The purpose of this study is to assess Master of Social Work (MSW)
students’ perspectives on their preparedness to identify mental health needs of
caregivers that are working toward reunification. Research has established that
caregivers with mental illness have children removed by the child welfare system
at higher rates. In order to reunify successfully, it is critical that any mental health
needs are identified to provide appropriate linkage to services. This quantitative
study used a self-administered survey questionnaire with a case study vignette.
MSW students have some exposure to diagnosing during their MSW program,
however, the findings suggest that key factors such as area of specialization,
length of experience in a mental health setting, and mental health diagnosing
experience, impact how comfortable they are with diagnosing and recognizing
the severity of mental health symptoms
