Effective practices and approaches to strengthen the global social service workforce: Results from a Delphi Process
Effective practices and approaches to strengthen the global social service workforce: Results from a Delphi Process
A Delphi review by faculty affiliate Bree Akesson of Wilfrid Laurier University and CPC 
associate director Mark Canavera, sought to identify ways that the social service workforce can be strengthened around the globe. This work was undertaken on behalf of the Building the Evidence Interest Group of the Global Social Service Workforce Alliance. The data identified a broad array of challenges to the creation of universally applicable practices aimed at workforce strengthening. Issues of contextualization, resource availability, and access to quality training are several factors complicating the identification of global social service work practices. It is important that future research on this topic consider voices from low- and middle-income countries and continue to add to the evidence base on this topic.
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The Social Service Workforce as Related to Child Protection in Southeast Europe: A Regional Overview
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Social Service Workforce Training in the West and Central Africa Region
Better understanding the social service workforce—from professional social workers to community-level frontline workers—as well as their skills, functions, and training needs is a key question facing the child protection and family welfare field. This research, conducted by the CPC Learning Network for UNICEF’s West and Central Africa regional office, sought to better understand how social workers and related professionals are trained and educated –in both formal and less formal ways– to engage in social work practice, especially in regards to child protection, in the region. Research first involved a desk review and phone interviews, then semi- structured interviews and group discussions with 253 individuals in five West African countries from November 2013 to February 2014. The findings suggest tremendous variability in the formal social work training available country and highlight challenges facing the social service workforce, including lack of clarity of job descriptions and legal mandates and inadequate adaptation of training curricula to cultural contexts.
This report is available in English and French below.
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Defining Best Practice in Care and Protection of Children in Crisis-Affected Settings: A Delphi Study
The article, published in Child Development, features the findings from a 3-phase Delphi consultation featuring thirty specialists in humanitarian work supporting the care and protection of children in crisis settings. Proposals of best practice were elicited, reviewed, and rated by participants. A high level of consensus support was reached for 55 statements. These statements emphasized utilization of existing resources, participation, and inclusivity. The influences of resilience theory, social ecology, and cultural sensitivity were clearly evident. The utilization of developmental theory could be strengthened in relation to more differentiated understanding of the operation of protective influences and conceptualization of such influences in terms of ‘‘adaptive systems.’’ Wider research engagement by development scientists in diverse cultural settings and clear formulation of findings for practitioners and policy makers would further support evidence-based humanitarian practice.
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Addressing the Psychosocial Needs of Pregnant Women Affected by War: Program Approaches and Program Gaps
Today’s female refugee and internally displaced population faces the increasing risk of adverse birth outcomes associated with stress related to conflict, flight, and displacement. Programs addressing the specific psychosocial needs of pregnant women in situations of war are scarce, and there is little consensus regarding best practices. Initiatives have recently emerged including psychosocial groups, safe motherhood training, and social support systems, all which aim to alleviate the psychosocial stress experienced by this cohort. However, there remain existing program gaps, such as the absence of specific quality research, the use of deficits-based vernacular concentrated on vulnerabilities, no focus on postpartum care, and little development of gender-based violence prevention initiatives addressing pregnancies resulting from rape. It is clear that more needs to be done to provide and support comprehensive quality psychosocial services for this population.
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Mapping of Child Protection Monitoring and Evaluation Tools
The availability of effective measurement tools is a clear prerequisite for the strengthening of monitoring and evaluation within the field of child protection. This report provides a structured review of a sample of 124 child protection M&E tools. Tools were selected for review with respect to explicit inclusion criteria regarding relevance to certain focal areas of child protection, structured means of data collection, and documented use in monitoring and evaluation activity. With tools being made available along with this report (or links to access being provided) this compilation also represents a valuable consolidation of material for potential field use.
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