Speaker
Description
Authors: Nikol Bogdan (Faculty of Law Osijek), Dinka Caha (Faculty of Law Osijek)
Presenter/Corresponding author: Nikol Bogdan
Background. Professionals in helping professions constitute a particularly high-risk group for the development of mental health problems. Among these, social workers are especially vulnerable, with numerous studies indicating a heightened risk of mental health issues compared to other helping professions. Social workers are regularly exposed to distressing emotions, the traumatic experiences of clients, and, at time, their colleagues. Consequently, identifying factors that may enhance the mental health of social workers is essential for both the promotion of well-being and the prevention of psychological difficulties. The present study aims to determine the contribution of self-efficacy and emotion regulation to depressive symptoms among social workers.
Methods. A total of 256 social workers employed at Regional Offices of the Croatian Institute for Social Work participated in the online survey. Data were collected using the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21), the General Self-Efficacy Scale, and the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire. The data were analysed using regression and mediation analysis, all conducted in JASP program.
Results. The findings indicate that social workers who more frequently use emotional suppression report higher levels of depressive symptoms, whereas those who perceive themselves as more self-efficacious report lower levels of such symptoms. Furthermore, the results suggest a partial mediating effect of emotion regulation in the relationship between self-efficacy and depressive symptoms.
Discussion. In light of these findings, it is crucial to identify and reinforce factors that support the mental health of social workers. The findings underscore the importance of equipping social workers effective emotion regulation strategies to reduce the use of maladaptive strategies such as emotional suppression. Additionally, enhancing self-efficacy emerges as valuable protective factor for preventing mental health problems within this professional group.
| Conflict of interest | The authors declare no conflicts of interest. |
|---|
