Social Workers' Knowledge and Attitudes About Evidence-Based Practice: Differences Between Graduate Students, Educators, and Practitioners

The implementation of evidence-based practice (EBP) is increasingly being stressed as a responsibility of social work practitioners and social work educators. Clinical social work practitioners have been encouraged to use EBP to guide practice decision making, relying not only on research, but also considering the client's preferences and the professional expertise of the practitioner. Despite this momentum, not every social worker utilizes EBP as a part of their work, citing barriers including lack of understanding, limited access to resources, and concerns about specific EBPs interfering with the therapeutic process. This article adds to the literature by describing results from research which examined differences in familiarity and attitudes about the implementation of EBP among three classes of social workers: social work graduate students, social work educators, and practitioners. Results indicated a statistically significant difference between groups in familiarity with EBP; graduate students reported significantly less familiarity with implementing EBP when compared to educators and practitioners. Additionally, graduate students and educators reported significantly more positive attitudes about using EBP when compared to practitioners. The field of social work and social work education needs to support social work students as they transition from the classroom to the workforce by providing ongoing education, support, and supervision around the implementation of EBP, while also encouraging social workers to learn skills to address any barriers. Recommended strategies for supporting the use of EBP in the field are shared.