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Culture of Empathy Builder:  Louise Grant

 

Louise Grant and Edwin Rutsch: How to Build a Culture of Empathy with Social Work

Louise Grant is Senior Lecturer in Social Work at the University of Bedfordshire. Louise has been studying the role of empathy in fostering resilience in social workers in the UK.


She says, "My teaching interests are in children and families social work and in particular in developing reflective practice for effective social work and developing supervision knowledge and skills in social workers. My research focus is on reflective practice and developing emotional resilience for social work practice"

Louise is co-author of the study, 'Exploring Stress Resilience in Trainee Social Workers: The Role of Emotional and Social Competencies'. In order to inform the development of interventions to enhance the work-related well-being of early career social workers, this study examined several emotional and social competencies (i.e. emotional intelligence, reflective ability, empathy and social competence) as predictors of resilience in 240 trainees.

Sub Conferences: Health Care and Science

 
 
 

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Louise Grant & Edwin Rutsch: How to Build a Culture of Empathy with Social Work

 

 

Transcripts

  • 00:00 Introduction

  • (transcription pending)

  • (Video Transcriptions: If you would like to take empathic action and create a transcription of this video, check the volunteers page.  The transcriptions will make it easier for other viewers to quickly see the content of this video.)

 

2010-07-01 - Exploring Stress Resilience in Trainee Social Workers: The Role of Emotional and Social Competencies.  
"The high levels of stress and burnout endemic to social work have been found to contribute to the current retention problems in the UK. It has been argued that resilience is a protective factor that enhances the ability to manage stress, and promotes well-being in the social care context. Little is known, however, about the individual difference factors that promote resilience in this context, or whether this protects the well-being of staff. In order to inform the development of interventions to enhance the work-related well-being of early career social workers, this study examined several emotional and social competencies (i.e. emotional intelligence, reflective ability, empathy and social competence) as predictors of resilience in 240 trainees. "
 

14 January 2013 - Empathic social workers at higher risk of burnout and stress
"Social workers who display high levels of empathy for clients report higher levels of stress, anxiety and depression than colleagues, researchers find. Social workers with high levels of empathy for their clients are more at risk of burning out, particularly if they are unable to manage their emotions and reflect on their practice effectively, research reveals.

Findings from a study of over 300 social work trainees found that the more empathic social workers reported higher levels of stress, anxiety and depression than their colleagues. Distress was also higher among students who had a lower ability to reflect on their practice effectively."
 

15 January 2013 - Too many social workers see it as ‘unprofessional’ to admit traumatic cases affect us
"Community Care speaks to a former children and families social worker who is leading research on developing the profession's emotional resilience. Researchers from the University of Bedfordshire have found that social workers with high levels of empathy for their clients are more at risk of burning out, particularly if they are unable to manage their emotions and reflective on their practice effectively. I caught up with Louise Grant, senior social work lecturer and one of the lead researchers on the study, to find out more.
Q: Why is research into empathy in social work important?...."
 

Emotional resilience in social work - Practice guide
"Do you struggle to manage your emotional reactions to stressful situations at work? Do you find yourself becoming overwhelmed by service users’ feelings and experiences? Do you have trouble finding solutions to difficult problems?  Social work can be a demanding, stressful job at the best of times so emotional resilience, or the ability to bounce back when life becomes challenging, is an essential skill for social workers."