (1996) published the Hospital Social Work Self-Efficacy Scale (HSWSE) and the social work field students' self-efficacy ratings in a public hospital. Holden, Cuzzi, Spitzer et al (1997) further studied the psychometric properties of the HSWSE in a partial replication study of students and hospital social workers.…”

Revalidating the Substance Abuse Treatment Self-Efficacy Scale (SATSES): A Replication With Social Work Practitioners

“…Although measuring perceived self-efficacy in the use of specific skills might serve as a professional "needs assessment" for practitioners to determine their level of comfort in addressing substance abuse problems, self-efficacy measures alone are no substitute for actual performance-based outcomes. Perceived self-efficacy assessments of professional skills have been shown to correlate negatively with actual performance in both hospital social workers (Holden et al, 1996) and medical interns learning to assess and treat substance use problems (Parish et al, 2006). As shown in these data, social workers' level of confidence in using substance abuse assessment and treatment skills tended to be quite high overall, but only when treating certain types of clients.…”

“…The concept of self-efficacy (i.e., one's belief in one's ability to perform successfully within a specific situation; Bandura, 1986) has found wide applicability across many problem areas in health and mental health, and has been applied to professional activities such as in hospital social work (Holden, Cuzzi, Rutter, Rosenberg, & Chernack, 1996) and training medical interns to assess for alcohol problems (Parish, Ramaswamy, Stein, Kachur, & Arnsten, 2006). Measuring a practitioner's perceived self-efficacy in utilizing certain skills is one practical way to identify his or her level of confidence, skill deficits, and, perhaps, willingness to apply certain skills with substance-abusing clients.…”