ABSTRACT

Studies of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) have found that childhood maltreatment can have a negative impact during adulthood. Little is known about ACEs among social workers and how these experiences impact their work. This paper presents qualitative data collected from a convenience sample of 1,828 licensed social workers from 13 states exploring the ways in which their ACEs, as reflected by their responses to the ACE inventory, influenced their decisions to become social workers and affected their work. Respondents indicated that their ACEs created interest in exploring their own and their clients’ family dynamics, helping others, engaging in their own therapy, understanding clients’ experiences, advocating for change, and seeking supervision, among other themes. Implications for social work education and practice are discussed.

摘要

童年不良经历 (ACE) 的研究发现，童年时期的虐待会对成年期产生负面影响。对社会工作者中的 ACE 以及这些经历如何影响他们的工作知之甚少。本文提供了从 13 个州的 1,828 名有执照的社会工作者的便利样本中收集的定性数据，探讨了他们对 ACE 清单的反应所反映的 ACE 如何影响他们成为社会工作者的决定并影响他们的工作。受访者表示，他们的 ACE 对探索自己和客户的家庭动态、帮助他人、参与自己的治疗、了解客户的经历、倡导变革和寻求监督等主题产生了兴趣。讨论了对社会工作教育和实践的影响。