Development and Psychometric Evaluation of Multi-Scale Inventory of Social Worker Professional Competencies
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21632988 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Jelena Ogresta (0000-0001-5235-3180, University of Zagreb), Ana Opačić (0000-0002-3486-0696, University of Zagreb, corresponding author), Lana Pehar (0000-0001-8859-287X, University of Split) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Publication date | 2026-07-07 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Research on Social Work Practice (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1049-7315 • E-ISSN: 1552-7581 |
| Publisher | SAGE Publications (PUBLISHER • US) |
| DOI | 10.1177/10497315261465374 |
| OpenAlex | W7167634947 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 50 |
Purpose: To develop and psychometrically evaluate the Multi-Scale Inventory of Social Worker Professional Competencies (SW-MSIPC). Method: An exploratory sequential mixed-methods design was used. Focus groups with social workers informed item refinement, followed by a pilot study (n = 115) and a large-scale survey (n = 905) conducted among social workers employed in Croatian social welfare centers to examine psychometric properties. Results: Eight multidimensional competency scales were identified, explaining 53%–70% of variance, with acceptable to excellent reliability (α = .72–.93; ω = .73–.94). Most scales showed high mean scores and negatively skewed distributions, implying ceiling effects, while the Community work competency scale showed better score dispersion. Competency scores were moderately associated with workplace self-efficacy and modestly with professional identity and job satisfaction, providing preliminary evidence of criterion-related validity. Discussion: The SW-MSIPC is a contextually relevant and psychometrically sound instrument, requiring further refinement to improve sensitivity and cross-cultural validation
Construct validity · Job satisfaction · Psychometrics · Social skills · Social Welfare · Counseling Practices and Supervision · Occupational Therapy Practice and Research · Social Work Education and Practice · Social Work
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| Highly cited | No |
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