Balance and boundaries: An interpretative phenomenological analysis of social workers’ experiences of staying in the profession
Year: 2026
Type: dissertation
Abstract: This study used interpretative phenomenological analysis to explore the lived experiences of frontline children and families social workers who have remained in the profession for longer than the career average of eight years (Curtis, Moriarty and Netten, 2010). Interviews were conducted with seven practitioners, with findings generating new knowledge that contributes to existing literature by exploring emotional and embodied domains of staying in the profession. Analysis of data attended to the double hermeneutic, making sense of the participant’s sense-making as they explored their experiences of remaining in social work (Smith, Flower and Larkin, 2022). In this thesis I argue that social workers are committed to their work, experiencing social work as a key part of their identity and remaining in the profession despite significant barriers to doing so. Participants explored a lack of support from employing organisations, perceiving that frontline children and families social work is incompatible with maintaining a parenting or caring role. Colleagues were a key source of support in maintaining the social work role, with concerns raised that working practices such as remote working make these links harder to develop and maintain. The findings remained committed to idiography (Vicary and Ferguson, 2024), illustrating participants’ experiences with verbatim extracts. This study contributes new knowledge regarding social worker retention, focussing on the lived experiences of participants and offering new insights into understanding retention in a profession known to have high levels of stress and burnout amongst its workforce (Ravalier et al., 2021). The findings reflect the distinct yet interconnected dimensions of participants’ experiences, shaped by a complex and often messy landscape of social, emotional, and organisational factors. By centring their unique lived experiences, this study contributes to a deeper conceptualisation of the need for balance and boundaries in maintaining experienced and committed practitioners in children and families social work.
Author: Giddings, Lindsay
Language: English
Subfield: Public Administration
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7204673993