Date
4-2022
Department
School of Behavioral Sciences
Degree
Doctor of Education in Community Care and Counseling (EdD)
Chair
Pamela Moore
Keywords
Child Protective Services, Social Work, Social Services, Child Welfare, Burnout, Leadership, Child Maltreatment
Disciplines
Social and Behavioral Sciences
Recommended Citation
Reese, Danyelle LaKeya, "Perceived Leadership Style by Child Protective Services Workers and the Impact on Burnout" (2022). Doctoral Dissertations and Projects. 3519.
https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/doctoral/3519
Abstract
Few studies have analyzed worker burnout and organizational leadership styles for child protective service (CPS) workers. Many studies have focused on child welfare workers as a whole. Child welfare encompasses many different program areas. CPS is a subset of child welfare agencies. Child protective services workers have a high-stress job that exposes them, workers, to secondary trauma and burnout at a higher rate than other comparable positions. Child protective services is a program that is mandated to receive reports of child maltreatment, investigate the allegations, and provide services to the clients. Due to the job’s complexity, workers may rely on their leadership to provide guidance and support to assist them in achieving the best possible outcomes for families. Burnout may impact how effective a worker is in working with clients, negatively impacting client outcomes. This quantitative study had two purposes: (1) to further explore child protective services workers' burnout and (2) to examine the relationship between burnout and organizational leadership. This research focused specifically on CPS workers in the continental United States. Participants were recruited online, and the data was collected through an online format. The Maslach Burnout Inventory and the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire were used for this study. Findings were analyzed using MANOVA and multiple linear regression analysis. Findings identified significance between a sense of personal accomplishment and CPS worker’s burnout. Age was a moderator between organizational leadership and emotional exhaustion. Future research should consider conducting a similar study with more perceived leadership types.
